chapter 7

Brandon opens the door, a fat hopeful smile on his stupid face. A few months ago, I thought he was the most handsome man alive. After the affair, he looks like a pathetic pig to me. You have no idea how hard it was to fùck him and look up at his filthy face. Sometimes I was tempted to smother him in his sleep. But death would be an easy way out so nope!

Karma has already started dealing with him. He looks five years older than he did last night. His eyes are swollen and his hair is messy. He's wearing a pair of grey sweatpants and a green sweater. The sweater that I crocheted for his twenty-fifth birthday. The little petty part of me feels like ripping it off his body...

The apartment looks new and clean. The glass table is gone, replaced with a new wooden coffee table. The frames on the wall are gone, replaced with new paintings. I wonder if he smashed them to pieces in a fit of rage or if he just wanted to get rid of them to wipe off my mark in this room. I wouldn't care less.

I dash to the kitchen and burst open the fridge. I grab the can of milk and drink it down till the last drop as Brandon gawks at me. I'm tossing it in the bin when I notice broken pieces of glass. Brandon has been a busy boy.

I belch and walk out of the kitchen, sailing past him like a ghost. I storm to our bedroom and grab my suitcase. I start packing when Brandon tries to stop me.

"What are you doing?" I scowl at him.

"I thought you wanted us to talk." He says sheepishly.

"About what?"

"Us."

For a moment, I stare at him blankly before bursting into a laugh. Then I push him off the way and grab my clothes from the closet, tossing them into the open suitcase. Brandon struggles to hide the anger in his eyes but I can see the naked resentment and rage. He's not fooling me with that sheepish smile.

"Why are you suddenly so nice to me?" I ask in amusement. "You were so mean last night. Is it because you've fallen inlove with me again and you want to work on us? Or because Wendy dumped you after realising you're a pig? Or you're so scared I might kill your career in the snap of a finger now that your boss is my boyfriend? I think it's the last one, right?"

Brandon tries to get close to me but I step back. He falls on the bed and buries his face in his hands. He looks up at me, tears in his eyes. Crocodile tears.

"I'm sorry, Dani!" He cries. "Cheating on you was the biggest mistake I've ever made. I'll spend my whole life trying to make it up to you. Even if we are not lovers, I hope we can still be friends. We have a lot of history. A lot of memories. We can't just toss that away like it's nothing."

"Well, you tossed it away like it's nothing."

"Because of you!" He blurts out.

"What?"

There's a moment of silence, packed with tension.

"It hasn't been easy loving you these past few years, Dani." He sighs. "You just... changed. Every night I came back home to find you in the same position I left you. That corner in the couch. Watching some stupid show. Stuffing snacks in your mouth. You didn't want to go on dates or go to the movies or do anything fun anymore. You didn't even want me to touch you. You grew cold on me. I was watching the woman I love turn into a shell of herself."

"So you go and cheat on me to make it better."

"It was draining to be around you." He says. "So yes, I wanted to be around someone who made me feel better about myself. Wendy did that."

"Typical Brandon." I scoff. "Always thinking about himself. Did you ever think that maybe I was depressed? Maybe I wanted to die? Maybe I hated watching my youth slip away while you were doing something with your life? Do you know how hard it was? Watching your eyes flare with excitement when you got the dream job while my dreams were dwindling?"

"So you were jealous?"

"No! I was angry!" I snap. "I was angry at myself for not putting myself first! For not chasing my dreams! For investing my time and money and sweat in your dreams when I should have done that for myself! Remember how hard I worked to pay for your college? Remember me working day and night to put food on the table while you were busy studying? And what did you do after you got your degree? You acted like it was not my sweat that bought your success! You got your little job and started hanging out with your little work friends. You promised to pay for my fashion studies once you started getting enough, but you never brought up the topic."

That was the plan. We invest in his dreams first. Then he invests in mine once he starts making good money. I've always been passionate about fashion. And I wanted to go to Fashion School. After Brandon got a job, he never brought up the topic. I felt duped...

"And then you cheated on me!" I snap. "You were planning to leave me for Wendy! After everything that I've done for you! Everything that you are is thanks to me. I built you, Brandon. And now I'm going to crash you."

He stands from the bed, glaring at me. His jaw clenched. He looks down at me with pure hatred in his eyes. For a moment, I'm shaken. Then I burst into a laugh.

"Don't try anything stupid, baby." I smirk. "Remember that your boss is my boyfriend. Imagine spending the rest of your little life in prison just because you assaulted a billionaire's girlfriend?"

Brandon steps back. I zip the suitcase and roll it out of the bedroom. Suddenly, I get the urge to vomit. I rush to the bathroom and throw up.

Fùck this pregnancy! I've been feeling nauseous and bloated since yesterday. I still can't believe that I'm pregnant. I was on birth control. The entire time that I was in this stupid relationship, I was on birth control. How the hell did this happen???

"Are you okay?" Brandon asks, standing at the door.

I nod and walk past him, rolling the suitcase to the door. I stand at the door and blow him kisses.

"Goodbye Brandon." I grin. "Wish you and Wendy all the best. Me and my billionaire boyfriend will send you the invitation cards once we are done with the wedding preparation. Kisses."

I slam the door and chuckle as I walk to the elevator. The look on Brandon's face after I mentioned the wedding was priceless. Brandon has no idea that Damien ghosted me and doesn't want anything to do with me. He has no idea that I'm pregnant for him and I feel so lost in life. I don't know how I'm going to support this child or even myself.

I might go back to my parents but I'm still not prepared.

Not after what I did to them...

***

The uber stops outside Lana's apartment complex. The uber driver, an Indian woman, turns to smile at me.

"Don't pay." She says. "I'm your boyfriend's fan. His makeup has done wonders to my skin. Please say hi for me. You're so lucky to have him."

How can I tell her that he's not my boyfriend? And how did she even recognise me? Oh, I almost forgot that my face is all over the Internet now. I'm the lucky lady who kissed a lot of frogs but finally fell into the throne of a Perfect Prince.

I just smile and say thanks to the driver.

I drag the suitcase to the elevator and stop on the third floor. I walk past Nate's door and stop at Lana's apartment.

When I push the door open, my heart stops.

Damien is sitting on the couch, wearing a black suit. He immediately stands when I walk in. Lana is standing at the kitchen door, making weird faces and winking at me. I don't know why she looks so excited. It's annoying. He dragged her into this little trick.

"Hallo, Dani."

"What are you doing here?"

"Didn't like how we left things off last time." He says. "I'm here to finish the game that we started."

"What are you talking about?"

"Truth Or Dare, Dani."

I roll my eyes and hesitate. Lana jumps in and replies instead.

"Dare."

"I Dare you to marry me, Dani."

***