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"You Were Just My Backup Plan in Case He Flaked," She Said Without Shame

"You Were Just My Backup Plan in Case He Flaked," She Said Without Shame

Chapter 8

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"Jess, I need to say this. I don't know how else to reach you. I know I said horrible things. I was scared. Ryan was always this fantasy in my head, and I clung to it because I thought I didn't deserve the kind of love you gave me. I've been in therapy. I'm trying to understand why I sabotaged something so good. I still remember how you used to hold me when I was anxious. How you made coffee for me in the mornings. How you picked me up at 3:00 a.m. when I locked my keys in the car. Nobody's ever treated me like that. And now you're gone. I get it. I really do. But if there's any chance you'd consider seeing me again, just for coffee, just to talk, I'd give anything. Please don't hate me. Please don't forget about me."I stared at the screen for a while. Not out of emotion—just clarity.She didn't miss me; she missed what I gave her: the security, the warmth, the effort, the unconditional patience. She missed being loved without having to earn it. And now that she had to face the emptiness alone, she wanted it back.But I wasn't that man anymore.It had been nearly a year since I walked out of that apartment when I ran into her again. Not by design—fate just has a sense of humor.It was at a mutual friend's engagement party. Emma and I had been dating for about eight months by then. She wasn't just my girlfriend; she was my peace. Everything Jess never was.We walked into the event hand in hand. Emma looked elegant but understated, classy in a way that didn't try too hard. The kind of woman who made people lean in when she spoke, not because she was loud, but because she didn't need to be.We'd barely been there five minutes when I saw Jess. She was at the bar, alone. Her hair was longer, her makeup heavier. She looked tired—not physically, exactly, just worn. Like someone who'd been trying too hard for too long and finally stopped pretending she was okay.Her eyes locked onto me. Froze.I nodded politely, nothing more, and turned back to Emma.Fifteen minutes later, Jess approached. "Can I talk to you?" she said, eyes flicking nervously between me and Emma.I looked at Emma. She gave a small nod, then wandered toward the dessert table without hesitation.Jess and I stepped just outside onto the patio, away from the noise. The moment the door shut, she exhaled like she'd been holding it in for a year.
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"You Were Just My Backup Plan in Case He Flaked," She Said Without Shame

10 Part