CHAPTER 37: CHAPTER 37: THE MIRROR NEVER LIES

POV: Elena

3:00 PM — The Guest Room Feels Like a Timeout Chair

I came in here to "rest." That’s what I told Milo.

But let’s be honest — I’m hiding.

From James, from Aaron, from my own guilt.

There’s a box fan humming in the window, blowing hot air in circles like it’s trying to punish me gently.

I look at myself in the mirror.

No makeup.

Hair in a lazy bun.

Eyes dull.

This woman looks like she lost something important.

No — like she stole something important and is still waiting for karma to knock on the door.

3:15 PM — I Pick Up the Old Photo

It’s tucked into a book on the dresser.

From our first Christmas together — the blended family phase when everyone still tried too hard.

James is wearing that stupid sweater with the reindeer that Milo always made fun of.

Aaron’s laughing at something Milo said.

I’m in the middle, hand on James’s chest, smiling at the camera like I was in a commercial for a life I didn’t fully belong to.

Was I ever really part of this family?

Or was I just the complication disguised as comfort?

3:22 PM — The Thought I Don’t Want to Think

I didn’t fall in love with Aaron because I was lonely.

I fell in love with him because he saw me.

Before the marriage. Before the title of "stepmom."

He saw the woman underneath.

And I let him.

And I needed it.

And I hated how much I liked being wanted by someone who wasn’t looking at me through the lens of responsibility or duty or guilt.

But that’s not love.

That’s selfishness with a better outfit.

3:40 PM — James Knocks

I don’t answer right away.

"Can I come in?" he asks gently.

I say yes before my heart can object.

He walks in slowly, sits on the edge of the bed like he’s visiting a hospital patient.

"Elena," he starts, "I’m tired of hating you."

I blink. "That’s... generous."

"It’s not," he replies. "It’s survival."

I nod.

"Did you ever love me?" he asks quietly.

My throat closes. "Yes."

He waits for the rest.

"But I didn’t love myself when I married you. And that’s the part I didn’t know would matter."

That lands like truth. Because it is.

3:45 PM — He Lets Me Say It

"I’m sorry," I whisper. "Not just for what I did with Aaron. But for not being honest about who I was. About what I wanted."

He nods slowly. "And what do you want now?"

I pause.

Because I’ve never asked myself that out loud.

"I want to be someone who doesn’t hurt people just because she’s scared."

"Good start."

4:00 PM — The Decision

I pack a small bag.

Toothbrush. Wallet. A book I never finished.

And a list — written on the back of a CVS receipt — of everything I need to do next:

Find a therapist.

Call Mom.

Apologize to Milo.

Learn how to cook one thing that isn’t pasta.

Learn how to be alone without feeling abandoned.

Aaron doesn’t see me leave.

That’s probably for the best.

4:20 PM — I Text Milo

Elena: Leaving for a while. Please water the plant on my windowsill. It hates me less than you do, but just barely.

Milo: I’ll keep it alive. Barely. Kind of like what you did with this family.

Elena: Fair.

Milo: Don’t be a stranger. But maybe be a better person next time you show up.

Elena: Working on it.

📘 End of Chapter 37

💬 YOUR TURN!

Elena’s finally leaving — not to escape, but to rebuild.

Can this actually be the start of her healing arc?

👇 Comment: Do you think Elena deserves redemption — or are some lines too messy to uncross?

❤️ Like this Chapter if her CVS receipt list hit you right in the soul.

🔔 Follow to catch Chapter 38 — where Aaron faces life without her for the first time... and someone new enters the picture.