1 I gave up a multimillion-dollar inheritance and spent ten years of my life supporting Liam, a simple college athlete, through grueling day-and-night training. I did it all because he promised he’d propose the moment he won a world championship. So, on the day of his gold medal press conference, I arrived full of hope, wearing a wedding gown, with all our friends and family in tow to witness the world champion’s proposal. But he acted as if I wasn’t even there. His gaze was fixed on a girl in the front row, cheering her heart out. A reporter sensed the story and asked if the girl was his girlfriend. I expected him to deny it. Instead, he just offered a sweet, bashful smile and said nothing. As a chorus of "Aww, I ship it!" rippled through the room, I tore off my veil and slipped out of the conference hall. Then I went home and purged every trace of him from my life. He had begged me not to come, claiming a recent injury meant he couldn't win and he was afraid of embarrassing me. It was all a lie to bring another woman. A man like that? Someone else can have him. I’m done. … The first thing I did when I got home was shove my wedding dress into the fireplace. I watched the flames lick at the pristine white fabric, turning it black, then to ash—a perfect metaphor for the love I’d shared with Liam for ten years, now reduced to nothing. I called my family’s lawyer and instructed him to sell the downtown aquatic center. I had built that facility for Liam. Using the prize money from my graduate design project, I had created a top-tier training center, with every detail meticulously replicating international competition standards. I even hired a world-renowned swimming coach to create a custom training regimen just for him. But back then, Liam was fresh out of college, proud and full of ambition. He didn't want to be known as a "kept man" living off a rich girlfriend. To protect his fragile ego, I agreed to live with him in a cramped walk-up apartment behind his old athletic school. I’d spend my days watching him train and my nights drafting designs to pay our bills. Now that I was leaving him, there was no reason to keep the facility open. After settling the final severance payments for the staff, the lawyer began the transfer process. Seeing the withdrawal notifications flood my phone gave me a dark thrill. Spending money was this much fun? And I had spent years scrimping and saving, living like a pauper when I could have been enjoying my life as an heiress. I had turned myself into a glorified housemaid for a man who wasn't worth it. I was packing the last of Liam’s belongings, ready to throw them out, when he came home. "I thought we agreed you wouldn't come to the press conference today! My fans saw you in the wedding dress!" he fumed. "You just had to try and force my hand in public, didn't you? Are you happy now that you've nearly ruined my career?" He spoke as if I'd committed some unforgivable crime. If I hadn't seen him exchanging loving glances with Margo, if I hadn't seen him implicitly confirm she was his girlfriend, I might have actually believed that going public with our relationship would end his athletic career. "What's wrong? Afraid I'd see you and Margo making your big announcement?" I shot back. "Liam, I was blind, but I see clearly now. Let's go our separate ways. Take your things and get out of my house." I shoved his bags out the door, my eyes cold and devoid of any lingering affection. Liam’s face hardened. He grabbed my arm and pulled me back inside. "Sophia, what is this now? How many times do I have to tell you? Margo is just a junior training partner. What kind of nonsense do you fill your head with all day?" He continued, oblivious. "By the way, next month, Margo and I are representing the team at a training camp in Bali. You have a villa there, right? Call your property manager and let them know we're coming. Do that, and I'll forget about the whole wedding dress stunt this morning." He spoke as if it were a done deal, completely missing the news report rolling on the TV behind him. The headline blared: Swimming Champion Protectively Shields His New Love. On screen, reporters were swarming Margo, asking about her relationship with Liam. The footage showed Liam rushing forward without a second thought, pulling her into a fierce, protective embrace. Seeing him shield her like that felt like a thousand frozen shards of glass exploding in my chest. I had kept that villa empty for a decade, saving it for our honeymoon. Now, he wanted to take another woman there. My gaze flickered to the television. Liam seemed to realize his mistake, a flicker of embarrassment crossing his face. 2 He immediately lunged for the TV and yanked the plug from the wall, turning back to me with a sheepish grin. "Sophie, that's all fake. You know how the media is. They'll do anything for ratings." "You've always wanted a fairy-tale wedding, right? I promise you, just one more gold medal at a world event, and I will propose. I swear." "Now, hurry up and arrange the villa. I don't want any drama when we get there." I couldn't help it. A cold, bitter laugh escaped my lips. So that was it. I had been wondering why the ever-arrogant Liam was suddenly trying so hard to placate me, even bringing up marriage. It was all for Margo. He wanted a free flight and a luxury villa for his little getaway. I pushed him toward the door, my patience gone. "Sophia, that's enough," he snapped, his temper flaring. He shoved my shoulder. "I already said I'd marry you, what more do you want? Don't push your luck!" I used to let him get away with this, which made him think he could control me. I sidestepped his hand. "Liam," I said with a calm, shallow smile. "We're done. From now on, we have nothing to do with each other." I slammed the door in his face and locked it, ignoring the frantic pounding from the other side. "Sophia, don't you come crying to me when you regret this!" he bellowed. Finally, he left. Just as the silence settled, my phone rang. "Ms. Wright, there's