The Echoes We Leave Behind Chapter 1

At a college reunion, Caleb Thorne's ex-girlfriend "accidentally" spilled red wine all over my new dress.

She panicked, apologizing profusely:

"I'm so sorry, I'll pay for it."

"My wife's dress is a vintage collector's item from last year's auction. The hammer price was one million dollars."

Caleb smiled, his reply light and airy.

* * *

Serena immediately collapsed onto the floor, her face draining of all color.

"Holy shit, a million dollars for a dress. Mr. Thorne is a baller. I bet some people are regretting their life choices right now."

"Didn't she marry some rich kid back then? Does she really not have a million bucks?"

"More like a broke kid. Honestly, she probably couldn't scrape that together even if she sold herself."

The crowd erupted into exaggerated, cruel laughter.

I looked at her with complicated feelings—the ex who had abandoned Caleb all those years ago.

She happened to look up, and our eyes met.

Her eyes were a swirling mess of profound humiliation and bitter resentment.

Just moments ago, in the restroom, she had cornered me. With a slow, arrogant smirk, she said:

"Believe it or not, if I wanted to, I could snap my fingers and he'd come crawling back to me like an obedient dog."

And now, just to get close to Caleb, she intentionally spilled wine on me, creating this exact scenario.

Honestly, I wasn't surprised by her behavior.

After all, Caleb was currently the darling of financial magazines, a tech billionaire with a net worth in the ten figures.

If Serena hadn't married someone else back then, she would be Mrs. Thorne today.

It was just that her words in the restroom made me feel a little defensive on Caleb's behalf.

Caleb took off his suit jacket and draped it over my shoulders. He looked down at Serena, his gaze cold and imposing.

"If you're having financial difficulties, perhaps you could ask your imprisoned ex-husband for a loan."

She clenched her fists, her lips trembling with stubborn pride. "I'll pay you back."

Caleb just laughed. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

"Serena, you really haven't changed a bit."

His tone was completely indifferent, yet it made me feel strangely disoriented.

I had been with Caleb since he had nothing. I had fought by his side as he built his empire from the ground up. I had seen him at his absolute lowest, and I had seen him at his most triumphant.

But I had never seen him act like this—humiliating a woman so viciously, so publicly.

As a result, the crowd's laughter grew even louder and more unrestrained.

I was the only one who noticed that, although he appeared to be mocking her, his eyes never actually left her face.