I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. This man, this stranger in expensive clothes standing in our bedroom, couldn’t be the same person who used to hold me and promise me forever.
«Brandon,» I whispered, «what happened to you?»
He sat on the edge of the bed, running his hands through his hair. When he looked up at me his eyes were cold, distant.
«I grew up, Grace. I evolved. I’m not that scared kid in a cramped apartment anymore. I’m a surgeon at one of the best hospitals in the country. I have colleagues who respect me, opportunities opening up, a future that’s actually going somewhere.»
He paused, looking at me in my simple dress, with my simple hair and my tired face. «And you? You’re still the same girl from eight years ago. You haven’t grown. You haven’t changed. You’re still working at Save Mart, still waiting tables, still living like we’re poor when we’re not anymore.»
«I’m working those jobs to help us save money, to contribute.»