I was so close, like our relationship. Always almost.
Jake’s voice was hoarse. “That birthmark was
impossible to get rid of, so I thought this was the answer. It looks great, doesn’t it?”
He kissed me, his eyes full of desire, but the
person in the mirror looked lost.
My tears had dried up, Brenda’s perfume was
still lingering, and it always hung around even when we were together.
Looking back, there had been hints of his
betrayal all along.
Everywhere he touched me, I just shuddered. I
pushed him away, feeling sick, and scrambled
to get dressed.
2000
<
Jake looked hurt for a second.
But before he could say anything, his other,
special phone rang.
He hesitated and looked at me a few times
before answering.
“Babe, something came up. I gotta go. If you don’t want to…”
“It’s fine,” I said softly. “Go handle it.”
His back as he walked out the door felt like a
slap in the face.
If our story was never meant to be, then it had
to end now.
Jake, I didn’t have to love you forever.
“System, I want a new target.”
The system agreed, saying that this was the
“cool down” period and that I could still change my mind.
I had a moment of weakness, but then I was back to normal, gathering my things so I could leave at a moment’s notice.
Ever since we started going out, he had been collecting every little thing related to me.
Photos were laminated and put in an album,
and the books we had read were wrapped in
new covers.
Then a new friend request popped up on my
phone. I knew who it was.
As soon as I accepted, a video came up.
“Hey, Sarah, how do you like the gear Jake
bought me? Bet you never saw him get so
worked up.”
Jake was on top of her, in his car.
My head spun and I bumped into the bookshelf,
knocking a pile of letters to the floor, which I
hurried to pick up.
They were love letters I’d written to Jake when I
had been chasing him, and then at the bottom
of each, he’d written something to me.
His replies were as deep and endless as the
ocean.
Now, all of that was meaningless.
A sharp pain pierced my heart, then just
numbness.
Jake called as night was falling.
“Babe, today’s our anniversary! You haven’t
said anything, did you forget?”
“Don’t be mad. Get ready and come out, I’ve
got a surprise for you.”
He sent a location and asked if he needed to
come pick me up. I told him no.
The way he “loved” me felt the same as before,
but it was different, everywhere.
I agreed to go, to give our five years closure.
Jake was waiting by the river. He rushed over,
his voice full of sweetness.
“You always loved the fireworks, so I planned
something special.”
I looked into the distance, at the sky lit up with
explosions and remembered the day he said
we’d be together forever.
More fireworks went up, and drones formed
patterns in the air.
He tried so hard to make me happy, burying his
face in my neck to get my approval.
“Do you like it, babe?”
The light show shifted, forming “J&B” and a
big, flashing heart.
Even when he tried to hide it, it was there.
I looked away, forcing a smile, my heart aching.
<
Jake turned around to look, his face suddenly
pale. “How the heck did they misspell that?”
He was angry, scolding the staff, who bowed
apologetically.
“Sorry, sir, we had ‘B‘ for Brenda before, and it
slipped our minds to change it…”
I pretended not to hear, and after making sure I
wasn’t upset, Jake let out a sigh.
