His Twin Brother Confessed to Me

I sat on the bench outside the hospital ward, my fingertips still warm from the sheets on my mother's bed. My mobile phone vibrated once; it was a text from an unknown number containing only a single link. I frowned and clicked it open. A post from an emotional support forum appeared, the title sharp and glaring—'I have a girlfriend, but what if I fall for someone else?' The post was vague, but the photo of holding hands in the highly upvoted reply made my heart suddenly sink. In the photo, the man's hand was bony, with a pale brown scar on the inside of his wrist—exactly like Caleb Lynn's. My fingers gripping the mobile phone turned white, the tips icy cold. Caleb Lynn is my boyfriend; just yesterday, he was holding my hand, telling me he'd be there for me and my mom. Trembling, I opened the responder's profile—no avatar, just a single post: a photo of a cup of coffee, with the coffee shop downstairs from Caleb's company in the background. His assistant, Stella Scott, goes to that shop to buy coffee every day. I called Caleb, and a familiar voice came through the receiver, deliberately gentle. "Stacy, what's wrong?" "Is your mom doing okay?" Caleb Lynn asked. "Where are you?" My voice was dry—I barely recognized it myself. "Working late at the company," Caleb Lynn's tone was calm, without a single crack. "There's a project deadline, and Stella Scott is helping out too." "Is that so?" I stared at the photo of us holding hands, each word falling deliberately from my lips. "Has the scar on your wrist been hurting again lately?" There was silence on the other end for two seconds, then a nervous cough. "N-no, it hasn't," Caleb Lynn's voice clearly faltered. "Why are you asking this all of a sudden?" "It's nothing." I hung up the phone, and finally, tears escaped down my cheeks. I opened the chat with my best friend Mia Taylor and sent her the photo. "Help me check who replied to this," I told Mia. "And Caleb Lynn's recent whereabouts, especially with Stella Scott." Mia replied quickly, "Okay. Don't panic, I'll look into it right away." The hospital ward door opened, and a nurse came out, advising me, "The patient is awake but emotionally unstable. Please go in and keep her company." I wiped away my tears, took a deep breath, and forced myself to walk calmly into the hospital ward. Mother held my hand weakly and asked, "Stacy, where's Caleb Lynn?" "He's busy at the company; he'll come by later." I swallowed the ache in my chest and gently patted my mother's hand. It wasn't until evening that Caleb Lynn finally showed up in the ward, carrying a thermos. "Ms., I made some chicken soup for you. Drink it to help you get better." He smiled as he approached the bedside, his manners flawless. I stood in the corner, staring at the scar on his wrist, filled only with bitter irony. After my mother fell asleep, Caleb Lynn took my hand and led me out of the hospital ward. "What's wrong?" He asked me. "You've been feeling down all day." He reached out to touch me, but I pulled away. "Caleb Lynn, what exactly is your relationship with Stella Scott?" I looked him straight in the eyes. Caleb's face changed instantly. His eyes darted away nervously. "W-why are you asking that?" "Just a superior-subordinate relationship." "Do superiors and subordinates hold hands?" I pulled out my mobile phone and held the photo up to him. "Do they post those kinds of things together on forums?" Caleb Lynn's face went pale in an instant. His lips parted, but no words came out. "Nothing to say?" My voice trembled, but I forced myself to stay calm. "Caleb Lynn, we're finished." "Stacy, I was wrong. Please, give me another chance!" Caleb grabbed my wrist, desperation in his voice. "Me and Stella—it was just a moment of weakness. You're the only one in my heart!" "A moment of weakness?" I yanked my hand out of his grip. "When you were holding her hand, did you ever think about me, taking care of my seriously ill mom in the hospital?" "Have you ever thought about our future?" At that moment, Mia Taylor sent me a message with a photo—Caleb Lynn and Stella Scott hugging in the mall parking lot, just yesterday afternoon. I tossed the photo at Caleb Lynn, refusing to meet his guilty eyes, then turned and walked into the hospital ward, closing the door—and shutting out everything to do with him.