Chapter 3
Three of Alex's colleagues from his team were already waiting for me, with Grace taking the lead.
We'd played Cluedo together a few times before, and I always got along well with them.
"Claire, sorry for inviting you here like this. Hope you don't mind," Grace said, pouring me a cup of tea, her eyes full of sympathy and a hint of pity.
I shook my head and got straight to the point. "I'd like to thank you all. Tell me what's going on."
Grace sighed, pulled out her phone, and tapped on a photo. In the picture, Alex was grinning from ear to ear, leaning in close with a young girl.
"Her name's Sophie Lane, from the department next door. Claire, honestly, they're basically an open couple at work now." Emily, sitting next to Grace, chimed in.
Open? I felt like someone had stabbed me right in the heart.
"Yeah. They wear matching outfits and have couple meals together. Every afternoon, Alex gets her a milk shake—never for anyone else. It's so blatant, we can't take it anymore," Grace said.
He ordered milk shakes for her? Interesting.
Back when I asked him to get me the first milk shake of the season, he said I was being childish, like those girls on the Internet.
"Claire, you're such a good person," Jenny said, pouring me another cup of coffee. "Remember that time we were playing Cluedo and I suddenly got my period? If you hadn't run to the mall and bought me a pair of pants, I honestly don't know what I would've done."
"You're so kind, we couldn't stand seeing you kept in the dark." The three of them looked at me with sympathy, like they were holding something back.
Mia was sitting there, fists clenched, looking like she was ready to throw down at any second.
"Is there anything else I should know? Lay it all out for me," I said, taking a deep breath.
"Claire, brace yourself," Grace said, tapping open Sophie's Instagram homepage on her phone.
Suddenly, my breath caught in my throat.
Her Instagram background was a photo of Alex and her kissing at an art gallery, captioned: [My Sun.]
I scrolled down, and every single post was them showing off their love.
The latest one was posted two days ago, the day after Alex went to be his boss's best man.
In the photo, Sophie and he were at a trendy restaurant, a fancy candlelit dinner spread out on the table.
The caption read: [Celebrating our one-year anniversary.]
One year? So this betrayal had been going on for a whole year.
"Claire, look at this bag," Emily said, pointing at a photo. "It's the latest Valentino, over 7,000 dollars. We have checked, it's true.
"And there are all kinds of luxury and designer bags. Alex's given Sophie quite a few."
My head was buzzing.
Last month, for my birthday, Alex gave me the exact same bag, but told me he'd gotten it from a personal shopper. It's a factory overrun item, and it only cost him 700 dollars.
Back then, he hugged me and said, "Claire, it doesn't matter if it's real or not. What matters is the person who carries it. We have to be practical and watch our spending."
I always thought Alex's ability to manage money was a good thing. He didn't earn much, but at least he knew how to stretch a dollar.
However, it turned out that every penny he saved from me was directly spent on another woman.
"What about his boss's wedding? He told me it was a three-day event," I asked, my voice hoarse, clinging to the last bit of hope.
"The wedding was only one day. There was never any three-day event. He took two days off, saying he was going on a trip with you, " Grace said, ruthlessly tearing apart Alex's last lie.
I gripped the cold cup in my hand, feeling like I was a naked clown on display for everyone to see. Then, I asked, through gritted teeth, "Nobody's blaming them for this?"
"We did try to warn him," Emily said, sounding totally defeated. "But Alex said you two were having problems and would break up sooner or later. And Sophie thinks the one who isn't loved is the real other woman."
I let out a cold laugh and asked, "Does she have a car?"
"Yeah, a white BMW," Grace answered immediately. "It is said that Alex paid the down payment for her. When she got the car, Sophie went all out showing it off on Instagram. Here, check out this post."
She pulled up a photo, in which Sophie was posing next to a brand-new white BMW, holding a bouquet of flowers.
I stared at the license plate, making sure I memorized every single digit.
I calmed myself down, looked up at them, and asked them seriously, "If, I mean, if I ever need someone to back me up, would you guys be willing to stand up for me as witnesses?"
The three of them were totally fired up, faces full of outrage.
"Girls help girls. We're with you all the way!" Grace said, her face red with anger.
"Claire, that scumbag needs to go down hard." Jenny chimed in.
Emily added, "Yeah, Sophie's not innocent either. I heard she's got a boyfriend she's been with for four years, and they were about to tie the knot."
I nodded, making sure to back up everything they gave me, including all the Instagram screenshots.
I thanked them from the bottom of my heart for being willing to stand up for me.
After we said goodbye, I got into my car and completely lost it and my tears couldn't stop spilling over my eyes.
Up until yesterday, Alex was the perfect husband. He always did whatever I asked, never missed picking me up or dropping me off when I went out with friends, and spoiled me very much.
I always thought I must've done something amazing in my previous life to end up with someone who loved me this much.
But now I realized it was all a fantasy.
Mia hugged me until I finally stopped crying, and then handed me a tissue. "Done crying? Good, now let's get to work. This isn't enough. We need proof that'll make sure he can never come back from this."
"You have a plan?" I asked.