Between the desks

Chapter 58

Amren's POV

I didn't leave the house for days. The world outside felt distant, irrelevant. I saw the missed calls from Lily piling up on my phone, but I didn't care enough to answer. Everything felt like it had collapsed in on itself, like the betrayal had swallowed me whole and spit me back out, leaving me hollow. My days blurred into one long, miserable stretch.

For four days straight, I had been drinking, barely eating, drifting in and out of sleep. Each time I closed my eyes, all I could see was Jess's face, the memory of her words slicing through me. I cheated. I'm pregnant. The pain was a constant, gnawing ache in my chest, a relentless reminder of how deeply she had hurt me. How could she betray me like this?

By the fourth day, I felt like a shell of myself, disoriented and slightly drunk from the night before, when a loud banging on the door broke the silence. I forced myself off the couch, stumbling a little as I made my way to the door, my body heavy and sluggish. When I opened it, there stood Lily.

The moment her eyes met mine, she let out a huge sigh, like she had been holding her breath for days. She didn't say a word, just stepped forward and pulled me into a tight hug. I didn't even have the energy to respond. I was numb, too drained from the endless drinking and heartache. My arms hung limply at my sides, but Lily held me as if she could somehow absorb all the pain I was feeling.

She gently pushed me inside and closed the door behind her. "What happened, Am?" she asked softly, her voice thick with worry. Her eyes were glassy, on the verge of tears, but she was trying to hold it together for me. "You've been ignoring me for days. I was so scared."

I couldn't speak at first. I didn't know how to tell her without breaking down all over again, but I had to get it out. The words clung to my throat, suffocating me. When I finally spoke, my voice cracked, and the tears came rushing back, hot and uncontrollable. "Jess... she cheated on me. And she's pregnant."

Lily's eyes widened in shock, and her lips parted as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. I could see the mix of anger and sadness flooding her face as I told her everything, reliving the betrayal, the heartbreak, and the chaos that had followed. As I spoke, the emotions I had been bottling up for days came pouring out. The tears fell harder, and soon, I was sobbing in front of her, feeling every inch of that heartache all over again.

Lily pulled me into her arms and held me tightly, her hand stroking my hair as I cried against her shoulder. "That bitch," she spat out, her voice trembling with rage. "I will kill her."

I shook my head, but I couldn't even form words to protest. The pain was suffocating, wrapping around my chest so tightly I could barely breathe. I hated this feeling—this sense of being ripped apart from the inside out, powerless to stop it.

"Why does it hurt so much?" I whispered through my tears, my voice barely audible.

"I know, babe, I know," Lily whispered back, holding me tighter. "You don't deserve this. You deserve so much better."

We stayed like that for a while, wrapped up in each other, my sobs finally slowing into quiet sniffles. Lily was the anchor I didn't know I needed, grounding me in a moment where I felt like I was floating away, drowning in grief.

Eventually, she pulled back and wiped away her own tears, composing herself. "Alright, I'm here now. You're not going through this alone, okay?" Her voice was firm, determined. She looked around the mess of my apartment—empty bottles, dishes piled up, blankets thrown haphazardly across the couch—and shook her head. "First things first, let's get you back on your feet."

Lily made tea, the smell of chamomile wafting through the apartment, and scrambled some eggs in the kitchen. The simple act of someone else taking care of me felt foreign but soothing. I sat at the kitchen table, still feeling like a ghost of myself, but the warmth of the tea and food gave me some small sense of comfort.

Lily didn't stop there. After I had eaten, she cleaned up the entire apartment, throwing away the bottles, washing the dishes, straightening out the blankets. I watched her, feeling grateful but guilty that I had let everything fall apart. She didn't complain, though. She moved with purpose, as if she was determined to put the pieces of my life back together, even if I couldn't.

She disappeared for a while and came back with clean sheets, replacing the dirty linens on my bed. "Go get in the shower," she said, her voice gentle but firm. "You'll feel better once you're clean."

I nodded, too exhausted to argue. I shuffled to the bathroom, and once under the warm spray of the shower, I let out a long breath, as if I had been holding it in for days. The water washed away the remnants of the last four days—my tears, the alcohol, the sweat, and the misery that clung to my skin. I stayed there longer than necessary, letting the warmth soothe me until I finally felt ready to face the rest of the day.

When I emerged from the bathroom, Lily was waiting for me, her face soft with compassion. "I know what you need," she said, her eyes lighting up with a mischievous glint.

I raised an eyebrow, curious. "What's that?"

"A party," she said, her voice full of certainty. "Tomorrow, we're going out. We'll hit the town, get a little crazy, and forget all about Jess. What do you think?"

I hesitated for a moment, but the thought of dancing and drinking with Lily, of escaping the suffocating weight of my heartbreak, was too tempting to resist. "Yeah," I mumbled, nodding. "I think that'll help."

Lily smiled, the first genuine smile I'd seen from her in days. "Good. But tonight, you need to sleep."

She led me to the freshly made bed, tucking me in as if I were a child. She brushed the hair away from my face and leaned down to press a soft kiss to my forehead. "Good night, Am."

I barely had the energy to respond before sleep overtook me, pulling me under into the first peaceful rest I'd had in days.