Chapter 2

When I opened my eyes again, it was the night of my engagement. I was holding Leon's phone, and there was a text from Amelia: [Leon, I took the pills. If you don't come save me, I'll hook up with some random guy.]

This time, I quietly set the message as unread. As I was about to put the phone back, Leon's grip tightened suddenly around my wrist, the pain making me frown.

"Charlotte! What are you doing?" Leon snapped.

I couldn't help but feel bitter as I looked at him. His carefully styled hair was a mess, the tie I'd fixed for him was crooked, and his eyes were bloodshot. He looked almost wild.

I'd never seen him so worked up over someone else before.

"It's nothing. I saw your phone light up and thought I'd hand it to you," I said.

He snatched it from me.

Leon glanced at the screen, his Adam's apple bobbing. Without a word, he turned and bolted for the door.

His shoulder slammed into mine, leaving half my body numb with pain.

And then there was the messy bed, two people wrapped up in each other, lost in bliss, and my parents, crying tears of joy as they told me the bride would be swapped.

I took it all in.

On the day my wedding was swapped for Amelia and Leon's, I boarded a plane and began a three-year journey around the world.

Maybe it was that comment from our college roommate that made Amelia uncomfortable again.

My mom called me.

It was the first call in three years. We hadn't spoken in so long that we both felt a little awkward.

After a simple "hello," there was a heavy silence between us.

"Mom, is there something you need?" I was the first to break the awkward barrier between us.

She paused, then quickly seized the chance to respond. "N-No, nothing. Are you doing okay in Riverdale?"

"Mom, I'm in Betrico," I corrected her.

Mom sounded a little flustered. "Wait, when did that happen? I thought you posted something..."

I didn't want to hear any more of her hurtful explanations. "That was from half a year ago. If you have something to say, get straight to the point."

"You're still so..." Mom started.

You were not exactly well-liked by the grown-ups. And you didn't have Amelia's way with words.

I'd heard these words so many times, I could probably recite them for two hours straight without repeating myself.

Finally, she got to the real reason for the call. "It's been three years, you know. You're a girl, out there all alone; it's not safe. And you're getting older now, still no boyfriend. Amelia keeps worrying about you."

Was she really worried about me, or was she afraid Leon still hadn't moved on from me?

We both knew what was really going on.

Now that I finally understood the real reason for her call, there was no way I wasn't disappointed.

I thought after three years away, I wasn't the only one who'd moved on.

Turned out they never needed to get over anything. From beginning to end, they always had Amelia's back. As for me, I was the only thing keeping them from showering her with all their love.

"What do you want to say?" I asked.

On the other end, Mom gave a nervous little laugh; she must've heard the ice in my voice, and suddenly couldn't bring herself to say anything.

That was when Dad jumped in, putting on his strict-dad act and barking at me. "Is that how you talk to your mother? You've been gone all these years, not a word from you.

"Come home. Your mom and I have already arranged a marriage for you. It's time you settled down and got married, so we can stop worrying about you all the time."

Mom chimed in. "It's Julian Goodwin. We know them well. He came back from overseas three years ago, and he's still single. Julian's father's been worried about him, too, so we thought maybe you two could meet up and see how things go."

Honestly, I was pretty shocked.

Julian was pretty much our childhood friend.

He barely ever spoke.

He would follow us around all day, never uttering a word.

Amelia thought he was good-looking at first and tried to get close to him, but he was too cold. Even as a kid, he always acted as if the whole world owed him something.

Leon and Julian got along pretty well. They'd often go play ball together.

Every time I asked if I could tag along, Julian would give me that icy stare and shut me out.

I always thought he hated me.

Not long after, we all started college. Julian did what his family wanted and went overseas, and like that, he was gone for six years.

"Is he okay with this?" I couldn't hold back and asked the question anyway.

Mom let out a happy laugh. "Of course! We wouldn't decide something like this for him."

The railing echoed with my tapping as I curled my fingers and murmured quietly. "Alright, I'll come back tomorrow."