“If she gets jealous, we’ll all be in trouble.”
Ryan didn’t deny it, twirling her hair between his fingers as if to agree.
Just as I typed a response, the video was deleted.
I called to demand an explanation but got nothing but excuses.
“Didn’t I book a restaurant to apologize? Go first, honey, I’ll be there soon.”
I forced a deep breath, trying to steady my trembling voice.
“You didn’t see the message I sent you?”
Ryan sounded confused. “What message?”
A bitter laugh escaped me, my heart clenching tight. Even a breakup message could be ignored when love was gone.
I was about to speak when a woman’s voice came through the phone.
“Honey, something came up here. Gotta go.”
Then the line cut.
Since he hadn’t seen it, I would say it face-to-face.
I put on some makeup and headed to the restaurant Ryan had booked for the fireworks show.
“Hello, do you have a reservation?”
I gave Ryan’s name. The server immediately asked,
“Are you Mrs. Lee?”
I froze, my heart clamped tight by invisible hands. Forcing a stiff smile, I nodded.
The server led me to a seat. I waited from daylight to nightfall. The dishes grew cold and were reheated, over and over.
Ryan never showed. My phone remained silent.
“Would you like me to reheat your meal again, ma’am?”
I shook my head. “No. Just take it away.”
“There’s a fireworks show starting soon, would you like to watch?”
As I stepped out of the restaurant, the sky exploded with fireworks. Three words blazed across the night.
I’m Sorry…
Tears slid silently down my cheeks, a fragile hope flickering in my chest.
“How beautiful! I wonder whose love story this is!”
The final firework spelled out a name—Sarah Lee.
“So that’s her name! Wow, so lucky!”
I turned to stone, my body cold. Behind me came Sarah’s cheerful voice.
“Emma! You’re watching too? Ryan insisted on bringing me, said fireworks were his apology. I’d rather be gaming.”
I stood frozen, my heart squeezed painfully.
She smacked Ryan on the butt.
“Don’t put my name in fireworks. Bad luck!”
“Fireworks are just for little girls like Emma. I don’t like them—they’re boring.”
Ryan asked instinctively, “Then what do you like?”
Before Sarah could answer, a group of kids lit sparklers.
One slipped from a child’s hand, sending sparks raining into the crowd.
Chaos erupted. Sarah and I were knocked to the ground, my head slamming against the pavement as the world spun.