Reese turned away before he could ask more questions.
The thought of Tessa suddenly heading to her cousin's place made sense. But the fact she was going at such an hour with no one was also suspicious.
Tessa and Reese had been together for the past one year and eight months. They met when he had lost his first job, at a café.
Apparently, she had run away from her home for reasons related to a contract marriage and the responsibilities that were always put on her despite not being the first child.
She was actually from a wealthy home but left it for a simple life.
He knew Eli, her cousin, since they had been kids, around the time his mother left.
Lily, his little sister, was just born, about nine months old.
And then she got sick later. She was diagnosed with leukemia.
Reese never forgot the way her small hand felt in his the night before she was taken to a private hospital and never saw her again, because, according to the nurses,
She wanted none of the Miles, especially him, ever coming near Lily's ward unless he could pay $50,000.
That was why he started learning Forex, and today was his first step to actually making millions—hopefully.
He arrived at Eli's building soaked through, every step making a squelching sound as he climbed to the third floor.
His hand was numb by the time he reached the door, with the cold seeping through his hoodie. But his fingers still tightened protectively around the champagne bag.
He knocked gently on the door, but there was no answer. He waited, then knocked again—still nothing.
Then he turned the knob and discovered the door was already open.
"Eli?" he called, stepping into the dark apartment.
There was music playing softly from a speaker somewhere in the back. The warm air inside hit him, and it was instantly comforting. The place smelled like weed and half-eaten pizza, which was normal.
Typical. Reese closed the door behind him and moved in slowly.
"Eli?"
He walked toward the bedroom, where the sound was coming from, and stopped when he heard the soft noise.
Breathing. Movements. The creaking of the bed that matched the music playing.
He walked toward the open bedroom door and stepped in casually.
Inside, Eli was lying flat on his back with a stick of cigarette between his lips.
A woman straddled him, moving her hips in a slow, practiced rhythm. Her long dark hair stuck to the sweat along her spine—and her face.
Reese didn't move at first. He just stood there, trying to fix his expression somewhere between disgust and disappointment.
"You should start locking your door, man," he said finally, announcing his presence.
Eli's head snapped to the side. His eyes widened in surprise but relaxed as he recognized Reese.
"Reese," he said. "Didn't know you were coming."
Reese looked around the room briefly, then met his eyes. "Tessa came here, right? Her neighbor said she was heading this way."
Eli didn't flinch. "Yeah. But she left a while ago."
Reese nodded once. "Alright."
He turned around to leave, for some reason relieved that his thoughts hadn't been proved right.
He thought of staying till the rain stopped, but when he remembered he had a bet to win—and his girlfriend to look for—he exhaled and pushed the door of the bedroom open.
Suddenly, the lady moaned out, a little too loud, so the sound felt like a shriek to Reese.
"Eli…" she moaned again, warning him, but Reese paused.
His heart dropped like a stone in his chest at the same time the bag in his hands dropped to the ground. He turned, and the girl shifted slightly to adjust her position.
Reese stared for an unhealthy amount of time before opening his mouth.
"...Tessa?"
Her eyes fluttered, then quickly snapped open and froze almost immediately.
Eli didn't say a word. He just watched with a small smirk at the corner of his lips.
Tessa's lips parted, but no sound came, and Reese didn't even bother to wait for an explanation.
She chased him into the rain, barefoot with a blanket around her, soaked and shaking. "Reese, please! Just wait, I can explain!"
He kept walking.
"It wasn't supposed to happen! I didn't plan it..."
Reese stopped, then turned on her like he'd been holding back a fit of rage.
"You didn't plan to ride your cousin? The same one you said you hated? The same one you ran from because your family was toxic as hell? That cousin?!"
Tessa flinched but stood frozen in place. The rain poured harder, but not louder than his voice.
"I was out here breaking my back for us! Losing sleep, starving half the time, picking up shifts I hated, flipping trades, trying to turn pennies into something so you wouldn't have to worry."
"I fucking applied for a lottery that ended up as a scam last week, and it wasn't even my money. You know how much I lost? Millions, Tessa. I blew through everything thinking I could be one of those guys who made it big… for you."
He paced in circles like he didn't know what to do with the rage in his chest.
"Trading flopped. I was behind on rent, behind on bills. But I didn't tell you, I didn't want you stressed. Then when your tuition hit and I didn't have the funds, I went and begged Trey to help out."
Tessa's lip trembled. "Reese…"
"He laughed in my face. He called me a simp. Said no woman was worth that kind of hustle. You know what I told him? I said you were. I said you were worth everything."
He pointed at her.
"I was ready to marry you. I had plans. I was ready to start a damn life with you. I ignored every red flag, every warning sign, every goddamn doubt, because I thought I finally had someone who loved me for me. Not my pockets. Just me."
"Shit," he cussed. "You seriously let me take your first time and I thought that was proving to me you loved me, Tess."
His hands balled into fists. "I let go of all my past bullshit for you. All the pain, the trust issues, the fake friends."
His voice dropped low, shaking with a different kind of rage now. "And this whole time… you were getting clapped by your own cousin? That's what I was grinding for? That's what I was starving for?"
Eli strolled up with his hood on like he wasn't in the wrong.
"Yo, chill bro," he said casually. "She made a mistake. Doesn't mean she ain't care about you."
Reese looked at him like he wanted to kill something. "Mistake? This isn't cheating on a quiz, idiot."
Eli rolled his eyes. "Man, you aren't even the only one. Ask her about her psych professor. The gym coach. That old-ass tutor. She's out here surviving however she could."
Tessa gasped. "Eli, shut up!"
Reese's eyes snapped back to her. "Tell me he's lying," his eyes glistened. "If you tell me it's a lie, I'll look past this like it was a mistake."
Tessa didn't say anything. She just stood there, staring and crying.
Reese just laughed. "You really had me out here thinking I was your hero while you were getting saved by every dick that offered a ride or a check."
He turned away, walking into the street like he couldn't breathe near her anymore.
"Reese… no… please, don't walk away like this!"
He didn't turn around.
He was halfway across when the first truck screeched around the corner. It would have hit him if she hadn't grabbed his hand and pulled him back.
Eli, like an idiot, stormed up and yanked her away. "Just let him go. It's over already!"
Reese turned around to respond, maybe shout or hit Eli, but a truck crashed into him before he could utter anything.
His body crumpled onto the asphalt on the other side of the road, the impact cracked a lot of bones, even he could feel it.
Blood soon formed a massive pool beneath him, and more streamed from his eyes like tears.
Tessa hurried to his side and dropped to her knees, still sobbing. "Reese! REESE! Please, stay with me!"
His eyes opened just a little. Enough to see her through the blur and the rain.
"You know what hurts the most?" he croaked, coughing blood.
"I really thought… you were my way out. I thought I could finally be seen."
His voice was barely audible, but he kept going. "I threw away everything for you. My savings. My pride. My future…"
"I even planned on buying the diamond ring you always wanted, Tess... I seriously just made my first win and I wanted to celebrate with you."
He gave her one last, broken look.
"…Should've known better."
"I don't even know the difference between you and a roadside hoe."
Then he went silent. The only thing he could hear was the muffled sound of sirens, and her sobbing.