Todos los capítulos de When You Were My Home: Capítulo 1 - Capítulo 9

I tightened my grip on the earbud cord and stared at Dylan Ladner in the dim light of his phone. He was always so cold and composed, but now his ears were flushed, and his eyes were still heavy with desire.He looked at me and smiled, almost as if he were relieved. "Two years, and you finally figured it out. Maybe this is for the best. I'm tired of waiting for you to fall asleep every night before I can call her."Then he held the phone to my ear. "Say hi to your sister."Julia Farwell's laughter came through the phone. "Hey, Ruth! Did you know Dylan and I bet every night on when you'd finally figure us out?"I kept losing, and every time I did, Dylan made me wear black stockings for him. But tonight, I finally won! So tell me, Ruth. How should I punish him?"Her delighted laughter cut right through me.Tears streamed down my face as I flung the cord at Dylan, my throat so tight I could barely get the words out. "How could you do this to me, Dylan?"He grabbed my wrist, his voic

Dylan opened his mouth to explain, but Julia cut in first. "Ruth, don't blame Dylan. You're both moving to Harborwyn, and I'm scared to live by myself, so he offered to leave the dog with me."I'll take good care of Buddy. And I'm only moving in here because it'll be easier on him to stay somewhere familiar."I stared at her, and the last of my restraint snapped. "His name isn't Buddy! It's Teddy. He's my dog!"Julia's eyes welled up immediately, and she looked down. "I'm sorry, Ruth. I got his name wrong. I didn't mean to."Dylan set his utensils down with a sharp clatter. "It's just a name. Do you really have to yell at Julia over that? I already gave Teddy to her. He's hers now, so she can call him whatever she wants."Hearing him take her side hurt more than I could put into words. My eyes burned with tears, and my voice caught, but I held firm."Dylan, I'm not going to Harborwyn with you. You paid 700 dollars for Teddy when we got him. I'll pay you back, and I'm taking him w

Dylan's expression changed instantly. He snatched the briefcase and opened it. Inside was a tablet, already playing security footage from my bedroom that afternoon.Julia shut the door behind her. One second, she was sweetly calling me to come eat, looking completely harmless. The next, her face hardened, and her eyes turned cold with jealousy and spite.I was crouched on the floor with Teddy in my arms, sobbing and completely off guard when Julia shoved me down. I hit the floor hard with a sharp crack.Before I could get up, she bent down, dug her fingers into Teddy's neck, and squeezed hard. Teddy yelped in pain. When he saw me fall, he instinctively tried to protect me and scratched Julia's calf, leaving a wound.Startled, I immediately reached toward Julia to check on her, but her expression changed in an instant. Her face crumpled, and she burst into tears, screaming for help.The second she heard footsteps rushing toward the room, she dropped to the floor and played the vict

Dylan pulled out his phone, his hands shaking as he dialed my number from memory over and over.Every call ended with the same automated voice saying, "The phone you're trying to reach is turned off."He started to panic. He kept calling and texting until he missed his flight."We have to find Ruth. We need to know where she went!"Mom and Dad tried messaging me too, only to realize I had blocked them both. When none of their messages went through, they finally lost what little composure they had left.After more than a decade of putting Julia first, they were finally dealing with the fallout.They finally understood. Growing up, all I had ever wanted was their love and attention.I kept reaching for them, desperate to be close to them and willing to do anything to earn their approval. But no matter how hard I tried, they kept pushing me away and blaming me for things I hadn't done.And no matter how much they hurt me, I had never truly hated them. I took every accusation, ever

I felt nothing. I smiled to myself, finally at peace with it."It's okay, Ms. Upton. Liorenza's a big place. We're not likely to run into each other," I said.After I hung up, I packed up my art supplies and headed back to campus. Near the bridge, I spotted someone who seemed familiar at first, but I almost didn't recognize him.I stopped in my tracks when I realized it was Dylan.It had only been two weeks, but he looked nothing like the cool, polished man I remembered. He'd lost so much weight that his face had gone gaunt.His eyes were sunken and bloodshot, and stubble covered his jaw. He looked exhausted, like he'd come a very long way and used up every last ounce of strength just to get here.The moment our eyes met, the noise around us faded into the background. For one brief second, it felt like the rest of the world had disappeared.Then Dylan ran straight toward me. He moved so fast he nearly stumbled, all traces of his usual composure gone.The second he reached me, h