Betrayed By My Fiancée

Chapter 8: Unexpected Help

I freeze at my door, hand still gripping the handle like it’s the only thing keeping me upright. My brain is catching up slowly, too slowly. Then it hits me properly. My bag is still at Dante’s house. My phone too. Everything.

“My bag…” I whisper.

It feels like my stomach just drops out of nowhere. No phone means no Dante, no backup, no anything. Just me standing here like an i***t in a hallway I suddenly don’t want to be in anymore.

I slide down the door without thinking and end up sitting on the floor. My back presses against it, and I let my head fall back.

“Great… just great,” I mutter.

The hallway is dead quiet. That kind of silence that makes your thoughts louder than they should be. I sit there, staring ahead, trying not to spiral. Minutes pass, then more. My body starts feeling heavier, like it finally realizes I’ve been running on empty all day. My eyes keep trying to close on me.

I didn’t even notice the footsteps at first.

Then they get closer.

I blink hard and force myself to sit up slightly. A guy is standing a few steps away, looking at me like I’ve completely lost my mind sitting on the floor like this.

“So, miss… do you need help?” he asks.

His voice is calm. Not creepy. Just normal. I nod a little because honestly, I don’t even have the energy to explain my life right now. “I locked myself out,” I say, and my voice comes out rougher than I expect.

He steps closer and offers his hand.

“Do I know you?” I ask, squinting at him.

He chuckles a bit. “I don’t know… maybe you do.”

I couldn’t remember, but I still took his hand anyway. It feels warm, solid, like something stable in a day that’s been anything but. He helps me up gently, like he’s actually checking I’m okay and not just rushing me. I follow him down the hallway a few steps, still half out of it.

Then he stops at the door right next to mine.

I blink.

He unlocks it.

I stare at him. “You live right next to me?”

“Looks like it,” he says with a small shrug, like it’s nothing special.

I don’t know why that feels weirdly comforting and suspicious at the same time. He opens the door and steps aside.

“Come in,” he says. “You can sit.”

I hesitate for a second, then step inside.

The place hits me immediately. Clean. Too clean. Cream walls, polished surfaces, everything neatly in place like no one actually lives here or they just don’t make a mess in real life. It feels expensive too, in that quiet way rich places do. Big, but not warm.

“You must be paying triple what I pay,” I say without thinking. “This place is… wow.”

He laughs softly. “Something like that.”

He disappears into the kitchen and comes back with a plate of food. My stomach reacts before my brain even does. I realise I’m actually starving. “Here, you must be hungry,” he says.

I hesitate for a second, then take it. “Thank you,” I say quietly. I sit down and start eating, and it’s only then that I realise how badly I needed this. I don’t even overthink it, I just eat. Fast. Like my body’s catching up to everything I ignored today.

When I finish, I lean back slightly and only then notice he’s watching me. Not in a weird way. Just… observing.

“Feeling better?” he asks.

“A little,” I admit.

Then I look at him properly. “So… how are you going to help me with the whole locked-out situation?”

He answers like it’s nothing. “I’ll go to the landlord and ask for a spare key.”

I actually laugh a bit at that. It slips out before I can stop it. “Are you serious? That guy is impossible. He never gives out spare keys.”

He frowns. “What do you mean? He gives me mine every time I ask.”

That makes me pause completely.

“…what?”

I stare at him for a second. “Well, he doesn’t do that for me.”

There’s a weird silence after that. Like something doesn’t add up, but neither of us can name it yet. My exhaustion hits again right after, heavier this time, like my body is done pretending.

“You can sleep on my bed,” he says softly. “I’ll take the couch.”

I hesitate. “Are you sure?”

He nods. “Yeah. You look exhausted.”

I don’t even argue anymore. I just nod once. “Thank you.”

I walk to the bed and lie down, and the second my head hits the pillow, it’s like my body finally gives up. I’m gone almost instantly.

—

I wake up too fast.

“Oh no,” I whisper, sitting up like I just remembered I’m late for my entire life.

I rush into the living room, and my footsteps wake him instantly. He sits up quickly. “What’s wrong?”

I stop in front of him, breath still uneven.

“I’m so sorry,” I say fast. “I ate your food, slept on your bed, and I didn’t even tell you my name.”

I straighten up and hold out my hand. “Hi, I’m Jade Harvey. What’s your name?”

He takes my hand gently. “Hi, Jade. I’m Mike Harris.”

I nod, still trying to fully wake up. “Thank you for helping me,” I say. Then reality catches up again, heavy and immediate. I step back. “I should go. I don’t want my fiancé getting the wrong idea.”

Mike nods. “That makes sense.”

I walk to the door, then pause for half a second. “Thanks again, Mike,” I say.

I step out and close the door behind me.

The hallway feels different now. Quieter in a way that makes my thoughts louder again. I stand there for a second, staring ahead.

Because my bag is still at Dante’s house.

And I don’t get to avoid that anymore.