Chapter 1When my boyfriend won an all-expenses-paid company trip, I thought he'd choose me as his accompany. Instead? He chose our biggest client's daughter.
Two years together, and he'd never once acknowledged our relationship publicly. This time was no different.
"Listen, her dad's our biggest client. This is a critical time for my promotion—I can't afford to offend her."
His apologetic smile only amplified my humiliation.
So when he sent me a photo from his Miami hotel balcony, I was packing too.
But not for Miami—for good.
Every calculated betrayal deserves its RECKONINGH!
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My boyfriend won an all-expenses-paid trip to Miami from work.
The whole office was cheering, asking who he was planning to take.
I stood in the crowd, my heart racing.
Just last night, I'd told him how exhausted I was and how much I needed a beach trip. He said he'd take me once he cleared his plate at work.
Since the company had a strict policy against office romances, we'd kept us a secret.
So, I stayed quiet, just watching him, waiting for him to say it.
He swept a glance in my direction.
Then he looked at someone else.
"I'll take Linda. She was a huge help on the last project, and I owed her a trip."
The cheering erupted.
Linda was pushed to the center by our coworkers, blushing and smiling.
I stood there, my mind going blank.
It wasn't until everyone left that he chased me into the stairwell to explain.
"Listen, her dad's our biggest client. This is a critical time for my promotion, I can't afford to offend her."
I looked back at him:
"Then go live with her. You two are a better match anyway."
---
His expression froze.
"It's not what you think."
He grabbed my wrist, his fingertips ice-cold.
I shook him off and took a step back.
"Her dad's the client. What does that have to do with her?"
He paused, his lips parting, but he couldn't come up with a reply.
"She helped on the project, right? A dinner would've been more than enough. Did you really have to take her to Miami?"
He opened his mouth, looking like he wanted to argue, but in the end, he just looked away.
I didn't give him a chance to breathe, letting out all the anger I'd been bottling up during the meeting all afternoon.
"We've been together for two years. You don't want to go public? Fine, I get it."
"That 'no office romance' rule is a piece of junk from two years ago, it was scrapped last year. You know that better than anyone."
He lowered his eyes, his Adam's apple bobbing.
"You never wanted to go public, so I assumed you were being cautious, that you just weren't ready."
"But today, in front of the whole office, you announced you were taking another woman on a trip."
I gritted my teeth, my voice beginning to tremble.
"Where does that leave me? How am I supposed to stay in that office?"
He reached out to touch my shoulder, but I sidestepped to avoid him.
"It's not like that. Linda's just a coworker, she doesn't know about us."
"So, just because she doesn't know, you can pick her over me in front of everyone?"
I stared into his eyes, suddenly feeling a bit amused.
"Does that mean if one day she still doesn't know, you'll just marry her?"
He frowned, his tone finally laced with a hint of impatience: "Can you stop thinking like that?"
I shoved my hands into my coat pockets, my nails digging into my palms.
"Fine. Then how do you want me to think?"
"Tell me, if you were in that crowd, watching your girlfriend pick another guy to travel with, what would you think?"
He went silent.
I waited ten seconds, but he didn't say a word.
I turned and headed for the fire exit. The moment I pushed the door open, he called my name.
"Thea."
I stopped, but didn't look back.
"I'll explain things to her."
I didn't answer and pushed the door open to leave.
Back at my desk, Ms. Hale walked over with her mug, teasing me with a smile.
"Thea, you were the only one who didn't join in the cheering earlier. What's up? Not feeling well?"
I forced a smile, shook my head saying I was fine, and opened up the files on my desk.
The report I hadn't finished in the afternoon was still on the screen. I stared at the numbers for a few seconds, but I couldn't process a single one.
Chloe, from the next desk over, leaned in and lowered her voice.
"Why do you think Ryan suddenly picked Linda? I thought he was pretty close with you?"
"I'm not close with him."
I tucked my hair behind my ear.
"We have no personal relationship."
Chloe curled her lip, didn't press further, and went back to typing.
I caught a glimpse of Ryan's desk, he wasn't back yet.
A while later, footsteps came from down the hallway.
Ryan returned.
He didn't look my way, walking straight to his seat, pulling his chair out, and opening his laptop.
Not long after, Linda stood up with her milk tea, her heels clicking as she walked over to Ryan's desk.
"Ryan, thank you."
Her voice was loud enough for the surrounding cubicles to hear.
"You really didn't have to go through all that trouble, the project was just part of my job anyway."
Ryan stood up to talk to her across his desk.
"It's the least I could do. You were a huge help, and I promised to treat you to a trip."
Linda bit her straw and smiled, looking down at her toes, her voice softening suddenly.
"So, for this trip to Miami, is it just the two of us?"
Chapter 2
My heart gave a sharp, painful tug.
Ryan's voice came back, very calm:
"Yeah, the prize was a trip for two, so just us."
Linda's smile turned even sweeter.
"Then I need to go home and pack. Are we leaving tonight?"
Ryan paused for a moment: "The flight is tomorrow morning. You can prepare tonight."
"Then let me treat you to dinner tonight, as a thank-you in advance."
Linda said casually.
"I know a new French place near the office, I'll make a reservation."
The coworkers around us started cheering, saying Linda was acting fast.
Ryan hesitated for two seconds, I could almost feel his gaze flick toward me, but he quickly pulled it away.
"Sure, see you tonight."
He agreed.
My hand gripped the mouse so tightly my knuckles turned white.
My phone vibrated.
The screen lit up—it was a message from Ryan.
"Don't be mad. It's just dinner, it's just a formality."
I didn't reply.
A minute later, another message came in.
"She invited me, it wouldn't be right to decline."
I still didn't reply.
