I Left the Triangle They Thought I Needed Chapter 09

My voice was flat. “You did this to yourself.”

She repeated the words. “Did this to myself…”

“Natalie, if you hadn’t come after me. If you hadn’t let jealousy eat you alive.”

“Where would you be now?”

“You’re smart. You’re pretty. You’re talented. But you’re ugly on the inside.”

Seeing her again, I felt calm.

I did hate her. Of course I did.

Snake. Backstabber. I wanted to call her every name I could think of.

But I realized that just made me feel worse. Kept me up at night. Made me miserable.

So I let it go. I stopped punishing myself.

Natalie screamed at me.

“You don’t get it. You never lost everything. You never had to beg just to survive.”

“I was sick of being looked down on. My father was dead. My mother lost her mind.”

“What was I supposed to do?”

I didn’t flinch. “So you made yourself feel better by hurting me?”

“You had a bright future. You’re the one who threw it away.”

She stood there, frozen, lost in thought.

I turned and walked away.

The next day in class, James was there.

He gave me a sad smile.

My teacher slapped his hand. “Wrong. Your lines are off. Start over.”

James just looked down. He didn’t say a word.

When my teacher saw my work, he nodded.

“Look at Emily. You, on the other hand, are a lost cause.”

At the end of class, he said to James, “Your head isn’t here. Don’t come back tomorrow.”

I walked quickly. James called after me.

“Emily. Wait.”

I stopped. I didn’t turn around.

“What?”

He said, “Come with me. There’s something I want to show you.”

I thought about saying no. But he’d been texting me nonstop, leaving flowers and food at my door.

Might as well hear him out and shut this down for good.

James took me to a neighborhood and opened a door. Inside was filled with white roses.

“Emily. I finished the house. The one we were going to live in.”

“Look. The curtains are purple, your favorite. The furniture is the brand you like. The whole thing is simple, like you wanted.”

“This table. I made it myself. By hand.”

“The bedroom. Come see. The bed and the mattress are from Italy.”

“I even bought the pajamas. And the slippers.”

He pulled me by the hand, showing me every corner.

Then he stood in the middle of the roses, dropped to one knee, and pulled out a ring.

“Emily. Give me one more chance. Marry me.”

His voice echoed in the empty room.

I didn’t take the ring.

He looked up at me, his eyes red.

“I let the past stay in the past.”

“I’ve already built our future.”

Everything in that house was something I had once said I wanted.

He remembered every word.

He just remembered too late.

“Get up.”

He didn’t move.

“Emily. I just want to give our story a beautiful ending.”

I stepped back. “I said get up.”

“Are you trying to guilt me into this?”

“No. I’m not.”