Chapter 6: Public Humiliation

The air between Damien and Ariana felt suffocating. They stood facing each other in the hallway outside the charity luncheon while the photographs remained clenched tightly in Damien’s hand.

 

Ariana’s chest rose unevenly. “Damien, please listen to me first.”

 

His eyes looked terrifyingly emotionless.

 

“Then explain.”

 

“I already told you, those photos were planned.”

 

Damien laughed bitterly. “Planned?”

 

“Yes!”

 

“Convenient answer.”

 

Pain crashed heavily inside Ariana’s chest. She had never seen him look at her like this before. Not even during the beginning of their contract marriage. This time, the anger inside his eyes looked personal. Ariana took a shaky breath.

 

“That man was my former coworker. He approached me because someone paid him to deliver those pictures to you.”

 

“And you expect me to believe that?”

 

“It’s true!”

 

Damien stepped closer slowly.

 

 

“Do you know what your problem is, Ariana?” Her throat tightened. “You look innocent even while lying.”

 

The words stabbed her brutally. Tears instantly filled her eyes.

 

“I’m not lying.”

 

But Damien already looked consumed by his own anger. Or maybe by old wounds that never healed. Selene betrayed him before. And now, history seemed to be repeating itself inside his head. He clenched the photographs tighter.

 

“How long have you been meeting him behind my back?”

 

“I wasn’t!”

 

“Then why hide it?”

 

“I didn’t hide anything!”

 

“Really?” Damien’s voice became colder. “Because lately you’ve been avoiding me. Acting nervous. Keeping secrets.”

 

Ariana froze. Fear flashed across her face too quickly. And Damien noticed. His jaw tightened dangerously.

 

“There is something else.”

 

Her hands trembled instantly.

 

“No—”

 

“What are you hiding?”

 

Ariana instinctively stepped backward. She couldn’t tell him. Not like this. Not while he looked at her with so much hatred. Damien stared at her silence and misunderstood it immediately.

 

His eyes darkened further. “Unbelievable.”

 

“Damien…”

 

“You’re exactly like her.”

 

The comparison shattered Ariana completely.

 

Selene. The woman who destroyed him. The woman he hated. And now he was placing Ariana in the same category.

 

Ariana’s voice cracked painfully. “I am not Selene.”

 

“But you lied just as easily.”

 

“I DIDN’T CHEAT ON YOU!”

 

Several people nearby began staring after hearing her raised voice. Ariana quickly realized where they were. A public charity event. People were already whispering, watching and judging. But Damien no longer seemed to care. His anger had completely taken over.

 

“Save the performance for someone else.”

 

Tears slipped down Ariana’s cheeks. “You’re hurting me.”

 

Damien laughed coldly. “You think you’re the victim here?”

 

The cruelty in his voice felt unbearable. Ariana looked at him helplessly.

 

“I never gave you a reason to doubt me before this.”

 

“But now you did.”

 

 

Then suddenly, Damien grabbed her wrist firmly.

 

“We’re leaving.”

 

Ariana looked shocked. “What?”

 

“We’re ending this conversation properly.”

 

Before she could protest, Damien pulled her toward the ballroom again. Toward hundreds of people. Toward humiliation. The moment they entered, conversations slowly died down. Everyone noticed the tension immediately. Especially because Ariana was visibly crying. Selene, seated elegantly near the center table, smiled faintly the moment she saw them. Everything was unfolding perfectly. Damien stopped walking near the middle of the ballroom. Then he faced Ariana fully. The entire room silently watched.

 

“Ariana,” he spoke coldly enough for nearby guests to hear, “tell everyone the truth.”

 

Her face turned pale. “Damien…”

 

“You wanted honesty, didn’t you?”

 

Humiliation crashed into her violently. People were already whispering again.

 

“Oh my God…”

 

“Are they fighting?”

 

“What happened?”

 

Ariana’s breathing became uneven.

 

“Please,” she whispered shakily. “Not here.”

 

But Damien was no longer thinking rationally. Old trauma had blinded him completely. The photographs. The secrecy. Her nervous behavior lately. Everything combined into one painful conclusion inside his mind. And he hated himself for caring this much. Damien held up the photos. The crowd immediately gasped. Ariana’s face lost all color.

 

“She’s cheating?”

 

“Mrs. Monteverde?”

 

“How embarrassing…”

 

Ariana felt like the floor beneath her disappeared.

 

“Stop…” she whispered weakly.

 

Damien’s voice remained merciless.

 

“Who is he?”

 

People around them stared openly now. Some looked entertained and others disgusted. Ariana’s dignity crumbled piece by piece.

 

“It’s not what it looks like.”

 

“Then explain it.”

 

“I can’t.”

 

Damien’s expression hardened further.

 

“Exactly.”

 

Ariana looked at him desperately. Because no matter what she said— she had no proof. Only suspicions and fear.

 

Meanwhile, Selene quietly watched from a distance while sipping wine elegantly. She's satisfied. Everything was finally collapsing. Vanessa looked uncomfortable for the first time.

 

“Damien,” she muttered carefully, “maybe you should calm down.”

 

But Damien ignored her. His eyes remained locked on Ariana.

 

“You embarrassed me.”

 

Those words hurt more than anything else. Not because he was angry— But because his pride mattered more than her pain. Ariana shook her head while tears continued falling endlessly.

 

“I never wanted to hurt you.”

