Chapter 4 He Was Already Gone

The next morning, I stepped out of my room and found Charlotte and Forrest waiting by the elevator.

Charlotte's expression was cold. She was clearly still angry about me threatening to break up with her.

Forrest, however, gave her a playful nudge. "Come on. He was angry and said it in the heat of the moment. Are you really going to hold it against your boyfriend?"

Then, he slung an arm around my shoulders. "I've been trying to smooth things over with her all morning. She finally agreed to stop being mad."

She picked up where he left off. "Fine. I'll let last night's argument slide for Forrest's sake. Just don't threaten to break up with me over every little thing."

I glanced at her but said nothing.

Our itinerary for the day included the old town, the museum, and the riverside night market. These were the places I wanted to visit when planning the trip.

I had arranged to take pictures with Charlotte at every stop. Yet, when we reached the old town, she joined Forrest in line for a limited-edition milk tea beverage.

At the museum, she complained about the crowds and sat by the entrance to watch Forrest's bag.

I didn't wait for them.

I followed the map on my own, collected every commemorative stamp, and asked a passerby to take a picture of me by the river.

The wind was strong, but for once, I looked genuinely relaxed in the photo.

It suddenly occurred to me that maybe having Charlotte by my side wasn't as important as I'd thought.

…

When we met up at noon, she was still frowning. "You just wander off without telling anyone?"

Forrest stepped in to smooth things over. "It isn't often he gets to do this. Come on, give him a break. Besides, I'll keep you company. You won't get lost."

Charlotte shot him a glare, but the tension in her expression eased.

Just then, her phone rang. It was a video call from her mother, Jane Montgomery.

Forrest casually answered the call and greeted her cheerfully. "Hi, Mrs. Montgomery!"

Jane hadn't realized I was there, and she immediately began speaking. "Forrest, make sure you and Charlotte have a good time on this trip. And I've got some good news for you. I've already put in a word with the company. The position is being held for you."

Charlotte's expression changed. "Mom, stop."

Only then did Jane notice me on the screen. She paused, and her smile faded. "Oh, you're there too."

I said nothing.

Charlotte hurriedly ended the call. After a few seconds of silence, she seemed to decide to tell me the truth.

"Actually, there's something I forgot to tell you. There's only one referral slot in Riverdale this year. Forrest's grades aren't as good as yours, so he'd have a hard time landing the position on his own.

"He can have that position. You're capable enough to land another job."

Charlotte didn't give me a chance to respond before continuing, "Another thing about the apartment. Forrest will be joining Riverdale, but won't have anywhere to stay when he first arrives. The apartment we're renting has two bedrooms, so he'll take the smaller one for now.

"You can have the master bedroom, and he'll take the second bedroom. It's no big deal."

Forrest immediately clapped his hands. "Awesome! We can still live under the same roof after graduation!"

He winked at me. "Don't worry, I know when to give you two some space. I won't get in the way of your time together. When you shut the bedroom door to have some time alone, I promise I won't knock."

A few people nearby laughed.

I couldn't bring myself to smile.

I found that apartment and paid the security deposit myself. I even picked out the living room couch and bedroom curtains myself.

Now, with just a few words, they'd handed my job opportunity to Forrest and made room for him in my home.

At first, I was so furious that my fingers trembled. However, looking at how casually they took it all for granted, my anger suddenly faded. "Fine."

Charlotte assumed I'd agreed, and her expression softened. "If you'd been this reasonable from the start, we wouldn't have had that fight last night."

I looked at her, my voice calm. "We've already broken up. What you two do is none of my business. Just make sure you pay me back for the money I put down for the apartment."

Forrest reached out to stop me. "Don't do anything rash. I'll give up the position, okay?"

But she stopped him. "If you go after him and give in now, he'll threaten to leave whenever he doesn't get his way. You can't keep encouraging that kind of behavior."

I didn't look back.

I'd already visited every place I'd wanted to see that day, so I booked a ticket home for that afternoon.

…

That evening, Charlotte returned to the hotel carrying a limited-edition plush toy sold only in the city, something I'd once casually mentioned wanting.

She lingered at the front desk for a moment before trying to sound nonchalant. "I'm not trying to make it up to him. I just bought it on a whim. Could you ask him to come down and get it?"

The receptionist looked puzzled. "You mean the young man staying in the windowless room? He checked out this afternoon. His family sent a car to pick him up, and he took all his luggage with him."

Charlotte's expression froze.

Then, the receptionist seemed to remember something. "Oh, right. He asked me to pass along a message before he left. He doesn't want the room, the job, or you anymore."