All Chapters of Substitute No More: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

One week before the wedding, Justin took me all over Riverstone to complete the “100 Things Every Couple Must Do Together” list that my younger sister, Stella, had written before she passed away.When we reached the final item on the list, Justin handed me Stella’s wedding dress and got down on one knee to propose.“Eva, be careful putting this on. Don’t ruin it. It’s Stella’s dress, and you’ll be wearing it at our wedding too. You in this dress will help me fulfill my dream of marrying her.”My mother, Sandra, stood nearby, wiping tears from her eyes. She pulled a small ring box from her coat and placed it in Justin’s hand.“This was Stella’s. Let this be the ring you use to propose. It’ll be like you’re proposing to her, too.”I stood there in that oversized dress, looking ridiculous. Justin reached out to slip the ring onto my finger, not even asking me if I was willing.I ripped off the veil and knocked the ring from his hand.“I thought choosing me meant you were starting

Not long after Justin left, Sandra came to comfort me.She sat down beside me and gently took my hand as she said, “Eva, I know today was hard for you. You’re my daughter, too. Of course, I feel for you.“Be good, alright? Justin is someone you can trust with your future. He just gets a little stubborn sometimes.“I’ll help keep an eye on the wedding planning. I won’t let you suffer anymore.”Hearing her words, I buried myself in her arms and cried. At that moment, it felt like only family could ever truly love me.Later that night, though, as I passed by the study, I overheard something that shattered my heart.“I really wish I could have seen Stella get married. We asked Eva to help fulfill that dream, and she still won’t cooperate. She’s so ungrateful!”“There, there, my dear. Don’t be upset. Eva grew up in the countryside. How could she ever compare to our Stella?“But now that Stella’s gone, we still need to keep ties with the Davidsons. Right now, it’s all about keeping E

I didn’t pay attention to the chaos behind me. I ran straight to the street and caught a cab to the care facility Justin had mentioned before.When I arrived, I rushed to the gate and forced a smile as I approached the security guard.“Sir, do you know if the missing elderly woman has been found yet?”“I don’t think so. They said she has Alzheimer’s. It’s not easy to find someone like that. She disappeared while the nurse stepped out to get her medication.”Hearing his answer, I couldn’t hold back my tears.“Thank you, Sir. She’s my grandma.”When the guard saw how upset I was, he realized this wasn’t just any elderly woman to me. He scratched his head awkwardly and tried to comfort me.“Sorry, I didn’t know you were her granddaughter. Don’t worry, keep looking and you’ll find her. Oh, right, I overheard my captain say she was talking about buying caramel candies for her granddaughter before she went missing.”His words hit me like a wave. I remembered Grandma once told me her

Justin yanked off his tie and collapsed onto the couch, realizing then he'd gone too far.He was the one who had hurt Eva the most and cut her heart open, piece by piece.Thinking he was being loyal to honor Stella’s so-called sacrifice, it led him to push Eva to compromise again and again.Instead of seeing who was actually worth his love, he used it as a weapon and trapped Eva in despair.His selfishness and arrogance had cost him the one person who loved him the most.Suddenly, the front door opened. Justin turned his head sharply.He thought for a moment that Eva had come back. However, walking in was Eva’s only friend in Riverstone, Hannah.She stormed toward him, eyes red with tears, and grabbed him by the collar.“Justin, what the hell is wrong with you?! Do you have any idea how much Eva loved you? And you still hurt her like that!”Justin didn’t resist. He let Hannah slap him across the face, the pain in his eyes clear to see.Hannah froze, surprised by the way he lo

People started gathering around, but Justin didn’t care. He stayed on his knees, pleading.“Eva, I know I’ve messed up badly. But I can’t live without you. You’re everything to me. Please, don’t leave me.”My mind filled with memories. I closed my eyes and said coldly, “Justin, ever since Stella passed, all you’ve done is push me farther away. You knew it, didn’t you? But you still didn’t stop.“You’ve never been treated like a substitute by the person you loved most. You’ve never been abandoned so many times like I was.“You hurt my body, trampled on my dignity, and wouldn’t even spare the people closest to me. So, what right do you have to ask me to come back now?“I don’t want anything to do with you.”As I spoke, Justin’s eyes turned red, tears slipping silently down his face.I watched as he clutched the front of his shirt, like that could ease his heartache.All of this, I had once endured alone. Yet no one had felt sorry for me then.I thought he would leave after tha