Chapter 2

Zoe came home, her perfect hair a mess, a few angry red marks blooming on her pale neck.

"You're still up?"

She tried to sound casual, but she couldn't meet my eyes.

I didn't say anything, just kept peeling the spicy shrimp, red chili oil staining my fingers.

She frowned. "I thought you never ate late-night snacks."

"Felt like it tonight."

That's when she noticed the untouched dinner on the table.

"Sorry," she said, a hint of panic in her voice. "A last-minute gig came up. I forgot to tell you."

Today was our fifth wedding anniversary.

I’d been cooking all day. She said she’d be home right after her new song was released.

She finally stumbled in after midnight.

I had no appetite for the table of cold food. It was all her favorite French cuisine.

I never really liked it anyway.

"Don't you love that restaurant by the beach? I'll book a table for tomorrow, and we can go together."

I told her last week that the restaurant had closed down.

Seeing that I didn't argue, she tried to wrap her arms around my neck and act cute, like she always did.

But I calmly stood up to get some water. "Sure. You book it."

She was only saying it, anyway. She never actually followed through.

The TV was playing clips of Zoe’s new music video on a loop.

On screen, she was wearing a brilliant white wedding dress, smiling like a princess.

The groom wasn't me.

Every shot was as perfect as a scene from a movie.

When we got married, she insisted on keeping it a secret. We just snapped a few quick photos outside the courthouse.

Back then, I was so happy. I thought as long as I could be with her, the formalities didn't matter.

Zoe’s eyes darted away. "The director arranged the MV," she explained nervously.

"He said announcing our marriage now would be bad for my career. That’s why…"

I snorted. "That's a new one. Did the director also tell you to switch grooms?"

She had promised me she would use the new song to release a short video of us together, to finally tell the world about our relationship.

Instead, she released a video of her fantasy wedding with her first love.

Her face went pale, but she was still stubborn.

"It was just for the story! Stop trying to connect me and Mason. We ended things a long time ago!"

"Anyway, don't take it seriously. I'll make it up to you."