My father told me I had to choose a strategic alliance between the Maxwells and the Forresters. I had just turned toward Holden Maxwell when, like a glitch in my vision, a massive text overlay flashed in the air. [Get lost, side character! Holden only has eyes for the heroine, Kira!] [He swore he’d only marry Kira! If you choose him, he’ll run off and join a monastery!] Startled, I shifted my gaze to Tatum “Tate” Forrester. The text overlay immediately updated. [Don’t choose Tate either! Kira is the only antidote for the volatile Tate!] [You dare split them up, and he’ll have a stress migraine on your wedding night and choke you to death!!] I flinched, quickly pulling my attention away. Then, a new message popped up. [Why doesn’t the side character consider Ezra Shaw?] I paused. Ezra Shaw? The high-society big shot who’d been in a coma for years? [He’s about to wake up! He met the side character once, years ago, and he’s been obsessed with her ever since!] [Speaking of which, Ezra is actually the Big Bad! The Inner Circle is about to change. When he returns, he’s coming for the Maxwells and the Forresters!] That was all the information I needed. I immediately told my father. “Dad! I don’t want either of them!” “I’m marrying Ezra Shaw!” … 1 The moment the words left my mouth, my father cut me off. “Nonsense!” He then offered an apologetic smile to Holden and Tate. “I’ve spoiled my daughter. Let’s put this decision on hold for now.” The two men bowed respectfully to excuse themselves, but their eyes were heavy with barely concealed contempt. Once they were gone, my father’s expression grew serious. “Ezra Shaw has been in a coma for so long. The Shaw family has tried everything.” He sighed, seeing me look down. “You’re my only daughter, Rory. I can’t let you marry a vegetable and wait for someone who may never wake up!” “You grew up with Holden and Tate. You always said you’d marry one of them. Now you don’t like them?” The text overlay chimed in with confusion. [Yeah, shouldn't the side character be desperately trying to hook one of the two Male Leads?] [It’s just a trick to get their attention! She always loves to see them fight over her, doesn't she?!] [Ugh, if she was serious about Ezra, that would be great. He’s going to wake up in two weeks!] [Right, but whether Kira marries Tate or Holden, both families are already stretching their limits. Once the Big Bad Ezra is back, their good days are over.] My gaze locked onto the text. I steeled myself. “Dad, just give me a month.” “If Ezra Shaw hasn’t woken up in one month, I will choose the Maxwell or Forrester alliance quietly. Besides, our family already has an old commitment to the Shaws. Even if they don’t mention it, we can’t just easily go back on our word.” My father, unable to argue with my logic, reluctantly agreed. I finally let out a breath and headed out to the patio for some air. I found Holden and Tate hadn’t left. Holden spoke first, his tone mocking. “Done with your little scene?” “We’ve told you repeatedly that Kira is our soulmate, but we’d still do the right thing and marry you. Isn’t that enough?” He shook his head. “You’re making a fuss over nothing.” Tate rubbed his head, frowning. “You want to marry Ezra Shaw?” He scoffed. “Do you even believe that garbage?” He looked me up and down with undisguised scorn. “You’re just trying to make us beg you to stay. You’re exhausting, completely unlike the sweet, compliant Kira.” Even though the text overlay had already shown me the truth, the depth of their dismissal froze my heart. Holden checked his watch, a flicker of impatience crossing his face. “Right, enough. I don’t have time for your drama.” “You want to marry the comatose guy? Fine. You better follow through.” The text overlay flew past. [Holden and Tate are going to dinner with Kira!] [Sweet, sweet, sweet! Side character, get lost!] [She knows they both love Kira, but she's still trying to force a marriage! If she ends up miserable, it's her own fault!] I lowered my eyes. If my ending had already been scripted, why would I walk toward the disaster they wrote for me? Holden Maxwell and Tate Forrester. I wanted neither of them. My father quickly arranged things with the Shaw family. The next morning, the Shaws sent a car to pick me up. Mrs. Shaw took my hand. “Dear child, we never intended to break the alliance.” “Ezra’s been in a coma for years. It’s our family that’s wronged yours; we couldn’t keep Aurora tethered to this.” I looked at Ezra Shaw, lying in the hospital bed, his eyes closed. I took a deep breath and spoke the lie. “Actually, when I was little, a spiritual teacher told me I had a special fate.” “They said I had a deep spiritual connection—a power to ward off misfortune and add to a person’s life karma.” I kept my voice serious. “I want to go to a chapel for one month, to pray and clear bad karma for Ezra.” The text overlay floated over my vision. [??? Since when did the side character have this setting?] [Spiritual connection? It wasn't in the original book!!] [Ezra is going to wake up, but what does that have to do with the side character?] 