My Ex Gave My Savings to His "Mentee," So I Ruined Him

My boyfriend was supposed to meet my parents today, but dinner time had passed, and he was nowhere to be seen.

I sent three Snapchats and made two FaceTime calls. No response.

In the private room of the restaurant, my parents asked me about him several times. I couldn't even make up a decent lie anymore.

Finally, my phone buzzed. His voice came through, filled with half-hearted apology:

"Lily had an emergency, and Im sorting it out. Go ahead and eat without me. Don't wait."

I frowned. "Lily? That junior from your college?"

"Yeah, she got scammed and desperately needs cash. I lent her that money we savedall 0-05,000 of it. Its tough for her being alone in this city, I had to help her get settled."

I held my phone, my fingertips turning icy cold.

"So, you stood my parents up to deliver money to your college junior? And you used my money to do it?"

"Its an emergency, Chloe. Just explain it to your parents for me..."

I cut him off:

"No need. Go enjoy settling her in. We don't need to see each other ever again."

The other end of the line went dead silent for a second. He probably didn't expect me to say that.

"What do you mean by that?"

Ethans voice carried a hint of confusion, mixed with a trace of impatience.

"Im just handling a temporary emergency. Why are you throwing such a tantrum?"

I stared at the cheesy baked lobster on the table. My mom had specifically ordered it because she knew it was his favorite.

"Im not throwing a tantrum."

"I made myself very clear. We don't need to see each other ever again."

"Chloe, can you please be reasonable? Lily is a young girl, and shes going through a crisis alone in this city. How could I just ignore her? If it were you, would you want everyone to just stand by and do nothing?"

I almost laughed out loud.

"Ethan, out of that 0-05,000, ten grand was what I saved from my side hustles over the past two years. I dont care who you lent it to. Give me my ten grand back within three days."

"Are you insane? The money is already gone! Where am I supposed to get ten thousand dollars in three days?"

"Thats your problem."

I stood up and grabbed my coat from the back of the chair.

"Three days. If I don't see the money, Im getting my lawyer involved."

"Chloe! Dont be so dramatic!"

"Im being dramatic?"

"Today was the first time my parents were supposed to meet you. I started booking the restaurant and researching the menu two weeks ago."

"I stayed awake until 3 a.m. last night, worrying youd get stuck in traffic, worrying youd be nervous, worrying my dads questions would be too hard on you.

And what did you do? You took my hard-earned money to play the hero."

With that, I hung up and shut down my phone.

My mom sat across from me. Her eyes were red, but she held back her tears.

My dad took a sip of his coffee, then set it down.

"Dad, Mom," I forced a smile. "Im sorry. I embarrassed you guys."

"Don't say silly things like that,"

My moms voice was a bit cracked.

"Why should you be embarrassed? Youre not the one who did something shameful."

My dad remained silent.

"The food is getting cold. Ill ask the waiter to reheat it," I said, pressing the service bell.

"Chloe,"

My dad finally spoke.

"What do you plan to do about this guy?"

"We are over."

My mom blinked. "Are you sure you dont want to sleep on it?"

"Mom, he stood me and you guys up on a day like today just to take care of some college junior."

"Whats going to happen when we get married? When Im giving birth in the hospital, is he going to run off to take care of her too?"

My dad nodded. It was a very subtle gesture, but I saw it.

"Break it off then,"

My dad said. "Its better to see his true colors now than later."

The waiter came in and took the dishes away.

My mom took the opportunity to squeeze my hand.

"Sweetie, I just feel so bad for you," she whispered. "You prepared so long for today..."

"Im fine," I squeezed her hand back. "Just think of it as a nice family dinner."

When the food was served again, my mom insisted on putting a piece of steak on my plate.

"Eat up, don't let it go to waste. The steak here is actually really good."

After dinner, I walked my parents to the subway station.

Right before the turnstile, my mom suddenly turned around and gave me a tight hug.

"If he doesn't give you that money back, tell me. I have some savings."

"No need, Mom," I patted her back. "I can handle this myself."

My dad stood at the gate, looking back at me.

He didnt say anything, but he gave me a reassuring wave.

Instead of calling an Uber, I decided to walk all the way back.

It took me forty minutes to reach the apartment complex where I had lived for the past two years.

It was an old, run-down brick walk-up.

The hallway lights were perpetually broken. I pulled out my phone, turned on the flashlight, and climbed the stairs step by step.

When I reached the door, I pulled out my keys. Before I could even insert them into the lock, I heard voices coming from inside.

The door opened.

