Eight Years, A Cruel Joke

For eight years, I clung to Liam' s drunken promise, a joke he' d made at 14 that felt like a sacred vow.

I transformed myself, chasing perfection for him, believing our 22nd birthday was finally our moment.

But then, I overheard him plotting: our "promise" was a cruel lie, a scheme to get rid of me.

He was in love with Sienna, planning a fake engagement and a rented baby to finally drive me away.

My world shattered, reduced to nothing but the echoing laughter of his friends.

Why was I always just an obstacle, a joke in his meticulously crafted life?

I accepted an overseas scholarship, packed my bags, and burned every memory of him, ready to disappear.

He publicly humiliated me, flaunting his engagement to Sienna at a charity gala.

Then, when a planter fell, he shielded her, completely ignoring me as I lay bleeding on the floor.

At my farewell party, he shoved me into a lake, leaving me to drown, just to protect Sienna.

He chose her. Over his best friend. Over my life.

My brother, Mark, came to my rescue, raging at Liam, but it was clear Liam felt no remorse.

He claimed I was "unstable" and "obsessed," twisting every truth to fit his narrative.

I left for New York, cutting all ties, determined to erase him from my life forever.

Years later, Liam, broken and ruined by Sienna and her lover, Julian, desperately sought me out.

He found me, happy and successful, with Alex-a man who truly valued me.

I finally had the strength to tell him his apology meant nothing, that he was no longer my problem.

The man who once dominated my every thought was now a pathetic stranger, utterly unimportant.

I threw away his final, belated confession, a paper airplane of wasted love, into the New York sky.

My journey from a broken girl to a celebrated architect, from chasing a false star to finding my own wings, was complete.

I was finally free, soaring into a future he could never touch.

For eight years, I held onto a single, drunken promise.

A joke he probably forgot the moment he woke up the next morning.

But for me, it was everything.

It started when I was fourteen.

A stupid, lovestruck kid who had spent her entire childhood trailing after her older brother, Mark, and his best friend, Liam.

Liam was six years older, a god in my teenage eyes.

He was handsome, smart, and had this easy charm that made everyone gravitate toward him.

I was just Mark's annoying little sister, a shadow he barely noticed.

That night, the air in our backyard was thick with summer heat and cheap beer.

Music pulsed from a speaker, and the dim party lights made everyone look like a stranger.

I saw Liam leaning against the old oak tree, his head tipped back, a bottle loose in his hand.

He was drunk.

It was the first time I'd ever seen him so unguarded.

My heart hammered against my ribs.

It felt like now or never.

I walked over, my steps shaky.

Before I could lose my nerve, I stood on my toes and pressed my lips against his.

It was a clumsy, desperate kiss that lasted only a second.

Liam's eyes fluttered open.

They were hazy, unfocused.

He looked down at me, a slow, lazy smile spreading across his face.

He didn't push me away.

He didn't get angry.

He just chuckled, a low, rumbling sound.

"Ava," he slurred, his voice amused. "What's this?"

He reached out and patted my head like I was a puppy.

"I'm not into little girls."

The words were casual, dismissive, but they hit me with the force of a physical blow.

Humiliation burned my cheeks.

I wanted the ground to swallow me whole.

But then, he seemed to reconsider, a playful glint in his eyes.

He saw the tears welling up, the way my world was crumbling.

"Fine," he said, the corner of his mouth twitching. "When you're 22, if you still like me, I'll consider it."

He thought it was a game.

A funny way to get rid of the kid with a crush.

I took it as a promise.

For the next eight years, I dedicated myself.

I became the perfect candidate.

I studied architecture with a ferocity that surprised my professors, racking up awards and securing a prestigious internship.

I learned to dress, to talk, to carry myself with a confidence I didn't always feel.

I did everything to close that six-year gap, to become a woman he couldn't dismiss.

All while subtly orbiting his world, making sure he saw my transformation.

And now, tonight, I was 22.

The promise was due.

