For Me,There Is Only You |18+|

6. A Lie, I wish I Never Told

(Improvised version)

Unexpected events had become the norm in my life lately.

When Ashley first told me I wouldn't be attending her wedding, I felt a confusing mix of emotions.

There was a tinge of disappointment, a small ache in my chest because it was my best friend's big day. A day filled with joy, laughter, and moments I wanted to be a part of.

But alongside that disappointment, there was also an undeniable wave of relief—happiness, even—at the thought of not having to face the peculiar and downright enigmatic people who seemed to occupy every corner of her house.

For an entire month, I convinced myself it was fine not to go. I repeated it like a mantra: It's okay. You don't have to be there. You have other things to do.

But, of course, fate had other plans.

Just two days ago, Ashley pulled a move straight out of a soap opera and threatened me, saying, "If you don't come to my wedding, I'm not getting married at all."

My frustration shot up like a thermometer in the sun. Who does that? Shouldn't it be my decision whether or not to attend?

But Ashley seemed to think she had the authority to make decisions for both of us, whether I liked it or not.

First, she was all firm and resolute about me not setting foot back in her house. Then, out of nowhere, she flips the script and practically begs me to come.

Her behavior was all over the place, and it only made me more puzzled about whatever mystery was unfolding at her house.

Maybe the pressure of the wedding was messing with her head, or maybe there was something more going on—something hidden beneath all her erratic behavior.

But no matter what was going on in her head, Ashley's emotional rollercoaster had left me with no choice. Her persistence—or was it emotional blackmail?—had worked.

After driving for two hours straight, I finally decided it was time for a break. My legs were stiff, my back ached, and my brain was buzzing from staring at the road for so long.

I pulled into a small gas station to refuel and stretch my limbs, shaking off the feeling of solitude that had clung to me since I started this journey.

The car was my only company, with music blasting through the speakers to keep me awake and sane.

Ashley had suggested I could get a ride with someone from the house, but the idea of sharing a car with Alaric Clell—or worse, that creep Hactor—was more than enough to make me consider hiking the whole way instead.

Even if it meant trudging for days with nothing but blistered feet and sore muscles.

So here I was, on this lonely drive, armed only with my playlist to fend off the growing tension in my gut as I ventured deeper into the Omichli Mountains.

The further I drove, the more the landscape began to change. The familiar plains slowly faded away, replaced by a world that seemed completely different.

The air shifted too—what was once warm and dry now carried a sharp chill, damp and fresh, as if the mountains were breathing it out.

Conifers blanketed the slopes on either side, tall and imposing, forming a thick green wall that stretched up toward the misty sky.

The weather had made a quick jump from summer sunshine to a gloomy, rain-soaked chill.

Judging by the glistening wet road ahead, it looked like it had rained heavily last night. I eased off the gas pedal as I approached a narrow, zigzagging stretch of road.