Chapter 3

I ignored them and walked away.

The helpers I called for had arrived, and they helped to carry my things to the car.

After I arrived at my best friend’s place, I pulled out my phone to answer a few messages, only to see a notification on Instagram about Vincy’s new post.

She posted a selfie of herself and Jared next to two large parcel boxes with the caption: [Souvenirs for everyone from the Arctic with my boss!].

The comments section was filled with cheers.

"Boss? Or husband?"

“Your husband is handsome! He's so good to you, oh my God!”

“Kiss him! Kiss him!” Jared liked this comment, and Vincy replied with a ‘shy’ meme.

Vincy’s number of followers skyrocketed, and she received many grateful messages in Jared’s villa’s maid group chat.

“Thank you for thinking of us even when you were on vacation, Vincy!”

“As expected of our millionaire CEO! So generous! Thanks, Vincy!"

I remember creating this group chat when I started living with Jared so it would be easier for them to discuss Jared’s meal plans. The man was a picky eater and always too busy to eat.

I stopped paying attention to the group after Vincy joined it, and my relationship with Jared grew distant.

I did not care to read through all the messages and deleted the group chat instead. It was only at that moment that I remembered Jared was also in the group chat.

After learning about the group, he joined it too and used it to track how I was when I was busy with studies or if I had fallen sick.

During our anniversary, Jared would ask them to prepare a list of ingredients for our candlelit dinner, only for Vincy to ruin everything. She needed to be more clumsy, spilling Jared’s coffee and dropping my warm milk multiple times. Each time she made a mistake, she would cry and apologize but never improve.

Jared used to be frustrated with her, but slowly, the man teased her for it and cleaned up after her.

I wanted to fire her more than once, but Jared would stop me. “Vincy is still young. She's only 18, you should be kinder to her.”

One of our maids complained about how slow Vincy was before, and Jared fired her for it. I was the one who found this maid another employer so this single mom could afford a living for herself and her newborn.

That night, I switched the lights off and got ready for bed when suddenly, I realized I was still wearing my engagement ring.

I took it off and caressed the pattern engraved upon it. Jared had made it himself despite knowing nothing about ring-making. He had accidentally hammered his fingers many times, too, because of this.

On the inside was a crooked engraving of our initials.

“This ring symbolizes my promise to you.”

“Jenny, as long as you wear this ring, I will never leave your side. We will always be together, no matter what.”

How ironic.

I asked for an express delivery and had the man deliver the ring back to Jared.

Coincidentally, my dad had just sent over information on my new husband. The wedding was set to occur next week.

The next morning, Jared stood outside my room. The moment I opened the door, he questioned, “Jenny. Why did you give the ring back to me?”

“Are you breaking up with me? Over that insignificant problem yesterday?”

I looked at him calmly. "It doesn't fit me anymore.”

Jared must have realized how aggressive he sounded, for he apologized, “I'm sorry. I just panicked when I received the ring.

“You should've texted me and explained.”

I ignored his explanation, nor would I ever explain anything to him again.

I waited four hours at the bridal shop for him while the man happily brought his darling maid to watch the aurora. I sent him many messages, but he blocked me on all social media platforms.

This man standing before me was no longer the fiancé who loved me like I was his world.

“This is my best friend's home. You should leave if you have nothing more to say.”

I turned around to close the door, only for him to pull me into his arms. “It's okay if the engagement ring doesn’t fit anymore. We still have the wedding ring, don’t we? I’ll make you one that looks much better.”

“I know you're angry I wasn't there when you were trying out wedding gowns, I'm sorry. I booked a new time for us with them already. Let's go try them tomorrow, hmm?”

From Jared’s tone, I almost believed that he cared about our future, but then I saw a hickey on the side of his neck. He also smelled strongly of Vincy’s perfume.

I was a fool to believe this man loved me, the same man who abandoned me for another woman.

I pushed him away with a smile. "We'll see."

‘Oh, Jared. What made you think I'd marry you after everything?’