Chapter 2

2.

Shortly after I sent the screenshot of the marriage license to Ethan, he acted.

As if he was afraid I'd change my mind, he updated his Facebook status that night to "Engaged to Ava Miller" and sent out emails to our friends and families, announcing the wedding in four days.

My phone was instantly flooded with 99+ unread messages and missed calls. Everyone was demanding to know who I was actually marrying.

Then, I tagged Ethan in his Facebook status and replied, "Can't wait to marry you." The comment section blew up.

The family group chat, usually filled with gardening tips and recipes, was buzzing late into the night.

Just then, a private message from Liam popped up.

"It's fine you didn't pick me up. Just don't be mad anymore, okay?"

"Remember to change the groom's name back when you print the invitations."

"I'm crashing at Tyler's tonight. Lock the door since you're home alone. I'll bring you Grimaldi's spicy sausage pizza tomorrow."

As I was about to log off, a new Instagram post notification appeared.

"First time spending the night in a hotel with Liam. I feel so safe ??"

The photo was of Liam's back as he made the bed for her in a hotel room.

The person taking the picture had deliberately captured their closely pressed reflections in the window.

Chloe had changed into a semi-sheer silk nightgown from Victoria's Secret, showing off her long legs.

I took a deep breath, and with a slight twitch of my finger, I liked the post.

Apart from a tightness in my chest, I wasn't as angry as I thought I'd be. The love had long been worn away, without me even noticing.

Early the next morning, my bestie, who also happens to be Ethan's sister, Sophie, called a moving company for me.

She kept probing, asking if I was just doing this to make Liam angry.

Everyone assumed he was the one for me. How could a relationship of so many years suddenly change right before the wedding?

I shook my head.

"It's not that sudden. I just failed to see it until now."

"Ethan gave me the key to his lakeside villa and told me to move in whenever I was ready."

I only took the things that I had bought myself. Anything that was part of our relationship, I left behind.

If I was going to make a clean break, it had to be absolute.

After the moving truck drove away, I was about to lock the door and leave when a figure suddenly appeared at the entrance.

Liam handed me a pizza box and a Starbucks cup, his tone doting.

"Babe, it's been long enough. You can't still be mad."

"Look what I brought you. Chloe said this is what all the girls are into."

I glanced at the latte and let out a cold laugh.

"I'm lactose intolerant. If you want me to end up in the hospital, just say so."

The smile on Liam's face instantly froze.

"The barista must have made a mistake. You want me to go get you another one?"

I gave him a sarcastic smile and tried to walk past him. It was only then that he noticed the house was half-empty, all my things gone. He panicked and grabbed my arm.

"Who said you could move out?"

I said flatly, "I'm marrying someone else. I can't very well keep living with my ex-boyfriend, can I?"

Liam's face darkened.

"Over this little thing? I told you it was a misunderstanding. How long are you going to keep this up?"

"Chloe will blame herself when she comes back and sees your room is empty. Do you have to be so selfish?"

But if I were truly selfish, I never would have been soft-hearted enough to let Chloe move in with us in the first place.

After Chloe's brother died saving Liam in a car crash, Liam felt he had to pour all his care and attention onto her.

This boundless indulgence gave her the ammunition to provoke me time and time again.

She got into a local university but refused to live in the dorms, insisting on living with us.

Her excuse was that she was scared, a young girl alone in a new city.

I never thought Liam would actually let her move in.

I came home from work that day and we had a massive fight, the longest we'd ever been in a cold war.

"Chloe is my best friend's sister. She doesn't know anyone here. She'll just stay for a while and then move out. Why do you have to be so petty?"

For three whole months, no matter how much I protested, he was always persuaded by a few of Chloe's tears.

I only reluctantly agreed after he promised she would move out after a year, once she was used to college life.

But that one year turned into three.

Now, they could live together for as long as they wanted without anyone interfering.

I pushed down the exhaustion welling up inside me.

"I'm not throwing a tantrum. I didn't change the name on the marriage license. Believe it or not."

But when it came to Chloe, he had never once believed me. Not that it mattered anymore.

Liam's expression grew even uglier, his voice laced with impatience.

"Fine. Don't come crying to me to help you move back in."

I pulled my arm away, fighting back the lump in my throat.

"Don't worry, that day will never come..."