Chapter 2

Sarah called Mike the next morning.

"Mike, we need to talk about Brittany."

"What about her?" he asked, his voice already defensive.

Sarah took a breath, kept her tone even.

"She sent me some really aggressive messages last night, demanding I return the watch you gave me."

A pause.

"Oh, that," Mike said, "She's just fiercely loyal, Sarah, a bit insecure sometimes."

"Fiercely loyal? She called me a jealous old maid trying to leech off you."

"She didn't mean it like that," Mike mumbled, "She just really likes the watch, and, you know, thought I bought it for her."

"You told her you bought it for me, right?"

"Yeah, of course, but she gets protective, cut her some slack, she's had a tough life."

Sarah felt a familiar frustration rise, Mike always made excuses for people who treated him, or her, badly.

"Mike, her behavior was unacceptable, she needs to apologize."

"Apologize? Come on, Sarah, don't make a big deal out of it, she's just passionate."

Passionate, Sarah thought, or manipulative and greedy.

"It is a big deal, Mike."

He sighed, "Look, I'll talk to her, okay? Just try to get along."

He hung up before she could say more.

Get along. With someone who insulted her and tried to take her birthday gift.

The conversation left a bitter taste.

Later that week, the attacks started.

Anonymous comments on her public Instagram posts.

"Gold digger."

"Washed up."

"Trying to control her brother's money."

Then texts from burner app numbers, crude and harassing.

Sarah blocked the accounts, blocked the numbers.

It was clearly Brittany, escalating, hiding behind anonymity.

Sarah thought about her past, the years she'd put into Mike.

Covering his rent for six months after graduation so he could "find himself."

Giving him her old sedan, perfectly maintained, when she bought a new car.

The coding bootcamp she paid for, hoping it would give him a skill, a direction.

The countless meals, the advice, the emotional support.

He had always taken it, sometimes with thanks, often as if it were his due.

This current ingratitude, this defense of a girl who was so obviously toxic, it cut deeper than the anonymous insults.

Sarah decided she wouldn't let this slide, she wouldn't let Brittany steamroll her or corrupt Mike completely.

Her resolve hardened. This wasn't just about a watch anymore.