Author: Momo Chan

I mocked him: “Wow, Mr. Harrison is getting up there in age and still no one wants him?” He mocked me right back: “Likewise. Didn’t Chloe’s little high school romance fail to bloom?” Perfect. It was finally time for me to repay his “teaching grace.” A few months later, I pointed at Carter Harrison standing in the corner of our bedroom: “Don’t even think about getting into bed until you recite Hamlet’s soliloquy flawlessly from memory.” 01 When I went home for the holidays, my Aunt Mary set me up on a blind date. According to her, the guy was 29, held a Master’s degree, and worked as a teacher. He had a nice car, his own place, and no living parents to cause in-law drama. He was well-off, handsome, and had a stable, tenured job. His family—or what was left of it—was pushing him to settle down, which was why he agreed to the date. I thought about it and decided his resume was pretty flawless. So, I went to meet him. Who could have predicted that the man sitting across from me would be my former high school English teacher? The exact same homeroom teacher who used to constantly lecture me about the dangers of dating in high school. “Chloe, you can’t even pick the right answer out of four options on an SAT question. Do you really think you can find the right guy out of 330 million Americans?” “Don’t date in high school, the quality is terrible. Wait until college to find someone to grow old with.” His earnest teachings from years ago were still echoing in my ears. When we made eye contact, we both froze. He still had that refined, scholarly aura. He wore a light gray button-down shirt, crisp slacks, and a clean-cut hairstyle. His handsome face was framed by a pair of rimless glasses. He looked exactly the same as I remembered. Meanwhile, I was wearing sky-high stilettos and sporting ash-gray, wavy hair—the exact hair color he had once marched me to a salon to dye back to black after it had only survived for half a day. I tapped my fresh cat-eye acrylic nails on the table, wearing a smug expression that basically screamed: You might hate how I look, but you can’t send me to the principal’s office anymore. “Wow~ Mr. Harrison is getting up there in age. How is it that no one wants you yet?” Since he wasn’t my teacher anymore, I took the initiative to mock him first. Carter Harrison’s eyes crinkled slightly. He folded his hands together and let out a soft chuckle. “Likewise. Didn’t Chloe’s little high school romance fail to bloom?” He wore an expression that said he had predicted my failure all along. Hmph. Whether it bloomed or not, he knew exactly why. “Well, that’s all thanks to Mr. Harrison’s earnest interventions back then. I imagine the students today are much harder to manage, especially since you’re getting so old.” I was deliberately lying through my teeth. The older man wasn’t old at all; in fact, he was incredibly attractive. His brows relaxed, and the corners of his mouth curled up into a faint smirk. “And that’s all thanks to how ‘obedient’ and ‘well-behaved’ you were. You cured me of ever wanting to be a homeroom teacher again.” Perfect. It was finally time for me to repay his teaching grace. I was going to return every scolding and detention I had ever endured right back to him. 02 “Since we’ve caught up on the past, let’s talk about some sensitive topics.” I flipped my hair, resting my chin on one hand, and shot Carter a sly smile. “Mr. Harrison, I hear your family is pushing you pretty hard. Why don’t we just make do with each other? At least we know each other’s backgrounds.” Carter’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He cleared his throat softly. “You’re a wonderful girl, Chloe, but I’m approaching thirty. I’m afraid I’d be wasting your prime years.” Look at that. Even his rejections were elegantly phrased. “Oh, I don’t mind. I like guys who will kick the bucket before I do and leave me a good pension,” I blurted out. After a moment of awkward silence, Carter spoke slowly: “We used to have a teacher-student relationship. You know the saying: Don’t fish off the company pier.” I looked into his deep, handsome eyes and let out a light laugh. “What a coincidence. I’m a very lazy fisherman~” My words actually made Carter stifle a laugh. He rubbed his temples and sighed with a hint of helplessness. “It seems your rebellious phase is unusually long.” “It’s alright. It’s nothing compared to how long you’ve been single,” I fired back. “I haven’t seen you in a few years, but your debate skills have certainly improved.” “I’m flattered. It’s all thanks to Mr. Harrison’s excellent teaching.” … Great. Even though I got the upper hand in the banter, I had completely killed the conversation. That is, until a booming voice shattered the awkwardness. “Carter! What are you doing here?” I looked up. Well, well. If it wasn’t Coach Davis, my high school PE teacher. “Who’s this?” Coach Davis asked Carter with a gossipy grin. Suddenly, he stared at my face for a few seconds, his eyes darting back and forth. “Why does this girl look so familiar?” Carter spoke calmly. “Chloe.” Coach Davis had a sudden epiphany. “Oh! The girl whose high school romance gave you so much insomnia!” Me: … “Wow, you look so different! I almost didn’t recognize you. So, did things ever work out with that boy you were dating?” Me: Thanks. Thanks a lot. Way to bring up the one thing no one wanted to talk about. How completely inappropriate. I let out an awkward laugh. “I don’t know, Coach. Have you cured that mysterious illness that made you constantly cancel our PE classes?” “Ha! I ended up marrying your Spanish teacher, so I just gave all my class periods to her,” Coach Davis said cheerfully, completely oblivious. He looked between us. “What are you two doing here anyway?” … Carter and I looked at each other. “Why don’t we call it a day?” he suggested first. “Sure. Want to exchange numbers, Mr. Harrison? Please seriously consider my proposal,” I asked. He pulled up his QR code, and I successfully added him. I drove off in my pink Volkswagen Beetle, and he drove off in his black Honda Accord, heading our separate ways. 03 As soon as I got home, my mom turned into a relentless gossip reporter, following me around the house. “Quick, tell your mother! How is he?” “He’s fine.” My mom pressed further. “Your Aunt Mary said he’s a high school teacher. What school? You wouldn’t even have to worry about your future kids’ education!” I gave a dry laugh. “He teaches at my old high school.” My mom instantly became even more thrilled. “Oh my goodness! Isn’t that fate?! You already know everything about him. You even have a foundation of feelings!” A foundation of feelings? Oh yes, the foundation was very deep. During the second semester of my senior year, our homeroom teacher went on maternity leave, and Carter became our temporary homeroom teacher. Back then, the school divided students into AP/Honors classes and standard classes. Our class was the most chaotic standard class in the school. It was composed of art kids, jocks, and chronic slackers. We were the Avengers of Disappointment. And I was what the teachers referred to as “a special case,” “a constant headache,” and “a lost cause.” Back then, Mr. Harrison had worried his heart out over our class. He talked until his voice went hoarse and almost ruined his health trying to keep us in line. “Chloe, do you have a dream?” “My dream is to become the principal of this school so I can give Mr. Harrison a raise.” … “Chloe, when are you going to finish memorizing The Great Gatsby?” “Next year…” … “Question: What literary era did Edgar Allan Poe belong to? Chloe, what did you write?” “I wrote… the Emo Era…” … I was the quintessential rebellious teenager, and Carter was the quintessential strict, father-figure teacher. And he was determined to fix me. Because I was always talking to my desk mate during class, he changed my seat no less than ten times. I had occupied every single quadrant of that classroom. Finally, I told him, “Mr. Harrison, you can stop trying. I can talk to literally anyone you sit me next to.” In the end, he created a special VIP seat for me right next to his podium. And it was right under his nose that he discovered my love letter. He had heard that teenage couples liked to sneak off and make out under the stadium bleachers after late-night study sessions. So, he started staking out the bleachers every single night to catch me. Then he rewarded me with a familiar day-trip to the faculty office. He earnestly lectured me about how high school romance was a tree that bloomed but bore no fruit. I wouldn’t listen. He lectured me again: “Don’t date in high school, the quality is terrible. Wait until college to find someone to grow old with.” I talked back. “Did you find someone to grow old with in college, Mr. Harrison?” He sighed. “Chloe, you can’t even pick the right answer out of four options on a test. Do you really think you can find the right guy out of 330 million people?” I looked at him with absolute confidence. “He is the right one.” Carter looked exasperated. “Then tell me, what exactly do you like about him?” I said, “He’s gentle, handsome, and refined.” Carter looked at me in pure disbelief. “Love really is blind. Where exactly is Hunter Crawford, that meathead jock, gentle or refined?” Hunter Crawford was a track-and-field recruit in our class. All brawn, no brains. We had been classmates since middle school. The day he found out I secretly liked him, he excitedly ran ten miles. “Chloe… I actually… I really like you too.” Seeing that he couldn’t convince me, Carter tried to talk to Hunter instead. “Dating too early leads nowhere. You’re just training someone else’s future wife.” “Someone else’s wife? Mr. Harrison, when you put it like that, it actually sounds kind of thrilling…” 04 The past was too embarrassing to look back on. After washing up, I found a comfortable spot on my bed and opened Carter’s profile. He still had the same generic landscape profile picture. When I clicked on his page, it was completely blank. In this day and age, there were still people who didn’t post anything on social media? Those people were the scariest. It was the classic: I don’t want to miss your life, but don’t even think about knowing anything about mine. I sent a text: “Mr. Harrison, what are you doing?” I waited a long time. No reply… I opened my phone and queued up a game of Valorant. And the result… You have been slain. Defeat. A five-game losing streak… I was furious. Some people drive at night to clear their heads, some look at the ocean, and some are in their twenties getting called “absolute trash” by twelve-year-olds online. I was already absolute trash at the game, why couldn’t I be his type? I remembered playing games secretly in class and getting caught by Carter. He had placed my phone on the projector desk and made the entire class watch. Watch how I died over and over, got flamed by my teammates, and eventually got reported for throwing. I had played the game for four years and was still hardstuck in Bronze. The angrier I got, the more I thought about it. Carter still hadn’t replied. I opened my messages and texted him again: “Mr. Harrison, is it a felony to reply to a text where you’re from?” “If you aren’t going to reply, you might as well trade your phone in for a toaster.” Still nothing… “Mr. Harrison, did the principal confiscate your phone?” Back in the day, Carter would use any trick in the book to confiscate our phones. He once told us our English pronunciation was terrible, so he asked us all to say “Hey Siri” to test our accents. After we said it, half the phones hidden in desks across the classroom lit up and chimed, “I’m listening.” Just think about how devious that man was. … My phone buzzed with a notification: “Apologies. I had something to take care of and wasn’t looking at my phone.” 05 Immediately after, I got a text from my high school classmate, Sarah Jenkins. “Chloe, make sure you come tomorrow!” I almost forgot. Tomorrow was her wedding, and she was marrying Kevin, our class valedictorian. “By the way, the wedding officiant is our old homeroom teacher, Mr. Harrison.” Me: … These two sneaks. Not only did they secretly date in high school, but they even invited the teacher who tried to stop them to officiate their wedding. I really wanted to give her a slow clap. Just then, my mom slammed my bedroom door open, looking uncontrollably excited. “Chloe! Your Aunt Mary just called. The guy from today had a really good impression of you!” A good impression? Who was the one who said he was afraid of wasting my prime years? My mom clearly didn’t understand an English teacher’s polite rejections. “Your aunt said his parents were academics, and the guy is already a distinguished teacher at such a young age. That’s a proper intellectual family, perfectly matched with ours, haha…” I rubbed my forehead, looking at my mother who was desperate to marry me off immediately. “A distinguished teacher from a family of academics, and a nouveau riche slacker from a bottom-tier college. Mom, where exactly do you see a perfect match?” It was true. My family was the textbook definition of newly wealthy. We didn’t have much culture, but we owned a lot of real estate. “Wh-what bottom-tier college slacker? You’re a wealthy heiress who studied abroad!” Yep, my mom knew exactly how to rebrand me. She kept rambling. “Your aunt said he was raised by his aunt since he was little. His aunt’s health isn’t great right now, so she’s really worrying about him settling down.” “I think this Mr. Harrison is a great catch. You better put in some effort and make me proud!” Heh… I wanted to make her proud, too. But I genuinely knew nothing about Carter’s family background before this. After finally shooing my mom out, I pulled up my phone and texted Carter: “Mr. Harrison, I heard you had a good impression of me?” It took a while before I got a reply: “I have always had a good impression of you, Chloe.” I rolled my eyes. English teachers really knew how to use sarcasm perfectly. “Mr. Harrison, my car is in the shop tomorrow. I heard you’re also going to Sarah’s wedding. Can I hitch a ride with you?” My car being broken was a lie; wanting him to pick me up was the truth. I dropped him my address. He replied: “Alright.” Ahhhh… I hugged my blanket and rolled around happily. 06 The next day, I slept in until the sun was high. Carter arrived downstairs right on time. He was wearing a gray trench coat, the hem fluttering slightly in the wind. He leaned against his car with his sharp eyebrows, striking eyes, and a faint smile on his lips. He was already a gentle, elegant man, but the coat made him look even more sophisticated. Seeing me walk out, he waved, the curve of his smile deepening. I had to admit, the scene was incredibly striking… I was such a sucker for a handsome face. He hit every single one of my weak spots… I slid into the passenger seat of his black Honda Accord. The interior was completely black. It felt exactly like riding in my dad’s car… “Um… Mr. Harrison, don’t you think this car doesn’t really fit your vibe?” I couldn’t help but ask. “Then what would fit? A pink Volkswagen Beetle?” he chuckled. “Uh… a GTR?” A flashy sports car paired with his restrained, handsome face. Just thinking about it was amazing. “Chloe, a public school teacher must, above all, keep a low profile.” Carter reminded me. Heh… This was way too low profile. I felt like I was sitting in an Uber. The wedding venue was lively, basically a massive high school reunion. “Chloe, over here!” “Wow, why did Mr. Harrison come with you?” A few classmates waved us over. “I bumped into him on the way and hitched a ride,” I explained with a smile. “Mr. Harrison, please, take a seat!” A few classmates ushered him over. “Come on, Chloe, sit next to your rumored boyfriend.” A classmate teased, making room for me. Sitting in that spot was Hunter Crawford. I hadn’t seen him in years, but he was still the same muscular, sunny jock. “Stop spreading rumors…” He threatened the guy next to him. I didn’t refuse and sat down in the empty seat. “Well, you and Chloe are both single. You might as well just get together.” “Dating now doesn’t count as a high school romance anymore, so Mr. Harrison can’t stop you. If you guys actually tie the knot, you should have Mr. Harrison officiate yours too.” “Isn’t that right, Mr. Harrison?” Our old classmates chimed in one after another, teasing us. 07 Carter gave a soft smile but didn’t respond. The MC invited the officiant to speak, so he stood up and walked toward the stage. I watched him on stage—tall, long-legged, with a breezy smile. He calmly took the microphone and began to speak. “Hello everyone, I am the bride and groom’s high school homeroom teacher. As you all know, dating was strictly forbidden in high school. So standing up here today, I feel a bit terrified. I feel like I completely failed at my job.” The crowd erupted in laughter and applause. “As their teacher, I witnessed their youth, I witnessed their beautiful teenage years, and I witnessed the joy of them getting into college. “To be honest, when they first got together, I rejected it. Just as they mentioned, they started their long-distance relationship right under my nose. They were one of the many couples I tried to tear apart. But they used their happiness to slap me in the face. And I hope to receive many more slaps of happiness like this in the future.” Carter’s humorous speech drew another round of applause, and I couldn’t help but laugh along. But Hunter, sitting right next to me, suddenly spoke up: “Chloe, I have a crazy theory…” I looked at him, confused. “?” Hunter leaned in close, hesitating before whispering nervously: “The guy you liked in high school… it couldn’t have been…” He gestured toward Carter on the stage with his eyes. My heart suddenly tightened. I panicked and blurted out: “That is a crazy theory…” Back then, everyone thought I had a crush on Hunter. It was a rainy afternoon during Carter’s literature class. I wrote a note on a piece of paper: “It’s raining outside. You’re not looking at me, and I’m not looking at the rain. —CH” A gust of wind blew the paper directly to the feet of Hunter, who was sitting behind me. He picked it up, read it, and his face turned bright red. “Chloe… you actually have a crush on me?” His voice was a bit too loud and caught Carter’s attention. From that day on, Carter targeted both of us… Everyone assumed “CH” meant Crawford, Hunter. But it didn’t. Actually, the first time I met him, I was sixteen. He just didn’t remember. From the very beginning, I knew my crush was a silent play. Speaking it out loud would only turn it into a tragedy. So, the fact that I liked him was a secret I never dared to confess. Dreaming about my own teacher felt like I didn’t respect myself, and it felt like an insult to him. So I had to do rebellious things just to get his attention, wondering if he would remember me better that way. Thinking back on it now, it was so childish. Until graduation day. Crying, I handed Carter a bouquet of white hyacinths and stuttered, “Mr. Harrison, actually… I… I don’t hate you at all…” After that, my family arranged for me to study abroad. Years had passed. I never expected our paths to cross again.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “440340”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

On the twentieth day of the silent treatment between me and Carter Vance, he posted a picture holding hands with the high school prom queen on his Instagram. I quietly logged into my college application portal and changed my top choice to Seattle, thousands of miles away. At a party, his friend teased him: “Mia, if you don’t go apologize to him, Carter might actually end up with someone else.” I whispered, “I’m sorry.” Carter smirked. “Whatever. Go back and pack your bags. We’ll head to campus together tomorrow for move-in day.” I gave a vague response. Carter didn’t know that I had already bought a plane ticket to Seattle for tonight. 01 I am the daughter of the Vance family’s housekeeper. At the age of seven, I moved into a small room on the ground floor of their mansion. My job was to take care of his daily needs. For ten full years, serving him became a task etched into my bones. I was docile and obedient, and Carter’s mother often praised me. Carter, however, despised me. The first time we met, he was standing on the staircase wearing a white button-down shirt and dress shorts, looking as perfectly put together as a porcelain doll. I was wearing a faded, torn, oversized t-shirt, staring blankly at everything around me. His eyes could not hide his disgust. Mrs. Vance introduced me to him. She said I was Mary’s daughter, Mia. My father had run off, we had nowhere to go, so we came to rely on her. He didn’t say a word, just turned and went upstairs. Mrs. Vance told me that from then on, my job was to take care of Carter. My mom also told me that the Vance family was very powerful and that it wasn’t easy for us to be allowed to stay. She told me to keep my head down, work hard, and never do anything to anger Carter. I knew Carter didn’t like me, so to be able to keep living there, I tried to make myself as invisible as possible. Every day, I quietly helped him organize his clothes and tidy his room. For the first three months I was there, Carter didn’t speak a single word to me. That year, he got sick. Mrs. Vance was going through a difficult time and was traveling abroad. The family doctor came and prescribed medication, but by nightfall, his cough hadn’t improved. I remembered a home remedy my grandmother used to make: poached pears with peppercorns. When I made it and brought it to him, Carter looked at it with utter disgust. “Mia, are you trying to poison me with some weird country remedy?” I replied timidly, “It’s not poison. The pear is good for you; it stops the coughing.” Carter looked annoyed: “If it doesn’t work, will you get the hell out of my house?” I froze, standing to the side, not daring to breathe. Carter let out a scoffing sound and drank it. The next morning, his cough was much better. 02 Before elementary school started, my mom found a boarding school for me. It was a bit far, so I’d only be able to come home on weekends. I felt a wave of relief. Leaving the house meant my mom wouldn’t be put in awkward situations with the Vance family, and I wouldn’t have to deal with Carter’s moods anymore. While I was packing my things and waiting for the bus, my mom ran over, out of breath, to tell me the news. Mrs. Vance had arranged for me to attend the same elementary school as Carter. She wanted me to take care of him at school. I whispered, “Can I not go?” My mom grabbed my shoulders. “Mia, don’t be stupid. Carter’s school is prestigious. So many people want to get in but can’t.” I lowered my eyes and said nothing. 