Chapter 2

The next time we met, Edward came to me on his own.

The moment I opened the door, he threw himself at me like a clingy puppy. "Sophie, let's not fight anymore, okay?

"Alright, I believe everything you said. I brought them along so they could make it up to you."

I could hear how half-hearted he was, and I was ready to argue back, but then Edward gently curled his finger around mine.

In that moment, all my defenses crumbled. My heart softened instantly.

Edward finished the last dish, sat down at the table, and held my hand tightly. He called everyone over to take their seats.

Charlotte was standing in front of the display cabinet, bending down.

"Sophie, I had no idea you were into collecting magazines," Charlotte said.

She pulled one out a bit too forcefully, and some pages slipped out and fell to the floor.

She picked them up, raising her eyebrows.

"Isn't this the interview from a few years ago, when Edward went to that economic forum with his father?" Charlotte said. "Wow, you actually cut these out and kept them.

"This must be the only time Edward and his family ever got caught on camera together, right?"

She smiled casually and asked, "Edward, did Sophie really not know who you were before?"

Edward's eyes slowly lost their warmth, and his grip on my hand loosened, almost unconsciously.

Before I could even react, the look in Edward's eyes stung me. It was like I was staring at a stranger.

I opened my mouth, but before I could get a single word out, my phone started ringing nonstop.

The voice on the other end was frantic. "Sophie, you need to come home right now. Your grandma just passed out."

In that instant, my mind went completely blank. By the time I came to, I'd already packed everything up.

Clutching Edward's hand, I pleaded, "Edward, please, you have to believe me. I didn't cut those out. I really didn't know anything about it."

Edward didn't say a word.

I rushed to Riverside Clinic, and when I got there, Grandma was awake, but she looked so frail and sick.

When she saw me, her face lit up, and all the wrinkles around her eyes and mouth bunched together in a smile.

I held her hand, and the tears wouldn't stop falling.

"Grandma, please, come to the city with me. I'll find you the best doctors. Just stop being so stubborn, okay?" I pleaded.

Back when we didn't have the money for treatment, her little aches and pains just kept piling up until they turned into something serious. By the time we finally had the money, she was too scared to see a doctor.

"Sophie, raising you is all I ever wanted. I have no regrets," Grandma said. "My only wish is to see you get married. Once you do, if I'm still here, I'll go with you, okay?"

I wiped my tears away, nodding over and over.

So when I got back, I asked Edward to marry me. "I know it's way too soon for us to be talking about marriage, but I just want to have a wedding so she can feel at peace. It doesn't have to be for real.

"Just pretend with me, okay? Help me fulfill my grandma's last wish."

Edward was quiet for so long, I just stood there, feeling so uncomfortable and not knowing what to do with myself.

Finally, he said, "Alright, you pick the date."

So I was juggling work, constantly commuting between home and the city, worrying about Grandma's health, and trying to organize the wedding.

Sometimes I'd wake up from nightmares, and I didn't even notice how Edward's eyes grew more and more complicated every time he looked at me.

It wasn't until today, the day he slapped those so-called 'truth' medical reports in my face, that everything fell apart.

That was when Edward finally let out what he'd been holding back all this time.

Edward said, "Turns out they were right. You got close to me on purpose, then made up some family tragedy to climb your way in.

"I even tried to let it go for you, pretending none of it happened. You set up my childhood friend, and I let it slide.

"But you just kept crossing the line, again and again.

"When I first met you, you weren't like this at all. Now I see. It was all fake, wasn't it?"

Edward remembered the way Mark handed him those reports, and how all his friends were grinning like they were watching a show.

"Edward, this is the one you kept saying was special? What do you even see in her?" someone snarked.

"Honestly, she looks like she can't wait to lock you down with a wedding," another chimed in.

Charlotte laughed. "Hey, everyone slips up sometimes. Cut Edward some slack, will you?"

Edward gritted his teeth, saying each word slowly, "Sophie, you really embarrassed me."

The tears on my face had dried, and I let out a hollow laugh.

"Edward, is this how you see me? Is this what you really think of me?" I whispered. "We're done."

