Blurb：
After ten years together, Alex finally proposed to Emma, believing she was the one. But when uninvited guest Liam crashes their engagement party, Emma’s true colors emerge. Watch as Alex discovers Emma’s secret passion for Liam – the same man who bullied Alex for over twenty years. On what should be his wedding day, Alex makes a life-changing decision to leave everything behind. This emotional rollercoaster explores betrayal, self-discovery, and the painful truth that sometimes the people we trust most are hiding devastating secrets. Will Alex find the strength to rebuild his life after Emma’s ultimate betrayal?
Content：
My girlfriend of ten years finally said yes to my proposal.
I got so excited at the engagement party that I had too many drinks.
Out of nowhere, my usually gentle girlfriend totally switched up on me.
She yelled at me for having no self-control and kicked me out of the car while I was drunk.
Battling a pounding headache, I walked alone on the empty streets for three hours in the middle of the night.
When I finally got home, she was holding her true love in our wedding suite, pouring her heart out.
“I regret it. If you’d come back to me, I’d call off the wedding for you.”
Watching how tender and patient she was with him, I made up my mind leaving.
I ran away on our wedding day.
No one expected what happened next: that usually proud, untouchable woman
completely lost it and searched everywhere for me.
Through the window of our wedding suite, I saw two familiar figures.
They were holding each other tight.
I kicked off the dress shoes at my feet, which were a gift from Emma for our engagement.
I loved them, though they were too small. I’d rubbed my feet raw on the walk home.
Running away from the wedding suite, I dialed a familiar international number.
“Dad, I’m not getting married. I want to come live with you.”
Dad was quiet for a moment.
“Okay. I’m not getting any younger — this family business will be yours one day anyway. Come soon, get settled in.”
I choked up a little. Then I heard him sigh.
“I thought Emma was different… Turns out she ends up with you like your mom with me.”
“Don’t cry, Alex. There’s more to life for a man than marriage and kids — you can build your own future. Think it through. I’ll be here.”
Until tonight, I thought Emma was different too.
She’s a strong, successful woman, but always humble and polite, keeping her distance from every guy except me.
Even after making it big, there was never any gossip or scandal about her.
Until at our engagement party, when Liam showed up uninvited.
For the first time ever, she was so flustered she dropped her glass.
For the first time, she blew up at me over something small and left me stranded on the side of the road.
If it had been anyone else, I might’ve thought it was a misunderstanding.
I might’ve been willing to give her another chance.
Willing to spend another ten or twenty years by her side, no questions asked.
But the man in our room was Liam.
The same Liam who’d bullied me for over twenty years, who took everything from me.
The one I could never forgive.
And when I saw Emma bring Liam into our home, I let go of her for good.
But for some reason, my hands still opened the home security app.
In our wedding suite, Liam was wearing my pajamas.
Emma, who never lifted a finger at home and scolded me for not respecting myself when I drank, was in the kitchen making him hangover soup.
“You’re really marrying him? Even though he’s just my stand-in?”
Emma didn’t answer, just bent down to massage his feet.
“You don’t have to say it — I know you’re doing all this to make me jealous. Throwing an engagement party was just to force me to show up.”
“You never got over me. This whole place is decorated just how I like it. The wedding ring is my style. Even his shoes — they’re the ones I didn’t want.”
Then he pressed his foot against her chest.
“You’ve always loved me.”
Emma still didn’t say a word.
After a moment of silence, she threw herself into his arms and passionately kissed him.
By then, I was crying hard.
I thought about all the times over ten years when I’d tried to kiss her and she’d turned away coldly.
I thought she was just shy and reserved.
Turns out, she was saving all her passion for Liam.
For ten years, she shared a bed with me, intimate and close.
But in her heart, she was saving herself for her true love.
After staying in the chilling night for a while, I took a deep breath and was about to call a cab.
When Emma showed up out of nowhere and called me by my name.
Emma instantly let go of Liam’s hand as I turned around.
“Liam had too much drink tonight. He’s your brother — I was worried about him getting home alone, so I brought him here.”
“He’s a good guy. Not wanting you to get the wrong idea, he insisted on leaving.”
Usually quiet, Emma suddenly had so much to say when it came to Liam.
And every word was defending him.
Yet I was the one who grew up with her.
I was the one who supported her through starting her business — her fiancé of ten years.
How did I become a stand-in?
I fought back the pain and took a breath.
“He’s not my brother. He’s the affair child from the other man.”
Emma got angry.
“Alex! How could you say something so cruel to Liam? Apologize to him, now!”
“No wonder your parents abandoned you. No wonder nobody likes you. That nasty attitude of yours is disgusting! No wonder you’re unlovable!”
As if afraid I’d hurt Liam, she shoved me aside and stood protectively in front of him.
That nervous, defensive pose reminded me of a memory from long ago.
When we were just kids, Emma used to stand in front of me like that too.
Back then, my mom had an affair, got pregnant, and forced my dad to divorce so she could be with the other man.
Dad left the country angry, and I became the unwanted leftover.
Every time Emma heard us fighting next door, she’d rush over and stand protectively in front of me.
She’d say, “Alex, you’re the best person in the world. Even if everyone leaves you, I’ll always love you.”
I held onto those words as I grew up.
I worked hard to build my own career, wanting to escape my messed-up family and build a happy life with her.
But whenever I brought it up, she’d just frown.
“We were just kids. Kids say things.”
