I Left Them in the Fire

The Birthday She Betrayed Me

I nodded.

That single gesture said it all.

Ana hesitated for a long time before finally asking in a soft voice, her eyes full of unmistakable sympathy. "Then... those rumors... Travis, how much was it true?"

I froze.

Somehow, that simple concern made my nose sting.

The feeling passed just as quickly.

I forced a smile.

The truth was, Madison and I did have a handful of genuinely happy years together.

She proposed to me the day my parents died.

She had a lawyer draw up the paperwork and transferred all her company shares to me for free.

Then she got down on one knee and swore she would give me a new family, take care of me for the rest of my life, and that I needed to stop crying because seeing me in pain was breaking her heart.

I cried until I passed out.

Madison handled both of my parents' funerals herself.

We got married when I was finally of sound mind.

There was no wedding.

Our rings were nothing more than the plain matching bands we'd worn in college.

Yet, I felt content.

I truly believed I was the happiest man alive.

I gave Madison every piece of myself.

I understood her ambition, so I never demanded much in return.

Whenever she came home late, I kept the lights burning and waited in the quiet living room. If work took her away, I packed her bags and went along, eager to help.

In those early years, she never once let me down.

Madison loved me so openly and fiercely that even strangers envied what we had.

Front-page newspaper stories, digital billboards, and public displays all carried her confession.

She wanted the whole city to know she loved me.

Alas, everything crumbled around me just as I finally began to heal from my parents' loss.

Madison was having an affair with Gerald.

The man I once called my closest friend was caught on camera, kissing her and holding her close in the secluded garden atop a revolving restaurant.

And of all days, I had to find out about it on my birthday.

I spent hours setting the table with Madison's favorite dishes, dressed in the suit she once gave me. I waited the whole night, calling her again and again.

She answered every single time.

Every time, her voice was soft and reassuring. "Work dinner. Be good. I'll be home soon."

Gerald had even spent his entire year-end bonus buying me a designer watch, with a note attached: 'Happy birthday to my best friend.'

That night, wrapped in what I thought was happiness, I truly believed I had it all.

I never imagined the two people I loved most would be the ones to break me.

The moment I saw those headlines, I unraveled.

I tore down the streets, blinded by tears, barely missing two cars as I sped through the night.

I didn't care about anything else. I just needed answers.

When I reached the restaurant, Gerald was there, opening Madison's car door with practiced ease. I flung my own door open and charged toward them.

Madison immediately stepped in front of him, her eyes cold and showing no guilt. "Travis, what are you doing?"

Gerald peeked out from behind her, still wearing that same gentle expression as he greeted me.

The Anderson family heirloom necklace hung around his neck, the one Madison knew I secretly adored but never dared to wear. A dark red mark glared back at me right next to it.

Something deep inside me shattered.

I lunged at him, wild and desperate, fists flying harder with every blow.

"I treated you like family!" I shouted. "I looked after you like a brother! Why would you do this to me?"

Gerald burst into tears, stumbling behind Madison, but in his eyes I saw a glint of triumph.

Madison shoved me aside with all her strength and rushed to comfort him, her touch gentle as he sobbed in her arms.

I crashed onto the pavement, clutching my stomach as pain tore through me. As I raised my head, I saw them clinging to each other. My lungs refused to work.

Madison spun toward me, fury in her eyes, ready to unleash her anger until she froze. She saw blood spreading quickly across my shirt.

I was hospitalized.

The stab wound I had gotten just days earlier while protecting Madison had been torn open by Madison herself.