Chapter 3

But she left early the next morning because of work.

From then on, we rarely saw each other.

We still video-called often, but she never told me that she had become so close with the other men on the show.

Even after the episodes began airing, she never called to explain.

My phone rang for nearly two minutes before someone finally answered.

“Hello? Who is this?”

It was Ava’s assistant, a young woman who had just graduated from college.

I remembered the fake breakup Ava and I had agreed on, so I cleared my throat.

“I’m a friend of Ava’s. I need to speak with her.”

“Oh,” the assistant said. “You might have to wait a little. Ava and her boyfriend are shooting a magazine cover.”

My mind went blank for several seconds.

I couldn’t stop replaying the words “Ava and her boyfriend.”

I could barely hear anything else the assistant was saying.

Boyfriend?

“What boyfriend?”

The assistant seemed to realize what she had said. She abruptly hung up.

When I called back, the line was busy.

Ava didn’t call me until midnight.

“What exactly are you trying to pull?” I asked the moment she answered.

“Weren’t you just going on the show for appearances? How did you manage to cheat on me while ‘just going through the motions’?”

Ava didn’t even seem interested in making excuses.

“Do you have to be so disgusting?”

“I’m the disgusting one?”

Her accusing tone almost made me laugh.

“Why don’t you open your eyes and take a good look at the man you’ve cuckolded? Do you honestly think any man could stay calm and listen to you after that?”

Her mocking laugh came through the phone and pierced my ears.

“Ryan, we already broke up. How exactly have you been cheated on?”

“Wasn’t it supposed to be a fake breakup?”

“Oh, I’m sorry…”

She laughed for a while before continuing.

“I didn’t realize you were this naive.”

“Ryan, do you believe everything I tell you? I was lying to you. You should take a good look at yourself. The money I made from shooting one magazine cover today is more than your entire monthly salary.”

“Tell me, what makes you think you’re worthy? What makes you think you still deserve to be my boyfriend?”

It felt as if someone had smashed the back of my head with a sledgehammer.

My thoughts spun. Pain swallowed everything.

I didn’t know how to face this, much less process it.

From the age of eighteen to twenty-five, I had treated Ava as more important than my own life.

I had never imagined that one day she might leave me.

“Fine. I understand.”

I fought to control my emotions. I just didn’t want to break down in front of her.

“I hope everything goes well for you from here on out. Don’t look back.”

I swallowed my sob and said the words before blocking her number.