During a company team-building event, I collapse from a seafood allergy. Yet my fiance, Frederick Scott, rushes Beatrice Sutton, who only twisted her ankle, to the hospital.

I come close to dying because I don't get treatment in time.

Later, Frederick explains, "Beatrice is my best friend's sister. He's seriously ill now, and I promised him I'd take care of his sister. I swear I'll keep my distance from her from now on."

This isn't the first time I've heard an excuse like that.

On our fifth anniversary, Beatrice accidentally deleted a work file and burst into tears out of worry. When Frederick heard about it, he left me stranded on a mountain and drove back to the office himself. I spent a whole day and night walking home through the rain.

On Christmas, Beatrice's house lost power. Frederick was worried that she might be scared of being alone, and he rushed over to her place without even telling me, leaving me out in the snow waiting for him until dawn.

These kinds of things have happened countless times.

Afterward, he always brushes them off with the same excuse.

I've long since lost all faith in him and no longer believe a single word he says.

I pick up my phone and call the company that keeps reaching out to me. "I've decided to accept your offer from last time. I'll bring the core technology with me."

During a company team-building event, my fiance, Frederick Scott, took Beatrice Sutton to the hospital after she sprained her ankle. He ignored me even though I had fainted from a seafood allergy. I nearly lost my life in the private room.

After I was discharged, I received a text message from Frederick.

He texted, "Beatrice left you a gift on your desk to thank you for what happened."

I looked around and finally spotted a crumpled meal coupon stuffed in the corner of my desk. If Frederick hadn't deliberately told me, I would've thought it was just someone's trash.

"So this is the gift Beatrice gave Ellie? From what I remember, this meal coupon is handed out everywhere on the street."

"I wouldn't even want this kind of junk if someone gave it to me, and yet someone actually used it as a gift."

The colleagues around me whispered among themselves, and their words were laced with sarcasm.

"Stop talking. Mr. Scott is here."

They scattered in an instant, and Frederick walked over to me. "Did you receive the gift from Beatrice?" he asked.

I picked up the coupon without any expression. "This is the gift you were talking about?"

Frederick looked embarrassed. "You know Beatrice's family is poor, and she has a seriously ill brother to care for, so she can't afford an expensive gift. You shouldn't be too picky."

I ignored him and tossed the coupon into my drawer. I was about to continue working when Frederick suddenly pulled me into his arms.

He coaxed me gently. "I know you're angry, but Beatrice's brother is my close friend. I promised him I'd look after her."

I pushed him away and said coldly, "I know. And since Beatrice is weak, taking her to the hospital was the right thing to do."

Frederick froze for a moment, clearly not expecting my response.

Then he added, "Why don't we go to the beach this weekend? The one you've always wanted to visit. Let me make it up to you."

I was about to refuse, but Frederick went ahead and booked the flight tickets on the spot before I could say a word.

I paid him no further attention and continued organizing my files.

Just then, I noticed that one of my files was missing. That was the proposal I'd spent a whole week working overtime on for my promotion, and it had just vanished into thin air.

I turned to Frederick and asked, "Where's my file?"

There was no need to guess. In the entire company, the only person besides me who could've gotten access to such confidential files was the man standing in front of me.

"I gave the file to Beatrice. She needed a proposal to use for her promotion to department manager," he said.

I froze upon hearing that. "You gave my proposal to Beatrice? What about me? Weren't we set on me being appointed as the department manager?"

"Her brother needs money for treatment, and the manager's salary is higher. You should make a sacrifice and give her the position. From now on, you can help her with her work, too. It's not that much anyway."

My whole body trembled.

I had worked relentlessly for three months, pulling countless late nights for the department manager position. All I needed was this proposal to secure the promotion. Yet with just one sentence from Frederick, all my effort turned to ashes.

Beatrice put in no effort at all and still ended up as my superior. And now I was expected to shoulder the work of two people just so she could sit back and relax.

Looking back on the five months since Beatrice joined the company, Frederick had practically dumped all of her work on me.

Beatrice had never gone to school and only got in through connections. She made a mess out of every assignment, and I had to clean up after her every time.

She once replaced the fine wine prepared for a client with a milkshake.

At a business dinner, she swapped the main dishes with caramel pudding and strawberry cake.

When the client saw that, he turned around and left, causing the deal I had spent two weeks negotiating to fall apart instantly.

In the end, I had to drink with the client until my body couldn't take it anymore, just to seal the deal.

However, at the year-end awards ceremony, Beatrice still outshone me and walked away with the Best Employee award.

I was the one doing all her work, yet I got nothing, while she raked in bonus after bonus.

One time, she got drunk at a banquet and made a scene. The media caught it on camera, and it damaged the company's reputation. Yet Frederick blamed me for not stopping her from drinking.

All the blame fell on me, while all the credit went to her. How was that fair?

I was shaking all over with rage.

I had been with Frederick for five years, but he never once admitted publicly that I was his fiancee. There wasn't a single photo of us on social media, and he acted as if he didn't even know me at every banquet.

