Ch. The Group Chat Without Me, The Life They Had Without Me 6 The Group Chat Without Me, The Life They Had Without Me 6

Chapter 6 

I didn’t go. 

At three the next afternoon, I was tying a ribbon around a bouquet of white lisianthus at the flower 

shop. 

My phone sat on the counter, buzzing over and over. 

Caleb called four times. I didn’t answer once. 

Finally, he sent a long message. 

Caleb: [Nora, what exactly do you want from me? You said you wanted to break up, and I didn’t stop 

you. You wanted to move out, and I let you. I gave you time to calm down. Don’t you think you owe me a chance to explain? Don’t you think you’re being immature?] 

I turned my phone facedown and kept wrapping the flowers. 

The flower shop owner was Dana Walsh, a divorced woman in her forties raising a child on her own. 

She saw my expression but didn’t ask any questions. She set a cup of hot water beside me. 

“Once you’re done trimming those flowers, go take a break in the back. Don’t push yourself.” 

That night, I lay in bed in my new apartment and thought for a long time. 

Eventually, I opened my phone and sent Caleb a message. 

Me: [There’s nothing left to say. I’ll pick up the rest of my things next week. It doesn’t matter 

whether you’re there.] 

He replied immediately. 

Caleb: [Nora, are you really this heartless? We were together for four years, and you can throw it all away just like that?] 

I typed a response, then deleted it. 

In the end, I sent only one word. 

Me: [Yes.] 

I took half a day off on Wednesday to collect my things. 

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i deliberately went while Caleb was supposed to be at work. 

But when I opened the door, Rachel was sitting on the living room couch. 

She stood when she saw me, wearing a condescending smile. 

“Nora. You’re here.” 

“Rachel, what are you doing here?” 

“Caleb said you were coming today. He was worried you’d wear yourself out moving everything, so he asked me to help.” 

I looked around. 

Fruit and snacks had been arranged on the coffee table as though someone had prepared for my 

arrival. 

She wasn’t there to help. 

She was there to corner me. 

“There’s no need. I don’t have much left.” 

“Sit down for a while. Have some coffee.” 

She took my arm and tried to press me down onto the couch. “What’s going on between you Caleb? Why are you two fighting when everything was fine?” 

“This isn’t a fight. We broke up.” 

“Every couple fights.” 

and 

“And you take everything too personally. Caleb may not be good with words, but he does care about you.” 

I looked at her, struck by how strange the whole thing was. 

She had been part of the group chat. 

She was the one who had said no one could let loose when I was around. 

Now she sat there putting on the concerned-sister act, trying to talk me into taking him back. 

“Rachel, who created that group chat?” 

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Her smile stiffened. 

“What group chat?” 

“Life’s Better Without Nora Bennett.”” 

“Oh, that.” She waved a hand and laughed. “The name was just a joke. Don’t take it so seriously.” 

“If the name was a joke, were all the gatherings you hid from me for two years jokes too?” 

Her expression finally cracked. 

She sighed, then adopted a patient, patronizing tone. 

“Nora, I’m going to be honest with you.” 

“We didn’t hide things because we wanted to hurt you. It’s just that sometimes you can be a little… 

difficult to be around.” 

“How?” 

“You take everything too seriously.” 

“At the last get-together, someone told a joke, and you had to correct the way he worded it. After 

that, no one knew what to say.” 

“And that time at karaoke, you told Dylan he was singing off-key. You embarrassed him in front of 

everyone.” 

I remembered both incidents. 

The joke made women the punch line, so I had said, “That’s not really okay.” 

As for Dylan’s singing, he had asked me what I thought, and I had answered honestly. 

“So because I told the truth, everyone was justified in shutting me out?” 

“That isn’t what I meant.’ 

She paused and changed her tone. 

“Nora, you can’t be so rigid about everything.” 

“People go out to have fun. Who can stand it when you keep killing the mood?” 

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I stood. 

“I’m here to get my things. Please move.” 

She stepped aside. 

I went into the bedroom and packed my remaining books, several pieces of clothing, and a storage 

box into bags. 

When I came back out, Rachel was still sitting on the couch, looking displeased. 

“Nora, are you seriously never coming back?” 

“No.” 

“Have you thought this through? Caleb won’t wait forever.” 

I carried my things to the door. 

“I don’t need him to wait.” 

The door closed behind me. 

When I reached the entrance to the apartment complex, a car was parked at the curb. 

The window rolled down. 

It was Caleb. 

He wasn’t dressed for the office, and it looked as though he had skipped out of work to come there. 

“Get in. I’ll drive you.” 

“No.” 

“Nora.” 

He opened the door, got out, and stood in front of me. “Can you stop acting like this?” 

“I know I was wrong. I shut down the group chat.” 

I stopped walking. 

“You shut it down?” 

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“Yes. Last night.” 

“So?” 

He stared at me. “So I fixed it. What else do you want me to do?” 

“Caleb, you shut down the group chat. Then what?” 

“Dylan still doesn’t like it when I tell the truth, and Rachel still thinks I’m too rigid.” 

“Brooke will still coordinate with all of you behind my back, and Owen will still think you matter 

more than I do.” 

“Does shutting down one chat fix any of that?” 

He opened his mouth, but no answer came. 

“You didn’t shut it down because you finally understood that what you did was wrong. 

“You did it because I left, and you needed something you could use to get me to come back.” 

“I-” 

“You’ve never believed they treated me unfairly. You still think I’m the problem.” 

He fell silent. 

A long time later, he said quietly, “Nora, I honestly don’t know what I’m supposed to do to make 

you happy.” 

I laughed softly. 

Even now, what he really meant was that I was too difficult to please. 

“You don’t need to make me happy anymore.” 

I raised a hand and hailed a cab. 

As it pulled away, I saw Caleb in the rearview mirror, still standing where I had left him. 

He didn’t follow me or call out. 

He simply stood there with his hands in his pockets, as though my leaving was something he would only need a little time to get used to. 

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