The moon has left me

Chapter 1

The landslide happened so fast.

Sarah and I tumbled down together.

My boyfriend, Mark, scooped Sarah up right in front of me and just… left.

He left me there.

Everyone rushed Sarah to the hospital.

No one even noticed me.

When I finally got rescued and taken to the hospital, Mark never visited.

Not once.

But when I finally stopped loving him, he cried and told me he loved me.

It was actually Sarah who pulled me down.

I was standing fine until she grabbed me.

Mark, with this panicked look on his face, picked Sarah up and ran.

He didn’t even glance at me.

Ironically, I was hurt way worse than Sarah.

We both got stopped by a tree, but I hit it first.

Tree branches went right through my foot.

Sarah just got a few scratches because I cushioned her fall.

When Mark came down, I started crying.

Before I could even say anything, he picked up Sarah and left.

Didn’t look at me. Not once.

Lisa and some park rangers finally got me out.

I passed out as soon as they reached me.

I was in the hospital for a month.

Every time Lisa visited, she cried.

“I’m so sorry, Amy. It’s my fault. I thought Mark would save you, so I just… stupidly followed them.”

“By the time I got someone to come back, I saw Mark putting a girl in the ambulance. I thought it was you.”

“I’m so sorry, Amy. I should have checked.”

I patted Lisa’s head. It wasn’t her fault.

I thought Mark would save me too.

Even after he left with Sarah, I still hoped he’d send someone back.

The tree branch went through my foot, but luckily it didn’t hit any bones.

The doctors said I’d heal with time.

Mark picked me up when I was discharged.

He looked awful.

He was super careful helping me into the car, like I was made of glass.

But when we got to his place and I saw Sarah, my stomach dropped.

I liked being close to Mark.

Even though we had separate apartments, I bought one right across the street from him.

Mark’s apartment was full of people. His friends.

“Amy, everyone’s here to celebrate you getting out of the hospital.”

Before he could finish, this bright, chirpy voice cut him off.

“Mark, where do you keep your spices?”

“I’ll get them. You won’t be able to find them.”

Mark hurried to the kitchen.

“How do you know I won’t be able to find them?”

Sarah sounded playfully annoyed. Mark’s tone was sharp, but there was this… intimacy there that felt impenetrable.

“Just try. I bet you can’t.”

“Oh, I’ll try. Just watch me.”

“Hey, you two always bicker in the kitchen. Need any help? We can lend a hand.”

Mark’s friends piled into the kitchen. Happy laughter drifted out.

I looked at the other people in the living room.

They were playing video games, oblivious.

There were so many people, but I felt completely alone.

I felt something warm at my feet.

Snowball, this beautiful white ragdoll cat, was rubbing against my ankles.

Lisa had given Snowball to me, but Mark had been taking care of him.

“A little princess who can’t even take care of herself wants to get a cat?”

Mark had chuckled and ruffled my hair when I excitedly said I wanted to keep him.

“Well, there’s always Mark, right? I don’t know how to take care of a cat, but Mark does.”

“You…” he’d said, shaking his head with a smile.

Chapter 2

I was petting Snowball, lost in thought, when Sarah came out of the kitchen.

She saw me with the cat and rushed over.

“Amy, go wash your hands. Dinner’s ready.”

She scooped up Snowball without hesitation.

He didn’t resist at all. He actually snuggled into her.

He usually didn’t like strangers. It took a while for him to warm up to people.

Watching Sarah expertly feed him, I felt this dull ache in my chest.

“I’m not hungry. I’m not eating.”

I left Mark’s apartment and went back to mine.

A few minutes later, Mark was ringing my doorbell.

“Amy, what are you doing? What’s with the attitude?”

“We were slaving away in the kitchen to celebrate you coming home.”

“You just left without a word.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Can you please be more mature?”

I ignored him.

When he finally stopped talking, I realized my face was wet with tears.

The next day, after Mark left for work, I went to his apartment and took Snowball.

My friend, Jessica, loved cats. She was the perfect person to take care of him.

After I dropped Snowball off, I packed my bags and went back to my parents’ house.

The Miller house was beautiful. Elegant and refined.

The Fosters lived next door. Mark and I had grown up together.

Everyone who knew us knew how much he spoiled me.

He was always the person I wanted to be around.

My mom said that when I was a toddler, during my first birthday party, where they put out a bunch of objects to see what the baby grabs first to predict their future, I crawled right past everything and went straight to Mark.

I clung to him and refused to let go.

Mark, three years older, just sat there holding me, frozen.

They said it was the first time they’d seen him look so… flustered.

People still brought it up sometimes.

My first word wasn’t “mama” or “dada.” It was “Mark.”

My parents were jealous for weeks.

Being back home brought back so many memories of him.

My parents were surprised I was back, but happy.

After dinner, I went to my dad’s study.

“Alright, spill it. You’ve been moping around since you got here. What’s wrong?”

I silently handed him a photo of Mark and Sarah.

My dad’s cheerful expression vanished.

He knew what Mark was like.

He knew that Mark treated Sarah differently.

That kind of special treatment used to be reserved for me.

I never let anyone take what was mine. Toys, clothes, whatever.

If someone could steal it, I didn’t want it.

Showing my dad that picture was my way of saying I was done with Mark.

