LILY'S POV
The apartment felt suffocating. Every breath I took felt like it was filled with something I couldn't shake. I hadn't slept. My mind had been spinning since I walked in from the park, the echo of Damien's words still haunting me.
You'll come to me eventually.
I tried to ignore them, tried to shut out the memory of his touch, the way his fingers had traced the line of my jaw. But no matter how hard I tried to focus on anything else, his presence lingered in my thoughts like a shadow, always there, watching.
Caleb had barely acknowledged me since I got home. He was sprawled on the couch, eyes glued to the TV, his indifference as cold and unbothered as ever. He didn't ask where I'd been or why I'd been out till so late. It wasn't surprising, but it still stung in a way I couldn't explain.
I dropped my bag onto the kitchen counter, rubbing my temples. A migraine was starting to form, the kind that always came when I was overthinking everything.
I needed something-anything-to numb the discomfort gnawing at me. I moved to the refrigerator, pulling out a bottle of water, but my gaze flickered to the counter, where Caleb had left his phone earlier. I didn't think twice as I reached for it, my fingers trembling slightly.
It was a dangerous move, and I knew it. But in that moment, I was desperate. Desperate to find something, anything, that would make sense of the mess I had gotten myself into.
I unlocked his phone with the familiar code-he never bothered to change it-and immediately felt a rush of anxiety. What was I hoping to find? What would it even change?
But my gaze froze when I saw the notifications. Dozens of them. Texts, missed calls, and a few that were simply labeled read, all from different women. I recognized some of the names-business associates, old "friends" of Caleb's, women I'd never met but had heard whispers of. Each message was clear: flirtatious, suggestive, taunting.
I swallowed, my hands shaking as I read through them, my mind screaming at me to stop, but I couldn't. The words were like nails in my chest, each one driving deeper.
Come over after your meeting tonight. I miss you.
I know you're busy, but I need you. When can I see you again?
I can't stop thinking about our last time together...
I slammed the phone down on the counter, a rush of nausea surging in my throat. This was real. This wasn't just my imagination. Caleb wasn't just a little distant or preoccupied. He was cheating on me. In the worst way.
My heart was pounding in my chest, and my thoughts felt scrambled, like a mess of raw nerves that I couldn't sort out. I should have confronted him. I should have demanded the truth, but all I could do was stand there, staring at the phone as if it were some kind of weapon that I couldn't put down.
"Lily?"
Caleb's voice broke through my panic, and I turned to find him standing in the doorway to the kitchen, his arms crossed and his expression unreadable. "What are you doing with my phone?" he asked, his voice low.
I felt a surge of rage, but it was quickly drowned by the overwhelming rush of hurt. I opened my mouth to say something, but the words caught in my throat. How could I say it? How could I confront him when everything I'd seen was too much? Too raw?
"You're really going to stand there and act like you don't know what's going on?" I finally spat, my voice shaking with a mix of anger and disbelief. "I saw the messages. The women. The lies."
Caleb didn't flinch. He didn't look ashamed or guilty. Instead, he stepped further into the kitchen, his gaze cool and indifferent. "You saw that, huh?" he asked, his tone casual, as if we were talking about something as trivial as a misplaced receipt. "I didn't think you were the type to go snooping, Lily."
I felt a wave of heat wash over me. "Don't make this about me," I snapped. "You're the one who's been lying to me, Caleb. You've been cheating on me. With all of them. Don't act like it's my fault for finding out."
He sighed, rolling his eyes. "Oh, come on. It's not like it's a big deal. You're not some naive little girl anymore. You knew, deep down, this is how it worked. I've always been like this."
His words hit me harder than any blow could. The reality of it-the coldness in his voice, the dismissal in his eyes-was worse than the betrayal itself. He wasn't even sorry. He wasn't even trying to make excuses. He was just... done.
"Don't lie to me!" I shouted, feeling tears welling up in my eyes. "You said you loved me. You promised-"
"I never promised you anything, Lily," he interrupted, his voice sharp, cutting through my words like a knife. "You're just another girl, another pretty face. I don't owe you anything."
My world crashed around me. Everything I had believed in, everything I had fought to hold together, had been a lie. Caleb had never been the man I thought he was. And now, standing in front of me, he was telling me the truth-the ugly, harsh reality I had refused to face for so long.
I turned away from him, a sob escaping my throat before I could stop it. My hands were shaking as I wiped at my eyes, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop the tears from coming.
I heard him leave the kitchen, his footsteps fading into the distance, but I couldn't move. I couldn't think. I could barely breathe.
I wanted to hate him. I wanted to scream at him, to hurt him the way he'd hurt me. But I didn't know how. I didn't know who I was anymore.
And the worst part was... there was another man in my life now. A man who didn't lie. A man who made no excuses. A man who wanted me for himself. A man I was afraid I couldn't walk away from.