03 From then on, I became Carter’s sidekick. I followed him from elementary school to middle school. Getting his lunch, carrying his backpack, doing his homework. Everyone knew I was the tail he couldn’t shake. In middle school, he made a bunch of friends. I was the tail lagging far behind the group. Constantly monitoring Carter’s mood and his needs. His friends all said I was his devoted admirer. If Carter told me to go north, I absolutely wouldn’t dare go south. The only thing that never changed was Carter’s disdain for me. In eighth grade, Carter went out and got a jacket he really liked dirty. He pulled me out of bed in the middle of the night to hand-wash it. I was only wearing a thin spaghetti-strap nightgown, my face burning red with embarrassment. Carter mockingly remarked, looking away, “With a body that flat, who’d even want to look.” A seed of youthful insecurity quietly took root. In my sophomore year of high school, the academic pressure intensified, and I studied day and night. Carter suddenly decided he wanted to eat my cooking. He made me cook dinner every night and bring it to school for his lunch the next day. By the time I finished studying and cooking his food, it was past midnight, and I still had to wake up early to wait for him to go to school. At lunchtime, I heated the food and brought it to Carter. His friend put an arm around him and said, “Not bad, Carter, having your little wife cook for you.” Carter’s expression instantly turned cold. With a look of disgust, he tossed the food I had heated up to his desk mate to eat. I didn’t say a word, just waited silently for the guy to finish, washed the container, and went back to studying. That year, I finally seemed to start developing. I especially hated running during P.E. class. But I couldn’t get excused. I wasn’t Carter. During P.E., he was almost always playing basketball on the other court, and the teachers never said anything to him. When it was my turn to run, some guys would always whistle at me. I unconsciously slowed my pace. Noah Sterling from the class next door happened to walk by and handed me his school jacket. This caused a wave of whispers. I had seen him at the back-to-school assembly. I heard his family’s business was very well-known. He was polite and gentle, and both his looks and grades were top-tier. “Put this on. You still have half a mile to run.” I hesitated, but took it. Later, someone in my class spread a rumor that I was shameless, deliberately trying to seduce Noah by wearing his jacket. From the back row, Carter kicked over a desk with a loud crash. Everyone immediately shut up. That evening, Carter didn’t wait for me to go home. He said since I was so capable, I should have Noah walk me home. I sighed, took out some change, and went to take the bus. To my surprise, Noah was there too. He was quietly listening to vocabulary words and waved at me. I sat down next to him, and he took off his headphones. I knew the jacket incident had caused trouble for him too, and I softly apologized. Noah smiled indifferently. “Mia, just ignore the rumors. Focus on your studies. “We only have two and a half years until college. Have you thought about where you want to go?” Noah had a very gentle, handsome look, completely different from Carter’s sharp, aggressive features. I was momentarily stunned. Where did I want to go to college? I had never really thought about it. I only ever thought about how to get my grades higher, and then higher still. I didn’t have money for tutoring. My mom managed to borrow Carter’s notes for me. I had to admit Carter was smarter than me; he often understood concepts after reading them just once. I needed to repeatedly practice and review to consolidate my understanding. Having his notes was incredibly helpful. My mom said that when the time came, I should apply to the same schools as Carter. His family had money and resources; the school they chose would definitely be a good one. I didn’t know which university Carter would apply to. Noah smiled gently: “Think carefully about the school you truly want to go to.” When I got home, my mom said Carter wasn’t coming home for dinner. She asked me where he went. I shook my head and said I didn’t know. When Carter finally came back, it was past midnight. He looked exhausted, with some blood on his hands. He walked in, gave me a cold glance, and went upstairs. I softly asked if he needed me to bandage him up. Carter didn’t say a word and went upstairs. I continued researching different universities online. It was the first time. I clearly felt that I could leave Carter and have a place I truly wanted to go. Later, I anxiously asked my mom if she had ever thought about leaving the Vance family. After all, we couldn’t live there forever. My mom also seemed a bit lost. She said that ever since she divorced my dad, she had been working for the Vance family. Even though Carter’s temper could be erratic, Mrs. Vance was relatively easy to get along with. Over the years, I had never seen Carter’s dad at the mansion. I only knew from fragments of conversation. Carter’s family’s company was massive, and his dad was very busy. His parents had a bad relationship; their marriage was a business arrangement. After he was born, his dad got another girlfriend. Mrs. Vance took care of Carter. Besides working, she often traveled, leaving my mom to look after the house. My mom said she originally planned to work there until I graduated college, then take her savings and start a small business. I quietly asked if she had considered leaving when I graduated high school. My mom silently stroked my head and didn’t say a word. 04 Ever since the jacket incident, Carter found new ways to mess with me every night. Whether it was getting him water or organizing his desk. Or changing his bedsheets and washing his new clothes. I was just thankful that I was no longer sleeping in the same room as my mom, so she wouldn’t worry. If Carter didn’t sleep, I couldn’t sleep either. I had to constantly hover around him, doing chores. A few times, exhaustion took over, and I just fell asleep. I would always wake up on the sofa in Carter’s room. By the time I woke up, Carter would already be gone. I took the bus back and forth by myself. It took longer, but I felt much more relaxed. I thought, if I completely offended Carter, maybe he would just ignore me forever. But thinking about it, that was obviously impossible right now. I could only use doing practice tests as an excuse to stop spending time trying to please him. A week later, Carter had a basketball game. Usually, for his games, I would buy drinks and prepare a change of clothes for him. This time, I didn’t go; I stayed in the classroom memorizing vocabulary. My mom called, saying Carter had been in a bad mood lately. Mrs. Vance asked me to take good care of him. She had ordered boba to be delivered to the basketball court and asked me to go pick it up. I took the boba and sat on the sidelines. A few students were laughing and chatting. “I told you so, she couldn’t hold back. When Carter ignores her, she gets terrified.” “A simp has to know her place. She pretended for a few days, but couldn’t help herself.” I didn’t say anything. On the court, Carter went up for a jump shot, drawing a wave of cheers. He gave me a long, deep look, gesturing for me to hand out the boba. I handed them out to the others first. I brought the last cup to Carter. He stood with his hands behind his back, looking at me with a nasty glint in his eye. I stood in the sunlight, holding the boba out to him, facing everyone’s mockery. I whispered, “Carter, your boba.” Carter didn’t look at me, his voice casual: “Bring it to my mouth. I twisted my wrist; it hurts.” I put the straw in and held it up to him. Carter leaned down and took two sips. His friends whistled at him, and he smiled indifferently. I really didn’t understand why he was acting like this. Until I turned around and saw Noah Sterling sitting on the bleachers across from us. Was he trying to compete with Noah? Both had good family backgrounds. Both were exceptionally good-looking and smart. It was inevitable they’d be compared. I didn’t expect Carter, who usually never paid attention to anyone, to start noticing Noah. I didn’t think too much of it. Following Carter’s orders, I held the boba up to his lips. At least if Carter was in a good mood, he wouldn’t make things difficult for me, and I could get a good night’s sleep. 05 Two months before graduation, for Carter’s eighteenth birthday, he invited his friends out for karaoke. It was loud and lively, everyone was having a great time. Halfway through, Carter took a phone call, completely lost his temper, and smashed a bunch of bottles, scaring everyone into silence. His friend noticed something was wrong and tried to comfort him, but Carter yelled at him, so he quickly ushered everyone else out. I sat there, anxious, silently hoping to blend in and sneak out, terrified of getting yelled at too. Just as I reached the door. Carter spoke coldly. “Mia, get your ass over here.” Startled, I walked over to him. He scoffed, “What are you afraid of? Do I bite?” I quickly shook my head. “Where’s my gift? You came to my birthday empty-handed?” “I, I bought one. When I got here and saw everyone else’s gifts were so expensive, I didn’t bring it out.” I pulled out a fountain pen I had bought on a whim on the way there. It cost $15. It couldn’t compare to the designer brands the other students gave him. Carter snorted coldly. “Wow. Two years ago, you gave me socks. “Last year, you gave me shoes. I thought this year you were going to give me underwear, but this is it?” My face turned red at his words. I had actually planned out his gifts: socks two years ago, gloves last year. Because I got mocked for the socks, I saved up to buy shoes last year. This year, I had to save for college tuition. I didn’t have any extra money, so I just bought a random fountain pen. The shop owner had even decorated it with a pink ribbon flower. I apologized softly. “I’m sorry for making you unhappy.” “This isn’t the only thing you do that makes me unhappy.” Carter mocked with surprising calmness. Then he crooked his finger. “Come here.” I slowly took a step closer. Carter reached out, forcefully wrapped his arm around my waist, and pulled his head against me. His breath was scorching hot. I tried to push him away, but he exerted a little more force. I fell onto his lap. Carter was very strong. He buried his face in my neck, his lips leaving a trail of warmth. Shocked, I stammered, “C-Carter…” He seemed to freeze for a moment in his haze, then bit down on my neck. A sharp pain shot through my whole body. Held so tightly I couldn’t struggle, I finally gave up and endured the pain. After a long while, he returned to his usual self and spoke casually. “Mia, if you dare tell anyone, you’re dead.” Angry and flustered, I touched the bite mark on my neck. Carter’s expression revealed nothing unusual. Before we went back, he told me he was going to apply to Boston University. The bite mark forced me to wear a scarf to school, almost getting caught by my mom. She had recently found out from Mrs. Vance about the school Carter was applying to and told me to follow him. She would also occasionally ask Carter about the majors at Boston University. Carter would patiently analyze them for her. The way he acted in front of adults versus in front of me was completely different. He probably just saw me as an easy target. Mrs. Vance also said it would be good for us to apply to the same school, so we could look out for each other. His family had a mansion near the campus there. She even mentioned that Carter had overseen some renovations remotely two years ago. She said I could live there too when the time came. I just nodded obediently every time. As for where I actually went, it wouldn’t matter to Carter. There was no need to reveal my true plans. Time passed quickly amidst intense studying. Fortunately, Carter’s mood was relatively stable that year. He didn’t constantly look for reasons to make trouble for me. I had more time to study. But the tension only truly dissipated after the exams were over.

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For him, I rejected an arranged marriage with my childhood best friend. But he just said: “You think I’m an animal? Why would I like you?” “I’m your uncle.” I asked him, “But we aren’t even related by blood.” He let out a cold scoff, cutting me off. “Do you really need me to say it bluntly? I don’t like you.” Later, I died in a car crash on the very day he got engaged to someone else. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day my childhood friend proposed the arranged marriage. In front of everyone, I nodded and agreed. But the man who was usually so careless and indifferent suddenly lost his mind. 01 “Marriage is a huge milestone. It just so happens that Chloe’s uncle, Logan, has returned from abroad and will be here shortly. We should hear his thoughts too.” At those words, my head snapped up and I looked at my grandmother. Logan Sterling came back early? I remembered my past life incredibly clearly. My grandmother had only called Logan to ask for his opinion. And that man had rejected it with his usual, chillingly indifferent tone. “The New York branch is too busy, I can’t make it back.” “Whoever she marries has nothing to do with me.” But this time… why was it different? The next second, the sound of the private dining room door opening pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked up, making eye contact across the room with the travel-worn man standing in the doorway. 02 “Logan, what are your thoughts on Chloe marrying into the Miller family?” Perhaps because I couldn’t bear to hear Logan’s piercing sarcasm again, I immediately cut my grandmother off. “Grandma, I’m an adult now. I can make these kinds of decisions for myself.” The man across the table let out a soft laugh, his long fingers casually tapping against the tabletop. “Then let’s hear what she has to say.” Under the watchful eyes of everyone in the room, I took a deep breath. My tone was absolute. “I am willing to marry Ethan.” Ethan Miller was the childhood best friend I grew up with. The moment the words left my mouth, the tapping of fingers against the table abruptly stopped. Logan stared at me, unblinking. My grandmother spoke up right on cue: “Well, since you also like your dear Ethan, I won’t stand in the way.” I ignored Logan’s intense gaze and nodded politely to my grandmother and the other elders. “Ethan just texted me that he’s waiting outside. I’ll take my leave first.” “Stop.” Logan, who had been dead silent, suddenly spoke. Ignoring the strange looks from everyone else, he walked straight up to me. He looked down into my eyes. “Do you even like him? And you’re just going to marry him?” My voice was flat. “Whether I like him right now isn’t important.” “Uncle Logan, even if I don’t have romantic feelings for him right now, we have a lifetime to build them. After all, we’ll be husband and wife soon.” Logan narrowed his eyes, his tone dangerously low. “What did you just call me?” Back when I was in love with Logan, I had always called him by his full name. This was the first time I had ever called him ‘Uncle Logan.’ He let out a sharp, angry laugh. Completely ignoring the elders in the room, he grabbed my arm and dragged me out. “Let go of me!” I was dragged all the way to the parking garage. Logan sneered, his grip iron-tight. “Let you go so you can run to your little fiancé?” I found his reaction completely bizarre. “Even if I did, that’s none of your business, Uncle Logan.” I deliberately put heavy emphasis on the last two words. Hearing that, Logan actually stopped in his tracks. His jaw clenched tight. He lit a cigarette, seemingly trying to calm himself down. “Either you get in the car with me right now so we can talk.” “Or I go straight to your precious Ethan and talk to him.” I didn’t know if it was just my imagination, but it felt like Logan’s temper was significantly worse in this lifetime. Eventually, I got into his car. 03 “You are not marrying Ethan.” Logan stared straight ahead at the steering wheel, his tone leaving absolutely zero room for argument. I gave a dry laugh and was just about to argue back… When someone knocked on the driver’s side window. This was a public parking garage underneath a massive shopping mall. “Logan? Are you here shopping too?” The exquisitely dressed woman standing outside was Logan’s fiancée from my past life—Victoria. But at this point in the timeline, she hadn’t officially met me yet. Her gaze shifted past Logan, looking at me with hesitation. “And who is this…?” I met her gaze openly and gave a polite smile. “He’s my uncle.” “Miss, did you want to speak with my uncle privately? I can leave.” As I spoke, I reached to unbuckle my seatbelt. Victoria’s cheeks flushed a delicate pink. “Thank you so much.” Logan’s abnormal behavior earlier had me slightly dazed, but Victoria’s appearance instantly snapped me back to reality. This was Logan’s destined leading lady. “Who said you could leave?” With a smirk that didn’t reach his eyes, Logan grabbed my wrist, stopping my movement. I reflexively looked up at him. Suddenly, my entire world flipped upside down. Logan had effortlessly pulled me across the center console and directly onto his lap. He lifted a hand to trace the side of my face, his warm palm sliding down to cup my chin. His smile was lazy and dangerous. “What is this? Are we roleplaying ‘uncle and niece’ now?” The man leaned down, his breath ghosting over my jawline. His deep voice was thick with heavy, undeniable intimacy. “Little niece, I didn’t know you had this kind of kink.” I completely froze. My mind went blank, leaving me utterly speechless as I let Logan spin this insane lie. Only then did he casually glance out the window at the petrified Victoria. “Did you need something, Miss Victoria?” “Does it have to be right now? As you can see, I’m a bit tied up.” Saying that, he kept me firmly on his lap and reached down to recline the driver’s seat. The implication couldn’t have been more blatant. Victoria’s face drained of color, and she took two steps back. “Logan… how could you be holding another woman… you know I love you…” Logan turned his head and scoffed. He seemed to find her words utterly ridiculous. “Listen to me, Victoria. You liking me has absolutely nothing to do with me.” “Stop buzzing around me like an annoying fly. Please.” He put heavy emphasis on the “please,” putting his intense disgust for her on full, public display. I finally snapped out of my daze. This was very wrong. Even if Logan absolutely loathed a woman, he would never intentionally humiliate her so brutally in public. Especially not the woman who had been his fiancée in his past life. While I was trying to process this, Victoria had already turned and run away in tears. “Uncle Logan, can you let me go now?” I just assumed he was using me as a human shield. Logan’s phone suddenly started ringing. He didn’t let go of me. In fact, his arm tightened around my waist as he used his free hand to answer the call. My grandmother’s voice came through the speaker: “Logan? What’s going on with you and Chloe? Where did you take her?” Logan didn’t rush to answer. Instead, he glanced down at me, slowly raising one eyebrow. “What did you just say? You want to get off my lap?” I instantly held my breath and frantically shook my head at him. Don’t you dare say that to her. My grandmother didn’t hear him clearly. “What did you say?” Logan stayed silent, just watching me with a highly amused, predatory look. I squeezed my eyes shut, gritted my teeth, and leaned my upper body fully against his chest, burying my face in the crook of his neck. Logan instantly wrapped both arms around me. “Nothing, Mom.” “Chloe and I just had some private matters to resolve.” My grandmother didn’t pry any further. She gave a few passing instructions and hung up the phone. The air inside the car instantly went dead silent. Logan clamped a hand down, stopping me from pulling away. He leaned close to my ear. “This is the reason you cannot marry Ethan.” I tilted my head up slightly, looking straight into his eyes. “But you told me yourself… you don’t like me.” Logan turned his head, clicking his tongue lightly. “I never said such absolute garbage.” He absolutely did. I refused to believe him. Struggling awkwardly, I climbed off his lap and back into the passenger seat, reaching for the door handle. But the next second, the engine roared to life, and he locked the doors. 04 I rested my elbow on the window frame, bored out of my mind, counting the cars zooming past us on the highway. I was deep in thought, trying to analyze Logan’s incredibly bizarre behavior. Suddenly, the car slammed on the brakes. The momentum threw me forward against my seatbelt. A sleek black Porsche Cayenne had cut us off, blocking our path. Ethan stepped out of the car. His face was completely ice-cold. “Chloe, get out. I’m taking you home.” I reflexively glanced at Logan. His thumb was casually tapping the steering wheel as he stared at the young man outside with deep amusement. “Did you call him?” “No…” Out of nowhere, an intense, suffocating aura filled the car. Logan lit a cigarette, holding it between his teeth, and let out a dark chuckle. “Well, your little fiancé tracked us down. I can’t just pretend he isn’t there.” Saying that, he kicked his door open and stepped out, making sure to lock my door from the outside. In the freezing evening wind, the two men stood facing each other. “Please let Chloe out of the car.” “I’m not letting her out. What are you going to do about it?” Ethan didn’t waste time arguing. He walked straight toward my passenger door. But the second he got close, Logan grabbed him by the arm. Ethan was slightly shorter and less built than Logan. He was instantly overpowered. Logan shoved him backward, slamming him hard against the hood of the Porsche. His hand clamped viciously around Ethan’s throat. “What do you want to do to Chloe?” Ethan choked out, struggling to breathe. Taking his time, Logan used his free hand to flick the ash off his cigarette, then casually crushed the butt out against the hood of Ethan’s expensive car. “Maybe I wasn’t clear enough before. Stay the hell away from her.” “This is your final warning. She is mine.” “She belongs to herself!” Ethan spat out, syllable by syllable. Logan let out a low laugh, his fingers tightening their crushing grip on Ethan’s throat. I finally found the spare key fob tucked in the center console. I unlocked the door and frantically scrambled out. “Uncle Logan, let him go!” I shouted, trying to pry his iron-like fingers off Ethan’s neck. But the man wouldn’t budge an inch. Ethan was starting to lose consciousness. In a panic, I did the only thing I could think of—I bit down hard on Logan’s wrist. He finally let go. I quickly helped Ethan stand up. “Does your heart really ache for him that much?” Logan’s voice came from behind me, completely stripped of any emotion. “I’m bleeding too. Can’t you see that? Hmm?” I froze. Just as I turned my head, he violently scooped me up into his arms. He threw me into the back seat of his car. He climbed into the driver’s seat immediately. Just as he was about to hit the gas, I started struggling wildly. “What are you doing, Logan?! Can’t you see Ethan is already—” The engine revved with a deep, furious roar. Logan held the steering wheel with one hand, letting out a lazy, chilling laugh. “Do you want to bet? Mention his name one more time, and I will drive this car straight over him.” Through the rearview mirror, my eyes met Logan’s. In the shadows of the back seat, my hands gripped the leather upholstery tight. “Logan, murder is a felony.” “Are you completely legally illiterate?” Logan leaned back casually against the headrest, his eyes brimming with dark amusement. “You make a fair point. So I’ll just drive over his legs instead. How does that sound?” “The Miller family has more than one son. Not to mention, Ethan’s father is currently begging my company for a massive joint venture.” “Tell me, does the Miller family want a project that will solidify their entire corporate empire… or do they want their son to keep his legs?” He laid out the ruthless reality right in front of me, forcing me to make a choice. I couldn’t abandon Ethan. In my past life, when everyone called me a shameless disgrace for falling in love with my adoptive uncle, Ethan was the only one who defended me, time and time again. “Uncle Logan. I’m sorry.” In this completely rigged game, I had no choice but to surrender. Logan didn’t move. The front of his car was still aimed dead center at Ethan. “Mhm. So how are you going to behave from now on?” I lowered my eyes, my voice barely a whisper. “I won’t contact him anymore.” Logan’s tone softened slightly. “Get in the front seat.” I obediently did as I was told. The man leaned over me, pulling the seatbelt across my chest and clicking it into place. The pad of his thumb gently rubbed my earlobe. “Such a good girl.” Only then did Logan put the car in drive and pull away. I gripped my seatbelt tightly, staring straight ahead. Acting as if I couldn’t hear Ethan screaming my name as we drove off into the night. 