Chapter 9
Side Story
After dating Elliot for six months, Brielle happily agreed to marry him. They registered their marriage and held a grand wedding.
But Caleb’s harassment dragged on for another half a year.
It wasn’t until news of the wedding splashed across all the major Austin media outlets–photos of Brielle in her gorgeous white dress, sharing a kiss with Elliot under the spotlight, radiating happiness–that the last sliver of hope inside Caleb finally died.
–
She was beautiful, radiant, effortlessly poised–Brielle had always seemed destined to be his. Yet now, she belonged to another man.
Caleb drowned himself in liquor, drinking for three days and nights straight.
In the end, it was Mabel who came over and cleaned up his place.
He drank and wept, and in his drunken haze, he looked at the caring Mabel and almost believed she was the Brielle he used to know–gentle, considerate, always by his side.
He grabbed her hand, pulled her down onto the couch, and kissed her.
The “Brielle” in his arms didn’t resist–in fact, she even helped him
unbutton his shirt.
By the time morning light poured in through the windows, the memories of the night before came back in scattered flashes. When he saw Mabel sleeping beside him, his face went ghostly pale.
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Before, he could at least pretend he’d done nothing wrong. But now that something real had happened between him and Mabel, how could he ever go back to chasing Brielle?
The noise he made getting dressed woke Mabel.
She shyly called his name.
He glanced back at her, only to feel a wave of revulsion.
Her skin was nothing like Brielle’s–nowhere near as soft or fair. Her figure didn’t compare. Even when Brielle went without makeup, she looked naturally rosy and fresh, as if she were born with it. But Mabel’s face, without makeup, was sallow and covered in acne scars, looking every bit the tired housewife.
How could a woman like this ever be good enough for him?
He turned away in disgust, feeling like he’d swallowed a fly.
Mabel saw the naked contempt in his eyes and was stung to tears, silently wiping her cheeks as she sat on the bed.
Caleb’s expression was icy. “Let’s pretend last night never happened, Mabel. I’m telling you one last time–don’t ever come looking for me again!”
To be despised right after giving herself to him, Mabel was at her most fragile, and his words sent her over the edge. She exploded, shouting, “Wake up! A rich girl like Brielle–if she hadn’t liked you, you wouldn’t even be fit to carry her shoes! Do you really believe only some heiress is good enough for you?”
Caleb’s face turned stormy. He yanked the covers away, ignoring her naked state, grabbed her arm, and dragged her out, tossing her- completely unclothed–into the hallway.
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Chapter 9
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His apartment was an old, rundown three–bedroom in a remote part of town. The building was shabby, and the hallways were in terrible shape.
Mabel clutched herself, sobbing uncontrollably, terrified someone might come down the stairs and see her. She pounded on the door, desperate.
After a while, apparently fed up, Caleb picked up her scattered clothes from the floor, opened the door, and flung them out into the hall before slamming the door shut.
He threw them so hard, her clothes tumbled all the way down the stairs.
Mabel, still covering herself, scrambled down to collect them–unaware that someone had caught the whole scene on a drone camera.
The next day, the drone footage went viral on every major media platform.
That afternoon, Caleb was expelled from school.
Mabel, humiliated, slunk home from the bar.
Even Caleb’s parents back in his hometown heard about what happened, wailing that his life was ruined and no woman would ever marry him
now.
For days, his home was in chaos, and with no job, Caleb sank into a deep depression.
At that moment, Mabel kept trying to win his favor.
On a reckless impulse, he went with Mabel to register for marriage, hoping to silence the gossiping relatives back in the village.
