【Chapter 1】 In the fifth year of my secret relationship with Hollywood A-lister Caleb Thorne, he still refused to acknowledge my existence. Even when my wealthy family pressured me to settle down and marry, he didn't care in the slightest. Even when I nearly died in a horrific car crash trying to dodge the paparazzi for him, all I got was a flippant text. "Be careful, babe. We were almost caught." Until the day we were secretly photographed, and the pictures rocketed to the top of TMZ and Twitter. I thought he was finally going to explain something. Instead, I got a public declaration of his relationship with someone else. "My girl is crying her eyes out, so I have to clear the air. I don't really know the woman in those photos. Please leave us alone." His tweet caused a massive earthquake online. Instantly, I was shoved into the eye of a brutal storm. "Forcing the actual girlfriend to come out and defend her territory? Have some shame!" "Where did this desperate groupie come from trying to steal our man's spotlight? Go rot!" On that day, I was firmly nailed to the pillar of public humiliation. And I finally understood. Going public was never the hard part. I just wasn't worthy of it. …… It was a brilliant, sunny day outside, but my body shivered with cold. The vicious comments kept refreshing on my screen in an endless stream. "You can tell she just threw herself at him for money. Looks like a cheap escort straight out of a VIP club." "Exactly. It's not like Caleb is blind. Why would he ever like trash like her?" "Caleb is vacationing in Europe with Valerie right now. This woman must be dying of jealousy!" Looking at the paparazzi photos of the two of them strolling hand-in-hand down a street in Milan, a sarcastic laugh escaped my lips. Just one minute ago, Caleb was still lying to me. "I'm on set shooting right now. Wait until I get back, and we'll talk." For a fleeting second, a spark of foolish hope had flared in my chest. I thought maybe he really had his reasons. But now, this photo felt like a physical slap across the face. It woke me up completely. I was the one degrading myself. By the time Caleb finally returned, it was the evening of the third day. Without a single word of explanation, he tossed his luggage aside and leaned down, trying to kiss me. My lungs instantly caught fire. He was always like this. Coming and going exactly as he pleased. I was just a convenient rest stop for when he was tired or bored. And who knew how many rest stops he had scattered around? Smack. I raised my hand and slapped him hard across the face. The sharp sound echoed through the quiet apartment. Caleb froze. A flicker of deep impatience finally surfaced on his devastatingly handsome face. He couldn't help but scoff. "I always thought you understood." His tone was so nonchalant it made my chest physically ache. My mind buzzed. "Understood what?" I asked, my voice trembling. Caleb looked up at me, a trace of pity in his eyes. "I can't be with just one person, Madeline. And I can never openly claim you. You're so smart... how do you not get that?" Seeing my deathly pale face, he paused for a second, but kept going anyway. "Besides, isn't this fine? We're still young. Why do we have to be tied down? I really haven't played enough yet." In an instant, a deafening ringing filled my ears. Tears blurred my vision. Even though I had already decided to end things, hearing his shameless, unapologetic confession still made me feel like I was losing my mind. Caleb watched me quietly for two seconds, growing visibly annoyed. Just as he reached out to touch me, I suddenly calmed down. My voice was dead and completely detached. "You're young. I'm not young anymore." Caleb's hand froze in mid-air. A fracture appeared on his flawless face. "What... what do you mean?" I nudged his luggage back toward him with my foot. "I think you understand," I said with absolute clarity. Staring into Caleb’s violently trembling pupils, I enunciated every word. "I am ending this relationship." This sickening, desperate, ugly relationship. Caleb stormed out in a furious rage, but he still didn't take his luggage. 