I opened the second gift box; it was a Hermès silk scarf in a very eye-catching color. The third gift held a pair of cufflinks, and the fourth was a perfume gift set.

Inside the fifth gift box were the pearl earrings from the photo Paige had sent me. They had looked exquisite in the picture, but in reality, they were completely ordinary—small, with a mediocre luster. They were clearly the kind of ten-dollar cheap goods one would find at a flea market.

Then, I opened the last box. Inside lay a classic Tiffany necklace. There was also a small card tucked inside. I opened it.

Written in Jared's unmistakable handwriting were the words, "For my dearest Paige."

My fingers trembled slightly.

Then, as if something had suddenly occurred to me, I flipped through the shopping bags from the other boxes. Every single bag had a handwritten label.

The skincare set was for his mother, Nadine Boyd. The scarf was for his paternal aunt, Ingrid Foley. The cufflinks were for his father, Warren Foley. The perfume was for his cousin, Maxine Ritter.

The pearl earrings were, of course, for me. And the necklace was for Paige.

After reading through them all, I actually laughed out loud.

"Why are you sitting on the floor?" Jared had walked over at some point without me noticing.

When he saw that I had opened all the gift boxes, his expression darkened abruptly. "Heather, who gave you permission to go through my things without asking? This is an invasion of my privacy!"

I looked up at him, entirely calmly. "If I hadn't looked, how would I have known that the person my fiance loves the most is his ex-girlfriend?"

A flicker of guilt flashed through Jared's eyes, but he immediately blustered to cover it up. "It's just a joke between friends! Must you make such a big deal out of it? I swear, you're getting more and more unreasonable every day!"

With that, he haphazardly stuffed the gift boxes back into his suitcase, picked it up, and stormed off to the guest room.

All that was left was that cheap pair of pearl earrings lying alone on the floor.

To no one's surprise, Jared slept in the guest room that night. I wasn't sad about it at all, because the moment I posted that breakup announcement on Instagram, everything between us was over for good.

But later that night, my phone buzzed with a TikTok notification.

In the video, Jared—dressed in a white suit—was down on one knee, holding a ring box. In front of him stood Paige in a white dress.

His eyes were red-rimmed, his voice choked with emotion. "Paige, I've rehearsed this proposal in my head over and over again for ten whole years. So, whether you say yes or no today, I'll have no regrets left."

All around them, a crowd of onlookers cheered, "Say yes! Say yes!"

Paige smiled and extended her hand. Jared slipped the ring onto her ring finger, and the two embraced.

The video's caption read, "An epic love story that spanned ten years. Even if they don't end up marrying each other, at least in this moment, they truly love each other."

A single tear slipped from the corner of my eye, carrying with it the last trace of feeling I had for Jared, and shattered on the floor.

The next morning, when Jared came out of the guest room and saw me eating breakfast, his gaze flickered. He walked over and sat down across from me.

"I won't hold what happened last night against you," he said icily. "But you'd better delete that Instagram post."

"Whether I delete it or not is my choice," I retorted without even bothering to look up.

He slammed his fork down heavily on the dining table. "Heather Donahue, can you stop being so childish? We're about to get married—what will people think if they see that?"

I knew this was a sign that Jared was getting angry.

In the past, I would've backed down and compromised in a heartbeat. But today, I simply acted as if I hadn't heard anything and continued enjoying my breakfast with my head down.

In the end, Jared threw out a "Ridiculous" and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

For the next few days, Jared didn't come home. But I didn't particularly care either. I quit my job in Lunaton, and little by little, I packed up my things and shipped them away.

Three days later, Austin suddenly sent me a screenshot.

"That fiance of yours has been pretty busy lately."

I glanced at it, and my pupils constricted sharply.

The screenshot was an Instagram post from Paige's best friend, Alice Duffy. The caption read, "The bride-to-be picking out her wedding dress, with a certain groom-to-be by her side the whole time. They're so sweet I can't stand it!"

In the photo, Jared and Paige stood inside a bridal shop. He was helping her adjust her veil, smiling so brightly the corners of his eyes crinkled.

I had never seen him smile like that before.

My fingers hovered over the screen for a long time, but I ultimately closed the app. I told myself it didn't matter anymore. After all, the moment I posted the breakup announcement on Instagram, I had already decided never to look back.

Even without deliberately paying attention, I noticed the sudden shifts in Jared. He, who had previously been completely indifferent to the wedding, started arranging every single detail with meticulous care.

First, he changed the venue. He felt the outdoor garden lawn I had chosen wasn't grand enough, so he switched it to a ballroom in a five-star hotel.

Then, there was the theme. He said the simple rustic style I'd originally chosen was too plain, so he changed it to a dreamy purple-and-pink palette.

Next came the itinerary. He said the warm, heartfelt flow I had planned was too cliche, so he revamped it into a carnival-themed amusement park concept.

All of it was exactly what Paige would've wanted.

I didn't fight him on anything. Instead, I just let him do whatever he pleased.

