Chapter 5

My chest tightened again.

All I could think about was that message.

[Matt, the power's out. I think someone knocked on my door. I'm scared. Can you come check?]

I looked at him. "Can you stay tonight? Power's out... I'm a little freaked."

It wasn't a lie.

When I was a kid, I got locked in a cellar on a trip with my parents—two days in total darkness. Ever since, pitch black freaks me out. I don't even sleep without a light on.

Maybe he remembered.

He froze mid-step.

For one second, I thought... maybe. Maybe I'd be the one he chose.

Then came his voice. Distant. Detached. Like ripping duct tape off skin that's already raw.

"Peyton, just go to bed. I'll lock the door, you'll be fine. You're tough, remember? You carried me home that one time, middle of the night."

And just like that, I felt something snap inside me.

He'd really changed.

The guy who used to look at me like I was his whole world wouldn't say something like that. Wouldn't use our past as ammo to dodge the present.

He was talking about that night—early startup days, when he stayed out drinking with clients until 2 AM. I walked him home, dragging his half-dead weight through a pitch-black alley.

My legs were shaking the whole time.

But I got him back. Cleaned him up. Stayed awake just to make sure he was okay.

Next morning, he hugged me like I'd saved his life. Swore he'd never let me walk in the dark alone again.

And now?

This whole apartment felt darker than that alley ever did.

Matthew walked out. Right over the pieces of my heart.

I curled up on the couch and didn't sleep. Not a second. Just laid there, feeling empty, waiting for morning to take the edge off.

When the lights finally flickered back on, the doorbell rang.

I opened it.

And there she was.

Vivian.

She didn't know I already knew. She smiled brightly and greeted me.

"Mrs. Langford, remember me? I'm Vivian. I've officially been hired. Mr. Langford's new secretary. Just here to grab some files."

My face didn't move. But I stepped aside.

She walked past, and without meaning to, my eyes dropped.

Her necklace caught the light.

I recognized it. It was the one I once saw under Matthew's collar. I'd thought he got it for me.

We'd seen it in a store once. I told him not to—too expensive.

I waited, thinking he'd surprise me with it anyway.

He never did. I got mad, then forgot about it.

And now... it was sitting on her neck.

The knife in my chest twisted hard.

That was the worst part. Not just finding out.

It was replaying everything through that lens. Rewriting every memory in real time. Realizing how much of it had been a lie. Letting it eat me alive, one little flashback at a time.

She grabbed the papers and turned to go.

Noticed me staring.

Paused.

Then slowly dropped her hand to her stomach.

"Three months now," she said softly.

I blinked. "Really? Didn't hear about any wedding."

She didn't flinch. Just looked up and said, "We're very happy."

She smiled.

But behind it, I saw it—the flex. The dig. The 'you already lost' in her eyes.

I looked away, nodded, let her walk.

The old me? I would've dragged her by the hair straight to Matthew and made him pick. Right there, on the spot.

But now?

I didn't even have the energy.

Years of grinding, building, sacrificing—for this? I was done. Just done.

And in that split second... I actually envied her.

She was carrying the child I'd been trying so hard to have.

I stood there, lost in the ache, watching her walk out.

And then—

It happened.