Memorial Day, I flew back from overseas with my toddler son to visit my parents' graves, and ran into my childhood sweetheart's mom. She asked if my willingness to return meant I was finally over everything. "Ashley, you're finally back! Does this mean you're ready to marry Shane?" "This time, I'm going to make sure everything's perfect, and that no trailer trash crashes in to ruin your wedding!" Shane was my childhood sweetheart and fiancé, but on our engagement party, his adopted sister, Crystal, showed up wearing the exact same dress as me. She declared that if Shane didn't leave with her, she'd kill herself. The guests were in uproar, and I was left standing alone. Everyone judged me, my uncle and aunt abandoned me, and I ended up going overseas in disgrace. Now, meeting again, I gave a small smile, and pushed the stroller forward. "Aunt Carol, have Shane and Crystal gotten their marriage license yet?" "Say hi to Grandma, sweetie." … After leaving for three years, I hadn't visited my parents' graves. This year, my son was finally old enough, so I took advantage of Memorial Day to bring him back and pay my respects. We were pushing the stroller towards the cemetery when I heard a familiar voice. "Ashley, you're back!" Looking up, I saw Shane's mom in the distance, looking happy as she hurried towards me. I greeted her politely, "Aunt Carol." She affectionately took my hand, her gaze filled with love. I forced a smile and avoided her eyes. "You've lost weight. Must have been hard on you out there?" "What Shane did was wrong. That boy is with that girl right now, visiting her parents' graves. I'll make him apologize to you." Before I could refuse, she was already calling Shane. Five minutes later, I saw Shane, panting, with Crystal following close behind. He looked at me with shock, then his gaze turned icy, just like it had been three years ago. "When did you get back?" Aunt Carol clucked and slapped him on the head. "What kind of way is that to talk!" Crystal immediately stepped in front of Shane, looking at Aunt Carol with a pitiful expression. "Mom..." Aunt Carol frowned and looked away from her. Crystal's face froze, and she fidgeted in place. After a long pause, she seemed to finally notice me, putting on a surprised look. "Ashley, you're back?" "I'm sorry about everything three years ago, but I love Shane so much. But don't worry, I won't try to steal him away anymore." I watched Crystal's acting with amusement. She hadn't been so pathetic when she was mocking me. Shane switched places with Crystal, shielding her behind him, and looking at me warily. "I messed up, but it's not Crystal's fault." Ignoring them, I turned to Aunt Carol, whose expression was twisted with anger. "Aunt Carol, I need to go visit my parents' graves. I'll be going now." After saying goodbye, I pushed the stroller forward. But Crystal suddenly blocked my path. She asked in an innocent voice, "Ashley, is this your baby?" Shane rushed forward, anxiously studying my son. He breathed a sigh of relief. "Not her kid. Doesn't look anything like her." My son didn't look like me, he was like a mini version of his dad, Greg. I didn't want to waste my breath on him and tried to push the stroller around him. But he grabbed the stroller handle, raising an eyebrow. "Ashley, so you’re doing pretty bad without me, huh? Now you’re a nanny or something?" "Apologize to me, and I might consider going through with our engagement." Apologize? He left me at our engagement party, and now he wants me to apologize? 2 I stared at Shane, gripping the stroller handle so hard my knuckles turned white. Three years ago, on the Fourth of July, on the day my parents and Shane's parents planned our engagement. To keep the promise, Shane’s dad still had me and Shane get engaged on this day. At the time, I could see Shane was acting distant, with a hint of resentment in his eyes. But I didn’t think much of it, personally designing the engagement party's theme, and anticipating that day's arrival with excitement. On the Fourth of July, I came to the engagement party, shy and nervous, and immediately realized I was mistaken. The pink theme we'd agreed on had been changed to orange, and even my favorite tulips had been replaced with bright red roses. Looking at the screen, and confirming that the names above read Shane and Ashley, I immediately ran to question Shane. But he was casual, waving his hand dismissively. "Crystal said she liked the new theme, so I had it changed." "It's just an engagement party, not a wedding. We can follow