Chapter 3

I bit my lip. "But I still think it's a good idea to get a health screening..."

"I'll do it when I have time," Jake cut me off. "Anyway, I've got some work to finish tonight. I just wanted to call and let you know I'm okay. You should get some sleep."

Before I could respond, he hung up.

I stared at my phone, stunned. This was the first time since we started dating that Jake had ended the call so abruptly. Was he angry?

After a moment, I texted him: "Goodnight."

Jake didn't reply.

I lay in bed, refreshing my phone, waiting for a response that never came, feeling increasingly uneasy. I closed the messaging app and reopened Reddit, only to see a notification—another post from that same user.

I clicked on it instinctively.

"Hey everyone, I talked to her about the wedding today. She said her family wants something small and intimate, but they'll chip in for some of the costs. I don't know how much they'll contribute, but the more, the better—it could go toward my treatment!"

I froze. A small, intimate wedding? Again? Another coincidence?

I scrolled through the comments. Many were berating him, calling him a monster, and saying they'd expose him to his fiancée.

Someone asked, "What if you don't get enough money?"

He replied quickly, "Then I'll just infect her too. I doubt her family will leave her without money for treatment. And once she gets it, I'll make sure it ends up with me!"

A chill ran through me. What kind of person is this? I couldn't ignore the familiar details in the post, and my fear and doubt grew. I clicked on his profile, hoping to send a private message and find out who he really was.

But as soon as I clicked, I saw that all his previous posts had been deleted. I tried to message him anyway, but it showed an error. He'd disabled private messages.

My unease intensified. I stared at his profile picture, searching for any clue to his identity. I barely slept that night.

The next day, I waited until the afternoon before I finally messaged Jake: "Are you free today?"

A while later, he replied: "I'm on a business trip."

A business trip? Just when I asked him to get a health screening? Why now?

My doubts grew, like a weed that couldn't be pulled. I tried to reassure myself that he might truly be busy. I'd wait until he returned, and then we could talk about the screening again.

But that evening, I saw a photo on his friend's instagram—a picture taken at a bar. Jake's face wasn't visible, but I saw a hand with our matching couple's ring, the one engraved with J&L. It gleamed in the neon lights.

My heart sank. I immediately texted him: "Where are you right now?"

It took him a long time to respond: "Still out of town. Why?"

I stared at the hand in the photo, a sudden chill running through me.

For the next week, I didn't contact Jake at all. He called and texted, but I ignored them.

By the weekend, my parents approached me. "Laura, did you and Jake have a fight? He's been calling us, asking about you."

"He wants to get married but refuses to do a premarital health screening," I told them honestly. "I think something's wrong."

My parents frowned. "That doesn't seem like him. Jake always seemed like an honest guy to us."

I showed them the texts and the photo. They fell silent. Finally, my mom said, "Well, in that case, let me call his parents and see why he's so against the screening."

With my parents backing me up, I felt a sense of relief.

That evening, Jake called again.

This time, I answered.

The first thing he said was, "We'll go get the health screening tomorrow."