Lumi’s POV

The road stretched endlessly ahead of me, but I barely saw it. All I could see was Wren in my dress.

The image kept replaying in my head like something I couldn’t shut off. The way her fingers moved over the fabric. The way she looked at herself. That look.

I tightened my grip on the steering wheel.

“Stop it,” I muttered under my breath. “You’re reading too much into it.”

But even as I said it, I didn’t believe it. My phone sat beside me, silent. Caius hadn’t called back.

I exhaled slowly and reached for it, dialing Clover. She picked up on the second ring.

“Bride-to-be!” she sang immediately. “On your way yet?”

A small smile tugged at my lips despite everything.

“I need your help.”

There was a pause.

“With what?” Clover asked, her tone shifting slightly, more alert now.

“The dress.”

“The white one?”

“Yeah.”

She let out a small, satisfied hum. “I knew it was the one.”

I huffed lightly. “Yeah.”

“So,” she said. “What’s the ish?”

My eyes are fixed on the road. “Can you come over? I want to wear it tonight.”

“Of course I can,” she said immediately. “You should’ve said that earlier.”

A quiet breath left me. “Thank you.”

“Always,” she replied, softer now. “Wait… are you okay?”

My fingers tightened slightly.

“Yeah,” I said quickly. “I just…changed my mind.”

Clover didn’t respond immediately.

“You sure that’s all?” she asked carefully.

I swallowed. For a second, the image flashed again. My chest tightened.

“I’m sure.”

Another pause, then Clover exhaled lightly. “Alright. I’ll head over now.”

“Okay. I’m on my way.”

The call ended, silence filled the car again. But this time, It didn’t feel empty. I drove.

..

The closer I got to the house, the heavier everything felt. My chest, my thoughts. Even my breathing felt… forced. Like I had to remind myself to do it. I tried to focus on the road and push everything else aside. But my mind wouldn’t stop.

Wren’s voice echoed faintly. ‘You could’ve at least lost some weight’ Then, the way the dress fit her.

My jaw tightened.

“That doesn’t mean anything,” I whispered.

It didn’t. But then, another memory surfaced.

Wren asking too many questions about the engagement, about Caius. About details she didn’t need to know. I had brushed it off, because t was Wren, she was family.

My fingers curled slightly against the wheel. I slowed at a traffic light. The car came to a stop.

I exhaled slowly, resting my head briefly against the seat.

“Just go home,” I muttered. “Check your things. Get ready. That’s it.”

Nothing more. The light stayed red, I glanced to the side. A car pulled up next to mine. I barely paid attention at first, then something pulled my gaze back.

The driver, he sat still, one hand resting lazily on the wheel. Tattoos, they stretched along his arm, disappearing under the sleeve of his shirt.

My eyes lingered for a second longer than necessary. When he turned his head, the light had turned green. I drove off first. 

…

By the time I pulled into the driveway, my chest felt tight again. The house stood exactly the same, quiet. I turned off the engine but didn’t move immediately.

My hands rested on the wheel. My thoughts are racing faster now.

“Just go inside.”

I opened the door and stepped out. The air felt colder. I walked toward the house, each step heavier than the last.

The door unlocked easily, I  pushed it open. Silence greeted me again.

“Wren?” I called.

No answer. My heart picked up slightly.

“She’s probably upstairs,” I muttered.

I stepped inside, moving slowly now. I walked past the living room. I climbed the stairs, two at a time. By the time I reached the top, my pulse had picked up.

The hallway stretched in front of me, still. Wren’s door was slightly open. My gaze lingered on it, then moved to my room. I walked toward it slowly.

I pushed it open, the room was dark, empty, no sign of Caius.

My brows pulled together. “That’s weird…”

I stepped inside, and turned slowly. That’s when a sound, faint, from down the hall. My heart skipped.

I stepped out of the room. A muffled movement from Wren’s room. My pulse quickened. I walked toward the door, each step slower now, more careful.

My fingers brushed against it. Then, I pushed it open.

Lumi’s POV

The door opened. And for a second, nothing made sense. My brain refused to catch up with my eyes. It was like I had stepped into the wrong room, the wrong house, the wrong life.

Because what I was seeing couldn’t be mine. Wren on the bed, her body half-covered by the sheets, but not enough to hide her nakedness. .

What broke me was the lingerie, my lingerie. The one I bought, the I folded carefully, and hid away for tonight. For Caius. 

My stomach dropped so hard it felt like something inside me tore loose.

“No…”

The word didn’t even sound like mine, It came out thin, weak, unreal. And then, Caius beside her, not scrambling or shocked even. Just there, like this wasn’t wrong.

The air left my lungs, completely. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t even feel my own body. All I could see was her, on top of Caius. My chest tightened painfully.

My fingers went numb around my bag, my knees buckled slightly. I reached for the doorframe without thinking, my hand gripping it tightly just to stay upright.

“Lumi…” Wren’s voice, soft and careful. Like she was afraid of breaking something, like she hadn’t already shattered everything.

My eyes moved to her slowly, mechanically. Like I was forcing myself to look. And God…she looked comfortable. Not even ashamed, like she had been there before.

My stomach twisted violently. “How long?”

The question slipped out before I could stop it. Wren froze, just for a second.

My heart dropped.

“No…” I shook my head slowly. “No… no…”

Because that meant, this wasn’t a mistake. This wasn’t sudden, they had history. My vision blurred, I blinked hard.