 

Damien laughed bitterly. “That’s exactly what she said too.”

 

Again. Selene again. Ariana suddenly understood something heartbreaking. Damien never truly saw her separately from his past trauma.

 

Ariana wiped her tears shakily. “You already judged me before hearing my side.”

 

“Because your silence already answered enough.”

 

Pain exploded inside her chest.

 

“No,” she whispered brokenly. “Your fear answered for you.”

 

The room became silent. Even Damien froze slightly. But Ariana continued despite trembling.

 

“You’re so terrified of being betrayed again that you destroy people before they can even hurt you.”

 

Damien’s jaw tightened. “That's not true.”

 

“You never trusted me from the beginning.”

 

“Ariana.”

 

“You only saw me as another woman waiting to disappoint you.”

 

The vulnerability in her voice unexpectedly shook him. But before Damien could respond— Selene finally stood up dramatically.

 

“Maybe this conversation should happen privately.”

 

Ariana immediately looked toward her. And suddenly— Everything clicked harder. Selene wanted this. Every second. Every humiliation. Ariana’s eyes filled with quiet rage. But without proof, nobody would believe her. Especially not Damien.  Selene slowly approached them with fake concern.

 

“Ariana looks overwhelmed.”

 

Damien’s expression remained cold.

 

“She should’ve thought about that before embarrassing this family.”

 

The moment those words left his mouth— Something inside Ariana finally broke. Completely. Because despite everything… Despite all the small moments between them… Damien still chose cruelty. Ariana stared at him silently for several painful seconds. Then slowly— she removed her wedding ring. The entire ballroom gasped softly. Damien froze. Ariana placed the ring into his hand with trembling fingers.

 

“If hating me makes things easier for you,” she whispered shakily, “then fine.” Her voice cracked completely afterward. 

 

“But one day, Damien… you’ll realize you destroyed someone who never betrayed you.”

 

Then she turned around and walked away while everyone watched. Damien instinctively clenched the ring tightly. Something painful twisted violently inside his chest as he watched Ariana disappear. But pride and anger kept him frozen in place.

 

Meanwhile, Selene smiled quietly beside him. Exactly according to plan. Ariana locked herself inside the hotel bathroom moments later. The second the door closed— she collapsed. A sob escaped her lips instantly. Pain crashed into her uncontrollably. She covered her mouth while crying helplessly on the bathroom floor. Everything hurt. Her heart, her dignity... her marriage. Ariana hugged herself tightly while trembling violently.

 

“Why…” she whispered brokenly.

 

She tried so hard. So hard to survive inside Damien’s world. But in the end— he still destroyed her publicly like she meant nothing. Fresh tears poured endlessly down her face. Then suddenly, Ariana’s hands instinctively moved toward her stomach. Her baby.

 

Another sob escaped her lips.

 

“I’m sorry…” she cried softly. “I’m so sorry…”

 

She leaned against the bathroom wall while protecting her stomach carefully.

 

“I’m sorry your father hates me.”

 

The words shattered her even more. Because despite everything, part of her still loved Damien. And that was the cruelest part. Ariana closed her eyes tightly while tears continued falling.

 

“I’ll protect you,” she whispered to her unborn child. “No matter what happens to me… I’ll protect you.”

 

Outside the bathroom, Damien stood silently in the empty hallway. His breathing felt uneven and heavy. He stared at Ariana’s wedding ring still resting inside his palm. For some reason… the image of her crying refused to leave his mind.

 

“You already judged me before hearing my side.”

 

Her words echoed painfully inside his head. Damien clenched his jaw tightly.

 

No.

 

He wasn’t wrong. He couldn’t be wrong. The photos were real. Her behavior was suspicious. And yet— why did he feel so angry at himself too? 

 

Suddenly, footsteps approached him. Selene. She gently touched his arm.

 

“You did the right thing.”

 

Damien immediately pulled away. Selene’s smile weakened slightly.

 

“She lied to you.”

 

“I know.”

 

But strangely… his voice lacked certainty now. Selene noticed immediately. Dangerous. So she stepped closer.

 

“Damien, don’t let another woman manipulate you again.”

 

Another woman. The words irritated him unexpectedly. Because despite his anger— something deep inside him still wanted to believe Ariana. But his trauma screamed louder.

 

Trust no one.

 

Love no one.

 

Before Damien could think further, the bathroom door suddenly opened. Ariana stepped out quietly. Her eyes were swollen red from crying. But her expression had become strangely calm now. Empty and somehow— that frightened Damien more than her tears. Ariana completely ignored Selene’s presence. She only looked at Damien once.

 

No anger.

 

No begging.

 

No explanation.

 

Just pain.

 

Then she spoke softly. “I want to go home.”

 

Damien’s chest tightened unexpectedly. But he nodded silently anyway. The ride back to the mansion became unbearable. Silence filled the car completely. Ariana stared outside the window while hugging herself quietly.

 

Meanwhile, Damien kept glancing at her unconsciously. She looked fragile. Too fragile. And for the first time since their argument started, guilt slowly crept inside him. But pride still stopped him from apologizing.

 

When they finally arrived at the mansion, Ariana immediately walked upstairs without another word. Damien watched her disappear. Then slowly looked down at the wedding ring again. Something inside him felt wrong. Terribly wrong but unfortunately. By the time Damien Monteverde finally realized the depth of Ariana’s pain… It would already be too late.