Chapter 5 Somehow, I ended up outside the amusement park. The same one where Shayne and I had our first date. Memories hit like a sucker punch. At eighteen, he won me a giant stuffed bear right here. At twenty, we came back every year like it was our thing. "Woof!" Pudding barked, yanking me out of the nostalgia spiral. I looked up. Right under the Ferris wheel stood a full-blown pink floral castle, balloons swaying like it was straight out of a rom-com. It was the proposal setup-I'd imagined it a thousand times. My chest tightened. I took a step closer, like my body was moving without permission. Dead center in the crowd: Shayne, down on one knee in a sharp suit. And in front of him, glowing in white dress-Vanessa. I froze. My phone buzzed with a calendar alert: [Eight-Year Anniversary Today.] What a freaking joke. He used our anniversary... my dream proposal spot... to propose to my ex-best friend. The Chat Feed lit up like a slot machine: [Ley, don't look! It's all a setup!] [Vanessa told Shay her parents were pressuring her to get married. She begged him to fake it!] [This was supposed to be YOUR proposal, not hers!] A setup? Please. Shayne never lifted a finger unless he wanted to. This? He agreed to. Loud and clear. I let out a bitter laugh, spun on my heel, and headed straight for the hotel. No drama. No tears. Just me and my suitcase, already packed. I rolled it to the airport in silence. Pudding padded along beside me, unusually quiet-like he knew. Security, check-in, done. I sat at the gate, killing time on my phone. Then-bam. Vanessa's post popped up on my feed: [Finally said yes at twenty-eight.] Attached: a shot of her hand flaunting the ring. The ring. The exact one I'd stared at with Shayne in that shop window. Twice. My face didn't even twitch. I gave it a like. Phone buzzed. Unknown number. I picked up. Shayne's voice came through, all smug and sure of himself. "Leyla, I KNOW you're jealous. You finally gave in, huh? This is your shot-apologize, mean it, and maybe I'll forgive you." I didn't say a word. Then-loudspeaker in the background: [Passenger Leyla Landon, please proceed to Gate 12 for flight MV1234.] Silence. Then his voice cracked like thunder. "Leyla?!" Glass shattered. "Which airport are you at? Answer me!" I could hear him running, breath heaving, panic rising. "I'm ordering you-tell me where you are. NOW." The Chat Feed was melting down: [Shay's spiraling!] [He's wrecking the place! I heard a limited-edition action figure bite it!] Behind him, a voice pleaded, "Mr. Raffield, the acquisition meeting-" "Get out!" Shayne shouted. "Cancel everything!" Tires screeched. He must've bolted into the street. "Can't you at least tell me where you're going?" His voice cracked-fragile, raw, like I'd never heard it before. Boarding call again. Still didn't speak. Just hit 'end.' Then, right before blocking his number for good, I heard it- "Leyla-!"