Chapter 2

2.

His voice on the phone was dripping with sarcasm and contempt. "Where's Eleanor? Let me talk to her."

"It's bad enough she's losing her mind, but she had to drag you into it too? Is this some new trick to get me to come back?"

Chloe was so furious she could barely breathe. Just as she was about to curse him out, he hung up.

Now, Chloe was so mad that tears were welling up in her eyes.

She handed the phone back to me, still fuming. "What a piece of work! Just what you'd expect from a Harrison!"

I gave her a weak, pale smile and shook my head. "Chloe, let it go. Since we've already decided on a divorce, why let him come here and cause a scene? Maybe in the past, I would have desperately wished for him to visit me, but now..."

I took a deep, bitter breath.

"When you no longer love someone, when you no longer hold out any hope, you can no longer be disappointed."

I had Chloe call a lawyer to file for divorce for both of us.

Chloe and I grew up together, as close as sisters.

We had married the Harrison brothers together with the dream of becoming real sisters-in-law, always there to have each other's backs.

Now, getting married on the same day and getting divorced on the same day―maybe it was just another kind of fate.

Nathaniel completely ignored the divorce papers I sent.

It was Caleb who called Chloe first, immediately laying into her.

"You're filing for divorce because of those tabloid rumors again? I told you it's all in your head. Can't you be more mature?"

"How many times do I have to explain it? It's a PR stunt for publicity. If you choose to take it seriously, that's on you."

It’s no wonder they’re brothers. They even hurt people in the exact same way.

At this point, Chloe had lost all desire to even communicate with him.

Caleb ended impatiently, "I gotta go, I'm heading to the set."

"Do whatever you want. If you want a divorce, fine by me."

The TV was still running a story about Caleb's rumored affair with a starlet.

They were wearing obvious matching couple's outfits, and if you looked closely, even their small accessories were the same.

In an interview, the actress smiled sweetly at Caleb, not hiding her admiration. "Caleb is an incredibly charming person. He takes great care of me on set. He's exactly my ideal type."

And Caleb, playing the part of the perfect gentleman, wrapped his arm around her slender waist and replied―

"Sophia is a very smart girl. Any man who gets to be her boyfriend would be very lucky."

This kind of "contract romance" was business as usual for a Hollywood superstar like Caleb.

Ever since Chloe married him, he was constantly being snapped by the paparazzi with actresses and models, going in and out of hotels, grinding on people in nightclubs. Every time he started a new film, he'd have a "showmance" with his co-star.

But Chloe had no right to question any of it. To ask was to interfere with his career, to not understand his work.

Never mind that when he was caught in a massive PR crisis, it was Chloe who worked sleepless nights managing the situation, hiring PR firms and online reputation managers to suppress the negative press.

Never mind that the movies he starred in were promoted using all of Chloe's family resources for marketing and networking.

But in Caleb's mind, Chloe was a useless little woman who did nothing but stay at home and get jealous over nothing.

After Caleb hung up on her, Chloe clutched her phone tightly.

She finally took a deep breath, her eyes red, and turned to me. "Eleanor, let's do it. I really can't take it anymore."

She put her hand on my shoulder, mustering her courage. "It's just a divorce. Better to rip the band-aid off. If we keep going like this, we'll both go insane. Heartbreak sucks, but we still have each other! We'll support each other, grit our teeth, and get through it."

I nodded and gave her a bitter smile. "Okay."

I texted Nathaniel the time and place to sign the separation agreement. Hours passed with no reply.