Chapter 25 Lydia
Two days later, Back at my apartment, I began to pack, folding clothes I’d barely worn and slipping in a few keepsakes I wanted close. My phone rang, and Avery’s name lit up on the screen. Just what I needed.
“Hello?” I answered, trying to keep my tone light.
“Hey!” Avery chirped, her voice sickly sweet. “I just got off the phone with Grandpa. Can you believe he’s actually considering leaving the entire nursing home to me? I mean, isn’t that so generous?”
I felt my stomach twist. She said it so casually, as if it were only natural for her to take over pieces of my life, piece by piece, without so much as a second thought.
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“Wow, that’s… surprising” I managed, not trusting myself to say more.
“Yeah, Noel and Adrian have been so sweet about it too. They introduced me to their families last weekend. I don’t know what I’d do without them.” I could practically hear the smug smile on her face. “Anyway, just thought I’d share the news! Toodles!” She hung up before I could say anything else.
I stood the
for a moment, staring at the phone, then shook my head. Avery was someone else’s problem now.
“Lydia,” I muttered, dialing my friend. “Can you drive me to the airport?”
Within minutes, Lydia was at my door, her familiar black lipstick, studded jacket, and the unfazed expression I’d always counted
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on waiting for me. As I hauled my bags to the curb, her enormous, hostile Maine Coon, Gia, eyed me from the passenger seat with that same feline judgment.
“I don’t know why you don’t just leave without telling them anything.” Lydia said as I buckled myself in, her tone flippant but her gaze sharp. “Let them realize what they ve lost after you’re gone.”
“Trust me, that’s exactly what I m doing.” I replied, gripping the handle as we pulled into Miami traffic. “But I just needed one last
chance to say goodbye. Even if they’ll never understand.”
She snorted. “Oh, they won’t understand, all right. They never did. They were too busy scaring off anyone who ever showed any interest in you. Did you know, every single guy who tried to ask you out backed off after
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a single conversation with those two?”
I frowned, glancing at her. “I thought they were just… overprotective.”
“Overprotective?” Lydia let out a sharp laugh. “More like they enjoyed watching people bully you. Every time some guy said you weren’t good enough, they d get that strange, gleeful look in their eyes. But you were too wrapped up in them to see it.”
Gia gave a yowl from her perch, as if agreeing. I tried to ignore the pang in my chest, focusing on the road ahead instead.
“I stayed because it was my home. Not just because of them.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Lydia replied with a knowing glance. “But don’t pretend they were ever right for you.
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Just as I opened my mouth to respond, Lydia hit the brakes. “Oh, fantastic,” she muttered under her breath, her eyes narrowing as she looked in the rearview mirror.
I glanced back, and my heart sank. Noel, Adrian, and Avery were standing on the steps of my apartment building, watching us. I hadn’t expected them to come after me, not this soon.
“Oh, look who decided to show up.” Lydia said, rolling her eyes. “They couldn’t wait until you left, could they?”
As I climbed out of the car. Noel and Adrian stepped forward, their expressions a mix of confusion and hurt. “Cynthia.” Adrian started. his voice unsteady. “Are you… leaving for good?”
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I hesitated, my throat tightening as I felt the weight of their stares. “Yes.” I said. the word heavy and final.
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