Chapter 1 On the eve of my wedding, I decided to play a little prank. I called Julian, pretending to be my eighteen-year-old self from the past, trying to make a “time-travel call.” My voice was full of bright, bubbly anticipation: “Julian! How are we doing at twenty-seven? Are we getting married? Are we… happy?” The other end of the line was silent for a long time. Then, Julian’s exhausted voice came through: “Not great.” “Sarah… my whole life is ruined because of you.” “I’m begging you. If there’s another parallel universe out there… let me go.” I froze. I genuinely thought I had misheard him. When I finally snapped out of it, I called my mom, crying uncontrollably. “Mom, I…” “I know,” my mom interrupted, letting out a weary, sympathetic sigh. “You’re playing the eighteen-year-old Sarah.” “Julian has had it so hard. He and your sister have been desperately in love for five years. Because of you, they’ve had to suppress their feelings this whole time.” “Sarah, listen to me. In your next life, just step aside and let him and your sister be together.” The tears turned ice-cold on my face. My hands shook violently as I finally dialed my sister’s number. She was panting heavily on the other end, clearly intertwined with Julian. She let out a suppressed, agonizing sob: “Sarah… please forgive me. It’s just for tonight. He’s only mine for tonight.” “I promise I will never fight you for him in this life. I just beg you… in the next life, please let me have him.” Tears streamed silently down my face as I hung up the phone. My heart completely flatlined. Whatever. There was no need to wait for a next life or a parallel universe. I’d let them be together in this one. … Julian didn’t come back until the next morning. He brought with him the faint scent of rose body wash, and the tips of his hair were still damp. As he took off his jacket and hung it up, he threw a casual glance at me. “Why are you up so early?” “Couldn’t sleep,” I replied calmly. I paused for a second before continuing. “Julian, let’s call off the wedding.” He froze, turning to look at my slightly red, swollen eyes. “Are you… joking?” “I played a game last night,” I said, staring straight at him. “A game called ‘Time-Travel Phone Call’.” Julian’s hand stopped mid-air. He looked at me, and the color slowly drained from his face. “Sarah… you tested me?” I let out a bitter, self-deprecating laugh. I hadn’t expected his accusation to arrive before an explanation. “If I hadn’t tested you, was I supposed to just play the idiot for the rest of my life?” “Julian.” My eyes burned red. “Are the two of you actually disgusting?” Smack. A sharp slap threw my face to the side. I covered my cheek, completely stunned. Julian looked down at his own hand, clearly shocked himself. It seemed he hadn’t even expected to hit me. He pressed his lips into a hard line, pulled his hand back, and looked at me with dark, heavy eyes: “Sarah, if you have ugly things to say, aim them at me. I won’t let anyone insult her.” Every drop of blood in my body rushed to my head. With blazing red eyes, I raised my hand and slapped him back with everything I had. “Who the hell gave you the right to hit me?!” “Julian, not even my own parents have ever laid a hand on me!” But the slap never landed. Julian caught my wrist in a vice-like grip. He let out a cold, mocking laugh. “Your parents?” “Your parents know everything about me and your sister. Did you know that?” “Last Thanksgiving, when you came home, you hadn’t even sat down before your mom dragged you out to go shopping, and your dad said he was going to buy you a pie.” He leaned in close, his tone dripping with cruel amusement: “Your entire family was covering for us.” It felt like I had been struck by lightning. I snapped my head up, staring at him in absolute disbelief. He let go of my wrist with a look of pure contempt. “Wake up, Sarah.” “If I were you, I would take advantage of whatever shred of guilt I still have left as your future husband.” “Because, frankly, not even your own parents love you.” I collapsed onto the floor, tears streaming down my face. “Why…” I forced my head up, my voice barely a whisper. “Why would you do this to me?” “Julian,” my voice trembled. “I’m not someone who clings to things that aren’t mine.” “If you were dead set on being with my sister, I could accept it! We could break up, cancel the wedding, and you could go marry her!” “Why did you all have to hide it from me? Why did everyone gang up to deceive me?!” “Go be with her! Why are you still marrying me?!” I screamed through my tears, feeling a despair so profound it felt like my heart was dying. He looked down at me from above. After a long silence, he let out a cold scoff. “Why do you think? Do you really think it’s because I love you?” He leaned down, wiping a tear from my chin, and let out a sound of disgusted pity. “Sarah. Chloe is your older