Author: Momo Chan

Caleb and I were at City Hall, one photo away from being legally married when his phone rang. He took the call and left. Just like that. Left me standing alone at the marriage license counter, trapped between moving forward and turning back. I called him. No answer. I texted him. No reply. Finally, I had to find the number for his childhood friend, Leah, and dial it. Caleb picked up. “Karen, can you stop being so damn annoying? Leah sprained her ankle. I’m taking care of her today. Stop calling and waking her up. We’ll just have to reschedule the wedding.” I bit my lip, my voice a low murmur. “Including this time, we’ve rescheduled seven times.” “So what? City Hall isn’t going anywhere. It’s not like it’s going to disappear!” My face was a mask of calm, but inside, a familiar blade twisted in my gut. The clerk looked at me with pity. “Ma’am, are you still proceeding?” I nodded slowly. “Yes. I am.” 1 I called my best friend Zoe’s older brother and accepted his offer. After hanging up, I asked the clerk to hold my spot for a little while. Before the numbness could fully set in, Ryder arrived. He pulled up on a sleek, powerful motorcycle. The moment he strode in, helmet under his arm, all eyes in the office snapped to him. He walked right up to me and dropped into the chair beside mine, crossing his long legs. A teasing smile played on his lips. “So, you finally came to your senses? Ready to fake-marry me to get your family off your back?” I gave a small, tight nod. But it wasn’t just about appeasing my family. The most important thing was giving my grandfather peace of mind before he was gone. Six months ago, his health had taken a sharp decline. He was in the hospital day in and day out, and every time I visited, he’d ask when I was getting married. He wanted to see me in a wedding dress. He wanted to see me walk down the aisle. He said that way, even after he was gone, he’d know someone was there to love and protect me. That’s why I’d been pushing Caleb to get married for the past six months. We had come to City Hall seven times, and every single time, something had come up, and we had left without a license. Last time, it was because Leah was on her period, and the cramps were so bad he had to rush home to make her some tea and bring her a heating pad. The time before that, Leah had lost her keys and was locked out, so he had to go let her in. And the time before that, Leah was hungry and craving pho from that one specific place on the other side of the city, and he had to go stand in line for her. Seven times. Every single time, it was because of Leah. Every single time, Caleb dropped everything, dropped me, without a second thought. The irony was crushing. I had given him seven chances. And he wouldn’t even spare me the few minutes it would take to snap a photo. Honestly, when Caleb left this time, I wasn’t even that sad. Maybe I was used to it. Maybe I had expected it. But my grandfather’s words from a few weeks ago echoed in my mind. “My sweet Karen, I’m afraid I don’t have much time left. I might not get to see you in your wedding dress. But promise me, even if you’re alone, you’ll live bravely. Don’t let anyone bully you.” I promised him I would be brave. And this time, I wouldn’t back down. Caleb, I gave you your chances. Seven of them. The paperwork with Ryder went smoothly. But just as we were about to have our photo taken, my phone buzzed. A text from Caleb. [Hey, Karen, don’t be mad. I really couldn’t get away this time, but I’ve made your favorite dinner to make it up to you. Come home soon~] Ryder glanced at my screen, his voice laced with lazy amusement. “You still want to go through with this?” I took a deep breath, my expression unreadable. “Yes.” We finished the process and walked out of City Hall, marriage certificate in hand. “Are you busy tomorrow?” I asked Ryder before he left. “There’s something I need you to do with me.” He swung a leg over his bike. “Call me if you need anything. Who knows, in a couple of days, I might need you to play your part for my parents.” And with a roar of the engine, he was gone. Life felt so surreal. Seven years together—four in college, three after—and my relationship with Caleb had crumbled at the finish line. And now I was married to my best friend’s brother, a man I’d only met once before. On the way home, Caleb sent another message, this time with a picture. The dining table was covered with an elaborate spread of food. [Why aren’t you home yet? Dinner’s ready! If you’re late, it’ll all be gone!] He was a man of his word. By the time I walked through the door, the table was a wasteland of empty plates and picked-over dishes. Leah sat there, putting on her best innocent act. “Oh, Karen, I’m so sorry,” she said, her voice dripping with fake sympathy. “I was just starving, so I couldn’t wait and started without you.” Even I wasn’t dense enough to miss the challenge in her eyes. A hot rush of anger surged through me. I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms. Leah and Caleb had grown up together. In his eyes, she would always be the priority. It hadn’t always been like this. In the beginning, Caleb and I had a smooth, easy love. We rarely fought, and when we did, he was always the first to apologize, to coax me out of my anger, taking all the blame whether it was his fault or not. Even Zoe used to tell me how lucky I was to have found a man who doted on me so completely. That all ended six months ago. The day Leah came back into his life, his devotion shifted. “Karen, why are you just getting home now? Didn’t I text you a while ago?” Caleb emerged from the kitchen, his brow furrowed in disapproval. He was used to me dropping everything and rushing back the second he messaged. “I got held up,” I said evenly. “What could possibly be more important than dinner?” His tone was flat, but the accusation was clear. I had no intention of telling him about the marriage. If I was leaving, then from this moment on, Caleb was a stranger to me. This trip was just to get my things. “Nothing. Work is sending me on a business trip. I came back to pack.” Without waiting for his reaction, I walked straight to the bedroom. But when I opened the door, I froze. The bed, which I had made perfectly that morning, was a rumpled mess. The closet doors were open, clothes spilling out. I could have ignored all of that. But on the nightstand, the delicate, handcrafted model skyscraper my grandfather had built for me lay in pieces, snapped in half. Tiny fragments littered the floor like fallen stars. Something inside me snapped. “Caleb!” I screamed his name. “Who was in this room? Who broke my things?” He walked in, his expression shifting from a brief frown to one of complete indifference. “It’s just a model,” he said dismissively. “I’ll find someone to glue it back together for you.” I stared at him, stunned. His casual tone felt like a physical blow, telling me in no uncertain terms that I, and the things I cherished, meant nothing to him. And with that sentence, I knew. It had to be Leah. Only she could inspire this level of blind, thoughtless protection from him. “Leah broke it, didn’t she?” I stated it as a fact, my voice devoid of emotion. But my quiet words were a lit match to his short fuse. His face contorted with anger. “Do you have any proof it was Leah?” he snarled. “Maybe it was just unstable and fell on its own! Stop making baseless accusations, Karen. Before you blame her, you’d better have evidence, or I swear I’ll sue you for slander!” I bit the inside of my cheek so hard I tasted blood. He was really going to defend her to the end. I’d said one sentence, and now I was a slanderer. The Caleb from six months ago would never have been like this. I fell in love with him on a rainy night. I’d been in a car accident, and he’d run all the way to me, not even stopping for an umbrella. This man, usually so composed and proper, had completely lost his cool, screaming at the other driver and getting into a fistfight for my sake. What had happened to that man? I didn’t argue further. Just as he’d said, I had no proof. I knelt carefully, picking up the scattered shards, gathering the two broken halves of the tower. Just then, Leah’s pitiful voice drifted from the doorway. She limped into the room. “Caleb, please don’t fight with Karen!” she cried. “Even if I didn’t do it, if she wants to blame me, she can. No one’s ever liked me anyway. It’s normal for her not to like me either.” With that, she deliberately hobbled over and knelt beside me. She planted her foot firmly on one of the larger fragments and twisted her shoe, grinding it into the floor. Then, in a voice so low only I could hear, she whispered, “I did it. So what?” Rage, pure and hot, shot through me. I moved to push her away. But before I even touched her, she threw herself backward, collapsing onto the floor. Her bandaged ankle collided perfectly with the corner of the nightstand. A split second later, she was wailing. “Karen, I was just trying to help!” Before I could process what had happened, Caleb grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked my head back. I had never seen him like this. His face was a mask of fury, his eyes blazing with a hatred so intense it felt like he wanted to kill me. “Even if you don’t like her, you don’t have to hurt her like this! She’s injured, for God’s sake!” My hair was pulled so tight I was forced to look up at them, a bitter taste flooding my mouth, my heart feeling like it was being ripped to shreds. “I didn’t even touch her!” A sharp crack echoed in the room as his palm connected with my cheek. A fiery red handprint bloomed instantly on my skin. “You’re still lying? Karen, do you think I’m blind? I was standing right here! I saw the whole thing!” he roared. “First, you falsely accuse her, and now you push her down. I never knew you were such a cruel-hearted, venomous woman!” The air left my lungs. I couldn’t form a single word of defense. In his current state, he wouldn’t believe anything I said anyway. He let go of my hair, looking down at me with cold disgust. “No excuse, right? You’re a toxic bitch, Karen.” He looked at me with such profound disappointment. And in that moment, I felt a strange sense of release. If I’d been holding onto one last sliver of hope, it was gone now. There was only quiet acceptance. No more defending myself. No more struggling to explain. As Caleb scooped Leah into his arms, she shot me a triumphant look over his shoulder, mouthing a single, silent sentence. I understood it perfectly. “You think you can compete with me for him?” If you want him that badly, he’s all yours. Caleb, frantic with worry about Leah’s “re-injured” ankle, rushed her to the hospital. I slowly, unsteadily, got to my feet. The full-length mirror showed my reflection: one side of my face a blazing, angry red. The handprint was starkly visible. I could only imagine the force he had used. A bitter laugh escaped my lips. I reached up and wiped away the trickle of blood from the corner of my mouth. This single slap had shattered every last illusion I’d held onto. I took the opportunity to pack. I gathered every piece of clothing, every personal item, and stuffed it all into suitcases. Anything I could take, I took. Anything I couldn’t, I threw in the trash. Before I left, I found a real estate agent and listed the apartment online. It was my apartment. A gift from my grandfather, bought with his retirement savings. It was supposed to be our marital home. Now, there was no reason to keep it. Anything dirty, I threw out. It disgusted me now.

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One in the morning, and a sobbing voice message from my best friend popped up on my phone. “Ella, his parents are forcing him to go on a blind date! He’s in so much pain. Can you please pretend to be his girlfriend and scare the other woman away?” I was in the middle of a game. “Mia, seriously? I have work tomorrow. I don’t have time for your melodrama.” A few minutes later, a video call came through. “He’s locked himself in his room, won’t eat or drink. He says you’re the only one who can talk him down. Please, you have to come.” My team was on the verge of winning. I hung up, annoyed. An hour after that, she showed up at my door, her boyfriend in tow. “We can’t do this without you, Ella! How about the three of us get together? That way his parents can’t force him to do anything!” I fought the urge to slap her. “Mia, have you completely lost your mind? I’m your best friend, not your romantic rival! And besides, I have a boyfriend!” I slammed the door shut, figuring they’d give up once they’d exhausted their crazy. The next morning, I turned on my phone to find a gallery of them in bed together and over 99 messages, all variations of the same thing: “Just waiting for you to join us.” 1 A wave of nausea churned in my stomach. Worried about what these two lunatics might do next, I took a deep breath and called Mia. She picked up instantly. Her shrieking, tear-filled voice exploded in my ear. “Ella! Why did you shut the door on me yesterday? Why didn’t you answer my calls or texts this morning?” “How could you be so heartless! You just want to see us break up, don’t you? You want to see Nathan driven to his death!” I held the phone away from my ear, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Mia, I pulled an all-nighter gaming. It’s normal for me to turn my phone off to catch up on sleep.” “Normal? Nathan is on a hunger strike for me! He was in agony all night, couldn’t sleep a wink, and you were just sleeping?” Nathan again. Ever since she’d started dating this guy six months ago, my life had known no peace. Her voice turned demanding. “You need to come to my place. Right now. Nathan said he only wants to see you. If you talk to him, he’ll eat!” I sighed, exasperated. “Mia, I’ve told you a million times, I have a boyfriend. It is not appropriate for me to go comfort your boyfriend who threatens to die every five minutes.” I couldn’t stand the guy. Nathan always had this perpetually melancholic look on his face, and the way his eyes lingered on me was slimy. It made my skin crawl. “What damn boyfriend?” Mia’s tone turned vicious. “A project manager who’s out of town all the time? How many times a year do you even see him?” “What can a guy like that give you? Does he get you? Does he love you half as much as Nathan does? I’m telling you, Ella, I’m doing this for your own good. Don’t be so ungrateful!” “Have you forgotten? We used to shower together in college, we even scrubbed each other’s backs! Why can’t we share a man?” “Nathan genuinely sees you as one of us! We’re facing a huge crisis, and all you have to do is join us. If the three of us are together forever, his parents will have no excuse to force him into anything!” Her logic was so outrageously warped it made my head spin. “My relationship is my business. If you keep spewing this nonsense, I’m blocking you.” “You wouldn’t dare—” I was already late for work. I hung up and rushed to the office. I’d just reached the entrance when my phone vibrated violently again. I answered, my patience gone. “Mia, I am at work. Whatever it is, it can wait until I’m off!” But the voice on the other end was familiar, and laced with smug satisfaction. “Hello, Ella. It’s Mark Harris, our old class president.” “A few of us from college are having a reunion nearby. Mia’s here with us, and she’s… very upset. She’s telling everyone you’re trying to steal her boyfriend and that you’ve been manipulating her, treating her like your personal servant.” “You should probably get over here. Everyone’s waiting for an explanation.” My head was pounding. I had no choice but to take the day off and rush to the restaurant. The door to the private room was slightly ajar. Before I even entered, I could hear Mia’s heart-wrenching sobs. “Sob… You guys have no idea how horrible she’s been to me!” “I treated her like a sister, I thought of her in everything I did, but her? She’s jealous of me! She can’t stand to see me happy!” “She saw how good my boyfriend Nathan was to me, and she decided she had to steal him! She sends him suggestive texts every day, hotel room numbers… she even said… she said she wants to be with him and that I should just let them be together!” She was twisting the truth, painting me as a conniving homewrecker. Mark Harris, the class president, was putting on a show of consoling her. “Mia, don’t cry. We believe you. Ella wouldn’t do something like that, right? There must be some misunderstanding.” “I don’t care! She’s blinded by jealousy!” Mia slammed her hand on the table, throwing a full-blown tantrum. “If you all don’t help me get justice today, if you don’t make her stay away from my boyfriend, I’ll… I’ll die right here!” The room swam before my eyes. I leaned against the cool wall to steady myself. I pushed the door open, forcing a stiff smile onto my face. “Mia, stop it. When did I ever say I wanted to steal your boyfriend? Why don’t you show everyone our group chat history, if you’re so sure?” I turned to Mark and the others apologetically. “Sorry to drag you all into this. Mia just loves her boyfriend a little too much and her imagination is running wild…” As I was trying to explain, Mia lunged at me like a wild animal and snatched my phone. “See! Look at her! She’s guilty! She’s trying to delete the evidence!” “Mia! Give that back!” I was furious, scrambling to get it back from her. She dodged me, her fingers flying across the screen—she had tricked me into giving her all my passwords ages ago. She opened my messaging app. Pinned to the top was my chat with my boyfriend, Liam. All our sweet, private nicknames and intimate conversations were suddenly on display for everyone to see. “Well, well, Ella. Didn’t know you had it in you,” one of the guys snickered. “Ugh, so gross. No shame,” a girl muttered. The next second, Mia tapped on Liam’s profile picture and hit the video call button. He answered. Mia shoved her face up to the camera. “Hey! You must be Liam, right? Stop bothering our Ella! The person she loves is Nathan! The three of us have been together for a while now! A broke-ass project manager like you doesn’t deserve her!” “You’re insane!” I shrieked, humiliation overwhelming all reason. I lunged forward and finally, with all my strength, wrestled the phone back. The call had already ended. I stared at her, my entire body shaking with rage, tears streaming down my face. “Why? Why would you do this to me? I thought we were best friends!” Mia’s eyes were red too, but her justification was bizarre. “I just love Nathan so much! I can’t live without him! I’ll do anything to make him happy and keep him by my side!” There it was again. That damned, selfish, twisted definition of “love.” It reminded me of college. I had saved up my scholarship money for six months to pay for a crucial certification exam. Mia came to me in tears, saying she’d fallen in love with a limited-edition handbag but couldn’t afford it. “Ella, you’re the best,” she’d pleaded, clinging to my arm. “Just lend me the money. I’ll pay you back next month, I promise.” My heart softened, and I lent her my exam fee. She carried the bag for less than a week before tossing it aside. She never mentioned the money again. Later, my father got seriously ill and needed money for an emergency surgery. Desperate, I had to swallow my pride and ask her for the money back. She looked troubled. “Geez, it’s just a few thousand bucks, do you have to be so pushy? I’m a little tight on cash myself right now. Maybe you can figure something else out?” In the end, my father missed the optimal window for treatment and was left with permanent health complications. His illness became a thorn in my heart that I could never remove. My hands trembled as I tried to call Liam back to explain. The phone rang and rang. He didn’t pick up. Looking at this unreasonable woman, so lost in her own self-righteous drama, my heart felt like a dead, empty space. My voice was almost numb. “Mia, you need to calm down. Let me… let me think about it.” For days, I was a nervous wreck. Liam never returned my call. He didn’t reply to any of my texts. Filled with a gnawing dread, I dragged myself through the work week. When I got back to my apartment building after work, I glanced up and my heart stopped. The light in my kitchen was on. I tiptoed up the stairs and took out my key, only to find the door was unlocked, just slightly ajar. I pushed it open. The scene inside made me gasp. Mia was in my kitchen, wearing my apron, bustling around my stove. And sitting at my dining table, playing the game I was halfway through on my Switch, was that gloomy bastard, Nathan. “What