Chapter 2
[Now you're feeling sorry for the vicious side character? Can you just kill that savior complex already?]
Amid the night sky over Ceumond, thousands of fireworks burst into the air all at once, while the girl in the princess gown sobbed with joy.
The ground was covered in a sea of lily clusters.
The refined man knelt on one knee, presenting the ring. "Dorthy, I love you."
I'd reminded myself countless times not to doubt him.
But nobody knew Rolland's face like I did.
Yet there on the screen, that all-too-familiar face displayed an expression completely foreign to me.
It was the gentlest gaze possible.
Back straight as a rod, a soft smile on his lips.
He was looking up at his love, but his eyes held a possessive intensity, like he wanted to lock her away.
With that poise, that striking appearance.
It was no surprise he was the male lead in a novel.
And opposite him, that innocent, adorable girl—How ridiculous.
I gripped my collar, trying desperately to suppress the stabbing pain in my chest.
I'd always believed Rolland and I were destined for each other.
Only now did I see that I was the villainous side character.
Their surrounding friends began to whoop and holler.
"Say yes!" echoed relentlessly.
Bullet comments flooded the screen.
[An entire night of fireworks! Romance overload! Sweet rom-com vibes all the way!]
[The side character's clinging to that childhood sweetheart for comfort. Got a clue about real love yet?]
[Come on already! I thrive on seeing the side character freak out!]
[Side character, enjoy your denial phase—back in Ceumond, the male lead's dumping you anyway.]
[Whoa, hold up—what's the side character doing now?]
I'd finished a whole cigarette by then.
I swung open the car door and slipped back inside.
Ignited the engine, shifted gears, released the clutch, and hit the gas.
[Is the side character actually trying to interrupt the proposal?]
[Yeah right!]
[No way—flights aren't even running this late.]
[Even if they were, she'd never get there in time!]
Naturally, I wasn't racing to the airport.
I just continued on toward the viewing site.
With no one to hold me back this time, I sped up, overtaking a bunch of cars headed the same direction.
Cheers of "wow wow" from the young drivers I passed filled my ears.
I had no bandwidth left for the bullet comments.
The meteor shower started early, before I even arrived at the spot.
The comments had disappeared sometime along the way.
But it seemed like their goal was to crush any lingering hope I had for Rolland, so the projection lingered.
That meant, as I craned my neck to watch the stars, I could still glimpse the aftermath of the proposal.
Rolland and Dorthy sharing a passionate kiss.
Fireworks exploding overhead, raining down in a spectacular display.
More mesmerizing than the aurora-lit sky and the cascade of shooting stars.
It was to celebrate Rolland's successful proposal.
But for me, it was also a wake for my first love—now dead and buried.
By the time I hurried back to Ceumond, it was already the next day.
Tracking down Rolland wasn't tough.
Rolland had been flaunting his engagement like crazy.
These days, entertainment reporters trailed him everywhere he went.
Outside the "Dream Maze" private room, I paused to steady my breathing a few times.
Those bullet comments that had popped up in front of my eyes yesterday? They felt like some weird hallucination.
But the barrage of texts hitting my phone like a snowstorm after I landed today made it clear—
They weren't.
Friends and family had blown up my inbox.
Some urged me to rip into him good and proper; others warned me not to embarrass myself.
Still, here I was.
Inside the room, the music died down.
A beat later, the chants kicked in—
"Kiss! Kiss!"
That was the moment I burst through the door.
Right as I stormed in, Rolland and Dorthy were locked in a kiss.
The room went dead silent.
Dorthy picked up on the shift and tried to shove him away.
But in a flash, he clamped down on her wrist.
With that oh-so-familiar intensity, Rolland glanced up at me—the intruder—and held the kiss for a solid thirty seconds before finally pulling back.
Even then, he kept Dorthy tucked in his arms, looking utterly satisfied.
As for Dorthy, the second she spotted me, her bashful flush drained away, leaving her pale and panicked.
"Ms. Hayes," she stammered, instinctively trying to stand, "don't get the wrong idea—Mr. Arias and I are just..."
But the words trailed off.
Just what? She opened her mouth, but nothing else came out.
She shot a pleading glance at Rolland.
One single look.
And the guy who'd been lounging like an unmovable rock suddenly sat up straight.
"I figured you'd stick around Glathe a little longer," he said.
"But hey, since you're back...
"Perfect. Shawna, you've probably heard about my proposal to Dorthy by now.
"Let's get this straight today: I've always seen you as a little sister. So, Shawna—what's your deal here?"
I'd expected to lose it—to sob, scream, or just fall apart.
The others in the room must have thought the same.
Why else would Rolland's shady buddies, the ones parked right next to him, suddenly clam up and slink out one by one?
I wanted to bolt too.
But before I could, Rolland grabbed my wrist.
"Don't go," he said. "Sit down."
That was when the bullet comments popped up out of nowhere.
[What's happening?]
[Hold up—isn't this the club where the leads finally open up to each other, then head home for some steamy action? What's the evil side chick doing here?]
[Shouldn't she be at the airport by now, catching the next flight out?]