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All Chapters of He Chose Her, So I Chose Myself: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Are you working overtime this weekend again, Emmett?"Emmett Carr's voice sounded impatient over the phone. "Yeah, I have to. I’ve got no choice. It's a critical moment for this international merger."The airport announcement could be heard in the background. "Attention to all passengers heading to Baylen—"I looked at the newly signed lease agreement in my hand and asked calmly, "You're working on a merger in Baylen?"There was a short pause on the other end of the call. "Um, yeah. The other party is in Baylen. “I can't talk anymore. I need to board the plane."Emmett hung up after that, and I put my phone away. I folded the agreement and kept it in my bag while the realtor looked at me hesitantly. "Miss Jones, your boyfriend spent a fortune renovating that house. Are you sure you want to lease it to someone else?""Yes, I'm sure.""Is he aware of this?""He doesn't need to know."I walked out of the realtor's office and felt the cold wind of early winter against my face

Chapter 2

At 10 PM on Sunday, the door was pushed open. Emmett had returned home.He looked exhausted as he pushed his luggage to a corner. As he was changing into house slippers, he took out a small box from his coat pocket and gave it to me. "I bought this for you as I was going past the duty-free shops."I took the box and glanced at its contents. It was a citrus-scented bottle of perfume from a well-known brand."Thank you."I placed it on the shoe cupboard and did not open it.Emmett took off his coat and frowned. "Why don't you open it and take a whiff? It took me a long time to pick it out for you.""I'm allergic to citrus."Emmett was taken aback. "Really? I must have forgotten about that. I'll buy you another scent next time."Next time? He was always talking about ‘next time’.Emmett sat down on the sofa and started massaging his temples. "I'm so tired. This business trip has been excruciating."I poured him a glass of warm water and placed it in front of him. "How was the

Chapter 3

On Monday night, Emmett brought me to his mother's house for her 60th birthday celebration. Before we went over, he reminded me, "My mom has been wanting that limited edition tea set for a long time. Remember to get it for her as a gift from the both of us."That tea set cost $8,500, and I spent a month of my salary and a portion of my savings to purchase it.When we got to the Carrs, the living room was filled with Emmett's relatives. Emmett held my hand as we entered the house, looking like a loving couple."Happy birthday, Mom." Emmett gave her the exquisitely wrapped gift. "Naomi got this tea set specially for you. Open it up and see if you like it."Emmett's mother took the gift and opened it. I could tell that she was forcing her smile after seeing what was inside. "You didn't have to, Naomi. This tea set looks pretty ordinary, though." I did not say anything as I stood there. A limited edition tea set worth $8,500 was actually ordinary to her. That was when the doorbel

Chapter 4

My countdown started before my flight. There were two days left before I flew off.I had completed my resignation procedures and walked out of the company's door with a huge box in my hands. It was pouring outside. The chilling wind and the rain falling on me made my bones hurt from the cold. I stood under the roof, trying to get a taxi, to no avail. That was when my stomach started to hurt. It was acute gastroenteritis.I could hardly stand from the pain, so I crouched on the ground, covered in cold sweat. I called Emmett on the phone for help. It was the first time in five years that I had called him for help while he was at work.The phone rang for a long time before he picked up. "Hello? What's wrong?" It was noisy where he was. I could hear a dog barking and a woman crying. "Emmett, I have gastroenteritis, and it hurts really badly. Can you take me to the hospital? I can't get a taxi." I tried my best to sound calm. There was a pause on the other end of the call, an

Chapter 5

It was early morning the next day when my flight landed in North City. It was snowing, and the air felt especially fresh. I took a deep breath. It felt like all my depressed emotions had been carried away with the crisp air.I got a taxi to the apartment I had arranged to rent earlier and put my luggage away. I made myself a cup of hot tea and sat on the sofa as I clicked through the smart home app, but my finger paused above the button to unlink all the smart-home devices from my account.After some thought, I opened the living room camera's live feed, and that was when I saw Emmett opening the door. He was still wearing the same clothes from yesterday, and his hair was slightly messy. It looked like he had stayed up the entire night."Naomi, I'm home," he called out to me while changing into house slippers. However, no one replied. He frowned and walked into the living room. “Where were you the entire weekend? You didn't even reply to any of my texts."He took off his coa

