The TWO RED LINES that CHANGED EVERYTHING

CHAPTER 1 ...

SHARON'S POV

I sat helplessly on the cold bathroom floor, staring at the plastic pregnancy test strip lying between my feet.

Tears rolled down my cheeks, hot and unstoppable.

What the hell did I just do?

How could I have made such a ruinous mistake just weeks before my wedding? My mind raced, forcefully dragging me back to the night of the party I had attended with my friends.

FLASHBACK...

We were sitting in my car, parked just outside the neon-lit clubhouse. I turned to my friends, an anxious, hesitant smile spreading across my face.

"Sharon, don't you dare chicken out now," Lili, my best friend, nudged me with a mischievous grin. "You said you wanted to do this. You said you didn't want to get married to Gary as a clueless virgin who doesn't even know how to please a guy. Sweetie, this is your chance to break down that wall you've been holding up for years. You're not married yet. Go find a guy in there, have some fun, and act like nothing happened tomorrow."

"Lili's right," Billy, my second bestie, chimed in supportively. "You have every right to let loose. It was your decision to come here, and honestly, I respect you for wanting to experience someone else before binding yourself to the man you've loved all your life."

Numbly, I nodded in agreement. We stepped out of the car and into the flashing lights of the club.

Hours later, the world was a blur. We were completely wasted, laughing hysterically at every whispered word like fools.

Needing to clear my head, I excused myself to use the restroom. On my way out, I bumped into him. To this day, I still can’t recall his face or what he even looked like. We were both profoundly drunk, our inhibitions entirely dissolved by the alcohol and a sudden, reckless surge of hormones.

We did it right there, locked in one of the bathroom stalls.

FLASHBACK ENDS...

"Argh!" I groaned in frustration, my eyes snapping back to the present, locked onto the test strip.

What was I thinking? This can't be true. It has to be a faulty test. I need to get another one.

Panic surging through my veins, I sprinted out of the bathroom and out of the building. I threw myself into my car, speeding down to the nearest 24-hour pharmacy. I grabbed a fresh pregnancy test, rushed back home, and forced myself to wait patiently for two agonizing hours so I could take it again.

My heart raced heavily with every tick of the wall clock.

The moment the two hours were up, I dashed back into the bathroom and took the second test. Minutes bled by. Then, the two cruel red lines appeared, bold and visible.

I grabbed my hair, pulling at the roots in sheer frustration.

"This can't be happening... I can't do this to Gary, not when our wedding is tomorrow." I choked on a sob, wiping the tears from my face. "How am I supposed to make him the father of a child when I don't even know who the biological father is? Not after refusing to have sex with him the entire time we've been together. This is beyond betrayal..."

Suddenly, my phone blared from the living room.

I rushed out. The screen flashed with Gary's name.

"Dammit! Speak of the devil..." I gasped. My heart dropped directly into my stomach as the ringtone echoed through the empty apartment.

Unable to bring myself to answer, I slid down to the floor, waiting for the call to drop. But it was as if Gary could sense something was wrong. The phone immediately began to ring again.

Sluggishly, I swiped to answer and placed it on loudspeaker, my hands trembling too badly to hold it to my ear.

"Baby, are you okay? You haven't been answering your calls," his warm, familiar voice echoed through the room.

I pressed my lips together, fresh tears spilling over. It was supposed to be a one-night mistake... What do I do? Gary, would you have accepted this child as your own? Will you ever be able to forgive me if you find out after the wedding?

I cleared my throat, desperately trying to anchor my voice. Out of everyone in my life, Gary knew me best. He could read my expressions from a mile away and catch a lie in a single breath.

"I was just in the bathroom," I lied, forcing a cheerful tone as I stared at the phone on the floor. "Seeing your calls... I can tell you're anxious for our big day tomorrow. Are you ready to be Sharon's husband?"

I heard his soft, relieved giggle from the other end. "Of course. I've never been more ready. By the way, your mum called... She said you refused to go home for your bridal shower. Do you still feel uncomfortable around her?" he asked cautiously.

I massaged my throbbing temples. Claire. My so-called stepmother, who would do absolutely anything to see me fail and be destroyed. Getting married to Gary was one of the few things she tried desperately to stop, but failed. She had been married to my dad for ten years now, but even with me being twenty-seven, she never missed an opportunity to display her textbook evil stepmother traits.

"You mean my stepmother," I corrected bitterly. "I chose to have a small bridal shower at my apartment instead. Seeing them right now would just ruin my mood. Speaking of which, Lili told me to grab us some wine for tonight. Baby, I hate to run, but I need to dash out and get it before the shops close."

"It's fine, baby. Go ahead. I love you," he murmured.

I disconnected the call without returning the sentiment.

I stared at the black screen, guilt eating away at every fiber of my being. How am I supposed to say 'I love you too' when I'm carrying a stranger's child?

I exhaled deeply, trying to steel my resolve. I’ll get the wedding over with first. I’ll handle whatever consequences follow after.

Glancing down at my flat belly, I grabbed my car keys and bolted out the door to the wine shop.

Forty minutes later, I unlocked the door to my apartment, carrying the bag of wine. But the moment I stepped into the living room, a sudden, violent chill swept over me.