05 Logan took me back to his sprawling mansion in the suburbs. I stood numbly in the foyer, watching him walk over to his liquor cabinet, pour himself a glass of whiskey, and down it in one gulp. He crunched on an ice cube and looked up at me. “Why the long face?” The sound of him crushing the ice, combined with his slow, predatory steps toward me, made me shudder involuntarily. Logan stopped right in front of me, staring intensely into my eyes. “Because of Ethan?” “What exactly do you want?” My voice betrayed a slight tremor, thick with unshed tears. “Chloe, stop playing dumb with me.” I sniffled. “Logan, if you really like me, why do you have to force me into a corner like this?” Logan didn’t seem to think he was doing anything wrong at all. He gently ruffled my hair. “Because you aren’t being obedient enough.” Every argument I had prepared died in my throat. When my grandmother called Logan’s phone again, I couldn’t help but let out a massive sigh of relief. The only person who could possibly save me had finally called. “Logan, when are you going to come over? We need to finalize the details of Chloe’s wedding.” Logan looked down at me with heavy-lidded eyes, his tone completely nonchalant. “I almost forgot to tell you.” “Tell me what?” “Chloe’s wedding is canceled.” My eyes widened in absolute shock. My grandmother sounded incredibly confused. “What? Why?” I had a terrible feeling. Logan kept his eyes locked on me, but his words were spoken into the phone. He dragged out his words, but his tone was absolute and undeniable. “Because she is going to marry me.” “From now on, I suggest you stay out of my business with her.” With that, he hung up the phone. “Logan, are you completely insane?” I felt like I was at the absolute breaking point. “Why would you say that garbage to Grandma?! Are you trying to kill me?!” Logan tossed his phone onto the coffee table, reached down, and scooped me up into his arms. A second later, he dropped me onto the sofa, pressing his body over mine. He was so close I could feel the heat of his breath. “Weren’t you the one who said it? You love me. You only want to marry me.” I couldn’t break free from his grip, so I turned my head away. “That was in the past.” Logan grabbed my chin, forcing me to look at him. “Then learn to love me again.” “Chloe, as long as you stay obediently by my side, I have all the time in the world to wait.” His gaze dropped down to the side of my neck. He leaned in. The next second, I felt his lips press against my skin. My entire body went rigid. And Logan showed no signs of stopping. “Don’t…” I struggled to find my voice. The man paused. After a long moment, he used his arms to push himself up slightly, hovering just above me. “Uncle Logan, can you please just let this go…” Logan kept smiling, but his eyes were filled with ice. He placed a single fingertip against my lips, tracing them gently. The silent threat was deafening. The rest of the words died in my throat, swallowed down in terror. 06 While Logan was still hovering over me, the heavy front doors were suddenly shoved open. A sliver of bright light flooded the room, making me squint. “What the hell are you doing?!” Victoria stood in the doorway, her eyes wide and bloodshot with rage. Logan’s expression darkened instantly. He stood up. “You tracked me?” “If I didn’t track you, would I have seen this?!” The veins on her forehead bulged visibly. “She seduced you, didn’t she, Logan?” “Tell me that’s what happened. Tell me it’s true!” Victoria’s eyes burned with sheer, unhinged madness. Logan didn’t say a word. He just picked up his phone to call estate security. Taking advantage of the distraction, Victoria suddenly lunged forward. Before I could even process what was happening, she pulled a hidden razor blade from her pocket and slashed it directly at my face. I didn’t have time to dodge. I squeezed my eyes shut, but the searing pain I expected never came. “Logan…” I opened my eyes. Logan’s forearm was thrown up, blocking the blade. Bright red blood poured from the deep gash, dripping one drop at a time onto my jeans, blooming into dark stains. Logan didn’t even flinch. He grabbed Victoria’s arm and violently twisted it backward. The razor blade in her hand was forced upward, pressing directly against her own throat. “Why are you so pathetic, huh?” “A few hours ago, I rejected you to your face, and you still tracked me down like a stalker.” “Is it a crime for me to love you?!” Victoria was forced to step backward under his crushing grip. The razor blade was pressing hard enough to leave a bloody line on her neck. “You’re about to find out exactly how much of a crime it is.” Logan gave a dark, cruel laugh and threw her aside. I could hear the sound of heavy boots running toward us. Security arrived, apologizing profusely as they dragged Victoria away. She looked completely deranged, sobbing hysterically while staring at Logan. “Did she scare you?” Logan dropped his usual careless, arrogant demeanor. He looked incredibly serious. “Did she manage to cut you?” I stared blankly at the man kneeling in front of me, looking so deeply worried. I spoke slowly, my voice dull. “You’re the one who got stabbed.” It was as if he hadn’t even noticed his own wound until I pointed it out. … Half an hour later, the private doctor finished wrapping the wound and left. I opened my mouth, my emotions an absolute tangled mess. “Thank you. Uncle Logan.” The deep gash on his arm didn’t seem to bother him at all. He pulled out a cigarette, held it between his lips, and lit it. His voice carried a slow, mocking smile. “You already hate me enough as it is. If you got scarred because of me, you’d despise me for the rest of your life.” “How could I possibly give you that excuse?” I ignored his twisted, backwards logic. I just stared at the white bandages on his arm, and memories from the past came rushing back. The only reason I had fallen in love with Logan in the first place was because he was so incredibly good to me. When I was in high school, a group of local thugs kept cornering me to deliver love letters. Logan waited outside my school for a week, tracked them down in an alley, and beat them so badly they never looked at me again. In college, when a corrupt professor gave my hard-earned scholarship to a wealthy donor’s kid, Logan didn’t say, “It’s not that much money anyway, I’ll just give you ten times that.” Instead, he personally went to the university board, exposed the corruption, and made sure I got my scholarship back. The atmosphere in the room had finally softened. I was just about to use the moment to beg him to let me go… When I accidentally glanced at his phone sitting on the coffee table. The screen was lighting up with rapid notifications. “Ethan: Chloe, I just got home and fixed my phone. Are you okay?” “Ethan: Logan just announced to the press that you two are getting married. He forced you into this, didn’t he?” Logan had already announced it…? I had assumed he was just saying it to shut my grandmother up. I mechanically turned to look at the man sitting next to me. “Logan, what are you doing?” He didn’t even look up from his phone, answering casually. “Talking to the wedding planners.” “When did I ever agree to marry you?” The white light of his phone screen illuminated his face. He stopped typing. He waited until the screen automatically went black before tossing the phone aside and stepping closer to me. “From the moment you agreed to marry Ethan today, I lost all my patience.” “Stop testing me, Chloe.” “We are the only two people in this entire mansion. You really don’t want me to accelerate this process, do you?” His gentle tone masked the most lethal, terrifying warning. I think… it was exactly in that moment. Every last ounce of affection I had ever felt for him turned to ash.

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On the day we broke up, I deliberately poked right at his deepest wound. “Every time I look at those hands, it makes me sick to my stomach.” Years later, he became my father’s attending physician. Before discussing the medical chart, he looked at me with chilling indifference and asked: “Ms. Davis, my hands won’t cause you any physiological discomfort, will they?” 01 Yesterday, a friend called and told me there might be hope for my dad’s condition. Their hospital had just hired a Dr. Sterling, who recently returned from studying abroad. His exact area of research was my dad’s rare disease. But I never in a million years expected Dr. Sterling to be Liam Sterling. “Dr. Sterling is so handsome! If his hands hadn’t been burned, he’d be absolutely perfect.” “I heard from Dr. Miller that his ex-girlfriend caused it. And the worst part? She dumped him because of the scars.” “Ew, seriously? That’s so disgusting.” Passing by the nurse’s station, I overheard several nurses gossiping while prepping IV bags. My footsteps faltered for a second, but I kept walking down the hall. With every step closer to that office door, my heart beat faster and faster. Thump, thump, thump. When my hand finally rested on the doorknob, I couldn’t stop trembling. But the moment I saw that familiar silhouette, everything went completely quiet. The man in the white coat heard the door open, stopped writing, and looked up. When our eyes met, my heart stopped. My entire body went rigid. Honestly, I had already mentally prepared myself for Liam’s mockery and scorn. Because— I was that disgusting, vile ex-girlfriend. 02 But as long as he could give my dad a fighting chance, I was willing to endure anything. In a fraction of a second, the man withdrew his gaze. “You must be Robert Davis’s family member. Have a seat.” His voice was freezing cold and completely detached. I remembered when I first had a crush on him, he always wore this same unapproachable, distant expression. He tipped his chin toward the chair across from him, and then… He looked back down and continued writing his notes. Was he— Pretending not to recognize me? The thought flashed through my mind, but I instantly dismissed it. How could he pretend to be so calm facing someone he despised? He was a proud, arrogant guy. Back when I was relentlessly pursuing him, if he got annoyed, he would just turn and walk away without sparing me a single word. But thinking about it logically, it made sense. I was wearing a surgical mask and had bangs now. And so many years had passed. —He probably genuinely didn’t recognize me. The heavy stone hanging in my chest finally dropped. Sitting across from him, my eyes involuntarily drifted to those shocking, disfigured hands. The raised, hypertrophic burn scars stood out violently against his otherwise pale skin. My heart squeezed. The agonizing pain I had buried deep inside me flared up again. Years ago, a girl in our chemistry lab group made a reckless operational error that triggered a flash fire. Instantly, flames shot across the bench. Liam happened to be standing right next to me. With terrifyingly fast reflexes, he shielded my face with his hands. In the fraction of a second his hands caught the fire, massive patches of skin blistered into horrifying, raw red flesh. It was gruesome. Crying, I asked him why he did it. He looked down, gently wiping my tears away, his eyes completely sincere. “Because it was you. I’d do it a thousand times.” Those scars made me absolutely certain Liam was the one. Which is exactly why, on the day I broke up with him, I used those very scars to end it. The vicious words were still ringing in my ears. “Do you know… every time I look at those hands, it makes me sick to my stomach.” “I can’t stand looking at them for another second.” He probably hated my guts. The scars he took for me were rewarded with that vile, ungrateful face. … “Ms. Davis?” I didn’t realize when Liam had looked up, but his gaze was now locked firmly onto my face. “Yes, I’m here.” He raised an eyebrow thoughtfully, noticing exactly where my eyes had been glued. “My hands won’t cause you any physiological discomfort, will they?” 03 I shook my head awkwardly. “No.” How could they? They only looked like that because he saved me. I loved them and ached for them. How could they ever make me feel sick? His lips curled up slightly, and he patiently explained: “That’s good. “Everyone’s physical tolerance is different, so I had to ask beforehand. “Have the complete blood count and bone marrow biopsies been done?” “Yes, they’re done.” “When was his last blood transfusion?” “Two months ago.” “What is your relationship with Jackson Smith?” Jackson was the mutual friend who had referred me to Liam. But what did that have to do with my dad’s medical condition? The answer died on my lips. I couldn’t help but look at him suspiciously. “Is that… medically relevant?” He gave me a calm, flat look. “Of course. It’s hospital policy.” He was the doctor. I was the patient’s family. Naturally, whatever he asked, I had to answer. “We went to college together.” Those pitch-black eyes suddenly locked onto me, scrutinizing, analyzing, as if trying to decipher something hidden. Before I could say anything else, he pulled out the medical files, instantly switching back to a strictly professional demeanor, and began explaining the treatment plan. A few minutes later, the office door suddenly opened. “Liam, what do you want for lunch?” 04 Behind that sweet, soft voice was an incredibly agreeable, soft-featured face. I barely even had to process it. I recognized her instantly. It was Emily Miller! She was the exact girl who caused the lab explosion. Luckily for her, she had been standing slightly further back and wasn’t badly hurt. What a ridiculously small world. She stared at me, too. Slowly, the smile on her face began to slip. A deep, magnetic voice instantly interrupted before Emily could blurt out my name. “Whatever you want. “Or we could just grab Thai food downstairs again. “Go ahead and book a table. I’ll be done here in a minute.” They spoke right over me. From this angle, I could clearly see the sharp line of Liam’s jaw, and… The soft, unguarded tenderness in his eyes. A tenderness that used to belong exclusively to me. In high school, Emily was in our class, but she wasn’t particularly close to me or Liam. During breaks, whenever I went to find Liam, Emily would be sitting in the row right behind him. I would always see her sitting quietly at her desk, entirely alone. Maybe she felt awkward and couldn’t figure out how to join our conversations. Sometimes, when we accidentally made eye contact, she would immediately look away. But now, the roles were completely reversed. I was the outsider. Before closing the door, Emily gave me one last look. Her expression had already returned to normal, and she gave a polite, detached nod. Once again, it was just me and Liam in the office. He naturally possessed an incredibly dominant, intimidating aura. The air in the room instantly felt suffocating. I lowered my eyes, resting my elbows nervously on the edge of the desk. Suddenly, a large shadow fell over me, blocking the overhead light. His broad chest leaned forward, closing the distance between us. Almost completely by reflex, I jerked backward in my chair, scrambling to put space between us. His outstretched hand froze in midair. His face turned to absolute ice. “What are you dodging?” 05 The contempt in his eyes was barely concealed. “Didn’t you just say you weren’t disgusted by my hands?” Saying that, he reached past me and picked up a pen that had rolled near my arm. I never expected Liam to have become this incredibly sensitive. Actually, after we broke up, I begged my dad to use his connections to find a specialist hospital for burn victims, hoping they could repair Liam’s hands. But by then, Liam already despised me. The mocking sneer he gave me that day is permanently burned into my memory. “I’m just a broken toy to you, aren’t I? Tossed in the trash the second I got damaged.” “Let me make this clear: I don’t give a damn about these hands.” “Stop trying to play the saint. It makes me sick.” I didn’t know if it was just my imagination. But for a split second, I felt absolutely certain that he had recognized me. … Once the consultation ended, Emily was already waiting by the door, having changed into her street clothes. She was wearing a tight knit dress that hugged her curves perfectly. Liam didn’t look at me again. He naturally reached out and took Emily’s purse for her. Walking down the hallway, they looked like a perfect match, standing shoulder-to-shoulder, looking incredibly intimate. Honestly, seeing him like this made me feel a profound sense of relief about the choice I made back then. If I hadn’t let him go, I might have completely ruined his life. “Hey! Spacing out over here?” “Come on, I’ll drive you home.” Jackson appeared out of nowhere, snapping his fingers right in front of my face and making me jump. His loud, booming voice echoed down the entire hospital corridor. Up ahead, that tall silhouette stopped walking and slowly turned his head to look at me. Under the harsh fluorescent lights of the hallway, his eyes were impossibly dark and unreadable. Before I could decipher whatever emotion was hiding in his gaze, a heavy hand dropped onto my shoulder, forcefully spinning me around. “Let’s go.” I was half-shoved toward the elevators at the opposite end of the hall. 06 In the car, Jackson broke the silence. “So, how did it go regarding your dad’s case?” I didn’t answer. I just stared out the window into the dark night, watching the blurry shadows of trees speeding past. Liam’s words kept echoing in my head. “Given the extremely limited number of viable case studies, there is only one surgical option, and it carries massive risks.” “If it succeeds, it’s obviously a miracle. But if it fails, the condition will accelerate exponentially. He wouldn’t last a month.” A terrifying, high-stakes gamble with my father’s life. I simply couldn’t make that choice right now. “Hey! What are you doing?!” While I was drowning in misery, a heavy pair of hands suddenly landed on my head, violently messing up my hair. It was Jackson. Seeing me glaring and swatting at him like an angry cat, he grinned widely. “Just trying to boost your fighting spirit.” “You look like a wilted vegetable lately. When we get to my place to grab the supplements for your dad, make sure you take some for yourself too.” The only reason Jackson and I were such close friends was that we had both pulled each other out of total rock bottom. Our history started back in college, right after he went through a brutal breakup. His ex-girlfriend had started an internship and started attending high-end corporate galas with her boss. She was picked up in luxury cars every day. Suddenly, Jackson—who practically lived in loud Hawaiian shirts—wasn’t good enough for her anymore. She called him “immature.” Since he had genuinely loved her, it completely destroyed him to watch the girl he loved turn into someone unrecognizable. He got blackout drunk every single day. One night, he almost fell backward off the top of the stadium bleachers. Thankfully, I was right next to him. I grabbed his shirt, hauled him back, and slapped him as hard as I could across the face. “She’s already moved on with her life! Why the hell are you still standing here playing the tragic victim?!” Honestly, I was screaming those words at him… but I was also screaming them at myself. … After picking up the supplements, Jackson dragged me to a hot pot restaurant. He loved extremely spicy food, and by the end of the meal, my lips were completely swollen and burning. My apartment complex didn’t allow non-resident cars inside. Jackson was going to pull over at the main gate, but I told him not to bother. Just as I opened the passenger door, halfway out of the car, he grabbed me by the back of my collar and yanked me back. “It’s pouring rain out there and I don’t have an umbrella. Just put this over your head so you don’t get completely soaked.” I turned and looked at the Hawaiian shirt he was holding out. Right on the collar was a bright red lipstick stain. Who knows what girl left it there—he probably didn’t even know himself. I immediately waved my hands in disgust. “No thanks, I’ll just sprint. It’s fine.” He ignored me, threw the shirt over my head, and physically shoved me out of the car. “Stop being so picky. I’m throwing it away anyway. Take it home and tailor it into a raincoat or something.” Once I got out, I was actually secretly grateful. Thank God I had the shirt to cover me. The rain was much heavier than it sounded from inside the car. By the time I sprinted to my apartment lobby, the bottom half of my jeans was completely soaked. Even so, my footsteps slowed to a dead stop when I saw the completely drenched figure standing by the door. Those eyes, looking even darker and sharper in the shadows, were staring dead at me. He just stood there, motionless, letting the massive, freezing raindrops slide down his face. “Lia… Dr. Sterling? What are you doing here?” When I left the hospital, Liam’s eyes had already confirmed it: he absolutely knew who I was. Treating me like a complete stranger, letting go of the past, and moving on with our lives. That was probably the best possible outcome for both of us. The freezing rain did nothing to extinguish the furious fire in his eyes. His gaze swept over my messy hair, my swollen lips, and finally settled on my face with pure, absolute disgust and mockery. “Your father’s surgery isn’t even scheduled yet, and you’re already out screwing around.” “You really are something else, Chloe.” “What the hell did I do?” He completely ignored my question and continued speaking in a dangerously low voice. “Did you know the city blood bank is completely tapped out?” “Did you know about the hospital’s new policy? Before they authorize a transfusion, you have to provide proof of blood donation from five different people. Otherwise, they won’t release the blood. Did you know that?” “Even though your father is admitted to the hospital, if the blood bank supervisor doesn’t sign off, there is absolutely nothing I can do. Did you know that?!” I was completely stunned. Blood transfusions had never been this complicated before. Usually, the hospital just handled it internally. When did the policy change? He let out a bitter, mocking laugh that mixed with the sound of the pouring rain. “No, you didn’t know.” “Because you never take anything seriously.” In that moment, I couldn’t tell if he was condemning the person I was now, or the person I used to be. Maybe because he had been standing in the freezing rain for so long, his lips were completely pale. He looked utterly exhausted, incredibly weak. “Are you okay?” “Do you want to come upstairs and rest for a minute?” His face darkened instantly, his expression practically screaming: I’m not as easy and cheap as you are. He raised a hand, wiped the rain off his face, and violently threw a stack of small red booklets directly into my chest. Then he turned and walked away. I opened them. It was five certificates of blood donation. One of them had his name on it. So the reason he looked so pale and weak… was because… “Liam!” The man stumbled, swaying heavily to the side, and collapsed onto the wet concrete. 