- 05.
I finally decided to buy a train ticket home.
The station was packed with people rushing to get tickets for the holidays. The noise was overwhelming, but seeing the joy on everyone’s faces as they prepared to reunite with their families somehow made me feel a little less alone.
That’s when Liam called.
It was a video call. I hesitated, then answered–but I switched to audio instead.
I didn’t want him to see my swollen, tear–streaked face and feel burdened by my
emotions.
On the other end, Liam sounded annoyed.
“Why’d you turn off the camera?” he asked.
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my voice.
“Do you need something?”
“Not really,” he said casually. “You left something in the car.”
He sent me a photo of a ring.
It was expensive–Bvlgari.
There was no way I could’ve afforded something like that on my own.
And I hadn’t. Liam had bought it for me during one of his business trips, not long after we started seeing each other.
It wasn’t a diamond ring, and he hadn’t said much when he gave it to me, but I had cherished it deeply.
To me, a ring wasn’t just a gift–it carried meaning.
had
For Liam to give me something like that, I’d thought it meant we had a chance at something real.
But now, I knew better.
It had all been in my head.
“Just throw it away,” I said, my voice flat. “It’s not important.”
There was a long silence on the other end of the line.
Finally, Liam muttered, “Alright,” and hung up
The line for train tickets was still long.
In front of me, a young woman looked like she might faint from standing so long. Her boyfriend immediately flipped their suitcase on its side so she could sit down and rest.
Their smiles, their quiet happiness–it all reminded me of my first year at Ravenwood.
I’d been so full of excitement back then. It was my first time away from home, and despite not knowing anyone in the city, I’d come here with nothing but a promise and a
dream.
On my
first day, I couldn’t wait to ask around about a student named Liam Carter.
The upperclassmen gave me strange looks.
“There’s no one by that name here,” one of them said. “But the dean’s daughter has a boyfriend named Liam Carter.”
That’s when I realized.
Liam and I weren’t part of the same world anymore.
After leaving our small town, Liam’s mother had taken him to live in the city.
Her new husband was a wealthy real estate tycoon, one of the most powerful men in the area. He gave Liam a life I couldn’t have imagined: money, connections, and opportunities.
22:16 Fri, Jan 10 G
J
73%
Her new husband was a wealthy real estate tycoon, one of the most powerful men in the
area. He
gave Liam a life I couldn’t have imagined: money, connections, and opportunities.
Even the model airplane competition Liam had dreamed of entering for years–something
that had once seemed out of reach–was now handed to him on a silver platter.
Liam’s life had completely transformed.
But good times don’t last forever.
When Liam turned eighteen, his stepfather handed him a contract to sign. Thinking nothing of it, Liam put his name on the dotted line.
It wasn’t until later that he realized the truth: it was a debt contract.
His stepfather had pinned millions of dollars of debt on him.
By the time Liam understood what had happened, it was too late. He was arrested and spent three years in jail.
His mother refused to pay even the small amount needed to bail him out.
When Liam was finally released, he worked tirelessly earn his first bit of money.
Eventually, he caught a lucky break and built a thriving business.
But the betrayal he’d experienced hardened him.
The Liam I knew–the brave, determined boy–was gone.
In his place was a man who trusted no one, whose life was built on power, wealth, and
excess.
A man I could barely recognize.
