Ji-an
I should be asleep.
The show is tomorrow, and I need to be rested, but instead, I'm lying in bed, wrapped up in a hotel robe, scrolling through my secret account with the dim glow of my phone lighting up the dark room.
I tell myself I'm just checking messages. That's it.
But then I see it.
A video.
I pause.
The thumbnail is blurry, just a shot of some nondescript diner, but the caption catches my eye.
"Ex-Marine shuts down ex and her new boyfriend without even trying."
Something about it makes me click.
At first, I don't recognize the setting. Just another small-town restaurant, the kind with laminated menus and waitresses who call you "hon." But then the camera shifts, and my stomach flips.
Logan.
He's sitting at a table, looking completely at ease, while a blonde woman stands next to him, her arms crossed, her expression way too pleased with herself.
Cindy.
I narrow my eyes.
So we meet again.
When I first found Logan's social media, I did a bit of digging. Not in a stalkery way—I was just curious about his life. I found his sister's social media. She's a big K-pop fan, by the way, and she had posted about Cindy cheating on Logan.
The bitch.
Who cheats on a guy when he's fighting for lives on the other side of the world?
She had been with her new boyfriend for almost a year now.
Cindy is smiling in the video. She's pretty enough, I guess, in a generic, over-processed kind of way. Blonde, blue-eyed, perfectly made-up—the type that probably spends an hour on her hair just to make it look "effortless."
But still.
Not pretty enough for him.
Not by a long shot.
I press play.
The first thing I hear is her laugh.
Loud. Annoying. Fake.
I grimace and turn the volume down a little.
The camera shakes slightly as the person recording shifts. Cindy is standing next to Logan's table, her hand resting on her hip, while some guy—her boyfriend, I'm guessing—leans in, looking just as smug.
I don't know what I expect, but Logan barely reacts. If anything, he looks somewhat amused.
He just keeps eating, like they're not even worth looking at.
Cindy, clearly not satisfied with that, leans closer. "Wow, Logan. Didn't think I'd see you here."
His response is so dry I almost laugh. "Sure, Cindy. I'm sure you had no idea."
Her smile falters for half a second.
I smirk.
Oh, this is going to be good.
The boyfriend, desperate to assert himself, jumps in. "Didn't know you were still around. Thought you'd be somewhere… I don't know, being poor."
I gasp so hard I nearly choke on my own spit.
No. He. Did. Not.
Who says that?
But Logan? He doesn't even flinch.
He just snorts. "Ahh, yes, the classic 'you're poor' insult. Real creative, Derrick. The 1980s called, and they want their dialogue back. Besides, I'd rather be poor than have a silver spoon up my ass."
I cover my mouth to keep from laughing.
Derrick.
Of course, his name is Derrick. He's a dick. I can already tell.
Logan goes back to eating, completely unbothered, but Derrick, clearly irritated that he's not getting a reaction, keeps going.
"You seem really tense, Logan. Maybe you should try going on vacation. Actually, Cindy and I just got back from California. First class. Saw the Redwoods, the works. Maybe I should send you our travel agent's number."
I roll my eyes so hard they might detach.
Good lord, I hate guys like this.
Logan doesn't even look up. "Good for you. How'd all that go with the OARC complaints you've been getting?"
The entire mood shifts.
Derrick freezes. "You know about that?"
Logan grins. "Everyone knows about that. That's what happens when you use ChatGPT to write your legal briefs, dumbass."
I choke out a laugh.
The guys at Logan's table are dying.
Derrick looks like he just swallowed his own tie. Cindy, still trying to salvage the moment, tries to switch gears.
"Logan, I didn't realize you were so petty. I'm disappointed."
Oh, this woman is desperate.
Logan just lifts an eyebrow. "You didjust hear him make fun of me for being poor, right? Maybe you should worry less about me and more about your boyfriend, who's about to lose his law license."
The way Cindy visibly shrinks makes me grin.
Derrick, realizing his girlfriend is drowning, tries one last jab.
"I will be fine, Logan; don't worry about me and mine. You just keep doing your little security job. Isn't that a bit pathetic? Weren't you, like, valedictorian at one point? What happened to being smart?"
Logan smirks. "I don't know. Protecting people from entitled assholes like you seems like the smart thing to do."
The entire table erupts.
Derrick's face turns red.
Cindy looks like she's been personally offended by gravity.
And Logan?
He just stands up, tosses some money onto the table, and walks out like it's just another day.
The video ends.
I stare at my screen for a long moment, then go straight to the comments section.
"Dude didn't even blink. King behavior."
"I need to know everything about this man immediately."
"The way he just ate his steak while they embarrassed themselves… I need this energy in my life."*
"I've never seen someone be so attractive while doing so little."
"What's OARC?"
"Office of Attorney Regulation - this guy is a lawyer??? What an ass!"
I smirk, shaking my head.
Logan Carter, unknowingly entering his viral era.
I should stop watching.
I should put my phone down and go to sleep.
Instead, I click on the location tag.
And that's when it hits me.
This diner?
It's right down the street.
I sit up straighter, my heart kicking up a notch.
Of course, it makes sense—Moses Lake is the closest town to the Gorge, and Logan's working security there.
But still.
He's here.
Closer than he's ever been.
I don't know what I'm doing until my fingers are already typing.
@Wanderlust_J: "So, you're famous now?"*
I hit send before I can overthink it.
A few minutes pass.
Then—
Logan:"Yeah, dumb right? People are too attached to their phones. Didn't realize having dinner was a viral event. I should get to bed. I'm going to have a long day tomorrow."*
I grin.
Because tomorrow?
Tomorrow, I'm finally going to see him again.
And he still has no idea.
I stare at my phone long after Logan's message disappears from the screen, my heart still hammering in my chest.
I should go to sleep.
I really should.
But my brain won't shut off.
It's been almost a year since I first stumbled across his social media.
Okay, that was a lie. I didn't stumble. I looked and found him. It actually wasn't that hard. I remembered his full name and started searching. It didn't take me long.
At the time, his profile was locked down—private, barely updated, almost like he didn't want to be found. But I was determined.
I don't even remember what made me so curious in the first place. Maybe it was how he carried himself in that short interaction we had, or the fact that he unloaded his true thoughts.
I don't know.
But after months of being unable to forget about him, I broke down and looked for him and befriended him.
And now, I'm going to see him.
I'm going to tell him who I am.
And then, I'm going to hope that when he knows…
He won't hate me.