sister. She’s a divorced single mother. Her life is hard enough as it is.” “I don’t want to subject her to any more gossip or judgment from outsiders.” “If we called off our wedding, and then I turned around and got with your sister, how do you think your relatives would look at her?” “So.” He gripped my shoulders, his voice sickeningly gentle and infinitely cruel. “Sarah, I can’t bear to let her suffer, so you’ll have to take the fall.” I stared at him in horror, an icy chill seeping into my bones. “You mean… you’re using our marriage as a smokescreen so you can be with my sister?” “Smart girl,” he said, affectionately tapping my nose. “So you’re going to play along, right?” I violently slapped his hands away, my anger boiling over. “Julian, what makes you think I would ever play along and just let you manipulate me like a puppet?” “Because you will,” he smiled, pulling a folded piece of paper from his pocket and dropping it in front of me. “You had a checkup last week. You’re pregnant.” “Sarah, this is our baby. Our first baby. You conceived it while you were full of hope for our marriage, right at the peak of your love for me.” “You wouldn’t have the heart to bring a fatherless child into the world, would you?” “Besides, you love me so much. We’ve been together for ten years. You gave me your entire youth. Do you really have the guts to cancel the wedding?” “Even if you did, who’s going to want a pregnant woman?” I picked up the ultrasound report, my hands shaking so violently I could barely hold it. Tears cascaded down, blurring my vision. I suddenly burst out laughing, the tears splashing onto the paper: “Julian… you are truly vicious.” He smiled, reaching out to stroke my hair. It was a gesture of maximum, tender cruelty: “Be a good girl, Sarah. You don’t have a choice.” “And remember, do not let your sister know that you found out. I don’t want Chloe feeling any psychological burden. Understood?” I looked at his threatening, fiercely protective expression. It was like I was looking at a complete stranger. He stood up smoothly and stepped right over me without a second glance. I rushed into the bathroom and threw up into the toilet until my stomach was empty. An overwhelming, suffocating nausea crawled up my throat. I couldn’t tell anymore if it was my stomach burning, or my heart. I kneeled on the cold tile floor, trembling uncontrollably, crying and laughing at the same time. Finally, I mechanically picked up my phone, stopped the voice recording app, and saved the entire conversation. Then, I booked an appointment for the earliest available abortion. Julian was wrong. I did have a choice. I just had to be more vicious, and more ruthless, than he was. The next day was supposed to be the day we went to the courthouse to sign our marriage license. Julian called me multiple times. I didn’t answer a single one. Finally, my sister called me. “Sarah.” Her tone was gentle, tinged with a slight, playful scolding. “Today is the day you get your license. How could you throw a tantrum and just not show up?” “Did you get into a fight with Julian? Don’t worry, big sister will scold him for you. Just come over and get the license first, okay?” I listened to her voice in a daze. It was impossible to reconcile this woman with the one moaning into the phone with Julian just two nights ago. I desperately wished that night had just been a terrible nightmare. I wished I could wake up and she would still be my loving, gentle older sister. And Julian would still be the man I relied on with all my heart. Unfortunately… I leaned back against the hospital bed and spoke in a hoarse voice: “I’m sick. I can’t make it.” “Tell Julian we’ll do it another day.” I hung up before she could respond. Then, I opened the synchronized feed from Julian’s dashcam. The footage stabilized, showing Julian and my sister sitting in his car. Chloe looked worried. “Julian, what’s wrong with Sarah? Why is she suddenly throwing a fit?” “Do you think she found out about us…” “No way.” Julian leaned over and pecked her on the lips. “She’s too stupid. How could she know?” “And even if she did, she wouldn’t dare do anything,” he stated confidently. “Chloe, I promise I will never let you get hurt.” Chloe still looked anxious. “But if she won’t sign the license, what are we going to do…” “If she won’t sign it, she won’t sign it. The wedding ceremony will still happen. We just need to put on a show for everyone.” Julian said lazily. Suddenly, he looked at Chloe with intense seriousness: “Chloe, let’s get married.” Chloe stared back blankly: “What did you just say?” Julian pulled her into his arms. “I’ll give the ceremony to her, and the marriage license to you.” “From now on, you are my true wife.” Off-camera, I stopped breathing. I already knew they were dirty. But actually watching the man I once loved unconditionally use that same face to say those exact