07 After dragging Liam upstairs and changing him into dry clothes, I rested my chin on my hands and watched him sleep. He had pale skin and incredibly striking, sharp features. He looked like an untouchable god, the kind of person everyone naturally favored. In high school, practically the entire student body knew… I was head over heels in love with Liam Sterling. His mother had a severe, chronic illness and required constant hospital treatments. The financial and emotional burden on him was crushing. So every single weekend, I would go to the hospital and help take care of her. Until Marcus appeared. He was a local street thug. First, he aggressively and publicly declared his love for me, then started stalking and verbally harassing me. When that didn’t work, he started targeting Liam. He even went to the hospital to harass Liam’s sick mother. I tried calling the police. But the most they could do was hold him for a few days. The second he got out, he went right back to terrorizing us. Marcus was a jobless delinquent with endless free time, and he took immense pleasure in making Liam’s life a living hell. Because of Marcus’s relentless harassment, Liam was constantly exhausted and distracted. His class ranking plummeted again and again. He started skipping classes. Before his old bruises could heal, he’d show up with new ones. Eventually, the school administration slapped Liam with a severe disciplinary mark for “engaging in violent street brawls.” By the time the news of the disciplinary action reached Liam’s mother, she was already incredibly frail, her eyes deeply sunken into her skull. Yet she still forced a warm smile and gently held my hand. “Liam hasn’t been focusing on his studies lately, has he?” “I don’t have much time left. If I could just see him get accepted into a top-tier university, I could die in peace.” “Chloe… you understand what I’m asking you, don’t you?” I gripped the hem of my school uniform so tightly my knuckles turned white. Slowly, I let go. Truthfully, she wasn’t the only one who had said things like that to me. My classmates whispered that I was a slut who lured in gang members, and that my drama was destroying Liam’s chances of getting a full-ride scholarship. Even our homeroom teacher pulled me aside for a “talk.” He told me that Liam had a brilliant future ahead of him, and begged me not to be the reason he ruined his life. Every single person around me was telling me exactly one thing: Stay away from Liam Sterling. The most paralyzing, suffocating part was… I couldn’t even argue back. Because on the surface, it really did look like I was the one who dragged Marcus into our lives. And because Marcus was jealous, he ripped Liam’s previously quiet, focused life to shreds. But back then, my teenage brain couldn’t comprehend it. I was a victim too. So why, in everyone else’s eyes, was I suddenly the villain? The crushing injustice and overwhelming pressure slowly ate away at my sanity. So, I chose the most extreme, cruel method to escape the rumors. … I was still drowning in my memories when a sharp clack snapped me back to reality. Something had rolled off the nightstand and hit the hardwood floor. I turned and saw that Liam’s car keys had slipped out of his pocket. And tucked underneath the keys was something else— A pair of matching promise rings. The rings that belonged to him and Emily. 08 When I woke up the next morning, Liam was already gone. The blanket on the bed had been folded into a perfect, crisp square. If it weren’t for the blood donation certificates still sitting on the counter, I would have convinced myself last night was just a hallucination. A few days later, I scheduled the blood transfusion with the hospital. Just as Liam had warned me, the bureaucratic process was an absolute nightmare. Even the nurse setting up my dad’s IV couldn’t help but complain. “Lately, the families of patients needing transfusions have been running themselves ragged trying to get approved. You’re the smoothest approval I’ve seen all month.” The image of Liam’s ghostly pale, exhausted face flashed in my mind again. When I went to his office to find him, he was resting his head on his desk, trying to take a nap. His brows were furrowed tightly, and a thin layer of cold sweat covered his forehead. Without thinking, I reached my hand out, wanting to smooth the crease between his brows. But remembering that he already had Emily, my hand froze in midair. Just as I was about to pull away, a vice-like grip violently clamped down on my wrist. Liam opened his eyes, staring at me with a dark, heavy intensity. “Do you need something?” He was gripping my wrist so hard it felt like he was trying to crush my bones. But a second later, as if he had just touched something disgusting, he violently threw my hand away and sat up straight. “Thank you for helping me last night.” He glanced at me, a cold, mocking smirk twisting his lips. “Help you?” “You seem to be confused.” “If any other patient had collapsed in front of me, I would have done the exact same thing.” … “Liam. I’m sorry.” A flash of absolute shock crossed his eyes. His dark pupils locked onto me as he spoke slowly. “Sorry for what?” “When we broke up… I never should have said those vicious things to you.” He didn’t speak. He just kept scrutinizing me, clearly waiting for me to finish. I hesitated for a second, then continued. “Your hands were burned because of me. I have always, always been grateful to you.” “I have never, ever felt disgusted or grossed out by them.” When I finished, dead silence filled the room. The air was so thick it was hard to breathe. “Are you done?” I thought about it carefully, then gave a firm nod. His face instantly turned completely black. With profound impatience, he looked away. “Get out.” I bit my lip and walked to the door. But right as I grabbed the handle, a surge of defiant frustration made me turn back. “Then tell me, what do I have to do for you to forgive me?” I watched as he looked up. In those dark eyes, a chaotic storm of emotions I couldn’t decipher violently swirled. “I want you to disappear from my life. Completely.” “Okay.” I answered cleanly and decisively. “Once my dad finishes his treatments, I’ll disappear.” He didn’t say another word, but his face somehow looked even more furious than before. The second I closed the door, I heard the violent, crashing sound of something heavy being hurled against the wall inside the office, shattering into pieces.

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The female lead came to confront me: “Using a baby to trap Carter is truly shameless!” The next second, catching a glimpse of Carter appearing in the doorway, I rolled my eyes and fainted on the spot. 01 I transmigrated into a book. The female lead of this romance novel is Serena Brooks, and the male lead is Ethan Vance. The main antagonist, the second male lead, is Carter Hayes, Serena’s childhood friend. Serena and Carter both grew up in difficult circumstances and supported each other through their tough childhoods. Carter always kept that warmth close to his heart. Later, Carter went out of state to make his fortune and achieved great success. When he returned, Serena had already been swept off her feet by a domineering billionaire CEO. Consumed by jealousy, Carter began stirring up trouble for the constantly tearful female lead. Simply put, it’s a classic “childhood friend loses to the newly arrived billionaire” trope. I was pretty annoyed when I read it. I mean, you’re the female lead, you’ve already chosen the billionaire, so why do you keep crying to the second male lead? Even if you don’t have other friends to confide in, you know he’s in love with you, right? How do you think the male lead feels seeing you resting your head on Carter’s shoulder? And Carter, that idiot, actually strokes her hair affectionately! It’s like they’re trying to give the male lead an aneurysm. Alright, somehow, inexplicably, I’ve transmigrated into this mess. And of all people, I’m the plot device wedged between Carter and Serena. Well, since I’m here and have no intention of going back, I might as well cause some chaos. I checked myself out in the mirror. I have to admit, it’s pretty impressive. My character, Chloe Sterling, is hot. Like, seriously gorgeous! “Carter, this is my boyfriend, Ethan.” The delicate and charming Serena hooked her arm through the male lead’s, smiling sweetly like a summer peach. Seeing Carter’s face turn as dark as the bottom of a scorched pan, I smoothly sidled up next to him. According to the plot, this is where he’s supposed to pull me close. And declare that I’m his girlfriend. Sure enough, a strong arm wrapped around my waist. I looked up shyly. Holy crap! He’s so handsome. “Yes, I’m his girlfriend.” Whoops, spoke too soon… 02 Thankfully, Carter was a bit tipsy and just spaced out for a second without minding my eagerness. Serena’s expression instantly fell. Look at her, this is exactly what she does! If you don’t want to be with someone else, then you should be smiling! Wearing that disappointed look right in front of Carter makes him think you still have feelings for him! I quickly blocked Carter’s view and grabbed his hand. “Honey, look at them holding hands so tightly. They’re so in love.” Carter’s gaze drifted down, and his face grew even darker. Darker than a stormy night. “You’ve had too much to drink. Let me help you back so we can get to bed early… er, get some rest.” I half-dragged, half-pulled Carter away, completely ignoring Serena’s scrutinizing stare. A big bed, a handsome guy, and a drunk handsome guy at that. Just as the mood was getting perfect, Carter’s phone rang. Knowing the plot, I knew exactly who it was: Serena calling to ruin my night. He groggily reached for his phone. Yoink. I grabbed it, turned it off, and tossed it on the floor. What a wonderful night~ 03 The moment I opened my eyes the next morning, I saw Carter looking like he had been severely wronged. “You…” “Waaaahhh.” I beat him to the punch and started fake-crying. Because I knew he couldn’t stand seeing a woman cry. He looked intimidating on the outside, but was a total softie on the inside. Otherwise, how could he keep falling for Serena’s tears over and over again? A tissue was thrust in front of my face. “I can take responsibility for what happened, but I need to be clear with you.” “I already have someone I love in my heart.” Duh, tell me something I don’t know. And just like that, I officially became Carter’s shadow. At first, he was very annoyed and always told me to go do my own thing. Nonsense. I transmigrated here for entertainment. I had zero interest in that iceberg male lead who blew hot and cold. “I’m already yours.” “I’ll miss you today, miss you tomorrow, and miss you the day after tomorrow.” “I don’t care what you do, as long as I can be with you, that’s enough.” “I’m willing to wait for you forever, even if you’re waiting for someone else.” “Also, my family is super rich, so I don’t even need to go to work.” After that barrage of sweet talk, Carter went silent. Silence = consent. Yep, I deliberately ignored the way he looked at me like I was an alien. Slowly, Carter got used to having me around. Even though he rarely spoke to me. Even though he often stared blankly at pictures of Serena on his phone. Even though he often got furious looking at pictures of Ethan. But the end result was always the same: getting drunk and getting pushed down by me. “Serena, what’s wrong?!” A ringing phone in the middle of the night woke me up. My bad, I forgot to turn his phone off this time. 04 “Stay put at Mirror Lake, I’m coming right now.” Carter swiftly rolled out of bed and vanished out the door. Even Usain Bolt would applaud that speed. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little disappointed. I dialed Ethan’s number. “Who is this?” “Ethan Vance, are you even a man?” “Why are you bullying my bestie, Serena?” “The first person Serena looks for when she’s heartbroken is Carter.” “Do you know how dangerous it is for a girl to be alone at Mirror Lake in the middle of the night?” “In her heart, the way you treat her doesn’t even compare to Carter.” “Reflect on your actions!” I let out a long breath. A while later, I heard arguing at the front door. I threw on Carter’s jacket and walked out barefoot. “Serena! Didn’t I tell you I don’t want you seeing Carter alone?” “What gives you the right to yell at Serena! You only ever hurt her!” “Do you know how hard Serena was crying?” Serena stood between them, her eyes red. “Ethan, hearts aren’t made of stone.” “You keep hurting Serena, are you sure she’ll keep loving you?” I stood up for her with a serious face of righteous indignation. Serena’s expression changed instantly. Furious, Ethan grabbed Serena and planted a passionate kiss on her. Serena went weak in the knees. She obediently let him lead her to his car by the hand. “Serena, Serena…” “Didn’t you say he treats you badly?” “Didn’t you say… I’m the only one who makes you feel safe?” Ethan’s footsteps paused for a second. He threw her hand off and got into the car. Serena threw back one last sentence: “I was just too heartbroken. I… I love Ethan.” “I’m sorry.” And hurriedly got into the car. Wow~ Crash~ Whose heart just shattered? 05 Carter locked himself in his room for two days without coming out. I get it, heartbreak doesn’t heal overnight. I lay on the couch, hugging a bag of potato chips, with a boba tea in my other hand. Gotta be full and energized to heal his wounds, right? On the third day, I made my move. If he starved himself any longer, his nice body would waste away. I rolled up my sleeves and got to work in the kitchen. A huge plate of fragrant sweet and sour ribs, glossy and aromatic. I also scooped a bowl of white rice. I knew sweet and sour ribs were the second male lead’s favorite. It was the only dish the female lead ever made for him when they were kids. I pushed open the door and saw someone who wasn’t wearing any clothes. “Blegh—” 06 The sadness that had been plastered on Carter’s face for days finally cracked. “Chloe Sterling, what is your problem! You—” His yelling stopped abruptly when he saw the food in my hands. I blinked my innocent, big eyes. “Carter, take me to the hospital, please.” Once I saw the positive pregnancy test, my heart settled. Man, I’m good. I’m very pragmatic; no time to lose, things change too fast. Having a baby makes everything much more secure. I knew Carter loved kids. In the original plot, his biggest wish was to build a warm family with Serena. To have children that belonged to both of them. After confirming my pregnancy, Carter changed. He changed in a way that scared me a little. Sometimes I’d wake up in the middle of the night to find him sitting in the living room, wide awake. Looking weighed down by heavy thoughts. Sometimes I’d catch him staring at my belly, careful but lost. I don’t know if it was the pregnancy hormones, but I suddenly started feeling a little insecure. Well, just a little bit. A few days later, Carter brought a strange older woman home. 07 The woman’s name was Mary, and she seemed very warm and friendly. Carter just briefly explained that she was his godmother, here to take care of me. He told me to call her godmother too, saying we were all family now. When Carter said we were all family, my heart suddenly fluttered. Family. When Carter went to work, Godmother managed all the cooking and cleaning around the house. Well, mostly she supervised the hired help to make sure they did a good job. She also often chatted with me about everyday things. To be honest, I was very curious about her. Because I didn’t remember this character existing in the original novel. Or maybe her appearances were too brief for me to remember. It seems my meddling since arriving here has caused a butterfly effect. Could I change the ending? “Chloe, I just love girls who are as decisive and straightforward as you.” Godmother looked at me, smiling like a sunflower. “When Carter came to see me, I guessed right away there was good news.” “He hasn’t smiled like that in ten years.” Uhh— Isn’t that a line usually reserved for the female lead? 08 Lately, because of morning sickness, my temper has been a bit volatile. My cravings got weird, and my mood swung wildly. Godmother kept treating me like a spoiled child, indulging me in everything. Whenever I nagged Carter, she always took my side. Seeing his helpless expression, too afraid to provoke me, I felt an inexplicable sense of joy. What if it’s not that he didn’t dare, but that he couldn’t bear to? Just as I was throwing another tantrum at Carter, he finally lost his patience. “Chloe, don’t push it!” I felt a wave of grievance and burst into loud sobs. Godmother rushed over in a panic. “Oh my, Carter, why are you upsetting our Chloe again?” “Our Chloe is beautiful, obedient, and devoted to you.” “You couldn’t find someone like her if you searched the whole world with a lantern.” “Look how haggard Chloe has gotten lately, all for your baby.” “Whatever she wants, just give it to her. If she scolds you, just take it—” I curled up in Godmother’s arms, making a lot of noise but shedding very few tears. Carter frustratingly punched a throw pillow. He interrupted Godmother’s scolding. “Godmother!” “She insists on eating an airplane meal in the middle of the night! Where am I supposed to find that for her?!” His voice trembled with a hint of grievance. 09 The room went silent for a moment. I also sniffled, feeling a little embarrassed. Godmother looked at me. “Chloe, do you really want to eat it? Think carefully, think very carefully.” I thought seriously for a whole minute. “Godmother, I really want it. I crave it so much.” Godmother and I locked eyes on Carter. An hour later, a still-warm airline meal was placed in front of me. Carter stood before me, his awkward expression resembling a child craving praise. So cute. “Carter, you’re amazing, love you!” I didn’t hold back on the praise. I’ve got a basket full of free sweet talk. A blush crept onto his cheeks, and he gave a feigned impatient “Mhm.” I scooped a spoonful and put it in my mouth. Carter watched my reaction with hopeful eyes. “Blegh—” “It’s gross. Take it away, I want to sleep.” The air fell silent once again. “Chloe Sterling!” I thought life would just continue peacefully like this. Until the frantic ringing of the doorbell shattered the quiet. 10 The ghost that wouldn’t leave, Serena, had arrived. With tears brimming in her eyes. “Carter, I—” Mid-sentence, Serena looked at me awkwardly. Oh, so there are secrets I’m not allowed to hear. Well, I’m not leaving. Carry me out if you can. I pretended not to see Carter signaling me to leave, stuffing my mouth with the healthy snacks Godmother made. “Cough, Serena, it’s fine, go ahead. Are you in some kind of trouble?” Duh, obviously. What other use is the second male lead for? “Carter, I’m doomed this time…” It turned out she volunteered to take charge of a very important project at Ethan’s company. Lacking professional competence, she even publicly insulted the clients for being arrogant and overly demanding. As a result, she blew it. Serena didn’t want Ethan to find out, so she hinted that Carter should hand over a major project from his own company to her to cover her mistake. Wow, so shameless. Is this the independent, strong female lead? “This—” Even Carter hesitated. Thank goodness he still had a brain; this wasn’t a small favor. Such a major project, and with a long-term, important client. If he transferred it to a rival company like it was child’s play, not only would his company suffer a massive financial blow, but he would also lose all respect in the business world and among his partners. In the original plot, Carter agreed to this favor, which later led him to walk down a dark path out of desperation to rebuild his empire. “Carter, it’s okay. It’s my fault anyway.” “But in my heart, you’re the only person in this world I can truly rely on.” “It was true when we were kids, and it’s true now.” After that, Serena’s tears began to fall. It was truly a pitiful sight. Sure enough, someone couldn’t hold back. “Serena, don’t cry, I’ll just—” “Hold on!” This idiot! They both looked at me simultaneously. Serena’s eyes were full of resentment. “Carter, even if you don’t think about yourself, shouldn’t you consider our baby?” 11 “What?” Serena looked at my belly in shock. Then frantically turned to Carter. “Carter, you, you two already have a child?” Carter’s expression softened. “Yeah, Godmother said it’s better to wait until the pregnancy is more stable before telling others, so…” “Others… Carter, have I become ‘others’ to you?” “Serena, that’s not what I meant. I was just worried—” “Exactly, he was just too worried about me. Please don’t blame him, Serena.” I smiled radiantly. “Uh, congratulations, Carter. So, when are you transferring that project to me?” She’s still not giving up! I stared at Carter, feeling a sense of defeat. If he insisted on agreeing, there wasn’t really much I could do. “You were so good to me in the past, actually, I don’t really care about this company.” A smile appeared in Serena’s eyes. “But now that I have my own child, I think I need to be responsible for them.” “I don’t want them to have an irresponsible father like mine was.” Carter’s voice grew dim. A slight pang hit my heart. “So, I might need to think about it.” “I’m sorry, Serena. Let me try to find another way to help you, okay?” 12 Serena’s face looked terrible. This was probably the first time Carter had ever refused to help her. I could even sense panic in her. Panic that she was no longer this man’s sole emotional anchor. He had a child, a blood connection, a family now. “Serena, how about I have my driver take you home first?” “Carter has to take me to my prenatal checkup soon, we’re almost late.” Perhaps my overly joyful smile stung her, but Serena ignored my enthusiasm, grabbed her bag, and walked out. Oh, she’s mad. Giving the silent treatment. “Hey, Serena—” I blocked Carter, who was about to chase after her, feeling frustrated by his weakness. “Are you stupid? What good does chasing after her do now?” “Do you want to ruin the company? Do you want our child to suffer in poverty?” “If you’re not ready to be a father, I’ll go right now and… get an abortion!” “Chloe Sterling, don’t you dare! Do you believe I’ll—” Carter raised his arm in exasperation. I stuck my belly out, looking utterly defiant. He eventually gave up and rolled his eyes at me. “If I still had my old temper, I would have—” Carter muttered as he got into the car. “What did you say, you jerk?” “Get in the car!” Hmph, thought I couldn’t handle you. Seeing Carter’s company project finally secured, my heart felt a bit more at ease. Hopefully, nothing else will… “Chloe, let’s go out for afternoon tea.” The woman’s voice on the other end of the phone sounded very gentle.