The living room lights were on, and there was a pair of unfamiliar canvas shoes at the entrance.

"Chloe?"

A female voice came from inside, sounding a bit panicked.

I looked up and saw Lily standing up from the living room couch.

Behind her was Ethan. He was standing by the table, holding a disposable paper cup.

"Why are you back?" Ethan frowned, his tone carrying an accusatory edge.

I leaned against the doorframe.

"This is my apartment. Why wouldn't I come back?"

"Thats not what I meant."

He paused.

Lily stood there, looking incredibly awkward and uneasy.

"Chloe, Im so sorry. This is all my fault. Ethan was just trying to help. Please don't blame him..."

"You don't need to apologize to me,"

I cut her off.

"Hes the one who lent the money, not you."

Ethan slammed the paper cup onto the table and took a few steps toward me.

"Chloe, don't talk like that. Lily is really going through a tough time. She got scammed and couldn't even pay her rent"

"So you brought her to our home?"

"What do you mean 'brought her home'? Im just letting her crash here for a couple of days. Shell leave as soon as she finds a place."

I glanced at the living room.

A thin blanket was spread over the couch, and the pillow was the memory foam one Ethan usually used.

"You're sleeping on the couch?"

"Yeah. She gets the bedroom, and I take the couch,"

He nodded, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Its just for a few days."

"Ethan, did you even bother to ask me? This is a shared apartment. You let a third person move in without even consulting me?"

He was stunned for a moment, then his expression turned impatient.

"Well, weren't you supposed to be staying at your parents' place tonight anyway? Besides, it was an emergency. She had nowhere else to go tonight."

"So because she has nowhere to go, she gets to move into my home?"

"Does she not have other friends? No coworkers? Can't she stay at a hotel?"

Lilys eyes welled up with tears, and her voice began to tremble. "Chloe, Im really, really sorry. Ill leave right now..."

"Where do you think youre going?"

Ethan turned and grabbed her arm to stop her, then looked back at me with absolute disapproval.

"Chloe, thats enough. Shes just a young girl who just started her internship in this city. She has nobody else to help her. Do you really have to be this heartless?"

"I'm being heartless?"

Suddenly, an overwhelming wave of exhaustion hit me.

"Youre right. I dont have to deal with this." I walked straight into the bedroom, pulled open the closet, and started stuffing my clothes into a suitcase.

Ethan followed me in. Seeing me packing, his voice finally lost its confident edge. "What are you doing?"

"Moving out."

"Are you crazy? Over something this small?"

"Something this small?"

I slammed a sweater into the suitcase.

"Ethan, do you have any idea where you were supposed to be today? You were supposed to be at the restaurant, sitting across from my parents."

My hands were shaking, but I didn't stop.

"And what happened? We waited for you for an hour. My parents asked me three times where you were, and I couldn't even come up with a single lie."

"I was actually terrified that you had gotten into a car accident. I was literally about to start calling local hospitals to check on you."

I zipped the suitcase shut and stood up to look him dead in the eye.

"And all that time, you were busy playing white knight to your junior. With my money. Ten thousand dollars! You didn't even ask me before you transferred it out of our shared account."

He fell silent.

"And now, youre telling me she got scammed and couldn't pay rent, so shes living in our apartment."

"Ethan, tell me. If you lent her fifteen grand, how on earth is she still unable to afford rent?"

I stared at Ethan, waiting for his answer.

He opened his mouth, his eyes darting away.

"She got scammed out of nine thousand. Out of that fifteen grand, I left her one thousand for her living expenses."

"So out of fifteen thousand, nine thousand went to pay off her scam debt, and you gave her another grand in cash?"

"Yeah."

Lily, who had quietly crept to the bedroom door at some point, was now letting her tears stream down her face.

"Chloe, I swear I didn't know that money belonged to you. Ethan told me it was his own savings, that's why I..."

"Save your tears,"

I pulled the handle of my suitcase up.

"Crying won't solve anything."

Ethan stepped forward, trying to grab my hand. "Chloe, don't leave yet. Lets talk about this."

"Talk about what?"

Lily whispered from the doorway, "Chloe, how about I give you back that one thousand first..."

"That one thousand was mine to begin with,"

I looked at her.

"You getting scammed out of nine grand is your own business. But my ten grand? I want every single cent back."

"How can you be so cold-hearted?"

Ethans voice suddenly spiked.

"Shes completely broke right now! Where do you expect her to get that kind of money?"

"Like I said, thats your problem."

Lily suddenly rushed forward and grabbed my arm.

