been declined," the bank manager said

the primary card on this account as stolen and fre

didn't change, but he type

you confirm the last four d

t. But I can give you my mother's maiden name, my first

g across the screen. "Everything is in order. Th

of cold relief washing over

ile, quiet hallway, the memory of another, much different day

my life

claimed, clapping me on the back with a

ent thanks to my family's wealth. He was holding the supplementary B

mpletely. "Just, you know, use it for the dinn

he'd said. "I'll treat h

ueen. But not for me. He

dinner. It was a five-thousand-dollar handbag from a designer I had never heard of. It was a weekend

it, and I thought I was just being a good, generous fri

d cancelled the lecture last minute. I decided to surprise Sarah at her apartment, maybe tak

open quietly, a

om her bedroom. Her laughter, a sound I loved, w

in the hallway, my hea

heard Sarah coo. "Liam is so boring. So naiv

with contempt. "But a useful one. As long as he

My girlfriend. The two people I trusted most in the

ling. I couldn't breathe. I stumbled out of the apartmen

The rage and hurt coiled inside me until I felt like I would explode. I f

" I said, my voic

ing from happy to annoyed. "Liam? Wha

ing," I said, looking from

riend face. "Whoa, buddy, c

pped. "I went to Sarah's apa

but she recovered quickly. Her eyes narrowed and

rawing the attention of everyone in the cafe. "You went

" I stammered,

ers, shaking his head with fake sadness. "I think the pr

y were turning it all arou

acking. "You used my credit card to bu

at? After everything I've done for you! Mike has been nothing but

was the crazy, jealous boyfriend. The rich kid who couldn't handle his emotions.

r fake apologies and con

Mike called me, his voic

to cool off. Let's go for a drive

f hope that it was all a huge misunderstandin

ty, a place we used to go to talk. The car was hi

" he started. "Sarah was just

ed, my voice barely a whi

first time, I saw the pure, cold envy in his eyes.

, his voice full of venom. "The money, the

igger than me, stronger. He shoved me hard. I stumbled backward

body hit the rocks below. The last thing I saw was Mike's face looking down at

, too consumed by grief to question it. My "friends" mourned me on social media, with Sarah posting a tearf

il

y mind, I wasn't the naive, trusting Liam anymore. I had been given a second c

be no accident. There w

e one in control. And I