His Heart Stayed Flat for Me, Raced for Her, I Stayed for Neither Chapter 06

His Heart Stayed Flat for Me, Raced for Her, I Stayed for Neither Chapter 06

As my plane was getting ready to take off, a live 

video popped up in the class group chat. 

It was Olivia’s birthday party. 

The screen showed her surrounded by 

classmates, with balloons and a banner in the background. 

Caleb walked toward her, carrying a cake, as 

everyone sang. 

The chat and comments were going crazy. 

[The school heartthrob is here for the queen’s 

birthday!] 

[They needs to become official today!] 

[Say yes! Say yes!] 

Olivia put her hands together, closed her eyes, and 

made a wish, her face glowing with happiness. 

“My birthday wish is… to be with Caleb forever. 

Never apart.” 

The chat exploded. 

[OMG so sweet!) 

[We support you, queen!] 

[Lock them in!] 

I stared at the screen. The camera cut to Caleb. 

He stood in the middle of the crowd, his face half 

in shadow from the candles. I couldn’t read his 

expression. 

Olivia opened her eyes and looked right at him. 

“Caleb, I like you. Not because of some contract, 

not because of a bet. I really, genuinely like you.” 

“I’ve liked you ever since our first fight.” 

The room went silent for a second. Then the 

cheering was deafening. 

“Answer her! Answer her!” 

The comments were flying. 

[See that, average girl? This is what a real couple 

looks like.] 

[Maybe Emily will finally get it. She’s not even fit to 

untie Olivia’s shoes.] 

[She threw away her future for a guy who doesn’t 

even care.] 

I remembered the night I confessed to Caleb. 

The moonlight was beautiful. It fell across his 

face, making him look even more handsome than 

usual. 

I nervously took his hand and said the clumsy 

words, “I like you.” 

Then I got embarrassed and ran away. 

My heart was pounding. 

When I got to my front door, Caleb caught up with 

1. me. 

He walked toward me, his eyes so bright they almost glowed. “I like you too, Emily.” 

Then he kissed my forehead and wrapped his 

arms around me. “Let’s stay together. Forever. 

Never apart.” 

A breeze blew petals off the trees. 

We held each other in the moonlight. Both of us 

were blushing. 

Back then, I thought those promises would last 

forever. 

But now I knew. Nothing lasts forever. 

Not promises. Not love. 

The plane announcement came on, telling 

everyone to turn off their electronics. 

I quickly typed a comment. 

[I wish you both happiness.] 

Then I turned off my phone. 

That wish wasn’t for them. 

It was for me. Because I was finally letting go. 

At that moment, hundreds of miles away, the party 

was reaching its peak. 

Everyone was waiting for Caleb’s answer. 

Olivia looked up at him, her face bright red. 

She had set aside all her pride and confessed in 

front of everyone, just to get an answer. 

But Caleb was quiet for a long time. 

So long that the cheering died down. So long that 

people started to sense something was wrong. 

Finally, he spoke, “Olivia, I’m sorry.” 

His voice was steady. “Let’s end the contract early. 

Right here.” 

Everyone froze. 

“What did you say?” Olivia’s eyes were red. She 

had never imagined he would say no. 

“I can’t say yes.” 

“Why not?” Olivia started to cry. “Don’t you like me? 

Caleb, look me in the eyes. Tell me you feel 

nothing for me.” 

Caleb looked down and didn’t answer. 

Then Olivia’s face changed completely. 

“It’s Emily, isn’t it?”