Chapter 2

By then, whoever Edward was with, it would have nothing to do with me anymore.

Edward and Melanie first got involved with each other four years ago.

Their story started in the most cliché way possible. Melanie was working at a restaurant when she accidentally ran into Edward, spilling food all over his suit.

After that, Edward brought her on as his secretary.

She was a clumsy, trouble-prone secretary who kept messing things up, always needing her boss Edward to bail her out.

By the time I realized something was wrong, it was already too late. They couldn't keep their hands off each other in Edward's office, day and night.

It happened to be Edward's birthday. I wanted to surprise him. But when I opened the office door and caught them in the act, my heart nearly stopped.

He asked me for a divorce, without a hint of guilt. He said he'd leave it all behind and give up everything to be with Melanie.

My whole world came crashing down in that instant. We'd been in love for three years, married for four, and Edward never once said no to me.

He fell for me at first sight in college, wrote me nine hundred and ninety-nine love letters, and waited outside my dorm almost every day, swearing he'd love me for a lifetime. But now he had changed.

I cried, threw tantrums, and printed out their explicit photos, spreading them all over the company.

All it got me was Edward's disgust and constant arguments.

He held Melanie in his arms, looking at me like I was nothing but trash. "Mia, you're insane. I'm going to file for divorce."

He stayed with Melanie, moving to live with her, watching sunrises and sunsets with her, and took her all the way to the northernmost reaches of the world to see the polar lights together.

And I was the one losing my mind, trapped in a prison of my own making, tormented day and night.

I blasted their story all over the university forums and local sites, so everyone would know their dirty laundry.

I branded them as a "homewrecker" and a "scumbag," making sure those names stuck for good.

I was out for revenge, nothing else.

But Edward was more ruthless than I ever could be. He sold off my intimate photos, one penny apiece.

My private pics were everywhere, and he boasted that whoever could get me in bed would walk away with a million dollars.

Every time I walked out the door, there were countless disgusting creeps waiting for me.

"Hey, Mia, why are you pretending to be all innocent? Weren't you pretty uninhibited in bed? Why not give me a try? I'm not any worse than Mr. Pierce," one of them leered.

It was pouring that day when I stepped outside, only to be dragged into a dark alley by force. Filthy hands clawed at my clothes, prying my legs apart.

They were sent by Melanie.

She stood there, phone pointed right at me, recording everything. Her face lit up with twisted satisfaction as she watched me struggle in humiliation.

She hated me for destroying her life. She sneered, "Mia, when you called me a homewrecker, did you ever imagine you'd end up like this?"

I lay on the ground like a broken rag doll, a complete mess. Blood seeped from my lip, but I couldn't feel a thing. There was nothing left inside me. Only emptiness.

When Edward finally showed up, his eyes stayed glued to Melanie the whole time, like glancing at me was beneath him.

"Mia, you brought this on yourself," he said, his voice icy. "See? If you'd agreed to the divorce earlier, none of this would've happened."

He had already sent the divorce papers to the courthouse. All I had to do was nod, and we'd be strangers.

But I couldn't let go. No matter what, I stubbornly refused to agree to the divorce.

The rain hit me hard, like a thousand slaps. Right when I was finally about to cave, Melanie showed up at my grandma's place, holding that humiliating video of me.