Chapter 1

At first, I was shocked, but then I snapped back to my senses and scoffed at my phone screen.

I was minutes away from heading to the altar and saying my vows, so who was it that was playing such a childish prank at this time?

I typed out my response and sent it over. "Your photo-editing skills are truly quite terrible. Just who are you?"

The reply was instant. "I'm you. Don't believe me? Inside the lining of Waverly's wedding dress, on the left side over her heart, she's hidden the plain ring Matt gave her.

"Besides that, one of the seams on Matt's suit split open, and it was Waverly who helped him sew it up in the changing room. Because of that, she now has a fresh needle prick on the web of her left hand."

There was a click before the door to the dressing room was pushed open.

My bride, Waverly Suther, stepped inside, clad in a custom-made white wedding gown. She was incredibly beautiful, and the pair of pearl earrings adorning her ears only accentuated her gentle, graceful demeanor.

"James, are you done getting ready?" She approached me with a smile, a warm and gentle look in her eyes.

Instead of answering her question, I stood up and wrapped my arms around her in a hug.

Waverly was momentarily surprised before she let out a soft laugh and returned the embrace. "Our wedding is just minutes away, yet you're still so clingy."

I pressed my face against the left side of her chest. Through the material of her dress, I could clearly feel a solid shape, right there in the inner lining. Something shaped like a ring.

Not just that, but the faint scent of cologne clung to her—the exact one that was Matt Zucker's favorite.

Abruptly shoving her away, I snatched up her left hand to inspect it.

There, on the web of her hand, was a glaringly bright red spot. She really did have a needle prick.

All the blood in my veins seemed to turn to ice.

Waverly's eyes flashed as she quickly pulled her hand back. "What's wrong, James? Why are you spacing out?"

I looked her straight in the eyes, asking, "What happened to your hand?"

Her expression never even wavered as she laughed and replied, "The corsage came loose earlier, so I accidentally pricked myself."

The lie came as easily to her as breathing, and she didn't even so much as blink.

Suddenly, this woman, who I had been in love with for the past three years, seemed like a total stranger to me.

On the table, my phone vibrated once more as my future self sent me another slew of messages.

"Do you believe me now? She told you she got hurt while fixing her corsage, didn't she? James, from the get go, this was all just a huge scheme to deceive you.

"Back then, she braved the pouring rain for three entire blocks to buy you some oatmeal, but it actually wasn't even for you. It was because Matt's gastritis was acting up that night.

"Then, there was the time she booked out the entire amusement park to propose to you. That was because Matt was on a date with another woman at that same park that day, and she wanted to provoke him!"

I stared at the words on my screen, unable to stop my fingers from trembling.

All those sweet memories had now become the very daggers that turned on me and hurt me.

I still remembered how Waverly had been utterly drenched from the rain as she handed me the oatmeal she had been cradling protectively to her chest. However, she had then turned right and hid herself away on the balcony, where she was on the phone for over an hour.

The day she had proposed to me at the amusement park, she had been focused on the Ferris wheel in the distance with a dark look in her eyes. She had even put the ring on the wrong finger.

At the time, I had simply assumed that she was too nervous. Now, I understood that she had simply been looking at another man.

I took a deep breath, pushing down the nausea roiling in my gut.

"Waverly Suther, take out the thing you've hidden in the lining of your dress."

At last, there was a change in Waverly's expression. She instinctively placed a hand over her chest.

"James, stop this nonsense. The guests are all waiting for us."

Taking a step forward, I demanded, "I said, take it out! Now!"

In response, Waverly grabbed me by the wrist with surprising strength. The gentleness in her eyes vanished completely, leaving behind nothing but impatience.

"James Lawson, today is our wedding day. Do you have to go crazy at a time like this?"