a situation at the aquatic center. I think you should come down here." I clutched the phone, a knot of dread forming in my stomach. Although Liam had refused to train at the facility, he'd insisted it shouldn't lose money. He said he'd have a "trusted friend" manage it, so I rarely got involved. My heart sank. I jumped in my car and sped over. As expected, the moment I walked into the lobby, my lawyer, Mr. Chen, rushed toward me like a man seeing a lifeboat. "Ms. Wright, there's a woman here causing a scene. She's accusing me of being a fraud and threatening to call the police, claiming we're trying to seize her property!" He gestured helplessly toward the pool area. I walked past him, confused. And then I saw her. Margo, lounging casually in a designer swimsuit, looking as if she owned the place. My world went white. Liam had said he was training with Margo… here. In the very facility I had custom-built for him. The place he had publicly refused to use out of "pride," he had been secretly using all along, carrying on an affair right under my nose, nurturing his little mistress. I bit my lip so hard I could taste blood. Before I could say a word, Margo spoke first. "You must be the new cleaning lady Liam hired," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Be careful with those tiles, they're imported. You can't afford to replace them." I slapped her pointing hand away. "This facility has been sold," I managed to choke out. "Please leave immediately." Margo looked at me as if I'd just told the world's greatest joke. She stood up, her eyes raking over my simple clothes with contempt. "Wow, the economy really must be in the toilet!" she announced to the room. "Even the cleaning staff are pretending to be business owners now! Everyone, come look! This lady says she owns the place!" A crowd of onlookers gathered. "Give me a break. She must be desperate for money. Everyone knows this pool was Liam's birthday gift to Ms. Margo. It's been ten years!" "Exactly! I've been a member for a decade. We all know Ms. Margo was here with Liam, day and night, for ten years straight!" "Did you see the press conference this morning? It's official. Liam is so protective of her. This old hag is probably just some crazy person trying to cash in!" The whispers and accusations washed over me. I suppressed my rage and pulled the corporate ownership documents from my bag. "I'll say it one more time. This is my aquatic center, and it has been sold. We are closing for the transition. Please leave now, or I will call the police." Margo didn't even glance at the papers. She snatched them from my hand and tossed them into the pool. Then, she gave a subtle nod to her assistant behind her. 3 A moment later, the huge LCD screen in the aquatic center flickered to life, showing a livestream. After the morning's press conference, Margo had gained over a million followers in just a few hours, becoming the nation's "perfect girlfriend." "Ma'am," she said to the camera, her sharp tone instantly replaced by a soft, vulnerable one. "If you're having financial trouble, just say so. We're happy to help. But claiming this place is yours… that's going too far. Everyone knows this was a gift of love from Liam." I was stunned by the sudden livestream. I reached out to knock the phone away, but someone shoved me hard. I stumbled back, teetering on the edge of the pool. Online, viewers who knew nothing of the situation were crucifying me. A sharp-eyed user even posted the photo of me in the wedding dress at the press conference. The livestream chat exploded. 【It's that psycho stalker fan! First, she tries to force a proposal, now she's ambushing them at their private pool? Disgusting!】 【She saw our 'Chliam' go official this morning and now she's trying to steal their property. She's obsessed!】 【Let's go! I'm heading there right now to deal with this shameless old hag myself!】 The screen filled with hateful comments. My face burned with humiliation, my chest so tight with rage I thought I would explode. Seeing me clutch my chest in silence, Margo pushed the camera closer. I stared daggers at the woman who had stolen my life, and my furious expression on screen only fueled another wave of attacks. Mr. Chen, realizing my predicament, quickly produced his backup copies of the tax and ownership documents. "Everyone, please," he tried to explain to the crowd. "All of this proves that the legal owner of this establishment is my client, Ms. Soph—" He was cut off by a figure rushing through the doors. It was Liam. Just as I thought the truth would finally come out, Margo did something insane. She grabbed my hand and threw herself backward, pulling me with her into the pool. Before I could even process what was happening, we hit the water with a loud splash. The livestream cut out. I flailed in the water, choking, and cried out to Liam for help. For a fleeting, foolish moment, when I saw him dive into the pool without hesitation, a flicker of warmth ignited in my heart. But that warmth turned to ice when he swam right past me, scooped Margo into his arms, and carried her to the side, wrapping her in a thick blanket. He wasn't saving me. By the time a lifeguard pulled me out, I wasn't met with Liam's concern, but with a mob of rabid "couple" fans who had stormed the facility and were now screaming at me. I collapsed onto a nearby chair, helpless, as tears streamed down my face. So, this is what it felt like. Even when the love was gone, the pain was still real. "It's you, isn't it? Take a look at yourself! You think you're worthy of being his wife?" "Seriously, a toad trying to eat swan meat!" Liam's female fans pointed and jeered. One of them even tried to shove me back into the pool. Margo, seeing her chance, rose from Liam's embrace, her voice trembling with fake tears as she pointed at me. "Liam, it was her! She came here to cause trouble and pushed me into the pool! If you hadn't arrived when you did, who knows what would have happened!"
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