Lauren came back from her work, but as she was taking a step towards her condominium unit she felt her heart grew heavy as if something bad was about to happen.
Her shoulder felt heavy, the air felt cold as she saw Allen standing near at her door, fingers gripping his knees, eyes desperate as he pleads for another chance.
She knows the only reason he's here—why he suddenly "realized his mistake"—is because their family business the once boasted about is crumbling, and he needs her. Not her love, not her presence, just her wealth, her connections, her ability to fix what has been broke.
She exhales sharply, turning to face him. "Why are you really here?"
She watches him shift on his feet, unsure, uncomfortable. He wasn't expecting this—the way she stands tall, arms crossed, expression unreadable. He expected the heartbreak, the lingering softness in her voice, the hesitation. But she isn't that girl anymore.
"I shouldn't have come," he says at last, voice quiet, regretful. A performance.
She exhales, shakes her head. "Then why did you?"
He flinches slightly, but his expression quickly shifts into practiced remorse. "I messed up," he says, voice low and deliberate. "I made the biggest mistake of my life losing you. Please, just hear me out."
She laughs, sharp and bitter."It's losing me that suddenly matters?" She scoffs, shaking her head. "Spare me the dramatics. Let's be honest, for once. Your family business is failing that's why you needed me. Allen I have loved you for years and I thought that you feel the same way, turns out I was wrong. You proposed to me so you can have a back up."
Allen's jaw tenses, desperation flashing behind his eyes. "I made a mistake—"
She lets out a slow breath, pushing away the lingering anger and replacing it with cold certainty. "I'm not your savior. I'm not your lifeline. I was your girlfriend. And you threw that away the second you decided someone else was worth betraying me for."
"Please," he whispers. "I swear, I'll do better. I'll change."
"You will never change Allen, the moment you betrayed me it was the end of us...no actually there was never a beginning, because from the start it was just me who was loving you because you only see me as a tool to use when you were unable to solve your problem anymore ".
He reaches for her hand, but she steps back, the distance between them growing in more ways than one.
She shakes her head. "You're not here because you love me. You're here because you need me."
His lips part, but no words come. There's nothing left to say—no excuse, no justification that can rewrite the past.
His breathing is uneven now, frustration creeping in. "You think I just want your money?"
"Yes," she says simply.
"Just—please. Give me one more chance," he says desperately, stepping forward. "I swear, things will be different. I just need—"
"What?" she interrupts. "Another loan? A bailout? A lifeline?"
His shoulders sag. He knows he's lost.
She meets his eyes one last time, no anger left, just clarity. "Find another way," she says. "I'm done saving you."
And then, she closes the door.
The sound of his footsteps fading down the hallway is the only thing left. And yet, as she locks the door behind him, she feels lighter than she has in months.