Labor Day weekend was coming up, and my boyfriend, Ethan, told me he was going back home to visit his parents. To make some extra money, I lied and told him I was staying in town to study, but instead, I took a gig as an on-the-spot pet sitter. My new client said she was going on her honeymoon. She offered a ridiculously generous pay, asking only that I take good care of her three cats. I was still self-congratulating over the massive paycheck when I unlocked her apartment door. But the moment I stepped inside, I froze. Hanging on her living room wall was a massive wedding photo of her and my boyfriend. Right then, my phone rang. It was Ethan, calling to tell me his parents wanted him to stay a few days longer. Staring at the giant wedding photo in front of me, I suddenly said, "Ethan, I want to get a cat." Ethan sighed, his voice sounding helpless over the line. "Sweetheart, be reasonable. You know I'm severely allergic to cats, right? Don't be childish. Just do this for me, okay?"
With a short beep, Ethan hung up the phone in a hurry. I stood there frozen, the phone still pressed to my ear. The giant wedding photo in front of me was so blindingly bright that it made my eyes water. The man in the photo, dressed in a sharp, tailored tuxedo, was smiling warmly as he held his bride. That face. The face that had kissed me goodnight every night for three years. The man who had promised to save up and build a home with me. It was Ethan, my boyfriend of three years. "Meow..." A fluffy Ragdoll cat rubbed against my ankle. It looked up at me with its crystal-blue eyes, purring softly to comfort me. My fingers trembled. Like a puppet with its strings cut, I mechanically filled the food bowls, changed the water, and cleaned the litter boxes for the three cats. Then, on autopilot, I took out my phone, filmed a quick video of them eating, and sent it to my new client. She replied almost instantly. [Thank you so much! They look so happy. You're a lifesaver!] [I'll trouble you for the next few days. When my husband and I get back from our honeymoon, we'll bring you a souvenir!] Husband. Honeymoon. Those words stabbed straight into my chest like sharp needles. The pain was so intense that my knees buckled. I had to lean against the wall for a long time before I could stand straight again. I don’t even remember how I made it back to the apartment Ethan and I rented together. This cozy place, which we had decorated ourselves, with a photo wall of our anniversaries, now felt like a physical slap to my face. Just yesterday, Ethan had held me close, resting his chin on my head, his voice filled with gentle promise. "Baby, when I go back this time, I'm going to tell my parents about us. Let's get them ready so our families can finally meet." I had blushed and playfully tapped his chest. Looking back, it was a joke. I suddenly remembered that this client, Chloe, had found me on Twitter. With shaking hands, I opened the app and searched for her username. Her profile header was that exact wedding photo. But in her profile picture, it was just a solo shot of her, which was why I hadn't noticed anything wrong initially. I clicked on her latest post. The title was: [We tied the knot!], with a gallery of nine photos. In one photo, she was taking a selfie in front of a full-length mirror. But in the reflection of that mirror, Ethan's face was unmistakably clear. He was even flashing a peace sign at the camera, smiling brighter than the sun. Just then, a Snapchat notification popped up at the top of my screen. It was from Ethan. [Baby, I was busy just now and couldn't ask. Why the sudden urge to get a cat?] I stared at the text. A few seconds later, another message came through. [I really am allergic, remember? When your neighbor’s cat came over last year, I broke out in hives just from holding it. But I know you love them. I just bought you a plush cat toy and shipped it to your place.] [Don't be mad at me, okay?] The same gentle tone. The same thoughtful gestures. It was exactly how he had treated me for the last three years. If I hadn't unlocked that apartment door, if I hadn't seen that photo, I would probably be crying tears of gratitude right now, thinking I had the best boyfriend in the world.
