2

Bella

The wedding ceremony itself had been simple, no grand ballroom, no crowd of hundreds.

Just the two of us, a handful of our closest family and friends, and the promise that we would choose each other every single day for the rest of our lives.

It was more than enough. The moment we exchanged our vows, Luke slipped the ring onto my finger with hands that trembled ever so slightly. When I looked up, I found his eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"You don't know how lucky I am," he whispered after the officiant pronounced us husband and wife.

He cupped my face so gently, "I get to call you my wife now."

A soft laugh escaped my lips despite the tears threatening to fall.

"And I get to call you my husband."

"I promise you something, Bella." His expression turned serious. "I'll spend every day making sure you never regret marrying me."

I smiled. "I already don't regret marrying you, I love you so much."

He shook his head. "No, listen to me."

His thumb brushed away the happy tears gathering beneath my eyes.

"I'll love you with everything I have. I'll respect you. I'll protect you. And no matter what happens, there'll never be another woman in my life."

I laughed quietly before teasing him. "Not even Serena?"

Without the slightest hesitation, he answered. "Serena is my best friend, but you're my family."

He squeezed my hands and said "My wife will always come first."

I believed him. I believed every single word.

Those promises replayed over and over inside my head now, each one makes my heart ache.

If I had known they would become nothing but lies, would I still have married him?

A sob escaped my lips before I could stop it.

I hugged myself tightly, trying to hold together the pieces of my heart that felt as though they were falling apart.

Before we got married, people used to envy our relationship. Friends often joked that Luke was the standard every man should aspire to.

They admired the way he looked at me, the way he always held my hand and the way he never forgot birthdays, anniversaries, or the little things that made me smile.

To everyone around us, we were the perfect couple and we have the perfect marriage, the kind of love people wished they could have.

The saddest part wasn't that everyone else believed it.

It was that I believed it too. The sharp ringing of my phone pulled me back to reality.

I wiped at my wet cheeks before reaching for it. The name on the screen made my chest tighten.

Fiona, my friend. I answered after taking a shaky breath.

"Happy first year wedding anniversary!" She greeted me cheerfully. "I hope I'm not interrupting your romantic evening."

The moment I heard her voice, every bit of strength I'd been clinging to disappeared.

I burst into tears.

"Bella?" she asked, her voice immediately changing. "What's wrong?"

I couldn't answer right away, my chest hurt so much it was difficult to breathe.

"Talk to me," she urged gently.

Finally, the words forced their way out.

“Luke…” I sobbed. “Luke is having an affair.”

“With Serena?” Fiona asked quietly.

I cried even harder. "Yes."

"Oh, my God."

"He kissed her." I said, his words tasted bitter. "She sent me a video of them together."

"Fuck," Fiona muttered under her breath.

"I don't know what to do," I whispered between broken sobs. "I keep replaying it, hoping it'll somehow change, hoping I'll realise it's fake but it isn't, he cheated."

"I'm so sorry, Bella." She said,

"I trusted him…He promised me he'd never cheat."

"I know," she repeated softly."But you need to take a deep breath, calm down."

"How?" I cried. "Tell me how I'm supposed to breathe after this."

"I know it feels like your world has ended, but it hasn't. It feels like it has but you'll survive this."

I let out a bitter laugh. "I don't even recognise the man I married anymore."

For a few seconds, neither of us spoke.

I could hear Fiona breathing on the other end of the call, giving me the space to cry without rushing me.

Eventually, she cleared her throat."I actually called for another reason."

"What is it?" I asked, swallowing my tears.

"Remember the modelling position you asked me to help you find?"

I blinked.

In the middle of all this heartbreak, I had completely forgotten, I told her to help me get a job.

"I spoke to the agency today and they accepted your application." she said.

My heartbeat slowed slightly. "What?"

"They want you at Sexy Designs."

For the first time since watching that horrible video, my mind shifted away from what Luke did.

"It's a great opportunity, Bella. They're looking for fresh faces, and I immediately thought of you." she said softly.

Months ago, I begged Luke to let me return to work and he refused. He said he's working for both of us.

He insisted I stay home and enjoy life instead of worrying about a career.

Back then, I thought he was taking care of me but now I've realised he was just trying to cage me.

Because if I leave him, how will I survive?

Luke has been paying every bill in the house. He paid my expenses, more importantly, he paid my mother's hospital bills after she fell seriously ill two years ago. Leaving him wouldn't just mean walking away from my husband.

It would mean losing the financial support keeping my mother alive. Fear settled heavily inside me but I shrugged it off, I can't be weak at this time.

"I'll take the job," I said firmly. "When do I start?"

"Monday. And trust me, you'll be amazing," Fiona said. "And Bella..."

"Yes?"

"Don't let Luke convince you that you don’t deserve this, you need to work, you need to be financiallyindependent." she said.

Fresh tears welled in my eyes. "I won't."

After we ended the call, I sat quietly for some minutes.

The silence inside the house felt suffocating.

After thinking about everything, I forced myself to stand up. I need to leave, I can't stay in a marriage where he's cheating.

And if I was leaving, I need to start packing my belongings now.

I walked to the wardrobe and pulled my suitcase from the top shelf.

One by one, I folded the clothes I had bought with my own money and placed them inside.

I didn't want anything that belonged to Luke—the expensive dresses he had surprised me with, the jewellery, the handbags, even the perfume he loved buying for me.

Those things no longer felt like gifts? they felt like reminders of a marriage built on lies.

As I reached for another pile of clothes, something slipped from the shelf and landed on the floor.

Our marriage certificate.

I froze and slowly bent down, picked it up.

The paper trembled in my hands.

One year ago, it represented the happiest day of my life but today it felt like proof of the biggest mistake I'd ever made.

Without another thought, I opened Luke's drawer and placed it inside before shutting it firmly. Some memories deserved to stay with the person who destroyed them.

I finished packing and zipped the suitcase closed.

Just then, I heard footsteps outside our bedroom.

I quickly pushed the suitcase back into the wardrobe and closed the door.

A second later, the bedroom door opened.

He walked in wearing the same perfectly tailored charcoal suit he'd been wearing in the video.

The same suit and tie and he's the same man who had kissed another woman only hours ago.

My stomach churned, one of his hands was hidden behind his back. His eyes found mine immediately, and he smiled as though nothing had happened.

"Honey." He called, his voice warm.

I stared at him without saying a word.

He took a few steps closer. "I'm sorry I'm late."

I swallowed the urge to confront him in my throat. "Where were you?"

"I got held up at work." He replied.

I nodded, wow, he lied again and not even a flicker of guilt crossed his face.

Then he brought his hidden hand forward, he was holding a bouquet of red roses.

My favourite.

"Happy first anniversary," he said with a smile. "These are for the best wife in the world."

I looked at the flowers then at him, hours ago, those same hands had been wrapped around Serena.

Those same lips had been kissing her.

And now he stood in front of me pretending to be the loving husband I'd devoted my heart to.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, taking another step toward me.

He reached out, intending to touch my face.

Before his fingers could brush my skin, I turned away.

Without saying a single word, I walked back into the wardrobe, leaving him standing alone in the middle of the bedroom with the bouquet still clutched in his hands.