Chapter 1

Tags: Ungrateful ex, manipulative first love, wedding drama, revenge, karma

I was going to crash my girlfriend's wedding.

Actually, it was supposed to be mine.

She had promised to marry me the moment she made director at her firm.

Yet, right there at the venue, wearing her bridal gown, she accepted her ex-boyfriend’s confession.

"Chloe, these two thousand paper cranes... I folded one for every single day since we broke up. Every fold carries my love for you."

"I had no choice but to walk away back then, but you never left my mind. I wanted to come back only when I’d made something of myself. But when I heard you were marrying someone else, I couldn't hold back anymore."

"Chloe, please give me another chance. Don't marry Ethan."

My hand froze on the doorknob. I desperately waited to see Chloe turn him down without a second thought.

Instead, her eyes welled with tears. She covered her mouth, gazing at Damian with utter devotion.

Then I heard her breathless sob: "Yes! I will!"

My blood ran cold.

She seemed to have completely forgotten that everything she had today was because of me.

Watching them hold each other, I felt like I had plunged into an icy abyss, numb and aching all over.

Chloe eagerly took the red roses, her voice shaking.

"Damian, do you have any idea how long I've waited for this? Five years. I dreamed about us all the time. When you left, I thought it was over forever. I can't believe you're really back."

"Am I dreaming?"

She was still wearing the wedding dress I had made for her with my own hands.

To give her the perfect day, I spent an entire year learning couture bridal tailoring. I wanted her to be the envy of everyone.

Listening to their heartfelt reunion, I couldn't take it anymore. I shoved the door open.

Seeing me, Chloe instinctively shielded Damian behind her back.

A flicker of panic crossed her face, but she composed herself in an instant.

She laced her fingers tightly through Damian's, looked me dead in the eye, and delivered the cruelest blow. "Ethan, I'm not marrying you."

I swallowed the sharp ache in my chest and demanded, "Marriage isn't a game. You're throwing away seven years together just for him?"

They shared a quick, tender smile before Chloe said firmly, "Yes. Just for him. I thought I moved on, but the moment he showed up, I realized he never left my heart. Damian is the only man I've ever wanted to marry. Stop clinging to me."

Dressed in pure white, she wore a radiant, breathtaking smile I had never seen before.

Too bad that smile wasn't meant for me.

Seven years together meant nothing to her.

My heart felt shredded, but I refused to beg.

I let her go.

"Fine, Chloe. Don't regret this."

Seeing the sorrow in my eyes, her expression darkened. "Drop the act, Ethan. Don't look at me like that, it's disgusting. The biggest regret of my life was ever dating you."

"You tainted what Damian and I had. You tried to trap me with marriage. Well, I'm telling you right now: I'm choosing my own freedom."

Her words shoved me straight off a cliff.

I had poured my soul into giving her a better life, and this was how she repaid me.

Damian raised an eyebrow at me, his eyes full of smug condescension. "Ethan, thanks for taking care of Chloe these past few years. But I'm back now. I'll take it from here."

Disgusted, I turned to walk away from this nightmare.

But Chloe suddenly called out.