I wouldn’t pay for my broke classmate Jeremy Mabbitt to go on a trip, so my two closest childhood friends stole the money I had saved for an emergency.

When my grandma was dying, wailing in pain, I didn’t even have enough cash to buy her something as simple as painkillers.

I kept calling those two friends of mine, begging them to give me back just enough—like 10 bucks—so I could get Grandma some aspirin. But they didn’t answer.

When they finally picked up, they sounded fed up and annoyed.

“Listen, Randolf, we didn’t take your freaking card! Please, can you stop accusing us?”

“Stop making such a big deal out of it, alright?”

“Every time we hang out with Jeremy, you always think something’s going on between us! Come on, grow up!”

And in the end, my poor grandma died, her face twisted in pain. That image—it was a haunting sight.

I broke down, feeling like I’d lost a part of me.

Then, to make everything worse, Jeremy sent me a photo.

In the golden glow of the setting sun, my two childhood friends were walking ahead. One of them had a dog’s leash in one hand and Jeremy’s hand in the other.

He also sent me a message.

[They’re here with me, and they’re both mine now.]

I was so crushed that I scrubbed the wedding vows Nella and Allen had tattooed on my skin when we were 10 and they confessed their feelings to me.

On Christmas Eve, they were both dressed up, sitting in separate hotel rooms across the hall from each other—waiting for me to knock on one of their doors. They were ready to give themselves to me, body and soul.

But by then, I’d already left Phoenix and become a San Francisco Peaks forest ranger, spending my life battling loneliness in the wilderness.

——

Randolf’s POV

I’d already laid my grandma to rest and walked out of the cemetery, but my closest childhood friends hadn’t even come by—not even to say goodbye to the old woman who had worked so hard to raise all three of us.

How could they be this cruel at a time like this?

I checked my phone, only to find it flooded with debt collection messages: rent, utilities, the two girls’ tuition, and high-interest loans they’d taken out for Jeremy. The numbers just kept piling up!

I stood there with a blank look on my face, turned to face the man in the suit waiting behind me, and muttered, “Five thousand bucks. Five fingers. Just don’t force them into a nightclub. I’ll pay.”

They picked up stones and walked toward me.

And as I wailed, they broke all five of my fingers.

The pain was unbearable, and I collapsed to the ground, shaking and pale.

In a twisted show of mercy, they brought me to the hospital. Before leaving, one of them patted me on the shoulder.

“You’re loyal, I’ll give you that. We’re square now. Take care of yourself.”

After they left, I lay there trembling and asked the doctor the question that haunted me most.

“Will I still be able to play the piano?”

The doctor shook his head, pity written all over his face.

I knew what that meant.

I lost the skills that I relied on to make a living.

And a bitter laugh escaped me.

When did the two girls, who’d always depended on me as we grew up, become so cold?

Was it when I failed the high school entrance exam that year because I was working part-time to support them?

Or was it when a creepy dude stalked them, and I jumped in front to block the knife aimed at them, scaring the guy off, only for Jeremy to swoop in later and take the credit?

I didn’t know.

Just then, my phone buzzed. It was a text from the two of them.

[Randolf, transfer $200 to us. Jeremy wants to try the lobster tacos at Buck & Rider.]

I replied coldly. [I’ve got zero balance in my account.]

But they didn’t believe me. A voice message came through, and I could hear the frustration in their tone.

“Randolf, what’s your problem? Are you mad at us or something?”

“You make 45 bucks an hour teaching piano lessons! How come you've got zero balance in your account?!”

“Jeremy saved us, remember? Don’t let us turn him down now!”

I replied, my voice still cold.

“Someone broke my fingers. I can never play piano again.”

Randolf’s POV

“Randolf!”

“We already ordered! You want us to get stuck with the bill and look like humiliating idiots at this restaurant?!”

“If you keep acting like this, don’t bother playing the piano at our birthday party the day after tomorrow!”

“Jeremy can play too—he’s way better than you!”

“Then go ask him. I won’t be coming to the party.”

“Randolf! You—”

I locked my phone and ignored the series of video calls coming up.

Leaning against the hospital wall, I stared blankly at the gray sky outside.

Maybe it’s because my two childhood friends have gotten so used to me supporting them that my efforts have become something they take for granted.

Ever since they convinced themselves it was Jeremy who saved them during that incident, they’ve been endlessly grateful to him.

When they found out he was struggling financially, they started supporting him.

I refused, so they stole my bank card.

Under Jeremy’s manipulation, they even had the nerve to take out high-interest loans!

When I confronted them, they just reasoned out, “Why are you so mad at Jeremy? We’re just helping a poor student. It’s called being kind!”

I’ve done everything I could for them, even saving them from the brink of disaster one last time.

There was a time when I felt torn.

Both Browers twins—Nella, the older one, and Allen, the younger—confessed their feelings to me.

I was always caught in the middle, afraid that choosing one would hurt the other.

I kept overthinking.

But now, I no longer need to agonize over whether to marry the elder sister or the younger one.

I choose neither!

I didn’t sleep well that night.

A faint pain in my chest kept troubling me as if the shards of the broken knife were shifting inside.

When I got up in the morning, my face was devoid of color, pale to the point of looking sickly.

I quickly boiled some water and lay down on my cold bed, trying to warm myself up.

