Douglas sagged against Cheryl, shaking his head weakly. "Ms. Delgado, I'm fine. I just slipped. Please don't blame Mr. Dickerson..."
I watched his flawless performance, and something inside me simply gave out.
I was done. Done with this circus.
I turned toward the door.
"Fine. If he's not leaving, I am."
"Stop right there!" Cheryl's voice cracked like a whip. "You haven't apologized to Douglas!"
I stopped walking.
"I'm not going to apologize."
"As of today, I'm done with both of you."
"The board seat? Give it to whoever you want."
"And the arranged engagement... consider it a joke."
Cheryl's brow furrowed. "Drew, are you threatening me?"
I didn't look back.
"Think whatever you want."
Back home, I started clearing out everything connected to her.
The photo albums were full of good memories.
But as I burned them, I felt nothing. Not even a ripple.
Maybe that's what it really meant when a heart finally died.
At dinner, my parents noticed something was off.
Mom placed a piece of braised pork in my bowl and asked softly, "Drew, honey, is something going on?"
"You seem like you've got a lot on your mind."
Dad set down his newspaper too, his eyes full of quiet concern.