Chapter 1

After work, I bought three movie tickets, but it wasn't until two minutes before the movie started that my girlfriend and my childhood friend arrived.

My girlfriend, Sally Clarkson, transferred me the money for it as usual, saying, "That's for Alex's ticket."

I paused, feeling a little repulsed as I stared at the transfer notification on my phone screen.

Sally would pay for Alex Zims' medical bills when he got sick and pick up the tab when I bought him food.

Before I could ask her why she was always paying everything for Alex, Alex handed me a cup of coffee while handily whipping out his payment app QR code. "That's ten bucks, Jim."

I was stumped and turned to Sally, but she was staring at her phone like she didn't hear a thing.

And seeing that I was silent, Alex quietly withdrew his hand, and that was when Sally looked up at me again.

Frowning, she snapped, "Just pay for it! Are you really going to go cheap on ten bucks?!"

My brain zoned out for a second, but I soon laughed.

In the end, it wasn't as if she didn't hear us—she just didn't care about me.

Chapter 1

When I tapped on Alex's account and transferred the money over, Alex acted as if he was upset about what just happened.

"It's alright, Jim. It's my treat…"

He had barely finished when Sally snatched his phone and accepted the transfer, like I'd get my money back if she was a second too slow.

"Take it," Sally said. "You don't have money after buying those stocks last month."

She really knew every detail of his life even though they had only met six months ago, and more than what she knew about me.

After the movie started, I was about to tell them it was time to go in when Sally's eyes lit up, exclaiming, "Hey, that's a new profile picture! It's that new anime character, right?"

"So you know about it too?" Alex laughed heartily, and they started to talk loudly without a care.

I sat there, my outstretched hand hanging in the air as I was completely ignored.

It wasn't the first time—Sally had just met Alex no more than six months ago, but they really hit it off when they did, never running out of things to talk about.

In contrast, neither of them would even look my way even if I talked to myself.

As such, I entered the movie hall alone and had already taken my seat for twenty minutes when they came in.

Our seats were next to each other with me in the middle, but Alex eyed me and then whispered into Sally's ear.

Then, they moved to another row, taking up a couple of unoccupied seats.

Sally then sent a text: [We'll take other empty seats with a better view.]

And with that, she turned off her phone, clearly not bothered about how I would respond.

Soon, she and Alex were chatting again, and the people a row below turned in exasperation. "Come on, man. Quit it with your girl already—we can't even hear the movie over you talking."

"Sorry. I'll stop her." Alex smiled and nodded, not correcting them even though I was nearby.

From my seat, I could see that Sally was smiling, and my phone remained silent.

She wasn't even bothered to defend herself.

Hence, I sat there, muddleheaded for the next hour or so, my mind blank by the time I left.

Sally came chasing after me, asking me as if nothing happened, "Did you catch the moment leading to the male lead beat up that mob character? I missed it."

"No, I didn't."

Stumped for a moment by my curt response, Sally frowned, her tone annoyed as she demanded, "What's your problem? You chose this movie!"

"No, I didn't," I repeated.

In fact, both Alex and I had picked different movies yesterday, but Sally went with his pick—just as she had done countless times before.

Awkwardness ensued, but as always, Sally didn't find anything wrong about what she did these days.

We were childhood friends and had studied together since grade school, and she always had my back, supporting all my decisions.

She could have studied at a better college too, but she decided to stick with me.

Our friends had always said that Sally's world revolved around me, but all of that changed since Alex showed up.

Chapter 2

Sally shrugged, nonchalant. "Either would be fine since you won't get it anyway."

Alex chuckled. "Remember that time he fell asleep? He was still in his seat after we were all gone. He didn't even know that someone had robbed him."

"Exactly. He doesn't even like to watch movies—what's the point of picking the one he likes?"

I was white with rage listening to them make a joke of my embarrassment, even though it was Alex who had insisted that I go with them even after I worked until two in the morning.

It was a thirteen-hour shift, and I was so tired that I fell asleep.

I couldn't find my phone when I woke up, and with both Sally and Alex gone, I was left stranded in the middle of nowhere at half past three in the morning.

Naturally, neither of them came back for me, and I was still really upset about it, warning them to never talk about it again.

But they did and kept repeating it like my pain gave them joy.

That was when Sally finally noticed that I was upset, but she frowned and snapped at me. "Upset again? Can't you ever take a joke?"

Alex eyed her and sighed in exasperation. "Come on, give it a rest. Jim's really upset."

Then, as if hesitant, he said, "That was my bad. Let's go for your favorite ribs for a change…"

"No way." Sally refused before I could say a word. "It wasn't easy for us to get that reservation at that expensive restaurant."

"But Jim is…"

"Don't worry, he's not picky. What, do you think everyone's a brat like you, scrawny and pathetic because you're such a fussy eater?"

Alex raised a brow. "I'm not skinny."

Sally scoffed. "Really?"

Alex's dark eyes twinkled as he smiled mischievously. "I can lift you with one arm."

"I doubt it."

Alex strode forward right then, and Sally took a couple of steps back in reflex, blushing.

Still, she was clearly interested and looked pointedly at me. "Jim would mind…"

But even before I could say a word, she yelped as Alex lifted her into the air and let her sit on his shoulder.

Grinning and putting her hand on her skirt to protect her modesty, he asked, "How about that? Do you believe me now?"

People around were stopping and taking photos, impressed by how much of a boyfriend Alex looked like just then.

Sally was blushing and smacking him repeatedly, stamping her feet when he finally let her down.

"You're too much!" She pouted and ran off.

"Wait up!" Alex was laughing even as he chased after her, and they continued being touchy-feely like a flirty couple.

I didn't move, my cheeks still white with rage.

Sally never looked my way the whole time like I was just another rubbernecker.

