1 My fiancé and I had been planning a trip to Charleston for months. It was where we'd met, where we'd fallen in love. It was where he was going to propose. I spent all morning getting ready, feeling a sweet, giddy anticipation. I never expected to be stopped halfway to our meeting spot by a girl with a phone shoved in my face. She gave me a sugary smile. "Hi there! So sorry to bother you. Could I take a few pictures of you?" Her phone was held high, angled down at a steep forty-five degrees, aimed directly at my chest. Knowing what the day held, I’d chosen a V-neck sundress. From that angle, I was definitely exposed. I instinctively covered my chest and took a step back, frowning. "Sorry, my friend is waiting for me." Her smile faltered, a flicker of annoyance in her eyes. She didn't lower the phone. Instead, she moved closer. "It'll only take a minute. I have a pretty big following on TikTok. You can check out my page if you want." She puffed out her chest, her tone dripping with condescension. "Opportunities like this don't come around every day for regular people. I'll even tag your account in the comments. With my view count, I could probably get you a few sugar daddies, no problem." She pulled out a second phone and shoved it in my face. 2.1 million followers. The username looked vaguely familiar, but I didn't spend much time on that side of TikTok. The video thumbnails were all the same: cleavage shots, borderline content pushing the platform’s guidelines. Her attitude was grating, as if she were bestowing some great honor upon me. I was annoyed, but I didn't want a confrontation. "I'm sorry, I really don't have time," I said, my voice firm but polite. "And I'm not interested in being famous. But thank you." Being rejected again clearly irritated her. Her face soured, but at least she finally backed off. I let out a breath and hurried away. I could feel her glaring at my back. After a moment, I realized she was following me, pretending to film the scenery. I tried to ignore her. Maybe I'd seen her on my 'For You' page once. This was a popular tourist spot; I couldn't exactly tell her to leave. She wouldn't dare try to force me to take pictures in public, right? I pushed the unsettling encounter from my mind. 2 As I neared our spot, I saw it: a sea of flowers. Pink tulips, my favorite. It was near the college campus where we'd met. He’d remembered. I saw him standing in the middle of it all, and my heart swelled. He smiled, that gentle smile I loved so much, and got down on one knee. I was about to walk toward him, my answer ready on my lips, when a figure shoved past me, knocking me off balance. "I do!" a cheerful voice cried out. To keep from falling, my fiancé, Alex, had to catch the girl, spinning her around in a dizzying circle. By the time I regained my footing, the ring that was meant for me was on this stranger’s finger. It was the influencer from before. And the smug little smirk on her face told me this was no accident. This was revenge. My blood boiled. I was about to rip her off him when applause erupted from behind me. A crowd had gathered, cheering them on. "Kiss her! Kiss her!" they chanted. An older woman grabbed my arm, pulling me back. "What are you, some kind of attention-seeker?" she grumbled, giving me a dirty look. "Let the girl have her moment." She held onto me, and I couldn't break free. The noise of the crowd drowned out my attempts to explain. I could only watch, helpless, as Alex stood there, red-faced and trapped. He was a shy guy; this was his worst nightmare. I finally managed to shout his name, my voice cracking. He heard me and tried to push the girl away, but she was quicker. She stepped back, a perfect smile on her face, and addressed the crowd. "Everyone, calm down! You've got it all wrong!" The crowd quieted, confused. She pulled me forward and, with a flourish, took the ring off her finger and pressed it into my hand. "So sorry," she said, her voice dripping with fake sincerity. "Just had to borrow your boyfriend for some content. Don't worry, I'll tag you!" Her grip was surprisingly strong, her smile a mask for the malice underneath. In that moment, I knew for sure. This was all deliberate. "I know you!" someone in the crowd exclaimed. "You're Chloe Vance, the influencer!" "Did you get me in the shot? When are you posting it? I'll give it a like!" Chloe let go of me and beamed at her fan. "Of course! Thanks for the support!" Suddenly, I was invisible. The crowd swarmed her, everyone wanting a selfie, an autograph. No one cared about our ruined proposal. They were just thrilled to be in the presence of a minor celebrity. A tourist on the edge of the crowd gave me an envious look. "You're so lucky." 