4 2013
I carefully collected his um, the framed photos, and all the small trinkets placed in his burial box
Then, since I had my mother’s car, I decided to stop by the apartment to grab the last few things I had left behind.
Most of my belongings were already packed and sent away, but I still had a few items to pick up.!!
Also, I wanted to show my father where I had lived during college, so I brought his urn with me.
But as soon as I opened the door, I ran into them. Leo and Sara.X
past few days?
The moment Leo saw me, he stepped forward and asked me in curiosity, “Lucy, where have you been staying for the p Your room is completely empty. What does that mean?”
I shrugged, my tone casual. “Oh, I heard from Sara that you two have already set a wedding date. So, isn’t it time for me to move?”
Leo’s head snapped toward Sara in confusion.X
Sara immediately lowered her gaze, playing the innocent act. “Sorry, Leo. My butler was planning to rent her as our wedding photographer, so maybe that’s how Lucy found out.”
Then she tumed to me, putting on her best apologetic face. “But I already explained to Lucy that our marriage is just an act.“)
I smirked. So, this was how she lied to Leo?2
Truly, a perfect couple–because they were both so skilled at deception.
Leo exhaled sharply and tumed back to me. “Lucy, I’ve explained this already. Everything is just an act, Why don’t you understand?”
“Oh, I understand perfectly,” I replied. That’s why I made it easier for you to act.”
1tilled my
of problems?”
head slightly, feigning innocence. “If your parents come here and see you still living with me, wouldn’t that cause all sorts
Leo ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Lucy, my parents will never come here. I would never allow them to. What will it take for u to believe me?
His desperation was almost entertaining at this point
“Right now, Sara and I are thinking of a way to get out of this arranged marriage,” Leo continued, trying to sound convincing. “Can you just calm down for now?”
Sara took the opportunity to step in, her voice sweet and laced with just the right amount of distress.!
“That’s right, Lucy. In fact, we’ve even been thinking of going abroad with you,” she said, eyes glistening with artificial sincerity. “That way, you can marry Leo in secret–without his parents knowing.“”
I blinked I
“We?”
Leo answered quickly, as if he had it all planned. “Yes, the three of us will go together. So in that way, my parents will think I married Sare, but actually, it’ll be you.”
I could not hold back the laughter that bubbled u
I up in my throat.
A dark, humorless chuckle escaped me⠀
“The three of us go together?” I said, voice dripping with mockery. “How funny”
Sara, sensing that her usual approach was not working, suddenly became dramatic.
She rushed toward me, dropping to her knees as she clutched my hand in a desperate plea
“Lucy, if it’s just the two of you, then what about me?” she whimpered. “My parents will be furious with me. I have nowhere else to go.”
As she spoke, she deliberately shook my arm, her grip tight.X
i yanked my hand back, trying to free myself, but in the process, the um I was holding
slipped
Chapter 8:
Time seemed to slow as the porcelain vase crashed onto the floor, shattering into dozens of jagged pieces. The ashes inside scattered across the ground.
For a moment the world went silent
Then, Sara let out a dramatic shriek as she fell backward, straight onto the shards of broken glass.
“Argh!”
A few pieces embedded themselves into her wrist, a thin trail of blood trickling down her skin.
I barely had time to react before a sharp sting shot through my foot. Looking down, I saw that some of the shards had flown toward
me as well.
But what disappointed me more was that the remains of my father’s urn, his ashes at that moment scattered across the floor like dust
Before I could move, Leo rushed straight to Sara.
His arms wrapped around her as he frantically checked her injuries. “Saral Are you okay? Stay with me!”
And then, Leo tumed to me, his face twisted in rage.
“Why the hell did you bring something so dangerous? Look what you did! Did you hurt Sara on purpose, Lucy?
Did he really just say dangerous goods?
But it was my father’s um.
Leo didn’t even ask what happened. He didn’t look at me, didn’t care that Sara had shaken me hard enough to make it slip from my hands &
He immediately blamed me.
Then, Sara whimpered weakly curling into Leo’s arms. Her breath hitched, then her eyes rolled back before she fainted.
“Sara? Sara!” He shook her slightly before lifting her into his arms. Without sparing me another glance, he bolted for the door!
But just before he stepped out, he shot me a final glare &
“If anything happens to Sara,” he hissed, “you will know the consequences, Lucy”
I stood there frozen, my father’s ashes scattered across the cold, unforgiving floor, but Leo did not care at all
He did not care that I was injured too, that shards of glass had pierced my skin.
But Sara, the one who had deliberately fallen onto the broken glass for attention, was the only one he saw.
A hollow, empty feeling spread through my chest as I slowly crouched down. My fingers trembled as I reached for the shattered remains of the um, trying to gather the pieces as gently as possible?
Tears blurred my vision, hot and unrelenting. My throat tightened as I whispered, “I’m sorry. Dad.”
I did not even know what hurt more. That I had broken my father’s um, or that Leo had betrayed me yet again.
Even after all these years, after everything I had seen and endured, why did it still hurt to watch him choose Sara over me?
Why was there still a part of me that felt disappointed?
As I gathered the remains of my father’s urn, a cruel realization hit me.
I had been gone for days. And yet, Leo had never once tried to find me
I was only in my mother’s home, he should have known the place. But he did not dare to come to meet me.
Since the beginning, I always knew he was never intended to formalize our relationship. That was why he asked me to hide it from my mother
But the fool me believed him. I believed he would propose to me in the correct way on my graduation day
In the past day, I had realized too if it had always been me.
I had always been the one to reach out first. I had always been the one to call, to check in, to try to fix what was already broken 1
But this time, I was done
With trembling hands, I took the um and the ashes I gathered, inhaled shakily, and stood up
I gathered the rest of my things, loaded everything into the car, and made my final trip to move my father’s grave.
The next day, I went to the US Embassy to take my approved visa, my passport, my new ID.
As I stepped out of the building, the weight that had suffocated me for years seemed to lift, even if just a little
But then why did my heart still ache?%
I told myself I was fine, but the moment night fell, the emptiness swallowed me whole. The years I had wasted on Leo, it all crashed
down on me at once”
So, for the first time in my life, I went to a club.?
I had spent years acting like the good girl and perfect girlfriend, but in the end, none of it had mattered
Leo had left me behind so many times.
Tonight, I was the one leaving him behind.
At first, I was cautious. Whenever a man approached me, I instinctively moved away, keeping my distance)
12:20 PM D
At first, I was cautious. Whenever a man approached me, I instinctively moved away, keeping my distance
But as the hours passed and the alcohol burned its way down my throat, I let myself loosen up.
For once, I stopped thinking and worrying about right or wrong
As I swayed to the music, someone moved closer to me. A tall man with dark eyes and an easy smirk. He did not touch me, just watched, waiting to see if I would acknowledge him.]
“Are you new here?” he finally asked..
I turned my head slightly, meeting his gaze. “Why do you ask?”
ne here often don’t do that.”
“You’re looking around too much,” he said with a small chuckle. “People who come
“Maybe I just like to observe,” I replied, tilting my head.
He smirked. “Or maybe you’re trying to forget something.
I let out a soft, humorless laugh. “Aren’t we all?
His eyes flickered with understanding. He extended a hand. “Then how about we forget together?
I hesitated at first. But then, I took his hand without thinking
But even in my intoxicated state, I still had enough control to know my limits.&
When my head became too heavy and the room spun faster than I could handle, I stepped away
The last thing I remembered was the stranger asking if I needed a ride.
The next moming, I woke up in an unfamiliar bed
