Melissa had sent me a video. It was Howard, playing "Truth or Dare" while tipsy.

His roommate, Pierce Milett asked, "Who's your favorite girl?"

Without hesitation, Howard replied, "Melissa, of course."

He lost three games in a row, being drunk.

"What's the most memorable night you can think of?"

"Three days ago."

That was the day he told me he was busy handling paperwork in preparation for graduation. Turned out he was keeping his beloved company.

Melissa blushed, and everyone laughed.

In the next round, he chose to do a dare.

Pierce hollered, "Kiss! It's got to be a French kiss!"

The video focused on their lips. I could see spit glimmering while they moved against each other. They kissed for five minutes.

Initially, the crowd cheered. However, they soon held Howard back, terrified that he'd cross a line in his excitable state.

"Howard, don't take it too far. Even if you like Lizzy, there's no need to behave like this, right? The rest of us are single. Stop subjecting us to this torture!"

Melissa nuzzled into his chest shyly, the tips of her ears flushed red.

The video ended there.

The second I finished watching it, Melissa deleted the video.

"I'm sorry, Selena. I sent it by mistake. You didn't see anything, did you?"

My heart seized painfully. Even my fingers trembled as I typed. It was the first time I realized devastation had the power to render people speechless.

If Melissa was the one he liked, what about me, his fiancée?

I thought that as long as I threatened him with our marriage, I would be the only one by his side. No other woman would play a starring role in his life. However, this was all part of my imagination.

Loving him had become a habit after all these years. I couldn't imagine a life without Howard. Yet, I had no choice now.

If I didn't leave him, I wouldn't be able to satisfy my own conscience. All those times I put aside my dignity for him would be for nothing.

I lay on the couch numbly. Holding my hand above me, I studied my diamond ring. It wasn't very valuable, but I had invested much of my youth and feelings into what it symbolized. Like me, the ring was worth nothing now.

After a moment, I threw it toward the rubbish bin, not bothering to turn the lights on.

Suddenly, Howard texted me, saying, "Help me deliver some stuff. My driver's busy."

He also sent me the location of a nearby pharmacy. When I didn't respond, he followed up with a cute sticker of a begging cat.

"Be a good girl for me, Selena. My roommate is allergic to alcohol and needs medicine. It's a matter of life and death. I'm putting his life in your hands! I'll remember how you helped me today and pay it back in time!"

I didn't want to see him again, but he kept calling. If I didn't comply, he'd probably continue harassing me. I was left without a choice, so I put my jacket on and left.

My hair was still wet from the rain, and it made me feel extremely cold.

When the cashier handed me the bag of things Howard had ordered, she eyed me with disdain. I could see the corner of a red condom box peeking out of the black bag.

I was in low spirits from the earlier events. Even at the evidence of Howard cheating, I felt nothing but numbness.

Tying the bag together, I brought it to the club he was at.

Howard was so drunk he couldn't walk in a straight line. Upon seeing me, he slumped onto my shoulder.

"What took you so long?"

"Traffic was slow."

He believed me without hesitation, under the influence of alcohol.

"What a good girl, Selena. Thank you so much, my darling fiancee. I'll make it up to you tomorrow. Clean yourself up for me, and wait at home."

Howard tried to get even closer, but I backed away. His companions were calling for him from inside the private room they'd booked. He turned to leave, but not before sending me a flying kiss. I nearly threw up at his disgusting expression.

The door was ajar and I could see Melissa sitting on a couch inside.

Melissa's lips were ringed red from her smeared lipstick. When our eyes met, she grinned. Glee sparkled in her eyes.

If Howard was what she wanted, I'd give him to her. A man who'd cheated was like rotten food. Holding on to it would only cause disgust.

My thoughts were a humbled mess as I caught a cab home.

Lying back onto the couch, my brain functioned sluggishly. I scrolled through my chat records with Howard.

Throughout our four years at college, I'd enjoyed how Howard took care of me and expressed his adoration. I spoiled him with gifts, and he took me on dates. I helped him with his thesis, and he took me to the movies in return.

I tried to find out whether he liked me, and he let me do whatever I wanted, even going as far as to reciprocate. This gave me hope.

Even though he'd never confessed or confirmed my status as his girlfriend, I allowed him to bed me in the hotel. How cheap of me. I had no idea what I was doing and thought it was the passion of true love.

Time and time again, I thought we were only a step away from an actual relationship. Now, I realized that we were miles away from true love. I was too exhausted to bridge the gap between us.

While I dozed off, my phone buzzed. Too tired to even pry my eyes open, I didn't check it.

I woke up to Howard's lips on mine. He smelled of the cheap fragrance of a hotel room. Furrowing my brows, I shoved him aside.

He frowned. "Why didn't you reply to my messages last night? Since you were the one who didn't read them, you can't blame me for not updating you regarding my whereabouts."

My head was throbbing painfully, and my throat felt as though it was covered in sandpaper.

Howard leaned down lustfully and put his weight onto me.

"I miss you. The party was so boring without you. Everyone was talking about how they'd invite you if not for the fact that you don't drink. It was my fault I didn't come home last night. Let me make it up to you, alright?"

He unbuttoned my shirt single-handedly. I pushed at him as hard as I could, but he barely moved.

With an unhappy expression, Howard grumbled, "What now? Are you playing hard-to-get with me? Don't worry. You don't have to put on a show to get me up. I'll always be ready as long as you're the one I'm with."