My heart ached so much that it turned numb, but I suddenly laughed in relief and took a taxi home.

Over ten minutes or so later, Sally finally called me. "Where'd you go? We can't find you anywhere."

"I went home," I replied flatly.

Silence ensued for a moment, after which they started talking again.

Eventually, Sally sighed. "What's your problem? Can you stop being such a hick? Alex is your friend—why'd you always get upset with him over the little things?!"

Alex was grinning beside her. "You're making a mountain out of a molehill, Jim. Trust me—I'm not interested in Sally. Only you can deal with that fiery temper."

"Who's got a fiery temper? Say that again, I dare you."

"You do. There."

As they once again bickered like there was no one else with them just like always, I felt nonexistent.

Even if I made my feelings clear, Sally would just tell me that I was being paranoid.

In time, I started talking less—now, I couldn't even be bothered to say a word and hung up.

Sally didn't call me back.

When I reached home, the skies were rumbling, and it soon started pouring with a loud crash.

I dashed straight through the gates of my apartment block, but I was soaked through anyway, and I prepared a warm bath after taking off my clothes.

While I waited for the tub to fill, Alex posted a photo on social media, captioned: [We were soaked!]

In it, Sally's white dress was wet, accentuating her curvaceous figure while she had Alex's jacket draped over her shoulders.

I snorted—I never knew that my girlfriend who was always such a clean freak had no qualms about taking someone else's jacket.

A friend who didn't know the context then replied: [Get home quick or you'll catch a cold.]

[We got to a hotel. No worries.]

There was a loud splash as the bathtub overflowed just then, and I shuddered.

Coming to my senses, I got in.

Chapter 3

Sally never came home that night, and I didn't ask her for once, while also enjoying a rare good night's sleep.

Then, the door swung open loudly the next day.

"Time for breakfast, Jim," Sally said, walking straight toward me.

She clearly had more to say, but I avoided her and went straight to the bathroom.

Sally paused and suddenly laughed as she turned to Alex with a look of resignation. "You won. He is being paranoid."

Alex grinned smugly, raising a brow. "Then I'll take it?"

Sally nodded. "A bet's a bet."

Alex went straight to the study and returned with my camera.

It was the camera my father had given me when I was eighteen.

My groggy head hurt as I growled, "What are you doing?"

Alex was taken aback and replied meekly, "It's our bet prize… If you're upset, I can return it."

"Then return it," I said, reaching out.

Before I got the camera, Sally grabbed my arm. "A bet's a bet. Don't be a sore loser."

"How is your bet any of my business?" I retorted flatly, distant like never before.

Sally frowned and was already annoyed as she retorted, "You gave it to me. I have the right to decide what to do with it."

I could feel every iota of patience in me vaporizing in an instant as I shoved her off, snapping, "Only if you keep it safe! Or did you forget what you promised me?!"

My father had bought it for me over ten years ago, and it had long since gone out of production.

Sally loved it, so I gave it to her despite my reluctance.

It had everything inside—my childhood, growth, and tribulations, along with memories of my parents.

Sally had been tearful as she kept studying every inch of it. "Well, I will be our exclusive photographer, capturing every moment of us for the rest of our lives."

And now, she handed off the same camera to someone else over a bet.

Sally's eyes flashed impatiently as she gave me a once-over and snorted. "You're just upset I didn't come home last night! But did you see how heavily it was raining?! Stop being so paranoid already. We had separate rooms! You'll just embarrass yourself by getting jealous over nothing."

She was as harsh as she could, not bothering to be considerate at all.

Even as silence ensued, I realized how farcical this whole thing was.

Back when we were eighteen, we went on a school trip during spring break.

When the supervisor assigned Sally to partner with a classmate who had a crush on her, she didn't hesitate to swap places with another classmate, doing extra work but smiling as she did.

As she walked beside me, she looked dead serious as she said, "I won't want you to get the wrong idea even for one second."

It was clear that she understood how I felt—it was just that my feelings didn't matter to her these days.

Chapter 4

I sighed softly and didn't argue.

I wasn't upset at all.

Looking up at Sally calmly, I said, "Let's just break up."

She froze, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Still, she soon laughed as if she was unafraid, while looking at me like I was an immature child. "Just stop already."

Alex also came over, patting my back as if he was my best friend in the world. "Trust me, my friend—you're just not in your right mind. You'll understand that once you cool off."

He sure talked like he was being considerate, when he was really cleverly blaming me for everything.

I had always trusted him, and for what? Things only got worse between me and Sally, with her always taking his side while our arguments kept increasing.

Shoving him off, I growled, "We're no longer friends, Alex."

Seeing Alex looking absolutely helpless and tearful, Sally charged at me furiously, not caring about rationality as she snapped, "Why do you have to be so difficult?! Are you only happy after you hurt every person who's ever cared for you?!

"What did Alex do to you for you to treat him like this?! You're just a mad dog that's biting everyone within reach at this point!"

Her words really stung.

And to add insult to injury, she was more upset about me turning hostile toward Alex than me telling her we were breaking up.

Bang!

With a slam of the door, they were both gone, neither of them messaging or calling me for a while.

It was a camaraderie to behold, just as I was well aware they were forcing me to submit just like they had countless times before.

Suddenly, my phone rang.

It was a call from my mom, Lydia.

"Hey, Jim. Are you coming home? Your dad and I agree that you really should take the offer, since you've worked for it. We're talking about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, after all, so talk to Sally. There's really no reason to leave town."

It was the sixth time she had asked this month, and I could almost hear the absence of hope in her voice.

Still, I replied in an instant this time, "Yeah, I'm coming home."

"Really?!" my dad, Bob, suddenly exclaimed right beside my mom. "Great! And come home soon, since you're due to start by next week!"