Chapter 6: Rachel—The Girl Next Door

Derek, Rachel, and I were practically raised together. Same block, same schools, carpooled everywhere. Our parents traded recipes, our dads coached Little League, and we were a package deal until graduation.

Rachel was the golden child—straight A’s, piano, track, bake sales. The girl every mom wished was her daughter. She was the prettiest girl in the neighborhood, and every year she got more beautiful.

I’d be lying if I said I never noticed. Her laugh made my stomach do weird flips, but I always figured I wasn’t good enough. She was Ivy League. I just hoped to pass trig.

Too many guys liked Rachel. I even helped deliver love letters to her locker, pretending I was just a helpful friend. She always rolled her eyes, and I’d die a little inside.

One time, after delivering a letter, she barely spoke to me for days. Maybe she was mad at me for being the messenger. Maybe she was mad because she wanted it to be from me.

When she went abroad after graduation, it was like she disappeared overnight—posting from Paris and London while I stayed behind.

Now Derek tells me I married Rachel. It felt like the Browns winning the Super Bowl—impossible and magical.

I laughed. “You’re kidding, right? Like the Browns ever win anything.”

Then the math hit me. “Derek, Finn is four and a half, and I broke up with Emily at twenty-seven. That’s… a pretty tight timeline.”

Derek gave me a look. “We weren’t talking then, but rumor was Emily caught you and Rachel together. Finn must’ve been conceived then.”

I shook my head. Rachel wasn’t that kind of girl. Even if I lost my mind, she wouldn’t be that casual.

Derek shrugged. “Emily probably pulled some dirty tricks. But knowing her, she wanted out and used you and Rachel as an excuse.”

My vision swam. I pressed my palms to my temples, panic rising. No wonder the house felt empty, the housekeeper nervous, Finn so careful. If Rachel married me because of Finn, she must hate me.

“Derek… what do I do now?”

He squeezed my shoulder, solid and familiar. “Be good to Rachel and Finn. You’ve got a second chance, man—don’t screw it up this time.”

I sat in stunned silence, the weight of my new life settling on my shoulders as Finn’s laughter echoed from downstairs.