Chapter 3
799 Words
Chloe told me to sit down and eat, adding that Jason had always been a great cook.
She used to eat two whole bowls of rice in one sitting, apparently.
"Chloe's asking you to eat. Just sit down and have some."
I looked at the three dishes on the table. Every single one was spicy. The irony hit even harder.
I turned around, went back to the bedroom, and started packing my clothes.
Before long, I heard the sound of running water from the kitchen. Jason and Chloe were fighting over who got to do the dishes.
"Doing dishes isn't a girl's job. Sit on the couch and have some snacks."
Chloe smiled, made her way to the sofa with her cane, and felt around until she found the bag of chips I'd just bought from the store—opened it with perfect precision.
"So doing dishes isn't a girl's job, but it's automatically mine?"
I leaned against the doorframe, and Jason froze mid-scrub.
Chloe stopped eating too. She stumbled to her feet and started heading for the door.
"Jason, I haven't fed Buddy yet. I should get going."
He shot me a look like I was being difficult, set down the dishes, and rushed to walk Chloe out, as if she might shatter at the slightest bump.
Less than ten minutes later, he was back, and furious. "I used to think you were so considerate. Why are you being so hostile to Chloe?"
"If you think I'm being cruel, you're more than welcome to be with her."
Jason's patience snapped. "Yanna, her eyes are my fault. She came here to find work, and taking care of her is the least I can do. Can you just try to understand?"
"That's exactly why I'm telling you to be with her. Then you can take care of her for the rest of your life."
I stopped packing. He must have realized I was genuinely angry, because his voice softened.
"What are you talking about? Of course I like you. You're the one I want to be with."
His words didn't stir a single ripple in me.
Just then, someone knocked on the door—a woman here to see the apartment.
I gave her a smooth, practiced tour of the place.
After she left, Jason looked confused. "We've only been here a couple of months."
"It doesn't feel right. Something about this place just feels off."
He assumed I wanted him to do the heavy lifting of finding a new place, and he couldn't hide his grin.
"Sure, sure. Whatever you want."
Over the next week, I kept sending out resumes and going to interviews. Jason was barely home.
During the day, he was at work. At night, he was busy helping Chloe settle into the city.
On weekends, he helped her apartment-hunt and move.
The day Chloe moved into her new place, she invited us over for dinner.
I didn't want to go, but Jason insisted it would look bad if I didn't, and dragged me along.
The atmosphere was warm. Everyone fussed over Chloe, jumping at every chance to help with the heavy lifting.
Honestly, in that moment, I kind of admired her. A young woman, blind and alone, brave enough to start over in an unfamiliar city.
That lasted until I left, then came back for my phone, and overheard her talking to a friend.
Chloe wasn't blind.
The whole thing was an act, designed to toy with Jason's feelings.
I pushed the door open. "He's crazy about you. Why would you do this?"
Chloe didn't flinch. She smiled and asked me right back, "Why? Because he didn't deserve the truth. When I got hurt because of him, I went abroad for treatment. We agreed that once my eyes healed, I'd come back and we'd get married. My eyes did heal. Before I came back, I lied and told him they didn't—I wanted it to be a surprise. And then?"
And then, during that time, he'd been getting cozy with me. The moment he heard her eyes couldn't be fixed, he jumped at my confession without a second thought.
I stood there, speechless.
While we were still staring each other down, Jason came back upstairs, wondering what was taking me so long.
The second she saw his face—maybe afraid I'd expose her—Chloe's composure cracked. Panic flickered across her face, and her eyes went red in an instant.
Jason saw her looking hurt and immediately assumed I'd done something. He turned on me without hesitation.
I'd actually felt sorry for Chloe up until that point.
But getting chewed out for absolutely nothing flipped a switch in me.
Was she scared of being exposed?
Then that's exactly what I was going to do.
- Writer
