He Said Caring For Girl Best Friend Was Duty, So I left Chapter 05

He Said Caring For Girl Best Friend Was Duty, So I left Chapter 05.

The expression on Derek’s face slowly froze.

He stared at the man for a moment before recognition finally hit.

“Owen?”

Owen smiled. “You still remember me?”

Bellamy looked stunned too.

Clearly, she hadn’t expected to run into him here.

Owen had grown up at Grace Hill Home too.

Later, he’d been adopted by a couple and moved overseas.

He left when he was still a teenager. After that, he rarely came back.

Derek frowned. “When’d you get back?”

“About two weeks ago,” Owen said, sounding casual.

Then he looked down at me.

“Get your blessing?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

Owen glanced at the small prayer card in my hand and smiled.

“Looks like God is on your side.”

I looked down as well.

A single line was written on the card.

[May love find its way to you.]

Owen folded it neatly and handed it back.

“Looks like luck’s finally on your side.”

Before I could respond, Derek’s expression darkened.

“Owen, since when were you two so close?”

Owen raised an eyebrow. “Close?”

“Wren and I grew up together. If we’re counting years, I knew her before you did.”

The courtyard suddenly fell quiet.

Sensing the shift in mood, Bellamy wrapped herself around Derek’s arm, a deliberate smile on her face.

“Wren, so that’s why you haven’t come home these past few days—you’ve been spending time with Owen.”

“You should’ve told us. Derek and I were worried sick.”

Worried?

If we hadn’t run into each other today, they probably wouldn’t even know where I was staying.

Owen laughed. “Worried? That’s interesting.”

“When I saw Wren at the hospital two days ago, I didn’t see either of you there.”

Derek’s brow furrowed sharply.

“What hospital?”

Owen looked at him.

“You didn’t know?”

“The day Mr. Collins passed away, Wren handled everything herself.”

“From the emergency room to the funeral. She did it all alone.”

Then, as if remembering something, he added, “Oh, right.”

“Mr. Collins kept asking for you near the end.”

“He kept saying, ‘Where’s Derek?'”

“I honestly thought something had happened to you.”

The moment those words landed, the entire courtyard fell silent.

The color slowly drained from Derek’s face.

He looked at me on instinct.

“Mr. Collins… he’s gone?”

I didn’t answer. There was no point anymore.

Owen answered for me. “Seven twenty, two nights ago.”

“He waited for you until the very end.”

Derek went still. His eyes fixed on me.

His voice dropped. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

The irony almost made me laugh.

“Derek. The record of that phone call is probably still on your phone.”

“Do you need me to remind you?”

His face turned pale.

That night, I’d cried, begging him to come. I’d abandoned every shred of dignity I had.

And he still hadn’t shown up.

Bellamy immediately sensed something was wrong.

She tightened her grip on Derek’s arm.

“Derek,” Her voice wavered. “we were at rehearsal that day. It’s not your fault.”

With those words, she confirmed everything.

Owen let out a cold laugh. “Rehearsal?”

“What kind of rehearsal is more important than the dying wish of the man who raised you?”

Bellamy felt speechless.

Derek suddenly strode toward me.

“Wren. We need to talk.”

“There’s nothing left to talk about.”

I stepped around him and started walking away.

A hand closed around my wrist—Derek’s, holding on tightly, as if he was afraid I’d disappear.

“I didn’t know how serious it was. I thought you were lying to me.”

I stopped walking. I finally turned back.

“So?”

“Derek—because you thought I was lying, that made it okay not to come?”

“Because you thought I was jealous of Bellamy, you could listen to me cry and still make me beg first?”

His throat worked. For the first time, he couldn’t find a single word.

And suddenly, I felt tired. Not angry. Not heartbroken. Just tired. Too tired even to hate him anymore.

Slowly, I pried his fingers off my wrist.

Then I spoke softly, “Before Mr. Collins passed away, he told me to make things work with you.”

“He said you had a bad temper, but that you weren’t a bad person.”

I smiled, yet tears slipped down my face.

“The problem is… I can’t even convince myself of that anymore.”

Then I turned and walked toward the chapel gate.

Owen followed. As he passed Derek, he paused and said calmly, “Oh, one more thing.”

“The blessing Wren asked for?”

“You were right. It wasn’t about you.”

He slipped one hand into his pocket, a faint smile on his face.

“Because next month—I’m taking her to meet my parents.”

In that instant, every trace of color vanished from Derek’s face.