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During study hall, the school’s most popular girl grabbed my childhood best friend, Liam Vance, and demanded: “What do you even like about Chloe? Do you just like those massive cow tits of hers?” “Can you please not be so utterly vulgar?” Countless pairs of eyes landed on me. Some were watching for the drama, some were gloating, and others were purely malicious. Liam gave a helpless sigh and explained, “Our relationship isn’t what you think it is, Summer. I just take care of her like a little sister.” It really wasn’t what Summer Hayes thought. The only reason Liam hovered around me every day, showering me with care and attention, was because his mother was my estate manager. I am the sole heiress of the Vance corporate empire. From the time Liam was a little boy, the only education he received from his mother was how to serve me, please me, and eventually marry into the Vance family to secure her a golden ticket. 01 “First she’s just a friend, then she’s a ‘sister,’ and next thing I know, she’ll be your girlfriend! Liam, it’s her or me. You have to choose!” The veins on Liam’s neck bulged. He weighed his options in agonizing silence, but ultimately gave her no response. Overwhelmingly disappointed, Summer burst into tears and ran out of the classroom. Liam cast a quick, sideways glance at me, gritted his teeth, and chased after her. For a moment, I couldn’t tell if this scene was a flashback before death or reality. Because I was already dead. The day after Liam successfully seized total control of my father’s conglomerate and publicly announced his engagement to Summer, I was pushed into the artificial lake at my family’s estate and drowned. By that point, I had been paralyzed from the waist down and plagued by chronic illness, locked inside the house by Liam. Every single maid and nurse had been replaced; not a single person on the payroll was loyal to me. When I saw their engagement announcement on the news, I expended every ounce of my remaining energy to force Liam to come home. Stripping away his usual gentle, considerate mask, his face twisted into a demonic sneer as his hands clamped around my throat. “I’ve had enough of you, Chloe.” “For years, I threw away my dignity as a man and followed you around like a dog. I couldn’t even go to the college I wanted, and I gave up the chance to study abroad with Summer. I sacrificed everything for you, and that stubborn old bastard of a father still refused to hand the company over to me. He played me for an absolute fool.” “You think just because you have money, you can do whatever you want? You’re just as hypocritical as your father. Today, you’re going to find out exactly what it feels like to struggle at the bottom of the water!” After my father died, Liam’s attitude toward me had slowly turned cold. Once he leveraged my name to fully hijack the Vance empire, his true colors were finally revealed. My father’s drunken drowning in that same lake wasn’t an accident. Liam had orchestrated the whole thing. I looked into his dark, bottomless eyes and saw pure, unadulterated murderous intent. His wings were fully formed; he no longer needed me to act as his good-luck charm to legitimize his reign. His wedding to Summer was approaching. It was time for his hidden, disabled wife to disappear. At the edge of the lake, right as he violently shoved me toward the water, my hands locked onto his collar in a death grip, dragging him straight into the freezing depths with me. A hurricane of pure hatred consumed me. Every single time he thrashed and clawed to reach the surface, I used the very last of my fading strength to drag him back down into the abyss. He murdered my father. If I had to die, I was dragging him straight to hell with me! To ensure my death looked like an accident, Liam had given all the estate staff the day off. In that massive, empty estate, no one was there to hear my cries for help. And now, no one was there to hear his. Right as I confirmed he had completely lost consciousness, I blacked out entirely. When I woke up, I was staring at the current scene. The two of them had just run out the door, and the study hall erupted into chaotic gossip. “Liam is just too nice. Who else would let their maid’s daughter ride to school in his Maybach every day?” “She constantly third-wheels the couple in their own car. No wonder Summer finally snapped…” Then, the crude, mocking laughter of the boys reached my ears. “Hey Tyler, your dad owns Brooks Dairy Farms, right? Tell us, who has bigger udders? Your prize-winning Holsteins, or Chloe?” “Bro, you can’t compare them. Our cows are purebreds and properly mated. They aren’t loose and easy like she is…” “Hahahaha!” They fed off each other’s vile energy, laughing like a pack of hyenas. While I was still processing my shock, a heavy, aluminum can of iced coffee flew across the room and smashed directly into my chest, before clattering onto my desk. Pain. A sharp, piercing pain blossomed in my chest. This wasn’t a dream. This wasn’t a dying hallucination. This was absolute, undeniable reality. I had been reborn into the nightmare that was my high school years. It was today. The day Summer Hayes finally exploded. She had given Liam a final ultimatum: if I rode in the same car with them to school one more time, she would cut ties with him forever. Before study hall even ended, Liam took Summer and left in my chauffeured car. I had to take a cab home in the pouring rain. We got into a horrific crash, leaving me permanently paralyzed from the waist down. I missed over half a semester before returning to school in a wheelchair. By then, Summer and Liam were publicly dating, and because of my disability, the bullying escalated into pure malice. I violently threw my head down and wiggled my toes. Thank God. My legs were perfectly fine. 02 The instigator, Tyler Brooks, laughed hysterically, seeking praise from his cronies. “Did you guys see that? Maximum elasticity!” The group of delinquent boys stared at my chest with blatant, disgusting entitlement. I heard one of them mutter crudely, “Fucking slut.” Smack! The class president slammed a textbook onto his desk. “We’re all classmates here. Don’t cross the line.” Tyler smirked shamelessly. “The Cow Girl doesn’t even mind, why are you playing white knight?” The nickname “Cow Girl” started with Summer. At first, nobody in class treated me like this. Until Summer transferred in. She set her sights on the perfect, wealthy “heir,” Liam Vance, and pursued him relentlessly. After Liam rejected her a few times to keep his facade up, she shifted her crosshairs onto me—the girl who arrived and left with him every single day. In front of all the boys in our class, she announced that I looked like a dairy cow. She claimed that girls with chests that large were promiscuous from a young age, and that they only got that big because men had been groping them. Those filthy, slanderous words acted like Pandora’s box. The moment they were spoken, a demon of pure misogyny was unleashed. Alongside my real name, I was permanently branded “Cow Girl.” At first, they were slightly hesitant, knowing I was dropped off in luxury cars and wore expensive clothes. But thanks to Liam’s deliberate, manipulative blurring of the lines, the entire school began to believe that I was the maid’s daughter, and that Liam—the son of my estate manager—was the true prince of the Vance corporate empire. Under Summer’s passionate pursuit, Liam’s resistance slowly melted. As the two became the school’s golden couple, a horde of Summer’s simps and Liam’s lackeys started targeting me to win their favor. They catcalled me, made sexually explicit jokes, and ruthlessly mocked my “low-class” background. Initially, the “Cow Girl” nickname was contained to our classroom. But one day, my estate manager attended a parent-teacher conference on my behalf. That completely solidified the rumor that I was the maid’s daughter. Soon, the “Cow Girl” moniker echoed through the entire school. Goaded by Summer, the boys even organized a “Brainless Bimbo” poll for the entire high school. Unsurprisingly, I won by a landslide. Ignoring the class president’s warning, Tyler kept throwing insults. “Do you have the nerve to wreck someone else’s relationship, but not the nerve to show your face, Cow Girl?” I took a slow, deep breath. I picked up the heavy aluminum can from my desk and walked straight toward Tyler. “Since you have the audacity to call me ‘Girl’, it’s my responsibility as your superior to teach you how to act like a human being.” Under his utterly bewildered gaze, I smashed the metal can squarely into the center of his forehead. He howled in agony. Taking advantage of his momentary blackout, I grabbed him by the collar, ripped him out of his chair, threw him to the floor, mounted his chest, and started raining slaps across his face left and right. “This is for being a degenerate! “This is for the nicknames! “And this is for barking like a pathetic, rabid dog for a girl who doesn’t even want you!” 03 In the principal’s office. Seeing the bloody scratch marks covering her son’s face, Tyler’s mother raised her hand and lunged forward to slap me. I swiftly ducked to the side. Ms. Parker, my homeroom teacher who was standing right behind me, took the full, ringing force of the slap directly to her face. Ms. Parker had never been a good person. Whenever conflicts arose in her classroom, she always sided with the students who had wealthy, powerful parents. I had reported to her countless times that Tyler and his friends were leading the bullying, catcalling me, and throwing things at my head. Ms. Parker had just looked at me coldly and said: “Where there is smoke, there’s fire. If you behaved like a proper, decent girl, no one would bother you.” God as my witness, what kind of disgusting logic was that? If a fly lands on you, does that mean you’re a piece of rotting garbage? Not only did she refuse to do her job and protect me, but she actually victim-blamed me. Smack! Tyler’s mother gasped in horror, covering her mouth with her hands, her eyes wide. Ms. Parker’s face turned ash gray. “Chloe Vance! Look what you’ve done!” Tyler’s mother had swung with everything she had. A bright red handprint was rapidly blooming across Ms. Parker’s left cheek. “Ms. Parker, Tyler’s mom is the one who slapped you. Why on earth are you blaming me?” Tyler’s mom quickly began apologizing profusely to the teacher, while simultaneously cursing me out. “You little bitch! I was aiming for you! If you hadn’t dodged, I wouldn’t have hit Ms. Parker!” “So I’m just supposed to stand there and let you hit me? The apple truly doesn’t fall far from the tree. No wonder Tyler has absolutely zero class.” Furious, Tyler’s mom raised her hand to strike me again. “Stop right there.” A familiar female voice echoed from the doorway. It was Liam’s mother, my estate manager, Evelyn Thorne. She was dressed in a sharp, tailored business suit, her shoulder-length hair styled in elegant waves. She didn’t look like a housekeeper; she looked like a high-powered corporate executive. “Mrs. Vance! What a surprise to see you here!” Seeing who it was, Ms. Parker instantly flipped her attitude, stepping forward with a fawning, desperate smile. My father was overseas on a business trip and couldn’t make it back. As my dedicated estate manager, it was perfectly normal for Evelyn to come to the school to handle emergencies. Evelyn offered a graceful, weary smile. “Chloe’s parents are so busy with work. We’re all family, so I came in their place. It’s the same thing.” “Of course a maid is busy serving her masters,” Tyler muttered under his breath. Acting as if she hadn’t heard a thing, Evelyn began exchanging pleasantries with Ms. Parker. I lowered my eyes, unable to hold back a cold sneer. This duo, Liam and his mother, were absolute masters at dropping vague, misleading statements that confirmed everyone’s false assumptions. Anyone looking at them would assume Evelyn was the wealthy matriarch, and Liam was the heir, simply letting a poor charity case live with them. When people called me the maid’s daughter, my denials were treated like delusional lies, because Liam and Evelyn never once stepped up to correct the record. Instead, they would pull me aside and lecture me. They’d say, “Don’t stoop to their level. People are just jealous of wealth. Keeping a low profile protects your dad’s company from unwanted attention.” Ms. Parker glanced at me, then gave Evelyn a brief rundown of today’s incident. “Arguments between students are normal, but resorting to physical violence crosses the line. Tyler is injured. In my opinion, you should cover his medical bills, and Chloe needs to give Tyler a formal apology.” “Absolutely not! My Tyler took a beating for no reason. This is not going away that easily!” “What do you propose, Mrs. Brooks?” Tyler’s mom held up five fingers. “This much. And she has to apologize to my Tyler in front of the entire school assembly.” “$50,000?” Evelyn smoothly pulled out a designer checkbook. She turned to me. “Chloe, the car is parked downstairs. Go wait for me in the back.” I walked out, but I didn’t go downstairs. Tyler’s furious complaints drifted through the open door. “Aunt Evelyn, Chloe is just a maid’s daughter! Why are you treating her so well?!” Evelyn’s voice was soft and maternal. “Don’t speak about her like that. She and my Liam grew up together, and I’ve watched over her since she was a little girl. If she makes a mistake, how could I not look after her?” Ms. Parker gushed, “You are simply too kind, Mrs. Vance.” 04 By the time they escorted Evelyn downstairs, I was already sitting in the car. Tyler yanked the car door open and started yelling. “Aunt Evelyn is nice enough to come pick you up, and you’re sitting in the back seat acting like you’re the boss?! Do you have any manners at all?” “You’re talking to me about manners? The guy who makes up degrading nicknames for girls?” Tyler was about to snap back, but Evelyn grabbed his arm. “Let it go. This child has always had a difficult temper. As adults, we just have to be a little more forgiving.” Ms. Parker shook her head in disapproval, and Evelyn offered a tragic, long-suffering sigh. The car pulled away from the school and merged into traffic. “Chloe, we are ladies. We cannot go around getting into physical altercations. It’s inappropriate.” “No boy is ever going to like a girl who is that aggressive and abrasive.” “Besides, you’re all classmates. You have to see each other every single day. There’s no need to make enemies.” “I’ve already smoothed things over with them. You don’t have to apologize in front of the whole school anymore. Just give Tyler a sincere apology in front of the class, and this whole thing will blow over.” She still thought I was the same brainwashed, naive child she had PUA’d for the last decade, assuming she could just pay people off and force me to apologize without even asking what happened. Her “solution” blatantly cemented the narrative that I was the one entirely at fault. “Why didn’t you ask me why I hit him?” In the rearview mirror, Evelyn’s face stiffened for a fraction of a second, before she offered a silent, patronizing smile. “Regardless of the reason, resorting to violence is always wrong.” “Fine. If you think I’m wrong, you go apologize to him. I am not covering a single cent of that check. You can pay it out of your own pocket. And if you can’t handle a minor issue like this properly, I’ll ask my dad to replace you with a competent estate manager.” I had my own independent bank accounts. The massive budget required to run the estate, covering the salaries and expenses of dozens of staff members, was entirely under my control. My dad had assigned a dedicated corporate accountant to manage my books. I pulled out my phone and dialed Mr. Reed. “The estate manager just wrote a check for $50,000. Void it immediately. Do not let the bank clear it.” Hanging up the phone, I looked at the familiar city streets outside the window and ordered Evelyn to take a different route home. Even though the driver today wasn’t Arthur—who in my past life had taken cold medicine before driving—taking a different route gave me peace of mind to avoid the crash entirely. Before I closed my eyes to rest, I caught a glimpse of Evelyn in the rearview mirror. Her face was absolutely livid. Evelyn Thorne arrived at the Vance estate when I was five years old. My mother had just passed away, and my dad was drowning in corporate expansion. Originally hired as a nanny, Evelyn slowly morphed into a mother figure in my life. Her promotion to head estate manager was largely because of me. My dependence on her eventually surpassed my reliance on my constantly traveling father. Who could have guessed she harbored the ambition of a starving wolf? From the time I was a child, she began systematically gaslighting me. She subtly brainwashed me with toxic, outdated ideals: Men conquer the world, women manage the home. Girls should be submissive, quiet, and excessively forgiving. She deliberately manufactured endless opportunities for me to be alone with her son, paving the way for Liam to secure my heart—and by extension, the entire Vance empire—before we even graduated. Evelyn and Liam’s current behavior made them look more like the masters of the house than I did. When we got home, my chauffeured Maybach still hadn’t returned. Because of the voided check, Evelyn was in a foul mood, her tone sharp and snappy. “The young master still isn’t back yet?” Martha, our loyal maid, took my backpack and blazer, shaking her head. “No, ma’am.” “Arthur is so incredibly reckless! Keeping Liam out wandering the streets this late! Do you have any idea what time it is? Are you too stupid to call him and tell him to hurry up?!” Arthur was my dedicated driver. He was also Evelyn’s younger brother, and Liam’s uncle. After Evelyn secured her iron grip on the Vance household, it didn’t take long for Arthur to be appointed as my personal chauffeur. In my past life, when I was abandoned at school, I called Arthur to come back and get me. He casually told me that Liam had an urgent matter to attend to and couldn’t be interrupted, telling me to just hail a cab. I was so blinded by heartbreak over Liam leaving with Summer that I didn’t even think to call my dad. And then the crash happened.

