Chapter 1

On our weekend getaway, my boyfriend, my brother, my childhood best friend, and our friend Chloe agreed to shoot a travel documentary together.

I wrote the script. I rented all the gear.

We made a pact that everyone would appear on screen, each leaving a personal message for the other four.

On the day of the shoot, the videographer canceled at the last minute, meaning one of us had to get behind the lens.

Chloe gripped my boyfriend's arm, looking anxious.

"I'm terrified of being in front of the camera alone."

Immediately, everyone turned to me—the only one who had studied photography.

My boyfriend handed me the camera.

"You shoot first. We'll swap you in at the final stop."

I took their photos and stayed behind to edit them alone.

But when I rushed to the chapel where we agreed to meet, it was completely empty.

That night, Chloe posted a video by the beach.

The four of them stood shoulder to shoulder against the sunset, smiling into the camera:

"Our youth of four, never fading."

No one had bothered to tell me they changed the location.

My voice was in the voiceover, and every frame was shot by my hands, yet my face was nowhere to be seen.

Even among the blessings spoken to "the other four," not a single word belonged to me.

When my boyfriend came back, he slid the laptop in front of me.

"You should edit the final cut. You're the best at this."

"We'll pick up your shots later. Don't spoil everyone's fun over something so trivial."

I deleted the video, staring at how easily I had been left behind.

"No need to pick up anything later."

"Your youth of four has nothing to do with me."

The moment the video was deleted, Ethan's face darkened.

"Are the raw files still there?"

I didn't answer.

He assumed I was just throwing a tantrum because I wasn't in the video, not even bothering to ask what I meant by "has nothing to do with me."

Instead, he tapped his phone impatiently.

"Send me the itinerary for the next few days."

"The hotel reservations, train tickets, and attraction bookings are all on your phone."

"You can be mad, but don't hold back the whole trip."

Standing behind him, Chloe spoke up in a soft voice:

"We moved to the beach because the lighting in the chapel went out."

"I was going to text you, but we all thought someone else already did."

My brother, Lucas, chimed in to coax me:

"It's just one missed shot."

"We can make it up later, can't we?"

Julian, my childhood friend, pulled the deleted video back from the trash folder.

"Don't do something rash."

"We all prepared so long for this. You can't just delete everything because you're upset."

Not a single person thought that abandoning me in an empty chapel called for an apology.

All they cared about was whether the video could be recovered, and whether the rest of their vacation would run smoothly.

The next day, we arrived at our next stop.

I had originally booked a five-person family suite.

When we checked in, the front desk informed me that my reservation had been canceled and changed to a four-person ocean-view suite.

I looked at Ethan.

"Who changed it?"

Chloe explained immediately:

"The original room was right next to the elevator."

"I'm a light sleeper. Any noise keeps me up all night."

"The ocean-view suite is much quieter. I thought everyone agreed."

The four-person suite had only two bedrooms.

Ethan assigned the master bedroom with the en-suite bathroom to Chloe.

Lucas and Julian took the second bedroom.

As for me, the hotel set up a rollaway cot in the living room.

It was wedged tight between four giant suitcases and the coffee table.

Once unfolded, there wasn't even room to turn around.

I asked Ethan, "Why am I the one sleeping in the living room again?"

He frowned.

"You travel for business alone, switch trains, and book hotels without ever making a mistake."

"Chloe gets nervous just talking to a front desk clerk. She genuinely needs people to look after her."

"You just want to sleep a little more comfortably. How is that the same thing?"

Hearing this, Chloe reached for her suitcase with red eyes.

"Maybe I should move out."

"I don't want to ruin the trip for everyone over a room."

Before she could take two steps, Ethan grabbed her luggage handle.

"You stay in the master bedroom."

"Nora is used to being independent. Sleeping in the living room for a few nights won't hurt her."

"You can't. You already have trouble sleeping in unfamiliar places."

He had endless patience for all her insecurities.

When it came to me, my independence was the exact excuse for me to be sacrificed.

That evening, our schedule was a sunset cruise.

I had spent two months fighting online to book those five tickets.

When we got to the pier, Chloe suddenly claimed she was seasick, saying only an enclosed VIP lounge would make her feel safe.

Ethan refunded our five regular tickets on the spot.

Then, using the refund combined with money from our shared travel fund, he upgraded to an enclosed VIP cabin that seated only four.

I stared at the new tickets.

"Why am I the one left behind?"

"You can come back tomorrow," Ethan said casually, as if it was completely reasonable.

"This is Chloe's first big trip."

"If she misses the sunset because of seasickness, she'll regret it forever."

Lucas urged me as well:

"You're the best at taking care of yourself. Skipping one spot won't kill you."

In the end, the four of them boarded the cruise.

I was left at the dock, dealing with the refund paperwork, paying the fare difference for their VIP cabin, and sorting out the hotel's rollaway cot deposit.

Every single booking was in my name.

The staff would only deal with me.

By the time I finished and returned to the hotel, the table was covered in empty takeout boxes.

Yet Chloe's leftover dessert had been carefully placed in the fridge by Ethan.

"She might get hungry tonight."

"Order whatever you want for yourself."

Soon, a photo from the cruise popped up in the group chat.

Chloe stood right in the center of the three men, holding up the tickets I had spent two months trying to get.

A text from Ethan followed immediately:

[Tonight went great.]

[You plan tomorrow's route. Chloe wants to see the sea of clouds from the mountain summit.]

Looking at those two messages, it hit me.

They didn't need me on this trip.

They just needed me to make sure their trip for four went smoothly.