Chapter 70
Melody wiped the tears from her face, and just like that, the fake innocence vanished.
It was like she ripped off a mask she’d never planned to wear for long.
Her voice turned sharp, biting through the room.”
“You’ve been running around like some sad little puppy all day, chasing after Joanne, and for what? She’s already over you. You’re still here, holding out hope like an idiot, thinking she’s gonna come back and love you again.“”
Then Melody shot me a cold, smug smile and didn’t hold back.”
“Let’s get something straight, Derek. It’s not just Joanne. No woman with self–respect would want a man like you. A guy who can’t pick a side, who lets another woman walk around his place in his girlfriend’s robe? You really think that’s forgivable? You think it has to be some huge betrayal? Please. For someone like her, even one drunk kiss makes you dirty. That’s all it takes.”
I was reminded of a statement Joanne made I listened to her.”
We were on the couch one night, and I jokingly posed the question: “In a relationship, what’s the one thing you couldn’t forgive?”
Joanne didn’t even have to think about it and replied, “Betrayal. Emotional or physical. I won’t accept either.“}
She had truly meant it, and I should have taken her more seriously, but I didn’t.”
Now I could see her face clearly in my mind.
The way she looked at me the last time we spoke.
That expression held disappointment, and something even heavier–finality.
The way Joanne said, “I’m not playing this game with you anymore.”
It cut straight through me.}
Back then, the pain hit deep in my chest, sharp and excruciating, like song had cracked open for good. Now, it was
crawling back, twisting through my ribs so tightly I could barely stand.”
The rage followed fast. Hot. Uncontrollable.
I lunged forward, grabbed Melody by the collar, and pulled her close.
“Shut up!” I yelled, my voice shaking with fury. “Just shut the hell up!”
I slapped her across the face.\
Then I did it again.
But Melody didn’t even flinch. Instead, she threw her head back and laughed louder, like she was getting off on it.”
“Oh, I’m saying it,” she screamed, wild and breathless. “I’ll say it over and over until you finally break. You’re pathetic, Derek. You deserve to lose the only woman who ever actually loved you. This whole disaster? It’s on you. You wrecked it. You destroyed everything. And now you get to sit in the mess you made!”
…E
Joanne’s POVE
I was finishing the last few steps to disconnect our shared Intimacy Pay account. When we were close, linking that account felt like a sweet gesture. Now, it was just another thread I needed to cut.
Just as I hit the disconnect button, a WhatsApp notification popped up.”
[Derek: Joanne, can we meet?]%
I didn’t respond. I just waited for the unlinking to finish processing.”
Then came another one: [Derek: I really want to talk to you in person.]
But I had nothing left to say.%
No more explanations. No more justifications.
I opened our chat, deleted the entire thread, and blocked him on every platform I could think of. It was done.!!
What I forgot, unfortunately, was to block Melody.
She sent me a voice message.
Her tone was bitter and cracked, dripping with that passive–aggressive rage she worked so hard to hide.
Joanne, she began, like we were suddenly close again, “you must feel really proud of yourself right now, huh? Got Derek’s full attention, got him to cut off everyone else. Now he’s all alone. Are you happy?”
Melody continued, “You make me sick! You pushed yourself into something that wasn’t yours, like you belonged. You ruined
verything! The aroun the friendshin all of it Arting like you were better than the rest of us Don’t you have any shame?”
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1:35 AM P P .
everything! The group, the friendship, all of it. Acting like you were better than the rest of us. Don’t you have any
shame?”
I didn’t even get a chance to react before Angela, who was sitting beside me, snatched my phone from my hands. She verbally attacked Melody’s family and erased Derek and his friends from my digital world.
Once Angela was sure there was nothing left, she handed my phone back and gave my shoulder a firm pat.
“Out with the old,” she said. “In with the better, Joanne.”
I nodded. It was really over.
After that, we focused all our attention on the one thing that mattered now–our new dessert shop. We worked on every detail, pouring every ounce of frustration and hope into it.”
From morning till night, we hustled.
And by the time I finally got home…
There he was, Derek, standing right outside my door.”
“Joanne,” he said softly.\
He appeared thinner, pale, and weary. However, that no longer concerned me. I walked right past him, indifferent, but he reached out and took my hand.
I yanked it back on instinct.\
There was a flicker of pain in his eyes, but he kept his distance.”
“I just want to talk,” Derek said, his voice low. “Could you give me just a few minutes? I swear, after that, I’ll leave you alone.”
I stared at him, and for a brief second, a memory slipped in.
There was a time, before Melody, before the lies and fights, when Derek’s entire world revolved around me. It was a time when everything between us was simple, sweet, and genuine. Derek couldn’t go a day without seeing me, and he would light up just from being near me.
But those days were long gone, and they weren’t coming back.