I stood outside the private VIP room of an upscale club, my hands clammy.

I had spent hours getting ready, my red dress a beacon of my confidence.

Mark had told me Liam was here with some friends, celebrating a new tech deal.

It was the perfect moment.

The door was slightly ajar.

I could hear his voice, that familiar, confident sound that still made my stomach flip.

I leaned closer, a smile already on my lips, ready to walk in and claim my prize.

"I'm telling you, this is the only way," Liam was saying, his voice laced with smug satisfaction. "Ava is... persistent. The girl's been obsessed with me since she was a kid."

Laughter from his friends.

"So you're really going through with it? The fake fiancée? The rented baby?" someone asked.

My smile froze.

My blood turned to ice.

"It's a masterpiece of a plan," Liam boasted. "Sienna is perfect for the part. She needs the money, I need a deterrent. We announce our engagement, maybe even parade a kid around for a few months. It's the only way to get Ava to finally back off for good. She's my best friend's sister, I can't just be a complete asshole to her."

He paused, and I could almost picture his self-satisfied smirk.

"Once Ava is out of the picture, I can finally tell Sienna how I really feel. I've been in love with her for years. This whole charade... it's just to clear the path for my true love."

The words echoed in the hallway, each one a hammer blow against my heart.

Fake fiancée.

Rented baby.

A deterrent.

To get me to back off.

His true love was Sienna.

It was never me.

The eight-year promise was a lie he used to keep me at a distance, a game he never intended to finish.

My entire future, meticulously planned around him, crumbled into dust.

I stumbled back from the door, my chest tight, unable to draw a breath.

The noise of the club faded into a dull roar.

I couldn't feel my legs, but somehow, they carried me away.

I ran past the crowds, past the bouncers, out into the cold night air.

A sudden downpour started, the rain hitting me like tiny, sharp needles, plastering my expensive dress to my skin.

I didn't care.

I just ran, blindly, tears mixing with the rain on my face.

Every hope, every dream, every carefully constructed piece of my life was a joke.

I was a joke.

An obstacle to be removed.

I finally stopped in an empty alley, leaning against a cold brick wall, and sobbed.

The sound was raw, torn from the depths of my soul.

I had wasted eight years of my life chasing a ghost, a fantasy.

My phone buzzed in my clutch.

A message from him.

Liam: "Hey, sorry I missed you tonight. Things got a little crazy. By the way, there's something you should know. Sienna and I are together now. It's serious."

Another blow.

He didn't even have the decency to let me find out on my own.

He had to rub it in my face, making sure the message was clear.

I was out.

I looked at the message, at his name on my screen.

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

I scrolled through my contacts and found the email from the university.

An overseas scholarship to study in New York.

I had been holding off on accepting it, waiting for him.

Waiting for my 22nd birthday.

I pressed "Accept."

Then, I went home, my clothes dripping water all over the floor.

I walked into my room and pulled out a small, locked box from under my bed.

Inside was every memory I had of him.

A ticket stub from a movie we saw with Mark.

A dried flower he'd once picked for me as a joke.

A napkin with his number scrawled on it from years ago.

I took the box out to the backyard, to the same spot where he'd made that cruel promise.

I opened it, poured everything into a metal bin, and lit a match.

I watched the flames consume my past.

The paper curled, the flower turned to ash.

I watched until there was nothing left but smoke and the bitter smell of burning memories.

He wanted me out of the picture.

Fine.

I would disappear.

Liam felt a flicker of annoyance when Ava didn't text back.

Usually, she responded within seconds.

Her quiet was... strange.

He checked his phone again an hour later.

Still nothing.

His message, clear and direct, sat there with a "Delivered" receipt but no reply.

He was in his penthouse apartment with Sienna, celebrating.

She was beautiful, an aspiring actress who knew how to play her part.

She curled up against him on the leather sofa, her hand tracing patterns on his chest.

"Is something wrong, babe?" she asked, her voice soft.

