The night before my wedding, I found the pictures on Lawrence’s phone. A girl with a sweet, vibrant smile, captured mostly in candid, stolen shots. I didn't bottle it up. I didn't let the poison of doubt fester. I walked straight to him, held out the phone, and demanded an explanation. Lawrence smoked in the living room all night. As dawn broke, he walked into the bedroom and said to me: “I’ll admit it, I have feelings for her. But that’s all.” Ten years. We’d been in love for ten years. Was I really going to throw it all away over a few pictures? The thought was unbearable. So I put on my wedding dress, and I let the ceremony begin. But halfway through, Lawrence’s assistant, Leo, burst through the doors, shouting, “Mr. Shaw! Lily found out about the wedding… she tried to kill herself!” The diamond ring, suspended for a heartbeat, clattered to the cold marble floor. Lawrence bolted for the door like a lightning strike. My eyes burned with tears as I screamed after him, “If you walk out that door, Lawrence, we are done! It's over!” He paused for a fraction of a second, then vanished without a backward glance. 1. Staring at the endless scroll of photos on the screen, a sharp, cold pain lanced through my heart. There were no intimate selfies, no pictures of them together. Just moments. The glint in her eyes as she focused on her work. The way she pouted, pretending to be mad while eating. The unrestrained joy as she laughed, giddy after getting a bonus. … Most of them were quick, candid snaps. But there were a few where she was looking right at the camera, her face alight with a playful, teasing affection. The old me would have stormed up to Lawrence, smashed the phone against his face, and walked away without a second thought, my pride intact. But now… tomorrow, our ten-year marathon was supposed to reach the finish line. We were supposed to get our happily ever after. We were getting married. We had told all our friends and family, booked the venue, sent the invitations. Happiness was so close I could taste it. And now, at the final hour, I find this. I refused to cry, forcing the tears back, taking a deep, shaky breath. I decided to confront him, to demand the truth. Lawrence is a brilliant man. At such a young age, he had already become the Chief Systems Engineer at a major aerospace firm. Ten years of shared life, of weathering storms together… I thought I knew the man he was. So when I laid the photos out before him, his reaction wasn't a surprise. He probably never intended to hide it. For eight long hours of darkness, he chain-smoked two packs in the living room while I stared at the stars from our bedroom window. The next morning, just before the makeup artist was due to arrive, he came into the room and confessed. “Her name is Lily Campbell. She’s my assistant.” “And I admit… I’ve developed feelings for her.” The heart I’d been holding in my throat plummeted into the pit of my stomach. But then he continued, his voice earnest. “But Nora, you and I… it hasn't been easy getting here. I’ll have her transferred out of my team. I promise you, something like this will never happen again.” He looked me in the eye, his promise hanging in the air between us. In ten years, he had never once broken a promise to me. I couldn't bear to lose him, to sever a love that felt woven into my very bones. So I chose to forgive him. And then, at the wedding, the officiant’s solemn words hung in the air: “Do you, Lawrence, take Nora to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, honor, and cherish her for the rest of your days?” My heart hammered against my ribs, waiting. Waiting for him to give me—to give us—the perfect ending we deserved. Instead, a single sentence from his assistant was all it took for him to abandon me, leaving the diamond ring to mock me from the cold, hard floor. The entire congregation watched him flee the ceremony. He left me. And just like that, his promise was broken. 2. The venue dissolved into chaos. Our parents, utterly bewildered, rushed to my side. Leo, the assistant, stammered, his eyes darting everywhere but at me. “One of the junior engineers under Mr. Shaw had an emergency… she—she’s got critical project data, and he just had to go check on the situation. I’m sure he’ll be right back.” Leo had worked for Lawrence for eight years. He’d always been respectful, always greeted me with a warm smile and called me “Mrs. Shaw-to-be.” Now, he couldn’t even meet my gaze. I couldn’t begin to imagine how many secrets he’d kept for Lawrence, what role he played in this whole charade with that girl, Lily. A thicket of thorns grew around my heart, the betrayal a physical, piercing pain. My parents held my hands, their voices tight with anger. “This is madness! Who on earth could be more important than his own wedding? To just leave Nora standing at the altar?” Lawrence’s parents were mortified, alternating between frantically calling his phone and trying to soothe me. “Nora, dear, don’t you worry. I’m going to get that boy back here to apologize to you this instant.” The abandoned ring dug into my palm, leaving bloody crescents on my skin. For three hours, every call we made to Lawrence went straight to voicemail. He had run off to be some other girl’s hero, leaving me to burn alone on the pyre of our wedding day, to endure the pitying