They Left Me Out of Their Group, So I’ll Leave Them Out of My Life Chapter 04
On Monday, I took half the day off and went to the bank.
Four years together. Two years under the same roof. Enzo and I had never really settled our finances.
The apartment was his, but I’d paid for half the renovations.
I’d bought about two-thirds of the furniture and appliances.
Every month, he kicked in three thousand dollars for living expenses. I covered the rest.
I pulled my bank statements and went through every transaction, marking them one by one.
If we were going to split, I wanted the numbers clean.
That afternoon, after I got back to the office, Elena texted me. “I texted you about lunch. Didn’t you see it?”
“I was in a meeting. Didn’t check my phone.”
“What about tonight? Want to hang out after work?”
“I already have plans.”
“With who?”
I didn’t answer.
Half a minute later, she texted again. “Look at you being all mysterious. Don’t tell me you’ve made new friends.”
“Just kidding lol.”
I stared at the “lol,” my finger hovering over the screen.
When I first met Elena four years ago, she’d been ten times warmer than this.
She’d ask me to go shopping, pull me into her friend group, introduce me around.
I’d just moved to the city and didn’t know many people. I thought I was lucky to have met her.
Looking back, maybe she got close to me because I was Enzo’s girlfriend.
And maybe she shut me out for the same reason: I was Enzo’s girlfriend. The person who made everyone “unable to let loose.”
After work, I didn’t go home.
I went to the mall and got a bowl of ramen at the food court downstairs.
Halfway through, Enzo texted, “Coming home for dinner? I made soup.”
“No. Working late.”
“Again? Why have you been working late so much lately?”
I didn’t answer.
After I finished eating, I passed a rental agency in the mall.
I went inside.
“Any one-bedrooms near the subway for under twenty-five hundred a month?”
The agent handed me a stack of listings. “Just you, or will you have a roommate?”
“Just me.”
“Then I’d start with these. They’re all move-in ready…”
I picked two places close to work and scheduled viewings for Wednesday.
It was almost nine when I left the agency.
Enzo called. He sounded a little impatient.
“Kira, what time are you getting home? The soup’s cold.”
“Don’t wait for me. Eat first.”
“What is going on with you lately?”
“You barely talk to me, and you’re coming home later and later.”
“What’s wrong with me?”
“You tell me.”
He sighed. “You’ve just seemed off lately.”
“I’m the same as always.”
“Fine. Whatever makes you happy.”
He hung up.
Whatever makes you happy.
He probably thought he was being patient. Understanding.
But I wanted to ask him: Do you have any idea why I’ve seemed off lately?
Did it ever cross your mind, even for a second, that you might be the reason?
On Wednesday, I saw the apartment and signed the lease on the spot.
I put down the security deposit and first month’s rent. The landlord wanted me moved in by the end of the month, which worked perfectly.
I had two weeks to prepare.
In two weeks, I would disappear from Enzo’s life completely.
Thursday afternoon, I was at my desk putting together handoff notes. I was getting ready to change jobs too.
My phone buzzed.
Marco sent a voice message. “Hey, my birthday’s next week. You coming?”
“Where are you having it?”
“At Enzo’s. He said he’d cook for everyone.”
I bit my lip.
“Who’s coming?”
“Just the usual people. Nico and the guys. Elena too.”
Those people.
The eight people in that group.
My brother was having his birthday at my boyfriend’s place.
The guest list was the same group that had been excluding me.
And I was invited only because, technically, I lived there too.
“I might be busy. Might not make it.”
“What? What could be more important than this?”
“I get one birthday a year.”
“Marco, let me ask you something.”
“Yeah?”
“When did you and Enzo get so close?”