"It's just Ava," Liam said, tossing his phone onto the coffee table. "I told her about us. I thought she'd freak out, send a hundred messages, call Mark crying. But... nothing. Just silence."

Sienna laughed, a light, tinkling sound.

"Maybe she's finally growing up. Or maybe she's playing hard-to-get. You know, give you the silent treatment so you'll come chasing after her."

The idea hadn't occurred to Liam, but it made perfect sense.

Of course.

That had to be it.

Ava had always been dramatic.

This was just a new tactic.

The thought, instead of bothering him, soothed his ego.

She still wanted him.

She was just changing her strategy.

"You think so?" he asked, a smile playing on his lips.

"Definitely," Sienna confirmed, snuggling closer. "A girl doesn't just get over a crush that big overnight. She's trying to make you jealous, make you wonder. It's Hard-to-Get 101."

One of his friends, who had stayed for another drink, chimed in from the bar.

"Sienna's right, man. It's a classic move. You need to double down. Make your thing with Sienna so public, so in-her-face, that she has no choice but to give up her little game and admit defeat."

Liam nodded slowly, the plan solidifying in his mind.

They were right.

He needed to accelerate the charade.

Make it undeniable.

"So, we stick to the plan? The engagement, all of it?"

"Absolutely," Sienna said, her eyes gleaming. "Let's give her a show she'll never forget. Then, once she's gone, it's just you and me."

She sealed it with a kiss.

A promise of a future he desperately wanted.

The next morning, Liam's phone rang.

It was Mark.

"What did you say to Ava?" Mark's voice was tight with anger.

"Hey, man. I just told her the truth. That Sienna and I are together," Liam said casually, sipping his coffee. "I thought it was better to be direct."

"Direct? Liam, she's a wreck. She came home last night soaked to the bone, hasn't come out of her room since. She accepted that scholarship in New York. She's leaving."

Liam felt a brief pang of something-surprise?

Guilt?

He pushed it down.

This was part of her act.

Running away to New York?

It was the ultimate dramatic gesture to get his attention.

"Look, Mark, she's being theatrical. She'll get over it," Liam said, his voice dismissive. "She just needs some space."

"This isn't theatrical, Liam! This is real. You broke her heart."

"I have to go, I have a meeting with Sienna to plan our engagement party," Liam said, eager to get off the phone.

Mark's concern was a buzzkill.

"We'll talk later."

He hung up before Mark could argue.

He had more important things to worry about.

Sienna was his priority.

Ava and her teenage drama could wait.

Meanwhile, in her room, Ava was methodically packing.

She folded clothes into suitcases, her movements precise and emotionless.

She went online and booked her flight, a one-way ticket to a new life.

There was no theatricality, only a cold, quiet resolve.

She was erasing herself from their lives, just as he wanted.

A week later, there was a charity gala.

One of those high-society events her parents insisted she attend.

She knew Liam and Sienna would be there.

Part of her wanted to hide, but a stronger part, a new, hardened part, refused to.

She wouldn't let him think she was hiding in shame.

She wore a simple, elegant black dress.

No more red.

No more trying to catch his eye.

She saw them the moment she walked in.

Liam had his arm wrapped possessively around Sienna's waist.

Sienna was wearing a glittering diamond necklace-a gift from him, no doubt.

They were the center of attention, laughing and smiling for the cameras.

Gossip buzzed around them.

"Is that Liam's new girlfriend? I thought he was single."

"I heard it's serious. They're already talking about marriage."

"What about that girl who was always following him? His friend's sister?"

"Oh, Ava? He probably got tired of the puppy dog act."

Ava stood alone by the bar, holding a glass of champagne, the bubbles doing nothing to lift her spirits.

She felt their eyes on her, a mix of pity and mockery.

Liam looked over, his gaze meeting hers.

He gave her a small, triumphant smile, as if to say, See?

I've won.

He then turned and kissed Sienna on the cheek, a deliberate, public display of affection.

He was putting on a show, just like his friends suggested.

A show designed to break her.

And it was working.