Chapter 2

Ava's eyes immediately filled with tears.

"Ethan, I went too far this time. I've upset Sophia. I'm sorry. I only wanted to do a trial run so nothing would go wrong on her big day. This is all my fault!"

With that, she lunged toward the corridor window.

Ethan grabbed her around the waist just in time.

"Don't talk like that. You were only trying to help."

His face hardened as he turned to me.

"Sophia, you didn't object earlier. Why are you causing a scene now? Any decent person would show some compassion. Are you going to apologize to Ava or not?"

I'd heard that before.

How many times had we done this?

At first, I would argue. I'd tell him how unfair he was being.

But the same thing happened so many times that eventually, I stopped fighting and simply gave in.

Not anymore. I had had enough.

I smiled coldly.

"You're right. My mistake."

My mistake was wasting five years in this mess, giving Ethan chance after chance and fooling myself into believing he might change.

Ethan raised an eyebrow, suspicion flashing across his face.

I turned to leave, but he reached for me.

Just then, Ava's legs gave out, and she collapsed into his arms.

"Ouch! Ethan!"

Ethan instinctively looked down.

Ava looked up at the exact same moment. Their lips met.

The room erupted in cheers.

I looked back at them.

It felt like being slapped across the face a hundred times.

Three seconds passed before Ethan finally snapped out of it and pulled away.

When he saw me, he quickly wiped his mouth.

"Sophia..."

I pulled off the engagement ring he'd given me and threw it at him.

"A wedding gift. Goodbye."

My eyes stung as I hurried toward the exit, but Ethan chased me down and grabbed me by the shoulders.

"Sophia, that's enough!"

I froze. His next words chilled me to the bone.

"You say you're sorry and then act like this. Aren't you tired of making a scene? I've told you a hundred times that this wedding with Ava means nothing.

"You threw my engagement ring back at me? Are you trying to humiliate me?

"You're the petty one who can't stand me taking care of Ava, and now you want to drag both our names through the mud!"

The pain was so sharp that my tears dried up.

So he hadn't chased me because he was afraid of losing me.

He'd chased me down just to blame me.

It had been exactly the same during the hurricane. The entire city had been placed under an emergency alert.

Worried about Ava, he had spent three days and nights by her side.

Only after the danger was over had he remembered to call me.

Alone in the apartment, I had sprained my ankle and waited too long to get treatment. I still couldn't wear heels.

And somehow, Ethan had still found a way to justify himself.

I stepped back. I didn't even have the energy to be angry anymore.

"Ethan, do whatever you like."

He clearly hadn't expected me to stop arguing. His tone immediately softened.

"Sophia, you have to believe me. You're the only one I love. Let's both take a step back and forget about what happened. Ava has always been sensitive and fragile. Be the bigger person."

I'd heard those excuses so many times that they meant nothing to me anymore.

Ava was fragile, so I had to be the bigger person.

She had taken over the wedding I'd spent six months planning.

She had worn the dress I'd flown to France to have made.

The man I'd loved for five years and planned to spend my life with had kissed her right in front of me.

And after all that, Ethan still wanted me to be the bigger person?

My smile widened.

"Sure. I'll be the bigger person. Ethan, let's break up. Then you can spend the rest of your life taking care of her."

Before I'd even finished speaking, Ava called down from upstairs.

"Ethan, I don't feel well."

Ethan's expression changed, and he immediately headed upstairs.

"Sophia, don't worry, you're the only wife I'll ever have! If you're upset today, go shopping. I'll pay for whatever you buy. I'll go sit with Ava first. Have fun."

Then he hurried upstairs without even looking back.

I watched him disappear and realized I'd seen this exact scene countless times before.

All those sweet promises had never been about loving me. They were just words meant to shut me up so he could run back to Ava.

He hadn't even bothered to look back at me.

And if I went shopping, he'd only buy Ava something even better.

He could never let Ava think she came second to me.

Forget it.

Why am I still standing in this cesspool, fighting another woman over a man like him?

I'm done.

Ethan, this is goodbye. From now on, our lives have nothing to do with each other.