Chapter 2: The Stranger in the Dark

Victoria's Pov

I couldn't make my legs move.

Carl's voice echoed through the barn, smooth and practiced like he'd rehearsed this moment.

"I want to thank everyone for coming tonight. But I believe in honesty, and I owe you all the truth."

My hands pressed against the cold concrete floor. Get up. Stand up. Stop him.

But my body wouldn't obey.

"Victoria is a wonderful woman. Kind, hardworking, ambitious. But sometimes we confuse friendship for something deeper. Sometimes one person invests more in a relationship than the other realizes."

A murmur rippled through the crowd. Confused. Uncertain.

"The truth is, Victoria and I were never truly engaged. We dated casually, yes. But she convinced herself we were building toward marriage. Rather than hurt her feelings, I went along with it. That was my mistake."

No.

"But I can't let this continue. Victoria deserves someone who loves her the way she wants to be loved. And that person isn't me."

The murmurs grew louder. Shocked. Pitying.

"However, I have found that person. Someone who shares my values, my ambitions. And I hope you'll all join me in celebrating my actual engagement. To Bianca Taylor."

The barn erupted. Gasps. Shouts. My mother's voice rising above the chaos.

"What is he talking about? Victoria? Where's Victoria?"

I finally moved. Pushed myself up on shaking legs and stumbled toward the back exit. Away from the voices. Away from the pity.

The back door slammed behind me, and the Texas night swallowed me whole.

The air was thick and hot, pressing against my skin. I stumbled past the parking area until I reached the old oak tree at the edge of my parents' property.

I collapsed against the trunk, my perfect red dress catching on the bark. My chest was too tight. I couldn't breathe right.

He'd done it. Actually done it.

Told everyone I was delusional. That I'd made up our relationship. That I was pathetic and desperate.

And they'd believe him. Of course they would. Carl was charming. Successful. Confident.

A sob tore out of my throat. Then another. Then I was crying so hard I thought I might break apart.

My phone buzzed. Text after text.

Mom: "Where are you? Come back inside right now."

Dad: "Victoria, we need to talk."

Unknown number: "LMAO Carl really did you dirty."

I threw the phone into the grass and buried my face in my hands.

This was worse than anything I'd imagined. He'd made me look insane. Made my love look like delusion.

And Bianca. My own cousin. Standing there smirking while he destroyed me.

"You're hyperventilating."

The voice came from my left. Male. Rough but not unkind.

I jerked my head up. Someone had followed me.

But when I focused through my tears, I recognized him.

The man from the shelter. Simon.

He stood a few feet away, hands in the pockets of worn jeans. He looked different somehow. More solid. More present.

"What are you doing here?" I managed.

"I was in the area. Heard the commotion." He took a step closer, his movements careful. "Sounded like someone was having the worst night of their life."

A broken laugh escaped me. "That's one way to put it."

"Want to tell me what happened?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

I looked at him. In the moonlight, I could see his face more clearly than I ever had at the shelter. Strong features. Dark eyes that seemed to see too much.

He didn't look homeless right now. He looked like someone wearing a costume that didn't quite fit.

"My fiancé just told everyone I made up our entire relationship," I said, my voice cracking. "He announced his engagement to my cousin. In front of my whole family. At a party I planned."

Simon sat down on the ground beside me, not touching but close enough that I could feel his presence.

"That's brutal."

"That's one word for it."

"What's another?"

"Humiliating. Devastating. Soul-crushing." I wiped at my face. "Pick your favorite."

"All of the above sounds more accurate."

Something about his calmness made it easier to breathe. Like he wasn't judging me. Wasn't pitying me.

"I should have seen it coming," I whispered. "He was distant for months. But I thought if I could make tonight perfect, everything would be okay."

"That's not how it works."

"I know that now."

"No, I mean it's not your job to convince someone to love you. If he couldn't see what he had, that's his failure. Not yours."

The words hit something deep. I looked at him, this man I barely knew who kept showing up at exactly the right moments.

"Why are you being nice to me?"

"Because someone should be." He picked up a blade of grass. "And because I know what it's like to lose everything in one night."

"What happened to you?"

He was quiet for a long moment. "I built something. Spent years creating this perfect image. Then I realized the person I'd become wasn't someone I recognized anymore. So I walked away from all of it."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. Best decision I ever made. Even though everyone thought I was crazy."

"But you lost everything."

"I lost the things that were killing me. There's a difference."

Voices drifted from the barn. Angry. Searching. My mother calling my name.

"I can't go back there," I said.

"Then don't. Not yet."

"But they'll come looking."

"Let them look." Simon stood, extending his hand. "Come on."

I should have said no. Should have gone back and faced the disaster.

But I was so tired of being strong. So tired of pretending.

So I took his hand.

His grip was warm and steady, pulling me to my feet. We walked away from the barn, into the darkness beyond the property line.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Somewhere you can breathe."

We walked in silence, cutting through the field. The sounds of the party faded until all I could hear was crickets and night wind.

Simon led me to an old truck parked on the side road.

"This is yours?" I asked.

"Borrowed it."

He opened the passenger door. I climbed in, too exhausted to question anything.

Simon got in and started the engine.

"Where are we going?" I asked again.

"Nowhere specific. Just away." He glanced at me. "Unless you want to go back?"

I looked at the barn in the distance, all lit up and beautiful. Full of people who now thought I was pathetic.

"No," I said. "Let's go."

We drove into the night.

I should have been scared. Should have questioned why this man I barely knew was helping me.

But all I felt was relief.

For the first time all night, I could breathe.

We drove in silence until Simon pulled over at an empty rest stop overlooking the valley. Lights sparkled below like fallen stars.

He turned off the engine. "Better?"

"A little." I leaned my head against the window. "Thank you. For getting me out of there."

"You're welcome."

"I don't even know why you're in Texas."

"Business. Sort of. Needed a change of scenery."

More mysteries. But I was too drained to push.

"Can I ask you something?" I said.

"Sure."

"Why did you help me? You don't owe me anything."

Simon was quiet for a moment. "Because when I was at my lowest, no one helped me. Everyone walked away or tried to use my pain. So when I see someone hurting, someone genuine and kind, I help. Because that's the person I wish I'd met when I needed it."

Something in his words made my chest ache.

"You think I'm genuine?"

"I know you are. I've watched you for months. The way you treat people at the shelter. The way you see them as human. That's rare."

"I don't feel very genuine right now. I feel like a fool."

"You're not a fool for trusting someone you loved. That just makes you human."

Tears burned again.

"I don't know what to do now. I can't face my family. Can't imagine tomorrow when everyone knows."

"So don't think about tomorrow. Just get through tonight."

"How?"

"One breath at a time."

It sounded too simple. But sitting there in the quiet truck with this strange, kind man beside me, it almost felt possible.

My phone buzzed in my purse. I ignored it.

"Do you think they're still looking for me?" I asked.

"Probably."

"Good. Let them look."

Simon smiled slightly. The first real smile I'd seen from him.

"That's the spirit."

We sat there in comfortable silence, watching the stars come out above the valley.

And for just a moment, the world didn't feel like it was ending.

It just felt like it was changing Into what, I had no idea.

But at least I wasn't facing it alone.