Chapter 3

03

A sudden vibration from my phone pulled me out of my spiraling thoughts.

“Gavin! Turn on the livestream right now!” my best friend, Preston, barked through the speaker.

I tapped the link he sent, opening a popular celebrity dating broadcast.

The flashy banner read: “The Pop Icon & The Genius Heiress: A Romance in the Making.”

My stomach churned as the video loaded.

Jaxon and Fiona were seated side by side on a plush couch, laughing intimately as if they had been a couple for years.

The live chat was scrolling at lightning speed, flooded with thousands of comments gushing over their chemistry.

The host leaned in with a cheeky grin: “Jaxon, during your homecoming interview, you mentioned you came back to find the sweet girl from your childhood. Considering Miss Fiona’s nickname is Sweetness, is this your subtle way of making things official?”

On screen, Fiona blushed a delicate shade of crimson and gave a shy, demure nod.

That was an expression I had never seen on her face during all our years together.

A crushing weight pressed down on my chest, making every breath feel like inhaling broken glass.

In my memories, her smiles toward me were always polite, distant, or laced with condescension.

That pure, starry-eyed warmth was a luxury reserved exclusively for Jaxon.

I scrolled through the endless stream of comments praising how perfect they looked together, each word cutting cleanly into my heart.

I locked my phone and tossed it onto the sofa, refusing to torture myself any longer.

Some people were never meant to be yours, no matter how much blood you shed for them.

I packed the last of my belongings into a single suitcase, ready to leave the apartment for good.

Just as I pulled the door open, Fiona and Jaxon were standing right outside, their hands tightly intertwined.

Fiona instantly switched into an aggressive stance the second she saw my bag.

“Gavin, are you even a man? How dare you abandon me at our own engagement party!”

Jaxon shook his head in mock disappointment. “Seriously, Gavin. Treating her like this? What if she had gotten so devastated that she hurt herself?”

I let out a dry, humorless laugh. “Why would she be devastated? Weren't you two busy drinking cocktails with your arms tangled together? Besides, wasn't my replacement right there by her side?”

Jaxon frowned, his voice dropping into a warning tone. “Watch your mouth. If I had not stepped in to cover for you, Fiona’s reputation would have been ruined.”

Refusing to waste energy on him, I turned my eyes toward the woman I had loved for a decade.

Fiona, just give me one honest explanation, and I might reconsider walking out this door.

Just one sincere word.

And I might still be foolish enough to stay.

Reality, however, delivered another merciless slap to my face.

“Gavin, I have been paying for all the household expenses these past few years,” Fiona said coldly, eyeing my luggage. “You better make sure there is nothing in that suitcase that does not belong to you.”

Her words hit me like a physical blow.

I could accept that she fell out of love with me, but reducing my dignity to theft was beyond cruel.

Looking at her cold, haughty face, I realized there was no point in arguing.

I let out a quiet sigh and moved to step around them.

Fiona grabbed the handle of my suitcase, her expression a mix of irritation and wounded pride.

“The only reason Jaxon stepped in at the party was to save face! We are only playing up the romance on TV for publicity and his career! Nothing is going on between us!”

She huffed, crossing her arms as if granting me a massive favor. “Look, considering how well you have served me over the years, I am giving you a way out. Take it, apologize, and let us stop making a scene.”

Jaxon smirked, adding fuel to the fire. “Exactly, Gavin. If Fiona and I actually wanted to be together, do you really think you would have ever had a chance? Why can't you be a little more mature like me?”

I locked eyes with him and sneered. “Mature like you? You mean creeping around someone else’s fiancée?”

Before Jaxon could reply, Fiona snapped, her eyes blazing with fury.

“Gavin! Do not push your luck! I already explained everything to you! How dare you disrespect Jaxon like this!”

“Why should I respect a home-wrecking third wheel?” I countered coldly.

“Gavin! If you distrust me this much, then we have nothing left to say! We are over!”

She squared her shoulders, glaring at me with supreme confidence.

She was waiting for me to break, waiting for me to drop to my knees and beg for her mercy just like I always did.

Instead, the hallway fell completely silent, a chasm of absolute detachment opening between us.

I looked straight into her eyes and uttered a single, calm word: “Deal.”

In Fiona’s eyes, I was merely a pathetic, disfigured loser who should be grateful for her scraps.

Even after I traded my face for her life, even when Jaxon’s manipulative motives were glaringly obvious, she still chose to run into his arms without hesitation.

Walking away was not a loss. It was my liberation.