Chapter 1: Three Stabs
My stomach was on fire. Three stabs. Three.
And there he was, Ethan, my boyfriend, the promising police cadet, shielding his precious ex-girlfriend. He actually had the nerve to tell me it was "for the greater good."
For the greater good. Right. Because protecting your ex is clearly more important than saving your girlfriend from bleeding out.
So, later, when I finally found someone who actually put me first, Ethan had the audacity to drop to his knees and swear he'd done nothing wrong.
I just gave him the finger. "You're right, you're blameless. You and your precious little ex can rot in hell for all I care! You're such an a**hole!"
"Katherine," Emily whined, her voice dripping with fake sweetness, "I really had nowhere else to go. Ethan said he'd take me out, just to get my mind off things. I didn't realize it would bother you. I'm so sorry."
Ethan was half an hour late, and this, this thing, was what he brought with him.
I plastered on a smile, "Ethan, do you even remember what you said to me yesterday? Care to enlighten me about what's going on in that brain of yours?"
Ethan's face went white, and he grabbed my hand, "Don't be like that. So what if we had something before? We weren't even together, officially. She's just a neighbor, a family friend. I have to look out for her."
"A family friend? One you've slept with? Is that why you've bailed on me, what, five times now, just to play her knight in shining armor?"
"There were reasons. Stop being such a drama queen."
I yanked my hand away, wiping it on a tissue like he was some kind of disease. "This is the last straw." I'm done after this. I've put up with so much crap, I deserve a medal for putting up with this.
But Ethan, of course, thought I was giving in. Again. He grinned, practically skipping over to Emily, taking her bag while conveniently ignoring the one on my shoulder.
"Ethan," Emily said, her voice sickeningly sweet, "buy some flowers for that girl in the white dress. You need to keep your girlfriend happy, you know."
Chapter 2: Punchline
And there I stood, in my black pants, feeling like a complete fool.
I watched Ethan fuss over Emily, hovering around her like she was some pregnant woman about to give birth.
"No, no, she's not my girlfriend. That's my girlfriend," Ethan said, suddenly remembering I existed, and gesturing towards me.
"Oh, right, I'm his little sister," Emily giggled, "Silly me."
The little girl selling flowers looked at me, then at Ethan and Emily, "That's weird. Guess it wasn't meant to be... Some people are just destined to be alone, I guess."
Chapter 3: A Knife's Edge
"Don't move!"
A sharp, cold blade pressed against my side. My mind went blank, replaced by a slithering, terrifying fear.
Frozen, I did the only thing I could think of - I looked at Ethan. My Ethan.
But he was busy. Emily had been grabbed too, and Ethan was wrestling with her attacker, all brave and heroic.
"Ethan! Ethan!"
"Kat, wait! I'll be right there."
I let out a bitter laugh. Waiting was never what I wanted.
"You bitch! I told you not to move!" the man snarling in my ear.
"You all look down on me, don't you? Think you're better than me?"
I stayed perfectly still, praying that my panicked emergency call, placed when I was screaming for Ethan, had actually gone through.
But Emily, of course, couldn't let me have this one thing.
"Katherine, don't call the police!" she yelled, "They'll hurt us if you call! I don't want to die!"
Ethan's head whipped around, his eyes wide and accusing. He didn't say a word, just turned back to Emily's attacker.
And then, it happened. The man behind me went wild.
The knife moved. Once. Twice. Three times. He stabbed me three times in the stomach, his hand clamped over my mouth, muffling my screams.
I crumpled to the ground like a discarded rag doll, my lifeblood seeping away.
As I lay there, watching Ethan play the hero with Emily, I realized why she didn't want me to call the police. She had someone to protect her, even if the police weren't called. I didn't.
Even when I could call for help, my own boyfriend told me to wait.
Chapter 4: Cursed
I heard the sirens.
There was Ethan, cradling Emily in his arms like some kind of action movie hero, soaking up the praise.
Then, a man stepped out of one of the police cars.
He took one look at Ethan holding Emily and punched him, square in the face.
My brother.
"Ethan, you a**hole! What the hell are you doing holding your ex? Have you no shame?"
"Where's Kat? Don't tell me you spent all this time playing bodyguard to your ex-girlfriend!"
Ethan finally seemed to remember I existed. His face turned ashen.
"No, I was going to save her. I told her to wait."
The little flower girl suddenly pointed at me, "That girl's bleeding! A lot!"
I saw Ethan's face, a mask of disbelief and regret.