Chapter 6

Life moved fast in North City.In my first week at the new company, I took on an important project and got so busy that I had no time to think about Emmett.After I was done working overtime on Friday night, I went downstairs to grab a sandwich from the cafe. The moment I sat down, Mandy called me. "Naomi, guess what Emmett has been up to recently."I took a bite of my sandwich and asked, mouth full, "Is he dead?""Well, maybe soon. He's gone crazy." Mandy could not hide the glee in her voice. "He came by the office to look for you, but he found out you had resigned. After that, he went to the realtor and was told that you gave the lease to someone else and even gave up the deposit.""What happened after that?""He started calling every one of your mutual friends to ask about your whereabouts, but no one knows where you are. I heard that he’s offered a $15,000 reward on social media for any clues about where you are."I smiled. "$15,000? The bags he bought Cherry are worth mor

Chapter 7

The winter days in North City were short. It was only 5 PM, yet the sky had turned dark. I stayed in the office a little longer to work, and it was 7 PM by the time I left the building.When I walked out of the building, I stopped in my tracks because I saw a man standing outside. He was wearing a thin, black coat, and his hair was messy from the wind. He was also holding a bouquet of irises. It was Emmett. He looked like he had lost a lot of weight. His eyes were sunk in, and his chin was covered in stubble. His eyes lit up right away when he saw me. He looked like a man who had gone without water for three days in the desert and had just discovered an oasis."Naomi!" He strode over to me, trying to hug me, but I took a step back and looked at him coldly."Please control yourself, Mr. Carr."Emmett froze, and his hands, which were reaching out toward me, paused midair. "Naomi, I’ve been looking for you for a whole month…"His voice was trembling, and he started to tear up

Chapter 8

On the third day that Emmett was dragged away from my office, I was meeting a client at the cafe downstairs. The client left after we finished the meeting, and as I was about to put the documents away, someone suddenly sat opposite me."Naomi." It was a familiar, sickly-sweet voice. I looked up to see Cherry in a thin coat that was clearly not her size. Her face was blue from the cold. Gone was the smug, sugary-sweet act she used to put on. Honestly, she looked like a mess."You've got the wrong person. I don't think we know each other." I closed my laptop and was about to leave."You should have some sense of shame, Naomi!" Cherry suddenly raised her voice, attracting the attention of the people around us. She clenched her teeth and suddenly changed her tone and demeanor to look pitiful."Naomi, I know you're mad at me, but you can't torture Emmett because of that. He lost his job because he was trying to find you, and he's now at risk of getting sued. You can't destroy his

Chapter 9

Emmett was taken to court, and because the funds he embezzled were a huge amount that he was unable to pay back, he was facing at least three years in jail. Cherry's situation was no better. Emmett testified in court that she had been extorting him for the past five years and presented evidence of her coercing him into spending money on her. Even though it was not enough for Cherry to be sentenced, it was enough to destroy her reputation.Cherry's university expelled her, and the men she made use of with empty promises of a relationship finally saw her for who she was. They demanded that she return their money and even exposed her terrible behavior online, turning her into the most hated person around.The night before Emmett's court hearing, there was a rare storm in North City. I was on my way back to my condo with an umbrella after working overtime at the office. When I got to the stairs, I saw someone huddled at the corner.It was Emmett. He was drenched and looked like

Chapter 10

Two years later, I bought my own condominium unit in North City by paying it in full.Even though it was not big, I renovated every corner to my liking. The walls were a warm white color, and my carpet was made of soft wool. My balcony was planted full of irises.There was no fir-scented perfume, nor any cups with someone else's initials. Everything in this place belonged to me.During one weekend, Mandy was in North City on a business trip, and she came to visit me at my new condo. She sat comfortably on the sofa while munching on the fruit I had cut for her. "You're living the good life, Naomi. You've really won life's jackpot."I smiled and poured her a glass of juice. "It's all right. It's only because I'm not facing any depressing issues.""Speaking of that, I've got news to share." She suddenly sat up straight with a light in her eye. "Emmett was released from jail last month."My hands paused while cutting up more fruit, but I quickly snapped out of it. "Oh.""Don't you w

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