All Chapters of I Walked Away from Her Test of Love: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

The night breeze drifted through the bare living room. My phone screen lit up, showing the viewer count hitting more than 100,000 on Tasha Green’s live stream. “Hey fam, let’s see what time that loser crawls his way back to me.” Snug in her jacket, Tasha giggled in Jesse Smith’s arms. Jesse stuck close to her ear and spoke into the microphone. “Tash, it gets very chilly on Mount Rainier at night. Soren doesn’t have any money on him. I hope he doesn’t freeze to death on his way up.” Tasha let out a scoff. “Well, it serves him right. It’s his fault for hanging up on me. He needs to be kept in line.” The live chat spammed the screen with the same sentiment. “The freeloading moocher knows better than to be upset. He’s probably weeping the whole way up.” “You go, girl! It’s time to show him who’s boss!” Cool as a cucumber, I swiped away the live stream and tucked the last paintbrush into my suitcase. I never went to borrow a hiking stick, nor did I buy a windbreaker.

Chapter 2

By noon the next day, I was sitting in a tiny studio apartment, eating a piece of stale bread. Then came a violent pounding on the door.My heavyset landlord stood outside with her hands on her hips. She tossed a hundred-dollar bill onto the floor. “Soren, pack your bags and get out! You’re not renting this place anymore!” Rising to my feet, I asked for an explanation. The landlord snorted. “Ms. Green put the word out, saying that anyone renting to you is making an enemy of Green Firm.“You crossed the wrong person, and you still think you can survive in this town?” I bent over and picked up the hundred-dollar bill before stepping out onto the street with my suitcase. Tasha’s call came through to my new phone number. There was no telling how she got her hands on my number. The moment I answered, a harsh voice grated on my ear. “Grown a spine, have you? Are you running away from home like a child?“What’s the point of taking those cheap art supplies with you? You

Chapter 3

The next day, I went to the art gallery. Spotting me, the manager looked rather embarrassed. “Mr. Webb, I’m afraid we can’t save the space for your solo exhibition.” I pointed at the artwork, which had been taken off the wall and piled up in a corner. “I’ve paid six months’ worth of rent. The exhibition starts tomorrow. “You’re telling me you took down my paintings without so much as a heads-up?” The manager wiped the sweat from his forehead and handed me a termination notice. “Ms. Green offered three times the penalty fee to take over the venue. “She wants to throw a birthday bash for Mr. Smith here.” The clicking of high heels on the wooden floor drew closer. Dressed in a custom Chanel, Tasha strutted, holding Jesse’s arm. “What? A broke artist like you is questioning my decision?” She approached me, scanning my creased, wrinkled shirt. “Soren, you’re broke, homeless, and sleeping wherever you can, yet you still want to act all high and mighty?” Beside her

Chapter 4

“Since you’re here to wait on us, you’d better act the part.“Take this drink and give a toast to Jesse.“Otherwise, you can forget ever holding another trashy exhibition for the rest of your life.” Holding the glass of strong liquor in hand, I approached Jesse. “Happy birthday, Mr. Smith.” Jesse reached his hand out with a smile. His fingers brushed the glass, only to recoil abruptly. The glass smashed onto the tiled floor, shattering everywhere.The liquid splashed all over Jesse’s expensive leather shoes. Tasha jumped up from her seat and struck me hard across the face. “Are you blind? Those shoes are a limited edition. You can’t afford them even if you sold your blood.” The taste of copper filled my mouth. She pointed at the spill on the floor and snapped at me sternly. “Grab some napkins and wipe Jesse’s shoes clean. “Unless those shoes sparkle, I’ll make sure you never show your face in the art community again.” The room burst out in laughter. “This i

Chapter 5

The gallery door shut behind me. Carrying my suitcase, I took quick paces down the steps. The taxis lined up along the curb refused to take me, so I had to haul my suitcase down two blocks.Flagging down an empty cab, I opened the door and slid into the back seat. “To the International Art Center on the east side, please.” The driver glanced at me through the rear-view mirror before hitting the gas pedal. I pulled out my new spare phone, removed the SIM card, snapped it in half, and threw it into the cab’s trash pouch. Once the new SIM was in place, I installed a handful of essential messaging apps. When the taxi pulled up outside the art center, I wheeled my suitcase into the lobby. The elevator stopped on the sixteenth floor. Amy, the editor-in-chief, was ready for me in the conference room. I unzipped my backpack and took out a black external hard drive before sliding it across the table to her. “This contains a hundred urban sketches. Every piece is an origin

