All too late when the alpha crawled back to me

The yacht eased into port as the first pale light of dawn stretched across the horizon.

No one said a word—not Rafael, not Victor, not even Celestine, who had cried so convincingly the night before that I nearly believed her tears. Almost.

I stepped off the deck silently, soaked to the bone, still shivering from nearly drowning—not just in water, but in betrayal. Rafael had shoved me straight into the freezing, dark waves. He hadn’t even flinched.

“That’s what you get,” he said, voice calm. “Jealousy has its price. Acting like the world owes you something—it’ll catch up to you.”

No apology. No hand reached out. No hint of regret. The stranger who saved me? Gone. Nameless, unthanked, just a fleeting shadow among the crowd.

I made my way back to the apartment alone, shaking, numb, finished. Inside, I didn’t cry or scream. I packed. Drawers emptied, suitcases stuffed—clothes, passports, hard drives, the necklace my grandmother gave me—anything untouched by them, anything truly mine, I took. I folded the last coat when my phone buzzed.

Celestine. Of course. Subtlety was never her style.

“Check my Insta!” the message read, playful and loud. “New pics! You’ll want to see this~”

The nerve of her. I tapped the screen, already knowing the sight that would greet me. There she was again—smug, radiant, crowned in my silk pink Milan robe I’d left on the yacht. Rafael beside her, shirtless, half-asleep, his arm draped over her, his nose almost grazing her exposed skin. Victor on the other side, holding her like a queen. A queen of venom.

Caption:

“Best night ever with my fav boys. Thanks for making my birthday unforgettable. Loved every whip and bit of cream you gave me ”

“And guess what, Aurelia? Rafael gave me your brand-new car. Said it was his money anyway, and it suits me better. But don’t worry—I’ll let you borrow it… if you say please ”

I scrolled to see my car in all its glory on her post and laughed. Quietly, deliberately. I tapped the little heart beneath her post, letting it turn red, then tossed my phone onto the bed. Tomorrow, I would be gone. And when I left, I wouldn’t take their ghosts with me.

---

That afternoon, I handed in my resignation at the firm, smiling politely, shaking a few hands as if I weren’t dismantling my life piece by piece. Back at the apartment, it was time for the final cut.

From under the bed, I dragged out a heavy leather box. Memories, promises, the remnants of the past with them—everything we had shared, now shards in my hands. Rafael’s silver necklace, engraved with a secret only we knew. Victor’s battered lighter, cold, weighted with smoky nights and whispered secrets. The cracked face of Rafael’s luxury watch, frozen in time.

I pulled out the crumpled love letters Rafael had written me at sixteen, folded poems once sacred, now ashes waiting. Notes from Victor, slipped under my door during sleepless college nights. The leather jacket Rafael swore would be mine forever, sleeves still faintly smelling of his cologne. Victor’s dented motorcycle helmet. And the tiny music box that had once played our song—silent now, gathering dust.

Click. Flame.

I held the jacket to the fire first. It curled, blackening instantly. One by one, I tossed in letters, the necklace, the lighter, the watch. The flames hungrily devoured every fragment of us.

By the time Rafael barged into the room, half my past was already ash.

“Aurelia—what the fuck are you doing?!” His voice cracked, eyes wide with disbelief.

I didn’t flinch. “Getting rid of mold.”

“Bullshit!” he snapped, advancing, desperation clinging to his tone. “These aren’t just things. They’re memories!”

Victor followed, eyes wide as he lunged for the fire but yelped when the flames nipped at his fingers. “You’re insane! You destroyed everything we had!”

I met them calmly, coldly. “You gave my car to Celestine. She gets the gifts; she can keep the memories too.”

“You’re really doing this? Throwing tantrums like last night wasn’t enough?” Rafael’s voice was incredulous, sharp.

I smiled bitterly, serene. “Yes. I’m done. This is the last time you’ll ever see me.”

They watched the smoke curl toward the ceiling, ashes settling like the final chapter of us. Funny how they had almost razed the city for Celestine’s fake tears—but when it was me falling apart, not one of them had asked why. Now, the fire claimed what remained, and for the first time, they wept over what I had chosen to leave behind.