Chapter 2Everyone Thought He Was the Perfect Boyfriend. Then He Hard-Launched His Ex.

The coffee shop near the campus back gates.

I sat by the window. I waited so long the coffee on the table went from hot to cold before Caleb finally showed up.

He was dressed really strangely today.

Usually, he loved a casual, preppy style. Always in light-colored crewnecks, always with classic black hair, always looking like the boy next door.

But today...

He was dressed entirely in black. A black hoodie, black cargo pants, and his hair was dyed.

He even had a silver hoop earring in his left ear—this from a guy who was notoriously terrified of pain.

I stared, stunned. We hadn't seen each other for exactly two days, and he looked like a completely different person.

Seeing my shock, he just smirked. "She likes it."

Three simple words, and I realized just how completely I had lost this past year.

Caleb was a very egocentric person. While we dated, he treated me incredibly well, but he rarely listened to what I wanted.

Once, I suggested he try a new haircut. He just smiled, ruffled my hair, and said, "Chloe, I don't like it."

And that was the end of that.

I sat frozen for a long time, then cut straight to the chase. "Give me a reason for the breakup."

My reflection was faintly visible in the window glass. The face looking back was calm and cold.

But underneath, I was desperately trying to keep my emotions in check.

I thought Caleb would make some excuses, or at least look a little guilty. He didn't.

He leaned back in his chair, a careless smile on his lips. "Because her waist... is thinner than yours, I guess."

I froze.

Across the table, the corner of his mouth curled up. "Anything else? If not, I'm heading out. If I'm gone too long, she'll get upset."

The moment those words left his mouth, I raised my hand and threw my coffee right in his face.

In that split second, only one thought crossed my mind:

What a shame. The coffee is completely cold.