The Night I Let Go novel Chapter 1

"Honey, Ethan's my best friend, and he's not doing well now. I really need to be there for him! I might not make it home tonight, so don't worry about waiting for me!"

It was midnight. Zachary Lloyd was sitting in the hospital ward, staring at the WhatsApp message his wife, Wendy Jennings, had sent five hours earlier. A rush of bitterness came over him.

They'd been married for five years, and today was supposed to be their anniversary. Wendy had asked Zachary to book a reservation at a restaurant and invite all their friends to celebrate.

But after waiting two hours, she still hadn't shown up. Zachary kept calling her, but there was no answer. It wasn't until dinner was over and he had reluctantly said goodbye to their friends that Wendy finally messaged him.

Zachary was furious. This was the fourth time this month Wendy had flaked on him, and it was always because of that guy, Ethan Chandler.

The first time, Ethan had a work issue, and she went to help him out with a client. The second time, he'd broken up with his girlfriend, gotten into a bar fight while drunk, and ended up at the police station.

Then, there was the third time he lost a game of truth or dare and called her for help. They even ended up sharing a drink. And now, it was because Ethan was sick!

Wendy always seemed to prioritize Ethan over everything else. Zachary had never really gotten it before, but tonight, one of Wendy's close friends filled him in on Wendy's history with Ethan.

They had been together during university and dated for four years before splitting up right after graduation. Ethan decided to go abroad to further his studies, and Wendy wasn't on board with that, so he ended things.

He had been the one person Wendy just couldn't move on from ever since.

About a month after they broke up, Zachary came into Wendy's life. He was smitten the moment he laid eyes on her. After three months of trying hard to win her over, he finally succeeded.

Wendy had no idea that Zachary was far from ordinary. His mother, Lauren Delaney, was a big name in finance and had set up an arranged marriage for him when he was still a kid.

However, Zachary chose Wendy instead, which led to a serious fallout with Lauren. After that, she cut him off completely and stopped supporting him financially.

Still, Zachary never looked back. He had been genuinely happy in the five years they'd been married.

He never complained even when Wendy's whims had him quitting his job to be her driver and stay-at-home husband.

He didn't mind even with Wendy's father constantly looking down on him, mocking him, and making his life hard on purpose.

Zachary was ready to give up anything and put up with whatever came his way as long as Wendy was happy.

Their relationship was great at first, but everything changed a month ago when Ethan returned from abroad. When Wendy found out he was back, she rushed to the airport to meet him.

That night, she drank way too much, and it was Zachary who drove her home. As soon as they got back, she shut herself in the room and cried for hours.

That was the first and only time Zachary had seen Ethan since he came back.

Ethan was charming and handsome. Wendy had told Zachary that Ethan was the heartthrob of their university and had tons of admirers.

Zachary had just shrugged it off with a smile back then, thinking it was none of his concern. He had no idea that the guy he'd dismissed as irrelevant would soon become a big source of tension in their marriage just a month later.

After dinner, Zachary got Ethan's contact info from a friend. He wanted to reach out to Wendy directly, but she had turned off her phone after that last message. So, he called Ethan instead.

When Ethan picked up, he said that Wendy was in the shower and would be crashing at his place for the night, so there was nothing to worry about.

That really set Zachary off. He yelled at Ethan on the phone, calling him a homewrecker.

However, Ethan simply shot back, "The real third wheel is the one who isn't loved." Then, he hung up.

Zachary was devastated. He'd been so desperate to find Wendy that he ended up crashing his car while looking for her.

Luckily, he only came away with a few sprains and bruises, but it still landed him in the hospital, where he'd been kept under observation until now.

The doctor gave him the green light to leave when his phone chimed. It was a message from Ethan on WhatsApp. Zachary opened it to see that Ethan had sent him three photos of Wendy.

In the first shot, her eyes were hazy from the alcohol, and her expression was full of longing. The second one showed her lounging in a hotel bathrobe, raising a glass of wine for a toast.

The third photo showed her lying in bed, eyes closed like asleep. Her bare shoulders peeked out from under the blanket.

The photos hit Zachary like a punch to the gut. The pain was so overwhelming that he felt breathless. His vision blurred, and he nearly buckled under the weight of it all.

He was typing a message with shaky hands when he saw that Ethan had deleted all three photos. When Zachary finally pressed send, he found that the message didn't go through.

The emotions crashing over him in that moment were beyond words.

Zachary left the hospital and realized it had started to rain. Instead of trying to hail a cab, he walked through the downpour, heading back to the home he'd shared with Wendy for the past five years.

Then, he stepped onto the balcony, staring into the vast darkness as he lit one cigarette after another. Memories from his childhood and beyond rushed back—scenes filled with beauty, sweetness, innocence, the thrill of first love, happiness, heartache, and despair.

"How did I get so weak and pathetic? I wasn't like this before! When did I start to lose myself? When did I become so afraid of losing it all? No way! This isn't who I am! I… can't keep living like this!"

Something changed within Zachary, and a spark of hope flickered in his once dull eyes. He took a deep breath, went back to his room, grabbed a clean set of clothes, and rushed to the bathroom.

Ten minutes later, Zachary returned to the living room and called a number he hadn't dialed in five years—Lauren's.