The Red Light I Couldn’t See, The Love That Was Never There Chapter 02
Laughter from the living room woke me the next morning.
The curtains hadn’t been pulled all the way shut, and sunlight squeezed through the gap.
I rolled over and heard Lily’s voice outside.
“Ethan, does this one look better, or that one?”
Through the door, I heard a clothes rack rattle twice.
“The one on the right.”
Ethan sounded lazy and relaxed.
“Okay. I’ll go with yours.”
“Everyone loved the dress you picked out for me last time. You have better taste than I do.”
Ethan laughed.
“Your taste is terrible to begin with.”
“Ethan!”
Lily chased after him, swatting at him as they ran around the living room.
Their slippers slapped against the floor.
I stared at the ceiling, my eyes throbbing.
When had they started talking like that?
Lily used to ask me about everything.
She’d ask which shade of lipstick to buy and which picture to use as her profile photo.
Even when she wanted to text a guy she had a crush on, she’d make me revise her opening line word by word.
But somewhere along the way, without my noticing, she started asking Ethan instead.
And I was always the last to know, after they’d finished talking.
It felt strange, like I’d been quietly shut out without realizing it.
I sat up, pushed open the door, and walked out.
Lily was curled up on the couch, opening a delivery package.
The moment she saw me, she rushed over and grabbed my arm.
“Sophie! You’re awake! Are you still mad?”
“I’m sorry about yesterday. I didn’t mean to.”
She took my hand and shook it, her eyes bright.
“I’m fine.”
When she saw how calm I looked, Lily let out a relieved breath.
“I knew you were the best!”
“Oh, right. Ethan and I made plans to go hiking this afternoon. Want to come?”
I froze and turned to Ethan.
“I have an eye follow-up today. Didn’t you promise to come with me?”
Ethan’s hand stilled around his glass.
“Today?”
“I told you last week. You said you’d come.”
He frowned, his tone already turning dismissive.
“Go by yourself this time. I’ll go with you next time. Lily already bought the tickets.”
“You said that the time before last, too.”
Ethan went still.
“The last time I had a follow-up, you said you’d come with me.”
“Then Lily said she wanted to go to a cat cafe, and you left me waiting at the hospital by myself. And what happened?”
I checked in at the hospital, then sat in the hallway waiting for an hour.
He didn’t answer my calls or reply to my messages.
Later, I learned that he and Lily had spent the afternoon petting cats at the cat cafe, with his phone on silent.
When he came home that night, he pressed an iced tea into my hands and smiled.
“I’ll definitely come next time. This time was an accident.”
I believed him.
Now he was saying “next time” all over again.
“This time is different. We already bought the tickets.”
Ethan looked away, his voice dropping.
“How is it different? Last time Lily wanted to go to a cat cafe. This time she wants to go hiking.”
“The excuse is different, but the result is the same. I’m the one who gets sacrificed!”
Seeing me get more worked up, Lily hurried to smooth things over.
“Sophie, don’t be like this. Fine, we won’t go, okay?”
“We’ll go with you to your appointment first.”
I took a deep breath and pulled my hand free.
“Forget it. I’ll go alone.”
“Sophie…”
I ignored Lily calling after me.
I picked up my bag and walked straight to the door.
As the door closed behind me, I heard Lily lower her voice.
“She’s mad again?”
Ethan sighed.
“We’ve spoiled her.”
“Don’t worry about her.”
