“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” he barked the moment I picked up. “I’ve been hiding this from Paula for so long. Why did you have to show yourself now?!”
I bit back a bitter laugh, my voice calm and cutting. “Have you forgotten our three-year promise?”
Silence stretched on the line. Memories surfaced: the day I left for my studies abroad. Jason had hugged me tightly, tears streaming down his face. “I’ll wait for you,” he’d promised. “When you come back, I’ll give you the grandest wedding ever.”
He finally spoke, his voice softer but still dripping with condescension. “I haven’t forgotten. But you need to understand—Paula has suffered too much because of you. You need to beg for her forgiveness. Only then can we have a chance.”
His charity-like tone was laughable. I let out a dry chuckle.
“What’s so funny?” he demanded, irritation seeping through.
Before I could respond, I heard her voice—her voice—on the other end of the call. It was soft, trembling and dripping with pitiful sweetness.
“So, Jason… I really am just a stand-in, aren’t I? You promised you’d marry me… was that just a joke?”
I heard the panic in his voice as he dropped the phone, scrambling to reassure her. “No, Paula! You’re beautiful. You’re the only one for me. I’d never marry her.”
Two denials. The words pierced deeper than any blade.
I hung up, refusing to listen to another second of their ridiculous performance.
That night, Jason finally came home. The door creaked open and when he saw me sitting there, he froze, startled.
“How did you get in here?” he asked, his voice cold. “Where did you get the key?”
He’d forgotten. I was the one who had turned this house into a home. I chose the furniture, I decorated every corner and I had the keys made.
Realization flickered in his eyes, but he quickly masked it with a forced smile. From behind his back, he pulled out a small velvet box.
“Look at this,” he said, opening it to reveal a ring. “I had this customized. Just for you.”
He grabbed my hand, his touch gentle but calculated and moved to slide the ring onto my finger.
“You owe Paula too much,” he murmured. “I don’t want an apology from you. This is enough.”
The audacity—the sheer audacity—made me want to laugh all over again.
Was this the man I once loved?
“Go get plastic surgery. I’ll pay for it, and afterward, I’ll marry you.”