Chapter 2

I looked at her calmly. "Let's do it, Lauren. Let's cancel the engagement for real this time."

Lauren stared at me in shock. Then, she seemed to remember something and snorted coldly. "Did you forget the last time you tried to leave? You couldn't even last a day before you came back crying and begging me to forgive you.

"What's your plan this time? Same thing? How long will it last? One day? Three days? Don't come crawling back again, crying and begging me like a child!"

I ignored her and walked out without looking back. This time, I held out longer than ever. A whole week passed, and I never once went to see her.

Even when she kept indulging Gregory, provoking me just like before—sending me little updates of their sweet moments together—I still didn't go to her.

The comments were relentless. They were all standing up for Lauren.

"Cameron, do you have any idea how much Lauren misses you? She's been abusing alcohol and has already drunk herself into stomach bleeding!"

"She actually hates Gregory. She only acts close to him to make you jealous!"

Even when being advised by those with an omniscient perspective, I still refused to believe she would get that upset over me.

I still remembered the day of the school anniversary ceremony. Lauren stood on stage as the freshman representative, giving her speech. She shone so brightly that even the spotlight seemed dull beside her.

I fell for her at first sight. So, I gathered all my courage and handed her a love letter. She read it out loud in front of everyone and let the whole crowd laugh at me.

Then, she casually tossed the letter into the trash.

From that day on, I was always the one beneath her. She had no interest in me, so she rejected me time after time. Still, I shamelessly pursued her. Even when she constantly compared me to Gregory, I never resented her.

At last, Lauren agreed to be with me. Even then, she remained distant. I always thought our relationship existed only because I forced it. Thus, I was careful about everything, never daring to go against her.

Now that I knew the truth, I suddenly felt like a complete joke.

I thought we would finally go our separate ways, but Lauren suddenly came looking for me. "Even though our engagement is off, our parents are still out of the loop. Don't you think we should talk to them?"

Honestly, I didn't want anything more to do with her, but Mr. and Mrs. Sink had always been nice to me, so I thought I owed them an explanation.

To my surprise, Lauren didn't take me back to her family home. Instead, she brought me to an event hall. My heart skipped a beat because this was the place I had personally chosen for our wedding.

The decorations for the ceremony, the design of the stage, and even the dishes for the wedding reception had all been my choices. However, since Lauren kept breaking off our engagement, the venue reservation had been canceled just as many times.

Now, ironically, it was filled with guests—relatives and friends of hers were there, along with many big names from the business world and a few media outlets she had invited.

Why did Lauren bring me here? What was with the crowd? Was she planning to marry me today? Had she finally learned how to love me?

I watched as she walked toward me step by step. My heart pounded wildly in my chest. I even started persuading myself that as long as she treated me well from now on, I would forgive her.

Lauren came closer by the second. Just as I was about to reach out, she walked straight past me and took Gregory's hand instead.

At that moment, my heart seemed to stop. The pain was so sharp I could hardly breathe.

Lauren didn't spare me a single glance. She interlocked her fingers with Gregory's and walked up to the stage under everyone's gaze.

She picked up the microphone and announced solemnly to the crowd, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my and Gregory's engagement ceremony. Thank you all for coming to witness our love."

Then, she took out a ring and proposed to him with deep affection in her eyes. "Greg, will you spend the rest of your life with me?"

He nodded excitedly. "Of course!"