I finally pulled a secret chaser figure from a mystery box, beaming as I proudly displayed it on my husband’s desk. He glanced at it for a fraction of a second, then tossed it right into the trash can. “You’re twenty-six years old. Isn’t playing with this stuff a little childish?” Swallowing my hurt, I retrieved the figure and listed it on a local reselling app. Almost immediately, a buyer from nearby snapped it up. She mentioned she lived close and asked if I could deliver it in person. The moment I stepped into her home, I froze at the entryway. An entire wall of display cabinets stretched across the room, packed with insanely expensive, limited-edition figures. The hostess gave me a warm smile. “My younger boyfriend bought all of these for me. I told him I’m in my thirties and playing with toys makes me look silly, but he insists that in his eyes, I’ll always be a girl.” Just then, the front door clicked open. A man walked in holding two iced beverages, leaning down to plant a soft kiss on her cheek. I stepped aside, but as my eyes caught his profile in my peripheral vision, the blood in my veins turned to ice. This man, who spent fortunes collecting rare figures and treated her like a queen, was the exact same husband who had called me childish and thrown away my secret chaser just yesterday. Joey. 1 Our eyes locked, and the color drained from his face instantly. “Joey, you’re staring at her. Don’t scare the poor girl,” Stella said playfully, wrapping her arm around his. She handed me one of the drinks. “She’s the girl who sold me the secret chaser figure. Her name is Gemma. You two should introduce yourselves.” Joey regained his composure, giving me a curt nod. “Hello.” He turned straight back to Stella, his voice dripping with unbearable tenderness. “You don’t need to buy secondhand stuff anymore. Whatever you want, I’ll buy it brand new for you.” Stella swayed his arm gently. “Secondhand is fine. Otherwise, my heart aches seeing you wait in line for hours every time a limited edition drops.” I dug my nails into my palms until they nearly drew blood, yet I felt no pain at all. Stella had bragged that the figures on the wall were rare collectibles gathered from all over the world. One particular figure made my eyes sting. It was an overseas exclusive released a year ago that I had coveted for months. Joey had been on a business trip to that country back then. I hadn’t even dared to ask for the whole figure, only begging him to bring back a matching commemorative sticker. He had frowned and snapped at me at the time, telling me he had a mountain of work to do and no time for useless garbage. It turned out he wasn’t short on time. He just refused to spare a single shred of patience for me. Yet for Stella, he was more than willing to queue up all day for an entire exclusive figure. “Oh, Gemma, I have a duplicate figure I’d love to gift you,” Stella suddenly offered. “Let me grab it from the bedroom.” The moment she turned the corner, Joey stepped forward, grabbing my arm and pulling me into the shadow of the entryway. “Go home first,” he hissed in a low whisper. “I’ll explain everything when I get back.” My voice rasped with bitter humor. “Explain what? Explain that you’re hiding a mistress and cheating on your wife?” Panic flashed across his eyes. He shoved me toward the door, slamming it shut with a loud bang. My wrist throbbed with a burning pain, and tears streamed down uncontrollably. Through the thin wood of the door, muffled voices drifted out. “Oh? Why did Gemma leave? I didn’t get to give her the gift.” “I just let her go. She’s just a stranger selling secondhand toys, there’s no need to get close to her.” Then came the sound of wet, affectionate kissing. I leaned against the hallway wall, my stomach churning with pure nausea. Suddenly, a realization struck me like a lightning bolt. My period was a month late. I stumbled back to my apartment, tore open a pregnancy test, and waited. Two bold red lines appeared. I was pregnant. Before I could digest the news, the lock clicked. Joey was home. In a rush, I wrapped the test in paper and threw it into the trash. He walked in, catching sight of my deathly pale face, and his brows furrowed. “Why do you look so sick? Are you feeling unwell?” He reached out to touch my forehead, but I pulled away coldly. He withdrew his hand, letting out a heavy sigh. “What happened earlier wasn’t what you think. Stella is the older girl from next door where I grew up. When I was young and my family struggled to eat, her family helped us out. She has a congenital heart condition. Before her mother passed away, she begged me to look after her. I only agreed to pretend to be her boyfriend so she could recover in peace.” “So you cheated on your wife and bought her an entire wall of limited edition figures?” My chest felt as though a crushing weight had settled on it, making it hard to breathe. “Joey, I just realized you have a whole second home out there.” “And she’s eight years older than you!” My voice rose uncontrollably, my whole body shaking. “You called my hobby childish, but you flew across the world to build a wall of toys for her!” Guilt flickered in Joey’s eyes, and his tone softened slightly. “Fine, I already thought those toys were silly anyway. If you like them, I’ll buy them for you from now on. I’ll handle Stella properly. Her heart is weak and she can’t take stress, so don’t go making a scene.” I stared at this man I had loved for six years, feeling an overwhelming sense of strangerhood. “Joey, let’s get a divorce.” He dismissed it as a temper tantrum, a sneer tugging at his lips. “Stop dramatic. I’m just taking care of her. It’s not like I don’t love you. You’re the one who holds the marriage certificate with me.” “Besides, you can’t live without me. Don’t ever mention divorce again. I’m taking Stella to the movies now. Stay home and stop being unreasonable.” The door clicked shut gently. Six years of dating, three years of marriage. I had given him my heart and soul, only to be told not to trouble his mistress. Before I could process the pain, a message popped up from Stella. I’m so sorry, sweetie. My boyfriend has a quick temper and couldn’t host you properly. I saved a figure for you, drop by whenever you’re free to pick it up. I clicked into her social media profile and scrolled through years of posts, every single one revolving around Joey. My dream figure was completely out of print, so Joey contacted the manufacturer directly to custom-make a set for me. Birthday surprise: a huge box of mystery figures! He canceled an important business meeting