The day Kael Ellison’s first love returned to the country, he brought her straight into our home without a second thought. Not a single word of consultation, not even a warning. When I confronted him, his reply was as cold as stone. “Kaia lost her sight unexpectedly. I gave her my word to support her. It’s my responsibility to take her in.” His unapologetic tone stung as though my feelings were an afterthought.

When I fell ill, he didn’t spare me a single day off work, yet he carved out two full months from his schedule to play the ever-doting caretaker for Kaia Jennings.

One afternoon, Kaia tripped over one of the delivery boxes by the doorway, hitting her forehead in the process.

His eyes burned with distress, yet his voice was cold as ice when he scolded me. “Take your pile of junk and leave!”

I nodded without a word, my composure steady. “Alright,” I replied simply.

Without looking back, I made the call that changed everything. “Elder sister, I’ve decided to return home for the arranged marriage.”

——

On the other end of the line, my sister’s laughter rang with unrestrained joy. “So, you’ve finally decided to leave that little boyfriend of yours? I’ve been telling you for years, he was never right for you. Nothing good was ever going to come from it.”

Her next words hit like a dagger wrapped in silk, cutting deeper than I expected. “Besides, all this time, has he ever once acknowledged you in public? Not even once.”

Her voice was light, but her words felt like quiet needles piercing through my chest. The truth she so easily spoke had always been there, painfully clear to everyone else. And yet, I had been the only one blind to it.

I drew a deep breath, forcing a smile that barely reached my eyes. “Sis, aren’t you heading to Riverdale City for your business trip in seven days? I’ll come back then. Arrange for me to meet him.”

The call ended, and before I could gather my thoughts, a quiet presence emerged behind me.

Kael stepped into view, his movements unhurried as he reached for a ceramic cup from the cabinet. He raised an eyebrow, his voice casual but probing. “Who are you meeting? What kind of person?”

The truth lingered on the tip of my tongue, my matchmaking prospect. But the words refused to leave.

I shook my head, keeping my face unreadable. “No one. Just a friend.”

My eyes drifted to the cup in his hand, a faint ache stirring in my chest.

“Why… did you suddenly think of using that?” I asked, my voice quiet but firm.

The cup he held wasn’t just any cup; it was part of a pair of Disney couple mugs I’d gifted him long ago for Valentine’s Day. Back then, he claimed to adore them, yet they’d been left untouched, hidden away in the cabinet.

I had once asked him why he never used those mugs.

He laughed softly, wrapping me in his arms from behind.

“You silly girl,” he teased. “We’re saving these for when we get married.”

At that moment, my heart felt wrapped in the sweetness of honey. I thought he was dreaming of a future with me, a future where we’d stand side by side as husband and wife.

But later, an accidental glance at Kaia’s social media shattered that illusion.

It was there I discovered the truth: the one who adored Disney ceramic cups was Kaia. The one Kael had envisioned sipping from those mugs with on their wedding day wasn’t me.

Now, as my gaze lingered on the cup in his hand, Kael spoke with casual indifference. “Kaia doesn’t have a proper cup to drink from, so I gave her this one. She happens to like it.”

His words struck like a gust of cold wind, snuffing out the faint embers of those long-forgotten promises. The future he had once painted so vividly had been discarded, left to fade like an old photograph.

I swallowed the bitterness, letting the ache settle in the pit of my stomach. A thought lingered in my mind like a quiet echo, ‘We don’t have a future together anyway.’

So I nodded, my voice steady. “Go ahead. Don’t keep her waiting.”

Kael blinked, caught off guard by my calm response. A flicker of surprise crossed his face before he stepped closer, ruffling my hair with an unfamiliar gentleness.

“Wait for me to come back,” he murmured softly.

That evening, as I sat in the study drafting my resignation letter, the door creaked open without warning.

Kael walked in alone, shedding his coat as if discarding the day’s burdens. He closed the distance between us and wrapped me in his arms. “Skylar,” he said quietly.

I stiffened, instinctively shutting my laptop and stepping back to create space between us. “Where’s Kaia?”

He sighed, weariness etched into his face. “Kaia was hospitalized today. The doctors want to keep her under observation.”

