When Emily ordered pizza while her fiancé, Jake, was out of town, she expected a quiet night alone, not a message that would unravel her life. Little did she know, the delivery would save her from a disastrous marriage.
Living with Jake felt like being stuck in a comfortable routine. Their small apartment, with its cozy throws and mismatched cushions, was their haven—or so Emily thought. For the past three years, Jake and Emily made a habit of enjoying simple pleasures together.
One of their frequent rituals was ordering pizza from the same local spot on lazy evenings. Jake would browse movie listings while Emily called their favorite pizzeria.
Tom, the delivery guy, knew them by name. His visits were as regular as clockwork, complete with his cheerful “How’s it going?” that echoed through their small entryway. Tonight, however, it was just Emily. Jake was out of town on a business trip, and the quiet was louder than usual.
Emily ordered a single pizza—her usual, pepperoni with extra cheese. When the doorbell rang, it was Tom, as expected, but something about him was off tonight. His smile didn’t reach his eyes, and his hands seemed to shake a bit as he handed her the pizza box.
“Evening, Emily. Jake’s not around tonight?” Tom asked, a slight quiver in his voice.
“No, just me tonight,” she responded, trying to sound cheerful. Tom nodded, quickly turning on his heel to leave—too quickly, it seemed.
As she shut the door, his behavior nagged at her. Was he okay? Shaking off the concern, she carried the warm box to the kitchen. The aroma of garlic and tomato sauce filled the air, a comfort that usually felt like a hug.
But as she opened the box, her heart skipped a beat. There, scrawled across the inside lid of the box with a black Sharpie, was a message that read, “He is not who you think. Check your door camera.”
The pizza suddenly seemed unappetizing as a cold wave of dread washed over her. Her hands trembled as she set the box down, the cheerful buzz of the apartment now swallowed by a looming silence. What was she about to find on that camera?
Her fingers trembled as she fumbled with the tablet that controlled their door camera. The message in the pizza box had sent chills down her spine, and every second until she opened the app felt like an eternity. She tapped into the camera’s history, her breath catching with each swipe back through the days.
Then, she saw it.
Jake, her Jake, greeted a woman at their door. Not just any woman—this one was laughing as she handed him a bottle of wine. Her heart sank. She scrolled further. Another day, another woman, this one carrying a stack of movies.
Every time she was away, it seemed, Jake had company. Different women, each visit documented clearly by the camera he had installed, ironically, for their safety.
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