Chapter 1

My fiancé wanted a child with his first love.

So, during our IVF procedure, he switched my eggs with hers.

He even posted about it on social media: "Even if I can't give you a ring, I won't let us have any regrets."

When I confronted him, he was completely unremorseful.

"Her father is a world-renowned medical expert. What's wrong with me thinking about my future?"

"Don't worry. As soon as I get his letter of recommendation, I'll marry you."

But what he didn't know was that I was the one who had been funding his entire life.

And I was the only daughter of that "world-renowned medical expert."

...

When I got back to the lab, a crowd of our clueless classmates was congratulating them.

My fiancé, Chris, was lovingly wrapping the scarf I had knitted for him around the neck of his mistress, Clara.

"It's getting cold. Be careful."

The crowd erupted in cheers, practically begging them to kiss.

Chris pulled Clara into his arms, his hand gently caressing her waist. "Clara is a little shy. Don't tease her."

"I'll buy you all candy to celebrate. And when the baby is born, there will be bonuses for everyone!"

I just stood there, watching, as the bag of herbal medicine I was holding slipped from my grasp and fell to the floor.

I had gone to a specialist, willing to try anything, even endure the side effects, just to ensure a healthy pregnancy.

I just wanted a child of our own.

But he had already switched the samples.

The child he was so excited for wasn't mine. It was hers.

And me? What was I to him?

Just then, Clara saw me.

She walked over, completely ignoring my pale face, and linked her arm through mine. "Stella! When did you get here?"

She even pressed a handful of candy into my hand. "Chris had these imported just for us. You should have some too. Share in the good luck!"

The wrapper was familiar. I had brought them back from Switzerland last month.

Chris, who never ate sweets, had said he liked them, so I had paid extra to have more imported.

I clutched the candy in my hand, my eyes fixed on him. "Don't you have anything to say to me?"

I was his fiancée.

But all I got was a cold, dismissive laugh. "Who are you to me? Why should I have to report everything to you? It's not like I'm your property."

"Stella, I think your little stalker act has gone on long enough."

His words sent a ripple of murmurs through the crowd.

"I've heard she's been obsessed with him for a while. I can't believe she's still trying to get between them, even after Clara is pregnant."

"Only someone as sweet as Clara would put up with that. If it were me, I would have gone to the dean a long time ago."

I stared at him in disbelief, my heart aching so much I couldn't even find the strength to argue.

Me, a stalker?

He was the one who had begged me, on his knees, to give up the opportunity to study abroad.

He was the one who said that long distance would ruin us, that he couldn't bear to let our love be broken by distance.

I had given up a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, even fought with my own family, just to stay with him.

I had willingly taken a job as a teaching assistant at a mediocre university lab, just to be by his side.

I thought I was trading my future for a love that would last a lifetime.

I never thought I would become a joke.

Chris walked over to me, his voice a low whisper only I could hear. "Don't blame me. Clara's father is a leading authority in the cardiovascular field. If I can get his recommendation, all my years of study won't have been for nothing."

"I'm just trying to build a better future for us."

I just laughed, a cold, empty sound, and pushed him away. "So I should congratulate you? All those years of hard work, and you've finally managed to sell yourself to the highest bidder?"

Clara was not pleased. "We were all classmates once. If you have a problem, you can take it up with me. But Chris and I are in love. You shouldn't try to force something that's not there, Stella."

Chris took her hand, his voice a soothing murmur. "Don't let her upset you. I can't bear to see you sad."

They were the perfect couple, and I was the villain, lurking in the shadows.

Why?

The injustice of it all was suffocating. I ripped the necklace from my neck and threw it at him. "Here. Take your necklace back."

"Selling yourself for your career... I can't wait to see which professor is brave enough to write you that recommendation."