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Are you done? Rachel glanced at me indifferently, casually strolling to the couch and sitting down, just like after every argument we’d ever had. “If you’re finished, get off your ass and clean this dump. We’ve got people coming over later.”
I suddenly burst out laughing.
Rachel raised an eyebrow. “Ryan, have you lost your mind? You’re a just freaking sugar baby. How dare you laugh?”
I laughed so hard tears came to my eyes.
Rachel frowned, repeating with forced patience, “Ryan, I said I’m throwing a party here.”
In Rachel’s eyes, Susan and I combined didn’t measure up to Nathan.
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Even when Susan had anoina Rachel thought she was fakino it
Chapter 2
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The first time Susan was supposed to meet her, Rachel claimed to be busy with work. I later found out she was actually picking up Nathan from the airport.
Each time, she stabbed me in the heart, leaving it a bloody mess.
On our wedding day, Nathan used the excuse of being drunk on business. In reality, he was just playing truth or dare with his friends.
They wanted to see if Rachel would really leave me for him.
Susan grabbed Rachel’s hand, pleading, “Rachel, my son truly loves you. We consider you one of our own. Can’t you at least sign the marriage certificate first?”
I couldn’t give up. “Rachel, I need you,” I said desperately.
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But she firmly pushed Susan’s hand away. “You’ll be fine without me, Ryan. Nathan needs me.”
She then roared past in her car.
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As she straddled Nathan’s lap, flirting and blushing, Susan’s life slipped away in my arms, breath by breath.
I looked up sharply at Rachel, my eyes rimmed with red. “What? Are you planning to throw a party in front of my mother’s urn?”
The room fell silent, broken only by Nathan’s sudden, inappropriate laugh. “Sorry,” he said, looking apologetic. “Couldn’t help it.”
Nathan spoke with an air of feigning sincerity and patience. “Ryan, I know you’ve got the wrong idea about Rachel and me, but isn’t it a bit much to talk about your mom like that?”
He explained slowly, “That day, we were playing Truth or Dare. Pknown you and Rachel were about to get marrica, I never
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Chapter 2
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Rachel’s friends had already closed ranks around Nathan. Not one of them believed a word I said. It was just like that day when Rachel refused to believe Susan was having a heart attack.
If Nathan hadn’t called Rachel away on purpose, Susan wouldn’t have gotten so upset that it triggered her heart attack.
My fists were clenched, and my eyes were bloodshot with anger.
Nathan took a cautious step back.
Rachel moved to stand in front of him. “Are you done? Your mom was always in good health. Isn’t it a bit much to use this to provoke me?”
She hadn’t shown any concern for Susan’s condition that day, not even a single word of care.
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Susan’s dying wish was for Rachel and me to stay together. But what about her?
Ryan, my patience has its limits, I spoke coldly.
Rachel thought I’d give in like before, apologize, and try to win her back.
But she was wrong. I grew up in a single–parent home. My father passed away in an accident when I was three. It had been just Susan and me for over twenty years.
A few years ago, I neglected Susan’s health because of Rachel. I offered her my whole heart, and now she had shattered it completely.”
Are you done talking? If so, please leave. My voice was ice–cold as I pushed through the crowd to retrieve Susan’s urn.
Rachel grabbed my wrist, her tone a mix of frustration and
ompromise. “Ryan, please don’t be like this.”
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Disappointment flickered in her eyes. “You weren’t like this before.”
It was funny how we always wanted what we couldn’t have. Back when I was head over heels for Rachel, she couldn’t care less. Now that I was done with it all, she was suddenly interested.
Now, the tables had turned.
I pried her fingers off, creating some distance between us. “Tell me then, what was I like before? Your lapdog? A shameless pretty boy?” I scoffed, and my voice was low. “A sugar baby?” I paused, then delivered the final blow. “Or maybe…just useless?”
Rachel’s face drained of color. “Ryan…”
These were the names her so–called friends used for me. Just because I stood by her side, I became the target of their cruel labels.
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Chapter 2
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Rachel was the pampered daughter of a wealthy family. On our first date, she got a craving for dessert from Cassie’s Dessert.
I scoured the city, but every shop had closed up for the night. Determined not to let her down, I hopped on the subway, rented a bike, and even hoofed it for miles.
To get her favorite cupcake, I braved Sycamore Avenue despite my allergy to sycamore fluff.
With a face flushed bright red from the allergic reaction, I carefully handed her the cupcake.
She nestled against me, wrapping her arms around my waist. Her lips met mine in a sweet, happy kiss. “Ryan,” she said, “you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Back then, I really thought I’d touched her heart.
I gave everything I had, holding nothing back. 7/10
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Even when Rachel’s friends openly insulted me, I didn’t care. I naively believed that as long as I stayed by Rachel’s side, we’d find happiness someday.
Later, she met Susan. My mom adored her, often sending homemade soup to her office. She worried Rachel might skip meals due to her busy schedule.
Make sure Rachel’s well–fed and healthy, Susan would tell me.
What Susan didn’t know was that Rachel never tasted a single drop of that soup. I once saw her, from around the corner, pouring Susan’s carefully prepared chicken soup down the drain. “Handle it like this from now on,” she coldly instructed
her secretary.
Meanwhile, Susan would say, “Rachel must have sophisticated tastes. I’ll stop sending the soup. I’ve saved up quite a bit over the years. Find out what Rachel likes to eat and treat her to that. It’s the least I can do.”
Rachel’s words, Susan, a kind-hearted, generous old lady had
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become a villain who faked illness just to lure her back for a marriage certificate.
The doctor said if we’d arrived just a few minutes earlier, Susan might have lived.
Rachel had robbed Susan of her fighting chance.
A tidal wave of grief and anger crashed over me, leaving me drowning in bitterness.
Rachel glared at me, rolling their eyes dramatically. “Ryan, watch your mouth!”
Look at yourself. We’re being generous, calling you sugar baby…
Enough, Rachel snapped, her face darkening. The group exchanged uneasy glances.
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Well, well. So she could shut them up after all.
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It dawned on me that their constant disrespect had always had Rachel’s tacit approval. Maybe she’d looked down on me all
along.
B
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