He Only Lets Me Call Saturdays at Nine I Call Someone Else Chapter 07

He Only Lets Me Call Saturdays at Nine I Call Someone Else Chapter 07

The sky in Floravia always seemed gray, as if rain could start falling at any moment.

The apartment I rented was in a quiet old neighborhood.

My windows faced south, and every afternoon, sunlight poured through them.

On moving day, I stood on the balcony for a long time.

For the first time, I realized how happy something as simple as sunlight could make me.

I replaced all the curtains with light-colored ones and taped a postcard from Toronto to the wall.

A glass vase sat on the table, filled with daisies. Every day after work, I’d change the water and trim the

stems.

I watched the little buds slowly open.

I didn’t have to think about what color someone liked anymore, whether someone would complain about the

mess, or whether someone liked the smell of flowers.

One weekend, I went back home.

The old apartment complex looked exactly the same. The motion-sensor light in the hallway was still

broken.

I stood outside my parents’ door.

My mom was sorting vegetables in the kitchen. She stared at me for three seconds before walking over and

pulling me into a hug.

My dad stood in the living room. The only thing he said was, “You’ve lost weight.”

My tears fell instantly.

My mom’s palm was warm against my back. “As long as you come home, that’s all that matters.”

That night, I ate my fill. The slow-cooked ribs were tender, just the way I’d loved them as a child.

Later, I decided to get away for a while and booked a flight to the coast.

There was a small coastal town where some of the streets were barely wide enough for two people to walk

side by side.

That’s where I met Ethan Cole.

He was crouched at the end of an alley, feeding a stray cat. The cat was so thin I could see every rib, so Ethan tore the bread in his hand into tiny pieces.

He placed them on the ground one by one and waited until the cat finished eating before standing up

When he saw me, he smiled. “You here to feed him, too?”

I later learned that he came here often. Every afternoon at four, he’d show up with bread and a few hot dogs.

Ethan took me down every little street in town. We watched the sunrise by the water and the sunset from the

top of a hill. When it rained, we’d hide beneath a covered porch and drink hot cocoa.

“I’m an architecture student. Honestly, I find roofs more interesting than the ocean.”

I pointed toward an old house in the distance and nodded. “It’s interesting. I think it’s beautiful, too.”

Ethan studied it carefully, then replied, “The foundation’s solid. That thing could stand for another hundred

years.”

I burst out laughing.

When I was ready to go home, Ethan came back to Floravia with me.

“I can draw anywhere. Besides, I’d really like to see where you grew up.”

I didn’t object. After all, he was the only person in years who’d actually listened when I talked.

I found a new job with a regular nine-to-five schedule.

There was a huge oak tree outside the company, and in summer, the whole street was covered in green.

Ethan came to pick me up from work every day.

Life moved like a scene in slow motion, one frame at a time.

One afternoon, when I walked out of the company doors, Lilah was standing beneath the oak tree.

I almost didn’t recognize her. She’d lost a lot of weight, her cheekbones sharp against her face.

All the arrogance was gone from her eyes. Only a deep, twisted hatred remained.

The moment she saw me, she charged over.

“You bitch! You’re the other woman, and you’re still living so well? Adrian dumped me. You’re happy now,

aren’t you? Without you, I wouldn’t have ended up like this…”

I grabbed her wrist and slapped her. A red mark immediately spread across Lilah’s left cheek.

Caught off guard, she stared at me with wide eyes.

“That slap is for what you did to me.”

“I didn’t explain everything at the office because you were young. But Lilah Simpson, how could you not know

whether I was really the other woman?”

“Adrian never made things official with you. Didn’t you know what that meant?”

I took a step forward, and she stepped back.

“A man who has a girlfriend but never tells anyone about her is already saying everything that needs to be

said.”

“You were only lying to yourself. The moment you saw that book, you already knew the truth, didn’t you?”

“The real other woman was you.”

The people around us suddenly turned against her. Some started pushing and yelling at her.

Lilah stood there, looking as if all the strength had been drained from her.

And when tears finally spilled from her eyes this time, no one around her felt sorry for her.

I saw her reach into her pocket and pull out a knife. She lunged at me so quickly that I didn’t have time to

move.

Just then, Adrian stepped between us.

The knife plunged into him. Blood ran down his body.

Lilah screamed, released the knife, and collapsed onto the ground.