THE ART OF RUIN

LILY'S POV

“Hello? Yes, Mrs. Calloway, I’m still here…Sorry, the line cut for a second,” I said, pressing the phone between my shoulder and ear as I rummaged through a drawer for my sketchbook.

The wedding planner’s voice crackled through the line, cheerful and rushed.

“No problem, dear. I just wanted to confirm your floral arrangement…you mentioned wanting lilies, right?”

“Yes….white lilies and maybe a touch of blush roses around the altar…. Liam loves lilies,” I said, smiling unconsciously as I balanced my coffee cup in one hand and a pen in the other.

“Oh, how sweet,” she cooed.

“And your dress fitting is still this weekend?”

“Yes, Saturday morning…my sister will come with me.”

“Adira, right?”

“The one and only.” I chuckled softly.

“She’s more excited than I am…If I let her, she’d probably wear the dress herself.”

Mrs. Calloway laughed.

“That’s what sisters are for.”

I smiled, hanging up after we finalized the details.

My apartment smelled faintly of vanilla candles and coffee, everything warm, soft, and peaceful.

The world still made sense and my wedding countdown app blinked on my phone:

58 days until forever.

I stared at the screen a moment too long with heart swelling.

Liam and I had been together three years.

We met at a gallery exhibition…I was sketching, he was pretending to understand abstract art.

He smiled at me like I was the only real thing in the room.

And for a long time, I believed I was.

My phone buzzed again.

This time, it was a text from Adira.

“Morning, future Mrs. Hart. Just checking you told Liam about the rehearsal dinner change, right?”

I typed back quickly.

“Not yet. He left early for a meeting. I’ll tell him later.”

She replied instantly.

“No rush. I might stop by his place this afternoon to drop off the gift baskets.”

That was Adira…always offering to help, always charming her way into things.

Everyone loved her and sometimes, I even wondered if she outshone me in my own life.

Still, she was my sister….My best friend….My person.

The morning rolled on easily.

I cleaned, sang along to a song Liam once said reminded him of me, and doodled in my sketchbook.

I was halfway through drawing the apartment layout we planned to move into after the wedding when my phone rang again.

“Hey, love.” Liam’s voice. Smooth, familiar, the kind that always melted my stress away.

I smiled.

“You sound tired. Long morning?”

“Yeah,” he sighed.

“Meetings back to back…I might crash at home after work…Don’t wait up, okay?”

“Sure but you promised dinner tonight.”

“I know, babe. Rain check? I’ll make it up to you tomorrow.”

There was a pause and then I heard something faint… maybe a laugh from his end.

Was it a woman’s voice? Light, airy, distant.

“Was that someone?” I asked gently.

He cleared his throat.

“Just the TV in the background.”

“Oh.” I tried to ignore the strange tightness in my chest.

“Alright. Love you.”

“Love you too, Aria.”

He hung up before I could say another word.

By late afternoon, I was restless.

I told myself it was just nerves, pre-wedding jitters… the kind every bride gets but something about his tone lingered.

That same small voice whispered inside me again, Go check.

I laughed it off, shaking my head.

You’re not one of those paranoid girlfriends…Trust him.

But when I glanced at the corner of the table, my gaze landed on a small velvet box the cufflinks I bought for Liam last week.

I’d meant to give them to him today.

A perfect excuse to stop by.

Grabbing my purse and keys, I locked the door and headed out before I could talk myself out of it.

The drive to Liam’s apartment was only fifteen minutes, but it felt longer.

My thoughts tangled with each red light, each familiar corner we used to walk together.

When I reached the building, I noticed something strange.

A silver car parked right outside.

Adira’s silver car.

I blinked, frowning.

Maybe she’s already here dropping off the gift baskets, I reminded myself.

Still, my fingers tightened around the steering wheel.

I climbed out, trying to steady my breathing.

The hallway smelled faintly of Liam’s cologne mixed with something floral Sweet…Feminine.

At his door, I hesitated for a moment then I remembered I had a spare key.

I turned the key, and the lock clicked softly.

“Liam?” I called, stepping inside.

No answer.

The living room was dim, blinds half-closed, but I could still make out the half-empty wine bottle on the coffee table.

Two glasses and a woman’s shoe by the rug.

My stomach tightened.

“Adira?” I tried, forcing a laugh.

“You here?”

Still no reply.

Then I heard faint sounds and laughter from down the hall.

Liam’s laugh then followed by a low, playful giggle.

Her laugh.

I froze.

Every inch of me went still, the air thick around my chest.

My brain tried to reason…No, not Adira. It can’t be..but my body already knew.

I walked slowly toward the bedroom. Each step felt heavier than the last.

“Liam?” My voice cracked, soft, almost pleading.

The laughter stopped.

I reached the door as my hand hovered over the knob.

For a heartbeat, I thought about turning back, walking away, pretending I never came..pretending my perfect little world wasn’t about to collapse.

But I opened it anyway.

The smell hit first…perfume and sweat.

Adira’s perfume…vanilla and jasmine.

The same one I’d given her last Christmas.

Then I saw them.

Adira….my sister..wrapped in white sheets.

Liam beside her, half-naked, frozen mid-motion, eyes wide like a cornered animal.

For a moment, no one spoke.

Only the sound of the ceiling fan filled the room.

“Lily…” Liam stammered.

“This…this isn’t…”

“Isn’t what it looks like right?” I whispered.

Adira reached for the blanket.

“Lily, please…”

“Don’t.” I stepped back, shaking my head slowly.

“Just don’t.”

Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to let them fall.

The silence stretched painfully.

My chest rose and fell fast, but I forced a smile the kind you give before you break.

“You know what’s funny?” I said softly.

“I used to think betrayal would scream when it came but it doesn’t… It just… whispers.”

Neither of them moved.

I took a slow breath.

“Congratulations, you two…you found your own happy ending.”

Then I turned and walked out.

The corridor was spinning.

My breath came in shallow gasps as I reached the front door.

My fingers trembled on the knob, but I didn’t look back….I couldn’t.

Outside, the late sunlight was blinding mocking in its brightness.

I made it to my car before the first tear fell.

Not from heartbreak but from the sharp, cruel realization that my life had been a lie.

As I sat there, gripping the steering wheel, something inside me shifted.

A part of me died at that moment.

But another part…cold, calm, and unrecognizable was born.

Because love had failed me.

But ruin? Ruin would listen.