【Chapter 2】 I didn't know what kind of power play he thought that was, but my stance was clear. No one could change my mind. Just like all those years ago, when I brought him home without a moment's hesitation. I was three years older than Caleb. When I was twelve, I followed my grandfather to a poverty-stricken town in rural Appalachia for a charity outreach program. Caleb crashed right in front of our SUV. He had been beaten by his foster father until he was rolling in the dirt. His back was covered in bloody welts, his skin torn. But he didn't shed a single tear. He just looked up at me, his eyes momentarily dazed. Then, finding strength from somewhere deep inside, he broke free from the man, scrambled into our car, and clung to me like a wounded, terrified animal. "Sister, please take me away. I'll do anything. Please save me." Maybe it was the desperate, stubborn fire in the boy's eyes. Or maybe it was the way his hands shook violently as he held onto me. But I, the notoriously obedient daughter, fought off the pressure from every adult in the room and brought him back to Los Angeles. From that day on, he became a drowning vine, tightly and desperately wrapped around me. Just as I was sinking into the past, my phone rang, pulling me back to reality. I knew it was my family, calling to pressure me about marriage again. Only this time, I didn't hang up. I answered and said directly: "Mom, I agree to the family merger. You can start the arrangements." The world finally fell quiet. Early the next morning, I drove to Caleb’s entertainment agency to hand in my resignation. But when I pushed open his office door, a woman was sitting on his lap. It was his public girlfriend, Valerie Sinclair. The room went dead silent. Everyone inside turned to look at me simultaneously. Every member of Caleb’s inner circle knew exactly what our relationship was. I felt a flash of humiliation—not out of jealousy, but because I had been reduced to the role of "the other woman." I took a deep breath, dropped my resignation letter onto his desk, and turned to leave. Behind me, I heard the sharp crack of shattering porcelain, as if someone had crushed a coffee mug with their bare hands. I didn't stop walking. But just as I reached the door, a figure darted out and grabbed my arm. Valerie crossed her arms and looked me up and down for a few seconds. Suddenly, she smiled. "Why do you insist on making him unhappy? What good does it do you?" When I didn't answer, she leaned in close, giggling maliciously. "Honestly, I'm totally fine with a threesome... It's not like he hasn't done it before..." Ignoring my rapidly paling face, she pulled out her phone and hit play on a video. Instantly, a tangle of naked limbs pierced my eyes like a cluster of needles. They were rolling around in my bed. The graphic, uninhibited moans pierced through the silence of the room. Bang! Caleb kicked his office door open and charged out. His usually composed face was twisted in absolute fury. He snatched the phone from Valerie's hand and smashed it violently into the floorboards. "Why the fuck would you show her that?!" Valerie froze, and when she finally snapped out of it, her eyes turned red. "I was doing this for you! Besides, she needs a reality check! Look at her! Who does she think she is trying to monopolize you? She doesn't even deserve you!" "Shut up!" Caleb shoved her roughly aside, grabbed my wrist, and dragged me into his private office. He stared down at me, a flicker of panic hiding in his dark eyes. "It was just that one time. I was drunk." "What does that have to do with me?" Caleb’s head snapped up. A hint of hateful resentment bled into his voice. "Do you really have to treat me like this? I just explained it to you! What more do you want?!" What more did I want? My eyes instantly went bloodshot. The images from that video were still flashing in my brain, twisting like a serrated knife. This wasn't the first time. The very first time a woman had sent me photos of them in bed together, Caleb had been terrified. "Sister, I was asleep! She crawled under the covers herself, and I thought it was you! I swear!" Terrified that I would abandon him, he followed me around with red eyes for days. I was so deeply nauseated I couldn't eat for three days. To prove his absolute loyalty, he went out and tattooed my name right on his V-line. "Sister, I will always be your loyal dog." Looking at his devoted, desperate eyes back then, I eventually chose to forgive him. His suppressed emotions had broken like a dam. He hugged me, kissing me frantically, making endless promises. I was so naive back then. I actually believed he would change. But reality slapped me in the face, over and over again. Tolerate it once, and there will be a next time. The bottom line gets pushed lower and lower, until you look in the mirror and feel nothing but disgust for yourself. Maybe my undisguised revulsion stung him. Panic, helplessness, and finally, rage flashed through Caleb’s eyes. He stalked toward me, moving fast. "Madeline, you are really starting to piss me off." He tried to force a kiss on me—his go-to rogue tactic after countless fights in the past. Only this time, I didn't let him have his way. Crash. Caleb slumped to the floor, clutching his forehead as dark red blood seeped through his fingers. He looked at me in absolute disbelief. "You actually hit me!" My hand, still gripping the heavy glass paperweight, was trembling slightly. I ignored his words, turned around, and walked out the door. Behind me, I heard a low, wounded whimper. Half-rage, half-sob. 