I Won't Settle for Less Anymore

I didn't go back downstairs. I stayed quietly in my room, packing up everything Ethan had given me over the past four years. I placed them all into a box.

Medical textbooks, a stethoscope, a watch, the lab coat with my name stitched on the tag…

Every piece carried a memory. Every piece once made me believe we would last forever.

How ridiculous.

At dinnertime, my roommate, Emma Whitley, came upstairs to call me.

Victoria still hadn't left and was busy in the kitchen.

When she passed by me carrying a bowl of steaming clam chowder, I instinctively stood up and stepped aside.

It was a reflex I'd developed after being set up by Victoria again and again.

But this time, she'd already predicted my move. The moment I stood, I collided straight into her.

"Ah!" Victoria screamed.

Most of the scalding soup spilled onto her, though some splashed onto my arm as well.

She burst into tears. Her voice was full of pain and grievance as she said, "Leah, I was just bringing you some soup. How could you…"

She'd learned. When framing me for pushing her in the living room failed, she'd staged an "accidental" collision instead.

I had no way to defend myself.

Ethan looked at me with open disappointment. His gaze was filled with disgust as he shoved me hard. I lost my balance and slammed my back into the edge of the dining table. The pain shot through me.

Yet Ethan didn't spare me a single glance. He rushed to tend to Victoria's burns, never once looking my way.

He didn't notice that hot soup had splashed onto my arm as well, leaving angry red burn marks.

He didn't notice that he'd shoved me so roughly that my back had hit the table edge. It hurt so much that I could barely stand.

The burn throbbed, but it hurt far less than the pain in my heart.

After a while, Ethan came out, supporting Victoria, who'd had burn cream applied.

He coldly ordered, "Apologize."

I raised my head and met his eyes.

Four years of depending on each other and being together day and night. Yet, I couldn't find a single trace of tenderness in Ethan's eyes. All that remained was disgust and cold indifference.

He warned me, enunciating word by word, "Victoria is being forgiving and letting this go. All you need to do is apologize, and we'll move on."

I stayed silent for a long time. "What if I say no?"

"Leah, are you really going to blow this up?" Ethan's tone sharpened. "If you don't want to break up, you'd better apologize."

He once promised he would be with me for life. Now, he used breaking up as a weapon.

He was certain I couldn't leave him and that I would give in.

But this time, he was wrong.

I looked straight into his eyes and said slowly, "I won't apologize. Do whatever you want."

Ethan's face turned dark with rage. He grabbed Victoria and stormed out of the apartment.

I left soon after.

My arm hurt badly from the burns. I called an Uber and went to the ER at Estain Medical Center.

The ER doctor treated my burns and bruises, prescribed topical medication, and gave me care instructions.

On the way back, I got a call from Emma. "Leah, did you and Ethan fight again? He just took Victoria and a group of doctors to that rooftop bar to celebrate his promotion."

She sounded furious. "And did you see Ethan's post on Instagram? He said he's thinking about ending the relationship. 100 likes and it's over. It's already at 99."

My chest tightened.

He was doing this again.