ELARA'S POV
I slammed my apartment door so hard the walls shook.
My hands wouldn't stop shaking. My whole body felt like it was falling apart. I dropped my purse on the floor and pressed my back against the door, sliding down until I sat on the cold ground.
They kicked me out.
My own family kicked me out.
A sob burst from my throat. Then another. Then I couldn't stop crying.
Six years. I gave Liam six years of my life. I turned down my dream job. I stayed in this boring town. I waited for him while he built his career. I smiled and nodded when his friends made fun of my clothes. I pretended not to notice when his mother looked at me like I wasn't good enough.
And for what?
So he could marry my stepsister instead?
My phone rang. I looked at the screen through blurry eyes.
Liam.
I threw the phone across the room. It hit the wall and fell behind the couch.
Good. I never wanted to talk to him again.
But the ringing didn't stop. It kept going and going until I wanted to scream.
Finally, silence.
Then my laptop started buzzing on the kitchen counter. A video call.
"Leave me alone!" I yelled at the screen.
But curiosity made me stand up. Maybe he was calling to say it was all a mistake. Maybe he realized how stupid he was being.
I walked to the laptop and clicked accept.
Liam's face filled the screen. He looked tired. Good. He should be tired.
"Elara, thank God. I've been trying to reach you."
"What do you want?" My voice sounded rough from crying.
"I want to explain properly. That didn't go the way I planned."
"Oh really? How did you plan it? Did you think I'd be happy about this?"
He sighed. "No, but I thought you'd understand. You're always so understanding."
"Understanding?" I laughed, but it wasn't a happy sound. "You want me to understand that you're marrying another woman?"
"It's not like that. I'm not in love with Chloe. You know that."
"Then why are you doing this?"
"Because she's dying, Elara!" He ran his hand over his face. "What kind of person would I be if I said no? She only has a few months. A few months to be happy before she's gone forever."
"And what about me? What about my happiness?"
"You'll have your whole life to be happy. She won't."
Those words hit me like a slap. "So my feelings don't matter because I'm not dying?"
"That's not what I meant—"
"That's exactly what you meant." I moved closer to the screen. "Tell me the truth, Liam. Did you ever really love me?"
"Of course I did! I do!"
"Then choose me. Right now. Tell me you'll cancel everything with Chloe and marry me tomorrow like we planned."
He went quiet. His eyes looked everywhere except at the camera.
"I can't," he whispered.
Something inside me died right then. Something that could never come back to life.
"Then we're done," I said.
"Elara, wait—"
"I mean it. If you marry her, even for one day, even for one hour, you and I are finished. Forever."
"You're being unfair. I'm trying to do the right thing here."
"The right thing? The right thing would be keeping your promise to me! We were supposed to get married tomorrow, Liam. TOMORROW! And now you're giving that day to someone else!"
"She's sick!"
"I don't care!" The words exploded out of me. "I don't care if that makes me a terrible person. She's been mean to me our whole lives. She's always gotten everything she wanted. And now she wants you too, and everyone expects me to just smile and hand you over?"
"It's temporary—"
"Nothing is temporary! Once you marry her, everything changes. You'll be her husband. Even if she dies, you'll be her widower. You'll always be the man who chose her over me."
Liam's face turned red. "You're being ridiculous. I'm coming over so we can talk about this like adults."
"Don't you dare come here."
"I'm your fiancé—"
"No, you're not. Not anymore." I reached for the laptop.
"Elara, please! Just give me a chance to—"
I slammed the laptop shut.
My chest felt tight. I couldn't breathe right. The room spun around me.
I stumbled to the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face. When I looked in the mirror, I didn't recognize the girl staring back. Her eyes were red and swollen. Her face was pale. She looked broken.
Was this really happening? Was my life really falling apart this fast?
A loud knock on my front door made me jump.
"Elara! Open up!" Liam's voice came through the wood. "I know you're in there!"
I didn't move. I barely breathed.
"I'm not leaving until we talk!" More knocking. Harder this time.
My neighbor's dog started barking. Someone yelled for the noise to stop.
"Elara, please!" Liam sounded desperate now. "I love you! You have to believe me!"
"Then don't marry her!" I screamed back.
Silence. Long, heavy silence.
"I have to," he finally said. His voice was quieter now. Sad. "I gave her my word. The wedding is in the morning. Everything's ready. Her dress is being fitted right now. The flowers are ordered. If I back out now, she'll... it'll kill her faster."
I pressed my hand against the door. On the other side, I heard him do the same thing.
"So you already decided," I said softly. "You came here to convince me, not to listen to me."
"That's not true."
"Yes, it is. You want me to give you permission. You want me to say it's okay so you don't have to feel guilty."
"Elara..."
"I won't do it. I won't make this easy for you."
Another pause. Then I heard footsteps walking away from my door.
I thought he left. I thought it was over.
But then I heard his voice one more time, barely a whisper through the door.
"After the wedding, I'll come find you. I'll wait however long it takes. Even if it's months or years. I'll wait for you, Elara. Because you're the one I really love."
I heard his footsteps fade down the hallway. Heard the building door open and close.
Then silence.
I slid down the door again, ending up on the floor for the second time tonight.
He was really going to do it. He was really going to marry Chloe tomorrow.
My phone buzzed from behind the couch where I threw it. I crawled over and pulled it out.
A text from my stepmother: Your wedding dress is at the house. Should I give it to Chloe? She's the same size as you. Seems wasteful to let it go unused.
I stared at those words until they blurred together.
They were going to use my dress. My handmade dress that I stitched with my own hands. The dress I bled on. The dress I dreamed in.
Chloe would walk down the aisle in MY dress to marry MY man.
Another text came through: Also, please pick up your things from the house by noon tomorrow. We need the room.
I threw my phone again. This time I heard the screen crack.
Everything was gone. My fiancé. My family. My home. My wedding. Even my dress.
I had nothing left.
I laid on the floor of my tiny apartment and cried until my throat hurt and no more tears would come.
Tomorrow, Liam would marry Chloe.
Tomorrow, my whole world would end.
And there was nothing I could do to stop it.