Then, I heard banging at the door.

“Hey, open the door!”

“Randolf! Open the door for us!”

Nella and Allen were back.

“Randolf, what’s the meaning of this? Why did you change the lock?”

They sounded irritated, upset that I’d replaced the locks overnight.

I didn’t want to face them, but they wouldn’t stop yelling. So, dragging my tired body, I went to open the door.

When the door swung open, Nella and Allen stood there, glaring at me impatiently.

“Randolf!”

“Do you even know how we—”

Halfway through their words, their eyes fell on my bandaged hand, and their expressions froze in disbelief.

“Randolf, your hand—”

“—what happened?!”

They rushed over, suddenly looking concerned.

I just replied flatly, “It’s broken—courtesy of the debt collectors after you.”

“That’s impossible!”

They shook their heads in unison, refusing to believe me.

“Jeremy guaranteed it. The loans we took out were legit!”

“Stop trying to act like the victim here. If you’d just paid it off like a normal person, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Do you really have to play this sympathy card? Is everything about competing with Jeremy? Honestly, you’re really exhausting!”

I just stayed silent.

In the past, I did make a fuss when I found out they were tangled up with Jeremy.

After all, I was the one who shielded them so they wouldn't get stabbed by some stalker, not him.

But like I said, that was in the past.

Suddenly, Nella stepped closer, grabbing my uninjured left hand.

She traced a delicate finger across my palm, her gaze intense.

“Randolf, tomorrow is our birthday party. Stop being so stubborn.”

“Come spend it with us, okay?”

It was a little secret Grandma once used to comfort us as kids.

When we were young and had nightmares, she would lightly trace her finger over our palms, saying it would keep us safe.

Randolf’s POV

As we got older, it became our little secret, something only the three of us shared.

It symbolized forgiveness and being there for each other.

A single stroke across the palm meant letting the past go.

I didn’t say a word—just nodded in silent agreement.

That’s when Allen suddenly noticed something. Her sharp eyes locked onto my hand, and her face darkened as she blurted out, “Randolf! Where’s the tattoo? We promised you’ll only have it removed once you choose one of us! What happened?”

I turned to her and answered flatly, “It’s gone.”

She wouldn’t drop it, her voice rising in frustration.

“What do you mean it’s gone? Put it back! It’s not even Christmas Eve yet—you can’t remove it yet!”

“Enough!” Nella cut her off. She glanced at my right hand, her eyes full of meaning. “We’re going to get ready, Randolf. Don’t be late, okay?”

“Nella!”

I watched them walk away, and I couldn't help but feel sadder than I’d like to admit.

When did they become so heartless? How could they not grieve for Grandma?

I turned and headed back to my room, grabbing the expensive gifts I’d carefully picked out for them. Gifts for what I knew would be the last celebration we’d ever have together.

As I was leaving, my phone buzzed with a series of messages.

[Boy, you’re a loser who can’t even get to college, and you’re still trying to compete with me? LMAO!]

[Your two little childhood sweethearts already agreed to let me play the piano tomorrow. Guess what? They’re gonna dance to my music!]

[See? You’re nothing but a loser!]

[They’re mine now!]

I replied calmly. [You want them? They’re all yours. No one’s fighting you.]

He texted me back four more times.

[Oh, quit pretending, dude!]

[Are you mad? Think you can outsmart me?]

[So what if you saved them back then? I pulled a few strings, and now they think it was me. You can’t even afford the surgery to get that blade out of your chest, can you?]

[You’re a dead man walking, you pathetic loser!]

The familiar pain in my chest hit me hard again. I gripped the edge of the table, my fingers digging into it, turning white as I fought through the suffocating pressure.

Once the pain passed, I pulled out my phone and called the forest ranger office up in the San Francisco Peaks.

“Hi, I saw your job listing. I saw you’re really short on staff?”

“To be honest, my health’s not great, but I can work hard.”

“Can I join your team?”

The HR on the other end hesitated before asking, “How much hardship can you take?”

I answered without hesitation, my voice steady.

“A lifetime. I’ll dedicate my whole life to protecting the mountain range.”

By the time I got to the birthday party, it was already halfway through.

I’d been planning this for six months, booking the best restaurant in the city to make it perfect.

Under the spotlight, Nella and Allen stood on stage, both dressed in stunning white evening gowns, ready to perform.

Guests murmured in admiration all around me.

“Wow, Nella and Allen… They’re both absolutely gorgeous!”

“Right? I wonder which lucky guy they’ll choose.”

“Isn’t it obvious? Jeremy, of course!”

“He’s the one who paid for this entire birthday party for those two girls!”

I clenched my fists, my face contorting.

I planned this party! I paid for all of it! How did Jeremy end up getting the credit?

“Hey, don’t jump to conclusions! Didn’t they have a childhood friend who dropped out of school? Wasn’t it him?”

“Jeremy? That broke kid? How could he afford all this?”

“You seriously think Jeremy’s poor? I tell you what—I’m not making up a story! The twins said so themselves!”

A bitter smile crept onto my face.

So, Nella and Allen were the ones spreading these lies.

Was it because they went to college and got a taste of a bigger world? Is that why they’re ashamed of me now?

Anger churned inside me, my chest tightening again as the stabbing pain returned.