Chapter 3

Day four, I was sealing up the last few boxes when the doorbell rang.

I figured it was Sean again, so I ignored it.

But then I heard a woman's voice I didn't recognize. "Ms. Grant? Is this Harper Grant?"

I walked to the door and looked through the peephole.

There was a woman standing outside. She had long hair falling over her shoulders, a delicate face, and an elegant air about her. She was wearing a cream cashmere coat and holding a bouquet of flowers.

It was Sarah. I recognized her immediately.

Even though I'd only met her a handful of times, that face was impossible to forget.

At every Lane family gathering, she was always right next to Sean, wearing that gentle smile.

And me? I was always seated at some other table, making awkward small talk with the Lane family's distant relatives.

I opened the door.

Sarah greeted me with a soft smile.

"Ms. Grant, sorry for showing up out of the blue. Hope I'm not intruding," she said, offering the bouquet. "These are for you. I heard you were recovering, so I thought I'd stop by and see how you're doing."

I didn't take the flowers. I leaned against the doorframe, watching her. "What do you want?"

Sarah kept her smile, hugging the bouquet to herself, her voice still gentle.

"I wanted to talk to you about Sean," she said, lowering her head a little, looking embarrassed. "I know you probably have some misconceptions about me."

"No misconceptions," I cut her off, my voice flat. "He's been sleeping at your place every night for five years. The proof is right there. There's nothing to misunderstand."

For a moment, Sarah's composure cracked, but she quickly slipped back into her graceful demeanor. "Ms. Grant, I understand why you're angry, but it's not what you think."

She bit her lips. "I struggle with severe anxiety and insomnia. I can't fall asleep when I'm alone. Sean and I have known each other since college. He was only there to keep me company.

"There's never been anything inappropriate between us."

I looked at her, suddenly feeling exhausted. "Sarah, I don't care if he spends every night in your bed or whether anything ever happened between you two. I really don't."

Her eyes widened a little.

"What matters is, the night I almost died, he hung up on me and then slept like a baby next to you for 8.2 hours, with a sleep score of 94. That's all I need to know," I said.

Sarah opened her mouth, looked like she wanted to say something, but nothing came out.

I took a step back, ready to close the door. "Did he send you here, or did you come on your own?"

Sarah hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "It's my decision. Sean doesn't know."

"Okay." I nodded. "Then go back and tell him he doesn't need to bother anymore. Whatever the relationship between you two is, it has nothing to do with me now.

"Take the flowers with you. I'm allergic to lilies."

Then I closed the door.

I had no idea how long she stood outside. I didn't care.

After closing the door, I sat down against it, letting myself sink to the floor.

In five years together, Sean had never remembered that I was allergic to lilies. Every Valentine's Day, he gave me those flowers.

Every time I got them, I'd end up sneezing, my eyes all red and puffy.

I had told him countless times, yet somehow he always forgot by the next year.

And today, Sarah brought lilies, too.

Was it only a coincidence? Or in Sean's world, were all women supposed to like lilies simply because Sarah did?

I didn't want to dig any deeper. The more I thought about it, the more disgusted I felt.

I got up and went back to taping up the boxes.

My flight to Dusvor was the day after tomorrow. I was leaving for a new city, starting a new job, and beginning a new life without Sean.

The night before I left, I posted the news about calling off the engagement on my social media. [To all friends and family: Sean and I have ended our engagement, and the wedding is canceled.

[I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. We're both doing fine, so please don't worry.]

After posting, I pinned it to the top of my feed. Then I went down the list and deleted every single contact tied to Sean, including Sean himself, Miranda, his dad, Paul, his colleagues, and his buddies.

Almost instantly, my phone started blowing up.

My best friend, Olivia Reed, called from Beloris. "No way, Harper. Did you finally break up with him? I'm so glad."

I laughed. "Wait, you never liked him, did you?"

"Like him? I couldn't stand him," Olivia practically shrieked. "I've been putting up with that guy forever. Every time he left at exactly eleven, it drove me crazy. That stupid sleepwalking excuse? Like hell I believed it."

"Why didn't you say anything before?" I asked.

"I did, but you never listened. You were lovestruck then," Olivia teased, then her tone softened. "But hey, I'm glad you finally see it now. What are you going to do?"

"I'm heading to Dusvor. Already got a job lined up."

"Hell yeah. Dusvor is perfect. Get as far away from that jerk as possible. Want me to come pick you up? Dusvor is not that far from Beloris."

"No, thanks. I can handle it myself."

"Alright, let me know when you get there. Harper, you deserve someone way better than him."

After hanging up, I stood by the window and looked out at the city at night. The neon lights flickered across the skyline.

At this hour, I used to wonder where Sean was. Was he somewhere else? What were they doing together?

Those thoughts used to gnaw at me, even before I knew the truth. Some part of me had always sensed that something was wrong.

Now it was all over.

I closed the curtains and turned off all the lights.

This time, I wasn't afraid of the dark anymore because I knew I didn't have to wait for anyone ever again.