Seven Years Secret, I Stopped Chasing - Chapter 8: Chapter 8
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I kept my phone off at bedtime, skipping my usual late-night scrolling. After washing up, I crashed straight into sleep.
Morning came, and as I opened my apartment door ready for work, I nearly walked right into Serena.
She stood there in yesterday's white dress, her usually perfect hair slightly messy. Dark circles under her eyes told me she hadn't slept. The girl looked like she'd run a marathon to get here.
"Serena? What brings you here?" I asked.
"Why the hell aren't you answering your phone?" she fired back.
Our words collided in the air, hers sharp enough to cut glass.
I took a steadying breath and gave her my best polite-but-chilly smile. "Phone was off. Didn't check it. Did you need something?" My tone could've frozen hell over.
"God, Albion, stop talking to me like I'm some stranger!" Her hands clenched at her sides. "Since when do we do this awkward dance?"
She didn't get it - couldn't understand why I'd stopped chasing her shadow.
"Sis, this is just how I am," I said evenly.
"Don't call me that!" Her voice cracked like a whip. "You hated that nickname after we got together!"
Memory flash: younger me deliberately dropping that sibling-like address because it felt like keeping her at arm's length.
"You also hated when I used your name," I countered, my smile all teeth no warmth. "Told me to back off, so I did. Why the sudden change of heart?"
I couldn't resist twisting the knife. "Oh wait - wasn't there something about introducing me to an upgrade? How's that search going?"
"Albion!" Her face flushed scarlet. She grabbed my wrist hard enough to leave marks. "That was drunk nonsense! We never broke up! You're not allowed to even look at other girls!"
I yanked my arm free. "Took it dead serious. That night? That was our finale. Let me make it crystal - we're done."
"From now on, we're just friends."
"Friends?" She let out a bitter laugh. "You unilaterally decide this without considering my feelings?"
I met her glare head-on. "Here's the truth, Serena - I regret us. That's why it's over. Clear enough for you?"
"No! Relationships take two people to end!"
The weight of my past lives pressed down like an anvil. "Tell me something - where does Cyril fit in this picture? You still carry his ghost everywhere. Well guess what? I'm removing myself from your love triangle. What more do you want?"
"He's history!" she shouted, then her expression turned desperate. "If he's the problem, I'll cut him off completely. I swear, from now on it's only—"
Her phone rang. She rejected the call without glancing at it.
It rang again. Another rejection.
But I'd seen the caller ID flashing "My Cy-Cy" plain as day. Cyril. No mistaking that.
When it rang a third time, I sighed. "Just answer. Might be important."
She hesitated, conflict playing across her face, before finally accepting the call.
Chaos erupted from the speaker - screeching metal, shouting. Through the noise, one thing became clear: car accident.
Serena's face drained of color. "Cyril? Cyril!" Her worry contradicted every word she'd just spoken as she pressed the phone to her ear.
Morning came, and as I opened my apartment door ready for work, I nearly walked right into Serena.
She stood there in yesterday's white dress, her usually perfect hair slightly messy. Dark circles under her eyes told me she hadn't slept. The girl looked like she'd run a marathon to get here.
"Serena? What brings you here?" I asked.
"Why the hell aren't you answering your phone?" she fired back.
Our words collided in the air, hers sharp enough to cut glass.
I took a steadying breath and gave her my best polite-but-chilly smile. "Phone was off. Didn't check it. Did you need something?" My tone could've frozen hell over.
"God, Albion, stop talking to me like I'm some stranger!" Her hands clenched at her sides. "Since when do we do this awkward dance?"
She didn't get it - couldn't understand why I'd stopped chasing her shadow.
"Sis, this is just how I am," I said evenly.
"Don't call me that!" Her voice cracked like a whip. "You hated that nickname after we got together!"
Memory flash: younger me deliberately dropping that sibling-like address because it felt like keeping her at arm's length.
"You also hated when I used your name," I countered, my smile all teeth no warmth. "Told me to back off, so I did. Why the sudden change of heart?"
I couldn't resist twisting the knife. "Oh wait - wasn't there something about introducing me to an upgrade? How's that search going?"
"Albion!" Her face flushed scarlet. She grabbed my wrist hard enough to leave marks. "That was drunk nonsense! We never broke up! You're not allowed to even look at other girls!"
I yanked my arm free. "Took it dead serious. That night? That was our finale. Let me make it crystal - we're done."
"From now on, we're just friends."
"Friends?" She let out a bitter laugh. "You unilaterally decide this without considering my feelings?"
I met her glare head-on. "Here's the truth, Serena - I regret us. That's why it's over. Clear enough for you?"
"No! Relationships take two people to end!"
The weight of my past lives pressed down like an anvil. "Tell me something - where does Cyril fit in this picture? You still carry his ghost everywhere. Well guess what? I'm removing myself from your love triangle. What more do you want?"
"He's history!" she shouted, then her expression turned desperate. "If he's the problem, I'll cut him off completely. I swear, from now on it's only—"
Her phone rang. She rejected the call without glancing at it.
It rang again. Another rejection.
But I'd seen the caller ID flashing "My Cy-Cy" plain as day. Cyril. No mistaking that.
When it rang a third time, I sighed. "Just answer. Might be important."
She hesitated, conflict playing across her face, before finally accepting the call.
Chaos erupted from the speaker - screeching metal, shouting. Through the noise, one thing became clear: car accident.
Serena's face drained of color. "Cyril? Cyril!" Her worry contradicted every word she'd just spoken as she pressed the phone to her ear.
End of Seven Years Secret, I Stopped Chasing Chapter 8. Continue reading Chapter 9 or return to Seven Years Secret, I Stopped Chasing book page.