are you doing here?” I demanded. Mia saw me and, without a trace of guilt, beamed. “You’re back! Perfect timing. Go wash up, I made your favorite sweet and sour pork ribs.” “I asked you,” my voice trembled, “how you got a key to my apartment!” “We’re best friends, silly,” she said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “I just quietly made a copy last time I was here.” I felt the blood drain from my face. “Even if you wanted to come over, you should have called first!” “Oh, I wanted to surprise you.” Mia came out of the kitchen with a platter of food and linked her arm through mine. “See? Don’t the three of us look like a perfect little family?” Her face was glowing with a deranged, saintly light. “Nathan gets into his head when he’s alone. I figured you have a spare room here, so I had him move in with you. You can help cheer him up.” “Besides,” she added, “we’re going to be a family sooner or later anyway.” Just then, Nathan put down the game console. He turned, and his dark, predatory eyes scanned me from head to toe, like I was a prize he was about to claim. A chill ran down my spine. I vaguely remembered Mia’s family being a normal, working-class household. I couldn’t fathom how they had raised a daughter so clueless, so utterly insane. I fought back the fear and disgust. “I said I’d think about it. I never agreed! Now, I want both of you out of my apartment. Immediately!” Mia’s face fell. “What is wrong with you?” “I’ve already made the decision for you! Don’t be so ungrateful! The three of us, together, taking care of each other. And he has a lot of energy, neither of us will ever be neglected! Why can’t you just accept it? Are you still thinking about that Liam guy?” “You don’t get to make decisions for me! I am your best friend, not your property!” My emotions finally exploded. “Get your man and your stuff and get out! If you don’t leave right now, I’m calling the police!” “You wouldn’t dare!” she shrieked, pointing a finger at my nose. “You’d call the cops on your best friend for some guy you barely know? Ella, have you no conscience?” “That’s right! I have no conscience! I’m not as ‘selfless’ as you!” I screamed back, pulling out my phone and dialing 911 without a second of hesitation. Mia froze, shocked that I’d actually done it. The police arrived quickly. After getting the story, even they were speechless at the sheer insanity of this forced “family unit.” They gave Mia and Nathan a stern lecture. Under the officers’ supervision, they grudgingly began to pack their things. As she was leaving, Mia stood at the door and screamed at me, calling me an ungrateful, heartless snake. And Nathan, as he passed me, paused and leaned in close, his voice a low, chilling whisper in my ear. “You’re hot when you’re angry. I’m getting hard.” His voice was cold and slimy, like a caterpillar crawling into my ear. I flinched back, horrified. He just smiled, a cruel, confident smirk that promised this wasn’t over. I collapsed to the floor after they left, drenched in a cold sweat. I couldn’t stay here. I had to move, immediately. I had to get as far away from those two psychos as possible. I found a new place at lightning speed, packed through the night, and was gone the next day. For two weeks, there was silence. Mia didn’t find me. Nathan seemed to have vanished from my life. And Liam finally called back. After I tearfully explained everything, his voice was gentle. “You silly girl, why would I ever believe that stuff? I just had something important I had to take care of, that’s all.” What could be so important that he couldn’t even take a call? A seed of doubt was planted, but I chose to trust him. Friday afternoon, I was in the middle of a presentation for a VIP client. Halfway through, the conference room door was thrown open with a loud bang. Mia stood there, dragging Nathan behind her. Everyone in the room stared, stunned. The moment I saw them, my mind went blank, my blood ran cold. “Ella!” Mia’s voice boomed, capturing everyone’s attention. She pointed at me, her voice breaking with crocodile tears. “Everyone, take a good look! This is my ‘best friend’!” “She wishes me well to my face, but behind my back, she’s seducing my boyfriend, trying to destroy our relationship! And now she’s thrown us out on the street, leaving us homeless!” Nathan stood beside her, perfectly playing the part of the tragic, tormented hero caught between two women. Homeless? The room erupted in whispers. Everyone, including the incredibly important client sitting across from me, was staring with a mixture of shock and morbid curiosity. I stood up, shaking with rage. “Mia! What are you talking about? When did I ever make you homeless?” “I’m not lying!” Mia milked the attention for all it was worth. “She promised she would be with us! The three of us were supposed to start a new family together! But now she’s latched onto someone better and wants to kick us to the curb!” “I had no other choice! I’m begging you all, please, help me get justice!” “If a person can’t even keep a simple promise, if her character is this corrupt, can you really trust her with your business?” I never imagined that the person I had called my best friend for over a decade would slander me so viciously in front of my boss and my clients. She wasn’t just trying to ruin my reputation. She was trying to ruin my entire future. Nathan stood behind her, head bowed, the picture of misery, playing his part to perfection. “Oh my god, a threesome? Kids these days are wild.” “You can’t judge a book by its cover. She seemed so professional.” “Yeah, I wouldn’t trust someone with such a chaotic personal life. Who knows what other secrets she’s keeping.” Mia turned to my boss. “Sir, I came here today to ask the company to make Ella honor her promise and come back to us! If she refuses, you should fire her! We can’t have our family’s name dragged through the mud like this!” The room was spinning. I thought I was going to faint. “Ella, care to explain?” My boss’s face was as dark as thunder. Just as I was about to be swallowed by the crushing weight of humiliation, a familiar voice cut through the chaos from the doorway. “This family you’re trying to build… it’s not going to happen.”

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1 Over six hundred miles away, the earth shook, and my hometown crumbled. My grandma was buried in the rubble. I had to get home, to save her. But I couldn’t drive. My only hope was to beg Ken Vance to take me. Half an hour before we were supposed to leave, he bailed. A sudden press junket for the studio, he said. The world turned to ice around me. My hometown, Ridgefall, was a speck on the map. No airport. No easy way in. Booking a ticket now meant a two-day journey, at best. My voice was practically a whisper, stripped of all pride. “Ken, Grandma’s in real danger. Can’t you postpone it? Please.” Silence stretched on the other end of the line. I waited, my heart hammering against my ribs, only to hear the lilting voice of another woman cut through the static. “Ken, darling, come help me with this clasp!” It was Maya. His co-star. “Coming.” The line went dead. So much for a press junket. He was with her. In my moment of absolute desperation, he’d abandoned me for Maya. After he hung up, I stumbled out onto the highway, frantically trying to flag down a cab. But driver after driver heard my destination and just shook their heads, speeding away. “Lady, that’s an 8.0 earthquake in Ridgefall,” one of them finally told me, his face grim. “Who’d drive into a death trap?” Night had fallen completely. I was a ghost on the shoulder of the highway, watching the river of headlights flow past, lost in a fog of despair. I tried calling Ken again. The call went straight to a cold, robotic voice: The number you have dialed is not available. I should have known. It was his signature move. Whenever I needed him for something serious and he said no, any further attempt to reach him was met with a wall of silence. He’d just turn off his phone. When did we become this? In the end, I booked a series of bus and train tickets. From the moment I booked them to the transfers and the agonizingly slow journey, it took me three whole days. By the time I got back, the earthquake was a memory. Ridgefall was nothing but a landscape of shattered homes and broken lives. They’d pulled Grandma’s body from the debris. She was crushed beyond recognition by stone and earth. I couldn’t even make out her face. The only thing left was the photograph clutched tight in her hand. A picture of the three of us. It was from the first time I brought Ken home to meet her. She’d been so proud, she hired a professional photographer just for the occasion. My eyes were raw and dry. I’d already cried all my tears on the journey home. The house was gone, so a proper funeral was impossible. I forced my broken body to move, carrying her to the nearest crematorium. She was ash, sealed in a small, neat box. A staff member was handing her to me when my phone finally rang. It was Ken. “Clara, why haven’t you been answering my texts?” I looked at my phone. He’d sent a single message. We’re still tweaking the promotional shots for me and Maya. Stop bugging me. I’ll take you back when I have time. The timestamp was from three days ago. I was already on the first bus by then. As if on cue, a notification popped up. His latest Instagram post. It was the photo he’d been talking about. He held Maya in a fiercely possessive embrace, his arms a cage around her. The comments were a firestorm of fans shipping them. Ken Vance, the award-winning actor, and Maya, his on-screen partner for countless projects. In the eyes of the world, they were a match made in heaven, just waiting for the wedding announcement. No one would ever guess that his quiet, unassuming personal assistant was his actual girlfriend. But right now, I didn’t want to be his assistant anymore. And I damn well didn’t want to be his girlfriend. I typed a flat, emotionless reply. “Ken, I quit. And we’re done.” I hung up before he could speak and blocked his number, his social media, everything. When I came back to myself, a fresh wave of pain seared my eyes. It was a lie to say it didn’t hurt. We’d been together for nearly a decade. The government provided a small compensation fund. I took it, and with Grandma’s ashes in my arms, I moved to the coastal city of Bayside, into the little house she’d owned there. She always said she was a Bayside girl at heart. If anything ever happened to her, she wanted to come home. To return to her roots. The last thing I expected was to find Ken and Maya standing inside it. Maya was clinging to his arm, swaying playfully. “Oh, Ken, you’re too good to me! I can’t believe you’re giving me this house.” “It’s a little old,” she continued, “but the air is amazing, and you can see the ocean right from the porch. We’ll renovate it, of course. It’ll be our perfect little getaway whenever I want to see the sea…” A soft smile touched Ken’s lips. “Whatever you want.” I couldn’t believe it. He was giving her the house. I had told him, explicitly, that this place belonged to my grandmother. His careless, dismissive words—Whatever you want—shattered the last thread of my sanity. A raw scream tore from my throat. “KEN! This is my GRANDMA’S house! What right do you have to give it to someone else?” They both spun around, startled by my furious voice. He looked genuinely surprised to see me there. Maya’s lips curved into a saccharine smile. “Clara, dear. Weren’t you supposed to be visiting your grandmother? What are you doing here?” Her words were poison, and they worked instantly. Ken’s face hardened. “Clara, is lying some kind of game to you? We’ll deal with this later.” Of course. He thought my plea to see my dying grandmother was just a lie. A manipulative trick. That I was just throwing a tantrum and had followed him here because I couldn’t stand to be away from him. My face must have been a mask of devastation. Ken’s tone softened slightly, as if speaking to a difficult child. “Look, since you’re here, I might as well tell you. It’s Maya’s birthday, and she fell in love with this place. I need you to talk to your grandma. I’m buying it.” He wasn’t asking. He was informing me. But why? Why did he get to decide? This was the last thing on earth my grandmother had left behind. A dull, crushing ache spread through my chest. Oh, Grandma, I thought. Look at us. We were both fooled by his act. I forced the rage down, my voice tight. “Impossible.” Maya’s smile widened, though she feigned an apologetic tone. “Don’t be upset, Clara. It’s just a house.” “I know you’re still mad that Ken had to cancel on you to be with me at the studio,” she cooed. “I’m so, so sorry about that.” “But it wasn’t his fault. I accidentally got hurt by a prop, and he was taking care of me for hours. He was exhausted, that’s why he…” Ken jumped in to defend her. “Exactly. She was hurt. She’s my co-star. What’s wrong with me looking after her?” Maya was the industry’s new darling, a rising star who had captivated everyone with her doe-eyed, vulnerable-yet-resilient persona. She’d caught Ken’s eye during a film they did together, and he’d been obsessed ever since. He championed her, funneling prime resources and roles her way. When she was bullied on set, he was the first to rush to her defense. A video once went viral of him scooping her up into his arms in the middle of the set and storming off, his face a thundercloud of protective rage. After that, everyone knew she was under the golden boy’s protection. Somewhere along the line, the days he spent with her had started to outnumber the days he spent with me. I’d fought with him about it. But he always had an excuse. He just felt sorry for her, he’d say. She was so fragile, so much like me. He couldn’t help but look out for her. That’s all it was. Thinking back on it now, I had to laugh at my own foolishness. Look at that. I wasn’t even dead yet, and he’d already found my replacement. “Since you care about her so much,” I sneered, “why don’t you two just get married? But right now, I need you to get the hell out of my house.” Ken’s voice turned cold with anger. “Clara! How many times do I have to tell you? Nothing is going on between me and Maya!” “This is a professional obligation! Why are you being so petty and insecure?” “If you keep this up, I think… I think I’m going to have to fire you.” The threat of firing me hung in the air, heavy and deliberate. I met his gaze, my own eyes like chips of ice. “You don’t have to, Ken. I already quit.” “And if you two aren’t gone in the next ten seconds, I’m calling the police.” His face was a dark mask of fury, but he didn’t say anything else. After a long moment, he rubbed his temples, a flicker of exhaustion crossing his features. “Clara, does it really have to be like this?” I spotted a bucket of water by the door. Without a second thought, I grabbed it and hurled its contents at him. “You think?” I screamed, the words finally pouring out. “Ken, you have no idea what it feels like to watch the man you love build a world with another woman, all under the guise of ‘work.’” “You never once considered my feelings. I was just a toy to you. Something to pick up when you were happy and toss aside when you were bored.” “The moment you walked in here with her and said you were giving her my grandmother’s house… that’s when I knew I wanted to do this.” “You’re pathetic.” Water dripped from his hair, his expensive clothes soaked through. He wiped his face, his eyes blazing with incandescent rage. “Clara! This is not the time or place for your tantrums! Have I spoiled you rotten?” A flash of malicious glee crossed Maya’s face, but she quickly hid it behind a pained smile. “Ken, I’m so sorry I’ve caused this between you and Clara. Really. And Clara… please, don’t worry. This is the last project Ken and I will do together. After this, I’m going to announce my retirement. I won’t get in your way anymore.” Ken whipped his head toward her, his expression a mixture of anger and raw concern. “What are you apologizing to her for? Your mother is sick! How are you supposed to pay her medical bills if you retire?” He turned back to me, his gaze glacial. “Clara. Apologize to Maya. Now.” A hysterical giggle escaped my lips. “Ken, I haven’t even done anything yet. You want an apology for nothing? Fine. Get on your knees and beg me.” Maya’s eyes instantly filled with tears. “Clara, I already said I was sorry. Why do you have to be so cruel?” “Clara, don’t push me into breaking up with you!” Ken roared. I took a step forward. “Go ahead. Didn’t we already?” He instinctively pulled Maya behind him, as if I were some kind of monster about to attack. “Clara, I’m warning you. If you dare lay a hand on Maya, I will never—” I cut him off, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “You’re overthinking it. With Hollywood’s shining knight here to protect her, what could I possibly do? I was just reaching for the broom.” My bitter tone clearly irritated him, but he also seemed to relax slightly. “Alright, Clara. Stop being jealous. I’ll make it up to you later, but right now, we—” It was always the same script. He knew. He knew every time he was with Maya, it twisted a knife in my gut. But he would never change. He would just offer up a series of flimsy excuses like this, sidestepping the real issue. He knew I was easy to please, easy to pacify. If that didn’t work, he’d just give me the silent treatment. Eventually, I’d always break. I’d be the one to crawl back to him. Because I was terrified that if I pushed too hard, I’d lose him. My surrender was his free pass to let the whole thing blow over. What Ken didn’t know was that this time, watching his lips move, hearing the same old empty words, only filled me with a profound, bone-deep exhaustion. “Shut up,” I said, my voice flat with revulsion. “Kiss her. Sleep with her. I don’t care anymore. It has nothing to do with me.” “Now take your little project and get out.” He seemed to finally see the genuine disgust in my eyes, and he froze. It was as if he’d never considered that my patience had a limit. Then, as if remembering something, his posture shifted, becoming softer. “Clara, how is your grandma doing?” I nodded slowly. “She’s fine.” She’s waiting for me on the other side. My placid response seemed to ease his tension. “See? I told you she was tough. She’ll pull through. Just tell her to hang on for a few more days. I’ll take you back on a private jet to get her.” “Now, stop making a scene.” Tough. The word was a slap in the face. He saw my lack of reaction. “Well?” “Are you going to get out, or do I have to call the police?” I asked calmly. His face darkened instantly. He wrapped a protective arm around Maya’s shoulders and turned to leave. “Let’s see how long you can keep this up, Clara.” As the door closed behind them, I let out a shaky breath, my back sliding down the wall until I was huddled on the floor. The emotional storm had drained every last ounce of my strength. I couldn’t decipher the look in his eyes as he left. Suddenly, I was thrown back to the day I first met him. I was interviewing for a job as an actor’s assistant. Ken had a reputation for being difficult. He’d already chewed through a dozen assistants before me. They gave me the job simply because I looked like a pushover. But I was observant and efficient, and I quickly learned to anticipate his needs. I made his life easier, and in turn, my life became easier. No more yelling. He even praised me once. “Clara, you’re a hell of a lot more useful than those other idiots.” The truth was, I worked my ass off because I couldn’t afford to lose a job that paid so well. Everything changed after he wrapped a movie one year. At the cast party, a drunk producer started getting handsy with me. Ken saw it. Without a word, he grabbed a platter of food from the table and smashed it over the man’s face. The fallout was catastrophic. The studio shelved the film, and he was hit with a massive breach of contract fine. But he didn’t seem to care about any of that. He just turned to me, his eyes full of regret, and apologized. “Clara, I’m so sorry. I should have protected you.” In that instant, my heart hammered against my ribs like a trapped bird. Tears streamed down my face. It was the first time in my life anyone had ever stood up for me. I never knew my parents. My grandma found me, abandoned, and raised me as her own. But the world is not kind to the weak. If you’re vulnerable, people will find a way to hurt you. As much as my grandma loved me, I couldn’t escape the other kids in town, their taunts of “bastard” and “orphan” following me everywhere.

