Chapter 60
Joanne’s POV
“Melody,” I said slowly, locking eyes with her, “you’re in love with Derek, aren’t you?”
Her whole face froze.
“You couldn’t have him, so you did everything in your power to make my life miserable.” I kept my voice steady, cool, and unapologetic. “But too bad for you, I’m done with Derek.”
I shifted my gaze between the two of them, taking a final breath.
“So do me a favor,” I added, calm as ever. “Keep your petty drama as far away from me as possible.”
“As for both of you…” I paused, then said it word by word, “I’m not interested.“}
Melody opened her mouth as if she wanted to argue or perhaps offer another excuse, but I didn’t give her the chance. Instead, I reached into my bag, pulled out my phone, and casually tapped the screen.
The WhatsApp voice call I had left running in the background suddenly buzzed back to life, crackling softly through the
When Derek’s voice didn’t come through right a
me in disbelief.
Melody’s expression tightened, her eyes darting between the phone and
I smiled softly into the phone and said in a gentle tone, almost sweetly, “Derek, all these years we were together, was it really that difficult for you?“}
But he stayed silent.
So I continued, “I had no idea that every time we fought, you had to come up with such creative excuses. That it was actually entertaining for you, watching me beg to get your attention.”
let the silence stretch like a tightrope, then added,
“What a pity. I’m not playing this game anymore.”
And just as his voice finally burst through, shouting my name, I hung up.
Turning back to Melody, I kept my tone even.
“From the start, every time you provoked me, played the helpless little victim just to win Derek’s sympathy and get him to take your side…you should’ve known this day would come. Back then, I put up with it for his sake. But now that I don’t even want him?”
I gave a small, pointed shrug. “Well then.”
Right in front of her, I opened my gallery, selected all the screenshots–every petty, manipulative message and every cruel word she had sent me–and sent the entire batch directly to Derek.
“May your friendship last forever,” I said, then put my phone away.”
That day, as Derek walked away with Melody still following, I noticed something different. He wasn’t being gentle with her. I watched them leave, and Melody was still crying.
Once they left and her sobs faded into silence, I reached out to my best friend for support. After that, I hired a cleaning service to help pack up all of Derek’s belongings. His items were carefully boxed and sent directly to his new residence.
…B
Derek’s POVE
Joanne had already returned everything I’d left at her apartment.
Now Melody was on her knees in front of me, sobbing like her life depended on it.”
!
“Derek, please don’t let her fool you,” she cried. “I never said those things. It’s fake. It has to be fake. Some Al edit or deepfake or something. She’s just trying to turn you against me. Derek, we grew up together. You know me. You know I’d never do
that.”
But I did know her.
And that was exactly the problem.
Ever since we were kids, Melody had followed me around like a second shadow. My parents used to remind me to look out for her, the sweet girl next door. I took care of her the way an older brother might. I always shielded her from trouble, even if it was something small.
There was even a time when both of our families joked about marrying us off. I had shut that down immediately.
1
At that time, I didn’t truly understand what it meant to love someone. That changed in college when I first saw Joanne. She was on stage delivering a speech, exuding confidence and charisma, and something inside me just clicked.}
That was real. That was different.#
I had chased her for years.
1:35 AM
Now, standing in front of Melody again, all I could feel was a deep, suffocating regret.
I looked down at the box of screenshots Joanne had sent me and dropped it right at Melody’s feet.
“If this is fake,” I said, my voice tight and shaking, “then what the hell is this supposed to be?“\
“You honestly want me to believe none of it is real?“”
I stared straight into her eyes. I wanted her to feel just how angry and done I was.
“Do you really think I’m that stupid? Do you think I can’t tell the difference anymore?”
Without waiting for a response, I pulled my phone out of my pocket, threw it to the floor, and stomped on it. The screen cracked beneath my foot, shattering into fragments.
Melody flinched.
I stepped closer, grabbed her by the chin, and forced her to look at me./
“I told you I love Joanne,” I said. My voice was low, but I meant every word. “I told you she is the only woman I ever wanted to marry. So why did you do it? Why did you ruin everything?“”
I shoved her away.
Melody hit the floor hard, her cheek smacking the wood with a loud thud. She winced, but she didn’t cry.”
Instead, she laughed.
At first, it was a short, breathy sound. Then she started laughing harder, louder, until it bounced off the walls. It was twisted and manic, like she had finally lost it.”
My blood boiled.
A took another step forward and kicked her in the leg./
“What the hell are you laughing at?”
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