My heart thudded as I scrolled up. Each message stabbed me like a thousand needles.
[Still fighting? Marvin is like a whiny woman. I told you from the start, I didn't think you two would last.]
[Five years freeloading off us, eating and drinking like an outsider. Ugh. Better to just divorce and be with Beckett instead.]
Beckett had sent a smug emoji. [I'm not even mad anymore. Serina said she's buying me an amazing camping site as a gift. Some people work their whole lives and still can't match what I get from having a good best friend.]
And right beneath that was Serina's reply. [Clinging to Mommy pays off. Now you see who really matters, don't you?]
[Muah~ Let's go have fun today. And remember—we agreed, no partners allowed!]
[Serina, did you see that? Beckett said as long as you come, he'll share a tent with you tonight—and take good care of you.]
An icy chill shot straight up my spine. My vision darkened.
How laughable.
Back then, it was Beckett himself who invited me into this group—he even renamed it "Fantastic 6+1."
It turned out they had built another group chat behind my back.
It wasn't as if I hadn't tried to blend in. I really had.
But in their world of "original members," I was always the outsider—an intruder who didn't belong.
My hands trembled, my chest tightened. I resisted the urge to smash her phone and instead saved every one of those chat records as proof.
By the time Serina walked back in, I had already placed her phone neatly where it had been.
She picked it up, hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "Hubby, those people are so clingy, insisting on tagging along with me. Why don't you just be good and stay home this time?"
I calmly reached for my jacket. "Claire has been my friend for more than a decade. If this project involves her, I'm going too."
She froze, then stretched out an arm to stop me.
"You never get along with them anyway. Better not come—you'll just spoil the mood."
She turned as if to leave.
I caught her wrist, locking eyes with her.
"Today is my birthday."
I didn't add anything more. It was the last chance I was willing to give her.
Outside the door, Beckett stomped impatiently.
Serina's expression instantly twisted with annoyance. She yanked her arm free with a violent shrug. "Why are you acting like some nagging old woman? What's so special about a birthday?"