After He Betrayed Me, I Disgraced Him

Thirty minutes later, Margareta arrived. I was still parked in front of my laptop, scrolling through social media to pass the time.

After setting her stuff down, she said, "Move aside, let me take a look."

"Thanks, Mar. I appreciate it so much," I said, sending her a playful air kiss.

I flopped onto the bed and turned my attention to Pamella’s latest social media update. She had posted a photo of her legs in a bathtub, surrounded by flowers. No caption this time, just the lyrics of “Good for You” by Selena Gomez playing softly in the background. The lyrics were seductive.

Cause I just wanna look good for you, good for you

I just wanna look good for you, good for you

Let me show you how proud I am to be yours

Leave this dress a mess on the floor

And still look good for you, good for you

It felt like a not-so-subtle invite aimed at someone specific, so I took a screenshot of the post just as my phone rang. It was Isaac. "Em, just wanted to give you a heads-up. Niall's heading toward the hotel now."

I paused for a moment before replying, "Okay, stay sharp and snap some pics if you see him."

Margareta, noticing my tense expression, asked, "What's going on?"

I forced a smile. "Nothing, everything's fine." Then I made my way to the bathroom for a bath.

Once I was in the tub, I sat there, lost in a daze. I couldn’t believe I was actually investigating my boyfriend’s possible affair. The weight of it all was almost too much to bear. My chest felt tight, but no tears came. I washed myself off with a mechanical, exhausted routine, feeling like I had no strength left. All I wanted was to curl up in bed and forget the world.

As I stared at my reflection in the mirror, trying to process the chaos, I suddenly heard rapid knocks on the bathroom door.

“Yeah?” I called out, but Margareta kept shouting my name.

I quickly threw on my bathrobe and hurried out. Margareta looked excited but also concerned. “I just saw a guy walk into Pamella’s room,” she said. “And he was carrying a bouquet of roses.”

Margareta looked so happy, but my heart sank. The gut feeling I had was confirmed. I nodded and sat back down in front of the laptop. I replayed the camera footage from earlier and sure enough, there was a tall guy in a black suit strolling into Pamella’s room, bouquet in hand.

I felt lightheaded and had trouble catching my breath. Margareta was buzzing about how big this news could be, but then she noticed how pale I was and asked if I was alright.

“I need to go to the bathroom,” I muttered, grabbing my phone and locking myself in the bathroom.

Once inside, I threw up everything I had eaten, tears streaming down my face. Margareta’s concerned voice came through the door, “Hey, are you okay? Emilie?”

I slumped against the bathroom floor and shouted back, “Shut up! I’m fine!” My throat was sore and I couldn’t stop crying. I let it all out until the heaviness in my chest lightened.

When I finally managed to stand up, I washed my mouth and face with cold water, trying to pull myself together. I flushed the toilet, still sobbing.

Looking at my reflection in the mirror, my face was red and blotchy from crying. I continued to sob for about ten minutes, my nose stuffed up and my breaths coming in ragged gasps. After washing my face again and drying it with a towel, I plopped down on the toilet, trying to breathe normally.

Finally, I felt a bit more composed and checked my phone. As expected, Isaac had sent me a WhatsApp message with a few photos.

Trembling, I opened Isaac's message and my heart sank as I saw the photos.

[Emilie, I saw him entering the hotel.]

[4 photos attached]