Loved Me at the End

"You can ask for more if you want. You don't need to use cancer as an excuse to test me."

I dug my nails into my palm, using every ounce of strength just to keep the tears from spilling harder.

When Keith saw I wouldn't take it, he grabbed my hand and shoved the card into my icy palm.

"Don't be so greedy. I never forced you to give anything all these years." He paused, then said, "Just let me go. Please."

-

Every question I had prepared, every ounce of anger, got jammed in my throat by that single sentence.

All that was left was humiliation.

It was as if my love, and I myself, had both turned into cheap, disposable trash.

I clenched the card tightly. Its sharp edges bit into my skin.

I forced a smile and looked at him.

"Fine. We're even now."

I held on to the last shred of dignity I had.

He visibly relaxed, relief written all over his face.

"Throw away my stuff when you get back. None of it matters."

He turned and walked toward that girl, his steps light, as if he had finally shaken off an unbearable burden.

I stayed where I was, watching his back disappear into the snow and wind.

Then, I turned and walked the opposite way.

My phone wouldn't stop vibrating.

Messages from Keith popped up one after another.

[Don't be too upset. Honestly, I haven't wanted to touch you in a long time. Even kissing you makes me uncomfortable.

[I stayed with you for years. You should be grateful.

[Go find a decent guy and get married. You're getting old. If you wait any longer, you won't even be able to have kids.]

Every word landed exactly where it hurt most.

He kept sending messages, but I could no longer see them clearly.

Snowflakes fell onto the screen and melted instantly, mixing with my tears and blurring those cruel words.

I had had enough.

So I blocked him.

I stood on the bridge, staring down at the black river churning below.

The wind carried snow straight into my lungs, freezing and sharp.

I should have felt cold, but my whole body was already numb. The place where my heart should have been felt hollow, like a black hole, howling with icy air.

-

Meanwhile, Keith stared angrily at the red exclamation mark on his phone screen.

He had been blocked.

"What's wrong?" Rebecca Hicks asked softly, her warm hand resting over his.

He locked his phone irritably. "Nothing. It's stuffy in the car."

He tugged at his tie, fury bleeding through the motion.

That blank, numb look on Amanda Watson's face surfaced in his mind without warning.

It made his chest tighten.

"Turn around," he said sharply to the driver. "Go to South Garden."

He had to see it for himself, seeking closure on his final obligation.

Rebecca's expression stiffened instantly. Her grip on his hand tightened.

Keith turned to soothe her right away. "One last time. I'll make things absolutely clear and cut it off clean. That way, she won't bother me again."

Even he wasn't sure whether he was saying it to Rebecca or to himself.

Rebecca's face softened. She pouted and leaned closer, acting cute.

That playful pout reminded him of Amanda.

Back then, when he skipped meals to buy her her favorite dessert, she would pout just like that and complain he didn't know how to take care of himself.

Something jabbed sharply at his heart.

The car sat stalled near Riverwell Bridge for a long time.

The driver got out to ask around, then came back with a hint of gossiping excitement.

"The bridge is closed. Heard a woman jumped into the river. They say she was tricked by her boyfriend for years and lost everything. And apparently, this bridge was where they first got together."

Where they first got together.

The place where Keith and Amanda made things official was this very bridge.

In an instant, the color drained from Keith's face.