Chapter 1

Before my engagement, a fire broke out in my dressing room. The explosion sent shards of glass deep into my body.

My best friend, Monica Addams, shielded me as we escaped the flames.

At the hospital, she stayed by my side as I clung to life.

She called my fiancé, James Miller. However, his response was dismissive. “Veronica isn’t feeling well, and I’m accompanying her to get an IV drip. If it’s no big deal, just drop it.”

Furious, Monica unleashed a string of curses and called her own boyfriend, Lucas Smith, asking him to help find a specialist.

He brushed her off, too. “Stop overreacting. Veronica’s sick, so I’m getting her some medicine.”

When I narrowly escaped death and met Monica’s gaze, I said in a low voice, “I want to call off the engagement.”

Without hesitation, she responded, “If you end yours, I’ll end mine.”

Monica, being the go-getter she was, immediately sent a breakup text to Lucas.

Meanwhile, I was still bedridden, recovering from surgery. Some of the glass wounds were deep, and I was not out of the woods yet.

Only Monica was by my side. She had her own injuries too; we were friends in misfortune.

The next day was supposed to be my engagement party, but since I was still in the ICU, I was unable to attend.

James called, and the first thing out of his mouth was a scolding. “Amelia Clark, did you do this on purpose? Yesterday I stayed with Veronica at the clinic, so now you won’t show up?

“Do you have any idea how many guests are here for the engagement party?!”

My throat felt scratchy, and after coughing to clear it, I finally spoke. “I’m in the hospital. I told you I couldn’t make it.”

“Amelia, you’ve already used that excuse. Enough is enough. Tell me where you are, and I’ll come get you.”

“I’m at First Hospital. Come on over.”

“Amelia!” James shouted angrily on the other end. “You’ll regret this! The party starts in an hour. Don’t be late!”

Next to me, Monica was fuming. She grabbed my phone and yelled into it, “Regret what?! Can’t you and your idiotic ears hear that she’s in the hospital?

“Just because Veronica’s got a stomachache, you’re acting like she’s royalty or something!”

Then she hung up. Still enraged, Monica paced back and forth.

Lucas called next. “Monica, where are you? You know you’re meeting my family today. Didn’t you see the location I sent?”

Monica’s rage flared up again. “Meet your family?! Lucas, I broke up with you last night. A proper ex should act like they’re dead!

“If I ever see you again, it’ll be to buy flowers for your grave!”

Lucas was so flustered that he could barely speak. “You… Monica, don’t regret this. Fine, we’re done!”

Monica quickly blocked him, then patted her chest and turned to me. “I’m done with mine. You need to wait until you feel better. Otherwise, they’ll just make you even angrier.”

I could not help but chuckle. It was a relief to have Monica with me.

It turned out that my absence embarrassed James.

He tried calling me several times, but I ignored him. I even put my phone on silent because I did not want to deal with his messages. After his third attempt, he sent me a final ultimatum:

[Amelia, you are being completely unreasonable!]

I did not reply.

This engagement had always been a one-sided decision made by James’ family.

After my parents divorced, they each started new families. While they did not prioritize me, they still supported me financially.

When I got injured, I informed them that the engagement was off, and they even canceled their flights.

However, James would not listen. He did not trust me, and I saw no point in trying to please him.

What I did not expect was for him to find a replacement and proceed with the engagement party, anyway. It was clear he did not care about appearances anymore.

While getting my wounds dressed, I overheard two nurses gossiping about James’ engagement.

“Dr. Miller got engaged today! I heard his fiancée is super sweet-looking, totally the delicate type.”

“Dr. Miller sure is lucky. Look, here’s a picture of them!”

As they changed my bandages, I glanced up and saw the photo. It was James and Veronica Waters.

They stood side by side, Veronica’s head resting on his shoulder, beaming with a bright smile. Honestly, they looked like quite a pair.

Blinking back tears, the nurse looked at me, concerned. “Did that hurt? I’ll be gentler!”

The tears spilled over. “Yeah, it hurts. I almost couldn’t bear it.”