I was supposed to meet Ethan at the hospital at 9:00 a.m.
He promised he\u2019d be there \u2014 promised he\u2019d hold my hand before I went in for surgery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But as the clock kept ticking, all I had was silence.
No Ethan. No text. No missed call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just me, sitting alone in the back of a cab, calling his number over and over again. By the time I checked into the hospital, he had finally called.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMia, I\u2019m so sorry\u2026 I really wanted to be there, but\u2026 something happened. Leah, she\u2014she called me this morning and said she was crying and going to hurt herself. I didn\u2019t know what to do.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I didn\u2019t even argue. Let me tell you how I met Leah.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n She was my colleague. Bright, charming, and a little too friendly at times. Somewhere between appetizers and dessert, Leah decided she\u2019d play matchmaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEthan\u2019s single, you\u2019re single. You two should totally go out!\u201d<\/strong> she giggled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I smiled politely but felt awkward. Still, a few days later, Ethan messaged me. Leah, of course, was always around to \u201chelp.\u201d At first, it seemed sweet. Every date Ethan and I had \u2014 Leah found a reason to show up. If I frowned, I was being oversensitive. Then came Ethan\u2019s birthday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He rented a beach house and invited a crowd. She leaned toward me and whispered:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEthan doesn’t like pepper. Only eats shredded potatoes, not cubes. And he\u2019s allergic to peanuts, by the way.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I paused. Put down my knife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen why don\u2019t you cook for him?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n She grinned. We were mid-argument when Ethan walked in. \u201cCome on, babe. Don\u2019t be mad. Don\u2019t take her seriously. She\u2019s like a dude in a girl\u2019s body.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Leah burst into crocodile tears and punched him lightly in the back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEthan! Even if you begged, I wouldn\u2019t be your friend anymore!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n And just like that, she ghosted him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But he\u2026 changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He became distant, distracted. I confronted him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDo you still want to be with me? Or are you just mourning your precious friendship with her?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n He denied it, of course. Two weeks later, I was diagnosed with uterine fibroids. Ethan promised he\u2019d be with me on surgery day. After his sorry excuse of a phone call, Leah called me next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMia, let\u2019s get something straight. We are closer than family. You wouldn\u2019t even know him if it weren\u2019t for me.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019ve never slept together, okay? Never even kissed. But you still can\u2019t compare. You don\u2019t belong in his world.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My hand shook with rage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou\u2019re right, Leah. You\u2019re different. So special. So\u2026 pure. You\u2019re the only woman I know who can latch onto someone else\u2019s boyfriend and still claim moral high ground! Congratulations. You win. Tell Ethan we\u2019re done. And that he should stay as far away from me as you do from self-awareness!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I went into surgery alone. Just as they were wheeling me in, someone ran up, out of breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMia! Wait!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The gurney jerked slightly as the nurses paused, glancing back toward the voice. I turned my head and saw Ethan \u2014 hair disheveled, chest heaving, hospital badge clutched in his hand like it could explain everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wanted to ignore him. To shut my eyes and pretend I was dreaming. But I couldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat are you doing here?\u201d<\/strong> I asked, my voice flat, barely above a whisper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI came\u2026 I had to come,\u201d<\/strong> he said breathlessly, stepping closer. \u201cPlease, Mia. I know I messed up. I should\u2019ve been here earlier. I shouldn\u2019t have picked her over you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I stared at the ceiling. Cold, sterile. \u201cBut you did.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n He reached for my hand, and I let him touch it\u2014just for a second.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t love her,\u201d<\/strong> he blurted. \u201cI never did. She\u2019s manipulative. Controlling. But I was too blind to see it\u2026 until this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I looked at him then. Really looked. He seemed smaller somehow. Or maybe I had just gotten stronger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat happened this morning?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n He swallowed hard. \u201cShe admitted it. She admitted she faked everything\u2014her breakdown, the threats, even the tears. Said she wanted to see if I\u2019d choose her over you\u2026 and I did.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n He clenched his jaw. \u201cBut when I saw your name on the surgery list today, I panicked. I knew I couldn\u2019t live with myself if something happened to you and I wasn\u2019t there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The nurse gently tapped the bedrail. \u201cWe have to go.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ethan looked desperate. \u201cPlease, Mia. I don\u2019t expect you to forgive me right now. But let me be here when you wake up. Let me earn back even a fraction of the trust I lost.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I exhaled deeply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then I said the only thing I could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFine. You can wait. But don\u2019t wait for us to go back to how things were.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n His face fell, but he nodded slowly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the gurney rolled forward and the doors swung open into the cold, sterile operating room, I held my breath. I was scared. Hurting. But I wasn\u2019t alone. Not anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that made all the difference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I was supposed to meet Ethan at the hospital at 9:00 a.m.He promised he\u2019d be there \u2014 promised<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":703,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-702","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=702"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":704,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702\/revisions\/704"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=702"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=702"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=702"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Only to hear the automated voice say:
\u201cThe number you have dialed is currently busy.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
I simply hung up.
Because I already knew \u2014 she did it on purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
One lunch break, she invited me out. Her boyfriend came along. So did Ethan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And before I knew it, he was pursuing me \u2014 earnestly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She told him what flowers I liked. What I hated. How I took my coffee.
She was everywhere in the background, orchestrating things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then it became suffocating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She clung to Ethan like static. Whispered into his ear. Gave him orders, disguised as \u201cfriendly advice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If I questioned their closeness, I didn\u2019t \u201cunderstand their friendship.\u201d
It was exhausting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
While I was sweating in the kitchen with a few girls trying to prep dinner, Leah strolled in like a queen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh no. I\u2019m just the best friend. You\u2019re the girlfriend. This is your time to shine.\u201d<\/strong>
The sarcasm dripped off every syllable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He pulled me aside and said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He couldn\u2019t even tell a dress from a jacket. Poured vinegar into noodles without thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Claimed he was just upset about losing a 20-year friendship.
Asked me not to make him choose. Said I was overthinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
It wasn\u2019t life-threatening, but it wasn\u2019t nothing either.
I was scared. I needed support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But when Leah cried wolf \u2014 he disappeared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Well, not quite alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n