words to another woman—my own sister—my heart still physically ached. On screen, Chloe’s eyes gradually reddened. She nodded instinctively, then frantically shook her head: “No… no, we’ve already wronged Sarah so much. This… this is too cruel to her.” “If you reject me, isn’t that cruel to me?” he leaned closer. “Chloe, are you really going to give me up just for your sister?” Chloe looked at him, her expression torn with agony. Finally, as if making a monumental decision, she nodded. “Okay. Let’s go get the license.” “Even if we have to annul it or get divorced later, I’ll accept it.” She looked at him, tears in her eyes, looking like a martyr going to her death. “Julian, for this lifetime… at least we got to be husband and wife once.” They gazed deeply into each other’s eyes, kissed passionately, inseparable. Off-camera, I cried until I couldn’t see. This was the sister I thought loved me the most. The man I thought loved me the most. Blood ties, eternal vows… it was all a joke. And I was the punchline. I closed my eyes and let the nurses wheel me into the operating room. Three days later, the day of the wedding arrived. I sat in front of the vanity mirror, watching my mother brush my hair. Her expression was gentle and loving. There was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. I suddenly asked her, “Mom, do you think I’ll be happy?” Her hand paused for a fraction of a second. She met my eyes in the mirror, her gaze a mix of what could have been blame, or perhaps resignation. “Sarah, you’re marrying the man you love most in the world. How could you not be happy?” “Just think about your sister…” She stopped herself, unable to finish the sentence. I forced a tight smile. If I didn’t know the truth, I probably would have assumed she meant my sister’s unhappy first marriage. But now, I knew exactly what she meant. She was saying that I had stolen my sister’s happiness. I had stolen my sister’s true love. I always knew my parents favored Chloe. They always used to say that having one boy and one girl was the perfect family. Chloe was the “girl” in that perfect family, but I wasn’t the “boy”. I just never realized how deep their favoritism went. Deep enough to help their oldest daughter have an affair with their youngest daughter’s fiancé. Without a shred of guilt. In fact, they flipped the script, making it seem like I was the one ruining her life. “You’re right,” I sighed softly. “I’m marrying the man I love most.” “But do you think he loves me just as much?” “Mom.” I tilted my head to look up at her. “Do you love me as much as I love you?” My mother froze. For a split second, I clearly saw panic flash in her eyes. But she quickly composed herself. “Of course,” she smiled warmly, her mask flawless. “No one in the world loves you more than your mother.” “It’s just… your sister hasn’t had your luck in life. I can’t help but want to coddle her a little more.” My heart turned to ice. They were watching me walk into a sham marriage with a cheater. They all conspired to hide the truth from me. And yet, she had the nerve to say I had “luck in life.” Meanwhile, my sister and Julian had already secretly signed their marriage license. She was his legal wife. But because they had to hide to avoid public scrutiny and couldn’t parade their relationship around openly—she was the unlucky one. How could a human heart be this warped? “Sarah,” she added, her tone suddenly vague. “I need to tell you something. Nothing in this world is perfect, and there is no such thing as a flawless marriage.” “Sometimes, just being content and not asking for too much… that’s a blessing too. Do you understand?” A mocking smirk ghosted across my lips. Was this really a mother’s heartfelt advice to her daughter? Or was it a preemptive strike? A warning that if I ever discovered anything in the future, I shouldn’t make a scene. That I should just turn a blind eye, and we could all go on living our lives. I lowered my head, hiding my icy expression. “I understand.” My mother nodded in satisfaction and went downstairs to greet the guests. I slowly opened the drawer and gripped the flash drive tightly in my palm. The sound of firecrackers erupted outside. The wedding convoy had arrived. The bridesmaids laughed and rushed to barricade the door, part of the traditional wedding games. Only my sister didn’t move. She stayed quietly by my side. I looked into her eyes. Her makeup was slightly smudged. She had been crying. She was wearing a long, flowing white dress. It looked nothing like the other bridesmaids’ dresses. It looked more like a wedding gown. The groomsmen laughed and shoved against the door from the outside, finally forcing it open. Julian burst in, laughing, looking triumphant and handsome. He took a massive stride forward. He walked right past me and scooped Chloe up into his arms. The bridesmaids gasped in shock. A few of