Later that night I opened my freezer and noticed that nothing remained inside except frozen vegetables and ice trays. The symbolic cake was gone because I no longer needed reminders of survival. I closed the freezer door and walked into the living room where Ethan waited patiently on the couch. He smiled and asked whether everything was alright. I nodded calmly and answered that I had simply finished cleaning out some old clutter.
In the end the story remained simple. Dylan renamed me Free Food with a money bag emoji because he believed I existed only as a resource. I answered by removing his access and rebuilding my life without him. His emergency occurred during a birthday dinner he expected me to fund, and for once I allowed him to solve the problem alone while I focused on fixing the only life that truly belonged to me.
THE END.
