Chapter 4

Diego had a wedding dress made just for me. He always had some excuse about needing to fix the details, so I never actually got to see it. Turned out, all along, he'd given it to Amara instead.

As I was still shaking, a new post popped up.

[It was just a tiny burn, but he was totally freaking out over me. He wouldn't leave my side. Feeling guilty, but also over the moon to be with me.]

The photo showed them making out in the bathroom.

People in the comments were rooting for them to get together, and they were trashing me all over again.

Recalling that dream, I saved every photo with a cold, steady hand.

Well, if this was how things were going to be, let them be each other's curse for the rest of their lives.

I didn't sleep a wink that night.

When morning came, I went straight to the hospital and made an appointment with the obstetrics department.

The baby was already over a month along.

Doing the math, it turned out to be the very night Diego proposed.

He held me close, whispering sweet nothings all night. "Esther, I'll love you, cherish you, and protect you. When we have a baby, I'll pour all my love into both of you."

I smiled up at him and asked, "Do you want a boy or a girl?"

He kissed my hand. "As long as it's yours, I'll love them no matter what."

Back then, I really believed that was my whole future, my hope for happiness. So I let him be my first.

But that dream kept haunting me: losing my parents, losing my child. That was my real ending. Even someone as stubborn and proud as me ended up throwing myself off that rooftop, completely broken.

To be betrayed by the two people closest to me? It was beyond cruel.

Just as I walked out of the OB department, Diego called.

"Sorry, Esther, work's piling up here, so I won't be able to make it home anytime soon," he said.

I gripped my phone, trying to keep my cool. "We still need to finalize everything with the wedding planner. There are only three days left. If you're not here, I can't do this alone."

He laughed on the other end. "Just go ahead and make all the calls for the wedding. Whatever you like is fine. Just fill me in later."

"I..." I started, but he cut me off before I could finish.

"Esther, you've got this. I'll make sure everything's wrapped up by the day before the wedding, and after that, I'll be all yours," he said.

"Is this really how you want things to be?" I asked.

Diego probably didn't even remember.

Back then, his family's business crossed the wrong people and made some powerful enemies.

One night, while he was walking home, they cornered him in a deserted alley.

I was the one who called the cops, and in time, I threw myself in front of him and took the knife straight to my chest.

Somehow, I survived. Three days and nights in the ER, dragging myself back from death's door.

Diego stood by my hospital bed, tears streaming down his face, and swore to my parents that he'd never marry anyone but me, that he'd protect me for the rest of his life.

"Esther, you have no idea how terrified I was. If I lost you, I wouldn't be able to go on," he said.

For a long time after that, he kept having nightmares about me dying in his arms. He couldn't sleep unless he saw me safe and sound with his own eyes.

But in the end, promises like that cut deeper than any knife ever could.

After I hung up, Amara dropped another post: [[He's making up for everything I lost. For the last three days, their wedding suite has been all mine.

[I'm going to spend every night with him, so every time he walks into that room, he'll only remember me.]

[Haha, guess I get to break in the bridal suite before the wedding.]

Her crazy fans were going wild in the comments, cheering her on.

[Come on, girl, be bold. Forget about friendship or owing someone for saving your life. Take back everything that's yours.]

[Don't give up your happiness. Make that wedding all about you.]

[We've got your back.]

Amara liked every single comment, then played coy and replied: [I don't deserve it.]

I laughed, but before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face.

That wedding house was supposed to be our home. I poured my heart into picking it out, and every single detail inside was designed by me.

Back then, Diego held me close and said, "We'll spend our whole lives here."

But I never even spent a single night there.

Instead, it became their love nest.

The man I loved most and the best friend I trusted most stabbed me right in the heart.

Even the old wounds started to ache all over again.

I wiped away my tears and immediately scheduled the abortion.

I couldn't let that nightmare come true. I had a second chance, and I had to protect my parents.

This baby was never meant to be mine, and it shouldn't have come into this world.

There could be no ties between Diego and me, not even the tiniest bit.

I didn't even remember how I got home. When I finally snapped out of it, my parents were already standing in front of me.

My mom saw how pale I was and how upset I looked. She grabbed my hand, her voice full of worry. "Honey, what's wrong? Are you feeling sick?"

I held back my tears and shook my head.

"Did that Diego kid do something to you?" my dad asked, his voice low.

I didn't dodge the question anymore. I told them everything.

My parents were so furious they were literally shaking, ready to storm over and give those two a piece of their mind.

I stopped them. "Let me handle it."

That night, the security guard texted me: [Mr. Hopkins is back.]

I pulled up the security feed on my phone.

I'd installed those cameras back when we were decorating the wedding house, partly to keep an eye on the workers, but mostly to capture all the happy moments I thought we'd share after getting married.

Diego had no idea about it.

It didn't take long before the two of them were all over each other on camera, kissing like they couldn't wait another second.

Even though I'd tried to prepare myself, seeing it for real still made me tremble with hurt.

It was time to drag their dirty little secret out into the open.