stares and hushed whispers of our guests. The world tilted, and then it went black. When I woke up, a doctor was speaking to me in a gentle voice. “You need to be careful now. You’re living for two. Try to avoid any emotional distress.” My heart sank as I looked at the ecstatic faces of my parents and Lawrence’s. I managed a bitter, ugly smile as tears finally welled up and spilled over. How was I supposed to tell them that our ten-year love story had just been torn wide open? Not long after, Lawrence arrived. He looked pale, and his eyes were filled with a guilt that felt shallow and distant. My parents left the room, instructing him to apologize properly. The silence in the room was heavy. He took my cold hand, his own grip hesitant. After a long moment, he spoke, his voice hoarse. “Nora, in ten years, I’ve never asked you for anything. We’ve always been so good. But this one time… I’m begging you. Please, don’t let this get out. It could ruin Lily’s reputation. Can you do that for me?” My heart seized, twisting into a tight, painful knot. I could barely breathe. He wasn’t here to apologize to me. He was here to ask for a favor. A person’s first instinct doesn’t lie. He hadn’t spared a single thought for my humiliation at the wedding. He wasn't worried about why I had collapsed and ended up in a hospital. His first words were for Lily. The tears I’d been holding back broke free, a silent, steady stream soaking the corner of the blue hospital blanket. I forced a single word from my throat. “Fine.” He let out a breath, a wave of relief washing over his face. He continued, “Lily… she didn’t take the news of the wedding well. She’s very unstable right now.” His voice became hesitant, almost pleading. “I was thinking… I need to stay at the hospital with her for a few days, just to make sure she’s okay. Maybe… maybe we can postpone things? Just for a little while. Six months. In six months, we can get married. Okay?” Six months. I had waited ten years. What was another six months? I could wait. I really could. But he didn’t need to do this. It was simple, really. He had fallen for someone else. I could handle that. But a suffocating pressure was building in my chest, a fire searing through my insides. And inside me, a tiny life was waiting, depending on me. I thought for a long, long time. My mind was filled with images of that girl’s smile, and the sickeningly fond look on Lawrence’s face as he had gazed at her photos. The tangled mess of grief in my heart suddenly went still. I didn't want to wait anymore. I gently pulled my hand from his. “Lawrence,” I said softly. “I’m not a genius. But I fell in love with you when I was eighteen, and I’ve been with you for ten years.” “I remember how your hands trembled when you first asked me out. You were so nervous, it was both funny and endearing.” “I remember you cried when I said yes. You held me so tight, and for the first time, I felt a love as real and powerful as my family’s.” “For ten years, you bought me everything I ever wanted. You kept every promise, fulfilled every vow. For ten years, I truly believed you loved me down to your very soul.” I looked up, and the tears came in a torrent. “But today… today I feel like you don’t love me anymore.” That one simple truth shattered my defenses. We had so many beautiful memories. Lawrence’s eyes reddened, and a single tear traced a path down his cheek. “But Nora,” he whispered, his voice cracking. “She needs me right now.” She needs me. Those three words struck me like a physical blow, grounding me in a new, cold reality. I was finally, completely awake. I didn’t try to stop him. I just watched him walk out of my hospital room, and out of my life. 3. The next day, as I was being discharged, I saw him in the hallway. He didn't see me. His entire world was focused on the girl he was gently supporting. She was tall and slender, with a pure, innocent face and large, round eyes. So this was Lily. The girl whose suicide attempt had made the unshakable Lawrence Shaw lose his composure and abandon his own wedding. My gaze must have lingered too long, because she noticed me. Her face went white, and she turned away, clutching Lawrence’s arm nervously. Lawrence saw me then. His brow furrowed in annoyance as he walked toward me. “Nora, Lily’s not well. Whatever this is, we can talk about it at home. Don’t make a scene here and embarrass her.” In his arms, Lily looked even paler, as if she were terrified of me. “N-Nora… it’s not what you think. There’s nothing going on between me and Lawrence, I swear.” I clutched the lab report in my hand and offered a small, quiet laugh. “You’ve got it all wrong. I’m just here to pay my bill.” Lawrence stared at me, his anger strangely deflating. I walked past them to the payment window without another word. As I was leaving the hospital, a text from him came through. 【Nora, don’t be angry. I was just on edge earlier. I bought you a gift, it’s on its way.】 When the delivery guy knocked, he handed me a cake box. It was the Disney castle cake he always got me when he’d done something to upset me. I was a romantic, and I could be demanding. He thought this was my favorite. The truth was, I’d been sick of it for years. But Lawrence was so busy, so consumed by his work. I loved him, and I didn’t want him to stress over me on top of his all-night research sessions. So every time he sent this cake, I’d put on a show of delight, hoping it would make him happy, too. Now, finally, I didn't have to pretend anymore. I gave the cake to the neighbor’s kids and texted him back. 