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My son’s new teacher wanted to move the annual field trip from the Botanical Institute to Blackwood Forest. In my last life, I’d argued until I had to threaten to report her. An influencer obsessed with her “Brave Little Lamb” image, she finally gave in. Just as I’d predicted, a landslide hit the forest on the planned trip day. But two days earlier, she’d filmed a fake class adventure there—it went viral. Parents who’d thanked me now sent hate, wanting fame. She made students bully my son Leo, then pushed him down the stairs, whispering, “Blame your meddling mother.” They framed his death as suicide. Before his body was cold, an online mob came for me. I took my own life. Now, I’ve woken up at that parent-teacher meeting again. This time, when she proposes the trip, I’m the first to agree. “Only true wilderness unlocks a child’s potential,” I say, smiling. “I fully support it!” 1 In my past life, when I arrived at the school, my son’s body was already covered by a white sheet. Everyone said he had jumped. But I knew the truth. I screamed and lunged for the real killer. The teacher, Ms. Finch, feigned terror, but as they pulled me away, she leaned in and whispered in my ear. “You exposed my video as a fake. I killed your son. Seems fair, don’t you think?” I clawed at her face, a desperate, wild animal, but they just called me a hysterical woman having a breakdown. Ms. Finch’s saccharine voice yanks me from the memory. “Mrs. Reed, don’t you think you’re overreacting?” “It’s just a landslide warning. Is that really more important than building character in our children?” My son, Leo, senses my detachment. He nudges my leg gently, his eyes wide with concern. The other parents start to murmur in agreement. “She’s right. The weather service is always so dramatic, aren’t they? They issue warnings every day, and nothing ever happens.” “This is about shaping our kids’ futures. What’s one little warning compared to that?” I dig my nails into my palm. The sharp sting of pain is a welcome anchor, proof that this is real. I am back. I look at Ms. Finch’s deceptively sweet smile at the front of the room, and I have to grind my teeth to keep from screaming. I want nothing more than to destroy her right here, right now. Seeing my silence, she taps her pen on the lectern impatiently. “Mrs. Reed, we need to think this through.” “The weather service issues dozens of warnings a week. But an educational opportunity like this comes once in a lifetime.” Her most loyal sycophant, a woman named Karen, chimes in immediately. “Exactly!” “Mrs. Reed, just because your Leo is a little timid, you can’t hold back the entire class from this amazing experience.” “We’re not all renowned scientists like you. We don’t have special connections. Are you really going to ruin this for everyone else? Can you take responsibility for that?” Her words ignite the room. One by one, other parents join her crusade. “Blackwood Forest has been there for decades. A sudden landslide? It seems a bit far-fetched, don’t you think?” “Ms. Finch fought hard to get this opportunity for our kids. What right do you have to stand in her way?” “My son says Leo’s always been a scaredy-cat. He’s probably just trying to drag everyone else down with him…” Leo’s face pales, the accusations landing like physical blows. He opens his mouth, his voice trembling. “Mom, I’m not—” I clench my fists, my knuckles white. For a split second, I consider trying to warn them one last time. To do the right thing. But then I remember. I remember the sincerity in their eyes when they thanked me, and the venom in their words when they cursed me. I remember how they fanned the flames online, pushing me toward the edge of a cliff until I finally fell. No one in this room is innocent. I look out the window at the fine, misty rain and offer an apologetic smile. “I’m so sorry, Ms. Finch. I wasn’t thinking clearly.” I stand up abruptly, and the chatter in the room dies down. “I was the one being alarmist. I nearly jeopardized our children’s future.” “Ms. Finch is so thoughtful to arrange this. Of course, she has my full support.” 2 As my words hang in the air, the classroom falls into a dead silence. Leo’s hand, clutching mine, is ice-cold. I give him a reassuring glance, a silent promise. “Are you… are you serious, Mrs. Reed?” A flicker of confusion crosses Ms. Finch’s face, but it’s quickly replaced by a triumphant gleam. “Of course,” I say, nodding earnestly. “I want what’s best for my son, just like everyone else.” “I was making a mountain out of a molehill. I nearly wasted all of your hard work, Ms. Finch. You’ve thought of everything. As parents, we can rest easy knowing our children are in your hands.” I put extra emphasis on the words rest easy. A low murmur ripples through the other parents. A satisfied smile spreads across Ms. Finch’s face. She claps her hands together and pulls a stack of A4 papers from her designer handbag. “Now that we’re all on the same page, just to avoid any… disagreements later on,” she says, shooting a pointed look in my direction, “I’ll need everyone to sign this safety waiver.” She hands me the form. It’s a liability waiver. By signing, parents agree to the field trip to Blackwood Forest and absolve Ms. Finch of any and all responsibility for any accidents. She raises her voice, beaming. “Oh, and one more thing. The fee for the trip has been increased to three hundred dollars. Please transfer the funds to Karen as soon as possible.” The other parents nod eagerly, scrambling for their phones. I look down at the paper and feel a cold, bitter laugh rise in my throat. I never saw this waiver in my past life. I had no idea she had planned to cover her tracks from the very beginning. “Evelyn, what are you waiting for?” Karen’s voice is sharp enough to cut glass. “Stop staring and sign it!” I set the waiver down on the desk. “Leo won’t be attending.” Ms. Finch’s smile instantly twists into a snarl. “But you just agreed!” The other parents, led by Karen, glare at me. “What are you trying to pull, Evelyn?” “Are you playing games with us? Do you think we’re fools?” I simply adjust my glasses. “I do support you, Ms. Finch. I think it’s a wonderful idea.” “It’s just that my Leo…” I let out a heavy sigh. “He has a severe case of acrophobia. Always has.” “He can’t even look down from a second-story window without getting dizzy.” I dab at the corners of my eyes with my sleeve, my voice thick with mock-sadness. “I’m just so worried about his health. What if something happens to him on the mountain?” “He’d disrupt your plans, the other students would have to look after him… it just wouldn’t be right.” “To make sure everyone else has the best possible experience, we’ve decided to sit this one out.” Understanding dawns on Leo’s face. He slowly hunches over, clutching his chest dramatically. “Mom,” he gasps, “I… I can’t breathe…” Ms. Finch stares at our performance, utterly dumbfounded. The room erupts in whispers again. “Mom, I don’t want to have to take care of that weakling…” “He’s how old and still afraid of heights? What a wimp.” “You know, my daughter is afraid of heights too. That mountain is pretty high, maybe…” A few other parents start to look hesitant. Karen sees the tide turning and slams her hand on a desk. “You’re undermining class unity!” “A fear of heights isn’t some terminal illness! Can’t he just try to be brave?” Her outburst backfires. The mother who had just spoken up retorts, “Are you going to be responsible if my daughter has a full-blown panic attack up there?” “You know what, we’re out too. I’ve never seen three red alerts issued for the same area before…” As the voices of dissent grow louder, Ms. Finch struggles to maintain her gentle facade. “Everyone, quiet!” Her hand, adorned with a dazzling diamond ring, smacks against the blackboard. “This is a class trip. No one is skipping!” “The entire point of this is to foster teamwork and cooperation! We need to be united!” She throws a contemptuous look my way. “Mrs. Reed, a little fear is something that can be overcome. Do you really want Leo to grow up to be an outcast?” “If this continues, his personality development could be severely stunted!” She tries to sound like a concerned educator, but her eyes are dancing with smug victory. “This is for the good of all the children. Every single student will be attending!” Her firm stance emboldens the others. They rush to agree, afraid of being left behind. “She’s right, Evelyn! This is a group activity. What does it look like if you don’t go?” “I bet she just thinks this school is beneath her son now!” Hearing the other parents turn on me, a smug, triumphant look spreads across Ms. Finch’s face. “Alright, settle down.” She scans the room like a queen surveying her court. “This trip will be incredibly beneficial for everyone.” “Not only will it teach the children independence, but I will also be livestreaming the entire event.” “I’ll even edit the footage into a professional video. Every child will have a chance to be on camera!” 3 The room explodes. “Oh my god! Ms. Finch has over three million followers!” “If my kid gets famous, he could be an influencer! That’s way more money than he’ll ever make with a college degree!” The parents who were hesitating just moments ago are now overcome with a feverish excitement. They practically trample each other to transfer the money to Karen. Even the mother whose daughter had a fear of heights. I just shake my head, a bitter taste in my mouth. Ms. Finch’s smile grows wider. Karen looks like she’s just won the lottery. “Evelyn, aren’t you going to sign and pay?” “If she won’t sign, I will! Karen, check your account, the money’s there!” A mob of parents surges forward, shoving desks and chairs aside. I pull Leo close, a deep sense of irony washing over me. In my last life, Ms. Finch never had to use these elaborate excuses. This was never about the kids. It was a pre-planned script for her social media channel. The children were just props, a brief cameo in her show. The idea that any of them would become famous was a cruel joke. As if on cue, the drizzle outside intensifies, the rain now hammering against the windowpanes. But inside, the atmosphere is reaching a fever pitch. As a geologist specializing in mountain hazards, I know the conditions at Blackwood Forest better than anyone. The loose, saturated soil, combined with days of relentless rain… a landslide isn’t just a possibility, it’s an inevitability. While the classroom is in chaos, I take Leo’s hand and pull him toward the back door. “Stay close, Leo.” We crouch low, moving as quietly as we can. The back door is just inches away. My hand is reaching for the handle when— “They’re trying to run!” a sharp-eyed parent shrieks. The room falls silent. The only sound is the frantic drumming of rain against the roof. Ms. Finch slowly raises her head. Her eyes are filled with a cold, hard malice. “Evelyn,” she says, her voice low and dangerous, “have I been too nice to you?” Her crude language ignites a fire in my chest. “Ms. Finch, is that really something a teacher should be saying?” Leo, bristling with indignation, steps forward, but I pull him behind me. “I told you, Leo has a severe phobia. We are not participating.” “Who the hell do you think you are? You don’t get to decide that!” Ms. Finch’s face is flushed with rage. She pounds her fist on the lectern. “This is a class-wide activity!” “Leo is already timid. If you don’t push him now, are you trying to raise a coward?” Her vulgar words make my blood boil. “The weather service has issued three consecutive red alerts! The park service has issued its own danger advisory!” “And field trips are voluntary. You can’t force us to go!” Ms. Finch scoffs. “I never said I was forcing you. You’re just trying to divide the class!” Karen points a finger in my face. “Listen here, Evelyn. Ms. Finch is being more than patient with you. Sign the damn paper and pay the money!” The room descends into chaos again, parents shouting accusations at me from all sides. Leo clenches his fists, but I pull him toward the door. “Let us through! What you’re doing is illegal!” A wall of parents blocks our path. I try to push through them, and the argument turns into a shoving match. Suddenly, I feel a sharp tug on my hair. A split second later, Karen’s hand cracks across my face. My vision explodes in a shower of stars. I stumble backward and fall to the floor. Someone’s foot comes down hard on my hand, and a bloom of pain radiates up my arm. “Mom! Are you okay?” Leo shoves the other parents aside and helps me to my feet. A fiery pain shoots through my knee as I stand. Karen takes a half-step back, a flicker of fear in her eyes. “Drama queen. It was just a little fall.” Ms. Finch watches, her expression cold, a hint of satisfaction in her eyes. “This is what you get for disrupting the harmony of this class!” “If you don’t sign that paper and pay today, none of us are letting you leave!” Leo’s eyes are red with fury. He looks like he’s about to launch himself at her. “Leo, calm down,” I say, placing a hand on his shoulder. “We won’t stoop to their level.” “We’ll use the law to protect ourselves.” I hold up my swollen, bruised hand. My voice is like ice. “Your actions today constitute assault.” “This is the kind of class Ms. Finch runs, is it? So committed to ‘unity’ that you’re willing to break the law?” I scan the pale, shocked faces around me. “A class like this isn’t worthy of my son.” Ms. Finch is clearly unprepared for me to bring up the law. She stares at me for a second, then screeches, “What are you trying to do?” I lead Leo to the back door without a backward glance. “We are not going on the field trip.” “And right now, I’m going to find Principal Davies and arrange for a transfer.” The room is silent. Then Karen bursts out laughing as if she’s just heard the funniest joke in the world. She slaps her thigh, her body shaking with mirth. “Oh, ‘Principal Davies’! You really think you’re someone important, don’t you?” Ms. Finch crosses her arms, a smug look on her face. “Go ahead. The second you walk out that door, Leo is no longer a student in this class.” “And Principal Davies? He’s at a district conference today. Let’s see who’s going to sign your transfer papers now!” I take a deep breath. I pull out my phone, dial a number, and put it on speaker. A kind, familiar voice answers on the second ring. “Evelyn, what a surprise. Is something wrong? Is it about Leo?”

