The Blindfold Game That Ended Us Chapter 09

The Blindfold Game That Ended Us Chapter 09

The next second, the class group chat lit up with a video.

“She’s walking in! Bride’s way too pretty, bridesmaids are brutal, the groom’s

about to lose it.”

He clicked it.

The video showed the doors to the reception hall opening. People cheered, confetti

flying, laughter everywhere.

The camera shook, then steadied.

A figure in white.

His fingers went cold.

The camera zoomed in. My face, clear on the screen.

It was me.

He sat up fast, dragged the video back to the start. Watched it again.

It was me. In a wedding dress. Laughing.

And the man beside me, in a suit, getting swarmed by the crowd, it wasn’t him.

The chat was still going, [So she was serious at the reunion!]

[Who’s the groom? Anyone know him?]

[You guys who didn’t come missed it. Turns out Emma’s mystery guy is Nathan Hayes. The valedictorian!]

[No way! That’s who she ended up with?]

[Two weeks and they’re married. Guess it was fate after all.]

[Congrats! See everyone at the wedding tomorrow!]

Messages kept coming. He couldn’t process any of them.

Two weeks?

Nathan Hayes?

What about him?

What about eight years?

Liam got up, walking barefoot across the floor.

Olivia came out of the guest room. I took one look at him and went pale. “Liam? What’s wrong?”

He didn’t answer. He grabbed his spare phone from the living room and dialed a

number.

No one picked up.

He stood there, phone in hand, shaking.

Olivia walked up behind him. She paused, then wrapped her arms around his back.

“Liam,” she said softly. “You still have me.’

He went rigid.

A few seconds passed. Then he pulled her arms away.

“No,” he said, his voice rough. “You’re not the one I want.”

Olivia stared at him.

He was already on his phone, booking a flight to my hometown.

He finally understood: when I’d said I was going home to prepare for the wedding, it wasn’t a threat. It wasn’t a test. It was real.

And he’d thought I was just angry. Thought there was still time. Left me alone to cool off. Didn’t want to crowd me.

He thought… and then his phone buzzed. Another message in the group chat.

at…”

A photo. Me, in my white dress, leaning against a man’s shoulder. Smiling.

“Hope she’s happy.”

“That’s awesome. Emma tutored me all through school. She deserves this.”

“Two valedictorians. Perfect match.”

“Yeah, Emma could’ve gone to a way better school. I never got why she ended up

“Anyway. She’s happy now.”

Liam stared at the screen.

They didn’t know why I’d chosen that school.

He did.

Because he’d said, once, “It would be nice if you stayed with me.”

And I’d changed my plans.

And he’d taken care of me. Made sure I didn’t have to worry about money. Gave me a

home. A life.

But he’d never given me what I actually wanted.

Work. Social obligations. Colleagues who gossiped. The timing was never right. He’d had a hundred reasons to wait.

And he’d waited until I stopped asking. Until I didn’t need him to anymore.

By the time Liam reached the hotel, the wedding had been over for two hours.

The banquet hall doors were open. Staff were clearing tables.

“Excuse me,” he said, grabbing a server’s arm. “Where’s the bride?”