Chapter 4

Jasmine tugged at Johnny's arm, tears in her eyes.

"Johnny, please don't argue with Maggie because of me," she said.

Johnny didn't spare me a glance.

He took off his coat, draped it over Jasmine's shoulders, and wrapped his arm around her as they walked down the steps together.

My mom was so mad that she had to grab the tombstone for support.

"Maggie, are you sure this is the guy you want to marry?" she asked.

I bent down to pick up the keys.

As my fingers touched the metal, Johnny suddenly turned around.

"You drive the car back. Jasmine got caught in the rain, so I'll take a cab with her," he said.

He paused and then added, "Don't lose her charm."

Rain trickled down the umbrella and landed on the back of my hand.

I squeezed the keys and couldn't help but chuckle for a second.

I didn't cry in front of my dad's grave.

But my mom cried for me.

She raised her hand and slapped Johnny across the face.

Even with the rain pouring down, the slap was still sharp and clear.

Jasmine screamed.

Johnny turned his face away, his eyes going from shocked to furious.

He stared at me. "Maggie, are you happy now?"

After that slap, Johnny didn't come home for three days.

On the fourth night, he sent me a location.

He texted: [Come pick me up.]

He dropped a pin for a lounge bar.

I didn't go.

Ten minutes later, Jasmine called.

"Maggie, Johnny's drunk and keeps calling your name. Don't be so heartless," she said.

The background was noisy.

Someone was egging him on.

"Come on, Maggie, Johnny's waiting for you to give in," someone shouted.

Those guys were Johnny's friends.

Back then, whenever we partied, they'd always show me respect.

But after Jasmine came into the picture, they switched it up and started making fun of me.

Later, they'd joke around, saying, "Johnny's lucky. He's got a girl in the front seat and a girl in the back."

I didn't hang up.

Jasmine's voice dropped, sounding almost desperate. "Maggie, please come.

"Johnny said if you apologize to me, he'd let the whole cemetery thing slide, like it never happened."

I squeezed the pillbox in my palm so hard that it made a sound.

"Let him come back on his own," I said.

As I finished speaking, Johnny snatched the phone from Jasmine.

He was wasted, but his attitude was as cocky as ever.

He snapped, "Maggie, how long are you going to keep this up?

"Your mom slapped me, and I didn't even make a fuss. What else do you want from me?

"Jasmine's been so freaked out she hasn't been able to sleep for days, and you still won't even apologize?"

I leaned against the kitchen doorframe.

The kettle was boiling, steam making the lid rattle softly.

"Johnny, come pick up your stuff tomorrow," I said.

There was a moment of silence on the other end.

He gave a short laugh. "You think breaking up is going to scare me again?"

One of his buddies jumped in, "Come on, Johnny. She can't let you go. Maggie's been crazy about you for years."

Johnny didn't deny it.

Johnny's voice was icy as he spoke, slow and deliberate. "Maggie, I'm giving you one last shot.

"Show up within thirty minutes. Or the wedding's canceled. That's it."

The wedding invitations were already printed.

The wedding was scheduled for the twenty-sixth of next month.

The wedding dress was hanging in the bedroom closet.

I paid the deposit.

I went to eleven hotels before I finally got one to say yes.

I went with Johnny to pick out the rings. He said we'd get the engagement ring for me first, and he'd get his wedding band later.

Back then, I thought he was short on cash.

But yesterday, while I was digging for my ID in the car, I spotted a little box in the passenger seat's storage compartment.

Inside, a woman's ring lay quietly.

It was too small for me.

Inside, it was engraved with the word "Jasmine."

The kettle stopped whistling.

"Cancel it," I said.

There was silence on the other end.

After a few seconds, Johnny gritted his teeth. "Don't regret this."

"I won't," I replied.

Jasmine suddenly burst into tears.

"Johnny, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have made Maggie think you got me a ring," she sobbed.

Johnny probably tried to cover the phone, but his voice still came through.

"I saw you liked it, so I grabbed it for you. It's different, okay?" he said.

It was something he bought on a whim.

The ring he handed Jasmine without a second thought was the one I'd been waiting five years for him to give me.

The call ended.

I opened the closet.

The wedding dress was wrapped in a dust bag, and the little pearl clip the shop assistant gave me as a gift was still pinned to the skirt.

On the day I tried on the dress, Johnny was three hours late.

He said he got stuck in traffic.

Later, I saw a photo Jasmine posted.

Johnny was sitting in her office lounge, holding a piece of cake.

The caption read: [With him around, even working late feels sweet.]

I pulled the wedding dress out of the closet.

The hanger snagged on the suit jacket beside it.

It was the wedding suit Johnny had picked out for our big day.

A bill slipped out of the pocket.

I bent down and picked it up.

It was a service invoice.

It was for Johnny's car.

It noted: [Installed lumbar support and seat memory for the passenger seat.]

The date was the day I was hospitalized for a stomach bleed.

The contact was Jasmine.

My phone lit up again.

Johnny sent me a photo.

Outside the lounge bar, Johnny had his arm around Jasmine, her face red from crying.

The ring with "Jasmine" engraved on it was slipped onto her ring finger.

And then he sent another message: [Maggie, tomorrow morning at nine, bring your mom and say sorry to Jasmine.]

I stared at the message and then reached for the engagement ring on my finger.

The ring caught on my knuckle, and for a moment, I couldn't get it off.