My hands were trembling as I dialed his number, the weight of everything suffocating me. He picked up after a few rings, his voice tired but familiar.
“Emma,” he said quietly. “What’s going on?”
“Can you meet me?” I asked, my voice shaking. “It’s important, Logan. Please.”
There was a pause, and for a moment, I thought he might say no. But then he sighed. “Okay. Where?”
We met at the park near my house, the one we used to walk through together when everything was simpler. He stood there waiting for me, his hands shoved deep into his jacket pockets, his shoulders hunched against the chill of the evening air.
When I approached, he looked up, his face pale and worn.
“Hey,” I said softly, trying to read his expression.
“Emma,” he began, his voice low and strained. “Before you say anything, I need to talk to you. Please.”
I nodded, my stomach twisting into knots.
“Em,” he said, his voice breaking slightly. “I don’t want to hurt you anymore. I can’t keep doing this to you—or to myself. We can’t live like this. I... I fucked up. Again. And I don’t know how to fix it.”
I stared at him, my heart pounding as I realized where this was going.
“I don’t want to proceed with us anymore,” he said, his words cutting through me like a blade. “I just... I’ll take responsibility for what I did. But I don’t want to keep dragging you into this mess.”
“Logan—”
He held up a hand, his eyes filled with pain. “Let me finish, Emma. I don’t love her. I love you. I’ve always loved you. But I can’t... I can’t do this. I need to turn things around, for my sake and yours too.. Please, forget me. I’ll do the same.”
His words left me speechless, my mind reeling.
“Logan,” I said finally, my voice trembling. “It’s not like that. She’s lying to you. She’s playing you, Logan! She always has been!”
He shook his head, his expression hardening. “Emma, stop. You sound crazy.”
“I’m not crazy!” I cried, stepping closer to him. “Vanessa’s baby isn’t even yours. I’ve seen the proof, Logan. She’s manipulating you!”
His jaw tightened, and he let out a bitter laugh. “I know you don’t want to believe that this is happening, but it’s the truth, Emma. You need to let it go. We both do.”
“No,” I said, my voice breaking. “Logan, listen to me. You don’t have to do this. You don’t have to give up.”
“I’m tired, Emma,” he said, his voice hollow. “I’m tired of fighting, tired of hoping, tired of hurting you. Please, leave me alone. We need to live our new lives, separately. I can’t keep doing this.”
“Logan, please—”
He didn’t let me finish. He took a step back, his gaze flickering over me one last time before he spoke. “Goodbye, Emma.”
And then he turned and walked away.
I stood there in the cold, staring after him, unable to move. My mind screamed at me to run after him, to make him listen, but my body felt paralyzed.
How could this be happening?
He loved me. He said he loved me. And yet, he was leaving me.
The closest person in my life, the one who had always been my anchor, was gone.
I felt the tears before I realized I was crying, hot streams running down my face as my legs gave out beneath me. I sank onto the bench behind me, clutching my chest as if I could hold myself together.
There was no plan, no way forward. I had been holding onto the hope that Logan and I could find our way back to each other, that we could overcome everything.
But now that hope was gone.
I was alone, truly alone, with no idea how to fix what was broken.
And I didn’t know how to move forward.