【It’s been ten years. Just like with you, even the best cake gets old.】 He must have understood the jab, because he replied immediately. 【I’m sorry. You’re right. Tomorrow, I’ll go to the mall myself and pick out something special for you.】 He didn’t come home that night. It’s not easy to surgically remove a ten-year relationship from your life. I couldn’t sleep. I got up and started packing. As I tossed my things into boxes, memories ambushed me. The year we graduated, Lawrence had just started at the research firm and was constantly buried in work. A year later, he came to me with a ten-year employment contract and a check for a staggering amount of money. He put them both in my hands. “Nora, I told you I’d give you a home. I keep my promises.” The young man in my memory was so earnest, so brave. When he loved me, his passion burned brighter than the sun. I cried and threw my arms around him. We bought this apartment, kissed under the setting sun, and had giddy, endless conversations while picking out furniture at IKEA. The string lights on the balcony, the worn-in rocking chair that held a decade of our whispers, the spot on the living room rug where we’d cuddle with a watermelon and watch cheesy rom-coms… He said he would give me a home. Now, he was forcing me to leave it. 4. It took me three days to clear out everything that was mine. While I was packing the last of the boxes, both sets of parents showed up. I hadn’t had the heart to tell them what Lawrence had done, so to this day, they still didn’t know the real reason we were breaking up. My parents respected my decision, but Lawrence’s mother pleaded with me. “Nora, you’re about to get married! It’s just a little fight. It’s not serious enough to split up over, is it?” I said nothing, just motioned for the movers to continue carrying boxes out. Just as Lawrence’s parents were about to wear themselves out trying to convince me, Lawrence himself walked in. He was holding Lily’s hand. The room fell silent. Everyone stared at them, their faces a mixture of shock and dawning horror. Lawrence’s mother’s voice trembled. “Lawrence… did you… did you do something to hurt Nora?” His father’s eyes widened in fury. “Son! Who is this girl?” Lawrence didn’t answer them. His gaze swept over the half-empty apartment and landed on me. “Where are you moving?” he asked. He was still so calm, so rational. He accepted my departure without a fight. No explanation. No begging me to stay. And he had the audacity to bring her here. “I’m moving back to my real home,” I said, my voice just as level as his. He nodded slowly. “Okay. I’ll come find you in a few days.” Then, he pulled Lily forward and introduced her to our families. “This is my assistant from the lab, Lily. She was discharged from the hospital today, so I brought her over for a home-cooked meal.” He said it so casually, so openly, that it made all of our suspicions seem petty and small-minded. Lily linked her arm through Lawrence’s mother’s, her smile cloyingly sweet. “Mrs. Shaw, Lawrence takes such good care of me at work. He even offered to cook for me today to celebrate me getting out of the hospital! But I couldn’t let him go to all that trouble. Since you’re both here, why don’t you let me cook for you? You can try my famous lasagna.” Lawrence’s mother shot me a pained, apologetic look. “Nora, maybe we should all just sit down and talk things through…” I was about to refuse when Lily cut me off, a glint of triumphant provocation in her eyes. “Yes, Nora. Stay for dinner. What do you say?” SMACK. It happened in an instant. My eyes flew open as my mother’s hand connected with Lily’s cheek. “Mom, what are you—?” My mother’s eyes were blazing, her voice shaking with rage as she turned to me. “You are my daughter. Did you really think I wouldn't know?” “You were eighteen when you got with Lawrence! You’re twenty-eight now! Ten years of your life! You came from a good family, but you learned to cook for him, knit for him, bite your tongue and swallow your pride for him! Do you think I believe you’d be leaving if it wasn’t absolutely unbearable?” Her voice rose, ringing through the room. “I don’t ask for you to marry rich, but today, this boy brings this… thing into your home to slap you in the face? I will not stand for it. If my daughter won’t fight for herself, then her mother will!” Her words hung in the air, sharp and final. Lily clutched her red cheek, stunned into silence. Lawrence looked at her, his face dark with anger as he turned on me. “Nora! How old are you? Still running to your parents to complain—” I didn’t let him finish. A dam of fury broke inside me. I lunged forward, slapping him again and again, the sting of my palm against his cheek a bitter release. Finally spent, I reached under the coffee table, pulled out a folded piece of paper from the drawer, and threw it at his chest. “Do you know what my biggest regret in this life is?” He flinched, then unfolded the paper. As his eyes scanned the page, his pupils shrank to pinpricks. “Nora… you’re… you’re pregnant?”
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