Where the Moon No Longer Shines

The call came abruptly. Matthew's brows furrowed as he glanced at his phone, a tension tightening around him.

“There’s an issue with the company,” he muttered, his voice unusually low. “I need to go.”

Cassandra barely had time to process his words before he bolted out the door, jacket forgotten on the chair.

She stared after him, the sting of abandonment all too familiar now. Alone in the sterile hospital room, she tried to focus on the doctor’s words: the polyp removal had been a success. Yet, it felt like more than just a surgery. Something else had been severed—her faith, her love, her heart.

Her steps echoed hollowly in the hospital corridors as she wandered aimlessly. But at the far end of the hallway, her world tilted.

Matthew stood there, supporting Julia, who was leaning against him with exaggerated frailty. They emerged from the obstetrics and gynecology department, their connection impossible to mistake.

Julia spotted her first. With a coy gleam in her eye, she wrapped her arms around Matthew’s neck. The tenderness Cassandra thought was hers alone spilled effortlessly into Julia’s embrace.

“Matt,” Julia purred, her voice sugar-coated poison, “I was heartbroken when we lost the baby. But it’s okay—we’ll have plenty of children in the future.”

Cassandra’s breath caught in her throat. Julia’s gaze locked on hers as she pressed her lips against Matthew’s. He didn’t push her away—just stood there, frozen and absent-minded.

Then, like a snap of a whip, he grabbed Julia by the collar, his tone venomous. “If you ever go near another man again, I’ll break your legs.”

Julia’s lips curved into a wicked smile, her voice sickly sweet as she nipped playfully at his ear. “Don’t worry, master. I’ll be your loyal dog forever.”

It was like being plunged into a glacier. Cassandra’s mind reeled, her body numb. The wind outside howled as she staggered blindly through the halls, feeling as though the universe itself had lost its love.

***

Later that evening, Cassandra met Mr. Ban in a dimly lit corner of the city. The plan for her staged “death” was almost finalized.

“It’s all set,” Mr. Ban said, his tone clipped. “The explosion will take place at the abandoned chemical factory on Mavel Street.”

Cassandra nodded. Coincidentally, Mavel Street was where Julia had once paraded her affair with Matthew. It felt almost poetic to choose that location.

She returned home to find Matthew planning their engagement with feverish dedication. Every detail, from the venue’s decorations to the engraved ten-carat pink diamond ring, was handpicked by him.

At the jewelry store, as the staff fawned over the massive diamond on her finger, Julia appeared, her arrival as brazen as always.

“Whoa,” Julia said, her tone dripping with mockery. “What a beautiful ring. Why didn’t Mr. Lawrence give one to me?”

Matthew’s eyes darkened. “You have no right to compare yourself to my fiancée. Get out before I have you thrown out.”

But Julia only smirked, dodging his attempt to retrieve the ring from her grasp. Her laughter was a dagger, her next words aimed to wound. “It seems Mr. Lawrence’s stamina isn’t what it used to be. Poor Madam Cassey must be so disappointed.”

Cassandra clenched her fists. She smiled coldly, her voice sharper than steel. “You’re right, Ms. Julia. The ring you’re holding is pretty. But it’s superficial—likely to leave scars before it ever feels comfortable. Unlike the timeless piece I have, which endures.”

She turned to Matthew, her voice softening as she addressed him. “Don’t you agree, Matt?”

Matthew froze, startled by the term of endearment he hadn’t heard in months. A flicker of emotion crossed his face, a mix of longing and disbelief. “Yes,” he murmured, his voice barely audible.

That night, Cassandra’s suspicions were confirmed when she saw Julia’s post online: a picture of her flaunting a ten-carat pink diamond identical to Cassandra’s, along with the caption, "Ten-carat diamonds—so ordinary, right?"

But what truly broke her was the engraving on Julia’s ring: Love never fails. Matt Bros will always love Julia.

Matt Bros. The name Matthew had used before they met. The name tied to the darkest chapter of his past.

Cassandra stared at the words, each one cutting deeper than the last. Love never fails? How cruel, then, that hers had been left to bleed dry.