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Lahat ng Kabanata ng After My Fiancée Bailed 50 Times, I Went Home to Be CEO: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 9

9 Kabanata

Chapter 1

Today was supposed to be our fiftieth wedding ceremony.This time, I didn’t invite a crowd. Just our families.I was running a fever, but I went over every detail with the planner anyway. Selene didn’t help. Didn’t even ask a question.She hadn’t finished her bridal makeup. She was too busy fussing over Kaelen, who’d supposedly sprained his ankle on the way here.My parents watched, shaking their heads. It’s not worth it, their eyes said.“Forty-nine times,” my mom whispered. “She doesn’t care about you, son.”Everyone knew how badly I wanted this wedding to actually happen.But when it was time to walk down the aisle, Selene refused. Again. Canceled. Again.I followed her outside. She stopped me at the door.“Kaelen might have a fracture. It’s serious. I have to take him to the ER.”“Cancel this one, too. We’ll do it next time. I promise I won’t run off next time.”She pulled her arm from my grip, helped Kaelen into her car, and drove away.Five years. Fifty canceled weddings. All bec

Chapter 2

After everyone left, my parents stayed. The empty hall felt huge and quiet.My mom put her hand over mine. "Come home to Houston with us."They'd asked before. Many times.I sank into the chair, tired down to my bones. I looked at them. Their eyes were full of hope, and it hurt to see.My family runs the biggest private hospital in Houston. I became a doctor because of them. Their plan was simple: I'd finish school, train at our hospital, and take over one day.Then I met Selene during my Ph.D. She was sharp, driven, and from a small town. She hated "trust fund doctors." So for five years, I never told her the truth. I let her think we were the same—two people who made it on our own.And we did. I built a reputation. We won awards together. People called us the perfect pair. Telling her my secret seemed pointless. Why ruin a good thing?Now, it didn't matter anymore."Alright," I said, the word flat. "I'll come home."Relief washed over their faces. My mom's eyes got shiny. "I'll book

Chapter 3

I submitted my resignation and began handing off my cases.The doctor taking over was Miles, a friend. He wasn’t happy. “You’re really leaving? You’re just going to let Selene stay with that guy?”We both looked over. Selene was scolding Kaelen about something, but he just laughed and slid a small, shiny ring onto her finger.Right where her wedding ring should have been.She smiled, then caught me looking and hid her hand.Kaelen raised his voice. “It’s just a thank-you gift, Dr. Dean. Don’t get the wrong idea.”Everyone’s eyes darted between us.Five years, and Selene had never bought me anything expensive. Everyone thought I was a small-town guy like her. They all felt sorry for me.Even Miles was fuming. “That’s your fiancée. They’re making a fool of you.”I held him back and studied Kaelen. “You put a lot of thought into that gift?”Kaelen shifted. “It’s just a ring. Don’t be so sensitive.”I almost laughed. I could tell it was fake from here. The cheap kind.The real one was in m

Chapter 4

Back in Kaelen's apartment, the air was thick and close. Selene stared at her phone screen until the numbers blurred. The robotic voice on repeat was the only sound in the room.The number you have dialed is not in service…She’d lost count of how many times she’d called. Every time, the same cold message.Kaelen’s warmth pressed against her back. His arms slid around her waist, his hands settling low on her hips. His chin rested on her shoulder, his breath warm against her neck. “Forget it, Selene. He’s just throwing another tantrum. The silent treatment. It’s his old trick.” His voice was a low murmur, his lips grazing her skin. One hand slid upwards, his fingers brushing the side of her breast through the thin fabric of her shirt. “He’ll come crawling back when he’s bored. They always do.”His other hand began to tug at the hem of her shirt, his touch insistent. For a moment, the distraction was almost welcome. She leaned back slightly into his solid chest, her eyes closing.“S

