Chapter 7
He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. “After you left… I… I couldn’t think straight. All I wanted was to find you. But you weren’t home. Your things were gone. That’s when it hit me… you were really leaving.”
He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes filled with a vulnerability I’d never seen before.
Ava, I’m so sorry. I was wrong, so wrong. I never should have gone behind your back,
should never have hurt you. But I… I do love you. Please don’t do this. Don’t leave me.”
I knew he’d been frantic, desperate to find me. But it didn’t matter. He’d broken my trust
the moment he decided to go through with this charade. And once broken, some things can
never be fixed.
“May I go now?” I asked, my voice cold.
“No!” he shouted, pulling me back into his arms. “Ava, I’m begging you. I was wrong, okay? I’ll fix this. I’ll call Sarah right now, tell her I made a mistake, tell her you’re the one I love!”
That’s when I realized the extent of his selfishness, his utter disregard for anyone’s feelings
but his own. He truly was a monster.
I pulled away, looking at him with disgust. “Why are you so self–centered? You chose to grant her dying wish. Now you want to hurt her too?”
“If you’d stayed at the ceremony, gone through with this charade, I’d have at least thought you were doing it for her. But you couldn’t even do that, could you?”
“You want to have your cake and eat it too! You can’t have both of us, Liam! Go back to her!”
His face crumpled. He finally understood the gravity of his actions.
He sank to the floor, burying his face in his hands, his shoulders shaking with sobs.
As tempting as it was to comfort him, to tell him it was okay, I didn’t. He needed to face the consequences of his actions.
“Go back to her, Liam. She’s the one who needs you now, the one who doesn’t have much time left. Don’t waste another precious
ment.”
Despite my anger, a part of me still wished for him to do the right thing, to be with her until the very end.
He didn’t reply, just sat there, his head in his hands.
I couldn’t bear to see him like this anymore.
“If you want to redeem yourself, Liam, don’t do anything rash. People care about you, Sarah
cares about you. Think about them, for once.”
And with that, I turned and walked away. As I left, I heard him cry out, his sobs echoing through the empty hallway.
My heart ached for him, for the love we’d once shared. But I knew I had to choose me. I
deserved a love that was true, a love that wouldn’t abandon me when things got tough.
Three months passed. Liam didn’t call, didn’t try to contact me.
I heard about him through mutual friends.
The day I left, he’d gone back to Sarah.
Her condition had worsened after their confrontation at the wedding. She’d slipped into a
coma and never woke up.
Liam never left her side. He held her hand, whispered apologies, and confessed his love for
her in those final days.
She died peacefully, they said, a serene smile gracing her lips. Liam, however, was
inconsolable.
At Sarah’s funeral, he drank himself into oblivion, his friends‘ attempts at comforting him
proving futile.
He shut himself off from the world, refusing to see anyone, his phone going straight to
voicemail.
Then, one day, I received a call.
“Ava, it’s Mark. Listen, I need your help. I’m worried about Liam. He’s… not doing well.”
I hesitated, unsure of what to say.
