My Best Friend's Stand-In: The Other Woman

Caleb was considerate and even offered to get me a pad.

While I washed my underwear, he leaned against the doorframe, looking distracted. After a long pause, he hesitated and said, "Babe, I'm afraid I might lose control if I stay with you tonight. Can I go grab some drinks with the guys? I promise I'll be back soon."

My gut instinct told me he wasn't just going out for drinks. Still, I let out a relieved sigh and kissed him lightly. "All right, but don't stay out too late."

Caleb left in high spirits.

Once he was gone, I pulled up the freshman group chat and tried to track down the girl from his messages by matching her profile picture.

What I found stunned me.

It was the same girl everyone had called a stinking thief during her first year—Jane Cooper.

Back then, I'd been on the welcoming committee and even helped her move her luggage. But right after leaving the dorm, I realized that my phone was missing. I panicked and ran back, only for her roommates to find it tucked away in her drawer.

I wanted to give her a chance, so I asked her roommates to keep quiet. But within days, she was at it again. She stole her roommate's makeup and even skimmed class funds to buy jewelry.

Eventually, she lashed out and shoved a roommate down the stairs, resulting in the latter being hospitalized for a month.

Her reputation spread throughout the department after that. Thanks to her size and the stench that seemed to cling to her, everyone ended up calling her the "stinking thief".

I'd never imagined that she would be the one Caleb chose.

Before I could reach out and warn her to stay away from him, I received a video from her.

The video showed a group of guys surrounding her like a pack of wolves. She clung to Caleb's neck and pressed her drunken lips to his.

The second their lips touched, bile rose in my throat. I rushed to the bathroom and threw up.

I couldn't believe it. The same guy who'd been so respectful while pursuing me and so gentle after we started dating was cheating behind my back.

I was ready to call him and confront him. I wanted to end things right then and there.

But then, I noticed something on the table in the very last second of the video. It sent chills down my spine.

I felt like I couldn't breathe. Then, my blood surged through me all at once. My heart pounded so quickly that I had a hard time catching my breath.

It was a peculiar little hair tie. The design showed two girls hand-drawn with uneven lines.

No one else would recognize it, but I knew exactly what it was. As kids, my best friend, Kylie Zimmer, and I had drawn the design ourselves and had two custom hair ties made.

Only two of them existed. One was packed away in a box I never touched, and the other one was with Kylie. It had been buried with her when she died years ago.

And yet, here it was, in the video.

Panic ripped through me so fast that it felt like a stampede rushing through me. I sat frozen in place until the door creaked open.

I realized that I'd been staring into thin air for two hours, and by then, my legs felt numb.

I pretended to scroll on my phone as I made up my mind. I wasn't going anywhere until I found out the truth.

Caleb was so exhausted that he didn't notice a thing. He took a shower, collapsed on the bed, and was out in minutes.

I silently lay beside him, my back turned to him, while the image of that hair tie etched itself into my brain.