"Bro... it hurts," I whispered, my vision blurring.
"Bro, help... help me..."
My brother's eyes were red-rimmed.
The paramedics rushed over, trying to get me onto a stretcher, but every move sent fresh waves of agony through me. I was losing so much blood on the spot.
My brother gently lifted me onto the stretcher, his hands trembling.
"Bro, it hurts so much..." I cried, tears streaming down my face.
He looked like he could barely keep it together. He turned and, with a roar, punched Ethan again, this time in the stomach.
Emily tried to intervene, her voice weak and pathetic, but my brother just slapped her across the face. "I don't hit women, but I make exceptions for bitches like you. So, is trying to steal someone else's boyfriend how you were raised? Some great family values you've got there."
Even doubled over in pain, Ethan rushed to Emily's side. "Bro, don't take it out on other people."
"Don't call me 'bro'! Other people? You brought your ex on a date with my sister! When people got hurt, you only cared about your ex, while my sister was bleeding out right there!"
"Do you have any f**king decency?"
Ethan gasped, shaking his head frantically. "No, Kat's my girlfriend. As a future police officer, I have a duty to protect the public."
"I did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong. Bro, shouldn't I prioritize the safety of civilians?"
My brother, about to get into the ambulance with me, let out a hollow laugh. "Civilians? There were plenty of civilians here. Why was your ex the only one you protected? Why didn't you even check on anyone else? She must have the worst luck in the world to be dating you."
The injured bystanders, their faces pale and drawn, glared at Ethan.
"Scumbag!" they shouted.
Because out of everyone there, he was the only one who could have helped, but he only cared about Emily.
He didn't even let anyone call for help, just because he was afraid Emily might get hurt.
What a joke.
Chapter 5: Scars
Two days later, I woke up.
My brother, mom, and dad were by my bedside, looking like they'd just come from the police station.
"Mom... Dad... Bro..."
My brother was the first to react, his eyes red as he gripped my hand. "You're finally awake. We were so worried."
"Why do you even bother with that Ethan guy? If I hadn't shown up, you'd be dead by the time he remembered you existed."
Mom nudged him, and he shut up.
"Kat, you really scared us. Seeing you lying there in a pool of blood..."
I held onto Mom's hand, just like when she used to comfort me as a child.
"I hate him, Mom. What kind of person is Ethan, to treat me like dirt?"
"Bro, you know what? When that knife first pressed against my back, I called out to him. He told me to wait."
"Emily told me not to call the police. That's when the guy realized I'd called, and he stabbed me. Three times in the stomach."
My brother just stared at his hands, fiddling with his shirt buttons, not meeting my eyes.
"That jerk is probably right outside. Do you want to see him?"
I shook my head, catching sight of a piece of clothing peeking out from behind the door. "I hate him. These three scars are going to remind me of him for the rest of my life."
Chapter 6: A Call
Emily came to see me.
It was when my parents and brother were at work, and I was alone, resting.
She was completely unscathed, her lips painted a cheerful orange. "Thank you," she said, her voice light and airy, "If you hadn't taken those stabs for me, who knows what might have happened. Seriously."
"But, Katherine, can't you see? Ethan's always loved me. He was only with you because he was lonely."
"The one who isn't loved is the real third wheel. Ethan always protects me. No matter what he's doing, he'll drop everything and come running if I call, right?"
She was right. In the short time since Emily had come back into the picture, Ethan had stood me up five times. Every single date had somehow involved her.
I was never Ethan's first choice. It made me sick.
I remembered that time Ethan came to meet my parents. He was sitting there, all polite and proper, when he got a call. He left without a word, right from my family's dinner table.
I overheard Emily saying she'd cut her hand. Ethan told me to wait.
How funny. Her "wait" was so different from my "wait."
Since when did the "greater good" involve rushing off from your girlfriend's parents' house because someone got a paper cut?
I looked at my phone, the recording already running.
"Emily, if you love Ethan so much, why did you break up with him? Do you just enjoy stealing other people's boyfriends?"
Emily examined her perfectly manicured nails, a smirk playing on her lips. "Of course, I got bored. Ethan's got no money, no prospects, just a heart that belongs to me. And look, even after I dumped him, he still loves me."
"But it's kind of fun, you know? He's your boyfriend, but he still came running to me."
I nodded slowly. "Well then, you two really are a match made in hell. One loves stealing other people's boyfriends, and the other claims he's just protecting the public."