My dad was quiet for a minute.

“Amy, what do you want to do?”

“I want to call off the engagement.”

Mark proposed the day after we graduated high school.

The very next day, he brought his parents over to ask for my hand.

My dad wasn’t thrilled about it.

“When Mr. and Mrs. Foster get back, we’ll go talk to them.”

My dad sighed.

“Okay,” I said quietly. Tears dripped onto my hand.

My dad took my hand and pried open my fingers. My nails had dug into my palm. It was a bloody mess.

Chapter 3

That night, Mark called. He sounded frantic.

“Amy, Snowball’s gone! I haven’t seen him since I got home from work.”

“I gave him away,” I interrupted.

A sharp, female voice came through the phone.

“Amy, that’s awful! Why would you do that? Don’t you think that’s irresponsible?”

“Amy, you had Snowball for so long. Don’t you have any feelings for him at all?”

“Why would you just give him away?”

It hurt that Sarah was talking to me like that on Mark’s phone, and he wasn’t even stopping her.

It hurt that she was still with him, this late at night.

I hung up and ran to the bathroom to throw up.

After I calmed down, I blocked Mark everywhere.

Lisa knew I was upset, so she dragged me out shopping.

I went along with it, but I didn’t really feel like doing anything.

It was a beautiful day.

Lisa loved fashion and expensive jewelry.

We were browsing in a jewelry store when even I had to admire the beautiful pieces.

I wasn’t lacking for nice things. I was an only child, spoiled by my family.

My parents, and Mark, showered me with gifts. Jewelry, designer bags… I had it all.

Mark’s gifts alone could fill several rooms.

My mom said even when he was little, he loved buying me things.

Still, I loved looking at beautiful jewelry.

Lisa and I were about to leave when someone stopped us.

“Amy? What are you doing here?”

It was Sarah’s younger brother, David. I frowned, not wanting to engage.

When I didn’t answer, he actually tried to grab my wrist.

Lisa, quick as a flash, grabbed his hand.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Lisa’s face was thunderous. David froze, then yanked his hand away.

“Amy, what’s your deal? I’m saying hi and you can’t even respond?”

I looked at him, my eyes cold.

“You’re nothing. Why should I respond?”

Some of the salespeople nearby giggled.

The jewelry store was owned by my family. Lisa and I were there often, so the staff knew us.

Seeing how much I disliked David, they quickly moved to escort him out.

David was furious at being thrown out like that, especially in front of everyone.

He tried to get close to me again, but the security guards blocked him.

“Amy, that’s no way to talk to someone! No wonder Mark says you’re high-maintenance and have a princess complex. Who do you think you are?”

Lisa glanced at me worriedly.

I squeezed her hand reassuringly.

“David, if it weren’t for Mark, you wouldn’t even be allowed to breathe the same air as me.”

Chapter 4

I’d met David a few times because of Sarah.

He always acted like he was better than me.

He thought I was spoiled and difficult.

He acted like, if it weren’t for my family’s money, I was nothing.

He would criticize me for buying new designer bags, saying it was a waste of money.

I couldn’t understand his logic.

I was born into the Miller family. I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I was raised to be spoiled.

I could buy a new bag every day and throw them away if I wanted to. I had that right.

Where did he get the nerve to judge my lifestyle?

He had no right to even look at me, let alone speak to me.

“Get him out of here,” I told the security guards, ignoring David’s sputtering rage.

“And don’t let him near me again.”

The guards dragged David away as he yelled and cursed.

I didn’t care what he said.

When I got home, I had a text from an unknown number.

It was a video. I clicked on it.

It looked like it was taken in a bar, filmed secretly from a hidden angle.

It didn’t matter. I could clearly see Mark.

“Mark, was that Amy calling? Why didn’t you answer?”

Sarah was sitting next to him, really close.

“I don’t want to talk to her. She’s so immature.”

“I wish she was half as sensible as you are.”

Mark’s voice was cold and distant, the same voice that used to soothe my insomnia.

He used to call me every night, no matter how busy he was, and talk until I fell asleep.

Even when he first took over his family’s business and was working around the clock, he never missed a night.

His voice, once my comfort, now felt like a poisoned knife twisting in my gut.

I don’t remember how I got back to my room. I trashed everything Mark had ever given me.

My mom found me crying, covered in cuts from the broken glass.

I hugged her, unable to speak.

My parents were busy when I was little, so Mark practically raised me.

He knew everything about me. What I liked, what I disliked.

I was a picky eater, but if Mark told me to eat something, I’d choke it down.

He taught me how to write, how to do my homework.

He loved me for so many years, and now he was hurting me more than anyone ever had.

Chapter 5

Mr. and Mrs. Foster came home quickly. My parents took me over to their house.

I didn’t expect Mark to be there.

And he wasn’t alone. Sarah was with him.

Mark looked startled to see us. He looked panicked.

“Amy? Mr. and Mrs. Miller?”

“Amy, please don’t misunderstand. I’m just here with Mark to pick up some files.”

Sarah spoke up, but no one paid attention to her.

Mark rushed to my side and tried to take my hand, but I pulled away.

He crouched down, looking at me carefully.

I ignored him and addressed his parents.

“Mr. and Mrs. Foster, as we discussed, I’m calling off the engagement.”