I Lost The Game But Won In The End Chapter 05
Everyone looked toward the water at the same time.
Not far away, another yacht was approaching.
A little over ten minutes later, Sloane came aboard.
She took one look at my face and touched my forehead.
“Why are you burning up?”
My mother had just started to explain when Sloane took my suitcase.
“Get on the boat first.”
Ethan reached for me from behind. I jerked free.
Sloane helped me onto her yacht.
People were still calling my name behind me. I didn’t answer.
Slowly, the Sinclair yacht receded into the distance.
The first thing Sloane did after taking me back to the island was call a doctor.
It took two days for my fever to break completely.
During those two days, Ethan kept messaging me.
Has your fever gone down? Remember to take your medicine.
Don’t eat too many peaches. They’re not good for an inflamed throat either.
It was the same familiar tone he had always used, as though nothing had changed.
On the third day, another message came.
Tell me when you’re done having fun. I’ll come get you.
Done having fun…
So in his eyes—
I had dragged my suitcase away, broken up with him, and taken Sloane’s yacht to another island.
And all of it was just me going away for a few days to have fun.
Sloane leaned over and glanced at my phone.
“Does he think you’re just blowing off steam and then going back?”
“Probably.”
She scoffed.
“Then let him wait.”
I turned off my phone.
Once my fever was gone, Sloane convinced me to stay on the island with her.
We went diving during the day and drank at night.
She took me around the island in a speedboat and dragged me off to learn how to surf.
The first time I fell off the board, I swallowed two mouthfuls of seawater.
Sloane laughed so hard beside me that she nearly fell off her own board.
I chased her through the water, splashing her.
In the middle of laughing, I suddenly froze.
Without Ethan, I could still have a good time.
Before, whenever I went anywhere, I instinctively looked for him.
If I ate something good, I took a picture for him. If I saw a beautiful view, he was the first person I called over.
At night, when I got back to my room, I had to tell him everything that had happened that day.
Now my phone lay quietly in my bag, and I didn’t even feel like taking it out.
Meanwhile, their yacht didn’t head back immediately either.
Every day, Julian’s Instagram was full of deep-sea fishing, diving, and barbecues.
Zoe was still there too.
In one photo, she sat at the bow watching the sunset while Ethan stood behind her.
They weren’t close to each other, but I still stared at the picture for a long time.
Sloane reached over and pushed my phone down.
“Still looking? You really do enjoy torturing yourself.”
“Shut up.”
I stuffed my phone back into my bag.
Julian called me once.
It was incredibly noisy on his end.
“Nora, you’re still with Sloane?”
“Yeah.”
“Ethan said you’ll come back in a few days when you’re done having fun.”
I laughed.
“That’s what he said?”
“Yeah. You two have been together this long. You can’t seriously break up over something like this.”
“Just clear your head out there. Once you’re not angry anymore, come back and everyone can talk it through.”
I didn’t explain.
I only asked, “When are you going back?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Oh.”
I hung up.
Sure enough, the next day my mother messaged me too.
You two should be about ready to come back, right?
Then came a photo of an engagement dress.
The designer made another revision. Come try it on when you’re back.
Get engaged first. Once Zoe is settled, you and Ethan can get married.
I stared at the photo for a long time.
So it wasn’t only Ethan.
Every one of them thought that once they were done with their trip, I would be done with mine too, and the whole thing would blow over.
No one truly believed I would end the relationship.
I replied to my mother.
No need to revise it anymore.
She answered almost immediately.
What do you mean?
Cancel the engagement.