His expression was a portrait of exhaustion, a man utterly drained by worry. It was clear where his heart lay; from the moment Kaia returned, she had been his priority. The call she made as soon as she landed had tethered him to her side.

When Kael found out she had lost her sight, he rushed to her like a madman, his urgency leaving no room for explanation. Without a word to me, he brought her home, making a decision that turned my world upside down.

At first, I had no idea who Kaia was to him. Thinking practically, I suggested she stay at a hotel and hire a caregiver for her needs.

Kael frowned, his objection sharp and immediate. “Skylar, I can’t trust anyone else to look after her. Let Kaia stay here for now.” His voice softened as he added, “Before she left, she was my… best friend. I promised her I’d always be there for her.”

Helping a friend shouldn’t have been an issue, but Kael’s protectiveness, his tone, and the look in his eyes felt all too peculiar.

The truth unraveled one afternoon while Kael had stepped out to buy something. Kaia, with a smile that didn’t quite reach her sightless eyes, approached me.

“Skylar, aren’t you curious about my relationship with Kael?” she asked casually, her voice laced with something unspoken.

Before I could respond, she answered her own question. “I’m his first love,” she said, her smile widening.

Her words hit me like a blow, but she wasn’t finished. “I heard that after we broke up, he dated several girls who looked like me. Tell me, Skylar, even though I can’t see, we must look quite similar, don’t we?”

Her words froze me in place. She wasn’t wrong. Our features bore an uncanny resemblance, like shadows of the same face.

That day, I took her for a walk in the courtyard. A passerby paused to ask if we were sisters.

At that moment, the realization struck me, like a sharp, unwelcome truth. After six years of being by his side, I was nothing more than a stand-in.

The questions I had buried deep within suddenly unraveled, one by one. Why did Kael pour so much of himself into Kaia? Why, when I had been bedridden with a high fever, my voice trembling as I called him, he hesitated.

“Skylar, I’m swamped with work. I really can’t take any time off,” he’d said.

Yet now, for Kaia, he had effortlessly requested two months of leave. When his company denied it, he didn’t blink before resigning outright.

The cracks widened further when Kaia wandered through the house one afternoon, only to trip over a package I had left by the door. She hit her forehead on the sharp corner of the counter, leaving a red welt behind.

Kael’s reaction was immediate and fierce. His eyes filled with panic as he scooped her into his arms, his voice a cold reprimand.

“Skylar! If you can’t keep your things in order, then throw them out! All of it!”

“Take your pile of junk and get out!”

He didn’t even glance my way as he stormed out, holding Kaia close, rushing her to the hospital like she was his world.

He didn’t notice my trembling hand clutching my stomach or how pale I had grown from the sharp pain flaring within me. My stomach problems were back, a relentless reminder of all the times he’d overlooked me.

As his figure disappeared through the doorway, I whispered a quiet promise to myself. “Alright.”

If this was what he wanted, I would grant his wish.

For the days that followed, I let go of everything. I stopped asking, stopped interfering, stopped existing in his orbit. Whatever he requested, I agreed without a second thought.

Ironically, my silence softened him. Kael’s anger melted, replaced by a strange tenderness that came too late.

That night, I finished drafting my resignation letter and sent it to my boss’s email. It felt like quietly closing a chapter I no longer wished to be a part of.

Kael walked in, carrying a cup of steaming water. His voice was soft, almost tender. “Skylar, why have you been staying up so late these days?”

Before I could respond, he wrapped his arms around me from behind. His breath warmed the side of my neck as he pressed gentle kisses into the curve of my shoulder.

“Kaia isn’t here tonight,” he murmured, his voice deepening. “We could…”

His breathing grew heavier, laced with a desire that no longer moved me.

I shifted away, frowning as I spoke softly, “I’m not feeling well today.”

The light in his eyes dimmed, and he forced a smile, reaching out to ruffle my hair in that familiar, patronizing way. But I stepped back, my expression blank, my silence louder than any rejection.

His touch, once comforting, now left me feeling repulsed.

A memory surfaced, sharp and unwelcome. Just a week ago, on a stormy night, the thunder had shaken the walls, and Kaia had crept into our room, her voice trembling as she clung to him.