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There’s a guy on my Snapchat who loves showing off his body. He frequently posts mirror selfies flexing his muscles. I used to wonder which player was casting such a wide net. Later, I found out—his stories are only visible to me. 01 I swiped onto another post from our resident thirst-trapper. As usual, it was a photo. But this time, the style had changed, giving off a vibe of coy restraint. His hand lifted the hem of his t-shirt, revealing deeply defined abs. He was wearing loose gray sweatpants, the drawstrings hanging naturally—one long, one short—stealing all my attention in their extreme asymmetry. I stared at it for a moment, and my face silently flushed red. I forget when I added him, but as far back as I can remember, his stories have been exclusively these kinds of photos. Abs, biceps, back muscles… He posted one every few days, persistently tugging at people’s heartstrings. I assumed he was a total player, for three reasons: First, he never showed his face. Second, he was incredibly good at teasing. Third, he lacked any sort of modesty. —What kind of decent, upstanding man posts stories like this! I originally just watched with a “might as well look if it’s there” mentality, but today, it kind of went to my head. Those gray sweatpants really did something to me. My sleepiness vanished completely. I forwarded the photo to him and started a chat: “Is it cold in your house? Why are you wearing so much today?” I sent the message, but he didn’t reply. I didn’t know if he was busy or just ignoring me. I didn’t dwell on it. Seeing that my lunch break was almost over, I hurried to catch some sleep. When I woke up, it was to the loud chatter in the office. My female colleagues were gathered in small groups, clutching their phones and wailing, “I’m heartbroken, I’m heartbroken.” In my groggy state, I caught fragments of the conversation. It seemed some celebrity had just gone public with a relationship. I reached for my phone, clicked on the Twitter trending topics, and froze when I saw the name at the top. #ChloeMillerLiamHayes# The person who went public was my best friend! Fueled by the indignation of “how dare she not tell me she’s dating,” I clicked on the hashtag. The video content left me even more dumbfounded. It was from the recording of a late-night talk show. The cameras zoomed in on each guest’s phone. The game segment required each guest to post a story claiming they were unhappy and see who received comfort first. Among the phones placed on the table, the one on the far left was the first to get a notification. It was Liam Hayes’s. The host eagerly opened it, still making conversation: “Let’s see who it is—” His voice abruptly cut off, and he stood frozen. Because in the chat window, there was no comfort. None at all. Instead, there was a borderline-inappropriate photo of a man, accompanied by a line of text: “Is it cold in your house? Why are you wearing so much today?” The video ended there. The quality wasn’t great—it was probably filmed by an audience member—but even with poor quality, it was clear enough to see the details in the chat window. The sender’s profile picture was of the actress Chloe Miller, saved under the contact name “Momo.” She had sent the award-winning actor, Liam Hayes, a highly private photo he had never released to the public, accompanied by intimate—even borderline harassing—words! Since Chloe had previously stated in interviews that her childhood nickname was “Momo,” netizens universally concluded this was her. Thus, the relationship between Chloe Miller and Liam Hayes rocketed to the top of the trending list. I rubbed my cheeks, the shock so immense I wondered if I was still dreaming. The conversation with the thirst-trapper was still sitting right there on my screen. With trembling hands, I tapped it open. The exact same content blasted my retinas once again. I had a stark realization—the guy who posted thirst traps on Snapchat every few days was the Hollywood A-lister, Liam Hayes. 02 The trending topic was still blowing up. The most triggered ones were the fans: “Usually you don’t even show an ankle, and you button your shirts all the way to the top. I thought you were the most modest guy out there, but…” “What is this? Liam Hayes’s abs, let me touch! What is this? Liam Hayes’s abs, let me touch!” “Has anyone managed to get a high-res version of this? I need it for my lock screen.” “Just a casual observer here, but is this Liam Hayes’s usual vibe? This is hot.” That last comment had the most replies. I clicked into the thread and was nearly blinded by a screen full of “HE IS NOT!” Undoubtedly, the fans were shocked. But I was equally shocked! I scrolled through the comments, trying to use the fans’ shock to offset my own. Before I could fully process it, a new notification popped up at the top of my phone. It was from my best friend, Chloe, and she sent a screenshot. Chloe: “Audrey, please tell me this isn’t you.” The screenshot was of that exact conversation. Indisputable. I hung my head and admitted: “It’s me.” She sent a string of ellipses and asked genuinely: “How did you manage to strut your stuff right in front of Liam Hayes?” Honestly, I wanted to know too. I was just engaging in some ordinary ogling, how did I end up experiencing social death in front of the entire nation? Although, currently, the one experiencing social death was my best friend… Afraid of causing her trouble, I couldn’t help but ask: “Is this going to be a huge mess?” She replied: “It’s fine on my end. It wasn’t me anyway, I’ll just clarify it. Liam Hayes’s side is the tricky one.” I pursed my lips, still digesting the fact that “the thirst-trapper is Liam Hayes.” My best friend started probing: “What exactly is going on between you and Liam Hayes?” I didn’t know how to answer, so I just said: “He’s the player I told you about before.” My best friend slapped her desk in shock: “So you were the one he was trying to hook all along!” “…” I felt this was basically equivalent to a fairy tale. Liam Hayes and I were complete strangers. He didn’t know me, and I didn’t know him. Or rather, I knew of him; I knew he was a massive star. Aside from that, we had zero connection. How could he possibly be trying to hook me? Just as I denied it, another new message popped up at the top of my phone. It was the other party involved in the scandal. He replied to me. Liam Hayes: “I’ll try to wear less next time then.” “…” Dude, are you sure you didn’t hook the wrong person? 03 If he were just a regular guy on Snapchat, I might have bantered back. But he wasn’t. He was the acclaimed actor, Liam Hayes. I couldn’t fathom how he had the leisure to flirt with me, a stranger on the internet? After the incident, my best friend immediately issued a clarification, stating she was not the person sending the messages. Her friends in the industry also vouched for her, proving that her personal Snapchat was not that account. As for me, I quickly changed my profile picture and display name, terrified that people around me might figure something out. Only Liam Hayes, at the center of the storm, remained completely silent. No PR statement, no clarification. It was as if he had no idea the internet was tearing itself apart over him. The biggest target of criticism was the collapse of his public persona. After all, Liam Hayes had previously been known as Hollywood’s paragon of modesty. He kept his nose clean, had zero scandals, and his life consisted only of acting and hitting the gym. He had almost no other hobbies, and didn’t even touch alcohol or cigarettes, which are ubiquitous in the industry. He was a gentleman, polite, and always covered up. The media had even interviewed him about his habit of “not showing a single inch of skin.” At the time, Liam stated: “Only my wife gets to see my body.” When that interview clip dropped, it was instantly shared and praised by countless netizens, cementing his status as the “modesty paragon.” Let’s just say, the harder they praised him then, the harsher they mocked him now. Because the guy who claimed “only my wife gets to see my body” was secretly blasting thirst traps everywhere. I also felt his public persona was a bit fake. If only his wife could see it, what was he doing posting on Snapchat all day? Photo after photo, I had practically seen his entire body. Was I his wife? As it turned out, I underestimated Liam Hayes’s resilience. The very moment his Snapchat account was exposed, not only did he not lay low, but he actually posted another story that night. Still a photo. But the style was much more explicit than before, and true to his word, he was wearing a little less. I honestly didn’t know what to say anymore. I could only sigh at how incredibly fake Hollywood personas were! Liam Hayes was practically a master-level player, casting a wide net, yet he managed to be called the “modesty paragon” of Hollywood… It was the joke of the century! I decisively chose to block his stories. Unexpectedly, moments later, Liam Hayes actually reached out to me with that same photo. He asked: “Is this okay?” I had no desire to play games with him and asked bluntly: “What exactly do you want?” He was even more blunt: “I want to date you.” I was so freaked out I deleted him right then and there! Even after deleting him, my heart was still pounding. Thank goodness my best friend warned me. Turns out I really was just one of the fish in his pond! 04 I had just escaped the pond, but my best friend was caught in his clutches. It turned out she and Liam Hayes already had a professional connection; they were set to co-star in a commercial for a luxury bottled water brand. The contracts had been finalized ages ago, but the official announcement had been delayed. Now that the collaborating brand saw dating rumors swirling around their two spokesmodels, they decided to capitalize on it. The commercial shoot was urgently moved up on the schedule. Afraid my best friend would be taken advantage of, I warned her repeatedly: “You must be careful around Liam Hayes!” She nodded in agreement. Who knew that on the very first day of shooting, she’d drop a massive bombshell on me. Chloe: “Turns out Liam was the one who recommended me to the brand for this commercial!” My head instantly filled with question marks. While confused, I was also amazed. This guy Liam is casting a seriously wide net! I asked urgently: “How is it? Has he harassed you?” My best friend’s reply surprised me: “No, he’s totally normal. If you hadn’t told me, I would never have imagined he’s that kind of person in private.” I typed back, distressed: “It’s all a persona!” Afraid she’d let her guard down, I called her directly and told her about Liam saying he wanted to date me, emphasizing heavily: “He’s literally just trying to hook whoever he can!” To my surprise, my best friend missed the point entirely: “So he really does want to date you!” Me: “?” She went further off track: “Do you think Liam gave me this commercial gig because of you?” I couldn’t take it anymore, feeling a surge of frustration: “Why are you giving a player such a romantic backstory!” My best friend suddenly laughed: “What if he isn’t a player?” “Of course he is,” I argued. “What normal person posts stories like that? At first, I thought he was looking for a sugar mama.” My best friend laughed harder: “I think the only person he wants to hook is you.” I was speechless: “We don’t even know each other.” “Maybe you two—” Her voice cut off abruptly. Immediately after, a clear male voice came through the phone: “Can I sit here?” Thanks to the internet drama these past few days, I could instantly recognize that this voice belonged to Liam Hayes. Clear, clean, and highly distinctive. “Go ahead,” came my best friend’s voice. After some rustling sounds, Liam asked: “Are you close with Audrey?” “…Yes,” my best friend sounded like she was holding back laughter. “Then do you know why she deleted me?” Liam’s tone was so puzzled. “If she wasn’t satisfied with the photos, I can push the boundaries a bit more.” “Pfft,” my best friend finally laughed out loud. After a long pause, her rather eager voice sounded: “Should I ask her for you?” “Please,” Liam said politely. As soon as he left, my best friend couldn’t hold back her laughter anymore, laughing continuously, making me incredibly annoyed. I snapped: “Stop laughing!” She finally gave a couple of ‘hahas’ and said teasingly: “He seems to know you.” Me: “…” 05 Eggged on by my best friend, I visited the commercial set. The area had been cleared, but a large crowd had still gathered, forming three dense rings of people. Through the crowd, I spotted Liam Hayes right away. This is probably that legendary star quality; he stood there, and my eyes couldn’t see anyone else. He was wearing a solid black tracksuit, looking elegant and tall. Currently, he was bending slightly while his assistant sprayed water on the loose hair at his forehead and temples. It seemed the assistant’s hand slipped, and a mist of water rushed into his eyes. The air froze for a few seconds. I saw him blink his eyelashes lightly, the water droplets sliding down. He opened his sparkling eyes and comforted the assistant: “It’s fine, keep going.” I thought silently, He has a pretty good temper. As if sensing something, Liam looked with pinpoint accuracy in my direction. He looked surprised at first, then panicked, and a few seconds later, quietly averted his gaze. But his pale, jade-like profile slowly turned red, visible even to the naked eye. When I got closer, I even heard the stylist exclaim, “Did you already apply blush?” My best friend was snickering next to me. She whispered teasingly: “You really don’t know him? But he blushed the second he looked at you.” To be honest, I was also quite baffled. Is Liam Hayes really this innocent? But would an innocent person post stories like that? The next second, my best friend cleared up my confusion. Just as the commercial was about to start shooting, she tossed her phone to me, saying simply: “Just added Liam on Snapchat, go look at his stories.” While muttering “What’s there to see,” I obediently tapped it open. The result surprised me. His stories page was completely clean, empty. There was no “Friend only allows viewing of the last 3 days” message, it was just literally empty. But I clearly remembered that when I looked a few days ago, it was full of thirst traps. Did he delete them, or put me on a custom list? Looking at Liam not far away, I found him harder and harder to figure out. The commercial shoot wrapped up quickly, and the crew discussed where to go for dinner. I waited beside my best friend, feeling a gaze seemingly fixed on me. I followed the feeling. No matter from which angle I looked, at the end of that gaze was Liam Hayes. My best friend watched like she was enjoying a show: “If you have something to say, say it. If you have questions, ask. Staring won’t get you any answers.” I was still debating whether to ask when Liam walked over. He was cleaned up and looking sharp, wearing a well-fitted dress shirt and trousers. Uncharacteristically, two buttons at his collar were undone, exposing a small patch of skin. Perhaps because he wasn’t used to exposing skin, as he walked steadily towards us, he subconsciously tugged at the slightly open collar. A very simple movement, but done by him, it was exceptionally alluring. When Liam reached us, he looked at Chloe first and said: “The dinner is at the Grand Hyatt.” My best friend feigned surprise: “Since when do we need you to personally deliver this kind of news?” Liam choked. He seemed to shift his gaze out of embarrassment, quietly turned to me, and without making a sound, mouthed the question: “Are you coming?” I felt a profound sense of absurdity and helplessness in that moment. To me, this action looked exactly like a couple pretending not to know each other in public, while secretly flirting behind everyone’s backs. Were we really that close? It wasn’t the place to talk, but I couldn’t hold back. I took a step closer to him, using a piece of equipment for cover, and whispered: “Do we know each other?” He nodded: “Yes.” “Then the Snapchat stories were…?” He stared at me for a long time, seemingly gathering courage, and said slowly: “The stories were for you.” He leaned in close to my ear, his bright red earlobe right in my line of sight, and added softly and slowly: “Only for you.” Boom. My ears burned red too.

