Chapter 3

After an intense basketball game with my friends, we sat on the sidelines, drinking water and catching our breath.

One of them teased, half-jokingly, “Man, we thought you’d forgotten about us ever since you got a girlfriend. We were about to stop inviting you altogether.”

I laughed and quickly apologized. “My bad, guys. I promise it won’t happen again. Call me anytime—you’ve got my word.”

“That’s more like it! Let’s go hit up the gaming café and play a few rounds.”

When I was with Sarah, I could never fully fit into her circle of friends. And because of her, I’d slowly started drifting away from my own.

Everything revolved around her. She was the center of my world, and I willingly let it happen. Looking back now, I can’t believe how foolish I was.

By the time I got home, it was almost midnight. I opened the bedroom door and found Sarah sitting on the bed, arms crossed, her face clouded with irritation.

“Matt, why are you just getting home? I had to order takeout for both lunch and dinner—it was disgusting!”

I grabbed some clothes from the closet and shrugged. “I ate out at a restaurant today too. The food was pretty good—not bad at all, actually.”

Sarah’s eyes widened in disbelief. “You used to say we should never eat takeout because it’s unhealthy. You promised me you’d cook every day so I wouldn’t have to.”

“That was my mistake,” I replied calmly. “Living in this world, if you can’t cook, you’ve got to learn to live with takeout.”

An angry spark lit up in her eyes. “You’re still mad, aren’t you? Don’t even try to deny it. You didn’t call or text me all day, and you didn’t come home to cook for me. How is that not being mad?”

“I’m not mad,” I said evenly. “I was just out with my friends. My phone died, that’s all.”

Sarah threw the blanket off, jumped out of bed, and grabbed my arm as I turned to leave. Her voice rose sharply.

“Can you stop being so childish? How many times do I have to tell you—Daniel and I are just like brother and sister! Why are you still making a big deal out of this? I’m running out of patience, Matt!”

I pulled my arm free. “I’m not making a big deal out of anything. I’m just tired. I’ll sleep in the guest room tonight.”

With that, I grabbed my clothes and headed to the bathroom for a shower. Sarah shouted after me, but I didn’t bother responding.

For the first time in years, I slept peacefully that night.

Sarah has terrible sleeping habits; she kicks the blanket off multiple times a night. When we shared a bed, I’d always wake up to cover her back up, never managing to get a full night’s sleep myself.

The next morning, Sarah was sitting in the living room with her arms crossed, her face dark and stormy.

I knew she was waiting for me to apologize, to coax her out of her mood.

In the past, whenever she was upset, I would swallow my pride, beg for her forgiveness, and do whatever it took to make her happy—even if I wasn’t wrong.

Then she’d lay out a list of demands, and only once I’d fulfilled every single one would she reluctantly forgive me.

That routine had gone on for years.

But this time, I was done.

I walked past her without a word, got ready for the day, and left the apartment. I had important things to take care of.