iChapter 60 /i

iChapter 60 /i

iCarrol: [Zoe, is it really over between you and Alvin?] /i

iHiram: [Zoe, Alvin’s so confused right now. Don’t be mad, we’ll set him straight.] /i

iSterling: [Zoe, when you have time, let me take you and Alvin out for a meal.] /i

iJarred: [Count me in! I’ll definitely help you and Alvin work things out.] /i

iArron: [Stop causing a fuss. Couples fight, but they always make up. Stop all this nonsense.] /i

iI couldn’t help but wonder what they’d heard that made them all direct at me in the group. /i

iThere were eight people in the group: besides the ones talking, there was also Alvin, me, and Oscar. /i

iOscar hadn’t said a word, but he was the one I was closest to. /i

iSo I sent him a message in private. [Oscar, what’s going on? What did everyone hear?] /i

iIn this group, Alvin was third in seniority, and Oscar was sixth. When I first met Oscar, Alvin and I weren’t officially together yet. Back then, he and Oscar had already sworn brotherhood. /i

i[Didn’t you see Alvin’s post on Ins?] Oscar replied almost immediately. /i

iI knew he must’ve seen the group chat, but since he knew about the situation between Alvin and me, he hadn’t said anything. /i

iAfter reading his message, I immediately opened Instagram. Alvin had posted a picture of a freshly picked red rose with the caption: [Red looks better after all]. /i

iEveryone knew I liked white roses. So when he posted this, it was his way of telling everyone that he didn’t want me /i

ianymore. /i

iAs I thought back to the harsh words he’d thrown at me on the phone, I knew this post was him making it clear that he was choosing Thea over me. /i

iThe group was waiting for me to respond, so I couldn’t leave them hanging. I liked Alvin’s post, then typed my reply in the /i

igroup. /i

iZoe: [Thanks for your concern, but Alvin and I are done. From now on, we’ll just be friends, like all of you.] /i

iAs soon as I hit send, a flood of shocked and worried emojis appeared. /i

iI skimmed through them, then went into the group settings and exited the chat. I didn’t care about their reactions anymore. /i

iThat night, I hardly slept. In my dreams, everyone in the group was asking me why I broke up with Alvin. /i

iI woke up before dawn. My eyes were swollen from crying yesterday. /i

iI put some ice on them, did my makeup, and packed a few changes of clothes, because starting today, I’d be staying at a hotel. /i

iBy the time Myra arrived at the amusement park, I was already deep into work. She looked at me, wide-eyed. “Zoe, you’re not nning to stay here overnight, are you?” /i

i1/2 /i

iNo, I just got here a little early.” I nced at her. “Did you have breakfast yet?” /i

i“Not yet,” Myra admitted. She was always the type to rush to work and sneak in breakfast afterward. /i

i“Go eat first. When you’re done,e back and work. And just so you know, if you’re sticking with me, no more sleeping in,” I reminded her. /i

iMyra stuck her tongue out but promised, “Okay, no more sleeping in, but once the project’s over, you’re giving me a week off to catch up on all the sleep I’ve missed.” /i

iI thought, ‘Once the project’s wrapped up and I’ve quit, will I even have the right to give her time off?’ Still, I agreed to it. ‘When the timees, I’ll bring it up. Hopefully, I’ll still have enough right to make the request. /i

iAround noon, Myra and I had just ordered takeout when Oscar showed up. /i

i“I’m treating you to a meal,” he said right away. /i

i“I can’t. I’ve got to meet the lighting technicians this afternoon.” I turned him down. /i

i2/2 /i