"Chloe, please don't leave. Ill go. Ill leave right now. I won't stay here anymore."

"Let go of me."

"Chloe, I beg you..."

"I said, let go!"

I yanked my arm back.

The force made her stumble backward, bumping into the shoe rack with a loud thud.

Ethans face went pale. He rushed to support her, then whipped his head around to glare at me as if I had committed some heinous crime.

"Chloe! What is wrong with you?!"

Looking at the way he shielded Lily, everything suddenly became crystal clear.

"You have three days to return my ten thousand dollars. Otherwise, I will contact my lawyer immediately."

His expression shifted to one of sheer disbelief.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Try me."

I opened the door and dragged my suitcase out.

The hallway light was still broken. I pulled out my phone and turned on the flashlight.

Behind me, Lilys crying voice echoed down the stairs, "Ethan, please go after her..."

After dragging my suitcase for twenty minutes, I checked into a cheap motel near our apartment.

About ten minutes later, my phone rang.

It was my mom.

I took a deep breath and answered.

"Hey, Mom."

"Did you get home safe?"

Her voice was calm, as if nothing had happened this afternoon.

"Yes, Mom. Don't worry."

I didn't tell her I was staying at a motel.

"Good,"

She paused.

"Chloe, about that money... don't stress too much. Ill transfer you two thousand dollars tomorrow so you have some cash on hand."

"No need, Mom. I can handle it."

"Listen to me,"

My moms voice suddenly turned serious.

"Youre on your own out there, you need to have cash. That ten thousand was money you worked so hard to save. If he doesn't pay it back, you can't just let it go."

"I know, Mom. I gave him three days."

"Three days?" My mom was quiet for a moment. "What if he really doesn't pay?"

"Then Im taking him to court."

Silence stretched over the line for a few seconds, and then my mom let out a soft laugh.

"Good. Do exactly that."

After hanging up, I took a hot shower.

When I got out, I saw six missed calls on my phone.

All of them were from Ethan.

After the sixth missed call, he had sent a Snapchat:

"Chloe, you absolutely terrified Lily. Shes been crying in the living room for two hours. Do you even have a conscience?"

I stared at the message for a long time.

Even now, all he cared about was his precious junior.

I didn't reply. I turned off my phone and went to sleep.

The next morning at 7 a.m., I was woken up by a loud knocking on my door.

"Room service," a mans voice called out.

I froze. I hadn't ordered any room service.

I walked to the door and peered through the peephole.

It was Ethan.

I had no idea how he had tracked me down to this motel.

I didn't open the door.

"Chloe, I know youre in there. Open the door."

I pulled my hand away from the doorknob and took a step back.

"If you don't open the door, Ill just stand here all day."

"Suit yourself,"

I muttered, then went into the bathroom to brush my teeth.

By the time I finished washing my face and checked the peephole again, he was still there.

He was leaning against the hallway wall, typing furiously on his phone.

My phone vibrated.

It was a text from an unknown number.

"Chloe, let's talk. I can explain everything about Lily, and Ill find a way to get the money back. Please don't shut me out like this, okay?"

I put my phone down and packed my things.

Ten minutes later, I dragged my suitcase and swung the door open.

He immediately straightened up.

"Chloe"

"Move."

"Can you just listen to me for five minutes?"

"No."

I dragged my suitcase toward the elevator.

He caught up and grabbed the handle of my suitcase.

"Chloe! Just let me explain!"

I stopped and looked at him.

"Go ahead," I let go of the handle and crossed my arms. "Im listening."

"I didn't handle the situation with Lily well,"

He took a deep breath.

"But Chloe, I swear I didn't mean anything else by it. Shes just a young girl who just graduated. She didn't know any better and got scammed out of nine thousand dollars."

"That money included the tuition fees her parents scraped together for her. She was so desperate she was having dark thoughts..."

"And?"

"So I couldn't just stand by and watch. If it were you, you wouldn't have ignored her either."

"Ethan, don't bring me into this."

I looked directly into his eyes.

"If it were me, I would have helped her file a police report. I would have helped her get free legal aid. I would have gone to the bank with her to freeze her accounts."

"But I would never have stolen our shared savings to pay off her debt, and I definitely wouldn't have done it without consulting my partner first."

He fell silent.

"Furthermore, you brought her into our apartment, let her stay in my room, and sleep in my bed. Did you even once consider how I would feel?"

He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"Ethan, save your breath."

I grabbed my suitcase handle again.

"You have two days left to return the money. Once you pay me back, we are completely done."