Chapter 5

Selene caught the department head just outside his office. “Robert. Did Dean resign?” Her voice was tight, breathless.Robert paused, adjusting his glasses. He looked at her with something close to pity. “He did. This morning.” He hesitated, choosing his words. “He said… he’d explain it to you himself. If you gave him the chance to.”The words landed like a physical blow. Selene froze, the hallway seeming to tilt. Memories, sharp and unwelcome, flashed behind her eyes—Dean trying to talk to her in the cafeteria, only for Kaelen to barge in with a “quick question.” Dean waiting by her car after a long shift, while she stayed inside finishing up Kaelen’s charts. Her gaze, her focus, had always drifted past him, settling on the louder, needier presence. She’d made Dean a spectator in his own life.“Where did he go?” The plea cracked in her throat.Robert sighed, a sound of finality. “How should I know? He didn’t leave a forwarding address. Call him yourself.”But she couldn’t. The di

Chapter 6

The plane touched down in Houston late. Past midnight. The airport was quiet. Stepping into the humid Texas air felt like stepping into a different life.There, under the harsh fluorescent lights of arrivals, were my parents. My dad, who was usually asleep by nine, and my mom, who never missed her eight hours. They both looked tired, but their eyes were wide awake, fixed on the doors.“Dean,” my mom breathed out, the word full of relief.I walked over and hugged them. The familiar scent of my mom’s perfume and my dad’s starch hit me, a solid, real thing. “I’m home,” I said into my mom’s shoulder. My dad clapped a heavy hand on my back. “Welcome back, son.”They gave me a couple of days. To sleep. To stare at the ceiling of my old room. To just exist without the constant, low-grade panic of waiting for a text, for a call, for another cancellation.Then, I started at the hospital.Thorne Memorial. My family’s place. My dad had kept it quiet. No announcements. No “founder’s son” fanfa

Chapter 7

Her fingers, cold and insistent, closed over mine, forcing the repaired watch into my palm. “Just take it,” she pleaded, her voice breaking. “You loved it once.”I looked down at it. The mended crystal gleamed under the porch light, a perfect, pathetic lie. A laugh escaped me. Then, in one smooth motion, I drew back my arm and pitched it toward the large black trash bin at the end of the walkway. It hit the metal side with a sharp crackbefore tumbling inside. The glass, I knew, was shattered once more.Selene’s eyes went wide with horror, as if I’d thrown away a living thing.Fresh tears spilled over. “You… you treasured that watch…”“I treasured a promise,” I said, my voice flat and final. “I loved you. Now, everything that reminds me of you just makes me sick to my stomach.”I’d only seen her cry like this twice before: once over a stolen wallet, and now. I used to hate her tears. They’d twist something inside me, make me want to fix whatever was wrong. Now, they were just sa

Chapter 8

I thought she’d leave Houston after that.Instead, she tricked a colleague into setting me up. I arrived at what I thought was a work dinner, only to find Selene in the wedding dress I’d bought her, surrounded by coworkers.“Dean, will you marry me?” she asked, as people chanted, “Say yes!”Rage shot through me. After all her harassment, how did she think this would work?“Selene, you disgust me.”Her eyes welled up. “I’m trying to make up for everything! Isn’t that enough?”I pulled out my phone. “Should I call Kaelen to join us?”She slapped me. The room went silent.Someone asked, “She said you were together… just a misunderstanding.”“No misunderstanding,” I said calmly. “I loved her. She cheated on me with her intern.”The crowd fell quiet. Selene tried to reach for me. I stepped back.“I know I was wrong,” she sobbed. “Kaelen… he reminded me of us when we were young. I got confused. But it’s always been you. I’ll plan fifty more weddings if I have to. Just give me another chance.

Chapter 9

The relief was profound. I was judged on my work, not my pedigree.I used my vacation time to see the world. Not the rushed, distracted trips of before, but real travel. I trekked in Patagonia, scuba-dived in the Silfra fissure, watched the sunrise over the Himalayas. The world was vast and awe-inspiring, and my own heartache felt small, manageable against its scale.Years slipped by. My practice grew. Wonderful, smart, kind women came into my orbit—colleagues, friends of friends. I enjoyed their company, but kept a gentle, unbreachable distance. I was content. Not happy, perhaps, but peacefully whole. The scars had healed over, strong, if not pretty.I had almost forgotten about Selene. She was a ghost from another life.Then, an invitation landed in my inbox for the International Cardio thoracic Summit in New York. Five years ago, the very idea would have sent me into a tailspin. Now, I felt only a detached curiosity. I clicked ‘Accept.’The conference was at my old hospital. Walki

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