He Took Her To The Lake We Promised To See Together Chapter 09

He Took Her To The Lake We Promised To See Together Chapter 09

Ethan waited outside the field base for three days.

On the first day, he messaged me:

Ethan: [I’m at the entrance. Come out and talk to me.]

On the second day, his tone turned commanding.

Ethan: [Running away won’t solve anything.]

By the third day, he finally relented.

Ethan: [Come back with me, and I’ll explain what happened at Moonsea Lake.]

I didn’t answer a single message.

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to hear him.

There was simply nothing left to hear.

On the fourth day, one of the business partners called from Boston.

The studio’s biggest client had officially terminated its contract, and two more employees had submitted their resignations.

Ethan had no choice but to fly back that night.

Before he left, he sent one last message.

Ethan: [I’ll take care of the studio, then I’ll come back for you.]

He still refused to accept that I wasn’t waiting for him.

When he returned to the studio, Sophie was sitting at my desk.

She had arranged store-bought holiday cookies on the table and smiled as she hurried toward him.

“Ethan, you’re finally back.”

“It’s okay if Emma won’t come home. I’ll stay with you.”

Ethan didn’t take the cookie she offered.

“Who told you that you could sit there?”

Sophie’s smile froze.

“was just trying to help organize the files.”

A proposal was open on the computer screen, completely messed up.

Three budget lines were wrong, the production schedule didn’t match at all, and Sophie hadn’t understood a single one of the client’s revision notes.

When I’d been the one sitting at that desk, everyone had taken everything I did for granted.

If a proposal wasn’t finished, I stayed up and finished it.

If a client changed the requirements at the last minute, I revised the entire plan.

Even when Ethan forgot to prepare for a presentation, I organized his talking points before the

meeting.

No one had ever thought any of it was difficult.

It took my leaving for them to realize that not just anyone could sit in that chair.

Mason kicked a chair aside in frustration.

“It’s one person. How did losing Emma bring every project to a stop?”

One of the business partners laughed coldly.

“Easy for you to say. You do it, then.”

“She brought in half this studio’s clients. She wrote the core proposals too.”

“What did the two of you ever do besides show up in front of the camera and pose for pictures?”

Mason’s face tightened.

“She was Ethan’s girlfriend. Wasn’t she supposed to help him?”

Ethan’s hand curled into a fist.

He suddenly remembered the first client I’d ever landed for the studio.

I’d been so excited that I’d asked if that made me an official partner.

Back then, he’d ruffled my hair and said, “What’s mine is yours. Why are we keeping score?”

One sentence had given me neither a title nor credit.

And somehow, that one sentence had been enough to keep me working for him for three years.

Ethan was silent for a long time before turning to Sophie.

“We’re done.”

Sophie’s face went white.

“What did you say?”

“I’ll pay you everything you’re owed for the work you’ve done. After that, don’t come back to the

studio.”

Her eyes filled as she grabbed his sleeve.

“You were the one who told me you liked me first.”

“You were the one who said Emma was too controlling and that being with her exhausted you.”

“Now she doesn’t want you anymore, and you don’t get to dump all the blame on me.”

Ethan said nothing.

Tears spilled down Sophie’s face.

“At Moonsea Lake, you were the one who kissed me first.”

“You chose to do the couples’ Christmas trivia challenge with me. You chose to stay for the holiday photos too.”

“Ethan Cole, you chose me every single time. I never forced you.”

Mason frowned.

“She’s right, Ethan.”

“Emma was the one who ran off. Does that mean we’re all supposed to apologize to her?”

Ethan’s head snapped up.

“You already knew she’d gone to Moonsea Lake that night?”

Mason froze.

His eyes darted instinctively toward Sophie.

That one glance told Ethan everything.

They had both suspected I might have seen them.

He was the only one who had been absolutely certain I would never leave.

That night, the studio finally fell apart for good.

Ethan went back to the apartment alone and pulled my travel journal out of his suitcase.

Inside were tickets, photos, and the Boston itinerary I’d revised again and again over the past four

years.

On the final page was a single line.

[Christmas is over. So is our promise.]

He sent me a long apology.

At the end, he asked:

Ethan: [Emma, can we really not start over?]

The rain had just stopped over the high desert.

I replied with only one line.

Emma: [No.]

This time, Ethan didn’t order me to come back.

The chat stayed quiet for a long time.

Half an hour later, he sent only one sentence.

Ethan: [I’m sorry.]

I locked my phone and looked up at the sky clearing after the rain.

I’d heard his apology.

Whether I forgave him was up to me.