6
After dinner, I took Rocky out for a walk. As soon as I stepped outside,
there was Ethan, standing by the building entrance with his silver suitcase.
Rocky broke free from my grip and bolted straight toward him.
See? Dogs are more loyal than people.
I struggled to pull Rocky back, then turned and started walking upstairs.
“Megan.” He caught up to me, ignoring Rocky, who was desperately trying to get his attention.
“Megan, did you change the locks?”
“What, planning to break in?”
“No, no, that’s not it. I just need to grab my stuff. My clothes, my watch, my shoes… and the laptop I just bought. I need it for work.”
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I stopped and gave him a look. “Are you out of your mind? I bought all
those things. I have the receipts.”
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He followed me. “Yeah, yeah, I know. But they’re men’s stuff. I don’t even have a watch now. It’s embarrassing when I meet clients. And my shoes… I haven’t changed them in days. You know my work laptop’s too heavy to carry
around…”
Rocky barked once, then settled quietly in my arms.
Even the dog couldn’t listen to this nonsense anymore.
“I can sell them secondhand or throw them out. Whether or not you need them isn’t my problem.”
“I’m trying to save up for a house… money’s tight…”
“Get lost!”
Just as I was about to close the door, he shouted, “Rocky was my dog! I’ll
take him with me.”
I swung the door open again, my patience gone. “Ethan, you’ll say
anything, won’t you? Over the years, who’s paid for Rocky’s food, his vet bills, his neutering? I seriously underestimated how shameless you are.”
I pulled out my phone and re–added him on my contacts. “Everything of yours is gone. Not a single thing left.”
He looked at me coldly, his face pale. I could tell he was hurting over all the stuff.
J
“I sent you $3,000. You bought Rocky for $800 back then.”
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♡ Fo
As I slammed the door, I added, “And as for the things you gave me, your shoes on your feet right now should cover it. Now we’re even.”
A moment later, I got a message–he accepted the payment.
I blocked him again and almost threw up the dinner I’d just eaten.
Life went on as usual. Ethan, who used to be constantly busy, now made sure to pick Tiffany up every day. Whenever we crossed paths, she’d make a point of clinging to him.
I just rolled my eyes. A man who turns his back for money, what is she
treasuring?
Three months later, I moved to a new place. A lot of my coworkers came to
help me with the move.
Downstairs, I ran into Ethan and Tiffany again. She cozied up under his
arm.
Crystal squeezed my hand, pretending they didn’t exist. “Megan, this neighborhood is really nice.”
Tiffany couldn’t help herself. “Of course! The condos here are going for over $600 a square foot now.” She said it like she owned the entire development.
She was clearly hoping we’d ask her more. I grabbed Crystal’s hand and kept walking. I wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction.
“So Dr Summers are you renting here? These are all large apartments. I’d
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recommend the ones in phase three. But they’re not cheap–about $8,000 a
month.”
fo
I couldn’t hide my grin. “You seem to know a lot. Do you live here?”
She finally raised her head, full of pride. “Of course. Ethan and I aren’t
renting, though. We just bought one in phase three, 900 square feet, and the
view is amazing.”
I glanced at Ethan. He was pursing his lips, still high off the excitement of buying his dream home.
After all, this was the “home” he’d been longing for.
I tilted my head and pretended to think. “So, you put down 20%?”
“No, we put down 30%, actually!”
Crystal couldn’t hold back her laughter. I nodded knowingly. “Congrats.
Looks like we’ll be neighbors.”
Crystal pointed to a particular building in the distance. “Look, Megan
moved into that one.”
“That’s… a large apartment! Renting a place that size? Who’d believe that?”
Tiffany scoffed. “Dr. Summers, you don’t have to overdo it just to make a
point…”
Crystal laughed. “Megan’s grandma passed away and left her the old family house. It was a standalone home right here. When the area got redeveloped, she picked this large unit–2,500 square feet. Plus, she bought two more in phase three. All newly renovated.”
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I glanced up just in time to catch Tiffany’s first reaction. She immediately
looked back at Ethan.
fo
Ethan’s face turned white. He stepped forward. “Megan, why didn’t you
ever mention this?”
Tiffany tugged at his arm, her lips quivering, eyes filled with tears.
I think she finally realized that Ethan valued her dad’s million dollars more
than he valued her. Some people will ignore reality just to keep themselves
comfortable in a lie.
“What was there to say? Back when we first got together, you told me you
didn’t like it when there was too much of a difference between our
backgrounds. You said you wanted to build something with your own two
hands, like a man. You wanted your kids to have a father who’d earned
everything. Back then, I believed in your sincerity. I was willing to go through
the tough times with you. So, I didn’t think it was important to mention that
I’ve never really had to worry about money. My family’s not rich, but we’ve
never had to struggle.”
Ethan stepped forward again, but Tiffany held on to his arm. “Ethan, we’re
about to get engaged. Why are you listening to her?”
Ethan stood his ground in front of me, his eyes red.
