The day before the wedding, a hotel booking confirmation from my fiancé Ethan arrived on my phone. I thought it was a pre-wedding surprise he'd planned for me. But shortly after, his childhood sweetheart Leah posted a photo on Ins of them kissing passionately, with the caption: "Missing you before was my biggest regret. If I still have a chance, I want to tell you—I do." After I caught him cheating, Ethan didn't explain. He just sent me a message: "We need to prepare for the wedding tomorrow. Get some rest early tonight." Seeing that message, bitterness filled my heart. What was I to him, really? A consolation prize? My eyes welled up as I looked at the carefully decorated room, feeling nothing but irony. I took a deep breath, swallowed the bitterness, and replied. "Let's not get married. Let's break up." Ethan didn't respond to that message. I fought to suppress the sadness inside and threw the wedding dress I'd carefully prepared onto the floor. Ethan was only thirty but already a professor at a prestigious university. In everyone's eyes, he was handsome and talented. Many people thought I was marrying up, and even before the wedding they'd advise me to be content and become a virtuous, sensible wife. But cheating was something I could never tolerate. After deciding firmly to break up, I sent my mom a message. She was shocked. After a long silence, she said: "Alright. As long as you've made your decision, I'll support you." That night, I packed my bags and left home, checking into a hotel. Two days later, Ethan suddenly found the hotel where I was staying. His refined face showed deep fatigue, and his ink-black eyes stared straight at me. "Have you calmed down yet?" His voice came out dull and hoarse. I snapped back to reality and looked at him coldly. "Mr. Hayes, what do you want from me?" "Emily, stop making a scene. I'm really tired lately." He seemed to soften his tone, his eyes clearly showing exhaustion. I let out a cold laugh. Of course he was tired—juggling two women would exhaust anyone. "What does that have to do with me?" I responded coldly. Even looking at him one more time felt like it dirtied my eyes. I turned to leave after saying that, but he grabbed my wrist. The moment his warm palm touched my wrist. I jerked my hand away like a startled bird and glared at him angrily. "Don't touch me!" Ethan's body trembled slightly as he looked at me in surprise. He opened his mouth as if to say something. "I don't want to hear your excuses. We've already broken up. Please show some respect!" "Emily." His tone grew heavier, tinged with displeasure. "I couldn't find you on the wedding day. You wouldn't answer your phone or reply to messages. I'm already exhausted dealing with this mess. Can't we just talk this through properly? Why does it have to come to this?" "Talk about what? About how you had sex with another woman? Sorry, I'm not interested." Ethan's eyes were pitch black, his expression so dark it could drip water, his voice cold. "Things between her and me aren't what you think."
"I don't care what your relationship is anymore." His tone softened a bit. "Emily, let's go home and talk. My parents are still waiting for you at home." Thinking of his parents, I felt somewhat guilty. Ethan's parents were completely different from him. Uncle Richard was kind and pleasant to talk to, and Aunt Claire was gentle and beautiful. They'd always been good to me, never mistreated me, sometimes even treating me better than they treated Ethan. With something like this happening, they must be feeling awful too. Fine. This matter needed to be settled anyway. I didn't object. I let him take my suitcase and walk into the elevator. I followed him to his parents' house. Before we even entered, I heard his mom saying, "Go buy some mangoes quickly. Emily likes mangoes." "Sure thing, I'll go right now," Richard replied. Richard came to the door and paused when he saw us, then his face broke into a kind smile. "You're back. I'm going to buy some fruit. I'll be right back." I smiled awkwardly, unable to say what I'd come to say. Claire was still busy in the kitchen. Hearing our voices, she rushed out. "Emily's back! Rest on the sofa for a bit. Dinner will be ready soon." Her face was full of smiles, as if my runaway bride act had never happened. My guilt deepened. But that wouldn't shake my determination to break up. I responded and sat on the sofa, stiffly staring at the blank TV screen. Ethan poured a glass of water and placed it in front of me. "It's not your first time here. Why so nervous?" I kept my eyes straight ahead and said blandly, "Because this isn't my home." Then I added coolly, "Not the first time, but it will be the last." Ethan gripped the glass tightly, his fingertips turning white, his thin lips pressed into a straight line, as if deliberately restraining something. At that moment, the doorbell rang. Ethan got up to answer it. His childhood sweetheart Leah's cheerful voice came from outside. "Ethan, what's cooking at your place? It smells amazing." As she finished speaking, she changed shoes and walked in with practiced ease. She clearly froze when she saw me, her lips stretching into a strained smile. "Oh, Emily's here too." My cold gaze swept over her, pausing when I noticed the slippers she was wearing. Her slippers were cute pink house shoes with little bears. What a coincidence—they matched the blue bear slippers on Ethan's feet that didn't suit his image at all. They were a pair. I smiled mockingly to myself and swallowed all the words I wanted to say.
