Ava's POVSince I was little, I learned one rule in our house: I didn't matter.If Lily cried, everyone rushed to her. If I cried, Mom called me dramatic. When Lily got bad grades, Dad told her it was okay. When I ranked first, he just said, "You're the older sister. Set an example."After a while, I stopped hoping they'd treat me differently.I cooked when the maid was absent, drove Lily to tutoring, fixed Mom's boutique reports. None of it was my job, but saying no meant being called ungrateful.Lily only had to smile to get whatever she wanted.Everyone made excuses for her. Nobody ever made excuses for me.So when Lily got engaged to Ethan Whitmore, I wasn't surprised I was the last to know. Five-star ballroom, Paris gown, huge diamond ring. I was told to wear an old dress and smile for photos.I thought her wedding day would be the same.I was wrong."Ava, I can't marry him!"Lily's panicked voice cut through while I was fixing the train of her dress."What are you talking about?

Last Updated : 2026-11-09

Ava's POVI woke up to the sound of the shower running too loud in the bathroom. My head was pounding. My whole body ached.Not from exhaustion. From the memory of last night replaying on a loop.The smell of whiskey was still in the air. And on the nightstand, Lily's white wedding dress was lying in a heap like discarded trash.The bathroom door opened.Ethan came out. His hair was still wet, wearing only black dress pants, a towel hanging around his neck. His face was pale, his eyes bloodshot from alcohol and no sleep.He wasn't surprised to see me. He had known since last night that I wasn't Lily. His look wasn't confused, it was restrained disgust."You're still here," he said flatly.I pulled the blanket higher up to my neck. "I didn't know where to go. You said three days.""I said three days of pretending. Not three days of staying in my bed."His tone was sharp. I bit my lip. Last night he hugged me, kissed me out of loneliness. But right before he passed out, he called me by

Last Updated : 2026-11-09

Ava's POVA month after the wedding, I became exactly what Richard Whitmore called me on the first morning.An unpaid actress.I lived in the downstairs guest room, next to the laundry room. Richard and Victoria had gone back to Manhattan. They left Ethan to enforce the rules and Mrs. Caldwell to watch me.Don't touch anything without permission.Don't use any card with the Whitmore name.Don't bother Ethan until this is over.For 25 days, I followed all three.On the night of day 25, my phone buzzed at 11:47 p.m.No name. Just three photos.The first: Ethan at The Campbell bar in Manhattan. Dark shirt, sleeves rolled up, laughing. A woman in a tight red dress, her hand on his forearm.The second: His hand on her lower back. Familiar. His head tilted toward her, listening.The third: They were leaving together. Her head on his shoulder.My hands shook so hard I almost dropped the phone.For a month, this man had not touched me. On our wedding night, he slept on the far edge of the bed

Last Updated : 2026-11-09

Ava's POVIt was almost 9 p.m. I was in the kitchen, trying to make myself eat something.I hadn't seen Ethan all day. He left early for work and didn't text. That was normal. I was used to it now.Then I heard his voice from his office. The door was half open."I know, Lily. I know."My hand stopped. Lily?I didn't mean to eavesdrop. But when I heard my sister's name, my feet moved on their own. I stood just outside the door."She did it on purpose, Ethan, I'm telling you," Lily's voice was on speaker, loud and crying. "She saw that the wine glass was for me. I told her last week that it was my favorite. She left it there to make me look bad. She always does this."My blood went cold. What wine glass?I remembered. Two days ago. I poured one glass of red wine in the library because I couldn't sleep. I left the glass in the sink. I washed it the next morning. How did Lily even know about that?"Lily, calm down," Ethan said. His voice was tight. "Are you sure?""Am I sure? Ethan, you k

Last Updated : 2026-11-09

Ava's POVThe tiles were freezing against my skin.I don't know how long I stayed like that. Sitting on the bathroom floor in the guest room, knees pulled up to my chest, my back against the cold tub. My body didn't feel like mine anymore. It felt sore. Heavy. Wrong.I forced myself to stand. I had to grab the sink just to stay up. My legs were shaking so bad I thought they would give out.When I looked up, I saw her in the mirror.Messy hair stuck to her wet cheeks. Eyes red and puffy. There were angry pink marks on the side of her neck. On both of her upper arms, dark fingerprints were starting to bloom, purple and blue, right where he held me down last night.That was the moment something inside me snapped.Not broke. Snapped clean.I was done. I was really done trying to be good enough for people who never even tried to see me.I was not staying here one more night waiting for him to decide what I was worth.I opened the bathroom door as quietly as I could. The guest room was dark

Last Updated : 2026-11-09

All Chapters of After I Left, He Regretted Everything: Chapter 1 - Chapter 5

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