Chapter 2

After making the arrangements for Mom' s cremation, I drove without a destination. My mind was a blank slate, scrubbed clean by grief. My hands just steered the car, my feet just pressed the pedals.

Eventually, I found myself parked across the street from my old high school. The red brick building looked smaller than I remembered. Through the chain-link fence, I could see the overgrown soccer field.

I remembered myself at seventeen. Small, quiet, with glasses too big for my face. A girl who lived in the library and watched the world from the sidelines.

My world back then had a sun, and its name was Cole Solomon. He was the star quarterback, the student council president, the boy every girl dreamed of and every guy wanted to be.

I watched him from afar, a secret I kept locked in my chest. I memorized his schedule, his favorite lunch, the way he ran his hand through his hair when he was thinking.

He never once looked my way. He was a supernova, and I was just a speck of dust in his orbit.

I squeezed my eyes shut, pushing the memory away. It hurt too much to remember the girl who had so much hope.

"Eleanor? Eleanor Hester, is that you?"

The voice was warm and familiar. I opened my eyes. A woman with a kind, wrinkled face was smiling at me from the window of the small diner next to my car. It was Mrs. Gable, who had run the place since I was a student.

My throat felt tight. I couldn't speak, only nod.

"Honey, you look pale as a ghost. Come on in, I'll make you some soup."

I followed her inside like a sleepwalker, sinking into a booth in the farthest corner. It was the same booth I used to sit in every day after school, hoping for a glimpse of Cole.

Mrs. Gable set a steaming bowl of tomato soup in front of me. "I haven't seen you since your wedding. You and that boy, Cole. You finally got him, huh? I always knew you had a crush on him."

I stared at her, shocked. "You knew?"

She laughed, wiping her hands on her apron. "Honey, you wore your heart on your sleeve. The way you used to watch him, anyone with eyes could see it."

She mentioned he hadn't been back since he graduated. "Heard he made it big in tech. Good for him."

I picked up my spoon, a question burning in my mind. Had he really been that oblivious? All those "accidental" meetings I'd engineered, the books I started reading because I saw him with them, the way I' d order the same black coffee he did, even though I hated the taste.

After we got married, he never once talked about our high school days. Not once.

I scooped up some soup, but the taste was like ash in my mouth. My stomach churned.

I felt a wave of pity, not just for the dying woman I was now, but for that hopeful, foolish girl. Both of us had wasted our love on a man who didn't deserve it.

"Well, speak of the devil and he shall appear!" Mrs. Gable' s voice boomed from the counter.

My blood ran cold. I looked up towards the entrance.

Cole Solomon was walking in, his arm wrapped tightly around Karma Smith.

"Cole, my boy!" Mrs. Gable exclaimed. "And this must be your lovely wife! Congratulations on the baby!"

My hand flew to my mouth to stifle a sob. Mrs. Gable, not knowing, beamed at them.

"You know, your old classmate Eleanor is here too! Let me go get her..."

"No!" The word escaped me, sharp and desperate. I threw some bills on the table and fled, leaving the untouched soup behind.

"Well, that was odd," I heard Mrs. Gable mutter as the door swung shut behind me.

Cole was too busy helping Karma into the booth-my booth-to notice.

From the shadows across the street, I watched them.

"She' s just as beautiful as ever," Mrs. Gable said to Cole, obviously talking about Karma. "You take good care of her, you hear?"

Karma blushed and snuggled against Cole's shoulder. He kissed her forehead.

The sight was a fresh wound. I was the ghost outside, watching my husband build a new life in the ruins of my own.

I was such a coward. I couldn't even face them.

I remembered asking him, once, early in our marriage, if he wanted to visit our old high school, maybe grab a bite at Mrs. Gable's.

"Why would we do that?" he'd asked, his brow furrowed. "There's nothing for us there."

Now I understood. He didn't want to be reminded of the place where his great lie began.

A sudden shiver ran down Cole' s spine, and he looked towards the window, his eyes scanning the street. He couldn't see me, but for a second, I thought he felt my presence.

"What is it?" Karma asked, feeding him a piece of pie.

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head. "Just... for a second, I thought of that alleyway behind the gym."

He took a bite of the pie and his eyes grew distant. "I was getting beat up pretty bad by those seniors. They cornered me after practice."

He touched a faint scar above his eyebrow. "One of them had a pipe. He hit me from behind. I thought I was done for."

"Then, out of nowhere, I heard someone yell, 'Hey! Leave him alone! I'm calling the cops!'"

His voice was soft with reverence. "I was on the ground, everything was blurry. But I saw a figure, a girl in a school uniform, standing at the end of the alley. She kept yelling, telling me to hang on, that help was coming."

He looked at Karma, his eyes full of adoration. "Then I woke up in the hospital. And you were there."

Karma smiled, a perfect picture of innocence. "I saw them ganging up on you. I was so scared, but I knew I had to do something."

"Thank you, Karma," he said, his voice thick. "You saved my life that day."

Karma' s smile faltered for a fraction of a second as her eyes darted towards the alley he mentioned. It was a flicker of unease, so quick I almost missed it.

But I didn't. Because I was there that day. It was my voice that screamed for help. It was me who called the police from a payphone and ran back, telling him to hold on. I was the girl in the shadows. Karma had just been the first one to the hospital to claim the credit.