“Kael, I’m scared…”

Without hesitation, he had helped her out of the room, careful not to disturb me. In the living room, his voice had dropped to a deliberate whisper, a tone reserved only for her.

"Don’t be afraid. I’ll stay in your room tonight.”

Before stepping into the guest room, he glanced back at me. With a deliberate motion, he closed the door behind him as if sealing me out of his world.

That night, the storm outside raged with thunder and lightning, but it couldn’t compete with the storm inside me. Beyond the closed door, Kael held another woman, whispering words meant for her ears alone.

He thought I was asleep. He thought I couldn’t hear.

When Kaia leaned in to kiss him, he didn’t resist. Instead, he returned the kiss, their passion igniting with an intensity I hadn’t felt in a long time.

Separated by two doors, I sat on the edge of my bed, hugging my knees tightly as tears carved silent trails down my cheeks.

A memory crept into my mind, sharp and uninvited. Six years ago, when Kael and I first started dating, he had kissed me while drunk. His lips brushed mine, and he mumbled something, soft, incoherent.

I had convinced myself he was murmuring my name. But no matter how many times I replayed it, the sound didn’t fit.

Looking back now, it was clear. He hadn’t been calling my name. It was hers.

Shaking off the memory, I forced myself to move. I turned off my computer, extinguished the light in the study, and headed for the bedroom.

“Skylar.”

I turned slowly.

Kael stood there, his posture casual but his expression uneasy. Dressed in loose pajamas, he looked at me with something that resembled worry.

“You’ve been different lately,” he said, his words deliberate, his tone unsure. “Is something bothering you? You seem distant. We promised to talk about everything always, remember? Whatever it is, you can tell me.”

For a moment, his presence was disarming. The way he looked at me and spoke felt like a shadow of the man I had fallen for all those years ago.

That year, on a rainy afternoon, we had accidentally swapped umbrellas. Kael stood across from me, a gentle smile lighting up his face.

“Skylar, doesn’t this feel like something straight out of a love story? Us taking the wrong umbrellas, it has to be fate, don’t you think?”

Back then, his words sent my heart racing, his voice weaving dreams of romance.

But now, that same voice left me hollow.

Kael took a step closer, his hand reaching for mine. “You’re my girlfriend. No matter what’s wrong, I’ll take care of it. Just tell me.”

My nose tingled, and I fought back the tears threatening to spill. I wanted answers, needed them.

What was he hiding? What was Kaia to him?

Before I could gather the courage to ask, his phone rang, shattering the fragile moment. The ringtone was different, unmistakably special.

My eyes flickered to the screen, catching sight of the contact. No name, just a simple “heart” emoji. It said more than words ever could.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Kael answered. A trembling, tearful voice poured through the speaker.

“Kael, I’m so scared… I didn’t want to bother you, but I fell while getting out of bed at the hospital. I… I don’t know what to do…”

His expression changed instantly, concern clouding his features.

Without a word, he rushed to the bedroom. Moments later, he emerged, dressed and ready to leave, his coat slung over his arm.

“Skylar, Kaia fell at the hospital. She’s all alone. I need to check on her!”

The words I wanted to say crumbled in my throat. I mustered a smile, brittle but convincing.

“Go ahead.”

When Kael’s figure finally disappeared from my sight, it felt as if the weight of the world had settled on my shoulders. All the strength drained from my body, leaving me hollow. I sank onto the bed, exhaustion and grief weighing me down.

Packing up the remnants of our life together. Over the course of six years, I had accumulated countless trinkets, each one a token of affection, mostly couple-themed.

Whenever Kael saw one, he’d chuckle but never once stopped me from buying them. Yet, he never used a single one.

The items had piled up over time, gathering dust as if they were silently mocking the hollow shell of myself I had become. Most of them were still in pristine condition. I tossed some straight into the trash, while others I sold or gave away, no longer willing to hold onto the memories they represented.

I glanced at the calendar on the wall. Only three days left.

Holding a cup of water, I turned my gaze toward the window. The clouds above drifted in an endless dance, gathering and scattering, only to regroup and start again, just like my heart.