just to line up for them. Love my younger boy so much! I casually mentioned a celebrity figure, and he delivered it to my hands the next morning. My boy always keeps his promises. Every photo hid subtle traces of Joey. Back when I drank until I threw up at business dinners just to help him secure clients, all I asked for in return was one afternoon accompanying me to a toy shop. Yet he turned around and grabbed every new release for Stella at the first opportunity. By the time I reached the bottom of her feed, the sharp sting in my chest had numbed into complete emptiness. I replied with a short text. No thanks. I don’t want it anymore. I didn’t care about the figures, and I didn’t want Joey anymore either. I contacted a divorce attorney immediately, sending over all the evidence of his infidelity. That wall of figures was purchased with marital assets after our wedding, and in court, I wouldn’t yield a single cent. That night, Joey returned home holding a newly released box set of figures, holding it out to me. “Look, isn’t this the series you wanted before?” I didn’t look up, folding my clothes neatly. “Return it. I don’t want it.” The smile on his face vanished, replaced by annoyance. “You cried begging me for it before. Now that I bought it, you’re pushing it away. Stop looking for trouble.” “I really don’t want it,” I repeated calmly. “What you owe me was never just a toy set.” He lost his temper completely. “Gemma, are you ever going to drop this!” Right then, his phone rang. In his rush, he accidentally hit the speakerphone button, and Stella’s tearful voice echoed loudly. “Joey, my heart hurts so much… my chest feels so tight…” Joey’s face paled. He bolted toward the door, his arm swinging wildly as he stood up, shoving me hard onto the floor. My lower back slammed against the sharp corner of the table, causing me to gasp in agony. In the next second, a searing, excruciating pain flared up in my lower abdomen. “Joey!” I grabbed his sleeve tightly, eyes red. “My stomach hurts so bad, please take me to the hospital, I’m begging you…” He yanked his arm free in frustration. “Enough! Stop using fake pain to compete for attention! This is a matter of life and death for her!” He walked out without looking back once. The pain worsened, and warm blood trickled down my legs. I forced myself to dial emergency services, and an ambulance rushed me to the hospital. Because of that blow, I suffered a miscarriage. Lying in the hospital bed, my eyes remained dry, unable to squeeze out a single tear. While the procedure tormented me, Stella updated her social media. The photo showed her snuggled in Joey’s arms, his hand resting gently over her chest. The caption read: Joey was terrified! Honestly my heart didn’t even hurt that much, I just wanted to trick him into staying longer, teehee. Hidden from him! Seeing those words, the emotional dam broke, and I sobbed uncontrollably. I had prayed for this child for three years. Gone, all because of a single lie. Soon after, another message from Stella popped up. Gemma, let’s meet up. You really need to take this figure, or I’ll feel too guilty. My fingers hovered over the screen before typing a response. Okay. Good. It was time to lay everything out in the open. The next day, as I reached the entrance of the cafe, Stella rushed toward me and slapped me hard across the face. A loud crack echoed through the air. “Gemma, do you have no shame?” Stella’s eyes were red, her voice trembling. “I treated you like a friend, and you tried to seduce my boyfriend behind my back!” I covered my burning cheek, my ears ringing. She shoved her phone in front of my face, showing a photo taken a month ago of Joey and me holding hands in the park. “I went through your social media and realized you two were together all along! Selling me that figure and coming to my house was just a deliberate act to brag and trigger me, wasn’t it?” Her voice rose into a dramatic sob, her hand clutching her chest as her knees buckled toward the ground. “I’m begging you! My heart is weak, I can’t live without Joey! Please let us go, I’ll give you my entire wall of figures!” Bystanders gathered, pointing fingers while phone cameras aimed straight at me. “How shameless! Being a side chick and picking on a sick woman!” I took a deep breath, raised my hand, and slapped Stella right back across the face. “Your boyfriend?” My voice trembled as I pulled our marriage certificate from my bag. “Joey and I registered three years ago. We are legally married.” “As for that wall of figures, it was bought with marital assets. My lawyer has prepared the paperwork, and I will reclaim every single cent.” The crowd fell silent for a moment. “They have a marriage certificate?” “So the sick woman is the mistress?” Stella swayed, her eyes welling up with tears. “Impossible… Joey told me he wasn’t married…” Before she could finish, a heavy force shoved me back. “Gemma!” Joey rushed forward, wrapping Stella securely in his arms, his eyes filled with rage as he glared at me. “Who gave you permission to hit her? You know her heart is bad!” Stella leaned against him, clutching her chest as she whimpered. “Joey, tell me, are you really married? Am I… am I the mistress?” Joey hesitated for only a second. “No.” “She has delusions. This marriage certificate is a forgery. She’s just a crazy woman who has been stalking me.” Those words pinned me to the spot like ice. “Joey, have you lost your mind? We are legally…” His expression turned completely cold as he grabbed Stella’s wrist. “Stella, slap her back.” I stared at him in disbelief, hearing only his frozen voice. “She hurt you just now. Hit her back. I will never let anyone bully my girlfriend.” That gave Stella all the confidence she needed. SLAP! Another heavy strike landed on my other cheek. Stella bit her lip. “That’s what you get for lying and playing the homewrecker.” She looked at Joey, feigning worry. “But… where did she get such a realistic marriage certificate? Forgery is illegal, shouldn’t we call the police?” A flicker of reluctance crossed Joey’s eyes, but in the next second, he snatched the marriage certificate from my hand and tore it to shreds! The scraps fell to the ground like drops of blood. On the day we registered, he had held that certificate in his hands, kissing it over and over. Gemma, you’re finally my legal wife! In just three short years, for another woman, he tore apart our marriage with his own hands. “It’s just a fake document anyway. Let’s see how you spread rumors now,” he said, his voice raspy and final.
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