Chapter 9
The person who came over was Shawn’s buddy, Jayden. He had shown a bit of sympathy for Allison during their last hangout. Allison had known him for nearly three years and had always thought well of him.
“I’m just picking up a few things,” she replied casually.
Jayden glanced at the bag she was holding. “Is that a gift for Shawn?”
Allison found it too much of a hassle to explain, so she just nodded.
“You know, that brand of watch isn’t cheap. Even the basic models cost a small fortune. You really don’t have to splurge like that on Shawn…”
He didn’t deserve it.
Shawn had openly admitted that he couldn’t let go of Kate and only saw Allison as a backup. Last night, he had even ditched Allison and left with Kate, hand in hand, right in front of
everyone.
After they left the birthday party, Shawn and Kate spent the night at a hotel–something Allison had no clue about, but Jayden did.
There was a small group chat with their circle of friends. Despite dating Shawn for three years, Allison had never been added to this group. But as soon as Kate returned to town, Shawn added
her right in.
Earlier today, Kate randomly posted a picture of her and Shawn in bed to the group, saying he should keep it as a keepsake. Less than a minute later, she deleted it, claiming it was a
mistake.
Jayden saw it just in time. He wanted to say something but held back–it wasn’t his place.
Jayden wanted to tell Allison to move on, to let her know the truth, but when it came time to speak, he changed his mind.
“Shawn isn’t short on material things. You don’t need to spend your months‘ worth of salary on a pricey gift for him.”
After all, Shawn was his longtime pal. Their friendship was over a decade strong, but some
things were just hard to say.
He also wanted to tell Allison that Shawn might not even appreciate a gift she worked so hard to buy. But that was too harsh, and Jayden didn’t have the heart to say it.
Of course, Allison knew Shawn wasn’t worth it. The gift wasn’t for him, and she nodded with a dismissive smile. “Sure, I won’t do it again.”
After chatting with Jayden for a bit, they went their separate ways. Jayden watched her walk away and let out a long sigh.
Chapter 9
“What a wonderful girl. How did she end up caught up with Shawn?”
He couldn’t stop himself from texting Shawn.
Jayden: [Hey, man, your girlfriend’s really great. I just saw her buying you a watch, and it’s worth thousands. That must be months of her pay. You should really appreciate her.]
Shawn received the message while having lunch with Kate. His irritation vanished the moment he read it. His demeanor softened.
It seemed Allison realized she’d messed up and was trying to patch things up with a gift. Well, he could give her a chance.
He’d accept the gift, apologize for his tone, tell her not to worry about it, and throw in some sweet talk to soothe things over. Allison would definitely fall for it.
“Shawn, what’s up? Who’s texting?” Kate asked from across the table.
Shawn slipped his phone back into his pocket and shrugged. “Nothing important.”
Kate didn’t press further.
After a while, Shawn got up to use the restroom, leaving his phone on the table. Kate had seen him enter his passcode before; it was easy to remember–it was his birthday.
Kate quickly punched in the code and opened his messages.
She first checked the chat with Allison. The last message was from a week ago. Allison had asked if he wanted to go on a trip during the holiday. She was eager to get away.
She’d even sent over some travel guides for places she longed to visit.
Shawn replied five hours later with: [It’s too crowded during the holidays. Where’s the fun in hat?] and Allison hadn’t replied since.
Kate skimmed through the travel ideas, a smirk of disdain playing on her lips.
t seemed their three–year relationship wasn’t much if Shawn wasn’t even willing to travel with
ier.
inding nothing unusual in Allison’s messages, Kate exited the chat and scrolled through, potting Jayden’s message.
ate let out a cold chuckle, remembering Allison’s indifferent attitude during their previous ncounters. She found it all quite amusing.
he thought Allison was on the verge of letting go, but it turned out she was still trying to mend nings with gifts, hoping to patch things up with Shawn.
ate exited the messages, locked the screen, and placed Shawn’s phone back where it was. She ulled out her own phone and dialed Shawn’s mom, Cindy.
Hey, Cindy, guess what? I just bumped into Shawn and his girlfriend at the jewelry store. She
las trying on rings, practically pushing him into getting hitched…“