Ever since I told Grandma I was getting married, it was like she was suddenly full of energy, as if she'd come back to life for a moment.

But now, her health was fading fast.

The doctor hesitated, then told me, "Even if we try everything, even the best doctors might not be able to do much for her."

"Sophie, I'm just old now," Grandma said.

Before we could finish talking, someone knocked on the hospital room door.

"Hello, Ms. Quinn. We've received a report that you tried to get the hospital to fake medical records, applied for subsidies you weren't eligible for, and committed insurance fraud. Please cooperate with our investigation," said a man in uniform.

I barely managed a smile, feeling utterly drained by everything that had happened.

"Can I ask who reported us?" I said.

The officer's face was serious. "It was Mr. Lane."

I gave a bitter, hollow laugh.

After that, I spent endless hours getting grilled in interviews, scrambling to dig up years' worth of documents, and watching Grandma get dragged through one round of questioning after another.

The whole thing felt like it would never end.

Grandma was barely conscious, and I kept rambling on, repeating again and again that I never did any of the things they accused me of at the wedding.

The silence was absolute. The hand in my palm twitched, and Grandma gave my hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

She struggled to speak, her words coming out in broken whispers.

"I know, sweetheart. I believe you," Grandma murmured. "Sophie, that man isn't good for you. Let him go. Promise me you'll take care of yourself."

And then, in the quiet of the night, she gently let go of my hand.

After the investigation and Grandma's funeral, it was a month before I finally went back. The last thing I said to Edward was that I needed to swing by his place to pick up my stuff.

I was struggling with bags and boxes, looking pretty rough, just as I helped the movers load the last box onto the truck.

That was when Edward and his friends walked in.

He was at the center of the group, everyone fawning over him like he was the star of the show.

And me? I looked exhausted, like we were worlds apart.

Mark glanced at the moving truck parked outside and snickered, "Edward, is Miss Quinn trying to empty out your whole place?

"Guess she didn't score anything, but did she really have to go all out like this?"

A bead of sweat rolled down my forehead and burned like hell when it hit my eye.

"I'm only taking what's mine," I said.

Edward's face stayed icy as he looked away, but his friends just kept making snide remarks.

"Miss Quinn, you probably didn't know this, but Edward was actually going to introduce you to his family," one of them sneered.

"But then you showed your true colors, so now he's just going to go along with his family's wishes and marry someone more suitable," another added.

"Guess you'll be getting a wedding invitation, huh?" someone else snarked.

Suddenly, I remembered the first time there was a spark between Edward and me.

I was working late, and he asked why I was working so hard. I just smiled, not really knowing how to explain it to a guy who looked like a rich kid who never had to worry about anything.

But that night, he stayed with me until most of the streetlights had gone out.

I bought him a store-bought rice ball from the convenience shop downstairs. Watching him eat it with a frown, all the exhaustion from my day just vanished, and I couldn't help but laugh.

He still finished it, though. I asked, "Was it any good? What did it taste like?"

He gave me a rare, boyish grin. "I forgot."

"I got distracted just watching you smile. You should smile more often. You look gorgeous," he said.

As we parted, he said, "Invite me to eat with you again sometime."

"Anytime," I replied.

Edward called out to me, "Did you get everything? I'll handle the rest for you..."

"Would you mind tossing out whatever's left?" I said.

He was cut off and turned his face away in annoyance.

He said, "You made such a fuss about being a good granddaughter, but as soon as the wedding was over, you just bolted home and didn't even bother with your grandma?"

I turned to the side, my eyes red and burning.

"Edward, you have no right to talk about my grandma," I said.

The crowd burst out laughing. "Tried cozying up to Mr. Lane and failed, yet you still act all high and mighty?

"When you can't make it on your own, maybe Mr. Lane will toss you a favor for old times' sake."

My jaw was clenched tight, and just as I was about to lose it, my phone rang.

"Sophie, the inheritance process is all done. I've sent you the bank card and the death certificate," the voice on the other end said.

Edward stopped in his tracks. "What death certificate?"