your preferences when we get married." Tears of frustration immediately filled my eyes. "But this is my engagement party..." Shane frowned, looking annoyed. "Can you ever stop crying? You’re nothing like Crystal, who's always so sensible." He didn't offer a single word of comfort, going instead to greet his business partners. Shane's mom noticed something was wrong, and hurriedly took me to the restroom to reapply my makeup. "Ashley, don't be upset. Aunt Carol will talk to him. It's almost time for the engagement, and you don't want puffy eyes." Looking at Shane's mom, who was comforting me like a real mom, I felt even more upset. If my parents were still alive, would Shane dare to treat me this way? After redoing my makeup, I linked arms with Shane's mom and went back to the engagement party. But Shane's mom was looking around, confused. "That's weird, where's Crystal? I told her to come early. How selfish!" For some reason, I felt really panicked. The engagement party started as planned, and everything went smoothly. As the host asked Shane to help me put on the engagement ring, a tearful voice suddenly came from the entrance. "Shane..." Looking up, I saw Crystal wearing the exact same dress as me, even with the same hairstyle. I looked at Shane in surprise. He was looking at Crystal with a look of pain. "Shane, I love you. I know you love me too." "This engagement party's theme is your special compensation for me." Saying that, Crystal's tears fell, large and abundant. "Leave with me, okay? We're not blood-related. We can be together." I grabbed Shane's hand, looking at him anxiously. "Shane, please don't..." Shane's eyes seemed to focus only on Crystal, without even looking at me. The guests below the stage looked at me with gossip in their eyes, with a few looking sympathetic. Shane’s dad suddenly yelled, "Enough!" "Take Crystal away!" The security guards immediately went forward. But Crystal suddenly produced a box cutter in her hand, looking at Shane with tear-filled eyes. "Shane, if you don't come with me, I'll die here." Shane’s dad glared at the security guard, who stopped moving. "What are you waiting for? Take her away!" Shane, who was beside me, suddenly said, "Anyone who touches her will have to deal with me!" Ignoring my pleas, Shane pried my fingers away, one by one, and rushed towards Crystal. He snatched the box cutter from Crystal's hand, pulling her into a tight embrace. Crystal cried even harder. "Shane, I knew you loved me." "I'll take you away." After saying that, Shane ignored my feelings and left the engagement party with Crystal. The guests couldn't sit any longer, pointing and gossiping about me. A cold wind blew past, and I felt like I was back at the engagement party, trembling uncontrollably. 3 Shane’s voice drifted to my ears on the wind, pulling me back to reality. "Does your boss treat you so badly? Can’t even afford to buy you a coat?" I glanced at him, not wanting to deal with him. Crystal tugged on his sleeve. "Shane, since Ashley's so pitiful, let's help her out?" She looked at me with an expression of pity, but I didn't miss the contempt in her eyes. Shane raised an eyebrow, a smile slowly appearing on his face. "Ashley, if you apologize, I'll go through with the engagement." Hearing that again, I looked at him with ridicule. "What, it's been three years, and you and Crystal haven't gotten a marriage license yet?" Crystal, who already looked so pitiful, started sobbing as soon as I said that. Aunt Carol rolled her eyes at her, and took my hand, speaking earnestly. "Ashley, any trash can't enter the Smith Family's door." Crystal paused, turning pale. She looked at Shane with pleading eyes, but Shane didn’t respond. She forced a smile, showing a pitiful look. "Ashley, don't be a nanny, come back and be with Shane." "It's okay, you don't have to worry about me." Shane's expression changed, and he suddenly pulled me with force. "Ashley, do you have to make Crystal upset?" "I already said I'd go through with the engagement. What more do you want? Why are you making things hard on Crystal!" Hearing Shane’s questions, I looked at him, surprised. Before I could respond, my son started crying in the stroller. I quickly picked up my son, patted his back skillfully, and looking at him with love. Aunt Carol suddenly asked: "Ashley. Is this truly your child?" She was a mother, and knew how mothers acted around their children. I looked at Aunt Carol with a smile, and nodded. Shane scoffed, "Mom, you're getting senile. Ashley is obviously working as