Chapter 4

The day I signed the house sale contract and received the full payment, the weather was beautiful.

I transferred the money to a bank card, then went to school to complete the suspension and study abroad procedures.

That weekend, a mutual friend organized a karaoke party and invited me.

I knew Sophia and her crew would be there. To avoid tipping them off, I accepted.

In the private room, everyone started playing Truth or Dare.

After a few rounds, Noah suddenly rattled the dice in his hand and suggested with a laugh, "Let's play King's Game! The person who draws the King card can order any two people to do anything!"

The suggestion was immediately met with enthusiasm from everyone, including Sophia and Olivia.

Sure enough, in the first round, Noah became the King.

He announced his order: "I command number 2 and number 5 to recreate the classic Titanic 'King of the World' pose at the ship's bow!"

After he spoke, everyone started checking their cards.

I opened my palm, it was a 2.

And Sophia, frowning, revealed her number 5 card.

The room instantly erupted with whistles and cheers.

"Ethan, this is your chance!"

"Sophia, don't just stand there, hug him!"

I was pushed and shoved until I stood on the coffee table, my limbs unsure where to go.

Sophia was pushed in front of me, her face clearly unwilling.

Olivia was still laughing on the side, saying, "Sophia, hurry up, don't keep everyone waiting. Ethan, spread your arms."

I stiffly spread my arms and closed my eyes, not daring to look at Sophia's expression.

I didn't get the embrace. Instead, a strong push came from behind me.

It was Noah. He was laughing as he hugged me from behind, shouting at Sophia, "Sophia, look, isn't this the same?"

The moment he hugged me, my foot slipped, and I fell backward, completely out of control.

With a loud thud, I landed hard on the floor, the back of my head hitting the hard corner of the coffee table. The pain made my vision go black.

The drinks on the table toppled from the impact, and cold liquid mixed with fruit splashed all over me.

The whole world went silent for a second.

Then, I heard Sophia's undisguised scoff.

Sophia didn't even look at me; she just said to someone nearby, "What a buzzkill."

Olivia only frowned, "Ethan, how can you be so clumsy? It's just a game."

Not a single person came to help me up.

All their gazes were focused on Noah, who had pushed me and now had red-rimmed eyes.

Sophia was the first to pull him close, comforting him softly: "It's okay, it's not your fault, he just couldn't stand still."

The sharp pain in the back of my head continued. I lay on the cold, wet floor, soaked and utterly pathetic.

I silently got up and walked out of that noisy private room.

At that moment, I was only grateful that I had already sold my house and completed my study abroad procedures.

Only three days remained until my departure.

The third day was my birthday.

Perhaps because of the drama that night at the karaoke, Olivia's text came: "Happy Birthday, Ethan. 7 PM tonight, The Summit Bistro. I booked the best table for you. See you there."

Not long after, Sophia also sent a text: "Happy Birthday. Noah didn't mean it last time, don't take it to heart. We'll celebrate your birthday together tonight."

I looked at these two messages, feeling nothing.

Consider it our final goodbye.

I replied "Okay" to both of them.

In the evening, I took a taxi to the restaurant.

It was still the same window seat, with a view of most of the city's night skyline.

This scene was identical to my previous life.

In my previous life, on this very day, in this very place, I was wearing the suit she gave me. They were called away by Noah's phone call before they even had a chance to order.

I waited from seven o'clock until the restaurant was about to close, but they never returned.

Calls went unanswered, texts unread.

The sympathetic glances from other diners, the hesitant inquiries from the waiters, made me incredibly uncomfortable.

Until I saw a photo in a friend's Ins story.

In the photo, he was dressed in a tuxedo, holding a cake and smiling. Sophia and Olivia stood on either side of him, looking at him with doting expressions.

The caption read: "Grabbed two knights last minute to eat cake. It's not a birthday, but who says you can only eat cake on your birthday!"

Turns out, my birthday was far less important than his impromptu celebration.