For an entire month, Caitlin tried to deny the reality that she had been abandoned. Their relationship was truly over—Tobey had blocked all her access to him. Things would have been easier if they had broken up amicably, but reality always contradicted expectations. And now, Caitlin had to learn to accept the situation.
She burned the gifts and every item that reminded her of her ex-boyfriend, whose name she now refused to mention. Caitlin also deleted all their photos and videos together. Forgetting their relationship in the blink of an eye was impossible, but she was doing her best.
"Why is there so much?" she muttered while tearing up papers and throwing them into the fire.
She watched the flames grow bigger as she burned everything in a trash can. Days ago, she had asked the building owner for permission to burn her trash in the designated area near the apartment complex.
"Tobey!" someone shouted.
Caitlin turned toward a group of teenagers riding their bikes through the alley near her apartment. She scoffed and muttered under her breath, annoyed that her ex-boyfriend had such a common name. A week after Christmas, Caitlin went about her days as usual. She only left her apartment to buy necessities, spending the rest of her time lazing around in her room.
But that afternoon, on her day off, she decided to take a walk. She stopped by a record store to enjoy some old music or perhaps find a rare vinyl for her collection. So far, she had only browsed and hadn’t felt compelled to buy anything.
"I want something soft and soothing," she murmured while scanning the tall shelves.
After indulging herself in old songs that all felt unfamiliar, Caitlin took the subway home, simply because she was bored of taking the bus. She wanted to try something new, to momentarily escape her reality. Maybe her predictable, mundane life had made Tobey bored enough to cheat on her in secret. Some passengers were busy reading books, while others were glued to their phone screens. After a while of observing people, Caitlin decided to check her social media.
Her scrolling stopped abruptly when she stumbled upon a particular post. "Whoa."
For a few moments, her eyes were fixed on a picture of a man sitting in a café, holding a cup of coffee. The comment section was flooded with women praising his good looks, calling him handsome, cool, and saying they wanted to "order" him again.
"Order?" Caitlin frowned.
She didn’t fully grasp what she had just seen, nor why thousands of comments on the man’s post left her so confused. But seconds later, realization dawned on her. Her mouth fell open, and she instinctively covered it with one hand in shock.
A wild thought crossed her mind—if she were to die today, she shouldn’t waste the chance to experience everything she wanted while she was still alive. Caitlin had to try everything, even if it meant sinning.
She shoved her phone into her jacket pocket just as the next station announcement played. Annoyed at her own foolish thoughts, she checked her bank account balance. She scratched her temple and shook her head in frustration.
"This is three months’ worth of salary," she muttered.
Closing her eyes, she hugged herself before stepping out of the subway car. On the way home, she couldn’t shake off Daniel’s image from her mind. For a fleeting moment, she lost all reason. Back at her apartment, Caitlin tried to sleep, but Daniel’s handsome face haunted her thoughts. The curiosity gnawed at her.
"One more hour until the day ends. I can't hold back any longer."
She had made up her mind. This time, she wouldn’t regret her decision. With her heart pounding erratically, she finally sent Daniel a message—an invitation to meet—leaving her personal contact details along with it. Half an hour passed. Caitlin waited anxiously, biting her nails out of worry. What if he ignored her? Maybe Daniel was just joking in his post. Or maybe he only met with exceptionally beautiful women.
"Oh my God!" Caitlin shrieked when her phone rang with an incoming call from an unknown number. "Hello?" she hesitantly answered.
"Is this Caitlin? When do you want to meet?" He asked.
His voice was deep and mature, just like any other British man’s, but there was an undeniable playfulness in his tone. If Daniel was just playing around, Caitlin hoped he wouldn’t laugh at her or get mad at her boldness in asking him out first.
"Are you busy? Am I bothering you?" she asked cautiously.
"Not at all. I can come over now if you send me your address, Cat."
Caitlin scratched her temple. "Huh? What?"
"Your name is too long to say. From now on, I’ll just call you Cat."
Her cheeks instantly burned with embarrassment. No one had ever called her that before, not even her ex-boyfriend. For some reason, this stranger gave off an unusual vibe. Maybe this would be the first and last time they ever met, only to forget each other afterward.
"Alright, suit yourself. Uh… are you serious about coming now? I mean… it’s almost midnight."
"Of course," Daniel replied casually.
Caitlin sent him her address, and in less than an hour, Daniel was at her apartment door. The night was freezing, and Daniel shivered slightly as he pulled his black jumper tighter around himself.
"Hey, you're just as cute as your voice," he said with a charming smile.
Caitlin was so mesmerized that she didn’t know how to respond. Seeing Daniel in person—real, standing in front of her—was almost surreal. He was even more attractive than in his photos. If she had to spend three months’ salary on something, she would never regret this.
"Can I come in? It’s freezing out here," Daniel asked politely.
Caitlin had been so dazed staring at him that she forgot to open the door. She quickly stepped aside to let him in. He walked in naturally, as if he had been here hundreds of times before. Daniel seemed completely at ease, unbothered by the fact that this was a woman's private space.
"Have you eaten? I got some fried chicken and cold soda. There’s apple juice too, if you prefer that," Daniel said, unwrapping the fast food he had brought.
"Thanks, but you really didn’t have to," Caitlin replied, taking a seat on the couch opposite him.
"Of course, I had to. I’m not free, you know," Daniel teased with a wink.
But Caitlin’s thoughts were completely different. Daniel had told her he was paid to be someone’s companion when they felt lonely. But she suspected that was just a polite explanation because they had already agreed on a set price she could afford.
They quickly grew comfortable with each other, and Caitlin, slightly tipsy from a few drinks, ended up pouring her heart out. She vented about her painful breakup, cursed her ex and his pregnant girlfriend, and Daniel listened, laughing throughout her entire rant as they finished their meal.
"You were really stupid, Cat. You let yourself be fooled just because he said he was busy."
"Yeah, I was stupid," Caitlin sighed before laughing again, munching on a soggy French fry.
That night, Daniel stayed over—on the couch in the living room. By morning, when Caitlin woke up, he was already gone. After that night and their brief introduction, Caitlin continued seeing Daniel. She paid him after every five or seven meetings a month. But there was one rule that could never be broken in this arrangement: Clients were not allowed to fall in love with Daniel. If Caitlin ever let slip that she had fallen for him and wanted him as her real boyfriend, Daniel would end their relationship immediately.