Chapter 13
“What’s this about? Why are you here?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, as though she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear the answer.
“Uhm… Today’s your birthday,” I began, but before I could finish, she cut me off.
“Sorry I haven’t replied to your text. I’ve just been really busy. Thank you…”
I felt something snap inside me. “Shit, Ashley! I don’t want your gratitude for the damn text” I blurted, my voice rising in frustration/
“What exactly do you want from me, Kyle?” she gestured between us, the space between us thick with the tension I could barely contain.
I took a step closer, my voice soft, but carrying the weight of everything I’d been holding in for so long. “I want you back,” I said, barely above a whisper, but it was the truth, the only truth that mattered.
She scoffed, shaking her head like she couldn’t even hear to listen to me.
“I have to be somewhere,” she said, turning away, but I grabbed her wrist before she could take another step.
“Don’t” I said, my voice cracking. My heart was fighting to break free from my chest. “I’m sorry, freckles. I’ll make it up to you, I swear. I’ll do everything you Jwant. The lady you saw me with… I have nothing to do with her anymore, I swear.”
Her breath hitched as she exhaled shakily
“Let me go, Kyle,” she whispered but I knew, deep down, she wasn’t just asking me to let go of her wrist. We both knew that.
“I wish I could,” I said, my voice barely a whisper. “I’ve tried… but I couldn’t. For two years, I’ve been searching for you, but you were nowhere to be found. Violet didn’t spill, either. She didn’t tell me where you were. I spent two years regretting my choices, wishing I hadn’t lost you. I don’t know… I feel so bad. I just wish I could correct my mistakes.”
Ashley shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks as she looked at me like I was a stranger, like the man who stood before her wasn’t the one she’d once loved.
“Kyle, it’s over. Accept it. You’re chasing after something you already lost.”
Accept it. My foot!
This couldn’t be the end. Not for us. Not after everything we’d shared. Not after that kiss.
“Then why can’t you look at me?” I demanded, desperation clawing at my chest. Her eyes darted away, avoiding mine. “Can you look me in the eyes and tell me you don’t love me anymore?”
“Loving you has never been the problem!” she shouted, the words raw with pain as she ripped her wrist out of my hand. “I’ve always loved you, Kyle. Through a year of marriage, all I did was love you. And for the last two years, I’ve spent every single day loving you, trying to forget you. I loved you so much that I lost myself. Everything I did, everything I gave up, everything I endured… it was for you. For us.”
She paused, her voice trembling, before she continued, her words a release of years of silent suffering. “I never got mad at you for your late nights, the missed dates, the canceled trips. Why? Because I believed in you, and I wanted you to succeed. Not for the money, but because you did. I thought that one day, it would be enough, that you’d see what we had and be happy with it. But it was never enough. You chose money over me, Kyle. You chose her over me.”
A bitter laugh mixed with her tears, and it gutted me. “Every night I went to sleep alone in our bed because you were busy with some meeting. I woke up alone because you’d already left for work. And you know what? I put up with it because I loved you. But when you cheated with another lady… that was the line. I couldn’t take it anymore. And that’s why I left. You seemed fine with it. So tell me, Kyle, why the hell are you here again, begging for another
chance?”
The room spun, and I couldn’t breathe. The air was too thick with regret, with everything I had failed to do. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t process. I knew I’d hurt her, but this… this was more than I ever thought I’d caused, I remembered everything–the missed calls, the canceled plans, the way I never gave her the attention she deserved. I remembered the divorce,l. I thought we would make it through, I thought she’d come back then..
“I didn’t know,” I said, my voice raw, broken. “I’m sorry, Ashley. You’re the only one I’ve ever loved. I might not have shown it, but it’s always been you. Only you.”
The soft knock at the door cut through the silence, and my heart sank. Ashley wiped her tears quickly, hastily. “I’m sorry, Kyle, but I need to go…”
She hurried toward the door, opening it before I could stop her. I caught a glimpse of a man–someone I didn’t know–and they shared a brief embrace. It clicked in my mind. Ashley’s appearance – she was going out with him.
1/2
Chapter 13
The man took her hand, and together, they stepped out of the door. She left me standing there, alone. In her house.
My heart shattered. I’d always fought against the truth, the truth I wasn’t ready to accept. But now, it was clear. I’d lost her. And she would never be mine again.
green rose
he’s still with the women he cheated on her with and he’s lying about it. not going to read this cause he’s not worth redeeming.