He turned his phone face down on the desk and started packing up—keys, jacket—his movements efficient.
At 5:30, Linda stood up on the dot, handbag in hand, and walked to Ryan's desk.
"Let's go. I reserved a table for 6:00, we'll have to wait if we're late."
Ryan stood up, said goodbye to his coworkers, grabbed his jacket, and followed her out.
Coworkers around me started packing up one after another, the noise level rising.
Chloe grabbed her bag, stood up, and patted my shoulder.
"Thea, you coming?"
"You go ahead. I need to finish this report."
She didn't press me and walked away in her heels.
The office slowly grew quiet, the hum of the air conditioner becoming very clear.
I saved the report, shut down the computer, and leaned back, closing my eyes for a moment.
The phone vibrated again.
Ryan sent a photo—a menu from the French restaurant—with a line of text: "This place is pretty good. I'll take you here next time."
I turned the phone face down on the desk, grabbed my bag, and walked out of the office.
It was nearly midnight when the lock clicked.
Ryan pushed the door open, carrying a bag and trailing the cold night air inside.
He changed his shoes, set the bag on the dining table, and walked over to see me.
"I grabbed some late-night food. From that porridge place you mentioned wanting to try."
He crouched down to meet my eyes while I sat on the sofa, his tone as gentle as if nothing had happened.
I looked at his face, suddenly feeling like he was a total stranger.
"I'm not hungry."
He took the porridge out of the bag and opened the lid, letting the steam rise up.
"Just eat a little. You definitely didn't eat properly tonight."
"Ryan."
I didn't move.
"What did you talk about during dinner with her today?"
He handed me the spoon, his movements faltering for a second.
"Just work stuff, and the plans for Miami tomorrow."
"What kind of plans?"
"She said she wants to hit the duty-free shops first, then take some photos by the beach."
He smiled.
"Don't overthink it. I'll just snap the photos for her, and that'll be it."
I stared into his eyes.
"How do you plan to tell her about us?"
He froze for a second and pushed the bowl toward me.
"Let's save that for when I'm back. It's too out of the blue now—she's traveling with me tomorrow, it'd just make everything super awkward."
My breathing hitched.
"Are you afraid of things being awkward, or did you never intend to tell her at all?"
Chapter 3
His expression flickered, as if I'd hit a nerve, but he quickly slipped back into that mild, composed persona.
"Thea, don't be so stubborn. Once I'm back, I'll set things straight with her."
I stood up, sidestepped him, and walked to the entryway.
"Just pack your bags."
Thinking he'd talked me down, he let out a sigh of relief and headed to the bedroom for his suitcase.
I followed, leaning against the doorframe as I watched him swing open the closet and start stuffing clothes into the bag.
He folded his clothes with precision, even making sure to pack the new white T-shirt he'd just bought.
"Linda said she wants to stay near the airport tonight. She's worried about missing the flight."
He packed the clothes and zipped it up.
"She said that during her last business trip, she stayed at this decent hotel near the airport, and she recommended I do the same."
He stood the suitcase upright and turned to face me.
"Is there anything you want? I'll pick something up for you while I'm there."
I leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, my voice barely above a whisper.
"Ryan, let's call it quits."
His hands went still.
The room went dead silent, save for the refrigerator's low hum.
"What did you say?"
"I said, we're done."
I kept my voice perfectly flat.
"You go to Miami with her, and I'll move out."
He dropped what he was holding and walked over, his brows furrowed deep.
"Thea, can you stop making such a big deal out of nothing? Things will be back to normal when I'm back."
I looked up at him and suddenly let out a thin laugh.
"Are you really this oblivious, or are you just playing dumb?"
He went quiet.
"In your eyes, am I just the girl who's so 'understanding,' so 'patient,' and so 'indifferent'?"
My voice started to tremble.
"When you picked her in front of the whole company, did you think about me? When you agreed to dinner with her, did you even consider me?"
"Now that you're packing to stay in a hotel with her, did you even stop to think about me alone here?"
He opened his mouth, but only managed to squeeze out one sentence.
"I have no choice."
I laughed out loud.
"You always 'have no choice.' You couldn't go public because you had 'no choice,' you couldn't say no to her because you had 'no choice,' and now this trip for two—you have 'no choice' again."
"Ryan, is there anything you can actually handle?"
His face darkened, and his voice dropped.
"Do you have to bring this up now? My flight's early tomorrow, and I'm not even done packing."
"Then go."
I turned and walked out of the bedroom.
"Go catch your flight."
He followed me out and grabbed my arm in the living room.
"Let's talk when I get back, okay? You're hot-headed right now, anything you say won't be rational."
I didn't struggle, and I didn't look back.
"No need to talk. By the time you get back, I'll be long gone."
He let go and stood there in silence for a long time.
Finally, he sighed, looking completely drained.
"Just... take some time to cool off."
He picked up his suitcase and went to the entryway to change his shoes.
"I'll text you when I land."
The door opened, then shut.
The suitcase wheels rolled over the hallway tiles, the sound fading into the distance.
Standing alone in the center of the living room, looking at the bowl of porridge that had gone completely cold, I felt all my strength just vanish.
The next morning, when my alarm went off, a message from Ryan was already on my phone.
Sent at 4:00 AM: "Boarding."
Sent at 6:00 AM: "Landed. The weather here is great."
I didn't reply.
I checked the mirror while brushing my teeth—dark circles under my eyes. I hadn't slept a wink.
When I got to the office, Ryan's desk was empty.
Linda's desk was empty too.
Ms. Hale walked over with her coffee, leaning in to gossip.
"Did you see Linda's feed? They had French food last night, and now they're off to Miami together. Do you think they're dating?"