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01 The day I agreed to be Alec Gable’s secret lover, he gave me the rules: “Stay in the shadows. Never call yourself my girlfriend in public.” I nodded. I knew how to survive in a gilded cage. Yet the very next day, he paraded me before a wall of cameras. Every reporter gasped when they saw my face. Five years later, I still didn’t know why. Then one night, he came home smelling of whiskey and said flatly, “Renee, our contract is over. We’re not renewing.” My hands, carving a rabbit from an apple, stilled. I managed a quiet “Mm.” Alec hugged me from behind, chin on my shoulder, nibbling my ear. “What’s wrong? Can’t bear to leave me?” I whispered, eyes down, “I wouldn’t dare.” He chuckled low. “Is there anything you wouldn’t dare?” I stayed silent. He was right. I’d dared too much already—taking his money, his body, and finally daring to want his love. The ache in my chest was my punishment. Alec released me. “But before we part, I’ll grant you one last request.” … “Help me sort out my sister’s legal guardianship and her school enrollment.” I washed the paring knife and turned to face him, my expression placid. “I’ll move out as soon as possible. I’d appreciate your help with that, Mr. Gable.” He stared at me, as if trying to decipher a puzzle on my face. “Nothing else?” I shook my head. “Nothing.” “Fine.” For some reason, I could hear the sound of him gritting his teeth in that single word. I started packing that night. Every luxury item Alec had ever bought me, I listed on a resale website. As for the car and the apartment in my name, I scheduled a meeting with his assistant to sign them back over. Alec watched me in silence. As I sat on the floor to catch my breath, he tossed a piece of black lace onto my lap. It was a scandalously revealing nightgown. “Renee, why don’t you sell this while you’re at it?” I stared at him, bewildered by his sudden anger. He gripped my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. “Put it on.” My fingers traced the flimsy fabric, my cheeks burning. “N-now?” “Can we wait? The sun hasn’t even set.” His hand began a slow, deliberate journey over my body. His eyes were dark, his voice a low command. “Why?” “Do I need to make an appointment to sleep with you now?” I bit my lip and looked down, not daring to breathe. Alec had a reputation for being a difficult, inventive lover. The first time I was in his bed, I didn’t even know what a safeword was. He’d pushed me to the edge of consciousness, every bone in my body feeling like it had been ground to dust. All I could do was make small, animalistic whimpers beneath him. My tears hadn’t moved him in the slightest. If anything, they had excited him more. The next morning, his assistant delivered a mountain of designer boxes, things I’d only ever seen in magazines. Tucked inside was a note. “Next time you can’t take it, just say ‘I love you.’” My face had burned with shame. “What are you thinking about?” Alec’s hand gave my hip a light, impatient tap. I snapped back to the present, slowly lifting my eyes to meet his. He raised an eyebrow. “What, you’re refusing to take my orders now?” But just as I stood there in the nightgown, practically naked, his phone rang. I could hear a cool, detached female voice on the other end. She called him “Jules.” I knew who it was. His fiancée, the one he’d been betrothed to since childhood. The daughter of Port Sterling’s wealthiest tycoon, Juliette Monroe. Alec flirted with her in a low, intimate voice, while his hand stroked the curve of my waist with a deliberate, suggestive pressure. I didn’t understand why he was still in the mood for this, not now. Just as I’d never understood what he, a man who had everything, had seen in me, a girl working at a roadside food stall. He hung up and pulled me into his arms. “Juliette wants to meet you.” My head snapped up. His eyes were glinting with a familiar, mocking amusement. It took me a moment to find my voice. “Mr. Gable, I know my place.” “If you need me to, I can leave right now.” He let out a low, unreadable laugh. “If you know your place, then you know you can’t refuse my requests until the contract is officially over.” He looked down at me, his power absolute. “Don’t forget, Renee. Your sister’s future is still in my hands.” 02 The moment he mentioned my sister, I knew I had lost. And when I saw Juliette Monroe, I understood exactly why the heiress had insisted on meeting the canary in the cage. We looked so much alike it was jarring. But the effortless air of nobility that clung to her was something an orphan like me could never hope to replicate. I was a blurry shadow behind her, a speck of dust on the sole of her shoe. When she saw me, a flicker of shock crossed her face. But the wealthy socialite quickly composed herself, her expression hardening into a mask of cool disdain. She stirred her coffee, the spoon clinking softly against the porcelain. She looked up at Alec, a smirk playing on her lips. “Alec, are you really that obsessed with me?” He leaned back in his chair, completely at ease, a playful light in his eyes. “Of course, Juliette.” “All those years you were abroad, you broke my heart.” I stood awkwardly beside them, feeling like an ill-trained servant. “And besides,” Alec added, glancing at me, “she’s not just a copy.” “She’s more fun, too.” “When I play too rough, she doesn’t get angry. She just cries. Endlessly.” “Not like you. A little too much pressure and you throw a tantrum. I have to buy you a new property just to get you to calm down.” “Renee isn’t like that. She’s obedient, easy to please. A single designer lipstick can make her happy for days.” Juliette gave me a long, unreadable look. “Is that so?” “She sounds… accommodating.” Juliette stood, moving with the liquid grace of a cat. She walked over to me, and before I could react, she tilted the cup. Scalding hot coffee streamed down from the top of my head. I flinched, instinctively trying to pull away, but Alec’s voice cut through the air, cold and sharp. “Don’t move.” I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood. Tears welled in my eyes, whether from the burn or the humiliation, I couldn’t tell. Only when the last drop of coffee had dripped from my hem onto the floor did Alec pull a napkin from the dispenser and hand it to me. “What are you waiting for? Thank Juliette.” In all my time with him, I had never been so humiliated, except perhaps in his bed. My body was shaking uncontrollably. “Th-thank you, Miss Monroe,” I stammered. Juliette saw my shame and seemed to relish it. She picked up a silver butter knife from the table and used it to tilt my chin up. “Who are you trying to impress with this stoic act?” “You’re nothing but a common whore selling her body in a man’s bed.” The flat of the blade tapped against my cheek. “And now you think you have the right to put on airs?” I forgot to even cry. All I could think was that the insults of the wealthy were just as ugly as the curses of the gossiping old women from my village. “That’s enough. Wipe that pathetic, bullied look off your face,” Juliette said, tossing the knife back onto the table with a clatter. “Now get out.” It was a pardon. I turned, desperate to flee. But before I could take a single step, she spoke again. “And leave behind anything that has to do with Alec.” “And make sure you never appear in front of us again.” I shook my head softly. “I don’t have anything of his on me.” “Really?” Juliette’s eyes roamed over me, from head to toe. Her red lips curled. “That dress. It’s from the new season.” “Alec didn’t buy it for you?” She was going to make me strip. She was going to make me walk out of here naked. My head whipped around, my eyes pleading with Alec. 03 Alec was leisurely spearing a piece of watermelon with his fork. He met my gaze with a look of mild confusion. “Didn’t you hear what Juliette said?” “Or do you need me to show you the receipt?” In that moment, I felt something inside me shatter. “Fine.” I lowered my eyes, my voice so stiff it sounded like a stranger’s. “Go back to whatever gutter you crawled out of, Renee,” Alec said, delivering his final judgment. “I’ll be selling that apartment soon.” I listened to his words as I unzipped the coffee-stained dress, peeling it off inch by inch, until I was left in nothing but my faded white bra and a pair of worn-out leggings. Juliette laughed. “Jules, you really know where to spend your money and where to save it.” Alec glanced over, shrugging nonchalantly. “She doesn’t need to wear anything at home, and I don’t see her when she’s out.” “Seems like a waste of money to me.” A waste of money. I swallowed the bitter lump in my throat. He was right. In his eyes, I was nothing more than a life-sized doll, one that conveniently had its own emotions. I went back to the small rental I shared with my sister, Zoe. She was already asleep, her young face soft and beautiful in the moonlight. I never had much of an education, and I was determined that the little girl I’d found next to a dumpster years ago wouldn’t share my regrets. But I couldn’t legally adopt her, and the meager income from my food cart wasn’t enough to support us both anymore. So when Alec had offered to take care of me, I had barely hesitated. I just wanted the money. I wanted Zoe to be able to finish school, to have a future. I never thought I would fall in love with him. Even with my limited education, I knew what it meant to be worlds apart. But my heart didn’t understand. It thought it could leap from the mud to the heavens, that a man like him might give a second glance to something so beautifully, tragically flawed. And he did. He gave it a second glance because it was so pitifully dirty, and so laughably soft. The next morning, a video of me leaving a high-end restaurant late at night, dressed only in my underwear, was the top trending topic online. In the video, the license plates of the luxury cars parked nearby were carefully blurred out. Only my face was in sharp, humiliating focus in every single frame. The phone in my hand felt like a block of ice. My hands, my heart… everything was so cold. Zoe, who had just left for school, suddenly burst back through the door. Her face was ashen. “Renee.” My name was a venomous hiss from between her teeth. “Is this the ‘better job’ you told me about?” “Being some rich guy’s mistress?” “All those nights you weren’t home… were you working overtime in some man’s bed?” “You’re disgusting!” “Get out! I don’t want to live with someone as filthy as you!” I stared at her, my face on fire, my eyes burning. I wanted to defend myself, but she wasn’t wrong. I had built our future in Alec Gable’s bed. But the future hadn’t arrived, and now there was no going back. I licked my chapped lips, my voice soft. “I’ll go. Don’t be angry.” “There’s cash in my purse. Make sure you eat properly.” Like an enraged bull, she snatched my purse and dumped its contents, flinging a shower of bills at my face. “Let me tell you something, Renee!” “I would rather starve to death than use your filthy money!” “Now get out!” 04 I left. A lot of people in this neighborhood knew me. Back when I ran the food cart, I’d had a brief moment of viral fame. They called me the “Fried Snack Beauty.” Now, they pointed and whispered, calling me the cheap slut who sold more than just fried food. I walked aimlessly until I found an empty alley and called Alec’s assistant. “Zoe is an adult now. I don’t want her guardianship tied to me anymore.” “Please help her get set up independently.” I was about to hang up when Alec’s voice came through the line. “Renee. You have thirty minutes. Get back here.” I started to refuse, but he cut me off. “The contract isn’t over.” “And your sister’s paperwork isn’t finished.” I had no choice but to go back to the penthouse. Alec was there. He was sitting on the sofa, working on a tablet, his gold-rimmed glasses softening the intensity of his gaze. I sat quietly on the bench by the door, trying to figure out why he had summoned me. After a few minutes, he closed the tablet and walked over to stand before me, looking down at me from his great height. “Are you that desperate for the world to know you’re my plaything?” “Willing to sacrifice your own reputation just to get your name in the papers?” I looked up at him, shocked. I was about to tell him I had nothing to do with it when his hand clamped onto my jaw. “You just can’t bear to let me go, can you.” “Fine. I’ll give you exactly what you want.” He didn’t even wait to get to the bedroom. His mouth crushed down on mine. My struggles only seemed to excite him more. Not since the very first time had he been this rough. He hadn’t hurt me like this in years. Tears streamed down my face, but he wouldn’t let me beg for mercy. My body and my heart ached with a pain so intense I couldn’t tell where one ended and the other began. The pad of his thumb brushed away my tears, his voice suddenly soft. “Renee, I taught you.” “When you can’t take it, you say the safeword.” “Renee. Say you love me.” In the throes of agony, it felt like I was seeing his eyes for the first time. I could see my own tiny reflection in them. But the emotion behind them… I couldn’t understand it. It wasn’t love or hate, not joy or disgust. My fingers dug into the sheets. “Alec,” I said, each word a shard of glass. “I hate you.” His face instantly hardened. The lust in his eyes vanished, replaced by a cold clarity. Just before I passed out, he bit down hard on my shoulder, leaving a perfect, circular mark. When I woke up the next morning, the room was empty. Alec, with his immense wealth, wouldn’t bother taking anything from here. So I sorted through what was left, looking for anything else I could sell. In the back of a storage closet, I found the moon. It was a paper lantern I had made for him, a gift for the autumn festival, back when we had just gotten together. I remembered holding that moon in my hands like I was holding my own raw, beating heart. I had wished so fervently that Alec would always be blessed by the moon’s gentle light. I looked at the lantern now, its bamboo frame crushed, its paper skin wrinkled. He didn’t care for it. So I would. I hugged the broken moon to my chest and whispered to myself, a new vow. “Then here’s to Renee Shaw. May she always be lit by her own light.”

