I'd been away on a business trip for half a month. The second my plane touched down, I rushed straight home. On the way, I tried calling my fiancé, Brandon , a bunch of times, but he didn't pick up. I figured I'd stop trying and just surprise him when I got home. But when I used my key to open the door, for a second, I thought I’d walked into the wrong apartment. Why was there a woman inside? And a baby? 1. I stood there in the doorway, luggage handle still in my grip, completely stunned. "Hey, Lynn, you're back?" Brandon greeted me like nothing was weird. "Pam Tong had a fight with her husband, and she just had the baby, so she's crashing here for a few days." He looked totally casual. "Actually, since you haven't even taken your shoes off yet, could you run out and grab some stuff? The baby still needs a lot." I couldn't catch my breath and snapped at him. "What do you mean? Did you even talk to me about this?" "Look, we can talk after you get back with the stuff," Brandon said, trying to nudge me out the door. Just then, the baby started wailing. It looked so tiny, like it was just born. I bit back my anger. Fine. I’d go get the stuff first, then deal with this. He handed me a long list – formula, diapers, changing pads, everything. There's a baby supply store just down the block from our building. Walking there, I got angrier and angrier. Pam Tong was Brandon’s childhood friend, the one he grew up with. When we first started dating, we fought about her constantly. She always seemed to tag along on our dates. Brandon bought her gifts for holidays, same as me. Whenever we hung out with his friends, they'd always tease Brandon and Pam about being a couple. The worst time was during a game of Truth or Dare. Pam was dared to kiss a guy in the room, and she went straight for Brandon. Right after, she turned to me and said, "Lynn, sorry, couldn't help it, Bran and I are just that close, you know? You're not mad, right?" Whenever I brought her up during arguments, Brandon would brush it off. "If we were going to get together, we would have ages ago. We're just buddies. You're being way too sensitive." Luckily, she got a boyfriend not long after and moved out of state with him. Things quieted down for a while after that. So why was she back now?! And staying at my place postpartum?! When I got back with the bags, I swallowed my rage and planned to go see her. But Brandon stopped me. "Don't go in there yet. You just came in from outside, you'll bring a chill in. She's still recovering, you know." That was it. I yanked my arm away. "Are you insane? How could you let her stay here to recover?" "Come on, she's a friend, just helping her out, what's the big deal? She fought with her husband, had nowhere else to go." Brandon looked completely unbothered. "We'll sleep in the spare room. Let her have the master bedroom. She'll leave after she's recovered." "And now that you're back," he continued, "she just gave birth, dealing with all that postpartum stuff… messy. And I'm clumsy with babies, not like you women. You can help take care of her and the kid." I was so furious I actually calmed down. "You want me, an unmarried woman with no kids, to take care of someone I barely know, who just had a baby? Are you out of your mind?" I grabbed my suitcase handle again. "Good thing I haven't unpacked. I'm staying somewhere else tonight. Tomorrow, I don't want to see her in this apartment." With that, I slammed the door behind me. 2 I was exhausted from the flight anyway. So, I checked into a hotel nearby. I'd stay the night, get some rest, and figure out my next move tomorrow with a clear head. I scrolled through Pam's social media. Turns out, she'd been here for ten days. "Feeling safe enough to rest before the baby comes, surrounded by the people I trust most." The picture? Brandon carrying her suitcase, his arm around her. Five days ago, when the baby was born, she posted a photo of Brandon holding the newborn. "Bran is always my rock." There were other baby pics too, the background clearly my bedroom, the baby nestled in the expensive bedding I picked out. Seeing those posts made my blood boil. I texted my best friend, Maya. "Guess who just won the lottery for 'most likely to get cheated on'? Me. Lynn Han." Maya called me immediately. I spilled everything. She was furious, telling me she'd bring over two guys from her boxing gym tomorrow to help me kick those two weirdos out. Venting helped. A lot. Knowing I had a battle ahead tomorrow, I went to bed early. First thing in the morning, Maya showed up with the two guys. And wow, they were handsome. Built like refrigerators, faces like models, and super polite. "Hi, Lynn! You're really pretty. That guy's blind." "Totally. Don't worry, Lynn, we'll definitely help you get them out." Their compliments actually made me feel a bit better, lifting my mood. Back at my apartment, I found that neither Brandon nor Pam had made any move to pack. Pam was still camped out in my bedroom like she owned the place. Before I could even say anything, Pam walked over to me. "Lynn, my husband… he hit me." Tears started rolling down her face immediately. "He'd actually lay hands on me, right after I gave birth. I just couldn't stay there. I had nowhere else to go. Bran felt sorry for me, that's the only reason he let me stay." "I have no one else," she sobbed. "Please, just help me out." All these years, I had to admit, her ability to cry on command was impressive. "You can't go home? What about your parents?" Maya couldn't stand it and cut right in. "My parents are old. I don't want to burden them," Pam wept, hugging the now-crying baby tighter. "You don't want to burden them, but you have no problem burdening me? You seriously think I, a single woman who's never had kids, am equipped to take care of you postpartum?" I was speechless. What kind of logic was that? "Lynn Han, is now really the time to be angry? Don't you know she just had a baby?" Brandon yelled at me, furious. Then he turned to Pam, his voice suddenly gentle. "Don't cry. It's bad for your eyes when you're recovering. Go back inside." He put a hand on her shoulder and gently guided her back towards the bedroom. A woman recovering from childbirth, crying like that… I didn't even know what to say. But then, just before she went into the room, Pam looked back over Brandon's shoulder and shot me a triumphant smirk. She was doing it on purpose! That flipped a switch. Before Brandon could even turn back around, I laid down the law. "I'm giving you one more day. If you're not gone with her by tomorrow, I'm throwing all your stuff out!" 3 We left, defeated. A woman recovering from childbirth, a baby just days old… the guys Maya brought couldn't really do or say much. Still, I was grateful. I took Maya and the guys out for lunch. "What do you even see in him? I told you from the start, anyone who hangs around that Pam character is bad news," Maya said, looking at me like I was hopeless. "She hadn't caused trouble in years! I thought she was gone for good," I mumbled, feeling miserable. "And we've been together five years, met each other's parents, we were about to get married. When Pam wasn't around, he was actually pretty good to me." "So when Pam shows up, you just step aside? You're okay with that?" "Have you ever thought," Maya pressed, "why he was so nice to you when Pam wasn't around? Maybe it was because you're good-looking, you're local, you own property, you make good money?" I couldn't argue. I'd never really considered it from that angle. Guess it's true what they say: you can't see the forest for the trees. Just then, my mom called. "Hi, Mom?" Her voice was serious. "Lynn, is something wrong? Tell Mom." "No, Mom, everything's fine. Why?" "Then why are Brandon and some woman with a baby staying at your place? Where are you?" I shot up from my seat. "Mom, you came over? I'll come get you!" After picking up my mom, I found out the whole story. Those two lowlifes heard my mom knocking but pretended not to be home. They didn't even open the door. They just left my mother standing outside. My mom got suspicious, waited a bit, and heard unfamiliar voices from inside. Now I was truly furious. It was one thing for them to disrespect me, but leaving my mom locked out? They seemed to forget whose name was on the deed to this place – bought and paid for by my family! But I held it together in front of my mom. I didn't want her to worry. I told her it was just a friend who'd fought with her family and needed a place to crash for a few days, that she'd be gone soon. Maybe they were busy with the baby and didn't hear the door. My mom looked skeptical but went home.
? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "392430", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel