Chapter 9: Packing Up the Past

Evan said: “My mom’s always been like that. She raised me alone, it wasn’t easy. Let Natalie give in to her a bit.”

“But...but your mom keeps scolding her. She insists on moving out.”

“Let her move, then. Anyway, moving her back later is just a word from me.”

“Alright, then I won’t stop her.”

Of course, I couldn’t hear what they were saying. But thanks to the chat bubbles, I knew exactly what they talked about.

I scrolled through the floating text, feeling strangely omniscient. It was like watching a rerun of my own life, except I finally had the script.

After packing up everything in my bedroom, my best friend Aubrey helped me call a moving company.

“Natalie, are you really okay?” she asked gently.

She squeezed my shoulder, her voice soft, her eyes full of worry. She’d always been the one to show up with soup and silly movies, her way of patching holes in my heart.

She’d seen for herself how I’d been crying my heart out these past few days.

“I’m fine.” I shook my head. “I just want to find a suitable place and move out as soon as possible.”

She suddenly remembered something: “My brother has an apartment. He hasn’t lived there since going abroad. You can move in for now, and move out once you find a place.”

The chat bubbles suddenly went wild.

[Our dark, twisted villain is finally coming on stage! It’s a pity the original didn’t give him much plot, but honestly, I love his character design.]

[The message he sent the heroine, she still hasn’t replied, blackening value +10086]

The villain, Carter Hayes. I didn’t even have his Facebook, just the AOL I added in middle school.

I smirked a little at the memory—AOL, of all things. Carter always did have a flair for the dramatic, even in sixth grade.

And his AOL seemed to have been hacked, sending me a link every month or two. Afraid of viruses, I never clicked them. I set it to Do Not Disturb. So I missed the message he sent me a week ago—"Do you need help?"

The world is full of missed connections, I guess. Sometimes the people you need most are hidden behind spam filters and unread messages.

That night, news of the rescue team’s full effort to dredge Evan spread throughout Maple Heights. The video of me crying during an interview went viral on TikTok.

For a few days, it felt like the whole town was mourning with me. I’d never realized how many people watched from the sidelines, waiting for something to talk about over dinner.

Many people mourned Evan’s untimely death and empathized with me. Carter’s message was sent that day. I didn’t see it, so naturally didn’t reply. Thinking it over, I politely replied: “No need, thank you.”

He replied instantly: “Alright.”

Short and simple, the way Carter always was. I wondered if he typed the message with a sigh, or if he’d already moved on to his next big thing.

I remembered the day Evan confessed to me. He asked me to meet him in the grove beside the school building. The wind was especially strong.

The air that day was thick with the smell of cut grass and spring rain. My heart pounded so loud I was sure he could hear it over the rustle of the magnolia trees.

Brushing aside the hair on my cheek, I saw Carter Hayes on the school building. He stood at the end of the corridor, both hands casually resting on the railing, dark brows and deep eyes calmly watching in my direction.

He looked like he belonged in another world—one foot in shadows, one in sunlight. There was always a gravity about Carter, like he saw everything and said nothing.

I looked at him. Then lowered my eyes. Smiled and said yes to Evan: “Alright.” Until Evan kissed my cheek. When I looked up again, the boy at the end of the corridor was gone. Only the tree branches shook violently in the wind.

I wonder if Carter ever forgave me for that day. Or if he was ever really angry at all.