a nanny." "When she ran off to America, she had bad depression." "Besides, Ashley's family is falling apart, does she even have time to get married?" I didn't want to deal with Shane, I don’t care what he thought. Aunt Carol didn't pay attention to him. Instead, she looked at me with a complicated expression, full of pity. After calming my son down, I gently put him back in the stroller, said goodbye to Aunt Carol, and prepared to leave. But Shane grabbed me again. "Ashley, I told you I'd marry you, what else do you want from me?" "I pulled you out of the abyss, and I made such a big sacrifice for you, you should be grateful." I suppressed my anger, and asked him coldly. "You want to marry me? What about your dear sister?" Crystal looked at Shane with hope, treating Shane like her final lifeline. Shane looked at her, and sighed. "I've explained this many times, Crystal… is just my sister." Hearing that, Crystal's eyes instantly reddened, and a look of hatred flashed across her eyes. She was about to win Shane's heart over, but the slut Ashley came back, and now he was hesitant. Seeing her losing control, Shane immediately changed his tone. "But after we get married, you have to treat Crystal well. She's our sister, after all." I laughed coldly, saying, "You don't have to consider me, you can treat Crystal well now." "Haven't you always been like this for the past twenty years?"4 When I was dating Shane, he always put Crystal first. I still remember his 25th birthday. I dragged my best friend around the mall, and specially picked out a watch that suited him. When I arrived with the gift, I discovered that he was with Crystal. I forced a smile. "Shane, weren't we supposed to spend your birthday alone, just the two of us?" Crystal immediately started sobbing. "Shane, should I go back?" But despite saying that, she didn't get up, just kept crying. Shane frowned immediately. "I decide who comes to my birthday. It's none of your business!" "If you don't want to, you can leave!" I froze in place, gripping the gift tightly. Seeing the smug look in Crystal's eyes, I felt powerless. But I loved Shane too much, and didn't want to miss his birthday. I sat down next to Crystal anyway. Shane and Crystal were being affectionate, as if they were the ones who were dating. They were discussing Crystal's favorite anime, and I couldn't say a word. While Crystal was drinking her juice, I pulled out the gift I had prepared. I held the watch out to Shane. "Happy birthday." Before Shane could see it, Crystal snatched it first. "Let me see!" She wore it on her hand, admiring it. "It's so pretty." "You can have it." Shane said casually, not caring at all. I tried to force a smile, reminding him, "This is the birthday present I got for you." Shane glanced at me. "So what?" "Crystal likes it, so I'm giving it to her." "You're going to be her sister-in-law soon, can’t you even handle a watch?" … "Ashley, I'm talking to you! When did you become like this?" Shane’s voice pulled me back from my memories. I thought that our connection had long ended, at that engagement party, but I didn't expect to run into each other again. I looked at him. "Shane, we have nothing to do with each other anymore. Please respect yourself." Crystal grabbed Shane's hand with heartache. "Shane, don't be angry. I'll make Ashley apologize to you!" She didn't know what she was doing, and suddenly charged over, shouting, "You have to apologize!" She tried to grab my clothes, but I dodged it. But she aimed for the stroller, and before I could stop her, she grabbed it. "Wah..." My toddler son immediately started crying. I quickly pushed her away, picking up my son with heartache. He'd grown up sheltered, and had never been treated so cruelly. "Ah!" Crystal shrieked, and fell on the ground. Frowning, I saw Shane carefully examining the wound on Crystal's knee. But her knee wasn't even scraped, and she was crying like crazy. Aunt Carol couldn't stand it, saying, "If you keep blowing on it, the wound will heal." Shane quickly came to my side, pulling my arm hard, almost making me drop my son. "Ashley, apologize to Crystal!" I was about to yell back, when I heard a familiar voice. "Who are you making apologize?" … Looking back, Greg was wearing rimless glasses, with a scholarly air, but with piercing eyes. Behind him was a limo, with over a dozen men in black suits. Everyone watched as Greg came to my side, putting his arm around me. He smiled, repeating, "Who are you making apologize?"
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