It was almost eleven PM when Jaxson Hayes announced he wanted homemade soup. Despite a raging fever, I dragged my exhausted body, carrying the hearty corn and rib soup that had simmered for three hours, to the entrance of the bar. The moment I stepped inside, a bucket of water splashed all over me, chilling me to the bone. “Hahaha, I told you Simp Aubrey would show up! What’s a fever? She even came rushing over like a loyal puppy when she was in the hospital with a broken leg, just because Jaxson called.” “Simp Aubrey, heard you’re running a fever. We’re just helping you cool down, so you really ought to thank us.” Jaxson took the thermos from my hands, then, right in front of me, poured the soup into the trash bin. “Aubrey Miller, what you make is so bad even a dog wouldn’t touch it. You seriously expected *me* to eat it?” Listening to their collective mockery, it finally hit me: this was just another one of his cruel little charades, all to amuse his delicate childhood sweetheart. Seeing my silence, Jaxson tossed our engagement ring into the cheering crowd: “Aubrey Miller, I won’t be showing up to our wedding in three days. Either find some random guy to marry, or get ready for the ultimate public humiliation with your power-hungry dad.” But later, when I truly walked down the aisle, arm-in-arm with my new groom, Jaxson Hayes was on his knees, sobbing, begging me to come back. 0
I knocked on the VIP room door, holding the hearty corn and rib soup that had simmered for three hours. Maybe the music was too loud, or maybe they were intentionally trying to humiliate me, but I had to knock for five minutes before they finally let me in. The moment I stepped inside, a bucket of water splashed all over me, chilling me to the bone. “Hahaha, I told you Simp Aubrey would show up! What’s a fever? She even came rushing over like a loyal puppy when she was in the hospital with a broken leg, just because Jaxson called.” “Simp Aubrey, heard you’re running a fever. We’re just helping you cool down, so you really ought to thank us.” “Simp Aubrey is really something, huh? Always good for a fresh laugh.” Wave after wave of mockery hammered at my ears, making me clench my hand around the insulated container. Water dripped from my dress, and drops from my hair clung to my lashes like unshed tears. I bit back the chattering of my teeth, swallowing the bitter lump in my throat, and said softly, “Jaxson Hayes, your soup.” “Ohh~ Jaxson Hayes, *your* soup~” Listening to their passive-aggressive jabs, Willow Jenkins, Jaxson’s childhood sweetheart, who was practically glowing in the center of their adoration, chose that moment to flash a mocking smile. Jaxson finally stood up from the VIP booth and slowly walked towards me. He casually brushed the damp hair from my cheek, his tone almost too light. “Really, Aubrey, that was too much trouble for you. You’re not mad, are you?” “Look, guys, you went too far with that joke. Aubrey’s sick, and she still dragged herself here to make soup for everyone. We should be thanking her, not this.” I thought he was genuinely realizing he’d gone too far and was about to say it was nothing, when Jaxson, right in front of me, poured every last drop of the soup into the overflowing trash bin. His voice was gentle, but his words felt like a knife twisting in my gut. “But Aubrey, didn’t I tell you? What you make is so bad even a dog wouldn’t touch it. How could *I* possibly eat it?” I silently met Jaxson’s gaze. My fever-addled brain spun, making me stumble two steps back. Jaxson instinctively flinched away, leaving me unsupported. My head slammed hard against the doorframe, a dull thud echoing in the sudden silence. Jaxson’s expression was laced with mockery. “Stop acting all delicate with me, Aubrey. You gave a speech steady as a rock even with a broken leg, and you’d rush to my side after a car crash with just one call. Now you’re just running a fever, so why the sudden damsel-in-distress act?” “If you think this little stunt will grab my attention, you’ve got another thing coming. I’m not feeling any sympathy.” “So, Aubrey, if you know what’s good for you, tell your dad to call off our engagement himself. You’ve been clinging to me, begging me daily. You might not have any shame, but *I* do. Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is to have you following me around all the time?” It felt like a giant hand was squeezing my heart, draining the color from my face. I knew Jaxson resented me because of our arranged engagement. But this was the first time I’d truly realized that the person who stood before me as a child, promising to protect me forever, had vanished into the unforgiving currents of time. I braced myself against the wall, barely managing to stand steady. Before I could even speak, amidst their jeers, Jaxson tossed the ring I had lovingly made for him into the screaming crowd: “Aubrey Miller, I won’t be showing up to our wedding in three days. Either find some random guy to marry, or get ready for the ultimate public humiliation with your power-hungry dad.” I watched his smug grin, and a genuine, almost relieved, laugh bubbled out of me. “Good.” *** 0
