Discarded Love, Found Happiness

I stood just outside the glass patio doors, holding a tray of fresh towels. Tonight was a celebration of Coleton Barron' s full recovery, the tech world' s golden boy back on his feet after three years of my dedicated physical therapy.

But then, his ex-girlfriend, Charly Mack, appeared. When a stray splash from the pool hit her dress, Coleton shoved me aside to protect her, sending me headfirst into the concrete edge of the pool.

I woke up in the hospital with a concussion, only to see Coleton comforting Charly, who was faking tears. He didn' t defend me when she claimed we were "just friends." His mother, Esther Cotton, then sent me a text with a five-million-dollar check, telling me I didn' t fit into his world.

Back at his penthouse, Charly accused me of poisoning Coleton with soup and breaking his father' s cherished wooden box. He believed her, forcing me to drink the soup and leaving me to collapse on the kitchen floor. I ended up in the hospital again, alone.

I didn' t understand why he would believe her lies, why he would hurt me after everything I had done. Why was I just a temporary fix, easily discarded?

On his birthday, I left him a text: "Happy Birthday, Coleton. I' m leaving. Don' t look for me. Goodbye." I turned off my phone, dropped it in a trash can, and walked toward a new life.

Chapter 1

The party was in full swing, the sound of laughter and splashing water spilling out from the brightly lit backyard. I stood just outside the glass patio doors, holding a tray of fresh towels. It was for Coleton Barron. Everything had been for him for the last three years.

Tonight was a celebration of his full recovery. The tech world' s golden boy was back on his feet, and his friends were here to welcome him. I should have been happy, but a knot of anxiety tightened in my stomach. I just needed to hear him say it.

"Man, I can' t believe you' re walking again," I heard Jaydan Ferguson, one of Coleton' s closest friends, say. "It' s a miracle."

Isaias Skinner clapped Coleton on the back. "It' s not a miracle, it' s Arminda. She' s the real MVP. Three years, man. She never gave up on you."

A flicker of warmth spread through me. They saw it. They saw everything I had done. Maybe... maybe tonight was the night.

Jaydan raised his beer bottle. "Seriously, Coleton. She' s a keeper. So, now that you' re back on your feet, when' s the wedding?"

The air went still. The friendly chatter died down, and all I could hear was the gentle lapping of water in the pool. I held my breath, my heart pounding against my ribs. This was it.

Coleton let out a soft laugh. It was a sound I knew better than my own name.

"Arminda?" he said, his voice smooth and casual. "She' s a great friend. The best physical therapist a guy could ask for."

He paused, taking a slow sip of his beer.

"That' s all."

The words hit me. Friend. Just a friend. My breath hitched, and the tray of towels suddenly felt a hundred pounds heavier. The warm night air turned cold, and a chill seeped into my bones.

"What do you mean, 'that' s all' ?" Jaydan pressed, his voice laced with confusion. "Charly Mack ditched you the second you got hurt. Arminda was the one who stayed."

Coleton' s face darkened at the mention of Charly' s name. "Don' t talk about her like that."

"Why not? It' s the truth," Isaias chimed in. "She couldn' t handle you in a wheelchair, so she took off. Arminda was the one changing your bandages, helping you learn to walk again, dealing with you when you were at your worst."

I stood frozen, hidden by the shadows. The scenes of the past three years flashed through my mind like a movie reel.

Coleton Barron, the tech prodigy, had it all. Then, a horrific car crash shattered his legs and his world. He was confined to a wheelchair, his career on hold, his future uncertain. Charly Mack, his glamorous girlfriend, took one look at his new reality and walked away without a backward glance.

That was when I stepped in. As his physical therapist, my job was to help him heal his body. But it became so much more. I pushed him when he wanted to give up. I held him when he cried in frustration. I celebrated every tiny victory, every painful step. I put my own life on hold, dedicating every waking moment to his recovery.

Everyone assumed we would be together. His mother, Esther Cotton, had tolerated my presence as a necessity. His friends treated me like one of the family. And I had let myself believe it, too. I had fallen in love with the broken man, and I thought he had, too.

But now, he was whole again. Standing tall, the charismatic man he used to be. And I was just the physical therapist. Just a friend. He was no longer the man who needed me.

I pushed the door open, forcing a smile onto my face. "Towels are here."

The tension broke, but the atmosphere was thick with unspoken words. Coleton wouldn' t meet my eyes. He just took a towel and turned away.

Just then, a new voice cut through the awkward silence.

"Coleton, darling!"

My head snapped up. There, walking toward us with a practiced, delicate sway, was Charly Mack. She was dressed in a stunning white dress, looking every bit the socialite she was.

"Charly?" Coleton breathed, his eyes wide with disbelief and something else... something that looked a lot like longing.

"I heard you were better," she said, her voice a soft purr. "I had to come see for myself."

Jaydan and Isaias exchanged a dark look. They remembered how she had abandoned him. But Coleton seemed to have forgotten. He was captivated.

"You... you look amazing," he stammered.

Charly smiled, a picture of innocence. "I' ve missed you."

The partygoers were in a water fight in the pool. A stray splash hit Charly's dress.

She let out a tiny shriek. "Oh, my dress!"

Suddenly, someone in the pool lost their footing and flailed, accidentally knocking a large, heavy pool float toward Charly. It was moving fast.

"Charly, look out!" Coleton yelled.

Without a second thought, he lunged forward, shoving me hard to the side to get to her. He wrapped his arms around Charly, pulling her out of the float' s path.

I stumbled backward, my balance gone. My head hit the hard concrete edge of the pool with a sickening crack. Pain exploded behind my eyes, and the world tilted.

I fell into the water.

The last thing I saw before the darkness took over was Coleton cradling Charly in his arms, his face a mask of concern for her, not even glancing in my direction as I sank beneath the surface.

I remembered a time, a year ago, when I' d slipped while helping him transfer from his chair, badly spraining my wrist to break his fall. He had held my hand, his eyes full of gratitude. "I'll never forget this, Arminda," he had promised. "Never."

The promise echoed in my mind, a bitter, hollow sound.

He was recovered now. He didn' t need me anymore.

As my friends pulled me from the water, my phone, lying on a nearby table, buzzed. It was a text from his mother, Esther Cotton.

"Arminda, Coleton is back on his feet. You' ve done your job well. Here is a check for five million dollars. It' s time for you to leave. You don' t fit into his world."

I closed my eyes, the pain in my head nothing compared to the pain in my heart.

Fine. I' ll leave.