Betrayal by My Fiancé

I shivered, glancing around the room where faint moonlight streamed through the windows. The sound of ocean waves filled my ears.

“Where's Dante?!” I shouted.

His face was menacing as he approached, grabbing my chin. “You wake up just to look for that jerk. Have you ever considered how I feel?”

Ignoring him, I scrambled off the bed, desperate to escape. He didn't try to stop me.

Opening the door, the salty sea breeze hit me. We were at sea?!

The ocean outside was an endless blackness, threatening to swallow everything. I collapsed on the floor, eyes vacant.

“Jensen, what do you want from me?”

He crouched beside me, forcing me to look at him. “I want you to see only me. No one else.”

“Stay away from that pretty boy!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll take you to a deserted island where we can start over. Once you change your mind, we’ll return.”

I let out a hollow laugh, my gaze vacant as I looked past him.

“Jensen, let me go. I don’t love you anymore.”

He roughly grabbed my shirt.

“What do you mean?! You always said we’d be together forever, that you only wanted me in this life! You endured three years of hardship for me!”

“Why did you change?! It’s because of that pretty boy, isn’t it?! Why won’t you see me?”

Before, I didn’t hate you like I do now.

Jensen destroyed everything yet played the victim. So pathetic, so pathetic, so pathetic.

Everywhere he touched burned, making me feel sick.

I clawed at my arms, my neck, leaving my skin raw and red.

“Stella! What will it take for you to speak to me?! Do you know I gave up everything for you! Can’t you just look at me?!”

Ha.

An abuser, begging for forgiveness.

I finally looked at him, and he seemed frightened by my gaze.

“Do you want to know why?”

“For three years, I only got three hours of sleep a night, juggling five jobs to pay for your medical bills.”

“I lived on the cheapest meals, dinner rolls and pickles, just to save every penny.”

“I couldn’t refuse any job, no matter how hard. Even when bullied, I endured it.”

“Remember Major Sanchez? He tried to assault me and refused to pay me for a month! Did you know that? Did you?!”

He shook his head, terrified. “No, I didn’t know. Angel told me it was just a minor…”

I laughed bitterly. “Angel again. Did she also tell you how she sent disgusting clients to harass me at the bar? When I refused their advances, they beat me up. I couldn’t get out of bed for two weeks.”

“To this day, I can still hear the cracking of my bones. Snap, snap. One after another. Jensen, it was excruciating. All my ribs were broken. Do you even know I almost didn’t survive?”

“And where were you during that time? With Angel, or were you laughing at my misery?”

“When they threw money at me, I wanted so badly to refuse, but thinking of you in that hospital bed, I swallowed my pride.”

“You have no idea how much blood and tears I’ve swallowed these past three years. Standing on your moral high ground, blaming me, never understanding your so-called good intentions.”

“You’re selfish and will never understand.”

“The Stella who was once devoted to you has been erased.”

Jensen’s expression shattered piece by piece.

“I didn’t know, I didn’t know any of this! Stella, please forgive me! I really didn’t know! It was all Angel! I didn’t know you suffered like this…”

He collapsed to his knees, unable to bear the weight of his guilt, covering his face in anguish.

Jensen, so you can feel pain?

I gave a scornful smile.

While he was lost in his thoughts, I seized the chance to run from the room.

The wind on the deck was fierce, whipping my hair around wildly.

By the time Jensen realized and ran after me, it was too late.

I stood at the edge.

The rooftop I hadn’t jumped from three years ago—I could jump from now.

But this time, I wasn’t afraid.

Sorry, Dante, for not keeping my promise.

“Stella—!” Jensen’s scream rang out, but I didn’t hesitate for a second longer.

I leaped into the abyss.