2 Of course, I made it up. Regardless of what my original fate was, if I could foretell the future, I would certainly use it to secure the best outcome for myself and the Kincaid family. Mrs. Shaw covered her mouth, fighting back a sob. “If Ezra truly wakes up, Rory, you will be the Shaw family’s savior.” I performed a ritual cleanse—three days of bathing and burning incense—before settling into the chapel to copy sutras for Ezra’s fortune. I never expected to run into Holden Maxwell and Kira Bellweather here. Holden’s voice was sharp. “What are you doing here? Stalking me?” I paused, then laughed. “Did you buy the lease on this chapel?” Kira stood beside him, clutching a necklace with a cross. She offered a soft explanation. “Rory, please don’t misunderstand.” “I haven’t been sleeping well lately, so Holden brought me here to pray.” She paused deliberately. “I never expected to run into you by chance, of all places.” The text overlay instantly "understood." [Is she here because she knows Holden would join a monastery if he was forced to marry her?] [How would she know? Is she actually stalking him?] [She’s so shameless! No wonder she’s pretending to be some spiritual savior!] Holden clearly found the "coincidences" sickening. In his mind, I must have been scouting the location, planning to descend on him the moment he decided to become a monk, to keep badgering him. He was convinced I would choose him for the alliance, and he cursed under his breath. “...I must have the worst damn luck.” Kira understood and looked at him, her eyes reddening. “Holden, perhaps we’re not meant to be in this life… I really shouldn’t hold you back…” Holden’s face completely hardened, and he looked at me with open disgust. “Since you already know, I won’t play games.” “I will marry you.” “But the day after the wedding, I’m checking into this monastery and becoming a monk. I’ll spend the rest of my life here, praying for Kira’s well-being.” I didn’t even look up. I simply waved my hand dismissively. “Be my guest.” He spun around and stormed off, enraged. I copied sutras for two full weeks at the chapel. On the fifteenth day, the text overlay suddenly began to flash wildly. [Ezra is waking up today!] Sure enough, that afternoon, the Shaw family arrived to bring me back. The car sped to the hospital. I pushed open the door and met a pair of clear, warm eyes. Ezra Shaw was propped up in bed, looking thin but alert. “Rory, I don’t know how to thank you.” “Let’s set the wedding date this month, okay?” The room fell silent. Mrs. Shaw instinctively interjected. “Ezra, you just woke up. Your body hasn’t recovered—” “That’s exactly why we should set it.” Ezra was firm. “Rory and I agreed on one month. I don’t want to delay her any longer.” He paused, then smiled gently at me. “For the wedding planning, I’ll leave the details to you and my mother. Your wishes and preferences come first.” I nodded. “What about you?” He patted his thin legs with a wry look. “I need to go into seclusion for rehabilitation.” “I won’t make any public appearances for now.” “I intend to get back on my feet as quickly as possible, so I can walk down the aisle and marry you with dignity.” The text overlay was a chaotic mess. [Did the side character actually choose Ezra? How is this possible?] [Um… Does this mean we were wrong to insult the side character?] [And Holden and Tate still don't believe she's not marrying them. They seriously look like two ridiculously arrogant guys…] [Look at Ezra! His smile hasn't left his face since he saw the side character!] The Shaws kept things quiet, but the entire family was clearly ecstatic. With time running short, Mr. and Mrs. Shaw were swamped. They assigned their most senior, trusted butler to accompany me to a high-end jewelry auction to select a wedding ring. When the main diamond was unveiled, I gave a nod. The Shaw family immediately invoked the final, sealed bid clause. The manager was bringing the item over for me to try on when I heard the familiar voices. 