Maybe it was because I'd been "too compliant" lately, but one evening, Jared actually came home with a bouquet of roses—something he never did.

When he saw me, he spoke in an uncharacteristically tender tone. "Heather, I've changed all the plans for our wedding. Have you looked them over?"

I nodded.

"Is there anything you don't like or aren't satisfied with?"

At the question, a bitter, scornful laugh escaped me. "Jared, aren't you asking the wrong person? Shouldn't you be asking Paige that?"

With that, I turned to walk away.

"Heather!" Jared chased after me and grabbed my wrist. "What exactly are you upset about? Paige was just helping me brainstorm some ideas. You're really going to get jealous over that?"

I just looked at him, my expression entirely blank.

He rubbed his nose sheepishly, then sighed, his tone softening. "Fine, I admit I took a lot of Paige's suggestions. But I only did it to make our wedding better. Heather, the wedding is just one day. Don't make a big deal out of it."

I nodded and replied in a voice devoid of emotion, "It doesn't matter to me. Whatever makes the two of you happy."

Jared's lips parted. Suddenly, he looked at me with an intense seriousness. "Heather, I'll only ever have you as my wife. That's never going to change."

I met his gaze. There he stood in his crisp suit, as good-looking as always, but the words coming out of his mouth made him feel like a complete stranger.

I might be his wife, but the person he loved was not me.

"You're right," I said softly. "I should be content to be your wife. Even though I'm allergic to pollen, I should happily accept these roses you brought me."

Jared's expression froze. He was just about to say something when his phone suddenly rang.

It was Paige calling.

Jared immediately let go of my hand and, without a single glance back at me, turned and walked toward the balcony.

On the day of the wedding, I woke up very early.

After putting on my makeup and changing into a simple pair of jeans and a white T-shirt, I called a courier service. Once that was arranged, I carefully folded the pristine white wedding dress and placed it inside a large gift box.

Lastly, I affixed the pre-printed shipping label with Paige's address.

When the courier arrived at the door to pick it up, I asked, "Will it arrive by today?"

"Since the destination is within the city, it'll be there before noon."

I nodded and closed the door.

Looking around the apartment where I had lived for three years, I felt no attachment. My suitcase had long been packed and was sitting right by the door.

My phone buzzed with a text from Austin.

"What time does your train leave?"

"10:40 am."

After replying, I pulled my suitcase behind me and walked out of the home Jared and I had shared without so much as a backward glance.

While waiting for the elevator, my phone buzzed again. It was a message from Jared.

"The wedding starts at 11:00 am. Don't be late."

I didn't reply.

The elevator doors slid open. I stepped inside and pressed the button for the basement level.

My phone buzzed a third time. This time, it was an Instagram notification from Paige. The post was a selfie of her in a wedding dress, taken inside the hotel dressing room.

The caption simply read, "Today is the day."

I turned off the screen and smiled. She had received it, exactly as planned.

Meanwhile, in the ballroom of a five-star hotel in Lunaton, guests filled every seat. Flowers were everywhere, and the dreamy purple-and-pink decorations were dazzlingly extravagant.

Jared stood near the stage in his crisp suit, checking his watch.

It was 10:45 am.

He frowned and pulled out his phone to call me, only to be met with a busy signal. He dialed again, but this time, my phone was switched off entirely.

For the first time, his composure slipped. He gestured urgently to his best man, Evan Newton.

"Call Heather and tell her to hurry up. The wedding is about to start."

Evan was just about to dial when the ballroom doors suddenly swung open.

Everyone turned to look.

Paige walked in, wearing a pristine white wedding dress.

The entire room erupted into whispers.

Jared froze on the spot. "Paige? What are you… Where's Heather?"

Before Paige could even utter a word, the massive LED screen on the stage suddenly lit up. It was supposed to play our wedding slideshow, but instead, a video began to roll.

The footage showed Jared and Paige inside a bridal shop, his expression impossibly tender as he adjusted her veil. Then, it cut to clips of them on a date at an amusement park. All the places they had traveled to and every photo they had taken over the years had been compiled into a sweet, romantic montage.

At the very end, the video showed Jared down on one knee, holding up a ring box.

"Paige, no matter who I end up with, my heart belongs only to you."

The entire room descended into utter chaos.

"Who exactly is Jared marrying? I could've sworn the woman he got engaged to looked different."

"Why isn't the bride in the wedding video the same person who's supposed to be walking down the aisle?"

Jared's face drained of color in an instant. His parents looked livid; Nadine's wine glass slipped from her hand, shattering on the floor.

"Turn it off! Turn it off right now!" Jared roared at the staff nearby.

But no one could stop it. The clips were set on an endless loop.

As if struck by a realization, Jared spun around and locked his gaze onto Paige. "Did you do this?"

Paige was panicking just as badly. "I-I don't know. It was already playing when I walked in!"

Just then, Jared's phone buzzed with an incoming text message.

"Jared, I've delivered your bride to you. No need to thank me."