Chapter 7: Packing Up the Past

I went inside and put the thirty dollars I’d earned into a box. As I packed, I first sorted out Caleb and Mason’s clothes, about to set them aside when Caleb came in.

The scent of Caleb’s cologne clung to his shirts as I folded them, sharp and unfamiliar now.

He watched what I was doing and said,

"These things—Boise has everything. There’s no need to bring them."

I looked at him in surprise, then immediately understood—he misunderstood.

Caleb walked up, his gaze cold and fixed on me.

"Lillian, we’re heading out tomorrow morning. Don’t forget."

He spoke.

I knew. He’d said the same thing the day he got the job: that he needed three more days to settle things, and after that, he’d move to Boise.

In my previous life, at this time I was still thinking—since Caleb had made it, surely he’d take me and Mason with him. If we all left, what business could he have left?

Later, I learned—

His so-called business was me.

And the ones he wanted to take away—

Were Mason and Aubrey.

I could understand him taking Mason—he was his own son. But Aubrey…

I always held a grudge: why her?

Even though Caleb explained—

Aubrey had once saved his life. He owed her a favor. She wished to become a partner at the firm and work in Boise.

"Aubrey’s resume isn’t strong, and the company’s standards are tough. Only this way can she get in."

So, I became the one left behind.

In my last life, I inevitably quarreled with Caleb over this. But in the end, I was defeated by Mason’s words.

He said, "What would you even do there, Mom? Make PB&Js and watch TV?"

Under Caleb’s guidance, Mason always thought about others, selfless from a young age. He thought that instead of wasting an opportunity, I should give it to someone who needed it more.

I still remember standing in the kitchen, the hum of the refrigerator drowning out my thoughts, feeling the sting of Mason’s words. Even now, I can picture the look on Caleb’s face—a sort of tired, rational disappointment that made me feel childish for wanting to keep my family together.