In that single second, the tightly wound string in my head snapped. Countless details I had ignored came rushing back like a tidal wave. He would disappear randomly, claiming it was a last-minute business trip or a team-building weekend. His phone never left his side. He even took it into the shower, claiming he couldn't miss an urgent work email. In three years of dating, he had never introduced me to his friends. His excuse was always that he was new to the city, and that colleagues couldn't be trusted as real friends. Even his Snapchat was barren—just a few coworkers, local businesses, and delivery services. I had checked his phone once and genuinely believed he was just a rare, drama-free, decent guy. Tears fell without warning, splashing onto the cold screen. I curled up on the sofa and let out a choked sob. I remembered a rainy night three years ago. I was cornered by a drunk guy in an alley when Ethan appeared like a hero. He threw his jacket over my shoulders and dragged the guy to the police station. We started dating shortly after. He was incredibly attentive. He remembered my cycle, waited for me downstairs when I worked late, and kept track of every little thing I mentioned in passing. I thought I had found my soulmate. I never imagined that this tenderness was being shared with someone else at the same time. Suddenly, a sharp, horrific question pierced my mind. In Ethan's double life... Who was the actual mistress? Chloe, or me? I didn’t sleep a wink that night. The next morning, Ethan FaceTime called me out of the blue. I stared at his familiar face on the screen and pressed accept. "Luna, what's wrong? Why are your eyes so swollen?" The moment he saw me, he frowned, his voice full of worry. "Have you been crying? Did someone hurt you?" He immediately started typing on his laptop. "I'm ordering some soothing eye cream and ice packs to your place right now. Remember to use them..." I watched his act of concern, my heart turning completely to ice. "Ethan," I interrupted him, my voice eerily calm. "Can you come back and see me right now?" The concern on his face stiffened, replaced by a flash of hesitation. "Baby, I... I just got home. My parents won't let me leave so soon. I'm so sorry, it's my fault," he coaxed softly. "When I get back, I'll make it up to you, okay?" While he was making his sweet promises, another notification popped up at the top of my screen. It was from Chloe. [Luna! Urgent! Have you checked the camera? It looks like Pudding is stuck in the gap of the balcony AC unit and can't get out. Can you please go check on him? Please!] I stared at the text, then looked back at Ethan on the screen. His eyes darted to the side, as if listening to someone else in the room. Then he spoke quickly, "Baby, my mom is calling me. I gotta go!" He was rushing to hang up. But in the fraction of a second before the call cut off, I heard a sweet, feminine voice clearly in the background. "Honey, I just messaged the cat sitter. Do you think..." The screen went black. But my mind had never been clearer. Whether he had cheated on me from the very start or fell in love with someone else halfway through didn't matter anymore. What mattered was that I was done with him.
The cold light of my phone screen reflected on my face. Chloe’s messages kept coming, and she was clearly panicking. I wondered if Ethan knew that the person house-sitting for his new wife was his own girlfriend. Without another thought, I grabbed my keys and ran out. The man was gone, but the money was still mine to make. Following Chloe's panicked instructions over the phone, I had to lean half my body out over the balcony gap. Using a broom handle and a T-shirt as a makeshift net, I carefully scooped up the trembling Ragdoll cat. As soon as Pudding was safe, he buried his head under my chin, meowing softly. I snapped a photo and sent it to Chloe to let her know he was okay. The next second, she FaceTimed me. On screen was a gorgeous girl crying her eyes out. "Thank you so much! Thank you!" she sobbed, her eyes red. "If anything happened to Pudding, I don't know what I would have done." I held the cat, listening in silence. She kept crying, letting her emotions pour out to me. "Pudding was the first gift my husband gave me. He gave him to me when we first started dating." "He said even though he’s severely allergic to cats, he’d do anything as long as it made me happy." "So Pudding means everything to us. Thank God you were there today!" Chloe was a talker. Once she started, she couldn't stop sharing how touched she was when her allergic husband had shown up holding a kitten. Every word of her sweet love story was a knife twisting in my heart. "No problem," I cut her off. "The cat is fine. I have to go now." I hung up, put Pudding back in his bed, checked all the windows, and left that apartment without looking back. Back at our rental, I dragged out three heavy-duty trash bags and started packing Ethan's things. His shirts, his sneakers, every single thing he had bought since moving in. When I finished, I scheduled a courier service. I addressed the package to his parents' house. Once, Ethan had asked me to mail some medicine to his parents, so I still had their address saved in my app. I used to think we would be family one day, so I never deleted it. Thank God I hadn't. After the courier picked up the bags, I