<
I used to think that even if Arlo didn’t love me enough, my love for him would be sufficient.
Or maybe one day he would be moved by my devotion?
But everything was mocking how naive I had been.
“It didn’t turn out well today. I drank it all myself.”
I smiled, picking up the lightest bag as I hurried out of the room.
“Let’s pack up and go home.”
I no longer wanted to lug all the luggage like a servant, as I had always done before.
The atmosphere was cold on the way home. Arlo was still angry with me.
But I had no intention of appeasing him. I needed time to soothe my own emotions too.
As soon as we got home, Arlo’s other friend Ryan showed up.
He was carrying a cat in his arms, grinning as he barged in.
I’ve had severe cat allergies since childhood. Startled, I covered my nose and backed away.
“Arlo, didn’t you tell them I’m allergic to cats?!”
I frowned, staring intently at the ragdoll cat in Ryan’s arms, not daring to let my guard down for a moment.
When I was little, I accidentally hugged a neighbor’s cat and ended up in the hospital for a whole week.
“Zinnia, why are you so delicate?”
Before Arlo could speak, Ryan rolled his eyes at me.
“This is Sage’s ragdoll cat. It’s super expensive, imported from abroad. I begged her for days to let me bring it over to play with.”
“Zinnia Wilson, don’t be so inconsiderate.”
Arlo had been unhappy with my attitude, feeling he’d lost face in front of his friend. Now he finally found an outlet for his frustration.
His expression was icy.
“It’s just a cat, it’s not going to kill you, is it?”
He no longer hid his disdain for me, even trying to shove the cat Ryan was holding into my arms.
“I’m going to break you of this habit. What’s the big deal about a cat?”
Arlo knew full well how severe my allergic reactions could be, but at this moment he didn’t care about me at all.
I kept dodging as Arlo kept advancing.
The ragdoll cat, its neck pinched painfully by Arlo, let out a sharp cry and lunged at me out of control.
Even though I reacted immediately, the cat’s claws still left a mark on my neck, and I inhaled a mouthful of cat fur.
Half a minute later, I started having difficulty breathing, my heart racing, and breaking out in a cold sweat.
“Quick… call an ambulance:
Arlo scoffed:
“Zinnia Wilson, stop pretending.
а
11:45 AM
<
It was Ryan who noticed my face growing increasingly pale and spoke up.
“Arlo, Zinnia doesn’t look like she’s faking. We should call 911 quickly!”
In the moment of hesitation, I collapsed heavily to the ground.
Before losing consciousness, I saw Arlo’s panicked expression as he, Ryan and Milo scrambled to call an ambulance.
When I woke up, I was alone in a dark hospital room.
Because of their so–called prank, I had nearly gone into shock and been rushed to the hospital.
And now there wasn’t a single person by my side.
A nurse came in and turned on the lights, helping me change my IV drip.
“Your cat allergy symptoms are extremely severe. You absolutely must avoid contact with cats in the future.”
I smiled bitterly and asked:
“Nurse, may I ask when the people who brought me in left?”
“You mean those three men?”
The nurse frowned.
“They left once they knew your life wasn’t in danger.”
Her expression was one of disbelief:
“Weren’t they just strangers who happened to help?”
I forced a smile:
“One of them is my boyfriend.”
“Though not for much longer.”
I opened my phone to see a message from Arlo.
“We went out for dinner. If you’re fine, just go home on your own.”
Milo had posted on Instagram 20 minutes ago.
“So happy to reunite with old friends!”
The photo showed the four of them, with Arlo gazing lovingly at the girl beside him.
He and Sage seemed to be looking at each other adoringly, their eyes full of undisguised affection.
Looking at this photo, I finally couldn’t hold back my tears, my chest aching to the point of suffocation.
At this point, I had no reason left to deceive myself.
The person Arlo truly liked was Sage.
To him, if Sage was willing to come back to him, I would lose all value.
I suddenly remembered that Arlo would often type on Instagram, but I had never seen him post anything.
A possibility arose in my mind, and I searched for clues in his social media accounts.
Arlo’s Instagram was empty, but I found an account called “Remembering Her” in his following list.
