LAUREN'S POV
I stared down at my phone in complete shock, my fingers trembling as I gripped the device. This was the sixth time I had called Ethan — and still, no answer.
Six calls. Six chances. Six silences.
Each time the call ended without a response, it was like another knife slowly twisting in my chest.
What if it had been something important?
What if it had been life-threatening?
Did he not care enough to even check who was calling?
Even if he was with another woman, even if I meant nothing to him anymore, he should have at least had the decency — the respect — to pick up or call back. Just once. Just enough to ask, “Are you okay?”
But there was nothing. Not even a message.
I clenched my jaw and forced myself not to cry. But it was already too late. My vision blurred, and I f