3 “Holden, Tate, I love that centerpiece diamond!” “We’ll order two custom men’s rings later, and we can all wear them.” Kira Bellweather had an arm looped through each of theirs. She pointed to the display box in the manager’s hand and commanded, “Bring that centerpiece diamond over for me to try on!” The manager looked deeply awkward. I slowly raised my hand, admiring the massive pigeon-egg blue diamond on my ring finger. “I made the sealed bid. Why would he let her try it on?” Holden saw it was me and sneered. “Didn’t you agree to wait a month for the Shaw cripple? You couldn’t wait that long to look at a wedding ring?” “Rory Kincaid, are you playing both sides? Does the Shaw family know you’re two-timing?” The senior Shaw butler’s face darkened, and he started to reach for his phone to call Mrs. Shaw. I waved him off, indicating I had it handled. “When did I ever say I was buying a ring to marry you?” I met Kira’s eyes. “Ms. Bellweather, have you passed the asset check? Are you even qualified to be in this auction house? Do you know how much it costs to override a sealed bid?” Kira’s eyes instantly filled with tears. “Ms. Kincaid is right. I shouldn’t be here.” “I’ll just go…” She said the words, but she didn’t move an inch. The text overlay’s opinion began to shift. [Doesn't Kira seem a little manipulative? Is this really our Kira…?] [She says she's leaving, so why isn't she leaving? Waiting for the two guys to hold her back?] [Wow, side character is so cool! I’m changing teams!] Tate exploded with fury. “What’s with the attitude?” “You just won the birth lottery, Rory. Who are you to look down on Kira?” I smiled. “I not only look down on her, I look down on you.” “You two are all bluster. If you can actually afford it, I’ll happily let you have the ring.” He started to nod, but choked when he saw the long string of zeroes on the final sale price. They hadn’t officially taken over their family companies yet. Their personal allowances were large compared to average people, but they were nothing next to the liquid assets of the Shaw family. Holden’s face was dark. He actually reached out as if to snatch the box. “You’re pathetic. You spent your life savings on a diamond just to marry me.” “Let me tell you, our wedding must be pushed to next month.” “I won’t have Kira slandered after we marry, so I’m going to register our marriage and have a small ceremony with her first.” Before I could reply, Holden stated his demand forcefully. “This isn’t a discussion, it’s a notice.” [What is this guy saying? What a scumbag!] [Anyone defending Holden, I hope your fiancé registers his marriage with another woman before your wedding!] [Side character, run! Lock the scum and the manipulator in a box and throw away the key!] “Done.” I agreed instantly. Holden’s next words died in his throat. He looked stunned for a moment before reacting. “You… you agreed?” I rolled my eyes and turned to walk away. Then, I immediately spread the absurd story about the three of them—the two male leads getting matching wedding bands with Kira—throughout the Inner Circle. Tate was a volatile hothead, but Holden’s family was taking a public relations beating. Mr. Maxwell was furious. Holden, in a classic self-destructive move, decided to embrace the chaos and took Tate and Kira on a pre-wedding honeymoon. He didn't forget to send me an invitation. I glanced at it. How convenient. The same day, the same hotel. I ignored their antics, focused only on my wedding preparations. Until the day before the ceremony. I was at the hotel for the rehearsal when I heard someone call out behind me. “…Rory Kincaid?” 4 Kira Bellweather stared at the ballroom behind me. The crystal chandeliers were blinding, the stage expansive. It was the Grand Vista, clearly the main venue. Meanwhile, her wedding— It was set for a tiny, corner conference room. Holden had insisted on keeping it quiet to “avoid bad publicity.” The fury and resentment in her eyes were almost palpable. “You’re… you’re also getting married tomorrow?” I corrected her. “I’m getting married. Not just engaged.” She spoke as if she hadn’t heard, her voice rising sharply. “Did you have to choose this day? Are you doing this on purpose!” “Ms. Bellweather, I already told you I wasn’t going to choose Holden for the alliance.” “Do you even believe that lie?!” She shrieked, cutting me off. “You deliberately chose our wedding day to host your own in the biggest ballroom—” “If you’re not targeting me, who are you targeting?!” I looked at her, finding the whole thing absurd. “Do you really think I care about you that much?” The sentence instantly twisted Kira’s features. “How dare you say that to me?!” “Holden has to marry you, but so what?” “He and Tate love me most! They’ll always put me first!” I laughed, the sound sharp and sarcastic. “Oh, is that so?” “They love you so much they’re making you the dirty little side piece that has to hide in a closet? You’re so lucky!” Kira was shaking with rage. She suddenly raised her hand. I instinctively moved aside. Her slap missed, and the force threw her off balance. She slammed into the makeup vanity. The mirror shattered with a crash. Glass scattered everywhere. She fell to the floor, her dress ripped, and blood quickly began to seep from cuts on her arm and leg. The backroom door burst open.
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