My boyfriend claimed that his friendship with his ex was completely innocent—until one photo turned everything upside down.

I never considered myself the jealous type. I had a great job, a stable life, and no reason to doubt my relationship until I saw the photo. A cozy café. Two familiar smiles. And a single comment that made my blood run cold.

I never considered myself the jealous type. Seriously, I didn’t. I had a great job, a beautifully decorated apartment, and a stable relationship with Callum. He was the kind of guy you look for after you hit your 25s—calm, reliable, the one you could plan a future with.

No unnecessary drama, no emotional rollercoasters. But there was a “but”—his ex, Renee.

At first, I convinced myself it wasn’t a problem. I was a mature, confident woman. Many people stayed friends with their exes. It was normal.

Callum had been honest from the start—he and Renee had history, but that was in the past. No feelings, just friendship. I believed him.

I even tolerated their occasional coffee meetups, the inside jokes I wasn’t a part of, and the “coincidences” where she’d show up at the same places we did.

But lately, she’d been showing up way too often. And in that moment, looking at my phone, I was shocked. Odette, my best friend, had sent me a message. No words. Just a photo.

I tapped to open it. Callum. Renee.

Sitting at a cozy café, leaning into each other, smiling as if they shared the simplest connection in the world.

I scrolled down to see more. The date read, “One hour ago.”

One hour ago, Callum had sent me a message: “Working late, the deadline is killing me. I’ll talk later.”

And below the photo, there was a comment that sent a chill down my spine.

“Glad to see you two are back together!”

I blinked. Once. Twice. My heart was pounding in my ears.

A joke? A misunderstanding?

My phone vibrated. Odette was calling. I answered.

“Girl,” her voice was sharp. “If it were my man, his car would be on bricks right now.”

“Odette, we’re not committing crimes today.”

“Who’s talking about crimes? I’m talking about little inconveniences. Maybe a flat tire, a mysteriously disappearing phone charger… a Wi-Fi outage when he needs it most.”

I looked at the photo again. That wasn’t a casual meetup. That wasn’t just friendship.

Callum had lied. And I was about to find out why.

I didn’t confront him immediately. That would have been too easy.

Instead, I pretended.

When Callum walked in the door, I was already in the kitchen, stirring a pot of pasta, acting as though I hadn’t spent the entire night consumed by the image of him at the café.

“Hey, love,” he said, dropping his keys on the counter.

I turned with a warm smile, walking over to give him a kiss.

“Tough day?”

“The worst,” he sighed, hugging me. “Back-to-back meetings, my brain is fried.”

Liar.

I murmured as if I believed him and went back to the stove.

“Dinner’s almost ready. I thought we could have a quiet night, maybe watch something?”

“Perfect. Exactly what I need.”

We ate together, the sound of utensils filling the comfortable silence. I twirled my pasta on my fork, watching him out of the corner of my eye.

He seemed relaxed, completely unaware that I knew.

“So, any interesting projects at work?” I asked casually, sipping my favorite tea.

“Same old. Meetings, deadlines, an endless inbox. You know how it is.”

I nodded, pretending to be absorbed in my plate.

“That sounds exhausting. At least you had a little break today.”

“Actually, no,” he sighed. “Hardly had time to eat.”

I bit my lip to stop from smiling.

Liar.

Instead, I laughed, shaking my head.

“You need to stop working yourself to the bone. You’re going to end up that guy answering emails on date night.”

He laughed.

“Never gonna be me.”

Callum. You have no idea.

Then, curled up on the couch, I watched as he slowly let his guard down. The phone rang.

I felt him stiffen. In the blink of an eye, he flipped it over, screen down.

“Oh,” I said lightly, pretending not to care. “More work?”

He barely glanced at me.

“Yeah. Just some last-minute changes to a project.”

I tilted my head, pretending to think about something.

“Speaking of work… did you see Renee this week?”

He froze. Just for a second. I would’ve missed it if I wasn’t watching him.

“No,” he said quickly.

I picked up my cup and took a slow sip of tea.

