Chapter 5
I blocked Jaime on every platform, wiped out every way he could reach
- me.
He kept calling from different numbers, but I never picked up.
When I finally got home and slammed the door behind me, the waving cat toy in the entryway was still mechanically beckoning.
I tore through every drawer like a madwoman, hunting down every gift Jaime had ever given me.
The galaxy lollipops he’d brought, tucked in a pink storage box. The hardcover edition of “The Little Prince” he’d picked out, sitting on the second shelf of my bookcase. Even that pale blue Lolita dress, buried deep in my closet–the one he once said looked beautiful on me.
Everything that bore Jaime’s mark went into a cardboard box.
I scoured every inch of my apartment, making sure I didn’t miss a single thing.
Then I hefted the box in my arms, marched straight to the recycling center, and dumped everything into the bin.
The dull thud of the box hitting the bottom startled a flock of sparrows.
from the trees above.
I called my mom, who was back home.
“Mom,” I took a deep breath into the phone, “about going abroad, like you. mentioned last time–I’m saying yes…”
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Chapter 5
“Aren’t you dating Jaime? Are you two really doing long distance?” she asked, surprised.
My voice was flat. “We broke up.”
When Mom came back, I told her everything that had happened.
She was shaking with anger. After comforting me, she stormed straight over to the Lyndon’s residence and banged on their door.
So Jaime’s some big shot now, huh? Throwing coffee on Gracie in front of the entire company! I really misjudged him. If he doesn’t like Gracie, he could’ve just said so. But no, he stood by and watched while strangers mocked her clothes day after day, and when she finally stood up for herself, he sided with them!”
“Our family has never wronged the Lyndon family. What gives him the right to treat my daughter like this…
That night, Mom held me close, gently stroking my hair, tucking my tear- soaked strands behind my ear. “Sweetheart, listen to me–there’s no one in this world who gets to hurt you. Not a soul. I don’t care if he’s the king of the world–no one gets to treat my girl this way.”
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