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The wedding prep was going perfectly. That was until my fiancée, Sarah, brought her childhood guy friend, Oliver, into our brand new home. What pushed me entirely over the edge was finding out Oliver spent the night in our custom ordered master bed. The next morning, Oliver posted a short video that instantly blew up online. The caption was completely sickening. In the video, he smirked at the camera. “Huge thanks to Sarah for setting this up. This hundred thousand dollar mattress is insane. Especially the vibration feature. George really has a killer eye for this stuff. smirk emoji” Sarah’s comment under his post was basically pouring gasoline on a fire. “If you like it so much, I will make him buy you one too.” Seeing that, I was shaking with pure rage. I called a junk removal company overnight and had that expensive mattress dragged straight to the city dump. When Sarah found out, she called me immediately. Zero apologies. Instead, she screamed at me. “Are you out of your mind? If you did not want the bed, you should have just given it to Oliver! Throwing it away is such a waste!” I did not say a single word. I just quietly deleted every single wedding post from my social media. If she could not even maintain the most basic boundaries, this wedding was off. But not long after, Sarah was on her knees in front of me, crying her eyes out and begging me to take her back. She swore she could not live without me. 1 “George, what the hell is your problem?! Why did you delete all the wedding announcements?” When Sarah finally tracked me down, I was busy directing a crew inside our newly renovated penthouse. She came in hot, opening her mouth just to scold me. “Do you have any idea how many people are messaging me right now? Are you intentionally trying to humiliate me?!” I refused to even look at her. I just motioned to the movers handling the bed frame. “Guys, pick up the pace. Do not worry about scratching the walls. Just get it all out of here.” The movers gave a quick nod and kept working. Sarah glanced at the busy clean up crew. The realization finally hit her. Every single piece of furniture they were hauling out was something I had spent months tracking down, specifically catered to her tastes. A flicker of genuine panic crossed her face, but she quickly forced it down. “George, why are you having them move all this stuff?” I finally turned around, locking eyes with her. My voice was dead. “I am canceling the wedding. Is that not obvious enough for you?” Her eyes widened. She finally realized I was completely serious. When she spoke again, her tone was significantly softer. “I know you are mad. But I can explain this. Absolutely nothing happened between Oliver and me! He was literally just testing the mattress for us!” Thinking about that disgusting video still trending online, I let out a harsh, bitter laugh. “Yeah, people who know the truth think he was just sleeping on the bed. Everyone else on the internet thinks he was sleeping with you!” “The entire comment section is mocking me for being so generous. They are saying if I let another guy test out my wedding bed, I probably let him test out the bride too!” Sarah stayed silent for a long moment. When she finally answered, it was just a lazy excuse. “Oliver did not do it on purpose. Stop caring so much about what random people online think. The internet will forget about it by tomorrow. If it really bothers you that much, I will just tell him to delete the video. Okay?” Watching her act like she was making some massive sacrifice, I scoffed out loud. “You think deleting a video fixes this? Sarah, listen to me. This is not over.” Her temper flared right back up. “George, are you ever going to drop this? Nothing I do is good enough for you! We are supposed to get married in a few weeks. Can you stop throwing a tantrum over nothing?” I twitched a tight smile, pointing at my own chest. “I am throwing a tantrum?” She crossed her arms. “Obviously! How many times do I have to say it? Oliver and I are completely platonic! If I was actually into him, do you honestly think I would be marrying you?” A sharp pain twisted in my chest. My eyes burned. “Is that right? So according to your logic, I should be thanking him?!” “Do you think I am an idiot? If you two really did nothing wrong, then why was the entire set of bedsheets completely replaced this morning?!” Suddenly, the electronic lock on the front door beeped. Oliver rushed into the living room and immediately dropped to his knees on the hardwood floor. “George! I am so sorry! This was all my fault! Please do not be mad at Sarah!” Before I could say a word, he raised his hand and started violently slapping his own face. Sarah looked completely heartbroken. “George, that is enough! Oliver grew up incredibly poor. He got overly excited experiencing a luxury bed for the first time and made a stupid video. You cannot blame him just because it went viral!” “We are getting married soon. Can you just be the bigger person? It is just a dumb internet trend. Why are you being so petty?” 2 It was always like this. No matter how inappropriate or shameless Oliver acted, in her eyes, it was never a big deal. She unconditionally took his side, completely blind to the pain she was causing me. If that was how she felt, why did she even agree to be my girlfriend? Why did she agree to marry me? My chest felt completely hollow. “Sarah, what the hell am I to you? You even gave Oliver the passcode to our private home. Are you seriously trying to follow the internet comments and make me give up my spot for him?” She rolled her eyes, looking totally annoyed. “If you were not the heir to the Kensington empire, no one would even care about our wedding. This whole thing only went viral because of your status! You brought this on yourself!” “So what you are saying is, because my family has money, I deserve to be publicly humiliated? Sarah, when did you turn into this person?” Looking at the woman standing in front of me, she felt like a total stranger. I closed my eyes, fighting back the dampness gathering in my lashes. Noticing the shift in my mood, Sarah bit her lip and reached out to grab my sleeve. “George, I came here to explain things and figure this out. I do not want to fight with you. Let us just calm down.” I coldly yanked my arm away. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes. “You always do this! You get mad and refuse to listen to a single word I say! I came here to fix the internet drama, and you just yell at me and threaten to break up! How am I supposed to not get defensive?” “What exactly do you want me to do to make this go away? Just give me a straight answer!” I knew at least half her tears were completely fake. But after three years together, seeing her cry was still my ultimate weakness. The veins in my forehead throbbed. Finally, I let out a heavy sigh, giving in one last time. “Fine. Tell Oliver to delete the video and post a public apology. Then we drop it.” I locked my eyes entirely onto hers. “I am willing to let this slide because of everything we have been through. But Oliver has to leave New York. I will personally find him a job in another state, but you two are cutting all contact.” Sarah was nodding along at first, but the second half of my demand made her freeze. “He just moved to the city. If you force him to leave, what if something bad happens to him out there?” I let out a cold scoff and turned toward the door. “Then we have nothing left to talk about. If you cannot do it, we are done.” Sarah panicked and rushed to block my path. She struggled internally for a few seconds before biting her lip and lowering her head. “Okay! We will do it your way. I will keep my distance from him. We can move forward with the wedding.” After that, she dragged a very pathetic looking Oliver out of the apartment, claiming she needed to find him a cheap hotel before having him post the apology. I let them go. Thinking the nightmare was finally over, I pulled out my phone, ready to draft a new wedding announcement to do some damage control. I was halfway through typing when a text popped up from one of my buddies. “Bro, your girl and her friend got entirely wasted at my club. They are practically glued together on the couch. You better come pick her up before this gets worse.” “…Alright, I am on my way.” I forced the words through gritted teeth, swallowing down a tidal wave of fury as I hung up the phone. I drove like an absolute maniac. By the time I kicked open the doors to the VIP lounge, Oliver and Sarah had basically stripped off half their clothes and were aggressively making out on the leather sofa. My vision went completely red. I grabbed an ice bucket from the bar, marched over, and violently hurled the freezing water and cubes directly onto them. “You shameless animals! Keep kissing, I dare you!” 3 The freezing water jolted them completely awake. They shrieked, scrambling up in a panic. “Who the hell do you think you are?! What are you doing to my friends?!” A drunk guy sitting at their table started shouting, heavily swaying as he grabbed an empty beer bottle to swing at me. Before he could even raise his arm, my bodyguard stepped in, grabbing the guy by the back of his neck and slamming his face directly into a massive fruit platter on the table. Sarah was shivering violently from the ice. She wiped her eyes, saw it was me, and immediately exploded in anger. “George, are you psychotic?! What the hell is wrong with you?!” Oliver cowered, hiding completely behind Sarah’s back like a terrified child. “L-George. Do not misunderstand. Sarah and I just get a little physical when we drink. It is a habit, we are used to it…” I let out a dark, furious laugh. “Sarah, what exactly did you promise me this afternoon? You said you would keep your distance. Is this your version of keeping your distance?!” Pure rage boiled over. I kicked the heavy glass table, sending it crashing sideways. “You are practically having sex in the middle of my friend’s club! Should I have arrived a little later? Do you guys need me to book you a hotel room?!” Sarah looked guilty for exactly three seconds before her defense mechanisms kicked in. She lifted her chin, completely unapologetic. “Oliver is leaving the city tomorrow! It is totally normal for us to grab a few drinks to say goodbye! You go out drinking with your friends all the time. Why is it a crime when I do it?!” I roared at the top of my lungs. “I drink with my friends?! Do I make out with my friends?! Do I take my clothes off and roll around on a couch with them?!” “Do not forget who you are! If my buddy had not ordered his staff to delete the security footage, you and Oliver would be trending on Twitter again by tomorrow morning!” Sarah glared at me with freezing resentment. “Who I am? What does that even mean? Does being your fiancée mean I lose the basic human right to have a drink with my best friend?!” “Friend? This is what you call a friend?” I reached out, grabbed a half naked Oliver by the collar, and violently yanked him out from behind her. My hands were literally shaking with anger. Oliver immediately dropped to his knees again. “I am sorry George! I am so sorry! This was all my fault! I pressured Sarah into drinking! Punish me, but please do not be mad at her!” Before I could blink, he grabbed a heavy glass liquor bottle from the floor and violently smashed it against his own forehead. Blood instantly poured down his face. “I know I messed up! I am paying for it right now!” Sarah looked completely horrified. She dropped down, sobbing hysterically. “Oliver! Stop hurting yourself! This is not your fault!” Looking at the two of them crying together on the floor, anyone walking in would think I was the evil villain tearing apart two star crossed lovers. “Are you done putting on a show?” I kicked Oliver straight in the chest, sending him sprawling backwards, and ordered my bodyguard to pin him down. Then I grabbed a heavily swaying Sarah by the wrist and dragged her out to the car. “This is the absolute last chance you get. When you sober up tomorrow, we are going to have a very serious conversation about whether this wedding is actually happening.” Sarah fought me the entire way, screaming curses and calling me a monster, until the alcohol finally took over and she passed out in the passenger seat. The very next morning, the absolute first thing she did when she opened her eyes was ask for Oliver. “George, you bastard! You just left him bleeding in that club?! I have to go find him!” She grabbed her purse and rushed to the front door. But the second she pulled it open, she let out a bloodcurdling scream. 4 I stood up and walked over. Oliver was kneeling directly outside my front door. His hair was matted with dried, dark blood. He looked like a literal ghost out of a horror movie. I closed my eyes. A massive wave of pure, unfiltered exhaustion washed over me. Oliver’s face was completely pale. He forced a weak, tragic smile at Sarah. “Sarah, I just came to say goodbye. Thank you for taking care of me all these years.” He slowly turned his head to look at me, his voice trembling with fake desperation. “George, I really know I messed up. I knelt out here all night to reflect on my actions. Please, just forgive her.” Sarah lunged forward, desperately trying to pull him up from the floor. Oliver gripped her arms, shaking his head. “Sarah, just listen to me. Please treat George well. You guys are getting married. Do not let me ruin things between you.” What an incredibly generous speech. If a stranger heard this, they would assume he was her loyal boyfriend and I was the abusive millionaire stealing his girl. He was acting pathetic, but every single word out of his mouth was a calculated flex. He was rubbing it in my face that he was the only man Sarah truly cared about. And Sarah completely fell for it. She grabbed his arm, trying to drag him toward the elevator. “Stop talking! I am taking you to the hospital right now!” Oliver struggled against her grip. “No, Sarah! Do not treat me this well. I do not want George to misunderstand us again!” My eyes were dead cold. Before I could even open my mouth, Sarah spun around and delivered a stinging slap directly across my face. “George! Do I need your permission to take my bleeding friend to the ER now?! He is in this condition because of you! You have the nerve to be jealous?!” The slap was incredibly heavy. My head actually snapped to the side. I pressed my tongue against the inside of my aching cheek. A dark, hollow laugh escaped my throat. “You actually hit me?” Sarah spat a curse, grabbing her car keys from the console. “Yeah, I hit you! You think having a little money makes you a god?! Without the Kensington fortune, you are absolutely nothing! Nobody wants to deal with your entitled rich boy temper!” A flash of smug triumph crossed Oliver’s eyes before he went right back to begging. “George, I promise! As soon as I get checked out, I am leaving the city! You will never have to look at me again!” “He has no right to kick you out of this city! Do not be scared. I will make sure you stay right by my side!” Sarah pulled him toward the elevator without giving me a single backward glance. I stood in the doorway, watching their silhouettes disappear. My heart felt like it was encased in solid ice. Whatever deep, unforgettable love I used to have for this woman completely died in that exact moment. I closed my eyes, pulled out my phone, and dialed a number. If Sarah wanted to choose Oliver over me, then I was done showing mercy.

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1 On graduation day, Darryl was set to propose to Harper—until she vanished, leaving him a text and me a note: “I’m giving him to you.” Watching him frozen on the quad, ring in hand, I blurted out, “I’ve loved you since high school, even before Harper noticed you.” Admitting I’d secretly followed his every move for seven years, I asked, “Could you please…?” Darryl stared, then took the ring meant for her and slid it onto my finger. The next day, we moved into a damp basement. For three years, he worked himself to death, becoming CEO of Darryl Innovations. But on move-in day for our new estate, he stood at the door, hand-in-hand with Harper, blocking me. “I’m bored of you,” he said flatly. “I slept with you for three years. It’s over.” “What did you just say?” I stood there gripping the handle of my heavy suitcase, staring at him in complete disbelief. The wind howled past my ears, creating a deafening buzz in my skull. He squeezed Harper’s hand tighter, his brow furrowing with obvious impatience. “Over the last three years, I have wired a total of three million dollars into your bank account. We are done here. You are walking away a rich woman, so do not act like you lost out.” My vision blurred. It felt like someone had reached into my chest and ripped my heart out by the roots, leaving behind a bloody, gaping hole. So my seven years of silent devotion and my three years of bleeding by his side to build his empire… In his eyes, it was all a transactional service worth exactly three million dollars. I lowered my head. Teardrops violently splashed against the hard plastic shell of my suitcase. He had absolutely no idea. That suitcase held every single thing I owned in this world. He also had no idea that just an hour ago, his executive assistant called me in a blind panic. Darryl Innovations had suffered a catastrophic break in their funding chain. I had just wired every single penny of that three million dollars straight back into his corporate account to save him. Harper stepped forward, a perfectly manufactured look of guilt plastered across her flawless face. She reached out to grab my wrist. “Anna, I am so, so sorry.” “I just could not bear living my life without him…” I violently yanked my arm out of her grip. “Then why did you abandon him three years ago?!” “Why did you text me saying you were giving him to me?!” “Why…” Why did you have to come back now? Before the rest of my furious grief could leave my lips, a blinding, explosive sting erupted across my cheek. My vision fractured into a blur of spinning colors. It took several agonizing seconds for the world to pull back into focus. When it did, I saw Harper hiding her face against Darryl’s chest, sobbing pitifully. “I never should have reached out to you when I got back to the States. I just could not control my heart.” She wept, her voice trembling. “This is all my fault. I should just leave.” Darryl gently cradled her face, his thumbs wiping away her tears as he whispered sweet comforts. “How could this possibly be your fault?” “I was the one who lost control the second I saw you at that hotel. I was the one who claimed you.” “I forced you to face your feelings for me, and I forced you to confront Anna. I do not love her. Why should we be miserable just to appease her?” His naked confession felt like a poisoned arrow tearing straight through my sternum. The agonizing pain radiated down to my fingertips. All the blood drained from my face as I stumbled a step backward. Darryl shot me a look of pure, venomous disgust. “Get lost.” Just like that, I was tossed out like a piece of garbage he no longer had any use for. The light drizzle quickly morphed into a violent, freezing downpour. I stood on the pavement until my entire body went numb, before finally dragging my suitcase away in absolute disgrace. Without even realizing it, my feet carried me straight back to the damp basement apartment we rented three years ago. I collapsed onto the cheap mattress, completely stripped of my strength. I do not love her. I do not love her. Those words circled my brain like a relentless, mocking curse. My fingernails dug so deeply into my own arms that they left bloody trails across my skin, but it was not enough to distract me from the suffocating agony in my chest. Just as I felt like I was literally going to die, my phone buzzed. It was my mother. “Anna, sweetheart. Stop wandering out there on your own.” “I found a really nice young man for you to meet. A blind date. Are you willing to give it a try?” I gripped the phone like a drowning woman clinging to a life raft, swallowing hard to force my voice steady. “Okay. I will come home as soon as I can.” Sometime later, a thick, burning haze completely took over my mind. Through the violent fever dreams, I felt a pair of strong, familiar arms wrap tightly around my shivering body. Darryl’s smooth voice drifted into my ear. “I knew you would come hide here.” “Does your face still hurt?” He tightened his grip, burying his face into the crook of my neck, inhaling deeply. “Anna, I just cannot swallow my pride. Give me three months. In three months, I am going to make her deeply regret the way she abandoned me without a word.” “When those three months are up, I will clear all this toxic garbage out of my heart, and I will marry you.” His body was radiating heat, but hearing those words made my blood run entirely cold. Darryl was raised by a widowed mother who collected scrap metal just to put him through college. After graduation, this miserable basement was the only place we could afford. Every single item in this room was something I had hunted down on clearance. I remembered the day I managed to snag a bulk pack of toilet paper on a massive discount. I showed it to him like I had just won the lottery. “Look, Darryl! I saved us another eighty cents today!” His eyes were glued to a coding interface on his laptop. He suddenly turned, grabbed my waist, and buried me in a fierce, crushing hug. “Anna. Harper didn’t believe in me. Do you?” “I swear to god, I am going to build an empire and give you the life you deserve.” His embrace back then was scalding hot. It felt like it could burn me alive. “I believe in you, Darryl. I only believe in you.” His kisses came down like a violent, desperate storm. “My sweet Anna. You are too good to me.” We were dirt poor, but the sheer sweetness of those days felt like it was overflowing from my heart. I honestly believed he worked himself to the bone for three years just to fulfill the promise he made to me. Now, the humiliating truth finally set in. He was just biding his time. He was waiting for Harper to come back so he could stand before her as a king. Silent tears slipped from the corners of my eyes, soaking into the cheap pillowcase. A violent shudder ripped through my spine. Darryl anxiously pressed the back of his hand against my forehead. “Did you catch a fever in the rain?” Watching him climb out of bed with that familiar urgency, digging through the cabinets for the first aid kit and plugging in the electric kettle, a heavy sense of disorientation washed over me. Over the last three years, aside from proudly introducing me as his girlfriend to the public, he had played the role of the perfect partner. When we were starving, he would pick the only pieces of meat out of his soup and place them in my bowl. When my heels were covered in bleeding blisters from running across the city to promote our startup, he would carry me on his back all the way home, carefully apply ointment, and soak my feet in warm water. When he stayed awake for three consecutive nights to finalize a pitch deck, he still forced himself out the door to buy me a birthday cake. He was always making promises. “Anna, the second my business stabilizes, I am putting a ring on your finger.” But when that day actually arrived, all I got was the brutal truth. “Slept with you for three years. Bored of it.” “I do not love her.” “Get lost.” My vision was swimming. Was he truly putting on this cruel act just to punish Harper, or was he just completely, hopelessly still in love with her? Darryl’s phone shattered the silence. He was just about to hand me a mug of hot water. Hearing that specific ringtone, he immediately set the mug down on the nightstand, practically ripping his trench coat off the hook as he yanked the front door open. “Anna, there is a thunderstorm outside. You know Harper gets terrified of the thunder when she is alone in that massive house.” I clung to my last, pathetic shred of hope. “Darryl… I am scared too.” I wanted to scream that I was the one who was terrified of thunder. Back in high school, during a massive summer storm, I hid under my blankets, shaking like a leaf. Harper had laughed at me, purposely throwing the bedroom windows wide open so the thunder clapped right next to my ears. “Do not be such a coward,” she had teased. “It sounds just like war drums.” But hearing my plea, Darryl’s face darkened with severe disappointment. He only paused for a fraction of a second. “Anna… I always thought you were the understanding one.” Understanding. That single word violently shoved all my desperate hopes right back down my throat. Hearing the heavy metal door slam shut, a broken, bitter laugh escaped my lips. My body was burning with a dangerously high fever. I weakly reached out to grab the mug of water he left behind. My trembling fingers slipped. The ceramic mug crashed to the concrete floor, shattering into a dozen jagged pieces. Just like the ten years of love I had completely wasted on him. Staring at the angry red blisters rapidly forming on the back of my scalded hand, I murmured to the empty room. Darryl. You abandoned me twice in one day. I do not want you anymore. I am done taking care of you. Using the absolute last ounce of strength in my body, I unlocked my phone and dialed my bank’s elite client hotline. “I need to issue an immediate freeze on the five million dollar corporate wire transfer I authorized earlier today.” The next time that rusted metal door opened, three days had passed. Harper stood in the doorway, her eyes scanning the cramped room with undisguised disgust. “Anna, do you want to know the real reason I dumped Darryl back then?” “I just refused to rot in a dark, pathetic little hole like this.” My fever had finally broken. I calmly shut my laptop and met her arrogant gaze with eyes made of ice. “You got exactly what you wanted. You are back in his bed. There is absolutely no need for you to come slumming down here just to mock me.” She stepped forward, seamlessly slipping into her old, manipulative habits. She looped her arm through mine, pouting her lips like an innocent child. “Oh, Anna, do not be mad at me.” “I am actually saving your life. Can you imagine how miserable it would be to spend the rest of your life married to a man who does not even love you?” I let out a harsh scoff and physically ripped my arm away from her. She did not even flinch. She just stared at me, her eyes dancing with wicked amusement. “Do you want to know why Darryl suddenly agreed to date me in high school? You know how intensely private and cold he used to be.” Ignoring my darkening expression, she clamped her hand around my wrist and practically dragged me toward the door. “Come to the college reunion with me tonight, and I will tell you his deepest, darkest secret.” I did not fight her. I was leaving this city in a few days anyway. I was leaving the battleground where I had bled for three years. Consider this my final goodbye. Sitting in the backseat of Darryl’s luxury SUV, I watched Harper claim the passenger seat. She spent the entire drive happily chirping at Darryl, weaponizing our shared past. “Darryl, do you remember when you forced Anna and me to stay after school for tutoring? God, we complained so much back then.” “And in college, every single time you bought me a gift, you always included a little greeting card for Anna. You were so terrified I would annoy my own roommate.” Darryl gazed at her with sickening tenderness. Every few minutes, he would take one hand off the steering wheel just to press her fingers against his chest. Sitting in the back, I was treated like an absolute ghost. A heavy, suffocating acid burned the back of my throat. I turned my head to stare out the tinted window, letting my mind drift back to those school days. A secret crush is a teenage girl’s most delicate treasure. And I had only shared that treasure with one person. Harper. I remember blushing furiously as I confessed my feelings. Harper had rolled her eyes, her face twisting in utter disdain. “Anna, what is wrong with your taste?” “Sure, he has a pretty face and gets perfect grades. But have you seen the absolute dump he lives in? His family cannot even afford a basic television.” When I frantically tried to defend him, she just covered her mouth and laughed. “Alright, alright. Your best friend will help you get your man.” Under the guise of helping me pursue him, she began aggressively inserting herself into his life. Then, out of absolutely nowhere, she walked up to me in the cafeteria, her fingers perfectly entwined with his. “Anna, Darryl and I are officially together.” There was no apology in her eyes. Only the thrilling rush of a victory lap. The sun was shining brilliantly that day, but my entire world plunged into an endless, freezing winter. During high school, I eagerly looked forward to the tutoring sessions Harper constantly complained about. During college, I worked double shifts at a cafe just to help Darryl afford Harper’s lavish birthday surprises. I was like a starving beggar, greedily collecting whatever pathetic scraps of time I could spend near him. “Anna, we are here.” Harper’s voice snapped me out of my trance. She linked her arm through mine, playing the role of the sweet best friend as we walked toward the private dining room. Darryl trailed closely behind us, the silent, devoted protector. Right before we reached the heavy mahogany doors, she leaned in close. Her voice dropped to a sinister, triumphant whisper. “Anna, do you remember a secret you told me a long time ago?” “In high school, you used to sneak up to the side wall of the rooftop every single afternoon to write anonymous messages to a boy you had never spoken to?” “That boy was Darryl.” “He thought the girl he was sharing his soul with… was me.” Her words were light as a feather, but they hit my eardrums like a detonating bomb. “That was the only reason he ever agreed to date me.” “Anna.” “I stole him right out from under you.” “And after tonight… you will never, ever get him back.” My entire body locked up. My legs suddenly felt like they were cast in solid concrete. I remembered a conversation Darryl and I had late one night in the basement. We could talk for hours without ever running out of things to say. He had looked at me with a strange, melancholy expression. “You know, I always feel this unexplainable sense of familiarity with you.” “Anna, if only the girl from back then was you…” It took ten years, but the horrific truth behind those words finally clicked into place. I wanted to scream at her. I wanted to grab her by the throat and ask her why. We grew up together. We shared everything from elementary school to college. When she skipped out on the bill at a restaurant, I was the one who rushed over to empty my wallet and apologize to the owner, and she never even thanked me. When she complained she had nothing to wear for a date, I handed over the brand new dresses my mother bought for me, and she never returned a single one. When a girl from another class insulted her, I was the one who kicked the classroom door off its hinges to defend her honor, earning myself a permanent strike on my academic record. I could not fathom why she felt the need to destroy my life like this. But before I could speak, she pushed the heavy doors open and strutted into the private room. Darryl stopped right beside me. His voice was a low, freezing warning. “Anna. No one in there knows we ever dated.” “Do not do anything to embarrass Harper tonight.” A broken, pathetic smile stretched across my lips. Any lingering desire I had to expose the truth about the rooftop messages instantly turned to ash. He walked inside and naturally took the seat directly beside Harper. The room erupted in loud, obnoxious cheering from our old classmates. “Look at Mr. CEO! You and Harper have been going strong for ten years now! Now that you are sitting on a tech empire, when are we getting the wedding invitations?” “Right? You guys were the ultimate power couple on campus. Everyone was insanely jealous of you.” Harper cast a shy, demure glance at Darryl. “I am in no rush. Whatever Darryl wants.” She took a delicate bite of fish, then suddenly covered her mouth, letting out a violent, dramatic gag. The entire table gasped in collective excitement. “Oh my god! Are we celebrating a wedding and a baby tonight?!” Darryl grabbed a napkin, gently wiping the corner of her mouth with sickening devotion. “If that is the case, you all better double your wedding gifts. I will be checking the envelopes.” I sat directly across the table, watching their sickening display of domestic bliss. My stomach violently churned. I thought about the last three years. Even when my face was flushed red with desire and the mood was perfect, he would always pull away at the last second to grab protection. “Anna, it is not the right time for a baby.” “Just wait a little longer.” I waited for years, and he never gave me an inch. But the second Harper returned, he planted a child in her without a second thought. Sarah, my old college roommate, nudged my arm with a sharp elbow. “Anna, you are obviously going to be the maid of honor and the godmother. They are dragging their feet, why aren’t you pressuring them to lock down a date?” Harper’s eyes drifted down to my hands. I had forgotten to take off the cheap silver ring Darryl bought me two years ago. “Do not put too much pressure on Anna, guys. She has had a rough time. She has been hopelessly in love with Darryl for a decade.” “She even snatched the prop ring Darryl used for his proposal, claiming she wanted it as a keepsake to mourn her broken heart.” That single sentence was a nuclear bomb. The entire table went dead silent. Dozens of eyes snapped toward me, dripping with absolute revulsion and contempt. “Wow. No wonder she was always trailing behind them like a pathetic lost puppy during college. She was waiting for a chance to strike.” “Harboring filthy thoughts about your best friend’s man for ten years? That is absolutely repulsive. She does not even deserve to sit at this table.” While I was paralyzed by the shock, Sarah aggressively grabbed my hand and yanked it up for the entire table to see. “Look! The inside of the band literally has Harper’s initials engraved on it.” “I cannot believe Anna is this much of a shameless, desperate homewrecker.” The insults rained down on me like toxic acid, burning away whatever dignity I had left. The blood entirely abandoned my face. A guy from our graduating class stood up, a sleazy smirk on his face, holding a shot glass brimming with cheap liquor. “Anna, are you really that desperate for a man? Drink this, and I will do you a favor and be your boyfriend for the night.” Without waiting for my answer, he grabbed my jaw and tried to force the burning alcohol down my throat. I shot a desperate, pleading look at Darryl. He knew my stomach lining was entirely destroyed from drinking with aggressive clients to secure funding for his company. One shot of hard liquor could land me in the emergency room. But Darryl just gave me a flat, apathetic stare. “Let her get a boyfriend. It will stop Harper from feeling insecure.” My heart plummeted straight into the abyss. The burning liquid flooded my mouth, violently searing my throat and setting my damaged stomach completely on fire. Right at that exact second, the heavy mahogany doors were violently kicked open, slamming against the wall with a deafening crash. A furious, dangerously low voice echoed through the room. “Who says Anna doesn’t have a boyfriend?”