“What?” “I said, ‘Good.’ I’ll find a new groom.” Everyone immediately burst into laughter. “Aubrey Miller, everyone knows you’ve been so obsessed with Jaxson, you haven’t even had a male mosquito buzz near you! And you think *now* you’ll find a new groom? What, do you think this will make Jaxson regret it?” “I think she’s been reading too many romance novels, her brain’s fried. Seriously, you think if you just marry some random guy, Jaxson will suddenly regret it and chase you down like in those ‘chase-the-wife-to-the-crematorium’ plots? Is that it? You actually believe there are that many ‘gonna-regret-it-and-grovel’ storylines in real life?” “Seriously! You think this will threaten Jaxson? Aubrey, don’t flatter yourself.” Jaxson paused for a second, then, hearing everyone’s comments, he too started laughing. “Aubrey Miller, you actually *said* that fake nonsense? Fine, go find a groom. I’d like to see who in high society would dare marry you. Or are you planning to hire some actor to put on a show so your family doesn’t look too bad? No way, no way, the supposedly most brilliant socialite of the city, Aubrey Miller, can’t even find a man willing to marry her?” Amidst their rising tide of mockery, Willow Jenkins lightly coughed twice and walked to Jaxson’s side. “Jaxson, how can you talk to a girl like that? Aubrey is still a girl, after all. Aubrey, I’m so sorry, Jaxson just isn’t very good with words. Please don’t hold it against him. Your families’ engagement was decided by your parents, so no matter how upset you are, you can’t joke about something like this.” “Aubrey, honestly, what happened today… it’s partly my fault too. I didn’t know you had a fever. I thought you just didn’t want to see me, and Jaxson and the others were just trying to defend me. I’m so sorry. Can you please not blame them?” I watched Willow’s eyes well up before I’d even said a word, and I just found her hypocrisy utterly laughable. She was the one who orchestrated this entire scene, yet now she was pretending to apologize to me. Before Willow Jenkins came back, I was still Jaxson’s fiancée, someone he needed to cherish and protect. He used to brave three hours in a freezing winter storm to buy me that artisanal pastry I’d casually mentioned wanting. He used to drive five hours, exhausted, just to be by my side and meticulously care for me when he knew I was sick. He used to unwaveringly stand in front of me, declaring to everyone that hurting me meant hurting him. It was his consistent kindness, day after day, that made me accept his proposal. Yes, our marriage wasn’t some arranged alliance, as the rumors claimed. Jaxson actually had to work hard to earn my parents’ approval before he even *dared* to propose. But ever since Willow Jenkins returned, everything changed. Honestly, at first, I even wanted to get along with Willow. I even rushed around, getting her appointments with the best doctors when I heard she was sickly. But all my good intentions were shattered by one of Willow’s dramatic outbursts: “Just because I’m not strong, does that mean I don’t deserve to hang out with you all?” After that, Jaxson and I somehow reached a point of mutual disgust. I can’t even count how many times we argued over Willow this past year, or how many times I watched Jaxson’s retreating back, filled with absolute resolve. At first, I even thought Jaxson had suddenly gotten amnesia, like some cheap plot twist in a bad romance novel, which was why his attitude towards me had plummeted. So, I had indulged his every whim during this time, just to keep our shaky relationship afloat. But then, yesterday, I overheard Jaxson complaining to his friends: “Aubrey Miller’s fine, I guess, but constantly doting on her? It’s exhausting. And we’re engaged, but she still won’t let me touch her, like I was from the 18th century. What if she’s a dead fish in bed once we’re married?” “Besides, I’ve been spoiling her for so long, it’s about time I broke her a little, taught her who wears the pants in this relationship. Wouldn’t want her walking all over me once we’re married.” I don’t remember how I left the Hayes’ mansion that day. All I remember is regaining consciousness to find myself getting an IV drip. Coming to the bar with the insulated container was purely out of habit, pure instinct. But that bucket of water just now splashed my dazed brain awake. Jaxson can already openly use my humiliation as entertainment for Willow Jenkins. What about the future? Maybe when you hurt enough, the pain just goes numb. My hand drifted to my slowly beating heart. The water dripping from my dress, like my love for Jaxson, slowly pooled on the floor, then vanished completely. 0
