Chapter 4

On the day Madeline and I got married, practically all of my relatives from my hometown showed up. Some of them had already forgotten my name and still referred to me as "Swiper", but Mom and Dad didn't bother correcting them. After all, they couldn't care less about me.

The wedding emcee presided over the wedding ceremony. Just as I was about to exchange vows and rings with Madeline, Justin suddenly yelled from across the banquet hall. Everyone turned their eyes to him, watching him run onto the stage in a fluster.

"Jasper! You stole my watch, didn't you?"

At that, everyone in the seats perked up immediately, eager to watch the juicy drama unfold. They exchanged glances with each other and began murmuring amongst themselves.

My face was dark as thunder when I heard their gossip.

"Once a swiper, always a swiper. I can't believe he still hasn't changed his ways after so long. Why would he steal his own brother's watch?"

"I lost a couple of hens once, back in the day. I bet he was the one who swiped them from my backyard. What a shameless jerk. I hope he rots in hell."

The emcee was embarrassed. He awkwardly cleared his throat and tried to control the situation, but Justin refused to let up and began pestering Madeline, looking at her pleadingly.

"Maddie! It was the watch that you bought for me…"

Mom and Dad also ran onstage after him. Mom glared at me angrily and yelled, "What the hell is going on?"

"I never stole anything."

This scene reminded me of when I was younger. It was just all too familiar. I had also been rooted to my spot, trying and failing to defend myself, but nobody believed me.

Madeline stepped between my parents and me. She said, "I believe in Jasper. He would never steal anything."

I looked up in shock, a hint of glee flashing in my eyes.

However, a split second later, she leaned closer to me and said in a voice that only she and I could hear, "Jasper. People are watching. You might be shameless, but I still care about my reputation.

"Return the watch to Justin at once. I'll buy you whatever you want in the future."

I shoved Madeline aside.

"I said, I never stole anything!"

Suddenly, I felt an excruciating pain on the side of my head. Dad had picked up a wine bottle from a nearby table and smashed it against my head.

"Is this how I raised you? How dare you go around stealing like this instead of behaving properly like I taught you?"

Warm blood trickled down my face and dripped onto the floor.

Mom looked at me with a grim expression. She initially reached out her hand to me, but she withdrew it almost immediately.

The wedding was ruined. The guests all thought it was cursed and hurried out of the venue as quickly as possible.

Justin then put on a belated, remorseful look and grabbed another wine bottle before smashing it on his own head.

"I'm sorry, Jasper. I didn't know that things would end up like this."

Mom and Dad were shocked and rushed over to him, trying to stem the bleeding. It also gave Madeline a huge fright.

"We'll talk about the wedding another time, Jasper. We need to get you guys to the hospital pronto."

I was dazed and unsteady on my feet as I was loaded into the ambulance alongside Justin.

When I finally woke up in the hospital, I realized that there wasn't a single person in my ward. However, I heard Mom and Dad's voices in the ward next to mine.

"How could you have done this to yourself? Jasper has been called a thief for 20 years! He's already used to it and wouldn't have minded!

"Even if he did, you know that we're always on your side!"

Madeline's voice then sounded.

"I will question Jasper myself and give you an explanation for this, Justin."

I didn't bother listening to the rest of what they had to say. I just yanked out the needle on the back of my hand and steadied myself for a bit before getting up.

This time, I was done with my family and my fiancee. I didn't want them anymore.