【Chapter 3】 I thought it was finally over. But that same paparazzo released even more photos of us. Holding hands, hugging, kissing—close-ups from every possible angle. Instantly, #CalebThorneLiar rocketed to the top of the trending charts. His haters and casual onlookers swarmed his social media accounts, raining down an avalanche of insults and vitriol. I only found out about the fallout while I was being driven home by my arranged match, Nathaniel Reed. My apartment was pitch black. The exact second I flipped the light switch, a hand clamped around my throat and slammed me against the wall. The glaring lights and the blunt force trauma left me dazed for a few seconds. When I finally opened my eyes, Caleb was staring at me, his eyes bloodshot and unhinged. "Madeline. You paid the paparazzi to release those photos just to force me to claim you?" My brain stalled. When I finally processed his words, a cold laugh escaped my throat. "What kind of garbage are you spewing? I would never do something like that." "Drop the act! Valerie saw you meeting with the paparazzi!" Caleb’s face was a mask of iron, the grip around my throat tightening. He watched me wince in pain, yet didn't show a single ounce of remorse. "What do you get out of destroying me?! Valerie was right. You are incredibly selfish and heartless! You don't care about me at all. Everything you do is just to satisfy your own twisted—" Mid-sentence, Caleb’s face froze. His eyes locked onto the oversized men's jacket draped over my shoulders. Pure, unadulterated hatred flared in his eyes. "Whose jacket is this?! Who were you out with?! You found a new sugar daddy that fast?! Madeline, you're a fucking whore!" His voice shook violently. He ripped the jacket off my shoulders, threw it onto the floor, and started violently stomping on it. Like the jacket had murdered his family. I watched him with ice-cold eyes, utterly disgusted by his pathetic display. "Caleb, who I spend my time with has nothing to do with you. And whoever you date has nothing to do with me. Now get the hell out of my house!" Caleb’s pupils shook, his cheek twitching as if he was vibrating with sheer rage. "Madeline, you're doing this to punish me, aren't you?! Just because I wouldn't take you public?!" I was sick to my stomach. I didn't want to hear another word of his delusional ranting, and I wanted zero ties to him. I bypassed him and immediately called the building's security. Caleb smiled, but his eyes were filled with venom. "You're really something." That very night, Caleb logged onto X and posted an official response. "That woman is an older sister who sponsored me when I was young. I apologize for lying to everyone. We did have a brief history, but it's entirely in the past. Certain things happened, and I really don't want to dig up old wounds. I apologize again and have no intention of taking up public resources." His wording was masterful, leaving just enough to the imagination while directing all the crosshairs directly at me. His fans instantly flooded the comments with pity. "What does he mean? Did this psycho bitch use her money to blackmail him into dating her? That is disgusting!" "Omg, I have a wild theory. Is this woman some rich sugar mommy who preys on young actors to satisfy her sick fantasies?" "Ahhhh, poor Caleb! My god, that woman deserves to rot. Has anyone doxxed her yet?" In the blink of an eye, I was thrown right back into the center of a raging inferno. A few hours later, my personal information, address, and phone number were plastered all over the internet. My mother almost had a heart attack from the stress. My father was frantically calling in favors to scrub the internet while ordering me to come back to the family estate immediately. My head was spinning. I couldn't believe Caleb was capable of something this ruthless. I was so dizzy and overwhelmed that when I stepped out of my apartment building, I completely failed to notice the metal bat swinging toward my head. Crack! An explosion of white-hot pain erupted in the back of my skull. I hit the pavement hard. A young woman stood over me, her eyes burning with manic hatred. "You bitch! You ruined my idol's life! Go to hell!" She raised the baseball bat high above her head, aiming straight for my skull again. My heart hammered against my ribs. I couldn't move a muscle. Just as a wave of absolute despair washed over me... Thud. Nathaniel Reed materialized out of nowhere, grabbing the bat mid-swing and violently tackling the crazed fan to the concrete. The girl let out a shrill scream. She scrambled to her feet, shot me one last murderous glare, and sprinted off into the night. Nathaniel's face was terrifyingly grim. He quickly assessed my bleeding head wound and immediately dialed 911.
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