Built Him Up and Left Him Behind

Cade didn't come home all night.

At breakfast, I saw his flushed cheeks and a gentle smile on his lips, like he was reliving something sweet.

His eyes still held a flicker of happiness when he looked at me.

"You're up early. And drinking milk on an empty stomach's bad for you," he said.

My hand froze mid-stir, but I didn't respond.

It had been years since he cared about me like that last time. It showed he was in a good mood.

He sat down beside me and handed me a look. "Cheer up. I won't hold what happened yesterday against you. Here, I got this for you. Didn't you always want it?"

It was a collection of legal cases, the one I'd been searching for.

It was already out of print, and most importantly, it was the last book my mother edited before she passed away.

Four years ago, her final wish was to see this book one last time. She never did.

I fought back my tears and opened it.

The first page read: [Cade's gift to Caitlyn, wishing her every success.]

Then my eyes landed on the date below. It was four years ago.

I pointed to the writing and demanded, "What does this mean?"

Cade kept his smile, failing to sense my pain. He shrugged, explaining, "Oh, just what it says. I gave this book to Caitlyn before, but she didn't want it, so I brought it to you. Happy?"

He looked up and froze at my cold gaze.

I sulked, "I searched for this book for five years. You knew that. It means everything to me. Why didn't you give it to me first?"

Cade paused, his tone turning cold. "It's just a collectible to you. You're only good for filing cases and fetching coffee. What's the point of your reading it? It's a different story for Caitlyn, a big-shot lawyer. She needs it to boost her skills. Can't you be reasonable and let someone who needs it have it?"

I trembled with rage, thinking of my mother's final tears.

"My mom's dying wish was to see this book," I reasoned. "I would have returned it to you after. You knew where it was and didn't bother to get it for her. You're so disappointing!"

Cade's patience ran out.

His face darkened, and he scoffed, "Knock it off, okay? If it weren't for me, you wouldn't even know this book existed. I kindly got it for you, and this is your attitude? Besides, it's not my problem that your mom passed. She's not my mom. Ugh! It just proves I was right not to give it to you first. Who knows if you'd hog it and not let Caitlyn..."

I raised my hand and slapped him across the face, cutting off his rant.

His eyes widened in disbelief. "You hit me? Do you know how many people out there call you lazy and tell me to dump you? I didn't only because you were obedient. Are you trying to break up now?"