Right before the national aptitude exam, I found an elopement letter. The paper was thin, the handwriting messy, like it had been written in a rush.”
Stacey Jenkins, the campus belle everyone adored, had poured her heart into it. She wanted to elope with Justin Beckett, my childhood friend.
I didn’t give it to him.
He aced the exam and became the nation’s top scorer. Stacey was found days later, floating in the river with no one by her side.}}
As years passed, Justin and I graduated from Harvard together. Our families were thrilled and were already planning our future. So, we got engaged.
On our wedding day, he helped me into my dress and smiled as he adjusted the veil. Then, he opened a door and pushed me into a private room filled with strange men.”
The door locked behind me.}
I screamed. I begged. I kicked the walls until my hands bled.”
On the other side, I could hear him lighting a cigarette.}
“Stacey’s parents had just gotten into an accident before the exam,” he said. “She was barely holding on. If you hadn’t taken her letter, I would’ve found her that day. Do you really think she would have died in that river if you hadn’t interfered?“>
Ten hours later, bruised and bleeding, I dragged myself to the window and jumped from the tenth floor.
When I opened my eyes, I was back in that all–too–familiar classroom. Stacey stood in front of me, sliding the same letter into Justin’s desk drawer.
I didn’t reach for it.
I picked up my bag, slung it over my shoulder, and walked out.
I wasn’t here to rewrite someone else’s story.”
Now, I would write my own.
-D
A few moments later, Justin burst into the classroom, out of breath.
The first thing he did when he saw me was grab my wrist and look me over from head to toe. His eyes darted across my face, searching for something. He hesitated for half a second when he found nothing, then turned and rushed to his desk.
He opened the drawer.
There it was. Stacey’s letter. Still neatly folded, exactly where she had left it.
Justin didn’t say a word. Didn’t even glance at me. He just shoved past and bolted from the room.
I followed at a distance, stopping when I reached the stairwell. Below, I saw him reach Stacey in just a few strides. She had barely made it to the bottom.}
He caught her by the arm. She turned away, resisting. But then he leaned in and said something only she could hear.>
She froze, then burst into tears.>
When he wrapped his arms around her, she collapsed into him like she had been waiting for it all along.§
I stood there, silent. Watching.
“I promise you,” Justin said, his voice low but firm. “I swear I’ll never leave you again. I don’t care if I have to retake the exam. You’re the most important test in my life.“}
That was when I knew.
Justin had been reborn, too.
Stacey’s voice turned soft, almost playful. “Aren’t you scared I’ll drag you down?”
Justin cupped her cheeks and replied without missing a beat. “Being with you? Who cares about college…”
A quiet laugh escaped me.”
In his past life, Justin had taken everything for granted. He never knew what it meant to fail and never understood how much power and opportunity a prestigious degree could offer.
All he remembered was that I had stood in the way of his white moonlight.”
So be it. I let him go. I hoped he wouldn’t regret it.
Later that evening, while I was buried in my review notes, Justin texted me.”
[Don’t say anything you shouldn’t.]
I stared at the message for a moment, then typed back one word.}
[Okay.J
He didn’t need to warn me.”
I had no intention of interfering with his life this time.}
We were just neighbors, after all.
3/3
10.0%
O
xxx
D
…8
Right after I finished a mock test and stepped outside to take out the trash, I saw them.}
Justin’s parents were dragging him out of the backseat of their car.
Aunt Evelyn didn’t hesitate. She smacked him hard on the back of the head.
“So you think you’re a big man now? Planning to elope right before the most important exam of your life? Have you completely lost your mind?”
Justin struggled, trying to wrench himself free.}
“Dad! Mom! I love her. Stacey and I love each other!“}
Uncle Richard raised his hand and slapped him clean across the face.
“You ungrateful little brat.”
Then they saw me.§
Relief spread across both their faces like a wave.}
Aunt Evelyn rushed over, her voice instantly softer.}
“Thank God, Rhian. You’re here. Just seeing you calms us down. This idiot’s gotten himself tangled up with some girl from school, and now he wants to run away with her. Please, talk some sense into him.”
Since we were kids, Justin had always been the wild, golden boy, and I’d been the dependable one.}
The
The example. The fixer.
Every time he messed up, I was the one who pulled him back.}
But not this time.}
Justin’s gaze snapped to mine. His eyes narrowed, dark with betrayal.}
“It was you. I knew it. You told them, didn’t you?“}
He stepped forward and said, “Can’t you just stay out of my business for once? Why do you always have to interfere?“}
And just like that, the image of my past life flashed through my mind.
I had been pinned down by a group of men, trapped in that room, begging and crying out for help.
Justin had stood just outside the door, a cigarette between his fingers and a smirk curling on his lips.
9:22 AM
