Loved Too Late

On New Year's Eve, Facebook blew up.

The reason was that Bennett Miles, the golden boy of Crestmoor’s elite, posted an update. In the photo, a shy young woman hid her face as she leaned against his shoulder while he grinned. His eyes were full of affection and mischief.

His caption read, "What do I do? Looks like I'm officially taken."

Friends in his circle flooded the comment section with congratulations. The real frenzy began when Bennett announced that the first 10,000 followers to like, share, and comment on the post would each receive a gold bar.

The internet went wild with envy and curiosity. Everyone scrambled to find out more about the woman in the picture. Then, someone claiming to have inside information started a livestream.

"Stop guessing. Her name is Kara Sierra. You know Sierra Hall at Crestmoor College? That building was named after her!

"Two years ago, she had kidney failure. Bennett personally donated one of his own kidneys to save her!"

"If Bennett hadn’t pulled the whole damsel-in-distress act by soaking in the lake for three hours in the dead of winter, Kara still wouldn’t have agreed to make it official. He was so happy that he started handing out money left and right!"

Netizens all agreed that Kara was one lucky woman to be adored so completely by Crestmoor’s golden boy, and to have him so devoted to her.

At tonight's gala, Bennett had stayed in the artificial lake for three whole hours just to prove a point. Finally, Kara caved and agreed to make their relationship public. Overjoyed, Bennett had picked her up and spun her in circles. He even teared up.

"Kara finally agreed to make it official! I’m the luckiest guy alive!"

Crestmoor’s most rebellious heir was grinning like a lovesick kid.

This was until Bennett’s friends dragged him off to get changed, while Kara went to find him some cold medicine.

That’s when she stumbled upon an old phone.

It was filled with videos. All of them were self-recorded messages from Bennett. The first one was from eight years ago.

In the video, a younger Bennett stared into the camera. He seemed grief-stricken, and his eyes were bloodshot. He was trying to hide his pain, but it bled through every word.

"Natalie, I found the girl. The one who stole your heart. Why? You’re dead, and you weren’t even allowed to rest in peace. Why does she get to live with your heart beating inside her? She’s still out there, happy and alive. I hate her. She’s a thief. I swear, I’ll make her life a living hell."

The second, third, and fourth videos were all the same. Bennett spilled his love for Natalie Johnson while drowning in hatred for Kara.

The sheer depth of his hatred, his grief, and his obsession felt like it was seeping through the screen.

Sierra sat frozen, unable to reconcile the Bennett she knew with the man in these videos. Her hands trembled as she continued watching.

In the 14th video, he said, "Natalie, everyone thinks I’m in love with Kara. You’re not jealous, are you? I just wanted to keep a part of you with me. Don’t worry. I’ll never love her. I just want to watch her fall for me like a fool. It’s hilarious."

In the 15th video, he said, "Natalie, I slept with her. I was thinking of you the entire time. I thought of your face and your name, and I felt your heart beating along with mine. It was perfect."

The screen went dark.

Kara lifted her hand to her cheek only to find it wet with tears.

She was an orphan, and she had grown up in a foster home. Born with a congenital heart defect, she had spent her entire life being cast aside and pitied.

Things only changed after she met Bennett.

Bennett had stood in freezing temperatures to buy her favorite crab croquettes even when it left his ears frostbitten.

He had flown halfway across the world through a raging storm just because he was worried she’d be scared of the thunder at night.

He had even shielded her with his own body during an earthquake, taking a terrible wound.

She had fallen for him over his genuine display of affection.