Betrayed By My Fiancée

Chapter 27: Unanswered Questions

I closed the door behind me quietly. The click sounded too loud in the still apartment, like it didn’t belong there.

The air inside felt heavy in a way I couldn’t explain properly. Not empty… just full of things nobody had said out loud yet.

Clara was on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, phone in her hand. She looked up as soon as I walked in, her face changing instantly from relaxed to alert. “You’re back,” she said, sitting up a little. “You look… tired.”

I nodded once, dropping my bag near the floor. “It’s been a long day,” I said, already moving toward the kitchen like I needed something to do with my hands.

Clara didn’t let it go. I felt her following me before I even turned around. “That’s not what I meant,” she said softly. “You look like something happened.”

I opened the fridge and just stared inside. I wasn’t even looking at anything. My mind was still somewhere else entirely. “Nothing happened,” I said after a pause.

“Everything just… became clear.”

Clara leaned against the counter, arms folded. I could feel her watching me, trying to figure me out. “That doesn’t sound like nothing.”

I shut the fridge and turned slightly. My voice came out steady, maybe too steady. “Dante is coming tomorrow.”

That made her stop completely.

“For what?” she asked immediately, sharper now.

I exhaled slowly. “To talk. About everything.”

Clara’s eyes stayed on me like she was trying to read between my words. I didn’t give her anything else to work with.

I walked back into the living room and sat down on the edge of the couch. My body felt heavier than it should’ve for just sitting. “I don’t think it changes anything anymore,” I said quietly.

Clara sat beside me, closer now. “You’ve been saying that a lot lately,” she said. “But you don’t sound like you believe it.”

I didn’t answer her.

My hand moved into my pocket on its own. I pulled it out slowly.

The ring.

It sat between my fingers like it didn’t belong to me anymore. I stared at it without really blinking, like if I looked long enough, it might turn into something else.

Clara saw it immediately. “Why are you still holding onto that? ” she asked, softer this time.

My grip tightened without me meaning to. “I’m not holding onto anything,” I said.

“That’s not true,” she replied, but she wasn’t pushing. Just… honest.

The silence between us stretched out.

I turned the ring slightly under the light. It caught it for a second, then went dull again. Just metal. Nothing more.

“It used to mean something,” I said finally.

“And now?” Clara asked.

I swallowed. My voice came out lower.

“Now it just reminds me of what I ignored.”

Clara leaned back a little, sighing like she didn’t want to say the next part but knew she had to. “So what are you going to do when he comes tomorrow?”

I loosened my fingers slightly. I didn’t realize how tightly I’d been holding it. “I don’t know,” I admitted.

Clara hesitated, then spoke again. “And Mike?”

My head snapped up immediately.

“There is no Mike,” I said too fast.

Her eyebrow lifted slightly. “That was quick.”

I stood up before I could think too much about it and walked to the window. Outside, the street was quiet. Lights reflecting off empty roads. Everything looked normal like nothing in my life had just shifted.

“He just gave me a ride,” I added after a moment.

“Twice,” Clara said quietly from behind me.

I didn’t turn around.

Clara sighed again, softer this time. “You don’t have to figure everything out tonight,” she said. “But you also can’t stay in the middle of it forever.”

I looked down at the ring in my hand again. I didn’t answer right away.

“I know,” I said finally.

Clara went back to the couch, pulling her blanket around herself. Her breathing slowed after a while, drifting back into sleep like she always did when she decided something was out of her control.

I stayed by the window.

The ring was still in my hand. I turned it once more, then just… looked at it.

My reflection showed faintly in the glass. Tired eyes. Straight posture. But something different underneath. Not broken. Not dramatic.

Just aware.

After a while, I let go.

I placed the ring on the table.

Not hidden. Not thrown away. Just… there.

And I didn’t pick it up again.

Morning came too early. I was already awake before my alarm even had the chance to ruin the silence.

Clara was still asleep behind me, curled under the blanket like nothing in the world was waiting for her outside this room.

I got ready without rushing.

Shower.

Clothes. Hair tied back. Everything done properly, like a routine, could keep my thoughts in line. But it didn’t really help. It just gave me something to do while my mind stayed loud.

Before I left, I looked at Clara. She was still sleeping. Peaceful. I hesitated for a second longer than I should’ve.

Then I walked out.

The air outside hit differently. Colder. Sharper. Like it knew I wasn’t the same person walking out as the one who came in.

I got into the taxi quietly and gave the driver the address to Vane City. No extra words. Just direction.

The ride felt long, but not because of distance. Because my mind didn’t jump around like it used to. It stayed in one place.

Dante.

Leondra.

Mike.

And everything sitting between them that I hadn’t sorted out yet.

When the taxi stopped, I paid and stepped out. The preschool stood in front of me, familiar now in a way that didn’t feel comforting anymore. Just real.

I stood at the entrance for a second.

Then I exhaled.

And walked inside.