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[System Alert: Critical deviation detected in Decade Vow core mission.] [Marriage milestone: FAILED.] [Host termination: 48 hours.] The warnings pierced my mind just after Richard asked, with cruel gentleness, if I still wanted to try on my wedding dress. Minutes earlier, he’d been adjusting my veil. “I was next door keeping Wendy company,” he chuckled. Then it clicked—that’s how he knew I’d gone to the club last night. “She was so scared when she heard your voice, she had to sit on my lap the whole time,” he said, each word a blade. I followed his gaze to Wendy, the girl I’d sponsored for years, now holding my crystal heels, eyes red with tears. Moments before, she’d crouched at my feet, gushing, “If he ever breaks your heart, I’ll make him pay.” Richard brushed my bodice, his tenderness now a mockery. All the joy drained away, leaving only the System’s countdown and the weight of betrayal. 1 I stared at Richard, my throat tight and burning. “Say that again.” And he actually did. This time, he sounded even more composed. “I was with her last night.” “I was planning to keep it under wraps a little longer. But seeing her hold your wedding shoes just now… it hit me. She deserves an explanation too.” I stood frozen, the words trapped in my chest. Today wasn’t just my final fitting. Today was the absolute deadline for the System to verify the success of my Decade Vow mission. Ten years ago, I bound my soul to this System. The price was ten years of my lifespan. In exchange, I gave Richard a meteoric rise to power and saved the Prescott family from absolute bankruptcy. The System only gave me one condition. I had to fulfill my marriage pact with Richard within ten years. Today was supposed to be the finish line. Instead, he chose today to shove me off a cliff. I heard my own voice shaking. “Why today?” “Why did it have to be the day I put on my wedding dress?” Richard remained silent for a heartbeat, but his gaze drifted right past me, landing softly on Wendy. “Because she’s been by my side for a long time. She never asks for anything. She doesn’t even dare to ask for a title.” “I refuse to let her suffer in silence anymore.” A bitter, broken laugh escaped my lips. “And me?” “What about my last ten years? What was all that for?” His expression didn’t waver. It was as if he had rehearsed these answers a thousand times. “It’s not like I’m backing out of the wedding.” “It’s just that Wendy needs some closure, too.” I looked at the man I loved, feeling my heart sink into a bottomless pit. But I didn’t realize he could stoop even lower. He met my eyes, his tone completely flat. “When you took that fall down the stairs at the new house last month? That wasn’t an accident.” “I took her to see our bridal mansion that day. She spilled some champagne and didn’t mop the floors properly. When you went up to check the lighting fixtures later, you slipped.” My blood ran cold. My entire body turned to stone. I nearly had a miscarriage that day. I spent the entire night clutching my ultrasound scans, too terrified to sleep, sobbing because I thought I had overworked myself with the wedding prep and failed to protect my baby. Richard had held me tightly that night, kissing my forehead, telling me it was okay, begging me not to blame myself. He wasn’t comforting me. He knew exactly what happened. He just sat back and watched me tear myself apart. I raised my hand and slapped him across the face with everything I had. The sharp smack echoed off the mirrored walls. The entire boutique went dead silent. Richard’s head jerked to the side, but he didn’t blow up. Instead, he let out a breath, looking almost relieved. “Are you done?” “If you’re done, try to calm down. We’re skipping the fitting today.” “The wedding can be pushed back.” He turned on his heel to leave. Inside my head, the System’s alarm screamed to life. [Decade Vow System detects critical mission deviation.] [Marriage milestone confirmation: FAILED.] [Host termination countdown: 48 hours.] I stood glued to the floor, my hands and feet turning to ice. Right on cue, Wendy rushed forward, her eyes brimming with fresh tears. She grabbed one of the bridal heels and lobbed it at Richard, acting like she was standing up for me. “You promised me you wouldn’t say anything!” “Why did you have to hurt Audrey today of all days?” The pointed heel clipped Richard’s forehead. His very first reaction wasn’t to check his own bleeding skin, but to grab her hands and ask if she had hurt her fingers. I stood in the distance, letting my tears fall and stain the pure white silk of my gown. 2 By the time the bridal shop descended into total chaos, Declan arrived. He was my senior in college and the co-founder of the charitable trust my late mother left behind. Every single grant application Wendy submitted over the past four years had crossed his desk. The moment he walked in, his eyes darted to Wendy first. Only after making sure she was okay did he frown and look at me. “Audrey, what exactly are you trying to pull here?” I stared at him. “You knew too. Didn’t you?” He dodged the question, his voice taking on that familiar, patronizingly soft tone. “Wendy just wants a place to belong.” “Don’t back her into a corner.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “I’m backing her into a corner?” “I used my dead mother’s money to put her through college. I paid her hospital bills. I paid her rent. I pulled strings to get her internships. And now you’re telling me I’m the one ruining her life?” Declan sighed heavily, giving me the kind of look reserved for a spoiled child throwing a tantrum. “She comes from a broken home. She grew up with nothing.” “You have the world at your fingertips. She has absolutely nothing.” “Since you’re the one who brought her up to this point, you should be the bigger person and show some grace.” Right on cue, Wendy drifted over, her eyes red and puffy. “Audrey, if you’re mad, take it out on me. Please don’t blame Richard.” “I was the one who fell for him first. It’s all my fault.” Her voice was frail and dripping with guilt. But the silver leaf pendant resting against her collarbone caught the light, and the sight of it made my eyes burn. That necklace was my mother’s heirloom. Three years ago, Wendy was hospitalized. She cried through the night, terrified of the dark. I personally fastened that necklace around her neck, telling her it would keep her safe. Looking at it now, I realized my kindness was just a joke. I reached out, hooked my fingers around the delicate chain, and ripped it off her neck. She let out a sharp cry of pain, bursting into tears as she scrambled backward. The next second, Richard stepped in and shoved me hard. I stumbled in my heavy gown. My waist slammed violently into the edge of the display podium. A sharp, cramping pain shot through my lower abdomen instantly. He completely ignored me, shielding Wendy behind him as his voice turned to ice. “That is enough, Audrey.” I looked up at him, suddenly finding the whole situation incredibly absurd. We had fought before over the past decade. But he had never laid a hand on me. He had never pushed me away in front of an audience. And now, to play the knight in shining armor for a girl I practically raised, he didn’t even care about the baby growing inside me. I took a shaky breath, shifting my gaze to Declan. “That phone call last night. Telling me to go to the club to pick up the girls. You set that up on purpose, didn’t you?” Declan’s eyes flickered away. “You were going to find out eventually.” Then it hit me. It wasn’t just Richard and Wendy. Even Declan, my trusted friend, was busy paving the way for her. Richard’s phone buzzed. He checked the screen and then shoved it directly in my face. Someone had already leaked photos from the bridal boutique to a gossip blog. The angles were perfectly cropped. You could only see Wendy looking innocent, holding the shoes with teary eyes, and me looking like a monster, aggressively ripping the necklace off her throat. The comments were already flooding in, tearing me apart for bullying a sweet girl. Richard’s face was thunderous. “Did you hire someone to post this?” Looking at that photo, a strange, chilling calm washed over me. “No.” “But isn’t she the other woman?” Richard ground his teeth, his voice dropping low with suppressed rage. “She never wanted to compete with you.” “Are you really so bitter that you have to destroy her life?” Declan chimed in, playing the voice of reason. “Audrey, if this blows up, it’s going to ruin Wendy’s graduation and drag the foundation’s name through the mud.” “You need to go to her commencement ceremony and clear the air publicly.” Richard followed up with a final demand, tossing it out like a generous favor. “As long as we get past this graduation drama, our wedding goes ahead as planned.” My chest felt hollow, packed with shattered glass. One betrayed me. One fiercely protected her. One did her dirty work to clean up the mess. And right now, all three of them were demanding that I be the one to swallow my pride and step back. Just then, my phone chimed with a private message from Wendy. [Audrey, Richard was so worried I’d get scared hearing your voice last night. He held me on his lap the entire time.] [I was shivering so much, so he kissed me. He kissed me for a really long time.] I stared at those two lines of text. Bile rose in my throat. The System’s voice echoed simultaneously. [Host’s will to survive is plummeting rapidly.] [Termination countdown halved.] [Remaining time: 24 hours.] I slowly raised my head and looked at the two men standing before me. “Fine.” “I’ll go to the ceremony.” 3 Wendy’s commencement was held in the grand university auditorium. When I walked backstage, she was wearing an immaculate white sundress. Her hair was perfectly styled, and her face carried that carefully curated look of innocent vulnerability. The professors, classmates, and alumni buzzing around her were showering her with praise. One of the deans patted her shoulder affectionately. “Wendy, you’ve really beaten the odds.” Someone nearby immediately chimed in. “Absolutely. Coming out of an impoverished mountain town and making it to the top of the class in the city. You’ve really made something of yourself.” An older alumni smiled warmly at her. “I was just telling the board, you’re the greatest success story the foundation has ever produced.” “Exactly. Winning valedictorian is incredibly well-deserved.” “She’s going places. I heard she bagged multiple elite internships in her senior year alone.” “That’s what you call pulling yourself up by the bootstraps.” I stood in the shadows, listening to the glowing praise, feeling a bitter laugh bubble up in my throat. None of them knew. Her tuition, her hospital bills, every stepping stone of this supposed ‘self-made’ success story was paved with the blood, sweat, and charity of my mother and me. But here she was, the poster child for independent resilience. The second I stepped into the light, Wendy’s eyes brimmed with tears. She rushed toward me. She paused a few feet away, acting incredibly timid, as if she was terrified I would lash out. Then, very tentatively, she reached out and pinched the fabric of my sleeve. “Audrey, you actually came.” “I thought… I thought you’d never forgive me.” Richard materialized behind her and shoved a folded piece of paper into my hand. “Read this when you get on stage. Stick to the script.” I glanced down at the paper. Paragraph one: I had to admit that my emotional outburst at the bridal shop was due to pregnancy hormones and pre-wedding jitters, and that I had wrongfully targeted Wendy. Paragraph two: I had to explicitly state that the cheating rumors online were vicious, fabricated lies. I read it once. Then, while maintaining dead-eye contact with Richard, I slowly tore the paper into confetti. His face darkened instantly. “Audrey, don’t do anything stupid.” I ignored him, walking straight past him, and took the microphone directly from the MC’s hand. The auditorium was packed. The harsh stage lights beat down on me, making my eyes sting. I stood at the podium, staring out at the sea of unfamiliar faces, my voice ringing out crystal clear. “I only have two things to say.” “First, Wendy is not an innocent, underprivileged student.” “Second, Richard isn’t my fiancé. He is her husband.” The crowd erupted. A tidal wave of gasps and whispers crashed through the room. Wendy’s reaction was flawless. The tears spilled over her lashes on command. “Audrey, how could you say that…” “I never wanted to steal anything from you.” “If you want, I’ll even claim your unborn baby as my own! Just please, don’t back me into a corner!” That single sentence acted like gasoline on a fire. The murmurs turned into loud, furious chatter. She successfully painted herself as the ultimate martyr making a heartbreaking sacrifice, while I became the toxic, unhinged villain using a pregnancy to blackmail a man. I opened my mouth to respond, but Wendy suddenly reached into her designer clutch and slapped a little red booklet onto the podium right in front of me. A marriage certificate. I looked down. My mind went entirely blank. The names printed on the legal document were Richard Kensington and Wendy. The date of registration was yesterday. I snapped my head toward Richard. A flicker of guilt crossed his face, but he quickly masked it with cold indifference, leaning in to whisper harshly in my ear. “She’s graduating. She’s been feeling insecure.” “I just signed the papers yesterday to humor her. It means nothing.” “Once this PR nightmare dies down, I’ll quietly file for divorce.” “Our wedding is still on. Stop throwing a tantrum.” Humor her. So in his world, a legal marriage was just a shiny toy you handed out to keep a girl quiet. He thought he could secretly marry her, then throw a massive wedding with me, partitioning his vows like party favors for two different women. But Wendy was still putting on the performance of a lifetime. Wiping her tears, she sobbed into her own microphone, claiming my four years of sponsorship were never about charity. She told the crowd I had a twisted savior complex, that I was trying to groom her into an obedient pet. She claimed I was a control freak who turned violently abusive the second she formed a genuine friendship with Richard. She even swore to God that the photos from the bridal shop were a smear campaign I had personally orchestrated. The crowd turned ugly. Fast. “What a fake philanthropist.” “Sponsoring a girl just to steal her man? Sickening.” “She’s absolute trash.” Rage blinded me. I raised my hand, fully intending to slap the lies out of her mouth. But before my hand could connect, someone gripped my wrist from behind, locking it in a vice grip. I whipped around. Declan was standing there, his face tight with anger. “Audrey, that’s enough.” “This is a graduation ceremony, not a street brawl for you to act like a lunatic.” I stared at him, utterly dumbfounded. “Declan, you honestly think I’m the one being a lunatic?” He broke eye contact, but he didn’t let go of my wrist. His voice was cold. “If your conscience was actually clean, things wouldn’t have escalated this far.” That single sentence extinguished the last dying ember of warmth in my heart. And right at that moment, someone in the front row launched a plastic cup of red fruit punch at the stage. It hit my stomach. The sticky red liquid cascaded down the pristine white of my dress. Then came a second cup. Then a third. The insults grew deafening. A few radicalized students rushed the stage, shoving me, yanking on my dress, shoving their phone cameras aggressively into my face. I was violently jostled backward. My foot caught on a cable, and I stumbled hard. A sudden, agonizing tearing sensation ripped through my lower abdomen. I looked down and watched as the dark, heavy crimson began to bloom rapidly across the wet fabric of my dress. In that moment, a chilling realization washed over me. I was losing the baby. But the mob in the auditorium didn’t care. The screaming, the pushing, the flashes—nobody stopped. I clutched my stomach, the physical agony finally overriding the heartbreak. I didn’t even have the energy left to say a single word.

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