Too Late, I Walked Away

My boyfriend, Liam Sterling, has a female friend, Lyra Kensington, who’s always been far too comfortable crossing lines. On our anniversary, she gifted him an alarm clock, leaning in to whisper loud enough for me to hear, “For timing. I’m afraid he won’t last.” At our engagement party, she sauntered over with a self-satisfied smirk and handed him a box of extra-small condoms as her engagement gift.

The day finally came when Liam proposed to me. But just before we were supposed to register the marriage, Liam dropped the truth: “Lyra needs a nominal father for her baby, but I will marry you in eight months.” No one doubts that I would be as devoted as ever to wait another eight months. After all, I’ve already spent seven years by his side. But at that very night, I accepted my family’s plan abroad and vanished from Liam’s world forever.

From the backseat, I watched them returning to the car after their marriage registration, without saying a word. Over the past seven years, I had exhausted myself to elbow my way in Liam’s world. I learned their favorite board games and even deliberately mimicked their manner of speaking. I thought I could earn a place in his circle as long as I exerted all my energy. But Lyra never had to lift a finger to lock in her with him forever. I finally knew some seats simply weren’t meant to be won through effort.

"What a terrible music!" Lyra suddenly grumbled, frowning as she reached for the center console. "It's noisy!"

The song playing was from my playlist. Liam kept logging into my account because he knew I like to hear my songs in his car.

"Don't be such a pill."

Liam slapped her hand away.

"I’m carsick. I just want something quiet. What's the big deal?"

Lyra retorted, stubbornly reaching for the console again.

Two seconds of silence passed.

"You're such a hassle," Liam muttered, caving in.

Lyra logged out of my account and into hers. A second later, deafening electronic music blasted from the speakers.

Liam chuckled. "So this is quiet?"

"It's pretty quiet," Lyra said flatly. "You’ve a problem with ears."

They started bickering once again, teasing each other about terrible taste in music and movie…they flirted as if I’d never existed at all.

A wave of nausea swept over me. I couldn't tell if it was carsickness or something heavier settling in my chest. Outside, the mountain scenery blurred as I rolled down the window. The cold air poured into the car, making my eyes sting.

Liam glanced at me through the rearview mirror. "It's windy. Roll it up before you catch a cold."

I sat motionless, but Lyra had already rolled the window up and continued to bicker with Liam.

"You said you'd treat me to dinner two months ago. What are you going to do about breaking that promise?"

"When did I say that?"

"Stop pretending You’ve amnesia. You said it yourself at the Japanese