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The year I was completely gone for my boss, I secretly changed her contact name to “Wife.” The next day, she couldn’t find her phone and borrowed my new iPhone 17 Pro Max. “Siri, call—” Her voice was soft, gesturing for me to say the name. I froze, my mind going blank as I frantically tried to refuse. “James?” Ava Sterling looked at me, a flicker of confusion in her sharp eyes. Seeing my lips sealed tight, she pushed the phone closer to my mouth, repeating slowly, with a deliberate, knowing weight to her words, “Siri, call…” I wanted to cry. With no way out, I closed my eyes and yelled in utter desperation, “Wife.” … Liquid courage is a powerful thing. At a company dinner for upper management, the project director, her face flushed with wine, turned her attention to me. “James, you don’t have a girlfriend. How about you make do with me?” The table fell silent. “Are you seriously hitting on the CEO’s assistant?” someone whispered, tugging at her arm. That lecherous old woman. My boss, Ava, had a last-minute emergency tonight and sent me in her place. No one expected Director Evans to spew such nonsense. I bit back a sharp retort and offered a polite, strained smile. “It’s true I don’t have a girlfriend,” I said, “because I have a wife.” Her face fell. She pressed on, demanding proof. I glanced at her, then picked up my phone. With Ava absent, this was the perfect cover. “Siri, call Wife.” The call screen lit up, the name “Wife” displayed clearly for all to see. Director Evans stared, dumbfounded. Mission accomplished. I was about to hang up when a familiar ringtone blared from the doorway. My heart stopped. I whipped my head around in disbelief, my phone nearly slipping from my grasp. There she was, the cool, untouchable woman I’d worked for for three years, Ava Sterling, standing in the doorway with an unreadable expression. Everyone’s gaze followed mine, jaws practically hitting the floor. The screen of the phone in Ava’s hand was lit up, the call neither answered nor rejected. But that ringtone, a sound I knew better than my own heartbeat, exploded in the silent room like claps of thunder, turning my brain to static. …My world was ending. Ava said she wasn’t coming! Don’t tell me she heard me call her… wife! “James… you and Ms. Sterling! You two are…” someone stammered, too shocked to form a complete sentence. I slammed the end-call button, my mind scrambling for an excuse, any excuse at all. But Ava’s phone kept ringing. What? What was happening? Under the confused stares of everyone present, her famously icy gaze shifted, and she answered the call. …Someone else had called her, a split second faster than I had? I could have died from the scare. I let out a silent, shaky breath. I heard a crisp “Yes,” and then Ava’s eyes swept over the room, landing on me for a fraction of a second. She motioned for us to continue before turning and stepping out onto the terrace. Director Evans, now stone-cold sober, dabbed at her forehead with a trembling hand and wisely shut her mouth. The room slowly came back to life. “You scared the hell out of me! I really thought James was the CEO’s husband…” I forced a laugh, trying to play it off. But for the rest of the dinner, my mind was a blur. All I could think about was when, exactly, Ava had arrived at that door. I was lost in thought when she returned, her expression cold as ice. She took her seat at the head of the table, her sharp gaze locking onto Director Evans. My stomach dropped. Director Evans shrank under her stare, her face pale. “Ms. Sterling, I… I had too much to drink. I shouldn’t have been so presumptuous.” Ava watched her, her voice devoid of warmth. “No,” she said coldly. “You shouldn’t have.” My head snapped up. Everyone at the table stared, first at her, then at me, their eyes asking the same silent question: Are you two actually together? Before I could say a word, Ava placed her phone on the table and slid it into the center for everyone to see. One of the senior partners picked it up, and his expression immediately turned grim. Displayed on the screen was proof that Director Evans had been skimming from the company. The color drained from the director’s face. Before she could protest, Ava gestured, and security discreetly escorted her out. The rest of us sat in stunned silence, still reeling from the whiplash of events. Only I was breathing a sigh of relief. Thank god Ava hadn’t heard me call her wife. She hated workplace drama and was all about efficiency. If she knew I’d changed her contact name for my own pathetic fantasies, I’d be out on the street just as fast as Evans. That was too close. “You look pleased, James.” Ava’s voice cut through my thoughts, her gaze lingering on me. I composed myself, pulling on my standard professional smile. “You rooted out a problem, Ms. Sterling. As your assistant, I’m genuinely happy for you.” She gave me a long, unreadable look. “I see.” The next morning, the employee elevator was packed. My head was spinning. Last night’s emotional rollercoaster had wrecked my sleep. I’d spent the night dreaming of Ava almost discovering my secret. What can I say? I crave her, but I’m a total coward. I fought tooth and nail against countless competitors to land this job, just to get close to her. But in the end, all I dared to do was secretly change her contact name. She usually messages me, so the chances of her finding out were slim to none. Last night was a freak accident. From now on, no more using “Wife” as a shield. If I don’t use it, she’ll never find out, right? I forced myself to focus, pulling out my phone to double-check the schedule for Ava’s promotional photoshoot later today. A colleague next to me saw me yawn and elbowed me playfully. “Rough night?” I couldn’t exactly say I was up all night thinking about our boss, could I? I offered a weak smile. “You know how it is. Too many beautiful women online, not enough time.” He grinned knowingly. “Tell me about it. My digital crush changes seven times a day, but in real life? Single my whole life.” Speaking of digital crushes, I had a real-life one secretly stashed in my contacts. Ding. The elevator arrived at another floor. My colleague and I stepped out to let people off before getting back on. When I looked up, I saw her. Standing at the back of the now-emptier elevator was Ava Sterling herself. My blood ran cold. Did she hear my stupid lie? Wait… why am I so nervous? “Ms. Sterling…” we mumbled, our voices strained. My colleague whispered, “The executive elevator isn’t broken, is it? Why is she slumming it with us?” “I have no idea…” Ava’s eyes flickered towards me. “Get in,” she said, her brow furrowed. Did someone piss her off? She seemed to be in a perfectly fine mood when the party ended last night. As the elevator ascended, my phone buzzed. A text from my colleague. [The boss looks pissed. My floor’s next. Good luck, buddy.] Ding. He scurried out, leaving me alone with Ava. The enclosed space filled with a heavy silence. I was about to say something, anything, to break the tension when her cold voice sliced through the air. “James, spending your nights watching… unconstructive content can negatively impact your work performance.” She was warning me. “Right, boss. I’ll switch to watching during the day,” I replied instantly. Ava paused. Only then did I realize what I’d just said. “Wait, no, boss, that’s not—” The elevator doors opened. Ava gave me a flat, unimpressed look and strode out. “Beach photoshoot this afternoon. You’re coming with me.” Huh? I stood there, stunned. Ava’s photoshoots were always a ten-minute affair. She never needed me there. Why now? We arrived at the beach as the sun began to set. The moment Ava stepped out of the changing room, my eyes widened. She was wearing a sleek one-piece, partially covered by a translucent wrap that was as sheer as a dragonfly’s wing. Her collarbones were a delicate, alluring line… Was I really allowed to be seeing this? I blinked, trying to compose myself. Her figure was breathtaking, a work of art. And her face was, as always, stunning enough to command attention anywhere she went. She seemed a little uncomfortable, probably from showing more skin than usual, a slight frown creasing her brow. Just as she was about to look up, I snapped my gaze away. Better safe than sorry. She couldn’t find out I was lusting after her. But then I remembered she had specifically asked me to come today, and my mind started racing again. Could it be that Ava… felt the same way about me? “Ava!” The director’s excited voice boomed from behind me. “You finally listened to me!” …So much for that theory. Ava’s uncharacteristic choice of attire wasn’t for me; it was because the director, her best friend of many years, had finally nagged her into it. Chloe, the director, had always complained that Ava was wasting her incredible figure with her severe business wear. “Why didn’t you answer my call earlier?” Chloe teased, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you needed a thirty-minute pep talk just to put on a swimsuit.” Ava was just passing me. She paused, glanced at me, then frowned at the director. “Couldn’t find my phone,” she said, dismissing the guess. “Let’s just get this over with.” Once the shoot started, Chloe was in her element, sighing with admiration as her camera shutter clicked furiously. Then, she stopped. “Okay, Ms. CEO, lose the wrap,” Chloe instructed, making a gesture. Lose the wrap? My heart skipped a beat. I looked at Ava, and found her eyes already on me. Our gazes locked for a split second before she looked away. I understood instantly. It was one thing for her to wear a swimsuit in public. It was another to reveal even more in front of her subordinate. She was uncomfortable. I pretended to be engrossed in my phone, but my ears were practically twitching. If Ava actually agreed to take it off, I would be the first to look up. Seeing Ava hesitate, Chloe sighed and waved over her own assistant. “Go help her with that.” “My assistant will do it.” Ava’s voice was quiet, but firm. My head shot up. Me? She turned down the director’s assistant, but she wanted me to do it? I was completely bewildered. Was it because… after all these years, she was more comfortable with me handling her than a complete stranger? I was still in a daze when I stood before her. We had never been this close. I’d been craving her for a long time, sure. But now that I actually had to make a move, my courage failed me. My hands trembled as I carefully untied the wrap. “It’s not that fragile.” My hands froze, and a hot blush crept up my neck. So embarrassing. I bit my lip and clutched the gauzy fabric. With the wrap gone, the elegant line of her collarbones was fully exposed. I couldn’t help but steal a glance, my heart hammering in my chest. A woman this perfect… if only she really were my wife. As I lowered my hands, I heard Chloe shout from behind the camera. “Brush her hair back for her.” Startled, I looked up at Ava and found her watching me. Her expression was unreadable. “Do what the director says,” she said, her voice even. “Okay…” Steeling myself, I raised my hands again, my fingertips grazing the smooth, pale skin of her nape. The sea breeze was cool, but the air between us felt thick and heavy. I was too close to her, too afraid to look for too long. I started to step back, but Chloe’s voice, now buzzing with excitement, rang out again. “Perfect! Now take off the skirt, too.” What?! Take off her what? My hand froze in mid-air, but my eyes had already betrayed me, drifting downwards. The wind gently lifted the hem of her sarong, offering tantalizing glimpses of her long legs. But… this couldn’t be right. “Get your mind out of the gutter! She’s wearing a slip underneath!” Still… Ava shot Chloe a warning look, but then her eyes met mine. “Go ahead,” she said. Was this really happening? I stared at her, feeling like I was in a dream. It’s just for work, it’s just for work… I chanted the mantra in my head, but as I reached for the tie at her waist, she caught my wrist. “Stop shaking,” she murmured, her voice low. The warmth of her hand on my skin sent a jolt through me, making my heart race even faster. I could only nod, my throat tight. She let go. She had… held my hand. I retreated behind the camera, trying not to stare, but my eyes kept being drawn back to her. Bathed in the warm, golden light of the setting sun, she stood with an easy grace. She was like a painting, so beautiful that a single glance could make my heart ache for hours. After the shoot, Ava went to the changing room. A few moments later, she called me in. As I entered, I saw her searching frantically through a pile of clothes on the sofa. “Call my phone,” she said, standing up, her tone casual. I froze. Call her from my phone? Her contact name was still “Wife.” Calling her now, in front of her, was like volunteering to jump into a volcano. No. Absolutely not. “James?” Ava asked, looking at me with confusion. When I didn’t respond, her expression hardened. “Are you nervous about something, James?” she asked slowly, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. My heart pounded. Her instincts were razor-sharp. She was onto me. “No, no… my phone’s dead. Let me go charge it.” I clutched the phone in a death grip, ready to bolt. “Is that so?” She closed the distance between us in a single step. “Siri.” “Yes?” my iPhone chirped instantly. I flinched. Before I could process what was happening, a slow, knowing smile spread across Ava’s face. Her eyes held mine, and her voice was smooth as silk as she spoke again. “Siri, call—” She paused, waiting for me to fill in the blank. I couldn’t say it. I would rather die. I shoved the phone behind my back, my jaw clenched. Ava’s brow furrowed. She leaned in, stalking me one step at a time. My face flushed, and I turned my head away. But she didn’t seem to notice, pressing closer still. “Siri, call—” Her voice was a predatory purr, and I swallowed hard. I was damned if I did, and damned if I didn’t. “Well?” she pressed, her aura of command leaving no room for escape. I squeezed my eyes shut and, in a voice of pure desperation, yelled, “Wife.”

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In the seventh year of our marriage, the whole city was whispering about Jake Gesner’s secret son. Now, that son and his mother were sitting across from me in my own home. I said nothing. Today was the anniversary of my daughter’s death. And this was Jake’s idea of comfort: parading his mistress and her child through our front door. I gathered my daughter’s last belongings and laid the divorce papers on the table. 1 Back from the cemetery, I shrugged off my trench coat. Jake was lounging on the sofa, one leg crossed over the other, his long, elegant fingers dancing across a tablet. I walked over to him, my voice a raw whisper. “I want a divorce.” He set the tablet down, rubbing the bridge of his nose. The living room was silent; he’d heard me. Was he already calculating how to get rid of me with the least amount of fuss? His posture was stiff, a knot of discomfort. “You haven’t spoken a single word to me in a year, and this is the first thing you want to say?” I didn’t know what else there was to say. I just nodded, feeling helpless. Jake’s lips thinned, his fingers drumming a restless rhythm on the sofa cushion. He was weighing his options. The rich aroma of dinner wafted from the kitchen, but instead of answering, Jake rose and moved to the dining table. The housekeeper served two bowls of rice, calling out softly to me, “Mrs. Gesner.” Those words shattered the last of my defenses. “Jake,” I said, my voice shaking. “Let’s get a divorce.” “Fine.” This time, he didn’t evade. A wave of relief washed over me. “I’ve already contacted a lawyer.” He picked up his bowl and began to eat, his movements deliberate and unhurried. “You don’t need to inform me about things like that.” I’d heard that line so many times before. When choosing a new rug, picking out bedsheets. Now, our divorce was just another household chore. I turned to go upstairs. As my foot touched the first step, Jake’s phone rang. He glanced at my retreating figure before answering. “Is this Jake Gesner? Your wife and son were in a car accident. Please get to the hospital immediately.” Jake’s face darkened instantly. He grabbed his coat, only then noticing I was still standing on the stairs. I started to move again, but he called out my name, his voice sharp. “Nora.” “Aren’t you going to ask where I’m going?” I turned slowly, forcing a brittle smile. “Does it matter?” Hearing the flat emptiness in my tone, he let out a cold, bitter laugh. “You’re really something, Nora.” He wrenched the door open and slammed it behind him. A gust of wind swept through the room, catching the family portrait our daughter, Mia, had drawn. It fluttered to the floor, and my vision blurred with tears. Mia, do you know, too? This thing we called a family… it’s been gone for a long time. Just as the first tear fell, my lawyer called. I had just finished the conversation when the doorbell rang. The housekeeper opened it to reveal Jake’s parents. “What is wrong with you two? Making such an ugly scene for everyone to see!” His mother, Eleanor, began berating me the second she saw me. His father, Richard, stood beside her, his hands clasped behind his back. “How do you plan to handle this?” he demanded. I uttered a single word. “Divorce.” “You’re both young, don’t be so impulsive,” Richard began, joining the campaign. “Jake is just playing around with that woman outside. He’ll come back to you eventually.” The unspoken message hung in the air: have another child, and you’ll tie him down for good. Suddenly, Eleanor threw her phone down in front of me with a cold snort. I picked it up. Tabloid pictures and sensational headlines told the whole story. [Unknown Dancer and Secret Son Move In: A Bid for Status or Pushing the Original Wife Out?] [The Next Gesner Heir Has Been Decided!] The accompanying photo was of Jake on a yacht with the other woman, Vivian, and her son, celebrating a birthday. Expensive gifts littered the table. The mother and son were wrapped around Jake, smiling sweetly for the camera. The online comments were even more vicious than the article. [The Gesners only have this one heir now. She can hang up her dancing shoes and marry into the dynasty.] [What can you do? She gave him a son. The ultimate trump card.] I handed the phone back to Eleanor with a faint smile. “Look what the media is saying! Even a woman off the street has more fight in her than you!” she snapped, her brow furrowed in disapproval. My voice was hoarse. “So, should I be congratulating him?” Eleanor slammed the phone on the floor, shaking her head at me in disappointment. “If you two had just had another baby sooner, would things have ever gotten this bad?” “Jake can’t be without a child. Have another one. It would be better for both of you.” I