Chapter 2

When I opened the dressing room door backstage, the two of them were squeezed onto a single chair.

Ethan had his arm around Madison's waist, watching adoringly as she playfully tapped his lips with a makeup brush.

Madison saw me first.

"Chloe! What are you doing here? Did you come to see my show?"

I replied calmly, "From what I know, you and Ethan were classmates. You're older than me, so you don't need to act like you're younger."

Madison feigned innocence, giggled behind her hand, and remained silent.

Ignoring her, I handed the lunchbox to Ethan. "Your lunch."

Before Ethan could speak, Madison snatched it from my hand and opened it.

"Wow, this looks amazing! Ethan, can I have some?"

Ethan pinched her cheek playfully. "If you like it, it's yours, babe."

I watched Madison pick through the food, taking bites of everything. I looked at Ethan. "Then what am I supposed to eat?"

Ethan tore his eyes away from Madison, looked around the room, and picked up a half-eaten takeout container left by a staff member.

"Here, this is still warm."

Inside the plastic container were leftover fish tacos, greasy and covered in fish bones and slimy skin. It was sickening.

More importantly, I am severely allergic to seafood. I don't eat fish.

When I didn't take it, Ethan defended himself:

"Your stomach is made of steel anyway. Madison is delicate; she needs proper nutrition."

Madison chimed in with a mouthful of food. "Oh, Chloe, I didn't know this was your lunch. My bad."

"Though," she nibbled on her fork, looking incredibly smug, "I thought women who dressed as plainly as you would at least be amazing cooks. I guess not."

Ethan tapped her nose. "You little foodie, always so picky."

He then turned to me, his face hardening into annoyance.

"Alright, if you don't have anything else, you should leave. Madison needs to get ready for the stage."

The moment the door closed behind me, their laughter echoed through the hallway.

Rumors were one thing, but seeing it with my own eyes was a dull blade sawing through my heart.

Ethan didn't come home until midnight.

He tossed a shopping bag onto the table next to me.

"Look, I know it was wrong of Madison to eat your lunch. Don't be childish. I got you these cosmetics to make it up to you."

He dumped out a few small tubes, packets, and tiny plastic jars.

"If you like them, I'll get you more."

He smiled and went to take a shower.

I didn't know much about makeup, but I recognized the luxury brand logo on the bag.

For a second, I felt a pang of nostalgia.

When we first started dating, we were broke students. Ethan would skip meals just to save up and buy me little gifts.

I remembered watching Madison's play with him earlier.

I had found it boring, but when I looked over, Ethan had tears in his eyes.

Once, during a night of heavy drinking with his friends, Ethan had let slip a secret.

Madison was his high school muse.

Back when everyone else was buried in books, Madison was vibrant, beautiful, and wild. He had been utterly obsessed.

But they went down different paths after graduation.

Until they crossed paths again in New York.

His tears during the play weren't for the art. They were for his lost youth, his unresolved desires, and the girl who got away.

But in reality, he was just greedy.

I looked closely at the tiny makeup items. Suddenly, a receipt slipped out of the bag.

It was a long list of luxury cosmetics, totaling thousands of dollars.

And then I realized.

The "gifts" he gave me were just the free samples that came with a massive luxury set.

The room still smelled of the heavy rose perfume Ethan brought home. A wave of exhaustion washed over me.

I was tired of being the paranoid, jealous girlfriend. I didn't even have the energy to wonder who got the actual full-sized products.

Ethan walked out of the bathroom, drying his hair. Seeing me staring at the samples, he started lecturing me again.

"You really need to start dressing up, Chloe. You look like a mess every day. Aren't you embarrassed to stand next to me?"

"By the way, what are your plans for your day off tomorrow?"