astrophysicist, a man who understood the vast, cold emptiness of space, and Olivia was my sun, the center of my gravity. She was vibrant, a socialite who collected friends and admirers

nwavering devotion that I b

e culmination of that decade, the mom

felt clumsy. How do you quantify a decade of love? While searching for a photo album in her closet, a box I' d never seen befo

i

thankfully exorcised. Curiosity, cold and sharp, pushed me to open it. Inside were not just old photos, but recent ones. Pictures of them together at a b

you know you're the only one who gives me this thrill. Ethan is... safe.

y. A safety net. Once my parents are satisfied and the trust is settl

kup plan. I felt the floor tilt beneath me, the stable ground of my entire adult life turning to sand. I sank onto the floor, the letters scat

I' d been pushed out of an airlock into the vacuum of space. The wedding was tomorrow. The conflict w

ards me, a vision in white, and for a heart-stopping moment, the lie felt so beautiful I wanted to believe it again. But then

distant hum. Suddenly, Liam strode forward,

't marry this boring los

hock, but her eyes darted to Liam, a flicker of something I couldn't decipher

our show." He shoved me, hard. It wasn't a powerful push, more of a contemptuo

e my own body. An explosion of white-hot pain shot up from my ankle, and my leg buckled under me.

his face contorting in a parody of pain. "Liv, my heart... I can't breathe. Seeing y

didn't even glance down. She cupped Liam's face, her voice frantic with a concern she had never o

Her voice was ice. "Look what you did, Ethan! You stre

osing the man who assaulted me, prioritizing his fake crisis over my real injury, and blaming me for the chaos he had caused.

to be a black hole, and it had just swallowed my entire universe. I knew in that instant, with a clarity that cut through the pain