lowered my head, my lips pressed into a firm line as I shook my head no. Eleanor clutched her chest, sinking onto the sofa, gasping for breath. “A divorce is not a small thing. Have you and Jake truly thought this through?” Richard’s voice was laced with disbelief, his hands still clasped behind his back. “If you divorce him, you will never see Mia again.” He let the threat hang in the air. “Don’t forget, Mia is buried in the Gesner family plot.” 2 A thick film of tears clouded my vision. I looked up at Richard and laughed, a bitter, broken sound. Was the Gesner family reputation so important they would use their dead granddaughter as a bargaining chip? He brought up Mia, yet he’d completely forgotten that today was the anniversary of her death. On the way back from the cemetery, I had stopped at Mia’s favorite clothing store. A little girl who looked so much like her was standing by the entrance. For a heart-stopping moment, I thought it was her. I wanted to run to her, to hold her, to tell her how much I missed her. Then a young couple walked up and swept her into their arms, kissing her cheeks with adoration. I watched, mesmerized, until the reality crashed down on me. It was just a memory. Eleanor, having caught her breath, came over and took my hand. “Nora, your father-in-law and I only want what’s best for you. Don’t be so stubborn.” Divorce, it seemed, was my mistake. “He was just teasing you before, don’t take it to heart. We were heartbroken about Mia, too.” And how did they express that heartbreak? By pushing Jake to quit drinking, quit smoking, and get in shape, all so he could try for another child with me sooner. Their brand of grief was a fresh wound, carving pieces out of me. I refused Jake again and again. And then, the texts from Vivian started. Pictures of their happy little family of three. The images burned my eyes, a pain so sharp it stole my breath. It felt like Mia’s death had only affected me. I ran from the house. When I returned, it was empty, lifeless. He’d left a note, telling me he wasn’t coming back. “Ma’am, Mr. Gesner told us to tell you he’s going where he’s appreciated.” “He also said… he’s sick and tired of looking at your dead-inside face every day…” That evening, I changed and went to the Gesner family estate. They were hosting a party; my attendance was not optional. Standing at the entrance, I saw Jake with Vivian. When he noticed me, he sauntered over, hands in his pockets. “Nora, let me introduce you. This is Vivian, and this is Leo.” I nodded, my face a blank mask. Eleanor’s expression was thunderous, but it softened slightly when she saw the little boy, Leo. “Go get our guest a glass of water,” she instructed me. “And bring out some snacks.” I did as I was told. The house was crowded. Jake moved through it, a glass of champagne in hand, networking. Vivian cornered me. “Your marriage to Jake is over. Why won’t you just sign the papers?” I handed her the glass of water. “Jake won’t agree to it.” At that, she knocked the glass from my hand. “That’s impossible! You must be the one clinging to him!” The sound of shattering glass drew everyone’s attention. I called a housekeeper to clean up the mess and turned to leave. Suddenly, Vivian grabbed my arm, her grip tight. “You’d better divorce him soon,” she hissed. I struggled, but she squeezed harder. What was that around her neck? I looked closer, and my blood ran cold. I ripped the necklace from her. It was Mia’s. The last birthday present we ever gave her. Why was it around this woman’s neck? Vivian, seeing she’d been discovered, just smirked. “Surprised? Jake gave it to me.” Her face twisted into a grotesque, triumphant smile. “He said things are only meaningful on the living. And your daughter… she’s dead because you couldn’t take proper care of her!” I raised my hand and slapped her across the face with all the strength I had left. “Nora!” “There are guests everywhere! Are you determined to ruin this entire evening?” Jake appeared from nowhere, shielding Vivian. Leo burst into tears, his wails defending his mother. Jake’s face grew even darker, his eyes cold enough to freeze. I held up the necklace, my gaze fixed on him, my heart breaking all over again. “This was Mia’s birthday gift. Are you going to take even this from her?” “Can a necklace bring Mia back?” he retorted. “It’s better to focus on the people who are still here.” 3 His words struck me dumb. Jake’s cruelty plunged me into an abyss. My vision swam. I snapped the chain. Just like this necklace, the bond between Jake and me needed to be broken for good. Mia’s arrival was the greatest gift of my life. Every morning, Jake and Mia would surprise me with little things, eagerly waiting for my reaction. I would cook for them, basking in their praise. That life came to a screeching halt a year ago. I confronted Jake about the women he was seeing. We fought. He stormed out, furious. Mia tried to stop him with her tears, but for the first time, they didn’t work. He left, more determined than ever, and didn’t come home for a long time. After that, his scandals were all over my phone. Late one night, he finally came back, reeking of alcohol. Another fight erupted. He slammed the door, and in a moment of madness, I chased after him. Mia, quiet as a shadow, followed me. We were both in the car when it crashed. When I woke up, there was a death certificate on my bedside table. The hospital said they couldn’t reach Jake. Neither of us, Mia’s parents, were there for her final journey. On the television in my room, a news report showed Jake on a yacht, partying with some young starlet. My eyes were vacant. With a trembling hand, I dialed his number. “When are you coming home?” “What, you saw the news?” he sneered. “Feeling insecure seeing me with all these women younger and prettier than you?” I was silent, a lump forming in my throat. “Did Mia put you up to this?” He actually chuckled, proud of himself. My lips trembled. I couldn’t form the words to tell him she was gone. The starlet whined for his attention in the background. “I’m talking to my wife, shut your mouth!” he roared at her, his tone shifting in an instant. She covered her face and ran off, crying. I mumbled something, and finally heard him say he was coming home right now. But what good would that do? “Don’t bother,” I said, my voice dead. “Have fun out there.” “I already sent her away, what more do you want?” he demanded, his voice laced with frustration. I said each word slowly, distinctly. “Mia. Is. Dead.” That day, for the first time, I saw guilt and terror on Jake’s face. He rushed to the hospital and held me, murmuring reassurances. His voice was filled with a pain that mirrored my own, and we wept in each other’s arms. Back then, he told me Mia’s death wasn’t my fault. Less than a month later, he changed his story. He said it was all my fault. “You were her mother. You failed to protect her. How is that any different from killing her yourself?” I spent another night in Mia’s room. The door opened again. It was Jake. He took a step forward, reaching out to touch my head. I flinched away, telling him to get out of her room. “Nora, about the party… I’m sorry,” he said, his voice soft as he opened his arms. “It won’t happen again.” I looked at him with swollen, red-rimmed eyes filled with disgust. He tried to pull me to him, and I bit his hand. The gentleness vanished from his face, replaced by pure rage. “It’s been a year! Haven’t you moved on yet?” he yelled. “Just because Mia is gone doesn’t mean our lives have to stop!” “Do you have any idea how disgusting it is to see you walking around like a zombie every single day?” He punched Mia’s small desk, then kicked over her toy box. His eyes were bloodshot, his voice cracking. “Nora, the reason we’re at this point… it’s all your fault.” “You deserve this.” 4 The door slammed shut, and silence returned. I cleaned up the mess he’d made and went back to my room, curling into a ball on the bed. You deserve this. I’d seen those words before. [Mr. Gesner loved his daughter so much, how dare Mrs. Gesner blame him?] [The fact that he hasn’t divorced her is his greatest act of mercy. She deserves all of this.] [The Gesners treated her so well, and she couldn’t even watch her own child. Of course he cheated. She deserved it.] [Good, if they can’t make it work, they should just split. Mr. Gesner will take care of Vivian and her son sooner or later.] [Yeah, hurry up and give up your spot as Mrs. Gesner. If you don’t want it, someone else does.] Did I really deserve all this? I’d lost track of how long it had been since I’d seen Jake. But I didn’t need to see him to know where he was. His relationship with Vivian was better than I imagined. With him as her patron, she was no longer some obscure dancer. She was suddenly a renowned artist. I only understood why Eleanor called when she got to the point. “When Jake’s reputation suffers, you, his wife, are the one people whisper about.” I nodded distractedly. I didn’t care anymore. The tabloids hadn’t used kind words for me either. Eleanor’s voice turned hesitant. “Can you two… really not work it out?” Clutching the phone, I remained silent. She sighed. “If you had just sat down and talked with him earlier, this all could have been resolved.” She started complaining, recounting the past. “I told him not to marry you back then, but he wouldn’t listen. And look at you now.” I held the phone away from my ear, hearing Richard in the background telling her to calm down. “How can I not be angry? If they had just lived their lives properly, would I be like this?” She grew more agitated, her voice rising as she pleaded with me. “Just talk to him, Nora. Settle things. Please?” Seeing my continued silence, she sighed again and hung up. The one she needed to plead with was never me. It was her son. After hanging up, the housekeeper brought me my coat. “Ma’am, the driver is ready.” I suddenly remembered I had one more thing to do today. “This is the jade pendant your daughter was wearing during the accident. We’ve repaired it,” the jeweler said gently. “But no matter how much we fix it, it can never be the same as it was.” I nodded. Repairing the jade was just a small comfort, a way to feel close to her. I slipped the pendant into my pocket. Before I could turn, I heard Vivian’s voice. “Nora, what are you doing here?” She was with Leo, browsing the jade displays. I studied them. Leo clung to Vivian, looking scared. “Jake said a child should wear something for protection, to ensure they grow up safe and sound,” she explained, though it sounded more like a taunt. Jake paid for their selection and then effortlessly lifted Leo into his arms. His face was unreadable, his gaze flickering away when it met mine. My phone buzzed. A message from my lawyer. The divorce papers had been sent to Jake. “Why haven’t you responded to the lawyer?” I held up my phone, my voice calm. Asher, the appraiser, had returned. I wasn’t going to listen to any more of Jake’s excuses. I knew he was just ignoring it, like always. “Mr. Asher,” I said, turning to the man who had just re-entered the shop. “I have some time today. Shall we go now?” Mr. Asher smiled warmly and nodded. “Nora!” Jake’s voice cut through the air behind me. I stopped, and turned to face him.

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For three years, I loved Justin in secret. I wanted to give him the surprise of a lifetime, and finally, finally bring our relationship into the light. So I snuck into his apartment, a bouquet of flowers clutched in my hand. I hid myself in his walk-in closet, my heart pounding with the plan to propose tonight. But I never could have imagined what I would see instead. He wasn’t alone. He walked in with another woman—Gigi, his childhood friend. “Justin, you still haven’t broken things off with Judy? You’re not actually going to marry her, are you?” “Of course not,” Justin’s voice was a soothing murmur as he wrapped his arms around Gigi. “You’re the only one I love. The only reason I’m with Judy is for you.” He held her tighter. “If I hadn’t kept her distracted all these years, she would have found her birth parents by now. And then, the fact that you aren’t a real Tremblay would be exposed for everyone to see.” “Her brother, Adrian Tremblay, has been looking for his lost sister for years. If I hadn’t managed to get a sample of Judy’s blood and pass it off as yours, do you really think you’d be living the high life as the Tremblay heiress?” Listening to their conversation, a cold shock paralyzed me. Every “I love you” Justin had ever whispered to me was a lie. In that single, shattering moment, my heart died. 1 Hidden in the darkness of the closet, I witnessed their betrayal unfold. After they’d tumbled into bed, they left without even bothering to straighten the tangled sheets, heading out for dinner as if nothing had happened. Only then did I emerge from my hiding place, my face already streaked with silent, bitter tears. I don’t remember how I got home. For years, finding my family had been my one true goal in life, a void I had confessed to Justin was my deepest regret. He would always hold me, his voice a gentle balm, promising that one day, I would find them. I never imagined that he knew where they were all along. That he had stolen my blood, my very identity, to help Gigi masquerade as a long-lost heiress. Now, when I thought of Justin, all I felt was a cold, burning hatred. I collapsed onto my bed and cried until exhaustion finally pulled me into a fitful sleep. I was so, so tired. When I woke up, Justin was there. He must have let himself in. He was busy in the kitchen, and when he saw my eyes flutter open, he smiled. “Hey, you’re awake. Dinner’s ready.” I stared at him, this man who was looking at me with such tenderness. The love in his eyes was so convincing it almost made me question my own sanity. If I hadn’t heard those words with my own ears, I would never have believed he was capable of such a monstrous deception. “Judy,” he said as we ate, his expression turning serious. “About that trip we planned… I don’t think I can make it.” I’d almost forgotten. A few days ago, he’d been so excited about us getting away together. The flights were booked and everything. Now, he was backing out. “Fine. Then we won’t go,” I said, my voice flat. The passion I once felt for him was gone, replaced by a hollow emptiness. He blinked, clearly taken aback. Usually, a cancellation from him, while met with understanding, would leave me visibly disappointed. This cold indifference was new. He’d never seen me like this. A flicker of panic crossed his face as he reached for my hand. “Judy, it’s just that work is insane right now. As soon as this project is over, I promise we’ll go.” He forced a smile. “Or… maybe you could go by yourself? The tickets are already paid for. It would be a shame to waste them.” I didn’t answer right away, just studied his face. After a long moment, I gave a single, curt nod. He visibly relaxed, a wave of relief washing over him. 2 After dinner, Justin claimed he had to get back to the office and left. I watched him go, a bitter taste in my mouth. I knew exactly where he was going. He was going to Gigi. But one thing still puzzled me. Why was he so insistent that I leave town? I’d never paid it much mind before, but his eagerness tonight was glaringly obvious. This wasn’t a suggestion; he was trying to get rid of me. An idea sparked in my mind, and I picked up my phone to call my best friend. Justin had no idea that my best friend, Maya, was Adrian Tremblay’s executive assistant. Her demanding job meant we rarely saw each other, but our bond was as strong as ever. “Judy? What’s up?” she answered, her voice warm. “Hey, does your company have some kind of big event coming up next week?” I asked, trying to sound casual. Maya’s voice immediately dropped to a whisper. “Oh my god, you heard? Don’t tell anyone, but Mr. Tremblay finally found his long-lost sister. He’s holding a press conference next week to officially announce it to the world.” And there it was. The final piece of the puzzle. Justin was afraid I’d show up at the press conference, so he cooked up this fake trip to get me out of the city. I took a breath. “Have you seen her? His sister?” “A couple of times,” Maya said. “Her name is Gigi. To be honest, she doesn’t look a thing like Mr. Tremblay.” She chuckled. “You know, before he found her, I used to joke that you could be his sister. The resemblance between you two is uncanny.” Her words sent a jolt through me. “Maya,” I said, my voice steady. “Can you arrange for me to meet Adrian Tremblay?” “What? Why?” she asked, surprised. “Just a quick meeting. I’ll explain everything to him,” I insisted. “And it needs to be completely confidential.” Maya hesitated for a moment. “Well… are you free tonight? Mr. Tremblay is entertaining some clients at a hotel. I have to drive him home afterward.” I agreed immediately and rushed out the door. I went to the address Maya gave me and waited outside the sleek, modern building where Adrian lived. Soon, a black town car pulled up to the curb. Maya opened the passenger door for me. “Mr. Tremblay,” she said, her voice trembling slightly as I slid into the seat. I knew she was risking her job for me. “This is my best friend, Judy. She needed to speak with you.” From the back seat, Adrian Tremblay, who had been resting with his eyes closed, slowly opened them. His gaze lifted and locked onto mine. For a second, his carefully composed expression crumbled into one of pure, raw shock. “Who are you?” he demanded, his voice sharp with urgency. I met his intense gaze without flinching. “My name is Judy,” I said. “And I’m your sister.” His eyes narrowed into icy slits. “Do you have any idea what you’re saying?” he asked, his voice dangerously low. “I have found my sister. We’ve had a DNA test done.” He leaned forward, his presence filling the car. “Do you know what happens to people who lie to me?” “Gigi is the one who lied to you,” I shot back, my voice ringing with conviction. “She took my blood sample and passed it off as her own to get that result.” I held his gaze. “If you don’t believe me, we can go and get another test done. Right now.” Adrian stared at me, his face an unreadable mask. Then, he turned to Maya. “Drive. To the hospital.” 