3 "Lucky?" I repeated, bewildered. "How is any of this lucky?" My proposal was ruined, my ring felt tainted, and the person responsible was being treated like a hero. I couldn't even get close enough to confront her. "Babe, let's just go," Alex said, finally pushing his way through the crowd to my side. "She's not worth our time." He was probably right. It wasn't worth the fight. We were on vacation. But then I noticed something on the hem of his shirt. A small, neat signature in black marker: Chloe Vance. The vague sense of familiarity I'd felt earlier clicked into place. A year ago, Alex had gone through a phase of being obsessed with a TikToker who posted thirst traps. He was always in her comments, trying to be the first to post. We’d had a huge fight about it. I’d called it an emotional affair; he’d said it was just harmless fun. I’d cut off his allowance—I was the breadwinner in our relationship—and after a week of the cold shoulder, he’d finally apologized and promised to stop. The memory had faded. But now, seeing that signature, it all came rushing back. My heart went cold. "Are you watching those videos again?" I asked, my voice flat. "Is this your new favorite?" He looked flustered. "No! Of course not! I know you hate that stuff. It was the crowd. They were just shoving things at her to sign." I half-believed him. "Then why didn't you move?" "It happened so fast," he said, looking genuinely sheepish. "And I didn't want to make a scene. Besides," he added with a playful grin, "maybe this autograph will be worth something someday." His explanation was plausible, if a little naive. Alex had always been frugal, despite my assurances that he didn't need to be. The idea of a collectible made sense for him. I decided to let it go, to trust him. He saw my expression soften and immediately pulled up a reservation on his phone. "Come on, let's go get some amazing food. My treat… well, with a little help from my lovely fiancée." His goofy smile made me laugh. I rolled my eyes and transferred him the money for dinner. 4 The restaurant was packed. We finally got a table, but the server was clearly overwhelmed. She slapped the menus down and grumbled, "Know what you want? I'm busy." We ordered quickly, but our food never came. My stomach started to hurt. "Babe, I'm going to see if I can find a snack or something outside," Alex said, looking worried. He rushed out. A few minutes later, a server emerged from the kitchen with two plates. I flagged her down, but she walked right past me to the table next to ours. The woman at that table had arrived a good twenty minutes after us. "Excuse me," I said, my voice tight with irritation. "We were here first. And those are the dishes we ordered." "Oh, sorry," the server said without turning around. "We're out of the ingredients for your order. You can try another restaurant." But I could see the woman's plate. She had the exact same two dishes I'd ordered. "You're not out of ingredients," I said, pointing. "You just served her my food." The server finally turned to me, her expression a mixture of annoyance and pity. "Do you have two million followers?" she asked. "She does. She gets priority. It brings in business. Do you?" Before I could respond, the woman at the next table turned around. It was Chloe Vance. "Oh, my gosh, what a coincidence!" she said, her voice dripping with fake surprise. "Fancy seeing you here!" Her table was overflowing with food. Ours was empty. The server’s question echoed in my head. Do you have two million followers? When had that become the measure of a person's worth? "This isn't a coincidence," I said, my voice shaking with anger. "You're doing this on purpose. You ruined my proposal, and now you're following us. Just leave us alone." She just looked at me with wide, innocent eyes. "Do you own this restaurant? I'm just here to eat. You can't blame me for that. And I'm sorry if my 'influencer perks' bother you, but that's the reward for all my hard work." The server chimed in. "Chloe is a huge asset to this town. She made a reservation an hour ago. And even if she didn't, she gets VIP service everywhere she goes. Who are you to question that?" Just as I was about to explode, Chloe held up her phone and started filming. "Hey guys! I'm at this amazing restaurant in Charleston. The food is incredible, and the service is even better!" She gave the server a dazzling smile, then shot me a triumphant look. 5 I felt a wave of helplessness. I couldn't win this fight. My vacation was ruined. All I wanted to do was go home. This city, once so full of happy memories, now felt tainted. I stood up and walked out. Just as I stepped outside, I ran into Alex, who was holding a slice of pizza. He saw my face and immediately knew something was wrong. But before I could tell him what had happened, he pulled me aside, his own face alight with excitement. "You won't believe this!" he said, shoving a contract into my hand. "I just ran into the head of tourism for the city. They want us to be in a promotional video! They're paying us, and we get to keep all the footage for free!" It seemed too good to be true. I took a bite of the pizza. "Why would they want you?" I asked. It had taken him half an hour to get a slice of pizza from a street vendor right outside the restaurant. "I guess he liked my look," Alex said, a little defensively. "And he's right behind me. It's legit." I turned and saw a man in a baseball cap nodding at us. He had an official-looking ID badge. I was too tired and hungry to argue. Alex was so excited. He'd been feeling down about not having a job, and this was the first time in a while I'd seen him so happy. I didn't have the heart to crush his enthusiasm. And free professional photos from our trip would be a nice souvenir, a bright spot in an otherwise terrible day. I signed the contract.
? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "385520", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel