Chapter 4

At the after-work happy hour, Serena had a few drinks and immediately started sharing embarrassing stories from my childhood.

"You guys have no idea how much of a coward Chloe is."

"Back in middle school, some kids locked her in the gym equipment locker overnight. She just cried until her voice went hoarse. She didn't even dare to knock on the door to ask for help!"

A coworker wiped a tear from laughing. "Chloe, you're literally a tragic pushover."

Serena nudged Ethan with her elbow. "Ethan, tell them. Am I lying?"

Ethan looked at my humiliated face, hesitating for a moment.

But Serena tugged at his sleeve, and he finally opened his mouth.

"Yeah. When the teacher finally found her and asked what happened, she was so scared she just hid behind me and wouldn't lift her head."

The entire table roared with laughter.

My nails dug deep into my palms.

I gathered every ounce of my courage. "Can you stop? I don't like being laughed at."

The table went dead silent.

A coworker leaned in and whispered to me, "Don't pick a fight with Serena. Her family has connections. Even the boss told everyone to look out for her."

She paused, realizing something. "Wait, if you and Serena grew up together, you must know the boss too? Why are you..."

I froze.

I remembered how badly I wanted to be close to Ethan.

I had worked myself to the bone to pass the interviews for this company.

But when we ran into each other in the lobby on my first day, he didn't even say hi.

Later, he told me, "I don't want people giving you special treatment just because of me, Chloe. You need to grow on your own."

I forced a tight smile at my coworker.

"We just went to the same school. We aren't close."

Later in the night, someone suggested going to an escape room.

An asylum-themed escape room with a five-star horror rating.

Clearly, it was targeted at me.

When we were splitting into groups, everyone actively avoided me.

One coworker joked, "We don't want to get dragged down by you, Chloe."

In the end, only Ethan, Serena, and I were left.

Ethan looked at me with conflict in his eyes, but ultimately stepped over to Serena’s side.

"Chloe, this is a great chance to build your courage. Try doing it alone."

Everyone went in, paired up.

Except me.

I felt like I was eight years old again.

My mom didn't love me, and the neighborhood kids didn't want to play with me.

Whenever we played games, nobody ever picked me.

I had wanted to go home back then, but my mom had dragged me back to the group.

"You always shrink back like a sewer rat! If you acted more like Serena, people would actually want to play with you!"

I had stood alone under a tree.

Then, Ethan had walked over. "I’ll be in your group."

But the moment Serena's partner left, Ethan immediately abandoned me to go to her.

Twenty years later, I was still the one left behind.

I used to think Ethan was the savior who would pull me out of my insecurity.

But in reality, he had always held Serena's hand, watching me drown in deep water.

The staff member at the door asked me, "Ma'am, are you going in alone?"

I clenched my fists.

"Yes. Just me."

The heavy door pushed open, and everything went pitch black.

The smell of bleach, flashing red lights, and mannequins draped in white sheets surrounded me.

At a corner, Serena suddenly jumped out to jump-scare me.

My foot slipped, and I fell hard, my forehead slamming against the sharp metal frame of a prop bed.

The lights in the room flashed on instantly, followed by a chorus of laughter.

"Oh my god, Chloe! You're so easy to scare!"

My knee was bleeding, and a huge bump was already forming on my forehead.

I brushed the dust off my clothes, turned around, and walked straight out of the building.

Ethan chased after me.

"Are you mad? Serena only did that for your own good."

I swallowed the pain and shook my head.

"I'm not mad."

He reached out, patted my bruised forehead, and smiled.

"That's my good girl."

The group dispersed.

Ethan was going to drive Serena home.

"Her apartment is in a sketchy neighborhood. It’s too dark for her to go alone."

"You can just Uber back, okay?"

I looked into his eyes.

"Why is it that when it comes to Serena, you never think she needs to 'toughen up'?"

His mouth opened, but no words came out.

Suddenly, I had no desire to hear his excuse.

"Forget it. Just go."

When I got home, my mom was sitting on the couch eating grapes.

"Did Ethan drive you home?"

"He went to drop off Serena."

My mom tossed a grape skin into the trash.

"Look at how useless you are."

"Ethan has a great family, a great career. Serena fits him so much better. He must have been blind to choose you, and yet you're still not satisfied."

I looked at my mom, really looked at her.

"Mom, you're right. Serena suits Ethan way better than I do."

"And she suits being your daughter way better, too."