Chapter 3

The whole mood froze in an instant.

Christian's face went cold as he pulled Crystal behind him.

“Tilda, don't push your luck. That's enough.”

With that, he wrapped an arm around Crystal and turned straight for the next table.

He never spared me another glance.

My best friend couldn't take it. She grabbed my bag and pulled me toward the door.:

“We're done here. One more second in this dump makes me sick. I'm taking you out for drinks, and tonight we're not stopping till we're wasted!”

The music in the bar was deafening.

She poured me a full glass of whiskey and pushed it in front of me.:

“Drink! Once it's gone, we forget that piece of trash. Decent men aren't rare. He's the one who's easy to replace!”

I held the glass, my thoughts drifting away, bit by bit.

The truth was, it wasn't like I'd never sensed something was off.

Last year, on my birthday, I'd booked a restaurant and waited for him until midnight.

All I got in the end was one line::

“Crystal's running a fever. I'm at the hospital with her. Go ahead and eat without me.”

Last month, when I was hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis, I called him.

He said Crystal was moving and had no one to help, and told me to hire a nurse myself.

Even on the day we shot our wedding photos, one call from Crystal saying she was feeling down was all it took.

He left me standing there halfway through the shoot and drove straight to the beach to be with her.

I'd always told myself that with his brother gone, it was only natural for him to look after Crystal a little more.

Three years together, after all. He had to have me in his heart. He just wasn't good at showing it.

Turned out I'd only been fooling myself.

I tipped my head back and drained the glass in one go.

The liquor burned down my throat, choking me until my eyes went red.

By the third glass, my best friend suddenly nudged my arm, her eyes flicking toward the back corner.

I followed her gaze.

Christian sat at the far end, ringed by his childhood friends.

Two buttons of his shirt were undone, a glass turning in his hand, a drunken weariness settling over his face.

Someone laughed and clinked his glass.:

“Not bad, Christian. You finally got what you wanted today. Back when your brother was with Crystal, I could already tell something was up with you.”

Another one jumped in::

“No kidding! Every time Crystal went out with your brother, you'd drag us out drinking. Downed so much a couple of times you nearly bled from the stomach and landed in the hospital. We were scared to death you'd drink yourself dead and stick us with the bill. After a while, the second you called for drinks, none of us dared leave the house.”

Christian took a sip, tugged at the corner of his mouth, and didn't argue.

Someone asked::

“So what's the deal with Tilda? You really planning to make a life with her?”

Christian tapped a fingertip against the rim of his glass, his tone offhand.:

“Of course. She's my girlfriend, and I owe her, in a way. If she hadn't carried the title of fiancée, I'd have had no reason to throw this wedding, and no clean way to get Crystal into a bridal gown.”

“I agreed to marry her, so I won't go back on my word. Worst case, I travel more after the wedding, we see less of each other, and neither of us gets in the other's way.”

I couldn't make out anything after that.

There was only a buzzing in my ears.

The liquor sloshed over the back of my hand, cold to the bone.

My best friend was furious enough to charge over. I caught her arm and held her back.

I shook my head.:

“There's no point. I've already decided to break up with him.”

Back then, to marry him, I'd put off studying abroad again and again.

Now it seemed his change of heart had done me a favor after all.

I pulled out my phone, opened the acceptance email from the school overseas, and replied::

“Hello, I confirm my enrollment. I'll have all the paperwork done and report to campus within the week.”

The message sent, I set down my glass and gave my best friend a small smile.:

“Let's go. No more drinking. I'm going home to pack.”