And now, Liam was back.
She wouldn’t even give me those lukewarm excuses anymore.
Just hit me where it hurt most with “no wonder you’re unlovable.”
I couldn’t stop my eyes from filling with tears.
Emma’s expression flickered.
Maybe she realized she’d gone too far, or maybe she noticed my bloody feet.
She sighed. “I’ll let it slide tonight since you’re drunk. But in the future —”
“There is no future,” I said flatly.
“What?”
Before she could ask more, Liam suddenly turned and ran off crying.
Without hesitation, she dropped everything and ran after him.
Neither of them noticed the star necklace which fell from Liam’s pocket.
I picked it up, remembering the small star tattoo on her left chest.
All the little details I’d ignored suddenly clicked into place.
Childhood friends can’t compete with fate.
Those ten years of love were just my one-sided dream.
If that’s how it was, there was no point holding onto a woman who didn’t deserve me.
I got a text from Dad at the moment.
He’d booked me a flight abroad.
It was scheduled for two weeks later — exactly the day of our wedding.
The wedding countdown in the living room was now my countdown to freedom.
I laughed bitterly and threw out all the wedding decorations and couple items.
I’d use these last two weeks to say goodbye to everything in my past.
The next morning, Emma’s call woke me up.
“Alex, are you up? I’m not coming home today — something came up at work. Let’s reschedule the wedding photos.”
“And don’t worry about last night. I apologized to Liam for you.”
“Okay.”
She seemed to be thrown off by how easily I agreed.
Awkwardly, she added, “The wedding is just for show anyway. What we have is real — we don’t need to prove anything. Let’s keep it simple.”
“Okay.”
Keep it simple.
No marriage certificate, no wedding photos, no ceremony, and no groom.
After hanging up, I took a marker and crossed “Wedding Photos” off the calendar.
Emma was always busy with work and rarely had time for me.
So, I’d written down all the things I wanted to do together on this calendar.
But one by one, those wishes got covered by thick marker lines.
They became regrets I’d never voice.
I stopped focusing on Emma.
I quit my job, met up with close coworkers, and said goodbyes.
Over the next few days, I let my friends know the wedding was off.
“Honestly, we kinda saw it coming…”
A friend showed me Emma’s social media.
“She’s been with Liam this whole time.”
“People who don’t know you might think it’s you in her photos, but we recognized him immediately.”
Emma, who never posted a single picture of me, now had her feed full of Liam’s figure.
They went to amusement parks, tried on tuxes, drank by the ocean at sunrise.
Her love for Liam was out in the open.
And she’d blocked me from seeing it.
My friend looked worried.
“Alex, don’t take it too hard. Liam isn’t fit to hold your shoes. If Emma knew what he was really like, she’d regret it so bad.”
“It’s fine. I don’t care anymore.”
I looked out at the busy streets.
In a few days, I’d be leaving this place forever.
I didn’t have any extra time or energy to waste being sad about Emma.
When she showed up after being gone for days, I wasn’t stirred a bit.
She walked in texting constantly, glancing around absently.
“Why’s the house so empty? Didn’t you decorate?”
“You said keep it simple.”
Emma went quiet, her eyes landing on the “7” on the countdown calendar.
“Time flies. One more week until the wedding.”
I tore off two pages. “No. Our wedding is in five days. I just forgot to tear it.”
Those two torn pages read “Ride a Ferris wheel together” and “Watch sunrise and sunset together.”
But Emma would never notice it.
Then Dad called. I stepped out to the balcony to answer.
When I came back, Emma was still on her phone, asking me absently,
“What was that? I thought I heard something about a visa.”
“Nothing, just work stuff.”
“Okay. But don’t go planning any honeymoon — I’m way too busy for that.”
“I know.”
Ever since Liam came back, she couldn’t stand to be apart from him.
I handed her the star necklace.
Her calm eyes suddenly lit up.
“Turns out you had it. I’ve been looking everywhere.”
“I know. I saw the high reward post you put online.”
A million dollars for an old star necklace.
Our entire wedding cost only two hundred thousand.
I looked at her and asked, “Where’s your wedding ring?”
She froze, staring at her bare finger.
“I must’ve lost it somewhere…”
Before she could explain, her phone dinged.
Liam’s special notification tone.
She read it, stood up, and kissed my forehead.
“Sorry, honey. Work’s been insane lately. Can you handle the wedding prep?”
“After things calm down, I promise I’ll make you the happiest man alive.”
Quiet, reserved Emma was suddenly talking sweet.
That would’ve melted my heart days ago.
But now, I just wiped my face and went back to my own stuff.
Time kept moving.
Soon it was the day before the wedding.
The calendar read “Have a family dinner together.”
It was my biggest dream for over twenty years.
But I knew it would never come true.
Dad would never forgive Mom.
And I would never forgive Emma.
I went on the Ferris wheel by myself and watched the sunset from the top.
The evening glow covered the city I’d grown up in — all my memories seemed to fade into the evening breeze.
Then Liam posted a new update.
A big family having dinner together.
My mom was smiling while Emma served Liam food.
The caption was, “Meeting the parents to finalize wedding details.”
I almost laughed.
Whose wedding? Mine or Liam’s?
I blocked Liam, thought about texting Emma, but ended up not sending anything.
Just as I was about to head home, Emma called.
“Where are you? You’re not home.”
“Send me your location. I miss you.”
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