Unlike his passive-aggressive jabs at me, Jaxson’s gaze towards Willow Jenkins was laced with genuine concern. He draped his jacket over Willow’s shoulders. “Why are you apologizing to her? She brought this on herself, didn’t she? If she wasn’t so utterly intolerant, how could your health, which was already improving, have deteriorated so badly?” “But since Willow’s pleading for you, I’ll begrudgingly forgive your rudeness towards her. Just kneel down and apologize to Willow right now, and maybe I’ll even consider showing up at the wedding…” “I won’t kneel.” I calmly ran a hand through my wet hair, trying to look less like a drowned rat. “Jaxson Hayes, I won’t kneel, and I won’t marry you. Don’t show up at my wedding in three days. I don’t want to cause any trouble for myself or my husband. Since neither of us intends to honor the engagement, I hope we can both inform our families.” “From now on, the Millers and the Hayes are officially done. We go our separate ways.” Jaxson frowned, his arm, wrapped around Willow Jenkins, suddenly tightened. “Aubrey Miller, what do you mean? I’m telling you, my patience has limits. You better not test me. This is your last chance. Are you sure you want to talk to me with such attitude?” I pulled my gaze from his hand, scoffing softly. “Jaxson Hayes, though nothing but poison has come out of your mouth this past year, you did say one thing right.” “As the city’s most sought-after woman, I’ve never lacked for suitors.” So, Jaxson, do you understand? I was never indispensable to you. I took one last look at the varying expressions on the faces in the private room, then turned and walked towards the bar exit. “Aubrey Miller, if you leave, we’re really over!” My steps never faltered as I left the bar, leaving Jaxson’s infuriated barks behind me. Back home, the adrenaline that had kept me upright finally crashed. My body, which hadn’t fully recovered, had been doused with cold water and then walked for so long in the night. I burned with fever for two days straight before I barely felt human again. When I finally woke up, I saw my dad, a hesitant, almost uncomfortable look on his face. I propped myself up, took a sip from the water a housemaid handed me. “Dad, is there something you want to say?” My dad silently watched me, then, fingering the pack of cigarettes for a moment. “Your engagement with that Hayes boy…” I finally remembered what I had forgotten. My gaze fixed on him, unwavering. “Dad, I don’t want to marry Jaxson Hayes.” My dad looked at me in astonishment. His favorite cigarette pack slipped from his grasp, clattering to the floor. “Aubrey, are you serious?” I nodded, then handed him the marriage certificate from my bedside table. “Dad, I’m not throwing a tantrum. I’ve truly moved on from Jaxson. Sorry, I was afraid you wouldn’t agree, so I acted first and asked for forgiveness later.” My dad looked at the man’s name on the marriage certificate, falling silent for a moment. “Aubrey, you still say you’re not throwing a tantrum. If you wanted to Photoshop something to piss off that Hayes boy, you should have found someone believable! It’s not that I’m looking down on you, but the chances of Darian Thorne from Thorne Industries marrying you are lower than the Earth exploding tomorrow.” I watched him in silence. Okay, if I wasn’t the one involved, I probably wouldn’t believe it either. After all, who would have thought that Darian Thorne, a titan in the business world, secretly loved reading alpha billionaire romance novels? And even more surprisingly, he loved the ones written by an obscure writer like me. But before I could explain, a mocking voice interrupted me. “Darian Thorne? Aubrey Miller, you’re not saying your new groom is Darian Thorne, the CEO of Thorne Industries, are you?” 0Jaxson Hayes held the marriage certificate, scrutinizing it for a moment, then carelessly tossed it aside. “Aubrey Miller, if you’re going to lie, at least come up with something more convincing. You seriously expect me to believe this level of nonsense? Who is Darian Thorne? He’s someone you could ever hope to ‘climb up’ to?”
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