The man’s face initially carried a hint of impatience, but the moment he saw me, a flicker of surprise crossed his expression.
“I’m so sorry, it’s my fault–I’m fine, really,” I said, forcing a weak smile, trying to ignore the searing pain in my leg.
After all, I was the one who broke the rules and wandered into the street. I just hoped I hadn’t caused him much trouble.
I tried to stand, but the sharp pain in my leg sent me stumbling back down.
“Don’t push yourself,” the man said, catching me quickly before I fell again. Without another word, he pulled out his phone and called for an
ambulance,
3:07 PM
<
Maybe it was the exhaustion from days spent sleepless by my mother’s bedside, but as soon as I was inside the ambulance, I blacked out.
When I woke up, it was already the next afternoon.
The sound of my phone ringing jolted me awake.
It was an unfamiliar number.
The moment I answered, an all–too–familiar voice barked through the line:
“Mia, so now you’ve got the nerve to block me?” Isaac’s voice was full of venom.
“You faked a car accident just to get my attention? How desperate can you be?”
His words hit me like a slap in the face.
“If only the car had actually finished you off,” he added coldly.
Suddenly, I remembered the EMT asking for an emergency contact while I was barely conscious in the ambulance. I must have given them
Isaac’s number.
“I really was in an accident. I’m in the hospital right now-” I started, trying to explain.
But he cut me off, his tone dripping with disdain.
“Enough! You’re such a liar. Do you think I’m stupid?”
“Lola asked her friend at the hospital. She said no car accident victims were admitted last night. So what was your plan? That I’d drop everything and come running to you out of guilt? Keep dreaming!”
I glanced down at my leg, still wrapped in bandages, the pain radiating like fire. Tears pricked the corners of my eyes, but I blinked them back.
Why wouldn’t he believe me?
I knew why. Isaac had never forgiven me for leaving him when he was at his lowest point. But he didn’t know the full story.
He didn’t know how my mother had taken my phone, broken it in front of me, and forced me to end things with him.
She had locked me inside the house until I left for school overseas, ensuring I couldn’t reach him.
It had taken everything I had to slip a letter to him before I left. I poured my heart into it, explaining everything, telling him how much I loved him, begging him to wait for me.
I even left him all the money I had at the time, hoping it would help him get back on his feet.
But when we finally met again years later, he’d looked me dead in the eye and said, “Mia, you dumped me when I had nothing. It was Lola who sold her house and loaned me the money to rebuild my life.”
Maybe he was right. Maybe I was a fool to think that letter had meant anything to him.
If Lola had done so much for him, then why didn’t he just marry her?
What was the point of dragging me back into his life and blaming me for everything?
“What’s wrong? Did I hit a nerve?” Isaac sneered, breaking the silence. “You’re just a manipulative, gold–digging woman who’ll stop at nothing to get what you want.”
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my voice. “Isaac, my mom passed away yesterday. You don’t need to worry about paying her medical bills anymore.”
“I’ll pay back every cent I owe you. And after that, let’s just… end this, okay? Please.”
The line went silent.
3:08 PM
<
For a second, I thought he’d hung up. Then his voice returned, colder than ever.
“Wow, Mia. You’re so twisted you’d even lie about your own mother’s death? Do you really think I’d fall for that?”
I stared at the phone, his words slicing through me like a knife.
So this is what he thought of me.
When he finally hung up, my hands were trembling so badly I could barely hold the phone.
I thought my heart had already been shattered beyond repair, but somehow, the pain still felt fresh, sharp, suffocating.
How do you let go of someone you’ve loved for so long?
The same person who had broken you again and again?
It was a while before I calmed down. When I finally glanced toward the bedside table, I noticed a small yellow sticky note sitting there..
“Had to step out for a bit, but I’ll come check on you tonight.”
It was signed, “Logan.”
It must’ve been from the man who hit me–the unlucky driver who’d ended up stuck with me.
