All Chapters of A Joke Proved He Never Loved Me: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Shortly after I posted on Instagram, my best friend, Tara Starr, called me."Heather, did Jared cheat on you? I'll buy a ticket back to Lunaton right now and help you settle the score with him!"I was slightly taken aback by her intensity. Cheating? It probably hadn't reached that point yet.But cheating wasn't the only reason to break up with Jared Foley. Ever since I saw those long, elaborate messages Jared sent to Paige Sherwood—while all I ever got from him were replies like "Okay," "Oh," or "Got it,"—I had come to realize something painful. When it came to matters of the heart, one could give it one's all, but it wouldn't make a difference if the feelings weren't mutual.Since that was the case, why should I keep holding on?With that thought, I replied, "No, Jared didn't cheat on me. I just suddenly realized that he and I have nothing left to say to each other. By the way, I've already found a job in Southville. I won't be coming back to Lunaton anymore. We'll talk more

I opened the second gift box; it was a Hermès silk scarf in a very eye-catching color. The third gift held a pair of cufflinks, and the fourth was a perfume gift set.Inside the fifth gift box were the pearl earrings from the photo Paige had sent me. They had looked exquisite in the picture, but in reality, they were completely ordinary—small, with a mediocre luster. They were clearly the kind of ten-dollar cheap goods one would find at a flea market.Then, I opened the last box. Inside lay a classic Tiffany necklace. There was also a small card tucked inside. I opened it.Written in Jared's unmistakable handwriting were the words, "For my dearest Paige."My fingers trembled slightly.Then, as if something had suddenly occurred to me, I flipped through the shopping bags from the other boxes. Every single bag had a handwritten label.The skincare set was for his mother, Nadine Boyd. The scarf was for his paternal aunt, Ingrid Foley. The cufflinks were for his father, Warren Foley.

It was Paige calling.Jared immediately let go of my hand and, without a single glance back at me, turned and walked toward the balcony.On the day of the wedding, I woke up very early.After putting on my makeup and changing into a simple pair of jeans and a white T-shirt, I called a courier service. Once that was arranged, I carefully folded the pristine white wedding dress and placed it inside a large gift box. Lastly, I affixed the pre-printed shipping label with Paige's address. When the courier arrived at the door to pick it up, I asked, "Will it arrive by today?""Since the destination is within the city, it'll be there before noon."I nodded and closed the door.Looking around the apartment where I had lived for three years, I felt no attachment. My suitcase had long been packed and was sitting right by the door.My phone buzzed with a text from Austin."What time does your train leave?""10:40 am."After replying, I pulled my suitcase behind me and walked out of

"I only moved to Lunaton because you were there. When you decided to stay in Lunaton after college, I followed you. Now that you're leaving, there's no reason for me to stick around either," Austin explained calmly, as if stating a decision he had made long ago.I asked, "But what if—"He cut me off. "There's no 'but,' and definitely no 'what if.' The reason I waited until today to say anything is that I knew that until you saw Jared for who he really was, you'd only have eyes for him."You couldn't see anyone else at all. If I had rashly told you all this back then, it would have only backfired."He was right.In those ten years, my world had shrunk down to nothing but Jared. For him, I had given up my career, my friends, and myself.I was like a bird locked up in a gilded cage, convinced that it was happiness. I had no idea that somewhere just out of sight, someone had been waiting for me all along."Why are you telling me this now?"Austin dropped his smile and looked at me

In the hotel room, I lay alone on the bed, staring at the ceiling.Austin had left after dropping me off. He told me to get some rest and said he would be here for me again tomorrow.Turning over, I picked up my phone and disabled airplane mode.Messages flooded in immediately. But instead of Jared, the first notification was a voice message from Paige. I hesitated for a moment but ultimately clicked on it."Heather, you'd better answer me honestly—was it or was it not you who put up that video? Do you know that Mr. Foley is calling off the wedding? He said his family's reputation has been completely ruined!"You did this on purpose, didn't you? You couldn't stand to see Jared happy, so you chose the wedding day of all days to pull something like this. Meet me outside. We're settling this face-to-face."I didn't reply. I simply blocked her number too.Then came a text from Jared. He had switched to a different number just to message me."Heather, I admit I messed up. But you sh