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All Chapters of Returning the Keys, Taking My Freedom: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

11 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Elena, you really backed out?"The call from Tessa Langford came through just as I walked out of the realtor's office."I did.""You put down a 30,000-dollar deposit, and you just walked away from it? Does Julian know?""He's in Valeria.""Business trip?"I didn't answer, and Tessa fell silent for a couple of seconds."Elena, even if you two had a fight, you can't just give up on the house…""I found hundreds of photos on his old camera. The same woman. The same mountain. Five years' worth of them."The other end of the line went quiet before she whispered, "Rosalie Vance?"Tessa didn't say another word.On my way home, a message from Julian Harrow popped up on my screen. It was a photo of a steaming mug of hot chocolate in a white ceramic cup, complete with a tiny deer painted on the side, accompanied by the text, "It's snowing in Bellmont. I'm freezing."I recognized that cup instantly. Julian had sent me the exact same photo the previous winter—same angle, same comp

Chapter 2

Five years together, and that was everything I'd ever received from Valeria—five fridge magnets, while Rosalie got weekends at mountain resorts, carefully planned experiences, birthday surprises, and a nickname that apparently belonged only to her.My phone lit up again just as I was processing it, showing another picture from Julian of a deer-shaped fridge magnet still in its packaging. The message read, "Cute, right? Rosalie helped me pick it out."Even the gifts he bought for me somehow involved her. I typed out a question. "What did you get Rosalie?"My thumb hovered over the send button before I deleted the words one by one and sent a single, hollow reply. "Yeah."Two days later, Julian came home, rolling his suitcase through the door before reaching into one of the side compartments to hand me a small paper bag. "Your fridge magnet."Then he pulled out a much larger shopping bag and set it down by the entryway."What's that?""Something for Rosalie. A scarf. She sai

Chapter 3

"Elena, I'm going to be completely honest with you. I've known Rosalie since she was a little girl. She and Julian grew up together, so they know each other inside and out."You're a lovely girl, but taking care of people doesn't exactly come naturally to you. You could learn a thing or two from Rosalie."I turned my phone face down on the table. A moment later, Julian walked into the room. "Why'd you stop eating?" "I'm not hungry." He headed to the closet to grab his pajamas, and as he reached up, I caught a glimpse of a red velvet box sticking out of the inside pocket of his jacket. "What's that?""Oh, this?" He pulled it out. "It's Rosalie's birthday present. A necklace." He opened the box for me. Inside lay a delicate silver chain with a cherry blossom pendant. A single letter had been engraved in the exact center of the flower—J for Julian."It's custom-made," he said. "It took two months." My engagement ring had come from a website. When the package arrived, Jul

Chapter 4

Halfway through dinner, Miles decided everyone was getting too comfortable."Alright, let's see how well the happy couple actually knows each other." He pointed at Julian. "What's Elena's favorite flower?" Julian thought for a moment. "Roses?"My fingers tightened slightly around my glass. "Lisianthus," I said."Okay, terrible start." Miles laughed. "Her birthday?""March…" Julian paused. "Ninth?"He got it right eventually. "And what's she afraid of?"Julian didn't even have to think about that one. "Nothing, really." He smiled. "Elena's fearless." Everyone laughed. I smiled too.I was afraid of the dark. I'd told him that during our first year together. We'd been walking home late one night when a power outage blacked out half the neighborhood. I'd grabbed his arm before I could stop myself. I'd been embarrassed enough to explain why.He'd teased me about it then.At some point, he'd forgotten. Miles shook his head. "Julian, you're embarrassing yourself. Let's

Chapter 5

I smiled. "Yeah, it's enough."Saturday morning, I made breakfast in the kitchen—oatmeal, hard-boiled eggs, and a small plate of pickles—his favorite. "Julian, can you stay home today?" He looked a little surprised."I just want you to spend the day with me." "Sure. I don't have anything going on anyway." He smiled and sat down to eat. I sat across from him, trying to memorize his face. "Julian.""Hm?""Do you love me?"His spoon paused halfway to his mouth. "Where's that coming from?" "I want to hear you say it. Just once." "I'm marrying you. What do you think?" "Getting married and being in love aren't the same thing." "What's gotten into you today?" "I just want to hear you say it." He set down his spoon and looked at me. "Elena, of course I…"His phone rang, and he glanced down at the screen. "It's Rosalie.""Don't answer it." "I'm just going to see what she wants." He swiped to answer."She says a pipe burst at her place. There's water all over

