Chapter 2: Goodbye Isn’t Enough

She froze. Then hurried over, lowering her voice. “Are you just shy, honey? I’ve been there.” She gave me a little wink. “Last night I called Noah—don’t think I don’t know what you two were up to?”

She gestured at the pot of chicken noodle soup on the table, winking at me. “I got up early just to make this for you.” The steam curled up, smelling like home—and heartbreak.

I tried not to cry. “Mrs. Bennett…”

“The person with Noah last night wasn’t me.” My voice cracked.

“I’m not right for Noah. Let’s call off the engagement. Please tell him not to come looking for me again.” The words tumbled out. More desperate than I meant.

She grew anxious. “Did that boy do something stupid?” Her hands fluttered, searching for something to hold onto.

“I’ll call him right now and make him apologize.” She dialed Noah’s number, and soon I heard his slightly hoarse voice: “Mom?”

She was about to speak when a soft, muffled moan came through the phone. The sound was unmistakable. Intimate. It made my skin crawl.

It was Madison’s voice. I recognized it instantly, even though I wished I didn’t.

Back when the class voted for the best voice, Madison was every guy’s top pick. She’d always had that effortless charm, the kind that made people listen.

Even though it was just a short sound, I knew exactly what they were doing. The silence that followed was deafening.

A second later, Mrs. Bennett hung up. She stared at me in shock.

Anger. Disbelief. Heartbreak.

My face stayed calm. But inside, I felt split open all over again. “Mrs. Bennett, you should go.” My voice was barely above a whisper. But it was enough.

The day after my eighteenth birthday, two big things happened. First, I broke off my engagement with Noah. Second, because of my dad’s job transfer, our family was moving to Maple Heights—a small city a thousand miles from Noah. It felt like fate, or maybe just the world giving me a way out.

I only told my best friend. She was the only one who’d get it.

She was so mad her voice shook. “Is Noah even human? What kind of excuse is, ‘I can’t bear for you to get hurt so I sleep with another girl’? If you’re worried about him getting tired, go find someone else yourself!” Her words were sharp, but I knew she was trying to make me laugh.

She made me laugh. “That’s true.” It sounded brittle, but it helped.

That night, my best friend dragged me to a class dinner. The class president organized it.

We got stuck in traffic and showed up half an hour late—just in time to see the class president confessing to Madison. The restaurant was buzzing with noise, the smell of fries and cheap beer in the air.

As the class president confessed, Madison’s eyes stayed fixed on Noah, who sat quietly beside her. She looked like she was waiting for a sign, something to hold onto.

“Noah, do you have anything to say?” She seemed to be waiting for something. The whole room went quiet, everyone watching.

Noah shrugged, like he didn’t care. Took a sip of beer. His eyes flickered, but he stayed silent.

A classmate snorted, “Who doesn’t know Noah only cares about Emily? No matter how pretty the prom queen is, she’s just another girl to him.”

Tears welled up in Madison’s eyes. With red eyes, she accepted the class president’s confession. Her smile was shaky, but she held her head high.

Noah stiffened for a second. Then he noticed me. His dark eyes lit up. “Emily? Weren’t you visiting family out in the country? What are you doing at the party?”

I echoed, playing along. Even though my heart wasn’t in it.

“Yeah, my mom said you’d be gone all summer, and there’s no cell signal out there, so she told me not to bother you. So you’re heading back tomorrow?”

That’s when I got it. Mrs. Bennett probably hadn’t told Noah what happened, afraid he’d come after me—waiting until I was settled in Maple Heights before breaking the news. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost.

Noah stared at me. Then looked away, his face a little red. “Emily, you look really pretty tonight.”

It was almost funny. Around me, Noah always seemed so pure. So innocent.

I glanced at my reflection in the glass case nearby.

Loose, wavy hair. Perfect fake lashes. A touch of blush. Innocent and a little daring.

I hardly ever wore makeup.

“Tonight, you’re gonna be the one everyone stares at,” my best friend had said.