Nausea gnawed at me. I wanted to laugh at the irony.

Wasn't it enough that he'd spent the night with Melissa? Were they only going to be satisfied once they slept together in front of me? I couldn't do anything about the fact that he liked someone else, but why did he have to act like this with me?

The smell made me sneeze repeatedly.

I turned to my side, making Howard fall off the couch.

"What are you doing?"

I could barely speak from the pain in my throat, nor did I want to talk to him.

Suddenly, Howard's expression softened. It was as though he'd recalled something.

"Did you see those videos in the group chat? As you know, Melissa comes from a poor family. In the future, she won't have a chance to visit luxurious clubs like these after graduating.

"Out of the kindness of my heart, I brought her with me for the sake of exposing her to our world. Are you going to get mad at me just for that?

"Selena, you're a good girl. Stop making a fuss. I've stayed up all night, only to come home and have to explain myself to you. Don't you feel bad for me?"

I sat up. When the light from the window hit my face, he noticed my flushed cheeks. Hurriedly, Howard touched my forehead with his palm.

"Why's your temperature so high? Why didn't you tell me you were sick? When will you fix this temper of yours? Even a sick cat knows to meow for help. Is your phone just there as a prop?"

After his rant, he hung his head for a moment. Then, he said, "Don't move. I'll take you to the hospital."

He bent down to pick me up, but every time he got close, I pushed him away.

"I don't need you to do that."

Forcing that sentence out—saying I didn't need Howard—had drained me.

Howard stiffened, his expression growing cold. "What are you getting at? What do you mean you don't need me?"

"That's exactly what it means. I don't need your help. Who are you to fetch me to the hospital? My boyfriend? My fiancé? If I'm not mistaken, you haven't even informed your parents of our engagement, have you? Well, the engagement doesn't count if none of our parents were present."

The vein by Howard's temple throbbed.

"Is this really the time to throw a tantrum? I'm not your parents. I don't have an obligation to bend to your every whim. If you don't want me to touch you, that's fine. Get up. I'll drive you to the hospital."

Weak from my cold, I couldn't resist, and Howard successfully yanked me into his car. On the way to the hospital, his expression was stony, and I wasn't in the mood to talk either.

The car rolled to a stop in front of the hospital. We were about to head in when his phone buzzed. It was a message from an important contact.

After glancing at his phone briefly, Howard ordered, "I've got something I need to deal with. Go queue up and get an appointment with the doctor. Remember, don't throw a tantrum. You're the one who will suffer if you continue being sick."

Then, he left without a backward glance.

I fainted in front of the hospital and was sent to the emergency room by a few nurses.

When I woke up, I saw Melissa had posted an Instagram story. It was a picture of a couple's entwined hands. A huge diamond ring glinted on her finger.

"Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected that a passing mention of wanting to be proposed to would end up with an actual proposal! My magical, wish-granting boyfriend is amazing! I heard he'd even rehearsed it beforehand! So, this is how it feels to be loved."

In the corner, I saw Howard's roommates. The same petals from my proposal were scattered on the floor. Howard's speech was the same one. The last time he'd proposed was a rehearsal. This was the real deal.

I accidentally closed the app. When I reopened it, I could no longer see the story she'd posted.

It was as though my fever had dried up all the tears I had left in me. Only the corners of my eyes burned.

I submitted my application to transfer to a foreign university.

Howard had booked out an amusement park for a day. He didn't contact me at all.

After my fever subsided, I seized the opportunity to head home and clean the house. I threw away the matching cups and couples' pajamas I'd bought, as well as our pictures together, into the bin. Along with them went the memories I'd once thought I'd never forget.

He'd never touched any of it since we moved in. Howard probably wouldn't even notice that I'd thrown them away. In the empty room, the curtains fell on my one-woman show.

Occasionally, Howard would text me, impassionately.

"Your fever has gone away, right? Remember to take your medicine."

"Learn from your mistakes. Stop being so stubborn with me. I always know what you're playing at."

"Melissa said she'd like to thank you for taking care of her for the past four years. When you're free, do arrange a meeting with her. I won't get between you guys."

I didn't reply.

Instead, I texted my parents about my plans to study overseas. They were surprised. Everyone thought I'd marry Howard the second I graduated to assume my position as his housewife. They couldn't understand my sudden change of heart.

Afraid they'd lose sleep over this, I told my parents that I didn't want to get married at such a young age. So, they transferred five million dollars to me as my allowance and reminded me to stay safe.

Howard didn't come home for two days. The only people who came to our house were the drivers delivering the food he'd ordered for me.

Howard probably hadn't stepped out of his hotel room in those two days, not with the pretty woman in his arms. I was surprised he even remembered that I needed to eat.

However, everything he ordered was spicy, and I couldn't stand the spice. As a result, everything went straight into the bin. I drank stew to detox instead.

In a rare flash of vulnerability, Howard texted me before I left.

He asked, "How's the food I ordered for you? Did you like it? Melissa said most women like that kind of stuff. I don't know much about things like that, so I ordered according to her recommendations.

"She's a great person. You guys could be friends in the future. After graduating, why don't you let her intern at your family's company? That way, she won't have to suffer outside."

It was the first time he'd asked me to help with something in the 20 years I'd known him. Yet, he'd only done so on behalf of his beloved.

Without replying to the message, I blocked him on every social media platform I had. Then, I headed to the airport with my bags.