brings reflection, every moment with you is sweet.” I smiled and said, “This is the life I’ve always wanted.” He didn’t respond. I saw him texting Peach Blossom: “Your invitation is coming tomorrow.” She sent back a heart–eyed emoji. I wrote in my planner: “8 days to go. Will this have a happy ending?” Of course not.
Six days before the wedding, Peach Blossom posted again: “I want to give him my virginity. Then I’ll have no regrets.” The photo was of a
hotel key card. Aaron was in the kitchen cooking dinner. I heard his phone ring. He answered, his expression changing subtly. He glanced at me, but I just sat there, smiling
serenely. He turned off the stove and went out
onto the balcony. When he came back, he was taking off his apron. “Something came up at work. Dinner’s ready. Eat without me. I’ll be back later.” I smiled. “Such a rush. Got a hot date?” Aaron’s eyes flickered. He pinched my cheek. “Don’t be silly. It’s important.” Another lie. I tugged on his sleeve. “I’m not feeling well.
Can you stay?” “What’s wrong?” He touched my face. I pointed to my chest. “Here.” He grinned,
kissing my forehead. “You little liar. Stop
messing with me. I’ll be back soon. We’ll have
an early night.” He was still leaving. I hadn’t let
him touch me for weeks. He must have been
desperate. When he left, I followed him. He was
usually so cautious, but he was so eager that
he didn’t notice me trailing behind. He parked
sloppily, even forgot to lock the car. I waited.
And waited. Midnight came and went, but Aaron
12:07
didn’t come out.
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Aaron came home while I pretended to be
asleep. I heard the shower running and felt a
surge of anger. My chest ached with a
suffocating pressure. Then, the bed dipped
beside me. His arms wrapped around me. I tried
to pull away. “Don’t move. Just let me hold
you.” He kissed my hair, acting like nothing had
happened. The thought of another woman’s
scent clinging to his skin made me want to
vomit. I gripped the sheets, trying to mask my
disgust. I couldn’t help it. I bit his shoulder,
hard. I needed to release the pressure, the pain,
or I would explode. Aaron cried out. “Hailey!
What the hell?” I didn’t let go until I tasted
blood. He sat up, staring at my pale face, his
eyes filled with concern. “What’s going on with
you? You’ve been so… different lately. Tell me
what’s wrong.” Looking at his repulsive face, I
took a deep breath. “Nothing. Just pre–wedding
stress. Worried about things going wrong.” He
lay back down, pulling me close. His voice was
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low and soothing. “I’ll be there with you every step of the way. Seeing you like this hurts me
more than you know.” I stayed silent. He
continued, “Baby, what do you think our life will be like after we’re married?” “I don’t know.”
Because we’re not getting married. He chuckled. “I used to dream about having a future with you.” So now that you have it, you don’t care anymore, is that it? “I picture you in the kitchen, making breakfast, the morning sun on your face. You’ll be so beautiful.” “I picture us with two kids, one like you, one like me. Little symbols of our love. They’ll be gorgeous.” “I picture seeing your face every single day, for the rest of our lives.” “Hailey, you asked if I’d run. How could I? I want to be with you forever. I fought so hard for you.” Aaron, stop lying to yourself.
Three days before the wedding, Peach Blossom showed
