Chapter 3
663 Words
At eight that night, I returned to the apartment Edward and I had shared for the past seven years, carrying the finalized guest list.
I entered the passcode.
Beep!
Wrong password.
Frowning, I entered the date of our anniversary.
Wrong again.
The front door suddenly opened from the inside.
Nia stood there wearing Edward's oversized white dress shirt. The collar hung open, revealing several glaring red love bites across her collarbone.
She held a glass of red wine as she looked down at me with a smug smile.
"Eleanor, I'm so sorry."
She casually brushed back her damp hair. "Mr. Jones said the house password should be chosen by the real lady of the house."
I didn't say a word. I simply took out my phone and snapped a picture.
Nia's expression immediately changed. "What are you doing?"
I sent the photo straight to Edward. Less than thirty seconds later, my phone rang.
The moment I answered, his furious voice exploded through the speaker.
"Eleanor, what the hell is wrong with you? Nia's apartment flooded. I told her she could stay here for a few days. So what? Why are you taking pictures inside the apartment? Do you even know what privacy is?"
I stood alone in the hallway. "Why did you change the password?"
Edward let out a cold laugh. "It's my apartment. I can change it whenever I want. I've had enough of you acting like this every single day."
He hung up.
From inside the apartment, I heard Nia laughing.
"Hear that, Eleanor? This is Mr. Jones's home."
Bang!
The door slammed shut in my face.
I turned around and walked out of the complex.
Without warning, thunder cracked across the sky. A torrential downpour came crashing down.
I hadn't brought an umbrella. Within seconds, I was soaked through. The cold wind cut through me until even my bones ached.
Halfway down the road, breathing became harder and harder. My lungs felt like they were on fire.
I'd suffered from severe asthma and recurrent acute pneumonia since I was a child. Getting caught in the rain was the last thing I could afford.
My vision blurred. I leaned against a bus stop sign. My whole body burned with fever. It had to be over one hundred and four Fahrenheit.
I pulled out my phone and pressed the number one on speed dial. Edward had made me set it himself.
He once promised me that no matter what happened, if I called that number, he'd answer. The line rang several times before someone picked up.
Instead of Edward's voice, I heard Nia giggling.
"Edward, I want the strawberry cake."
People in the background cheered and laughed.
I struggled to breathe. "Edward... Help me... My pneumonia is acting up."
Silence.
A few seconds later, Edward finally spoke. His voice was ice cold.
"Are you seriously still pulling the fake illness routine? Eleanor, you'll even lie about something like this just to get my attention. You're disgusting."
I gripped my phone so tightly my nails dug into my palm.
"I'm not lying. I'm on Coastal Road..."
"I don't care whether you live or die."
The call disconnected.
At that moment, my heart finally died.
Everything went black. I slid down the bus stop into a puddle of rainwater. Somewhere far away, I heard the wail of an ambulance.
Just before I lost consciousness, I felt someone lift me into their arms.
*****
Three days later, I opened my eyes in a private VIP hospital room.
The sunlight was blinding.
A tall man stood beside my bed. He wore a perfectly tailored bespoke suit while calmly peeling an apple.
Charles Wood.
The legendary superstar whose influence reached every corner of the country, the crown prince of the capital's elite circles, the man even Edward had to bow his head to when they met.
He handed me the peeled apple with a lazy smile.
"My princess, are you finally done sacrificing yourself for that i***t?"
- Writer
