The Soulmate System Chose Her Not Me Chapter 02

The Soulmate System Chose Her Not Me Chapter 02

My phone chimed with a text from Gavin.

Gavin: [Be good and wait for me.]

I had been hearing those words since the day we got together.

When I wanted him to make us official, he told me to wait a little longer. When my parents wanted to meet the boyfriend I had been dating, he told me to wait then, too.

And now, after leaving with his true soulmate, he still wanted me to wait?

I replied: [No need. I’ll find my own way out.]

The message had barely gone through when Gavin called me.

I did not answer.

A long string of explanations came right after.

Gavin: [Jenna, stop throwing a tantrum. It’s not what you think. The system must have made a mistake.]

Gavin: [Lila and I barely know each other. Back in school, she avoided me whenever she saw me. How could she possibly like me?]

Gavin: [I know you’re upset, but I didn’t have a choice. Lila is my client.]

Gavin: [She was diagnosed with a terminal illness and hired my company to help her finish her bucket list. I couldn’t just abandon a client.]

Gavin: [Don’t make a big deal out of this. I checked the food and water inside. There’s enough to last you a few days. Once I calm her down, I’ll find a way to get you out.]

Every sentence sounded like he was coaxing me. Every word seemed reasonable on the surface, but beneath it all was contempt.

I did not believe him.

Thank God I did not.

Because soon, the classmates outside mentioned me again.

“Hey, aren’t Jenna and Preston the only ones left in there? They’re going to be stuck for a while.”

There was a brief silence outside, followed by a burst of laughter.

“Making the straight-A overachiever fall in love with her sworn rival? That might be harder than killing them both.”

“Should we help them along? Maybe push them to fall in love faster so they can get out sooner.”

“Enough.”

Gavin’s voice suddenly went cold, cutting through the laughter.

“Stop messing around. Those two are impossible.”

His tone was certain.

I leaned against the door and pulled the corner of my mouth into a faint smile.

Right. He was certain I would never look at Preston that way.

He was even more certain I could not leave Gavin.

He was certain I would do what I had done countless times over the past seven years.

I would obediently wait where he left me, waiting for him to finish what he was doing, waiting for him to remember me again.

What gave him the right to think I would wait?

Just then, my best friend called and gave me the answer.

“I’m so pissed off. That damn scumbag! Just listen to the bullshit coming out of his mouth!”

I opened the audio clip she sent. In the background, I could hear the hollow echo of an underground parking garage.

Gavin’s voice sounded lazy, with a restrained roughness beneath it.

“Didn’t you say you didn’t like me? Then why did the soulmate door let us through when I held your hand? Lila, is lying to yourself really that fun?”

Lila was crying, her words broken by sobs.

“I regret it, Gavin. Back then, I only thought I wasn’t good enough for you.”

“You were so good to me. In high school, when everyone iced me out, you were the one who secretly left chocolate milk in my locker. When they locked me in the equipment room, you even skipped your final exam to climb through a window and save me.”

“You even gave up a guaranteed admission offer just to stay in my city. How could I not love you?”

The sound of clothing rustling came through the recording.

“It’s too late. I have a girlfriend now.”

Gavin’s voice was low.

“It’s okay.”

Lila cried even harder.

“I don’t have much time left. Gavin, just for these few days, can you be my boyfriend? Even pretending is fine.”

Gavin was silent for a long time before he sighed.

“Stop crying. Why are you still so timid? You never even dared to accept the fact that I liked you.”

My hands shook as I locked my phone.

I slid down to the floor, and my tears fell onto the back of my hand.

But over these seven years, I had once had what he called the deepest kind of love, too.