“Really?”

He exhaled through his nose, rubbing his neck.

“Well… I ran into her the other day.”

There it was.

“And?”

He picked up his glass of water.

“We just caught up a little. Nothing important.”

I smiled sweetly, nodding as if I’d bought it completely.

“Oh. Right.”

Callum. You’re fine. But I’m better.

We continued watching the movie, his arm around my shoulders. His breathing steadied as exhaustion took over. I let myself relax against him, waiting.

And then, finally—he fell asleep. I carefully shifted, letting his arm slide off me.

Finally, it was my chance. I picked up his phone. Face ID. So easy.

I leaned back, resting my head on my lap, gently stroking his hair. He mumbled something in his sleep but didn’t stir.

“Sweet dreams, darling,” I whispered.

Then, softly, I lifted the phone to his face. The screen unlocked. I held my breath as I looked at his notifications.

Renee: “Can we meet tomorrow? Same café?”

A wave of cold washed over me. So, she was comfortable enough to text directly about meeting up. Not even a hint of caution.

I glanced at the message for a moment, my mind already racing through the possibilities. Then, just as softly, I locked his phone and placed it back on the couch next to him.

At that moment, I knew what I had to do.

I slipped out of Callum’s arm, grabbing my own phone as I tiptoed out of the room. The moment I shut the bedroom door behind me, I called the bank.

The next day, Callum got a surprise.

Tears? Screaming? That wasn’t my style.

If Callum wanted to play his little games, fine—I’d let him think he was winning—until I flipped the board.

I scrolled through my phone, found the café where he and Renee had their “little friendly meetup,” and made an order. A special delivery.

Then I waited. Two hours later, my phone buzzed.

Callum. Perfect.

I let it buzz a few times before answering, keeping my voice light.

“Hey, babe. How’s your night?”

There was silence. Then, a confused and frustrated tone, “Ayla… what did you do?”

I smiled, swirling my milkshake with my straw.

“Hmmm? You sound stressed. Did something happen?”

“The waiter just brought something to my table.”

I feigned curiosity.

“Oh? Was it the check? I’m assuming Renee’s covering, considering… well…” I let the sentence trail off.

“Ayla,” he said firmly.

“They sent flowers.”

I leaned back on the couch, adjusting the blanket around me.

“Did I?”

“The card…” he cut himself off, then took a deep breath. “For the memories. Enjoy them while they last. What does that mean?”

I hummed.

“Just a thoughtful gesture. Friends deserve flowers, don’t they?”

“You’re unbelievable,” he muttered as if he’d just realized I wasn’t the type of woman to sit around feeling sorry for myself. “Ayla, why are you doing this?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because my boyfriend told me he was working late while having a cozy coffee with his ex?”

“It wasn’t like that.”

“Mmm. Sure, babe.”

Another heavy pause. Then, the final blow.

“The waiter just handed me the bill… my card got declined.”

I bit back a laugh. “Well, given your recent overtime expenses, I thought a little budgeting was in order.”

“Ayla…”

“Relax, Callum,” I whispered softly. “I’m just playing fair.”

There was another long pause, the kind that made me imagine him sitting there with his jaw clenched, shoulders tight, struggling to control a situation that had already slipped through his fingers.

Then, finally, he spoke. “I’m coming home.”

“Good. I’ll be waiting.”

But before I could hang up, he added, “I’m not coming alone.”

I looked at the screen. Excitement. The game wasn’t over.

Twenty minutes later, the front door opened, and I straightened up.

Callum entered, looking exhausted—but innocent. And then I saw her.

Renee. Right behind him.

Why did he bring her here? Is this it? Is he about to confirm my worst fear?

Callum ran his hand through his hair. “Okay. Do you want the truth?”

“I think I deserve it.”

Renee sighed. “Ayla, I know how this looks, but…”

“Oh, really?” My voice was sharp. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks exactly like I thought it would.”

Callum raised his hand. “Just listen.”

I forced myself to stay silent.

“I was buying a gift for you…”