Chapter 6

By 10:00 AM, the head of the publishing house made an urgent call to me. “Mr. Webb, the second batch of the launch release was snapped up by a single buyer. “Our records show all the purchases came from one IP address.“The shipping address is the Green Firm’s headquarters, and the total order exceeds two million dollars.” I set down the paintbrush and walked up to the window. “Invoke the anti-bulk-purchasing clause in the agreement. “Cancel all orders flagged as suspicious.“Just issue the refunds and hold all shipments.” At 2:00 PM, I posted an update from my new social media account. “The art book is meant for genuine readers only. Bulk buying and speculative reselling are strictly prohibited.” I included a backend screenshot of the blocked orders, which displayed the refund directed to Green Firm as the recipient. The post went viral in no time. Readers in the comments rallied behind the decision to boycott such malicious behavior. My first book signing was

Chapter 7

Tasha went back to her mansion and locked herself in the upstairs study. Pulling out her phone, she started doom-scrolling her social media. Her algorithm pushed an anonymous account to her feed. The avatar featured the leather interior of a luxury Porsche. It was the exact sports car she had given Jesse the month before. She tapped on the profile page and scrolled through the posts. The feed was packed with photos showcasing extravagant lifestyles across exclusive venues. “The dumb woman wired me more money. It feels so good spending her money.” “She dropped thousands of dollars on dinner. No questions asked.” “Webb is my go-to fall guy. I’ll get rid of him sooner or later. The Greens’ money belongs to me.” A post from five years ago caught her eye. The update was paired with a picture of two stacks of hundred-dollar bills. “Paid off the two security guards to stage a whole suicide jump. “Totally sabotaged Webb’s million-dollar job offer. That’ll teach him to

Chapter 8

I reached into my pocket for a pack of tissues and pulled out a sheet. With it, I cleaned off the specks of mud that had flicked onto my hand when she approached earlier. Then, I dropped the soiled tissue right by her shoes. “Tasha, once you discard trash, do you expect people to dig through the dumpster for scraps?” “You make me sick. “Get out of my way.” The cab I had ordered was waiting by the curb. The driver sounded the horn. Closing my umbrella, I opened the car door and climbed into the back seat. I shut the door behind me. The taxi drove off into the rain. Tasha sank into the muddy puddle, her gaze following the fading taillights before she passed out. The air was thick with the smell of disinfectant in a ward at the downtown hospital. Tasha’s eyes fluttered open. Sitting by her bed, Sarah scrolled through her phone. “You’re finally awake, Tash. Your temperature spiked to 102 degrees.“You’re on doctor’s orders to stay in bed for a few days, so st

Chapter 9

“The Green heiress’ private life is anything but clean.” “Tasha’s studio is suspected of exploiting artists.” Industry peers turned against her. Instead of fawning over her, they kicked her while she was down. Business associates sent letters to withdraw from partnerships. Multi-million-dollar investment projects were completely pulled out.Debt collectors began showing up at the mansion, pounding on the gates and demanding their money. The Greens’ cash flow dried up. The bank foreclosed on the mansion and luxury cars. Her life unraveled soon enough. Tasha tried to take legal action against Jesse. Her attorney laid the documents in front of her and shook his head. “We’ve checked the records, Ms. Green. “You authorized numerous non-compliant contracts to funnel funds to Jesse’s shell company.“If you take Jesse to court, these papers will be publicly audited. “You won’t be off the hook. Even your father will get dragged into it.” As her eyes fixed on the files

Chapter 10

I opened the car door, got behind the wheel, and fired up the engine.The car pulled out of the parking space, leaving her stranded in the dark parking garage. Thriving in the world I truly loved, I embraced the sprawling future that was mine alone. With his name tarnished, the entire industry shut Jesse out. Tasha lost all her pride and glory. Day after day, she could only numb herself with cheap alcohol. Many nights, she wept over a pile of gray dust on the floor. She was doomed to spend her remaining years trapped in a hell of wanting what she could never have.As for me, my new workspace was set up downtown, with my exhibition dates booked out for the next three years. The vast life meant for me had just begun. Greeted by the first light of dawn, I lifted my paintbrush. This time, I would create art for no one else but me. Before the studio’s floor-to-ceiling window, I brushed the last stroke on my new piece, Emergence. Ellis, the curator, stepped into the r

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