The Tickets He Gave Me Became My Best Friend’s Trip Instead Chapter 05

The Tickets He Gave Me Became My Best Friend’s Trip Instead Chapter 05

The train carried me steadily south as the landscape slipped past the window.

I leaned back and watched Julian’s name flash across my phone. By then, I had thirty missed calls.

He must’ve finally realized I wasn’t coming back. For the first time, something had happened that he couldn’t

control.

His messages filled the screen.

[Nora, stop this. Dinner’s ready.]

[I was out of line earlier. Come home, and I’ll apologize.]

[Where are you this late? Pick up the phone.]

[Nora Bennett, answer me before I lose my patience.]

Even his apology sounded like an order. His imperious tone grew more impatient with every message.

I read every message without feeling a thing, then blocked his number and every account he could use to

reach me.

Four hours later, the train arrived in Williamsburg.

It had been the first destination in my scrapbook, the place I had imagined visiting with Julian more times

than I could count.

Now I was here alone.

I pulled my suitcase through the historic district. A small inn called Magnolia House had a vacancy, so I took

a room for the night.

The next morning, I changed my phone number.

When I turned my phone back on, a voice message from Megan was waiting. I had blocked Julian, but I

hadn’t gotten around to removing everyone else from my life.

[Nora, have you lost your mind? You blocked Julian? Do you have any idea how long he spent looking for you last night?]

Something shattered in the background. Then Julian’s muffled voice came through the recording.

[Find her. Check every hotel, airport, and train station.]

Megan sounded almost pleased when she continued.

[Hear that? He’s furious. Quit while you’re ahead, and stop pretending disappearing gives you some kind of leverage. Claire flew back to New York this morning, and Julian’s already in a bad mood.]

[Come home and apologize. After everything you did for his mother, he might still forgive you.]

I listened to the end, blocked Megan, and left every group chat that connected me to them.

When I opened the window, morning sunlight stretched across the old brick buildings and quiet gardens.

below.

The air smelled clean after the rain, and for the first time in months, breathing didn’t feel like work.

Downstairs, I found the innkeeper at the front desk.

“Are you hiring?”

She studied me for a moment. She was a warm, practical woman named Maggie Dawson.

“I am, but the front desk work is demanding, and the pay isn’t great.”

“That’s fine. As long as room and meals are included.”

That was how I settled into Williamsburg.

Every morning, I was up by six to clean the common areas, check guests in, and help the innkeeper reconcile

the accounts. The work kept me busy and gave my days a sense of purpose.

No one spoke to me in a condescending voice or judged what I was worth.

Two weeks later, I found a jewelry box while unpacking the last of my things.

Inside was the diamond necklace Julian had given me for my birthday two years earlier.

I photographed it and listed it on an online resale site for a third of its original price. Someone bought it

almost immediately.

The buyer sent a brief message.

[I need it right away. Can you ship it today?]

I packed the necklace, filled out the shipping label, and handed the package to the carrier.

When I returned to the inn, sunlight warmed the brick sidewalk outside.

My life had finally gone quiet.