03
Amber giggled as Jester pulled her close Her laughter rang out, cutting through me like a knife My lips rembled, but I forced myself to stry quiet. Flinked quickly, fighting to keep my expression blank even as my
chattered
Thad survived the accident, but sitting here now, I wondered if the pain of their deception would kill me instead Inside, I screamed for them to stop. Please, not in front of me. But they didn’t care
Jester lifted Amber onto the kitchen counter, knocking over utensils and dishes. Their hands wandered, their kisses deepened, and my chest tightened with a pain so sharp it felt unbearable
A fear slid down my cheek couldn’t stop it, no matter how hard I tried Despair, anger, and humiliation burned inside me, but I kept my body still I couldn’t let them see
They finally stopped when Amber touched her belly “Jester, what if my baby gets hurt? We shouldn’t be doing
this here
“Oh, damn. I didn’t realize “Jester froze. Then he saw me in his peripheral vision, so he turned toward me briefly and noticed my tear–streaked face. He let out a soft laugh, brushing it off “Sorry,” he said casually, like my feelings
didn’t matter.
Amber tugged on his arm, pulling his attention back to her. “I’m scared. We need to go to the clinic.
Without hesitation, Jester grabbed his phone and called Dr. Helen “We need you at the packhouse now. I’m going to accompany Amber to the clinic, and Mauve is alone at home”
By the time Dr. Helen arrived, the two of them were dressed and rushing out the door. I listened as their car sped
away
The second they were gone, the dam inside me broke. I buried my face in my hands and sobbed loudly, the pain too much to hold in My body shook, and every tear felt like it was draining the life out of me.
Dr. Helen sat beside me and handed me a glass of water. “You’ve held this in for too long. Soon, this will all be behind you”
I wiped my tears, taking a deep breath to stendy myself. My hands were shaking, but I stood up anyway, forcing my legs to hold me I lifted my chin and stared at the door where Jester and Amber had left.
“How’s my application?” I asked
Dr Helen smiled gently “Good news. You’re scheduled for an interview today.”
My heart jumped “Today?”
“Yes,” she said “Get ready I’ll help you prepare.”
The interview for the pharmacy training at Shadowpine Hospital was nerve–wracking but straightforward They asked why I wanted to join, what I knew about medicine, and how I’d handle challenges. When it ended, the interviewers smiled and told me I’d done well. Relief washed over me, and for the first time in a long while, I felt a spark of hope
That evening, Jester and Amber still hadn’t returned. Dr. Helen decided to stay overnight in the quest room. While she rested, I sat at my desk, researching everything I needed to know about the training.
My focus broke when I opened social media. The first thing I saw was a post from Amber It was a picture of a
I
hotel window overlooking a romantic sunset She’d tagged Jester
My stomach twisted with disgust. She wasn’t even trying to hide their affair anymore Jester’s name appeared beneath the post, showing he’d liked it
My fingers hovered over the screen. I wanted to react, to leave an angry comment, anything to show my rage But I stopped myself. They didn’t know I could move now, and I wasn’t ready for them to find out
Instead, I blocked Amber and deleted my account.
Shaking off the bitterness, I turned back to my computer and focused on the articles and videos about the training program. Every step I took was one step closer to escaping this nightmare.