Hitched or Ditched?

Theodore Scott's smile froze, and his eyes quickly shifted away from me. "I saw it in a fashion magazine."I didn't say anything.He leaned closer, his fingers gently gripping my chin. "What's wrong? Don't you believe me?"His fingertips were warm, but his eyes flickered for just a moment. "Of course I do." I smiled and tapped his chest with my fingertip. "I just didn't expect the great lawyer to be researching this stuff."He leaned down and kissed my forehead. "For you, I'd be willing to learn anything.""I'll go get you some water." He turned and left the room, even forgetting to take his phone. I hesitated for a moment, then entered the passcode and unlocked it. This was the first time I'd checked his phone in all these years, and the password was still my birthday—it hadn't changed.The chat history, photos, and call logs were all clean. I let out a breath, laughing at myself for being paranoid. Yet, when my fingers hovered over the Instagram message search bar, I gave i

Celeste said, "Not long after, he posted an engagement ring with another woman on his Instagram. I know he has a fiancee. He told me she's as sweet as a little bunny, but she's quite boring—spending all day in the lab."We were just using each other. I needed his resources to climb higher. I've seen plenty of two-faced men like him. When his fiancee isn't around, he boldly invites me to his place. We had sex for the first time in their marital home."She continued, "He acted all innocent afterward, saying he regretted it and that we shouldn't meet again. But every time I sent a message, he came anyway."He went completely wild whenever he was with me, never using protection. Yet, he still mumbled about not betraying his fiancee. The moment I wrap my arms around his neck, he forgets everything."Lately, he pretends to be devoted, saying he has to take responsibility for his fiancee, but he can't cut me off either. Pathetic. Oh, and these shoes? He bought them for me. He said I look

Theodore frantically wiped the blood from his face and staggered to his feet.Yvette Lawson walked over in her heels, carrying a bridesmaid dress bag in her hand. "Bella, the makeup artist has been waiting for you forever..."The door lock clicked open, and she pushed inside only to freeze in place."What the hell happened?" She looked at the wreckage covering the floor and stepped right over Theodore's hand to get inside."What did this bastard do?"She suddenly stared at the broken high heel in my hand, noticing the blood staining the pointed toe. She gasped and whirled toward Theodore. "You cheated!" Theodore turned as white as a sheet. "How did you know…""It's written all over your face! I'm posting this in the group chats right now!" Yvette grabbed her phone and started taking pictures.Theodore lunged for her phone. "Don't! What happens between Bella and me is none of your business!" Yvette slapped him hard across the face. "None of my business? When you pursued B

Yvette and I ran wild on the black sand beaches, screamed at glaciers, and threw the ring Theodore had given me into a volcanic lake. She said the best cure for heartbreak was to see more of the world.She was right.In the face of the world's grandeur, all that pain suddenly felt insignificant. It turned out that without Theodore, sunrises were still spectacular, and the northern lights were still breathtaking. Letting go of someone didn't mean forgetting. It meant that when you remembered them, your heart stayed calm.As the plane descended, the clouds parted, and the city's outline gradually became clear. I whispered to the window, "Goodbye, Theodore."...After returning home, I immediately threw myself into the lab. My colleagues tactfully avoided mentioning the engagement and just quietly left hot coffee on my desk.I buried myself in data, pulled three all-nighters, and finally discovered an anomalous pattern that could push our entire project past its bottleneck. G

Under the sunset, Luther's outline was bathed in warm light. On impulse, I rose on tiptoe and quickly kissed his cheek. He froze, his ears turning bright red. "Come on!" I tugged him forward, laughing. "Yvette said dinner's getting cold!"He laced his fingers through mine, his laughter carried away by the wind. "Alright. Let's go home." This time, we were truly going home....Side story about Theodore Theodore stood in the airport terminal, his ears ringing. My figure disappeared beyond security, and my soft "goodbye" felt like countless sharp knives carving into his heart.He stumbled back to our marital home and found that it had been restored to its original state. There was new furniture, freshly painted walls, and even identical curtains. Yet, it felt empty. Something was missing. Suddenly, he ran through drawers, closets, under the bed, and even through the trash like a madman. His fingers searched through dust until he pulled out a charred corner of a photo.