Soon, it was dinner time. Claire, as always, was taking care of my feelings, worried I wouldn't relax. She even asked Ethan to peel shrimp for me. Ethan's eyebrows furrowed at this, his resistance plain to see. He never ate these kinds of shellfish—partly because it was too much trouble, and partly because he genuinely disliked them. The same scene had played out before when I visited. Back then, he'd looked puzzled and asked, "Why would you eat something so troublesome?" I'd already felt uncomfortable at the time, and hearing that, I immediately gave up on eating the shrimp. I could only lie and say, "No need, I don't like shrimp." Even now, he hadn't changed his attitude. He looked at the shrimp on the table with obvious disgust. I smiled faintly and grabbed a pair of disposable gloves to put on. "No need, Claire. I can peel them myself." The smile on Claire's face gradually froze. She shot him a displeased glare, then smiled and told me to eat more. Leah bit her lip, her gaze drifting meaningfully toward the shrimp. "Emily, you're so good at peeling shrimp. I love eating them too, but I don't know how to peel them." Hearing this, I calmly looked at the peeled shrimp in my hand and casually put it in my mouth. "Really? There are tutorials online. You can check them out." Leah smiled awkwardly. Ethan looked at me with disapproval. He methodically put on disposable gloves, picked up a shrimp, and began peeling it while gently teaching her peeling techniques. Watching this scene, I suddenly felt like laughing. If his parents weren't here, I didn't know how many harsh words I'd say. Claire's expression changed dramatically. She covered her mouth and coughed heavily several times. "Don't play favorites. Take care of Emily too." Ethan glanced at me sideways and reluctantly peeled one for me. It was quite intact, but I'd lost my appetite. From that point on, I didn't eat another shrimp. The one he placed in my bowl, I never touched either. I acted as if I hadn't seen it and smiled. "Thank you for having me." "However, there's something I need to make clear. Ethan and I have already broken up. I'm sorry, Richard and Claire. I've let you down." Richard and Claire froze. Ethan clenched his fists, staring at me in silence. Instead, it was Leah whose eyes reddened as she asked weakly, "Emily, Ethan treats you so well. Why do you insist on breaking up? Can't you stay together?" Seeing her act so innocent, I almost couldn't keep down the food I'd just eaten. My expression turned especially ugly. I smiled faintly and asked back, "Don't you know the reason?" "Emily!" Ethan interrupted me sharply. His expression was grim, his face full of displeasure. "I already told you, I only see Leah as a sister. Stop being unreasonable." Leah's expression changed, unable to maintain her smile. I looked up at him calmly, suddenly feeling tired. I slowly stood up and said softly, "Thank you for having me. Next time I'll treat you to dinner. I just remembered I have some things to handle, so I'll leave first." Claire was a reasonable person who could tell the atmosphere was off. She stood up reluctantly. "Alright then. I made some mango mille-feuille cake. Take it home with you." Afraid I'd refuse, she hurried to the kitchen to pack it for me. After leaving Ethan's house, I dragged my suitcase and took a cab home. I hadn't been back for two days. The hallway was clean, showing no trace that wedding preparations had been made here.
The apartment I rented wasn't far from Ethan's place. He'd asked me to move in with him before. I couldn't bear to give up this place I'd paid for annually, so I never agreed. Thinking about it now, I realized this was one of the few right choices I'd made. My best friend Sophie found out I'd moved back and rushed over with her child. "Emily, there's something I'm really curious about. How did you find out he went to that boutique hotel with someone else?" I was playing with toys to entertain the little one when I heard her question. My smile faded. "I used his phone to book a hotel before and entered my number. Last time I forgot to change it back." That careless mistake completely woke me from the beautiful dream I'd been weaving. "Unbelievable. He looks so decent on the outside, but what he does is worse than trash. Good thing you found out before the wedding. If you'd discovered this after getting married, that would've been even more disgusting." Sophie had always been someone who loved and hated boldly, never holding back when cursing people out. My gloomy mood lightened considerably thanks to her counsel. "Don't worry. You're beautiful and capable. You'll meet an even better man!" I smiled brightly, agreeing with her words. After adjusting my mood, I returned to work at the company. Colleagues who knew I was getting married during this time saw me come to work and expressed their congratulations. Seeing their happy smiles for my sake. A warm current flowed through my heart. After the joy came a wave of melancholy. Who would have thought I'd returned to being single again? "Emily, you're not planning to start trying for a baby now, are you? Everyone knows the manager position is practically yours. If you choose family at this point, it won't be worth it." During lunch break, a colleague wheeled her chair over to sit beside me, speaking quietly. I'd actually struggled with this dilemma before—unwilling to give up the promotion opportunity right within reach, yet also unwilling to abandon the little family I'd just formed. But now, my problem had solved itself. "Don't worry. I won't have those plans for the next few years." "Huh? Your husband won't say anything?" I smiled calmly. "No one has the right to interfere with my decisions." My colleague paused, then gave me a thumbs up and praised, "You're really clear-headed. But you're right—life is your own. No one has the right to boss us around." Bitterness rose in my heart. If I'd really been clear-headed, I wouldn't have waited until now to turn back. After that, I focused all my energy on work, deliberately avoiding everything related to Ethan. I discovered that when you really wanted to avoid someone, it was actually quite easy. For five consecutive days, I didn't see Ethan. Just when I thought he'd given up, he showed up at my door. I was carrying groceries I'd just bought home. When I stepped out of the elevator, I saw a tall man standing by my door. Ethan held a bouquet of bright red roses. In his well-fitted suit, his superior figure was hard to ignore. I walked coldly to the door, wanting to unlock it. "Emily, let's talk." "What is there left for us to talk about?" I glanced at him indifferently. "Move. I need to go home." "What I did before was wrong. I came to apologize."
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