I was finally starting to relax.
Actually relax.
My body had sunk into the mattress, the room felt quieter, and for once my mind wasn't circling Ethan or Chloe or anything complicated.
Just the story.
It was almost comforting how predictable it felt—like I could follow someone else's life instead of thinking about mine for a while.
But then the next chapter changed everything.
The female lead was acting stubborn again.
Ignoring the "quiet hot guy" everyone clearly liked.
Not because he did anything wrong.
Not because he treated her badly.
But because she was still stuck on her ex.
Still hoping.
Still refusing to move on.
I frowned slightly as I read.
Why is she doing this again?
The male lead was literally being nice. Patient. Interested.
And she was pushing him away for someone who clearly wasn't coming back the same way.
I kept reading, expecting it to make sense later.
But it didn't.
She just kept clinging to her past.
Making excuses.
Choosing confusion over something real standing right in front of her.
I exhaled sharply and lowered my phone a little.
"No," I muttered under my breath. "This is actually annoying."
I read a few more lines, hoping it would shift.
It didn't.
If anything, it got worse.
The ex still showed up in her thoughts like a ghost she refused to stop chasing.
And the "hot quiet guy" was just… there.
Waiting.
Being ignored.
I sat up suddenly.
Frustration building in my chest for no logical reason.
"She's literally sabotaging herself," I said quietly to the empty room.
I stared at the screen for another second.
Then closed the app.
Done.
I dropped my phone beside me and leaned back on the bed with a long sigh.
Of all things, that was what annoyed me enough to pull me completely out of my mood.
Not Ethan.
Not Chloe.
A fictional girl refusing to move on.
I stared at the ceiling again, this time not thinking about anything in particular.
Just… blank.
And weirdly enough, that felt better than overthinking again.
Maybe I wasn't in the mood for stories after all.
Or maybe I just didn't like watching someone else make the same mistakes I was still trying to understand in myself.