I had asked him about it before, but all he said was, "I like to keep a low profile. When we get married, I'll make it public and let everyone know you're Mrs. Scott."

For the sake of that promise, I waited year after year. Even now, everyone in the company still thought I was nothing more than his mistress.

"She's just Mr. Scott's secret lover, and yet she actually has the nerve to act like his wife."

"Who knows how messy her private life is? Mr. Scott must know she isn't presentable, which is why he never acknowledges their relationship in public."

I could only pretend not to hear their gossip, yet my heart grew colder with each passing day.

I should have known all along. Everything Frederick did made it clear that he didn't love me, so there was no need for me to keep humiliating myself.

Frederick noticed my darkening expression and coaxed me gently. "Ellie, don't worry. I won't keep you waiting long. Once Beatrice is promoted next year, I'll make you the department manager."

I stayed silent. In my heart, I no longer had a shred of trust in Frederick.

Frederick said, "Alright, stop sulking. You're already the CEO's fiancee. For a small position like this, be gracious and let the newcomer have it.

"Look at Beatrice. It's not easy for her to care for her younger brother all on her own. It's only right that you help her out a bit."

My chest felt unbearably tight. In Frederick's eyes, Beatrice always came first, even far above me, his own fiancee.

At that moment, Frederick received a phone call. His face immediately softened into a gentle smile. "Beatrice, have you finished handling everything on your end? Great, I'm coming over now."

He left with a radiant smile. It was the kind of warmth he had never once shown me.

The next day, at the company's promotion banquet, Beatrice walked onto the stage in a custom gown Frederick had given her.

At the same time, the giant screen behind lit up with wedding photos of her and Frederick.

The employees below instantly erupted, applauding and offering their congratulations.

Frederick held Beatrice's hand and slowly stepped forward. "I now announce that Beatrice Sutton is officially the department manager."

Frederick intertwined his fingers with hers, raising them above their heads. The dazzling rings gleamed even brighter under the flashing lights.

"There is another piece of good news. Beatrice and I are getting married," he added.

The crowd below began cheering loudly.

"No wonder Mr. Scott waited until now to announce the promotion. Turns out he wanted to give us double the good news."

"Mr. Scott and Beatrice are such a perfect match, unlike certain people who only know how to cling to him."

It didn't take much thought to know that the "certain people" they were talking about was me.

Sitting in the front row, I could feel my colleagues' scornful glances. Beatrice's smug expression on stage was also impossible to miss.

I clapped without expression and sent out my resignation letter.

After the banquet ended, I headed to the stairwell. I found an unmarked number at the bottom of my contact list and dialed it.

"I've thought through what you said last time. I'll bring the core technology with me," I said.

The moment I hung up, a tall figure pulled me into his arms.

Frederick brushed his lips against my cheek. I tried to pull away, but his grip only tightened.

"Ellie, I know you're upset, but I hope you can understand me."

His voice came from above my head. "Beatrice's younger brother had always wanted me to marry her. I had no choice but to go along with it. You know the one I truly love has always been you."

Seeing that I didn't respond, Frederick continued, "I'll take you to the beach tomorrow and make it up to you properly."

It didn't really matter whether we went to the beach or not. I had three days before my flight, and I wanted to use this time to say a proper goodbye to the past.

…

The next morning, Frederick came to pick me up. As I opened the passenger door, Beatrice smiled at me from inside. "Ellie, Mr. Scott saved the passenger seat for me because he was worried that I might get carsick. You don't mind, do you?"

I replied, "Of course not. It's only right for you to take the passenger seat since your body is weak."

As soon as I finished speaking, I sensibly opened the back door.

On the way, Frederick made sure to explain himself to me. "Ellie, Beatrice has never been to the beach since she was a child. I thought this would be the perfect chance to show her."

I simply nodded without a word.

Through the rearview mirror, I saw Frederick's brow furrow, his fingers whitening slightly as he gripped the steering wheel.

"Aren't you angry?" Frederick asked with confusion in his voice.

"I know you're doing all this for her brother. Why would I be angry about that?" I replied.

Even though a trace of unease lingered in Frederick's heart, he didn't ask any more questions and kept driving.

When we arrived at the beach, Beatrice claimed that her heels made it difficult to walk, so she clung to Frederick at every step. The two of them chatted and laughed, completely leaving me out of the moment.

Frederick offered to take pictures of me using my own phone. Just as he pressed the shutter button, a notification about my plane ticket suddenly popped up on the screen. The moment he saw it, his expression darkened.

He pointed at the notification on my phone and demanded, "Ellie, what's this plane ticket about? Are you leaving the country?"

"It's just a short trip to clear my head. It's nothing serious," I said.

Frederick looked doubtful, and just as he was about to press further, Beatrice's sharp scream cut him off.

"Fred, a crab caught my hand. It hurts so badly!"

After a brief hesitation, Frederick returned my phone and went over to check on Beatrice's hand.