Chapter 5
Our house was decorated everywhere with flowers and balloons, and our huge wedding photo hung in the living room.
All of this had only been set up recently, but now it all just felt like a joke.
I opened the photo album, scrolling through every picture and video of us, trying to find traces of his love, but there were none.
He treated me no differently than he treated anyone else. To him, I was never anyone special.
I had no idea how to tell everyone the wedding was off, or how to face them.
My mom called, but I just didn't want to talk. She wouldn't stop, though; she just kept calling.
Her voice came through the phone, anxious and comforting. "Jocelyn, where are you? It's alright, honey. Why aren't you picking up?"
I whispered, "Mom."
"Where are you? I'm coming to get you," she said.
It seemed they had found out. Maybe Hayden had come clean with them.
"I'm fine," I said.
No sooner had the words left my mouth than tears fell onto the back of my hand.
After that, I just stayed at home, too scared to go out or meet anyone.
The video of Hayden proposing to me recently was still everywhere online, and the comments were going wild.
[They looked so perfect together, but I heard the guy dumped her.]
[Yeah. My family got an invitation, but we got a call first thing that morning saying the wedding was off.]
[Maybe the bride was too demanding, or maybe there's some scandal about her.]
For twenty-six years, life was always smooth sailing for me.
However, now, the online rumors, my family's worries, and the astonished looks from friends all pushed me to the brink of collapse.
I went through days like a lifeless shell.
Finally, Hayden came back. He showed up at our house to apologize in person, but my mom wouldn't let me face him.
I just hid upstairs, watching everything from behind the railing.
He didn't come alone. He brought Scarlett and a young boy.
The kid looked so much like Hayden; it was obvious he was Hayden's son.
However, the boy was sitting in a wheelchair, his face pale, like he'd been seriously ill for a long time.
Hayden's gaze softened, lingering on the boy from time to time.
They looked every bit like the perfect family. He was supposed to be my fiancé, and now, he was someone else's family.
With guilt written all over his face, Hayden apologized to my parents. He said he'd only just found out a few days ago that his ex had given birth to his child.
Now that the boy was seriously ill, he couldn't just turn his back on him. That was why our wedding had to be put on hold for now.
"Hayden, are you really trying to break off the wedding?" my mom snapped.
She was already pissed at him. No matter how well-mannered she usually was, Hayden's canceling our wedding was too much for her.
Therefore, when Hayden showed up, she gave him the cold shoulder the whole time.
"Mrs. Smith, it's all my fault. I really had no other choice." Scarlett stepped forward, her tone humble as she explained to my mom.
She said, "My son is really sick, and I just can't afford his treatment. You're a mother, too, so you know how desperate you get when your child is in danger. That's why I had to turn to Hayden.
"I swear, ruining his wedding was never my intention."
Hayden stepped protectively in front of Scarlett, bowed his head in apology, and begged my parents for forgiveness.
He promised he wouldn't ask me to give back what he once gave me, and even brought generous gifts as a way to make amends.
He said, "Jocelyn still has her parents and loved ones who care about her. She's talented and has a bright future ahead.
"Scarlett and my son are different. They've got no one else in the world but me. I'm the only one who can look after them now."
So, just because I had money and a good family, I was the one who got tossed aside and hurt, huh?
Seeing him stand up for Scarlett and her son, I felt a sharp pang in my chest.
He couldn't give me love or a marriage anymore; all he could do was just settle things with money and walk away.
Hayden never lacked money or the ability to earn it. Though the sum seemed huge, it would take only a few years to earn it back.
He put on a flawless act. Even when my mom threw some nasty words his way, he just kept his head down and apologized, so smooth that no one could call him out on anything.
Hayden and Scarlett already had a child together. If I insisted on marrying him, Scarlett and her son would always be this painful wedge between us.
Therefore, after my mom finally let off some steam, she agreed to call off the wedding.
Hayden said I didn't have to return any of the gifts or the house. He wanted me to keep everything as a way to make it up to me.
Later, he posted a statement online, taking all the blame for calling off the wedding. He said it was something stupid he did when he was younger, and now it had turned into a mess for both of us.
My parents finally calmed down, and they even suggested I forgive him and move on with my life.
My friends kept telling me to get over it, saying Hayden had done all he could and had his reasons.
However, what he gave me was never what I wanted.
Maybe he was a good man, but never for me.
Just because he had his reasons, I was expected to forgive, to accept, as if refusing meant I was unreasonable or hysterical, right?
I didn't know who I could even talk to about how much it hurt.