sent Ethan one last Snapchat message. [Ethan, let's break up. I've mailed all your stuff to your parents' house.] Send. Block. Delete. I did it all in one smooth motion. Staring at the half-empty apartment, I suddenly remembered when we first moved in a year ago. Ethan had hugged me from behind, resting his chin on my head. "Luna, this is our home now." Having grown up with divorced parents who both abandoned me, my eyes had welled up. "Can I really have a home?" He kissed my forehead, promising solemnly, "Of course. I will cherish you forever and give you a real home." What a joke. I opened Chloe's Twitter profile and scrolled all the way back. I scrolled to a year ago, on the exact day Ethan had promised to "cherish me forever." On that day, Chloe had posted a picture of her hand wearing a diamond ring. The caption read: [Engaged to my childhood sweetheart. Here’s to forever.] The "home" he had promised to build for me was built on another woman's foundation from the very beginning. I remembered something else. Shortly after we started dating, I found a stray orange kitten downstairs. I brought it home, thrilled, but Ethan immediately started coughing and sneezing violently, his face covered in hives. He told me he had severe asthma and allergies and couldn't be near cat hair. Terrified, I cried and gave the kitten to a friend that very night. After that day, he treated me even better, holding me and apologizing, saying he wished his body would let him raise a cat with me. I had been touched for a long time, thinking that even though his health didn't allow it, his heart was in the right place. Now I finally understood. It wasn't that he couldn't make compromises. It was just that I wasn't the one worth compromising for. For Chloe, he could endure his allergies and raise three cats. But for me, he couldn't even tolerate the existence of one. His love had always been strictly categorized and prioritized.
After making my decision, I put my phone on airplane mode. I blocked Ethan's number, Snapchat, and every other social media platform we shared. But before my mind could process the grief of this betrayal, my body gave out first. That night, I came down with a high fever. Dazed and shivering, I sent Chloe a quick message saying I was sick and couldn't make it for a couple of days, then buried myself under the blankets. The world was spinning. I don't know how long I slept, but I was eventually woken up by the smell of hot food. On my nightstand was a glass of warm water and some Advil. I dragged myself out of bed, holding onto the wall, and saw a familiar figure working in the kitchen. Ethan was wearing the apron I bought him, carefully stirring a pot of chicken soup. The steam blurred his face. For a second, I was dazed. I thought the last forty-eight hours had just been a terrible nightmare brought on by my fever. Hearing me, he turned around. His face immediately filled with panic, and he rushed over to me. "You're awake! Is your head still spinning? Let me feel..." He reached out to touch my forehead. But all I could see was Chloe's hand wearing that diamond ring. "Don't touch me!" I pushed him away violently, as if his touch burned. Ethan stumbled back, his face filled with shock and hurt. He stood two steps away, looking at me cautiously, his voice soft as if afraid to startle me. "Luna, what is going on? What did I do wrong? Why did you suddenly dump me?" I had seen this helpless, pitiful look so many times. In the past, whenever we fought, he would make this exact face, and my heart would immediately soften. I would end up apologizing, thinking I was the one being unreasonable. But now, fighting the dizziness, I glared at him and finally asked the question: "Ethan, where exactly did you go for the Labor Day weekend?" He answered immediately, his voice carrying a soft, patronizing sigh. "I told you, I went home to see my parents." Thinking I was just mad because he hadn't introduced me to his family after three years, he softened his voice to explain: "I know, Luna. We've been together for three years and I haven't brought you home yet. You have every right to be mad. But my parents... they fight constantly. I didn't want you to walk into a circus on your first visit. I wanted to fix things first so I could bring you home properly." He sounded so sincere. So sincere that for a split second, I wondered if the man marrying Chloe was just an identical twin. I took a deep breath, about to speak. Then, the doorbell rang. Ethan looked relieved and quickly ran to answer it. Looking at the corner of the room, I thought about Chloe’s sweet messages on Snapchat, bragging about how Ethan not only picked out a cat for her but even bathed the other two. He was capable. He just didn't want to do it for me. All my resentment, anger, and heartbreak suddenly vanished in that moment. Only a cold, dead silence remained. Ethan walked back in, holding a package. He opened it, revealing the plush cat toy he had mentioned. He looked at me with a bright smile, clearly waiting for me to be touched and thank him. I slowly curled my lips into a cold smile. My reaction left him completely bewildered. I looked past the toy in his hands and spoke in a flat voice. "Ethan." "They say liars have to swallow ten thousand needles. When is it your turn?"
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