로그인Bella’s POVI did not move for a long time after the call ended.The apartment felt completely silent.Too silent.The kind of silence that made every thought sound louder.My phone was still sitting in my hand.The screen had gone dark.But I kept staring at it anyway.Because my brain was struggling to catch up with what had just happened.Victoria.The name kept repeating inside my head.Over and over.Victoria.Victoria.Victoria.For months, I had blamed her.For months, I had hated her.But hating someone and discovering they might have deliberately manipulated everything were two completely different things.My stomach twisted.Because if Sarah was telling the truth, then this was bigger than a misunderstanding.Much bigger.This was deception.Carefully planned deception.And suddenly I felt sick.My phone buzzed.I nearly dropped it.A new email notification appeared.From: SarahMy heartbeat immediately accelerated.No.No way.She had already sent them.I stared at the emai
Bella’s POVThree days passed after the fountain incident.Three surprisingly peaceful days.No emotional breakdowns.No accidental meetings.No Maya creating public disasters.Honestly, it felt suspicious.Life had been far too calm lately.Which meant something bad was probably coming.I was sitting on my couch Saturday morning with a blanket wrapped around my shoulders and a cup of coffee in my hands when my phone suddenly rang.I frowned immediately.Nobody called anymore.People texted.Calling usually meant something was wrong.The screen lit up.Unknown Number.My stomach tightened.For a second, I considered ignoring it.Then I answered.“Hello?”Silence.Then a woman’s voice.“Is this Bella?”I frowned.“Yes.”The woman sounded hesitant.Like she was not completely sure she should be making this call.“My name is Sarah.”I searched my memory.Nothing.“I think you have the wrong number.”“No.”The answer came quickly.Then she hesitated again.“I knew your husband.”Every mus
Bella’s POVI wanted to disappear.Immediately.Right there in the middle of the plaza.Because somehow, against all odds, Maya had managed to make an already awkward situation ten times worse in less than thirty seconds.It was honestly impressive.Dangerous.But impressive.“Maya,” I said through clenched teeth.She looked at me innocently.“What?”The fact that she genuinely seemed confused made me want to scream.Ethan was standing beside the fountain holding a coffee cup while trying very hard not to laugh.The problem was that I knew him.And I knew that tiny twitch at the corner of his mouth.He was absolutely enjoying this.Traitor.Maya looked between us.Then her grin somehow got bigger.“Wow.”Neither Ethan nor I answered.“Wow,” she repeated.Still silence.“Oh my God, this is painful.”I buried my face in my hands.“I am begging you to stop talking.”“No.”Of course not.That would have been too easy.Maya pointed at Ethan.“You.”Ethan blinked.“You have a name.”“Correc
Bella’s POVThe day started completely normal.Which should have been my first warning.Because whenever life decided to be nice to me for more than five minutes, something ridiculous usually followed.I was working at the bookstore, helping Maya reorganize a display that absolutely did not need reorganizing, when she suddenly dropped an entire stack of books onto the floor.The crash echoed through the store.Customers jumped.A child screamed.Somewhere in the distance, a coffee cup shattered.I stared at her.She stared at me.“That wasn’t my fault.”“It was literally your hands.”“The books attacked me.”“The books attacked you?”“Yes.”I blinked.Maya crossed her arms.“They were aggressive.”I opened my mouth.Then closed it again.There was no point arguing with someone who genuinely believed hardcover novels were capable of organized violence.Before I could respond, the bookstore manager appeared.Unfortunately.“Everything okay over here?”Maya immediately pointed at the boo
Bella’s POVThe problem with seeing Ethan again was that it made remembering him impossible to avoid.For months, I had worked so hard to build a life that did not revolve around him anymore. I had forced myself to stop checking my phone every five minutes. I had forced myself to stop looking for him in crowded places. I had forced myself to stop wondering what he was doing or whether he missed me.It had not been easy.Some days had been horrible.Some nights had been even worse.But eventually the memories had stopped feeling sharp enough to cut me open every time they appeared.Then Ethan showed up again.And suddenly it felt like I was back at the beginning.I was standing in my apartment kitchen the next morning, staring at a piece of toast that had already gone cold, when my phone buzzed beside me.I glanced down and saw Maya’s name.Maya: You looked emotional yesterday.I immediately rolled my eyes.Maya: That’s suspicious.Maya: Very suspicious.Maya: Suspiciously suspicious.
Bella’s POVThe moment I walked back into the bookstore, my heart was beating so hard that I was convinced everyone around me could hear it.I immediately headed toward the nearest shelf and pretended to organize books, even though the books were already perfectly organized.Because what else was I supposed to do?I had just willingly walked outside and spoken to Ethan.Not because he forced me.Not because he chased me.Not because he cornered me.I had gone to him.The realization made my stomach twist.“Okay.”I nearly dropped the book in my hands.Maya appeared beside me like some kind of detective who could smell emotional problems from a mile away.“What?”She narrowed her eyes.“What was that?”I blinked.“What was what?”“That.”She pointed dramatically toward the front window.“The staring.”My face immediately grew warm.“Oh my God.”Maya gasped.“Oh my God.”“No.”“IT WAS HIM.”Several customers glanced toward us.I immediately grabbed her arm.“Lower your voice.”Her eyes
Bella POVThe suitcase felt heavier than it should have as I walked down the quiet stone path that led away from the house, but I knew the weight wasn’t really coming from the clothes and books packed inside it; the heaviness came from everything I was leaving behind, everything that had once been
Ethan POVThe envelope arrived in the late afternoon while I was sitting in my office at the pack house, and at the time I barely even looked up from the stack of reports spread across my desk because the entire day had already been filled with endless pack matters that demanded my attention, from
Bella POVThe sky was gray the morning I left the hospital.It had been raining since the night before, and the drizzle still hadn’t stopped. The rain was soft and quiet, like the world itself didn’t want to make too much noise.I stood in the small cemetery behind the hospital, holding a tiny wood
Bella POVWhen I woke up, the first thing I noticed was the smell.Hospitals always had the same strange smell, a mix of medicine, antiseptic, and something cold that made the air feel lifeless. It was the kind of smell that made you feel like nothing warm or happy could exist in a place like this.







