Chapter 3

Sean reached out his hand, ready to grab me, but I twisted away to avoid him.

Fuming with anger, he barked, “Do you really have to make such an ugly scene out of this?

“If you clear all this up right now, I can pretend none of this ever happened.

“I can loosen up on balancing our ledger, but you can’t interfere with my relationship with Michelle.

“You have my word. Things can still go back to how they used to be.”

Outraged to the point of laughter, I barked back coldly:

“Not a chance!

“What, you don’t like my wedding gift? Now the whole world knows you’re married—isn’t that wonderful?”

Before my words even faded, a massive crowd of reporters swarmed into the hotel.

Camera flashes clicked furiously right in Sean’s and Michelle’s faces.

“Dr. Barnes, is it true you were dating two women at the same time?”

“Ms. Hudson, you were dating a taken man?”

Michelle screamed, burying herself into Sean’s arms.

Sean shielded her, trying to retreat toward the back door, but they were completely blocked, trapped in the crowd.

The entire venue was in utter chaos.

Taking advantage of the commotion, I slipped away from the crowd and hailed a cab to leave.

In the rearview mirror, Sean’s disheveled face grew smaller and smaller.

Inside the cab, looking at the missed calls from my parents, tears finally streamed down my face against my will.

It didn’t take long for the narrative online to shift.

Sean and Michelle’s friends collectively posted their marriage certificate alongside a detailed timeline of their relationship, serving as proof that Michelle was the legitimate wife all along.

Michelle and Sean even went live on a broadcast, painting me as an ex-admirer suffering from severe delusions and mental illness.

“Emma has been hallucinating that Sean was her boyfriend for these past three years.”

In front of the camera, Michelle wiped away her tears, her voice choked with emotion.

“Out of the goodness of our hearts, we’ve always wanted to help her get treatment. We never expected her to cross the line so far, making a scene at our wedding...”

All public outrage was redirected at me.

A series of trending hashtags with name in them began climbing up the rankings.

I scrolled through the comments with calm eyes, as if none of this had anything to do with me.

Just then, Josh called.

I picked up, and he asked in a casual tone:

“Want a hashtag to clear your name?”

Watching Michelle wipe away her tears in the live stream, I shook my head.

“No need. They want publicity. I’ll give them just that.”

Josh let out a low chuckle on the other end of the line.

“What, you’re gonna apologize? I’d better get my popcorn ready. What kind of proper apology have you ever given your entire life?

“I wouldn’t wanna be in their shoes now.”

With a light laugh, he hung up the phone.

I continued scrolling through my phone, only to unexpectedly discover Michelle’s secondary account.

It was filled with daily updates about her life with Sean.

The most recent post was from a month ago.

Michelle had posted an update paired with an annoyed emoji:

“Hubby has to head back to deal with someone again. My heart aches for him.”

Attached was a photo of Sean’s exhausted side profile.

For the occasion, I had booked a table in a romantic restaurant, even bought a cake, but Sean didn’t return home until late at night.

I wanted us to have some cake together, but he didn’t take a bite, claiming he was too exhausted.

Turned out he had already had dinner with someone else.

Feeling completely unbothered, I took a screenshot and saved it.

After returning to my hotel room, I paid no further attention to the online news.

After all, the bigger the fuss they made now, the harder and more painful their fall would be.

Early next morning, Sean and Michelle tracked me down to the hotel where I was staying.

Without bothering with pleasantries, he got straight to the point:

“Emma, you’ve seen the situation online.

“Michelle’s too nice to hold a grudge against you. Just do a live stream and say you were mentally triggered, then apologize, and this whole thing will blow over.”

Looking at his condescending, benevolent expression, I couldn’t help but let out a sneer.

Standing beside him, Michelle added magnanimously:

“Emma, I can let the whole thing slide.

“If you truly can’t live without Sean, I... I can accept you sharing time with him. After all, you did save my life.”

Sean chimed in with a low voice of agreement from the side.

Looking at this man who once claimed he was saving money to marry me, a wave of revulsion surged up in my core.

“I wouldn’t dream of sharing a man with another woman. Some folk may be cheap enough for it, not me.”

I cast a pointed glance at Michelle, letting out a soft laugh.

“Wouldn’t you agree?”

Michelle’s face turned unsightly. Sean blocked her behind him, lowering his voice into a subtle threat:

“Don’t push it. The lead surgeon for your father’s heart bypass happens to be my mentor.

“Care to guess if he’ll make it off the operating table if I drop a word?”

My face darkened as I listened to his threat.

“Are you threatening me?”

A look of internal struggle surfaced in my eyes. Finally, I let out a heavy sigh, slumping against the doorframe as if all my strength had been drained.

“Fine, I’ll apologize. But from now on, please stay as far away from me as possible.”

With that, I slammed the room door shut, paying them no further attention.

Inside the room, however, the corners of my lips curled up slightly.

That evening, I started a live stream.

Before long, with Josh hyping up the momentum behind the scenes, a massive wave of viewers flooded in.

The comment section was filled with a torrent of abuse.

“Crazy bitch, you have the nerve to show your face? Apologize!”

I took my time letting their emotions build up. Then, in front of the screen full of insults, I pulled up the chat logs between Sean and me since we started dating.

“I’m not the one who should apologize. Guess who’s obsessed with saving every penny on his date?”