The V-tuber Who Became Obsessed With Me

Chapter 67: End of the week

( hello everyone and for those who’ve made it here ..I say thanks for all you do ...also support me by sending power stone or golden tickets or whatever gift suits you ...once again thanks for making it here and happy reading )

The following week passed surprisingly quickly.

With Susan no longer assigned to the project, management had brought in someone else to finish the final phase alongside Ethan.

His name was Mitch.

Unlike Susan, Mitch wasn’t particularly talkative. He showed up on time, did his work, asked the occasional question, and went home. No drama. No awkward conversations. No emotional baggage attached to every meeting.

Honestly, Ethan preferred it that way.

The project finally wrapped up on Friday afternoon.

Weeks of revisions, client feedback, presentations, and last-minute adjustments were finally behind them. By the time Ethan left the office, he felt lighter than he had in months.

To celebrate, he took Raina out to dinner.

The restaurant sat near the edge of downtown, overlooking the river. Soft lighting reflected off the water outside while quiet music drifted through the room.

Normally, Raina would have enjoyed a place like this.

Tonight felt different.

Ethan noticed it almost immediately.

She smiled when she was supposed to smile.

She laughed when the conversation called for it.

She answered every question.

Yet somehow she felt absent.

As though part of her was sitting somewhere else entirely.

"You okay?" Ethan asked as he set down his fork.

Raina looked up from her plate.

"Hmm?"

"You seem distracted."

"I’m fine."

There it was again.

That answer.

Fine.

The most suspicious word in the English language.

Ethan studied her face for a moment.

Dark circles lingered beneath her eyes.

Her smile arrived a little slower than usual.

Whatever was bothering her, she clearly didn’t want to talk about it.

So he decided not to push.

"Okay," he said gently.

A small look of relief crossed her face.

As though she had expected him to keep digging.

Trying to move the conversation elsewhere, Ethan leaned back in his chair.

"Anyway, like I was saying, my mom’s going to stay with Nathan for a while."

"Oh?"

That seemed to get her attention.

"Yeah."

"For how long?"

He shrugged.

"Two weeks. Maybe a month."

"That’s good."

"It’ll probably be good for her."

Ethan smiled.

"Honestly, it’ll probably be good for Nathan too. Mom has already started planning activities for his entire family."

Raina managed a genuine laugh.

"Poor Nathan."

"Exactly."

For the first time all evening she seemed slightly more relaxed.

The rest of dinner passed peacefully enough.

They talked.

Shared dessert.

Watched the lights reflecting across the river.

But even then Ethan couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Something she wasn’t telling him.

By the time they left the restaurant, Raina looked exhausted.

"I’m sorry," she said quietly as they reached the car. "I think I want to go home."

"You don’t have to apologize."

"I know."

She offered him a tired smile.

"I’m just not feeling great tonight."

Ethan opened the passenger door for her.

"Then let’s get you home."

The drive was mostly quiet.

Raina rested her head against the window while city lights drifted past outside.

When they finally arrived at her house, she leaned over and kissed him softly.

"Thank you for dinner."

"Anytime."

"I love you."

The words came automatically.

Comfortably.

Naturally.

Yet for some reason Ethan found himself watching her walk inside longer than usual.

Only after the front door closed behind her did he finally drive away.

The feeling followed him all the way home.

Something wasn’t right.

He just couldn’t figure out what.

By the time he pulled into his apartment complex, night had fully settled over the city.

The parking lot sat mostly empty.

A few lights glowed from neighboring apartments.

Everything looked normal.

Until he spotted the figure waiting beside his building.

Ethan immediately recognized her.

Susan.

For a brief moment he simply sat behind the wheel.

Confused.

Then annoyed.

Then tired.

Mostly tired.

He climbed out of the car.

"What are you doing here?"

Susan rose from the bench where she’d been sitting.

For the first time in a long while, she looked genuinely exhausted.

Not angry.

Not manipulative.

Not calculating.

Just exhausted.

"Ethan, I—"

"Susan."

He cut her off before she could continue.

"You can’t keep doing this."

He walked past her toward his apartment door.

Behind him he heard her footsteps following.

"Ethan, please."

He stopped at the door.

His hand rested on the handle.

For several seconds neither spoke.

When Susan finally broke the silence, her voice sounded smaller than he remembered.

