Where the Past Ends

The messages urging me to be generous kept appearing in the group chat.

Then Dr. Colin Reese, our faculty adviser at Bellwarren State University in Westerlyn, called me directly.

"Elliot, listen to your adviser. Today is important. Don't go over there and cause trouble."

I tightened one fist and asked in a low voice, "Naomi and I were together for four years. What does that make me?"

Dr. Reese sighed, sounding even more disapproving.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn?

"Derek never even finished high school. He went straight to work so Naomi could stay in college. Do you have any idea how much he's suffered?

"Your family's comfortable, your grades are excellent, and your future's wide open. You could meet any woman you wanted after graduation. Why fight over one with a man who's had nothing?

"I'm asking you as your adviser. Show some maturity and stay away. A confrontation will humiliate everyone."

My breathing began to shake.

"So all of you knew, and I was the only fool kept in the dark?"

Dr. Reese was silent for two seconds.

"You've got a forceful personality. We were afraid you'd lose control, turn violent, and damage the university's reputation, so nobody told you.

"Naomi's a good student, and she's loyal and softhearted. Once she made her choice, the decent thing was for you to step aside."

He hung up without waiting for an answer.

I stayed where I was in the crowded airport terminal, too stunned to know where to go.

I didn't move until the boarding announcement sounded.

With a bitter smile, I tore the two boarding passes in half.

Naomi had booked them herself two weeks earlier.

She said we'd skydive together and that she'd accept my ring above the Cloudspire Plateau.

Instead, she'd already accepted another man's ring.

I still needed an explanation, so I called her with a trembling hand.

The other end was filled with voices and laughter.

Every few seconds, I heard our classmates cheering.

Naomi found a quieter corner before lowering her voice.

"Eli, I'm sorry. I'm having dinner with a few old friends, so it's loud."

Even now, she intended to lie.

I gave a cold laugh and spoke plainly.

"Naomi, I saw the engagement announcement in the class group chat."

The noise on her end disappeared for a moment.

Then she sighed, sounding helpless rather than ashamed.

"So you found out after all.

"I'm sorry. I know I was wrong, but I really didn't have a choice.

"Derek's health is bad, and he's spent years breaking his body for work. The only thing he's ever wanted is a real ceremony with me.

"It's just an engagement. We didn't file for a license, so it doesn't mean anything legally.

"You're still the one I love. Can't you show me a little understanding?"

I gripped the phone in disbelief.

"You got engaged to another man behind my back, and you're asking me to understand?"

Her voice softened when she heard my anger.

"Eli, you're usually so generous.

"Derek doesn't have anything. All he has is me.

"You're different. You've got a grandmother who loves you, an education, a future. Why fight him over a title that doesn't mean anything?

"After today's over, I'll go to the Cloudspire Plateau with you tomorrow. All right?"

Her certainty made her sound like a stranger.

To her, betrayal apparently didn't count as anything serious.

After several seconds of silence, I answered coldly.

"Naomi, we're finished."