홈 / Romance 단편 스토리 / Life Is So Much Sweeter Without You / 챕터 1 - 챕터 10

Life Is So Much Sweeter Without You의 모든 챕터: 챕터 1 - 챕터 10

25 챕터

Chapter 1

On the day Noelle Rutherford found out she was pregnant, she braved the rain to head to a club that was one of Chester Gray's usual haunts.She stood outside a private room and dried her hair with some tissues, wanting to surprise him with the news of her pregnancy when he came out.She heard laughter through the ajar door."Chester, you're supposed to be marrying Noelle in a week. You're gonna surprise her during the wedding, right? Is everything ready?""Yeah," Chester said. His usually calm and composed voice was edged with a hint of drunkenness. "It'll be a day she'll never forget."Noelle paused and smiled sweetly. She and Chester had been together for three years, and he'd truly treated her like a precious treasure, doting on her endlessly.Someone snorted. "Wanna bet she'll have a meltdown when she finds out the truth? She'll lose her mind on the big day when she discovers I've been pretending to be you and playing her this whole time!"Someone else laughed. "She'd never

Chapter 2

Noelle didn't know how she even left the club. Raindrops pelted her, but she felt nothing. All she could think about was the conversation from the private room, which replayed in her mind.Winona Johnson… Whenever that name came up, Noelle couldn't stop shaking.She couldn't understand. Winona had already gone abroad, so why wouldn't she let her go? Why was she hell-bent on destroying her?All of this had happened over a meaningless "campus belle" title. Noelle's candid, barefaced photo had beaten Winona's retouched contest entry, so Winona and her gang had dragged Noelle into the restroom to teach her a lesson. They'd used every cruel trick possible to torment her before shoving her head into a toilet.Noelle had refused to kneel and apologize, so they'd made the next three years of her life a living hell. They'd ganged up to beat her, stabbed her with needles, hidden thumbtacks in her shoes, rallied the entire class to isolate and bully her, wrecked her part-time jobs, and smeare

Chapter 3

Knowing she was heading somewhere dangerous, Noelle decided to give Marie a proper burial. She bought a cremation pendant, tucked a strand of Marie's hair and a pinch of ashes inside, and buried the rest at the cemetery.She kneeled before the headstone, clutching the pendant at her chest. "Grandma, don't worry. I'm about to do what I've always wanted to do, and I'll keep myself safe."By the time Noelle returned to the villa, it was already dusk. The moment she stepped inside, she heard laughter in the living room. She froze, and Chester spotted her at once.He strode over and drew her in. "Come on, let me introduce you to two friends."A man and a woman stood from the couch and turned to look at her, somewhat malicious mischief flickering in their eyes.It was Winona and Simon.Noelle couldn't stop the tremor that ran through her. It was her body's reflex whenever she faced Winona.Chester sounded happy. "Winona is a childhood friend, and Simon is my twin brother. They just go

Chapter 4

Two days later, Chester opened the door with a pleased smile. "Winona's not mad at you for what happened anymore. Clean yourself up—we're going to try on wedding dresses and pick out rings."Noelle was taken to a bridal boutique. As soon as she got out of the car, she saw Winona and Simon already waiting inside.Winona greeted her warmly. "Elle, you're here! I didn't get to congratulate you last time. Chester and I are best friends, so let me keep you company and help you choose the perfect dress today!"She smiled, clearly waiting to see Noelle lose her composure.But Noelle showed neither fear nor disgust. She smiled back and said, "Thank you. I appreciate it."Winona's expression darkened for a split second before she smiled again. Hooking her arms through Chester's and Simon's, she said cryptically, "Then I'll try some on with you. I'm going to be a bride very soon myself."Noelle offered a calm smile. "Congratulations."Winona's gaze turned frosty.From that moment on, any

Chapter 5

Noelle's body went rigid, and her face drained of all color. She threw all her strength into shoving Simon off her and curled up at the head of the bed.He frowned at her before lifting a brow. "Are you still mad?"He rubbed his temples, his mannerisms exactly like Chester's. Even his voice, soaked with alcohol, was indistinguishable.If Noelle hadn't heard that Chester had kept himself chaste for Winona, she wouldn't have been able to tell them apart.Simon leaned in again, caging her in with his arms on either side of her, their noses nearly touching. "I already told you that if I had feelings for Winona, you and I would never be getting married."He moved to kiss her. Her eyes widened, and she jerked aside, gagging.She retched until her eyes turned red; she couldn't stop. She shoved Simon away and ran for the bathroom.He watched her, his brows knitting and eyes glinting.In the bathroom, Noelle slid down the wall, ending up in a squat on the floor. Outside the door, Simon'