"I have nothing left."

The words made him turn.

Susan stood beneath the hallway light.

Her makeup was smudged.

Her eyes were red.

She looked like someone who hadn’t slept properly in days.

"I lost my project."

She swallowed.

"I lost Garrett."

That surprised him.

"I lost you."

Something twisted painfully across her face.

"And now I don’t know what I’m supposed to do."

For a moment Ethan didn’t know what to say.

Because despite everything that had happened...

He had once cared about her.

A lot.

But caring about someone and wanting them in your life weren’t always the same thing.

"What do you mean you lost me?" Ethan asked quietly.

Susan laughed bitterly.

"What do you think I mean?"

"You never had me."

The words came out harsher than he intended.

Susan flinched.

Immediately.

Ethan saw it.

And hated himself a little for it.

But he didn’t take them back.

Because they were true.

"You moved on," he continued.

"You just refuse to accept it."

"No."

Susan shook her head.

"No, Ethan. That’s not what happened." freewёbnoνel.com

"Then what happened?"

"It’s her."

Ethan closed his eyes.

Of course.

Of course they were back here again.

"Himari."

The name left Susan’s mouth like a curse.

Ethan stared at her.

Completely stunned.

"Himari?"

Susan nodded.

"Everything leads back to her."

For a second Ethan genuinely thought she had lost her mind.

"Himari?"

He repeated the name slowly.

"As in the girl we knew years ago?"

"Yes."

"Susan..."

Disbelief filled his voice.

"Himari hasn’t been part of our lives for years."

"You don’t know that."

"No."

He shook his head.

"You don’t know that."

Susan stared at him.

Determined.

Certain.

Terrifyingly certain.

Ethan suddenly realized that nothing he said tonight would change her mind.

Not one thing.

She had built an entire reality around this belief.

And now she was trapped inside it.

"Listen to yourself."

His voice softened.

Not out of sympathy.

Out of disappointment.

"You blame Himari for everything."

Susan opened her mouth.

He didn’t let her speak.

"You blame her for Felix."

"You blame her for Garrett."

"You blame her for your career."

"You blame her for us."

Ethan shook his head.

"At some point you have to stop looking for villains."

Susan’s eyes glistened.

"You really don’t see it."

"See what?"

"The problem standing right in front of you."

Ethan laughed once.

A humorless sound.

"No."

He looked directly at her.

"The problem standing in front of me isn’t Himari."

The words landed harder than he intended.

"It’s you."

Susan went completely still.

"You spend so much time looking for someone to blame that you’ve stopped taking responsibility for anything."

Silence.

Pain flashed across her face.

Real pain.

The kind nobody could fake.

But Ethan continued anyway.

Because this conversation needed to end.

"You know what the worst part is?"

Susan didn’t answer.

"I think you actually believe you’re helping me."

His voice softened again.

"I think somewhere along the way you convinced yourself that all of this was for my sake."

The silence that followed felt endless.

Finally Susan nodded.

A slow, defeated movement.

"Maybe you’re right."

Then she looked up.

Something had changed in her eyes.

Not acceptance.

Not surrender.

Something colder.

"I really wanted to help you, Ethan."

Her voice was almost a whisper now.

"I cared about you more than you know."

Ethan looked away.

Because once upon a time he had known.

And that made everything sadder.

"But maybe you don’t deserve my help."

He frowned.

"What does that mean?"

Susan smiled.

The smile unsettled him immediately.

Not because it was threatening.

Because it wasn’t.

It looked disappointed.

As though she had finally given up on him.

"You know," she said quietly, "for two people who lie as naturally as breathing..."

She shook her head.

"You and Himari really do suit each other."

Before Ethan could respond, Susan turned and walked away.

He watched her disappear into the darkness beyond the parking lot.

The strange feeling she’d left behind lingered long after she was gone.

Eventually Ethan unlocked his door and stepped inside.

The apartment felt unusually quiet.

For several minutes he simply stood there.

Thinking.

About Susan.

About Raina.

About Himari.

About a name he hadn’t heard in years.

Then he shook his head.

Susan was spiraling.

That was all this was.

Nothing more.

At least...

That was what he told himself before heading to bed.

Yet as he lay staring at the ceiling later that night, one thought continued returning no matter how many times he pushed it away.

Why had Susan sounded so certain?