Danny and I had grown up together. Back when I called myself a princess, stuck in some fairy-tale daydream, he played along like a total goof—prince, knight, superhero, whatever it took. He’d tell everyone I was his one and only princess, his chest puffed out like it actually meant something.
He never let me cry, never let me feel painful. When I got hospitalized with a raging fever, he sat by my bed for two days, no food, no sleep, promising he’d take my place in the underworld if it meant I’d live. The golden boy of the Wagner family even learned to cook and do laundry, just to take care of me.
Now, when I looked at him, all I saw was a stranger.
Was it me who’d changed? Or had I just ignored how far his heart had drifted—thanks to Mia. Honestly, it might as well have floated across the Pacific.
Seven years ago, when we officially became a couple, we decided to make it meaningful—sponsoring a student in need. I chose Mia. She was this bright kid with a wreck of a past, and together, we gave her everything—got her into the best high school, swore we’d see her through college.
Funny how Danny used to grumble about her. She didn’t get social cues. She’d never make it in the real world.
But that disdain? Yeah, it was long gone.
I’d ask him to quit smoking, worried sick about his health. He’d just laugh, say he’d quit when we had kids, then light up like it was no big deal.
But when Mia so much as coughed from the smoke? He stubbed it out. Just like that. Never touched another cigarette.
“Danny,” I said, “Let’s cancel the wedding.”
One week. That’s all I needed to pack, leave, and find someone who actually deserved me.