Chapter 6

"Winona!" Simon, who was beside Winona, caught her. "Chester, Winona looks like she's having an allergic reaction!"Chester froze mid-stride, remembering that Noelle had ordered seafood broth during the meal. His expression went cold in an instant as he turned and stormed over to Noelle.She'd already hitched up her skirt and was about to inject herself. Suddenly, a hand clamped down on her wrist without warning and yanked the EpiPen out of her grip.She looked up in disbelief and met Chester's icy gaze. "You caused Winona to have an allergic reaction. She needs the medication first!"With that, he marched straight to Winona and swiftly administered the injection without the slightest bit of hesitation.Sensing Noelle's stare, Simon said coolly, "You're a doctor, Noelle. You should have other ways of saving yourself. Winona doesn't know anything—she needs the EpiPen more."Chester finished the injection, scooped Winona into his arms, and rushed out. Simon chased after them. "I'll

Chapter 7

Winona's lips curled into a nasty smile. "You saw my social media updates, right? And here I thought you would keep putting on that holier-than-thou act. You wanted me dead so badly in the past, yet here you are, putting up with anything just to marry into the Gray family."Noelle kept her gaze on the necklace dangling from Winona's hand. She dug her nails into her palm and snarled, "Give me back my necklace!"Winona shifted it a bit further past the windowsill. "Get on your knees and prostrate yourself before me if you want it. Admit you're a pathetic hypocrite.""Never!" Noelle shook with rage. "Don't push me too far, Winona!"Winona laughed meanly. "Is this the first time you've realized just how far I can push? That stubborn attitude of yours and your refusal to bend to anyone's will is what I hate most about you. If you'd just kneeled to me back then, I wouldn't have kept targeting you for years."You've seen how much I mean to Chester. Here's the deal—grovel at my feet and b

Chapter 8

Noelle was led to a bungee platform at the mountaintop. The tower rose over 300 feet, and the cliff yawned beneath her feet. The second she stepped onto it, her face went chalk-white, and her legs started to shake.Chester's and Simon's expressions remained icy. They took the safety locks from the staff and personally buckled them on her, forcing her to the edge of the jump platform.Noelle stared into the abyss below, her whole body going rigid. All she could hear was the thundering of her own heartbeat. Her voice trembled. "Chester, you know I'm terrified of heights…""I know." He looked at her without a flicker of emotion. "Since you tried to push Winona out the window, I'll give you a taste of what it's like to fall. This is the punishment you deserve, Elle. The lady of the Gray household can't be a vicious woman. Learn your lesson today. If you're sincere about correcting your errors, we'll get married as planned."Simon pressed his lips into a hard line, his gaze clouded over

Chapter 9

Noelle searched the junkyard for an entire day. The moment she found the necklace, the tears she'd been holding back finally fell.But the next second, she realized the pendant was empty. The hair and ashes she'd stored inside were gone.Her head buzzed, and she ran for the hospital with the necklace clutched in her hand. Just as she reached the entrance, she ran into Winona, who had been discharged.Winona covered her nose and stepped back with exaggerated disgust. "Which dumpster did this piece of garbage crawl out of?"Noelle stared her down. "Where are the things that were in my pendant?"Winona glanced at the necklace in Noelle's hand and suddenly laughed. "You mean that filthy stuff? I dumped them in the toilet and flushed them away ages ago.""Winona Johnson!" Noelle shook with fury. Her ears buzzed, and her eyes blazed with hatred.She lunged forward, grabbed Winona by the collar, and slapped her hard across the face with all her strength.Winona staggered backward, clu

Chapter 10

At the wedding venue, Chester wore a groom's tuxedo, while Simon and Winona were dressed as the best man and maid of honor.The ceremony was a simple garden one, and the guests were all young, familiar faces. Every guest knew exactly what they were waiting for—the show to begin.When the livestream crew walked in, Chester froze for a beat and stepped forward to ask what they were doing there. He frowned when he heard Noelle had hired them.Yes, he wanted to punish Noelle, but he had no intention of making the debacle public. If this went out live to the whole Internet, it would wreck her future career and life."I'm sorry, but it's inconvenient to livestream today's wedding. Please—"Before he could finish, Winona came over and tugged on his sleeve. She said sweetly, "Chester, since Elle invited them, we should respect her wishes."She stood between the brothers and waved at the camera. "Hi, everyone. I'm today's maid of honor and a childhood friend of both the groom and his best

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