Betrayed Bride, Relentless Groom

"Wendy, I only did this to help Cynthia. Henry is cold, ruthless and blind. I couldn’t just stand by and watch Cynthia jump into the fire. Marrying her was just a temporary measure. After some time, I'll separate from her."

He had already come up with his excuse.

"Mr. Hill, I have no interest in being the third party. Please leave."

From the moment he abandoned me at the engagement banquet, we were already over.

Ethan’s face darkened. "Wendy, can you stop being so selfish? Cynthia was worried you'd be heartbroken, so she asked me to come back and keep you company. And this is how you repay her kindness? If you were sensible, I could come and keep you company on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. After all, Cynthia and I are married, so I should spend more time with her."

A bitter feeling rose in my heart. Eight years of love, only to end up as a hidden mistress.

"Ethan, we're breaking up!"

Ethan's face darkened, with a faint hint of anger. "Wendy, are you taking my kindness for granted? It’s just a piece of paper, why are you making such a fuss? Before we had that piece of paper, you still let me sleep with you for eight years. Now you're being all dramatic? If it weren't for you begging me in bed, saying you couldn't live without me, do you think I'd still want you? At your age, you're still playing hard-to-get games. How pathetic is that?"

I was shaking with rage.

He had been the one who stubbornly pursued me back then, the one who drunkenly cried and asked me to help ease his pain.

Now, he married Cynthia, turning me into a joke in everyone's eyes and yet he blames me for being selfish and inconsiderate.

"Ethan, we're done. From now on, you live your life and I'll live mine. We have nothing to do with each other."

Ethan was furious. He grabbed the bag of broken seashells and slammed it onto the ground, shattering it into pieces.

"Wendy, you still want to marry someone else? In this circle, everyone knows you’ve been with me for eight years. You're already used up. Who would want an old spinster like you?"

In the tense silence, the bathroom door suddenly opened.

Cynthia stepped out, wrapped in a bath towel, barefoot.

I immediately stopped breathing.

At the engagement banquet, Ethan had answered a call and rushed off. Over the past few days, I had been watching their displays of affection online.

Now, I wasn’t sure if it was more pain, bitterness, or anger I felt.

This house was bought when Ethan and I were deeply in love, each of us contributing half the money. He said it would be our love nest, a place filled with our happy memories.

"Wendy, don't blame Ethan, he was just trying to help me. If you must blame someone, blame me. I'm the one who's unnecessary..."

She said as she reached out to grab my hand.

I instinctively pulled my hand away, not even touching her, yet she let out a cry and fell to the ground.

Before I could react, Ethan slapped me, knocking me to the ground.

The sharp pain in my hand was immediate. The broken seashells on the floor pierced deeply into my palm and blood began to drip, splattering onto the ground.

"Are you okay, Cynthia?"

He turned around and glared at me with disgust.

"If anything happens to Cynthia, I won't let you off easily!"

He hurriedly carried Cynthia downstairs and rushed to the hospital.

I struggled to stand up, looking around the house I had lived in for eight years, feeling like it was strangely unfamiliar.

On my bed, the sheets were wrinkled, a torn black stocking was draped over the edge and the floor was littered with used tissues. The air was filled with a disgusting smell.

I hurried out, tears streaming down my face uncontrollably.

It was filthy and now even the house felt dirty.

There were too many broken seashells stuck in my palm, so I had no choice but to take a taxi to the hospital.