Chapter 2

The red light above the operating room doors stayed lit. The hallway was silent, save for the sound of breathing. Eleanor sat on the bench, her hands numb with cold. Across from her, Ashley's eyes were rimmed with red. Every so often, she glanced toward the operating room doors. Finally, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. "I'm so sorry, Ms. Robinson. I never meant to bring more trouble to you both." Eleanor looked up at her but said nothing. Ashley wiped at her tears, her voice choking with emotion as she added, "I never thought Dominic would still care this deeply after all these years." Then, she paused, as though drifting into a memory. "Last year, on my birthday, he flew all the way to Peressa just to bring me a necklace. It was one I had mentioned once in passing, something I said I liked. "I couldn't believe he remembered. But I was still angry at him, so I threw the necklace at him and wouldn't even let him in." At that, Eleanor's fingers curled into fists, her nails biting into her palms. She remembered it clearly. Dominic had told her he'd be out of town for a few days on a business trip. When he came back, he had casually handed her a necklace. Eleanor had been overjoyed. She kept it tucked away at the bottom of her jewelry box and couldn't even bring herself to wear it. But now she knew. The necklace was something Ashley had rejected, and he had simply handed it off to her. Ashley went on, "The Christmas before that, I got into a terrible fight with my boyfriend at the time. I posted something dark on Instagram. Dominic saw it and flew over that same night. "He stood outside my apartment for hours. It was snowing hard, but he never moved. He didn't even try to knock." Eleanor's chest tightened. She remembered that Christmas, too. Dominic had been unusually passionate that night and made love to her seven times. She had believed he was finally falling in love with her. The next morning, she woke up alone. In fact, the space beside her had long gone cold. Still, she assumed he had left to handle some urgent work. But the truth was, he had rushed off to see Ashley. At that moment, Ashley's tears fell again. "I was angry for three years and refused to reach out. But Dominic never forgot me. He wrote me a letter every single day, even though I never replied." Suddenly, Eleanor couldn't breathe. She remembered all the nights she saw the light still on in Dominic's office. She had thought he was working late and even made coffee to help him stay awake. All the while, he had been writing love letters to Ashley. She had let herself believe that while Ashley was gone, Dominic truly wanted a life with her. Now, she realized it was just an illusion she had clung to. Eleanor had convinced herself that he was finally letting her in. But all along, his heart had been somewhere else. Just as Ashley looked ready to speak again, Eleanor stood abruptly. Her face had turned pale by then. Even so, she kept her voice steady. "I have to go. There's something I need to take care of." Without waiting for a reply, she turned and walked away. Her steps grew quicker, until she was all but running. … At home, Eleanor packed her things in silence. There was nothing left to do but wait for the divorce agreement to take effect. In the days that followed, she saw updates about Dominic through Ashley's Instagram. His surgery was a success, but he didn't stop to rest. Instead, he immediately arranged for Ashley's mother to be moved into a private hospital room and flew in a top medical team from overseas. He even reviewed every detail of her treatment plan. In Ashley's latest post, Dominic sat by his bed. Even with the IV still in his arm, he was carefully peeling an apple for her. Her caption read, "I'll never find anyone who loves me this much again." Pain crashed over Eleanor like a tidal wave. Before she knew it, her tears hit the screen, blurring Dominic's gentle profile in the photo. She thought of the years she had spent taking care of Dominic. She had made him oatmeal every morning for his sensitive stomach. At night, she kept the lights on late, waiting for him to come home. The fruit she brought him was always peeled, cored, and cut into perfect, bite-sized pieces. And now, he was doing all that for someone else. Eleanor took in a deep breath, wiped away her tears, and told herself, "It's okay. Once I stop loving him, I'll finally learn to love myself."