Chapter 6

There was no one waiting for me when I stepped out of the station in a new city. This time, I didn't care.I turned on my phone, and messages flooded the screen. The last two were from Julian."I saw the five fridge magnets on the coffee table.""Elena, call me back."That was his 27th message.Tessa called before I could read the text."You really left? Julian's been looking everywhere for you. He even went to your office. Your boss told him you'd taken an extended leave.""I quit.""You… You quit your job too?""I'm starting over somewhere else.""He's called me eight times asking if I know where you went.""What did you tell him?""That I don't know." Tessa paused. "He didn't even sound like himself. He kept saying he doesn't understand why you suddenly left. He said everything between you two was fine."Fine.Julian thought we were fine.His fiancée had handled the new house by herself, backed out of the purchase by herself, packed her things by herself, and left by

Chapter 7

I replied, "You're too late.""Elena, please. I'm begging you. Just meet me once."That was his 51st message.On my third day in the new city, I started applying for jobs and lined up two interviews that helped my days slowly settle into a new rhythm. I was having lunch when Tessa messaged me again. "Julian went back to the house yesterday.""What for?""He asked the realtor for the key, saying he wanted to go inside and look around. They told him the place had already been put back on the market, but he insisted he only wanted a few minutes.""And?""He stayed for two hours."I set down my fork."He told me he just stood there when he first opened the door.""Why?""He said he had no idea you'd made the place look like that. The living room walls were cream. The bedroom curtains were that misty blue you love. You'd designed a wall-to-wall bookcase for the study and had a carpenter build it from your drawings."You picked out every tile in the kitchen yourself, and the mi

Chapter 8

I replied, "Ask him."Rosalie said, "I did. He won't tell me. Elena, did you two have a fight or something?""It wasn't a fight. I left.""Left? Where did you go?""I left him."The typing indicator appeared and stayed there for a long time before a long message came through. "Elena, I probably shouldn't say this, but Jules has always treated you well. He's just softhearted, and he's like that with everyone. Please don't get jealous because he's good to me. We really are only friends. If that's why you left him, you're throwing away five years for nothing."She thought I'd left out of jealousy and was making a big deal out of nothing.I replied, "Rosalie, what exactly has he done that makes you think he treats me so well?"It took her three minutes to reply. "You've been together for five years. He bought a house with you, and he was going to marry you. Whenever he talks about you, he always says you're independent and capable. He really admires you."He admired me. He didn'

Chapter 9

I sat at my desk and looked at him through the glass door.He'd lost weight, neglected to shave, and dark circles shadowed his tired eyes as he clutched a paper bag. The receptionist glanced at me, and I gave a subtle shake of my head. "Ms. Whitmore isn't in the office today.""She's not? When will she be in?""I'm not sure. Would you like to leave something for her?"He stood there for a moment before taking something out of the paper bag and placing it on the reception desk. "Could you give this to her, please?"Then he turned and left.The receptionist brought it over to me. It was a cashmere scarf—dark blue, completely devoid of initials or markings. Tucked inside the box was a note."You told me last winter that you wanted a cashmere scarf. I said you didn't need one. I'm sorry. I'm a year too late."A year too late.Last year, I'd told him I wanted one, and he'd dismissed it; this year, he'd come all the way to another city just to hand-deliver it. But sometime dur

Chapter 10

Julian's hand dropped to his side, and the necklace slipped through his fingers, hitting the ground with a soft metallic clink. I didn't look back."Take the necklace with you. It isn't mine.""He stayed downstairs all night," one of my coworkers told me the next morning. "Security said he sat in the lobby all night. He didn't leave until sunrise."I walked over to the window and looked down, but the entrance was empty.Early that morning, Julian sent me a message. "I'm not giving up. Whenever you're ready to talk to me, I'll wait."At noon, Tessa called. "Julian asked me to tell you something.""What?""He deleted all of Rosalie's contact information, turned off location sharing, and cleared their chat history too.""And?""He went to that little diner you two used to go to."My hand stilled. That diner—the place where Julian had confessed his feelings to me during our first year together. He'd promised we would come back every year on our anniversary. We never did."He

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