3 Adrian practically dragged me into the private hospital wing. After a nurse had drawn our blood, we were left to wait in a sterile, silent room. Throughout the wait, Adrian never took his eyes off me, his expression a complex mix of doubt and a dawning, reluctant hope. I knew what he was seeing. The resemblance was undeniable. The moment I had seen him, I knew in my soul that he was my brother. Finally, a doctor hurried into the room, a file in his hand. He passed the report to Adrian. As Adrian scanned the page, the color drained from his face. I leaned over to see. The results were clear. We were a 99.9% match. We were brother and sister. “That means Gigi lied to you,” Maya gasped, grabbing my arm. “Judy, what is going on?” Adrian looked up at me, a storm of anger brewing in his eyes. He explained how, months ago, Gigi had approached him with a DNA report claiming to be his sister. He’d been skeptical, so she’d given him a vial of blood to have tested himself. When that test came back as a match, he had believed her. He had welcomed her into his life, into his family. And it had all been a lie. He was about to say something more when his phone buzzed violently on the table. He glanced at the screen. It was Gigi. He put the call on speaker. “Hey, big bro,” her cheerful voice chirped through the phone. “I’m not coming home tonight!” “Fine,” Adrian said flatly and hung up. He turned back to me, his jaw tight. “I will get to the bottom of this.” “Okay,” I nodded. “I’m supposed to be leaving for a trip tonight. Contact me when you have answers.” I turned to leave, but he grabbed my arm. “You’re going alone? It’s not safe. Let me send a bodyguard with you.” I looked at him. The hardness in his face was still there, but his eyes held a flicker of genuine concern. He believed me, I realized. He just needed to unravel the deception himself. “No, thank you,” I said with a small smile. “I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time.” I gently pulled my arm free and walked away. As I left, I could feel his gaze on my back, a new weight of guilt settling on his shoulders. “I’m sorry,” he called out, his voice rough. “What happened back then… it was an accident.” He quickly explained that our family’s nanny had been fired for stealing and had secretly taken me with her when she left. My parents had searched for me their entire lives, never giving up hope, right until the day they died. Hearing his words, a warmth spread through my chest. For the first time in my life, I knew. I wasn’t abandoned. I was loved. I was wanted. “Take this,” Adrian said, holding out a black credit card. “You’ll need money for your trip.” “I have my own,” I said, pushing his hand away gently. “Wait until you’re absolutely sure. Then you can give it to me.” As Maya and I walked out, I glanced back. Adrian was still standing there, staring at the DNA report in his hand, looking utterly lost. 4 Maya drove me home, buzzing with excitement the entire way. “Judy, you’re really his sister?” she practically vibrated in her seat. “You have no idea what a nightmare Gigi has been! Ever since she showed up, she’s been throwing her weight around the office, making terrible decisions, and costing the company a fortune!” She rolled her eyes. “Everyone there can’t stand her, but what could we do? We all thought she was his sister.” She was simultaneously venting about Gigi and beaming with happiness for me. After she dropped me off, she asked where I was going. I told her I just needed to get away and clear my head for a bit. Back in my apartment, I packed a single suitcase. Then I called my landlord and told him I was moving out. With my luggage in tow, I went straight to the airport and bought a ticket for the next flight out. It didn’t matter where it was going. Just before boarding, I sent Justin a single text message: We’re over. Then I turned off my phone and walked down the jet bridge. When the plane landed and I switched my phone back on, it was flooded with missed calls from him. “Judy, what the hell is going on? Why are you breaking up with me?” His voice message was a frantic, angry rasp. I just smiled faintly, deleted it, and blocked his number. I found a hotel online with top-notch security and checked in. As soon as I got to my room, I collapsed onto the bed. The exhaustion of the day finally claimed me. Sometime later, I was dragged from a deep sleep by my phone ringing. It was an unfamiliar number. “Judy, what is the meaning of this?” Justin’s voice crackled with fury the moment I answered. “I went to your apartment, and the landlord said you moved out! Why did you break up with me?” His desperate questions hung in the air. I let the silence stretch before speaking, my voice calm and cold. “Justin, I know about you and Gigi.” The line went dead silent. All I could hear was the harsh, ragged sound of his breathing. “Judy… you must have misunderstood. There’s nothing going on between Gigi and me!” His voice was laced with a desperate, unconvincing panic. When I didn’t respond, he grew more frantic. “Judy, you’re on your trip, right? Tell me where you are. I’ll come to you right now!” I said nothing. I simply ended the call and blocked the new number. I knew he assumed I’d used the plane ticket he’d arranged. But I was nowhere near there. The next morning, I woke up to a call from Maya. “Judy, Mr. Tremblay told Gigi to meet him at the hospital. I think he’s going to make her take another DNA test.” I smiled. Gigi had used my blood for the first test. Now that I was gone, her house of cards was about to come tumbling down. Maya told me Gigi had made an excuse, saying she was out of town and couldn’t be back for two days. We both knew what that meant. She was stalling for time, desperate to find a way to get another sample of my blood. Sure enough, not long after I hung up with Maya, my phone rang again. It was Justin, calling from yet another new number. “Judy, you need to come back here immediately,” he demanded, his voice tight and commanding. “Justin, we’re done. There’s no reason for you to ever contact me again,” I replied coldly. But he wouldn’t give up. “Judy, I’m doing this for your own good!” he pleaded, his tone shifting. “I took that first blood sample to the hospital for a check-up, and they said there was an issue. You need to come back for another test. Please, just come back.” I laughed at his pathetic, clumsy lie. “Don’t worry, Justin,” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “I’ll take care of my own health. You don’t need to trouble yourself.” I was about to hang up. “Judy, get back here now!” he roared, his voice cracking with pure rage.

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After Adam Croft left me at the altar for a scholarship student, his father froze all his assets and blacklisted him from every major corporation. The golden boy of the Croft empire became a pauper. In less than six months, the scholarship student was in bed with a rich old man. Adam, broken and gravely ill, came back home to marry me. He reverted to the cold, ruthless heir he was always meant to be. For ten years, we maintained a marriage of polite distance, a model couple in the eyes of society. I believed the rest of our lives would be a smooth road to happiness. Until the day I found ten love letters Adam had written to Serena Vance, hidden in our safe. The first letter began: “Even if you’re a bad woman, I’m all in.” The last one ended: “If I die before you, all my money is yours.” It turned out that throughout our entire marriage, he had been steadfastly in love with another woman. That night, I scheduled an abortion. 1 “Are you certain you want to terminate this pregnancy?” Dr. Evans held my hand, her gaze falling on the skin riddled with tiny needle marks. Her voice was full of pity. For years, I had desperately wanted a child with Adam. The mountain of empty medicine bottles and used syringes in my bathroom could attest to that. I signed the consent form and lay down on the cold steel of the operating table. My mind drifted back to the rainy night ten years ago when Adam came home. He was drenched and burning with a high fever, muttering deliriously, “Don’t leave me… please, don’t leave.” I held him in my arms all night, patting his back and singing soft lullabies as if he were a child. When he woke up the next morning, we went to the courthouse and got married. He even gave me the wedding he’d denied me. A spectacular, city-stopping event that silenced all the gossip. I went from being the laughingstock of high society to the object of everyone’s envy. A girl who had been abandoned once thought her years of secret adoration had finally paid off. It was nothing but a delusion, born from a desperate need to be loved. Just as the surgical instrument was about to touch me, the baby kicked. Tears streamed down my face. I sat up, stopping the procedure. When I got home, Adam was in his study, working late as usual. He sat perfectly upright, meticulously reviewing documents, the top button of his suit still fastened. Who would have guessed that this man, as cold and unyielding as a glacier, would resort to something as cliché as writing letters to pour out his longing for a girl? I walked over silently and slid the divorce papers in front of him. A flicker of disbelief crossed Adam’s eyes. “Is this because I didn’t go with you to the prenatal appointment today?” He had no idea I’d almost ended the pregnancy. I smiled, a sharp pain lancing through my heart. “Yes. That’s exactly why.” The man tore the papers to shreds without a change in expression and offered me a black credit card. “I’ve been busy. If you’re going to throw a tantrum, pick a better time.” I didn’t take it. I looked him straight in the eye. “Serena Vance is divorced and back in the country. Did you know?” A flicker of something unnatural crossed his brow. “No. And I don’t care.” How could he not know? He was the one who hired her divorce lawyer. He was the one who personally met her at the airport. He did it on our wedding anniversary. I threw my phone down in front of him. The screen showed a gossip article titled, “Croft CEO Rekindles Old Flame.” The comment section was exploding. 2 “GRANDMA, THE SHIP YOU’VE BEEN PRAYING FOR HAS SAILED AGAIN!” “Ten years ago, he chose love over his empire. Ten years later, he hears she’s unhappy, hires a top international lawyer to handle her divorce, and personally escorts her home. Adam Croft is still the same knight in shining armor, charging into battle for love.” “I hear the current Mrs. Croft is the one who broke them up in the first place. Can the homewrecker just die already!” “…” Thousands of comments were still flooding in. Everyone was celebrating their epic, class-defying love story, while I, the lawfully wedded wife, was being painted as the villain who stood in their way. I gave a weak, tired laugh. “Mr. Croft, don’t you have anything you’d like to explain?” Adam was silent for a long time before finally speaking, his voice heavy. “Serena was being abused by her husband. She called me for help. We knew each other once, so I helped her out. That’s all.” He looked at me, his gaze hardening. “This is exactly why I didn’t tell you. I knew you’d overthink it.” Such a perfect, unimpeachable reason. My smile felt uglier than a grimace. A gaping wound had opened in my chest. Just then, his phone rang. It was a ringtone I’d never heard before. Adam answered it instantly. A few seconds later, he grabbed his car keys from the desk and headed for the door, so rushed he didn’t even offer a single word of explanation. It had always been like this. Adam Croft never needed to explain his actions to Clara Moon. Not even when he was running off to meet the ex-girlfriend he had dated for seven years. A few hours later, Adam called me. “Get the guest room ready. And make some ginger tea and a hot meal. I’m bringing Serena home.” I held the phone, my hand trembling with disbelief. “You’re bringing her to our house?” A woman’s soft sobbing came through the line. “Adam, maybe we shouldn’t. I don’t want to upset your wife.” Adam soothed her, and when he spoke to me again, his voice was laced with impatience. “Her ex-husband just showed up and harassed her. It’s not safe for her to be alone. What’s the problem with her staying with us for a while?” “Besides,” he added coldly, “you’ve always been good at taking care of people. Serena is emotionally fragile right now. Take a leave from work and look after her properly.” 3 I was so angry I could barely hold the phone. “You can take care of her yourself. I’m done.” I hung up and immediately started packing a suitcase. When my eyes fell on the wedding photo on our bedside table, the tears I’d been holding back finally broke free. From the moment I could remember, everyone told me I would one day be Adam Croft’s wife, the matriarch of the Croft family. My gaze never strayed from him, the most dazzling man in any room. I remember in high school, I’d secretly watch to see which cafeteria line he chose, and then order the exact same meal, feeling a secret thrill of connection. The first clumsy flutterings of a teenage crush, all because he’d once casually handed me his jacket. For him, I learned to cook, to arrange flowers, to give massages, to master etiquette. And now, all those skills were meant to be used to serve Serena Vance. Tears streamed down my face as I pulled the photo from its frame, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it in the trash. I was dragging my suitcase to the door when it opened. Adam stood there, with Serena cradled in his arms. The scarf I’d spent months knitting for him was now wrapped around her foot. My numb heart was pierced again. Adam frowned at me, his voice sharp with disapproval. “We have a guest and you’re leaving? Is this how you show hospitality?” “Is the room ready? And the food? Go heat it up and bring it here.” Serena struggled to get down, stepping on the scarf as she gave me an apologetic smile. “I’m so sorry to bother you, Clara. But would you mind drawing me a foot bath? My feet got muddy when I stepped outside.” Adam carried her to the sofa without so much as a glance in my direction. “Well? Aren’t you going to get it?” I paused for a moment, then walked to the kitchen, poured a glass of cold water, and walked back and threw it directly in Serena’s face. “Ah—!” she shrieked, recoiling. “Are you insane?” Adam roared, staring at me in disbelief. “You’re the one who’s insane,” I said with a soft, chilling laugh. “Ten years ago, when you were cast out, she left you because you couldn’t afford her Chanel bags anymore and ran off with another man.” Serena froze, her eyes burning with venomous hatred for me. Adam’s face turned grim. “You were sick, lying in bed calling her name all night, and when you woke up, it was me holding you.” “You said you would forget her. You said you would build a good life with me.” “Adam Croft, you broke your promise.” I looked him dead in the eye, my voice steady. “So, the promises I made to you? I’m breaking them, too.” For a split second, he looked like he might grab me, but the sound of sobbing behind him held him back. “It wasn’t like that…” 4 Serena looked at Adam, her eyes welling with tears. “I just didn’t want you to sell your plasma to buy me a diamond ring. I didn’t want you working on a construction site to pay the rent. I didn’t want to see you haggling over pennies at the market.” She choked back a sob. “Adam, whether you believe me or not, everything I did, I did it for you.” A violent tremor ran through Adam. A flash of pain crossed his eyes before the mask of indifference slipped back into place. “What’s the point of saying any of this now?” Serena bit her lip, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. Adam turned his cold gaze on me. “What happened between us back then was complicated. We don’t need you here stirring up trouble.” The next thing I knew, he had dragged me to the bathroom and slammed my head into the sink, turning on the cold tap full blast. My feet left the floor as I struggled wildly, splashing water everywhere. But Adam was relentless, holding me down with brutal force. Ice-cold water flooded my senses, my lungs screaming for air. Just before I blacked out, he let go. I collapsed to the floor like a rag doll, gasping for breath, the terror of near-drowning shaking my entire body. He looked down at me, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. “For the sake of the child, I’ll let this go.” “But there won’t be a next time,” he continued, his tone chilling. “If you harm her again, I’ll repay you tenfold.” “Be the good Mrs. Croft. Don’t cross the line.” I slowly pulled myself up, looking at the man I’d known since childhood, the man I’d loved for over a decade. And I smiled. As I smiled, my eyes filled with tears again. “I understand.” Thank you, Adam Croft. Thank you for helping me make up my mind. He took off his jacket, draped it over his shoulders, and went to comfort Serena. I stumbled out of the house and made a call. “I need to schedule a D&C. As soon as possible.” 5 A day later, I was back on the operating table. This time, I was calm. The heart that had beaten for Adam Croft for more than a decade finally fell silent. After the procedure, I saw I had over a dozen missed calls from Adam. I hadn’t answered any of them. There were also two texts. “Where did you go? You shouldn’t be running around in your condition.” “Family dinner tonight. Don’t be late.” I scrolled up. Our chat history was a long list of my multi-line messages and voice notes, each met with a single, curt “Ok” from him. I smiled faintly and blocked his number. After speaking with my lawyer, I drove to the Croft family estate. The dinner was timely. There were a few things that needed to be said. When I arrived, Serena was already seated in my usual place at the table, laughing and chatting with the other guests. Adam had actually brought her to a formal family gathering. I took a seat at the far end of the table, enduring the pitying and mocking glances from around the room. There was a time when no one in this family would have given Serena the time of day. But times had changed. Adam was now the one in charge. So, even though his parents’ faces were dark with fury, no one dared to ask her to leave. Serena picked up a cup of tea, walked over to me, and then, with a clumsy “oops,” spilled the scalding liquid all over my hand. The back of my hand instantly turned red. She covered her mouth in mock horror. “Oh, Clara, I am so sorry…” Adam’s mother slammed her hand on the table, her voice shaking with rage as she pointed at Serena. “Get out of my house!” “Mother, accidents happen. There’s no need to get so upset.” Adam had arrived. The room fell silent. He glanced at my hand, his brow furrowing slightly, and had someone bring over some burn cream for me. Then he escorted Serena to her seat. Some watched the drama unfold, some snickered, some mocked my weakness. I remained silent. The meal was a tense affair. Adam’s mother had me sit beside her, holding my hand. “My dear girl, take good care of yourself. We need a healthy grandson soon.” A rare warmth flickered in Adam’s eyes. He put his arm around me, his voice gentle. “We haven’t had the right time to announce it, but Clara is eight weeks pregnant.” He smiled at the room. “The Croft family will soon have an heir.” Gasps of surprise filled the room. Adam’s mother was overjoyed. Serena’s face went white, her body swaying. I pushed Adam’s arm off me. He froze. Then, I spoke, my voice quiet but clear. “I’m sorry, but your heir… I got rid of him this afternoon.”

