The Past Is in the Past

When Zeke saw me, he sneered. "Heidi, are you that desperate? You're even following me to a restaurant now?"

He handed me a coat. "This is Brooke's. Make sure you apologize to her properly later. As long as she forgives you, I'll let this go."

I didn't take it. I just looked at him.

Zeke was always busy with work. Getting him to have a meal with me used to require booking a date a month in advance.

Even when we did go out, he was impatient and cold the entire time. When we left the restaurant in the past, he would never wait for me by the restroom, let alone carry my coat.

He used to say, "Women are such a hassle", before walking straight to the parking lot. It was as if I were some virus he couldn't wait to escape from.

Yet now, he stood there willingly, doing for Brooke what he had never been willing to do for me. I felt bitter, but I no longer wanted to dwell on it.

"I'm here because I have dinner plans with my friends," I explained calmly.

Zeke didn't believe me. "Oh, come on. You think I don't know what you're up to?"

His eyes were full of arrogance, as if he were saying, "I know you still care about me. Just stop pretending."

I had no interest in explaining further. He could think whatever he wanted.

Just then, a piercing scream came from the restroom. Zeke rushed inside without hesitation, and I followed him in.

Brooke was sprawled on the floor of a stall. Her hair was a tangled mess, and her clothes were disheveled. She looked like she had just been attacked.

Her dazed eyes instantly found focus when she saw Zeke. She quickly threw herself into his arms and sobbed uncontrollably.

Zeke comforted her gently, and once she had calmed down slightly, she turned to me with tear-filled eyes.

"Heidi, why couldn't you just talk to me? Why did you have to slander me behind my back and have them gang up on me?

"If you think I'm too close to Zeke, I can keep my distance. But why call me a homewrecker and have them tear at my clothes?"

Her voice grew more emotional, and her shoulders shook with every sob. "But I'm the one Zeke truly loves! The one who isn't loved is the real mistress!

"I was only following my heart. What did I do that was so wrong?"

I had no idea what had happened inside before I walked in, yet I was already being blamed.

Zeke's glare turned murderous, and his hand clamped around my throat before I could react. "Didn't know you were this capable—setting up bullying tactics now, huh?"

His fingers tightened around my neck. My breath caught, and I shook my head. "No, I didn't do anything."

My friends hurried to defend me, saying, "We never touched her! She staged this entire thing!

"The moment she walked in, she tore her own clothes and messed up her hair. If you don't believe us, ask—"

"Enough!" Zeke refused to listen, and his furious voice cut through the air. "I'll deal with all of you later!"

With that, he dragged me toward the restroom entrance. "You like ripping people's clothes? You like playing the bully now?"

He slammed me against the wall. One hand was still gripping my throat, and the other was yanking at my clothes. "Then, let's play!"

"Zeke Pedersen, what are you doing? Let go of me! Don't touch me!"

Ignoring my protests, he tore my clothes apart and threw me to the ground. I tried to run back into the women's restroom, but he blocked my way.

"Aren't you the one who likes ripping clothes? Then, go home like this."

My friends rushed forward to help, but he stopped them. It was the middle of January. Even with the restaurant's heating on, my thin undergarments provided little warmth.

I clenched my fists, staring at Zeke with burning hatred.

Meanwhile, he stood there indifferently, watching me struggle with amusement.

A crowd had gathered, and there were more and more people stopping to watch. Most of them were just there for the spectacle. However, some even pulled out their phones to record.

Barefoot, I felt the cold seep in from the ground, spreading through my entire body. Maybe it was the cold—or maybe something inside me had already numbed—but I found myself eerily calm.

"Zeke, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Did you think about that when you had your friends bully Brooke?" he shot back.

Then, he gave me two choices with unwavering cruelty. "Either you walk home like this or you kneel and apologize to Brooke. Pick one."

I had done nothing wrong. Why should I apologize?

Taking a deep breath, I turned and walked toward the restaurant's entrance.

It wasn't far, but my legs felt like they weighed a thousand pounds. Each step required all the strength I had left. When I finally reached the door, I realized it was raining.

Without the warmth of indoor heating, the wind cut into me like a blade, stripping away the last remnants of my body's heat.

Zeke wrapped his arm around Brooke as they passed me, heading toward their car. Before getting in, he didn't forget to issue one last order.

"Keep an eye on her. No one is allowed to help."

Then, he and Brooke disappeared from sight.

I stepped forward, right into the rain. Between the icy wind and the relentless downpour, I soon lost all feeling in my limbs.

Even so, I couldn't stop walking. If I stopped, I would become nothing more than a spectacle for the onlookers—a joke for them to laugh at.

Not long after, my vision blurred. A memory suddenly surfaced of something that happened years ago during another heavy downpour.

I hadn't brought an umbrella that day and arrived home drenched, burning with fever. Zeke had stayed by my side for an entire day and night. His face was swollen when I woke up. I later learned it was because he had punched himself out of guilt.

After that, every time it rained, he had ordered me to stay put until he came to pick me up. But today, he was the one who had personally thrown me into this freezing January storm, dressed in nothing but my underclothes.

A sudden dizziness hit me. My legs gave out, and I collapsed onto the ground.

I was so cold that I couldn't even feel pain anymore. Still, I tried to get up and keep moving. But my body refused to listen.

That was when darkness swallowed my vision, and I lost consciousness completely.