the groomsmen, completely oblivious, laughed loudly and slapped his shoulder: “Wrong girl, Julian! You grabbed the wrong girl! The bride is on the bed!” “Just because the sister looks like the bride doesn’t mean you can run off with her!” Everyone chuckled good-naturedly. Julian slowly lowered Chloe to the floor, gazing at her with deep affection. “You’re right. I grabbed the wrong one.” He turned to me, his eyes crinkling into a smile, but carrying a distinct threat: “Sarah, you don’t mind, do you?” I looked at him, my fingernails digging painfully into my palms. Only I knew what he really meant. He was saying that marrying me was grabbing the wrong girl. He hadn’t made a mistake just now. From the very beginning, the one he wanted to hold was my sister. “I don’t mind.” My voice was so calm it surprised even me. He smirked, clearly satisfied that I was playing along. As we were leaving the house, I held the train of my dress and moved to get into the backseat of the bridal car. Julian, already sitting in the back, shot me a look and ordered: “Get out. You sit in the front. Let Chloe sit in the back.” I paused, looking up at him. The bride sitting in the passenger seat while the groom and the bridesmaid sat in the back? That was completely unheard of. He was intentionally humiliating me. “Why?” I gripped the door frame. “Do I really need to give you a reason?” He sneered. “Your sister gets carsick easily. Is that enough?” Carsick? Everyone knows that people who get carsick sit in the front seat. Several of the groomsmen and relatives exchanged amused, gossipy glances. My parents stood nearby, completely ignoring the scene, acting as if they hadn’t heard a thing. Julian smiled, leaning in close and lowering his voice: “Baby, for the sake of the child in your belly, just endure it for a bit. I promise you’re still the star of the show today.” “But you didn’t think getting me was going to be completely smooth sailing, did you?” The child. He was still using the child as a bargaining chip? I stared into his eyes and gave a chilling smile. “Alright.” I silently picked up my dress, closed the back door, and got into the passenger seat alone. My sister, without a word or even a glance in my direction, brazenly slid into the backseat right next to Julian. She even deliberately bumped my shoulder as she walked past, as if to make a point. Between a man and her sister, she always chose the man. When they slept together, when they signed the marriage license, and now. The convoy started moving toward the wedding hall. In the rearview mirror, I watched them secretly holding hands, their fingers intertwined, gripping each other tightly. Chloe’s expression was grave. She turned her head away, fighting back tears. Julian looked at her with pure, unadulterated heartbreak. What a pair of star-crossed lovers. I coldly looked away. Cry all you want. In a little while, I’ll give you exactly what you want. … Finally, it was time for the ring exchange at the altar. Chloe carried the ring box, walking elegantly down the aisle. The guests seated on both sides were whispering amongst themselves. “Why is the bridesmaid wearing white? Isn’t she clashing with the bride’s dress?” “Yeah, if you didn’t know better, you’d think she was the bride.” “She just wants attention. Who knows…” It was just idle gossip. No one truly cared. Julian took the women’s ring and slid it onto my ring finger. It was loose. It wasn’t my size. I looked down at the ring and suddenly spoke up: “This isn’t my ring.” Julian frowned in deep annoyance: “Sarah, stop making a scene. We’re in the middle of the ceremony.” I looked up at him, raising my voice, articulating every single syllable: “I said, this is not my ring.” In the next second, I grabbed my sister’s hand and shoved the ring onto her finger. The cameraman happened to be getting a close-up shot of the hands. On the massive screens behind us, everyone in the hall saw it clearly. The wedding band fit my sister’s ring finger perfectly. Flawlessly. A collective gasp echoed through the room. Chloe’s face went ghost white. She struggled to pull her hand away, but I held it in a vice grip. Julian glared at me, his face ugly, dropping his voice to a threatening whisper: “Sarah, are you out of your damn mind?!” “Think about the child in your belly! Do you want it to be born without a father?!” “Do you want to end up a pregnant, abandoned single mother?!” He sneered, absolutely certain he had won: “You better use your brain before you do something stupid.” “Ruining this wedding does neither of us any good.” “It does you no good,” I corrected him helpfully. “What?” He paused. “You’re the one who needs this marriage as a smokescreen, not me.” “And that child won’t be born without a father.” “Because,” my smile turned to ice, “it’s not going to be born at all.”
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