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After I accidentally smudged the piano, my boyfriend, Adrian, flew into a rage. He overturned my wheelchair, his voice cracking with a choked sob as he yelled: “It’s your legs that are crippled, not your hands! Can’t you do one simple thing right?” I froze, the cleaning cloth still clutched in my hand. [OMG, I love a sharp-tongued hero. He says the cruelest things but regrets it instantly. He wants to apologize to our girl but is too proud.] [Well, it is his favorite piano. Who would want oil stains on it? Silly girl, hurry up and comfort him, he’s about to shatter.] [Talia, don’t be stubborn. It’s not shameful to back down for the one you love.] I stared at the live commentary scrolling across my vision, my eyes stinging with tears. I moved closer, wanting to hug him, but Adrian shoved me away violently. “Don’t touch me. You reek of cooking oil. Don’t get that stench on the piano.” I lowered my eyes, biting my lip. “I just finished making dinner. I really didn’t mean to…” “I’ve already given up music for you, isn’t that enough? You can’t even stand to let me have this one last thing, can you? Talia, I’m begging you, just let me go.” My nose burned. I felt like such a fool for being deceived by the commentary again. After a long silence, my voice came out a hoarse whisper. “Fine. I’ll let you go.” 1 “Let me go?” Adrian let out a cold, bitter laugh. “Easy for you to say. We’re past the point of keeping score.” A lump formed in my throat, choking off any words. My knee was scraped raw, beading with blood that smeared onto the floor, a startling red. Adrian’s jaw was clenched tight. He turned his head away, slammed the door on his way out, and returned moments later with a first-aid kit. “…Alright, let’s get this cleaned up.” [Aww, he feels so guilty. No matter how much he complains, he just can’t abandon our girl.] [A generational piano prodigy, his wings clipped. Forced to give up his dream to care for his disabled girlfriend, and he still has to coddle this burden. My heart aches for him.] [I don’t care, the ship is sailing! Even when he’s furious, he’s still worried about his wifey’s boo-boos.] The floating words blurred before my eyes. Five years ago, when that out-of-control truck barreled towards us, I had used all my strength to push Adrian out of the way. My own legs were crushed, the nerves severed, leaving them useless. While learning to use the wheelchair, I sank into a severe post-traumatic depression. It was Adrian who stayed by my side, refusing to leave. He gave up his brilliant music career, took me to countless doctors, and whispered to me, “Don’t be afraid. From now on, I’ll be your legs.” And from then on, I became a burden, dragging him down year after year. I had thought about ending it all, but the commentary pleaded with me: [Don’t do it, sweetie! If you’re gone, he’ll go mad and follow you!] So I stayed. I couldn’t bear to leave him. But now, it felt like there was nothing left to hold on to. Watching his practiced movements as he tended to my wound, I spoke. “Adrian, you should leave.” His hands paused. A flicker of mockery crossed his eyes, followed by a weary sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Talia, stop it. I’m exhausted today. I’m not in the mood to play these games.” A shrill ringtone cut through the tension. Adrian answered, annoyed. “I’m busy. Whatever it is, it can wait until tomorrow…” “Adrian, I have a piano duet competition tomorrow morning, but my partner got sick. Can you fill in for me, please, please, please?” The voice was playful and anxious, a young woman’s. I knew who it was. His favorite junior from the conservatory, Chloe. The one he once drunkenly whispered to me was his true soulmate, the only one who understood the voice of his music. Adrian’s knuckles turned white, then his hand trembled and relaxed. “I’m sorry, I have to take care of…” Chloe’s voice turned into a petulant accusation. “Are you really going to be shackled to that cripple for the rest of your life? Don’t you want to be on stage again? I’m right outside your door, Adrian. If you have the guts, come out and say no to my face.” Adrian’s pupils contracted. He hesitated for only two seconds before throwing down the first-aid kit and running out the door, not even bothering to help me back into my wheelchair. I struggled to pull myself up, just able to hear their voices through the door. Chloe seemed to sniffle. “Adrian, she’s going to be like this for the rest of her life. But what about you?” Adrian was silent for a long time before his voice came out, thick with emotion. “This is what I owe her.” “She’s a cripple, stuck here. Where am I supposed to go?” Chloe’s voice sharpened. “Then what about me?! We were supposed to achieve our dreams together! You promised me! You’re a liar, Adrian, and I’m done loving you!” [Oh man, poor Chloe. She and Adrian really are a perfect match, true artistic soulmates.] [The girlfriend is just a dead weight. She can’t give him what he needs; she only holds him back.] [But does anyone else get this tragic, fated-to-be-entangled-forever vibe? It’s so romantic.] [He’s so cute when he’s tsundere. He obviously can’t bear to leave her but calls it a debt.] I pressed my lips together. I didn’t want to understand. A moment later, I heard Adrian’s resolve crumble, his voice a mixture of resignation and a hint of indulgence. “Just for tomorrow. One time only.” Amidst Chloe’s cheers, Adrian left in a hurry, not even glancing back. The food on the table grew cold. I forced down a few bites alone. It tasted bitter and salty. After a long while, I dialed the number of my childhood friend. “That marriage pact we had… is it still on the table?” 2 “Of course it is. I’m the one who’s been the backup plan all this time, right? My dearest Talia, have you finally decided to kick Adrian to the curb?” I didn’t have the heart to tell him Adrian was the one tired of me. I just laughed, a self-deprecating sound. “Thank you… for being willing to marry me.” After my parents died and my family’s fortune dwindled, it was a rare kindness for him to still honor an old promise. The man on the other end paused, his playful tone replaced by a serious one. “Did he hurt you?” “No.” “Talia, give me a little time to wrap things up here. Tomorrow, I’m on the first flight back. I’ll be there for you.” After I hung up, the commentary exploded. [What’s happening? Is she cheating?] [No way, she’s so dramatic. He says a few harsh words and she runs off to another man? What a snowflake.] [Relax, this is just manufactured drama. The main couple will end up together. Our girl can’t survive without her Adrian.] I ignored them. Using my arms to steady myself, I began to pack. Everything in the apartment came in pairs. The couple’s slippers were scattered, one here, one there. Adrian had bought them on a trip to the supermarket, carrying me on his back. I remembered how the strange looks from others made me shrink, burying my face in his neck. “Adrian, put me down. I’m fine in the wheelchair.” He just chuckled and hitched me up higher. “My back is cold. You need to keep me warm.” “Look, these slippers are cute. Do you like them?” … Now, the red and blue slippers lay far apart, like two distant islands. Just like Adrian and me. I didn’t know when we had drifted so far apart. I tried to gather them together, a foolish, self-deceiving gesture. But as I leaned over, I lost my balance and crashed heavily to the floor. “Talia! Are you okay?” Before I could even register the pain, Adrian was there, rushing back in. His face was a mask of panic as he helped me up, his voice laced with anger. “I was gone for five minutes to see someone to their car, and you manage to do this to yourself?” [I can’t with this girl. I’m developing an allergy to incompetence. Can she do anything right?] [He’s so frustrated he’s about to cry. Talia, please stop torturing him. Just talk it out. Lovers’ quarrels are normal. Don’t be so petty.] Just looking at him sent a tremor through my heart, a pain so sharp it felt like I couldn’t breathe. I looked away, my voice hoarse. “Don’t worry about me. Go get some sleep. You don’t want to mess up the competition tomorrow.” Adrian’s body went rigid, his eyes turning cold. “Talia, is that what this is about? You overheard me, so you threw yourself on the floor for attention?” “No, I didn’t…” “Enough!” A glass shattered at my feet. Adrian was breathing heavily, his anger barely contained. “You’ve lived in this house for nearly a decade. How can you fall just by taking a few steps?” A bitter smile touched my lips. “You’re right. I’m useless.” “If you don’t believe me, then don’t.” Seeing my refusal to apologize, Adrian clenched his jaw. He pulled a pair of dusty crutches from a closet, grabbed me by the collar, and began dragging me outside. My scraped knee bumped against the steps, the friction sending a jolt of pain through me. “Let me go! Where are you taking me?” He stopped abruptly at the curb and threw the crutches at me. His voice was on the verge of breaking. “Talia, there are so many disabled people in the world. Why are you the only one who can’t learn to walk?” “Tonight, if you can’t learn to use these crutches, don’t even bother coming home!” 3 Adrian vanished into the night. Only the cold autumn wind was left, making me shiver. I limped over to a lamppost, trying to pull myself up, when the roar of an engine and a blaring horn shattered the silence. A motorcycle sped past, its side clipping my shoulder. The driver yelled back, his face dark with rage. “What the hell are you doing out here, you damn cripple? Get your insurance scamming ass out of the road!” I stumbled backward, my hands gripping the crutches, my palms slick with cold sweat. After the accident, I couldn’t accept the loss of my legs. I refused to do any physical therapy, hiding in my hospital room. Adrian stayed with me every day, forcing a smile through his tears. “It’s okay, Talia. You don’t have to do the exercises. I’ll be your crutch for the rest of your life.” That was also the first time I saw the commentary. [You have to pull yourself together, sweetie, or he’s going to break. He hasn’t slept in 72 hours, terrified you’ll leave him all alone.] [It’s true, you’re his whole world.] My eyes had filled with tears. After a long hesitation, I’d climbed into my wheelchair and kissed his cheek. “Okay. Take me for a walk.” I was naive enough to believe we would always be like that, supporting each other. But in the end, Adrian regretted it. The wind bit at my ears as I stumbled my way home. When I finally made it to the apartment building, the streetlights flickered and died. I fumbled my way forward in the dark but misstepped onto a loose manhole cover. The ground gave way beneath me. But the expected fall never came. A hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, yanking me back onto solid ground. Adrian was trembling all over, his lips a deathly white. “Talia, you’re a cripple, not an idiot! Why do you have to depend on me to survive?” “I swear to God… I wish I had just died in that car crash!” [OMG, he’s so pitiful. He left her because he went to buy a ring to apologize, and he comes back to find her causing more trouble.] [This idiotic, drama-queen of a protagonist. I can’t watch anymore. Can we just let Adrian be happy? He deserves so much better!] [Sigh. They fight, but he still remembers their anniversary and his promise.] I looked up, stunned, and saw his other hand hidden behind his back, clutching a small box. When we were seventeen, Adrian had proposed to me with a ring folded from an exam paper. “Talia, trust me.” “On the day of our tenth anniversary, no matter if we’re fighting or not speaking, I will ask you to marry me.” A wave of complex emotions washed over me, a sour ache in my chest. “You don’t have to…” You don’t have to force yourself. Before I could finish, Adrian let out a cold laugh and hurled the ring box into the open manhole. It vanished into the rushing sewage below. “Talia, you don’t deserve it.” My nails dug into my palms. I clenched my fists, lifted my chin, and met his red-rimmed eyes. “Then let’s break up, Adrian.” He froze, his eyes wide with disbelief. “…What did you say?” I tried to smile, to make it seem effortless, but my voice wavered, trembling in the cold air. “From now on, you don’t have to take care of me anymore. We’re even. No one owes anyone anything.” “I don’t want you to marry me. Tomorrow, you can go with your little protégée to her piano competition. And I’m going to marry someone else.” 4 Adrian was silent for a long time. Finally, the tension left his shoulders, and he spoke, his voice hoarse. “Alright, stop being childish. I was wrong, okay? Let’s go home.” [He has the patience of a saint. This girl is so ungrateful, ugh.] [Seriously. This could all be solved with one honest conversation, but she has to threaten to break up to get his attention. Being with someone like this must be exhausting.] I didn’t say anything. I let Adrian lift me onto his back. When didn’t I want to have an honest conversation? But every time we tried, he would end up leaving to teach Chloe piano or taking flowers to her competitions. Every look he gave me seemed to say, I have nothing in common with a burden like you. His dismissiveness, his growing indifference, the way his heart was closed to me but wide open for her—I saw it all. I had wanted to scream, to demand, “Why her and not me?” But that would have been so ugly. I had let myself become so small. But that was okay. Tomorrow, everything would be set right. Adrian carried me to bed. He noticed the suitcase I’d pulled out and frowned. “What are you packing for?” I didn’t look at him. “A trip,” I mumbled. “To clear my head.” Adrian visibly relaxed, his voice softening. “Okay. I remember you always wanted to go to the coast. After the competition, I’ll take you.” I lowered my eyes and shook my head. “You don’t have to. I’m going with someone else.” Our honeymoon destination. “What other friends do you have?” Adrian’s eyes went cold, a flicker of contempt in them. “Talia, if you take this too far, it won’t be easy to take back.” [Can she please stop dancing on her own grave? Why is she so angry? Does she think he owes her something?] [She’s poisoning herself with her own bitterness. Can’t she just talk normally?] [Just flirt with him, sweetie! This is something that a little apology and some charm could fix!] The accusations stung. I was too tired to even feel sad or argue back. All I felt was a profound sense of calm. Adrian was silent for a moment, then turned and slammed the door to the guest room. The day we moved in together, he had held me, my head nestled on his shoulder, and whispered, “Talia, even if we fight, we’re never sleeping in separate rooms.” Another broken promise. I guess some things are only true when you’re in love. I managed a small smile, checked my documents one last time, and confirmed the pickup time with my childhood friend for the next morning. Then, I went to sleep alone. At six-thirty, the sound of a door opening woke me. Chloe waltzed into the guest room, cheerfully rummaging through Adrian’s clothes without a hint of shame. “Time to get up, Adrian! We don’t want to be late for my competition. I’ll be really mad, you know.” Adrian chuckled, a tired but fond sound, and habitually patted her head. “I was up all night memorizing the score. You think I’d miss it?” So that’s why his light was on all night. A true meeting of artistic souls. A bitter taste filled my mouth. Chloe then came over to me, shoving a cat carrier into my lap. “Here, sis-in-law. I’m borrowing your man for a bit. If you get bored, Mittens can keep you company.” I instinctively recoiled, but somehow the cat shrieked, leaped out, and clawed my forearm. Chloe’s eyes immediately filled with tears. She hid behind Adrian, trembling. “I’m so sorry, Adrian… I didn’t mean to. Mittens is usually so sweet. I just wanted her to keep Talia company…” Adrian hesitated for half a second before stepping in front of her, a wary look in his eyes as he met mine. “Talia, Chloe meant well. The cat probably just doesn’t like you. Don’t give her a hard time. Her competition is about to start; she can’t afford any distractions.” But I hadn’t even had a chance to say a single word of blame. I looked at the scratches on my arm, already starting to break out in a red rash. “Adrian,” I asked, my voice flat. “Don’t you remember I’m allergic to cats?” Chloe gasped, and her tears flowed even faster. Adrian’s expression faltered, then his brows furrowed in annoyance. “Don’t be so dramatic. I’ll take you to the doctor when I get back. Right now, I have to get Chloe to her competition. Stop trying to upset her.” He put an arm around Chloe and shut the door. Before leaving, he remembered to top up the cat food bowl with the brand we always kept in the house. He never once looked back at me. [This is killing me. My heart breaks for him. He’s obviously worried sick about his wife, but he has to focus on what’s important right now.] [As a goal-oriented woman, I love this. A career-focused piano genius is so much more attractive. Talia should count her lucky stars. He’ll make it all up to her when he gets home.] I smiled faintly. I couldn’t bring myself to believe them anymore. I paid no more attention to the noisy commentary. Two loud honks from downstairs. I looked out the window. His Maybach was here.

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