The air was thick with the scent of Gary's cologne.

Goosebumps erupted across my arms. My eyes darted around the room in a panic. Then, the bathroom door opened, and Gary stepped out.

In his hand, he held the two pregnancy test sticks I had frantically left on the counter.

The shopping bag slipped from my fingers, hitting the floor with a heavy thud. I heard the sharp crack of glass breaking and the smell of wine blooming in the air, but I didn't care. None of it mattered. Not when Gary was staring at me as if he had just seen a ghost.

I tried to step forward, but my legs felt like lead.

"Sha... Sharon, please tell me these aren't yours," he whispered, his voice cracking with emotion.

I tried to maintain a calm facade, but my body betrayed me. The moment his question hung in the air, tears streamed down my face.

He took long, predatory strides toward me, completely closing the distance between us.

"I'll repeat my question..." His voice stripped away all warmth, turning cold and icy. "This isn't yours, right?"

I blinked nervously, desperately trying to avoid his piercing gaze, but he reached out and grabbed my wrist firmly.

"Sharon, say something! Did you cheat on me? Whose child is it? Because it’s obviously not mine! Was there someone else? Is that why you always refused to let me touch you, or spend the night with you? Were you seeing someone else this whole time?!" he yelled, tears finally spilling from his own eyes.

My lips remained glued shut. I couldn't find the words, couldn't voice the ugly truth. I could only stand there as my tears soaked the collar of my shirt.

Seeing my silence as a confession, he violently shoved my hand away. In a fit of pure, unadulterated rage, he pulled the velvet box containing our wedding bands from his pocket and hurled it angrily at the floor.

"We're done, Sharon. The wedding is off. I'll speak to my parents. Don't you dare try to reach out to me!" he roared, his voice trembling with the agony of betrayal.

He stomped past me, threw open the front door, and slammed it so hard the walls rattled.

The moment the lock clicked, my knees gave out. I collapsed onto the floor, sobbing heavily into my hands.

He’s right. He doesn't deserve this. None of it. He’s been loyal and faithful to me from day one. He deserves so much better, I thought through my tears.

Then, a bitter, defensive thought pierced through my grief. "But... I deserved better, too," I whispered to the empty room.

HOURS LATER

After hours of wailing until my throat was raw, my phone buzzed. It was a text message from our wedding planner.

Miss Sharon, you need to drop by our office today. We need your signature for the event cancellation. Mr. Gary has already signed his portion; we just need yours to finalize it.

Reading the text felt like a fresh twist of a knife in my chest.

I sniffed tiredly, reaching out blindly to grab a tissue, but the box was empty.

Exhaling a ragged breath, I forced myself to stand. Reality hit me harder with every passing second. He was really ending it. I guess the love you felt for me wasn't deep enough to fight through this, I thought bitterly, trying to stop myself from spiraling back into tears.

I walked into the bedroom, pulled a simple dress from the closet, and changed. Slipping on a pair of dark sunglasses to hide my swollen eyes, I left for the event planning agency.

When I arrived at the building, I dragged my feet through the lobby, dreading what I was about to do. I reached the planner’s office and reached for the doorknob, but before I could turn it, the door swung open from the inside.

A tall man rushed out, colliding directly into me.

Because he was in such a hurry, he hadn't seen me standing there. The impact threw me off balance, but with lightning-fast reflexes, his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me into a brief, steady embrace to keep me from falling.

"Are you okay?" he asked, quickly releasing me.

But before I could answer, his gaze snapped toward the end of the lobby. A horde of reporters had just burst through the entrance, sprinting frantically in our direction with cameras raised.

Without a word, the stranger grabbed my wrist, yanked me backward into the office, and slammed the door shut, locking it.

My heart hammered against my ribs in shock. What is going on? I thought, trying to process the chaos. I lightly shoved his hand off my wrist.

"Oh, Miss Sharon... you're here," the event planner said politely from behind her desk. "Have you made up your mind to cancel the wedding?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but my phone vibrated violently in my hand. It was a call from Claire.

I let it ring out. The moment it went to voicemail, a text message flashed on the screen.

I still don't believe Gary is actually going to marry you. You've carried bad luck with you since you were a child, so I wouldn't be surprised if the wedding falls through. Just so I don't waste my time traveling to the venue tomorrow, send me a confirmation text that it's still happening.

I clutched the phone so hard my knuckles turned white.

If Claire got even a hint that Gary and I broke up, it would give her the ultimate satisfaction she had been praying for. How was I going to fix this? My dad would probably disown me if he found out the wedding was canceled a day before the ceremony. And what about my reputation at the company? Could I really live with the stigma of being the pathetic girl whose groom dumped her at the altar?

I hesitated, unable to give the planner an answer.

Suddenly, the stranger who had pulled me into the room stepped forward, positioning himself directly in front of me, his back to me.

"Cancel hers," he commanded the planner, his voice deep and authoritative. "But renew mine."

I glared at his broad back, furious that a total stranger was making a hasty decision about my life.

Then, he spun around to face me. His towering figure completely overshadowed mine, his eyes locking onto mine with intense determination.

"Get married to me tomorrow, Sharon," he said boldly.