He Favored Her, I Left for Good

Chapter 7

I only took what was mine. The apartment went straight to a realtor.

My family wasn't from this city.

When we'd picked this place to build a life together, my parents bought it for us to make that happen. Now? Didn't seem like I'd be needing it.

I checked myself into Larry's hospital. Last time, he'd just happened to be there for a consult. This time, I was his patient for real.

My best friend came with me. I told her to go back. Grad school was brutal, and she had to travel back and forth from two cities. I didn't wanna be a burden to her.

But she was stubborn as a mule. "Not leaving till your folks get here," she said, and that was that.

Then, as if the universe had a sick sense of humor, my period showed up right before surgery.

I stared at the IV that'd been sitting in my arm for two days, completely dead inside.

And out of nowhere, I recalled something. When I messed up my back in high school, the doctors said the surgery was risky. There was a chance I'd never walk again.

When I finally came to, groggy and out of it, Caleb was there. Running around, getting me water, checking on me every five minutes.

The day I could finally stand on my own two feet again, slow and shaky, he held me and just sobbed.

"Babe, I swear, I'll never let anything happen to you again. I'll protect you. Always."

Now? He couldn't even be bothered to remember.