I tried to steady myself, but everything felt like it was slipping. My gaze shifted to Caius, waiting, begging for something. Anything.

Even a lie would have been something, but he just looked at me like I had walked in on something inconvenient. Not devastating.

“…Caius?”

His name felt foreign. Like it didn’t belong to me anymore. He didn’t answer immediately, he just watched me. And somehow, that hurt more than anything else. Because it meant, he didn’t even feel the need to explain.

Finally, he spoke.

“Why didn’t you call me when I told you to?”

My breath caught. I blinked, once, twice. Trying to understand what he just said.

“That’s… that’s what you’re asking me?”

My voice shook now, from disbelief. From something breaking inside me piece by piece.

He shrugged slightly. “What else is there?”

The world tilted, not physically. But everything inside me cracked and fell apart.

Clover’s voice came from behind me, sharp and disbelieving.

“What the hell is this?”

I hadn’t even heard her walk in, but now I felt her presence beside me. Real and solid. The only thing in that moment that felt real.

“Lumi…” she said, softer now.

But I couldn’t respond, because my chest felt too tight.

“How long, Caius?” I asked again, this time louder.

He didn’t blink. “Does it matter?”

I laughed. A short, empty sound that didn’t feel like mine.

“Does it—” My voice broke.

I swallowed hard, tried again. “Does it matter?”

I stepped forward, my legs unsteady. But I forced them to move.

“Months?” I asked. “Years?”

Silence.

“That whole time?” I continued. “While you were with me? While you were planning this—”

My voice cracked again.

“While I trusted you?”

He watched me, unmoved. 

“You can’t undo what’s done,” he said flatly.

Something inside me went still, completely. I straightened slightly. My breathing slowed, not because I was okay, but because I was done.

“I know,” I said softly.

My fingers moved to my hand to the ring. I hadn’t even realized I was still wearing it, until now. I pulled it off slowly. Caius’s eyes flickered slightly, just for a second.

I stepped closer, then tossed the ring toward him. It hit the bed. Soft and meaningless. Just like everything else.

“I’m done,” I said.

My voice didn’t shake this time. “I’m done being the woman you take for granted.”

Silence filled the room, heavy and final. 

“The engagement is over.”

Wren inhaled sharply. “Lumi—”

I looked at her, then at the lingerie and the way it fit her. On the way she sat there, in something that was never meant for her.

“You can keep it,” I said coldly. “Clearly it suits you.”

Her face changed, but I didn’t care. I took one last look at both of them, and burned the image into my mind. So I will never forget.

“So yeah,” I said quietly. “Screw you both.”

Then I turned. And this time, I didn’t hesitate. I walked out.

Lumi’s POV

I don’t remember getting into the car. 

One second I was walking out of that house, the next, I’m seated, the door slammed shut, tears rolling down my cheeks, my chest rising too fast.

“Lumi.”

Clover’s voice feels far, like it has to travel through something heavy to reach me. I blink, my hands were shaking. I pressed them against my thighs, hard, like that might stop it. It doesn’t.

“Hey… look at me.”

I don’t want to. Because if I do, this becomes real. But I look anyway. She’s right there.

“I’m here,” she says.

And that’s what breaks me. A laugh slips out of me, sharp and wrong. 

“Did you see that?”

My voice doesn’t sound like mine. Clover doesn’t answer, she  just watches me, her face etched with worry.

“I bought that,” I say, my lips trembling. “That lingerie was mine!”

My vision blurs. I blink, but it doesn’t help.

“She wore it,” I whisper. “Like it belonged to her.”

My chest tightens. “And he just stood there.”

That part comes out quieter, worse than I felt inside.  “Like I was the one interrupting them.”

Heavy silence fills the car, pressing in. Then my phone starts ringing. I froze. Caius. My stomach twists so hard it almost hurts.

“Don’t answer,” Clover says immediately.

I don’t, but I don’t move either. It keeps ringing, loud, and insistent. 

A part of me, a stupid part, still wants to hear him, still wants him to say something that makes this make sense. Nothing will, but still. 

The phone stops, then buzzes. A message, then another. Clover reaches over and flips it face down.

“You don’t owe him anything.”

I swallow hard. “I wasted six years,” I say.

The words come out small, not angry, just tired. 

“You didn’t waste anything,” Clover says.

I shake my head slowly. “I did.”

My voice cracks this time. “I gave him everything.”

My fingers curl into my palms. “My time… my loyalty…”

A breath catches. “…my body.”

Silence.

“And he gave me—”

I stop, because I already know the answer. I lean back, and close my eyes. For a moment, I let it hit. All of it. The betrayal, the humiliation. The fact that I didn’t see it coming.

My chest tightens again.

“I don’t want to be that girl anymore,” I whisper, then a pause. “…even if a part of me still is.”

Clover doesn’t interrupt, she listens. 

“I’m not begging him,” I say after a second. More controlled.

“I’m not asking why. I’m not chasing him for answers.”

My eyes open. “I can’t do that to myself.”

Clover studies me carefully. “How could he do that?” she mutters. “With Wren? Your own cousin?”

I don’t answer, because I don’t have one.

“I’ll be fine,” I say instead. Even though I don’t feel fine. “I just… need to think.”

Before she can respond, my phone rings again. I glance down and turn the phone. Eleanor. 

A humorless breath leaves me.

“His mom?” Clover asks.

I nod. “She never liked me,” I say quietly. “So this should be fun.”

The phone keeps ringing, persistent. I answer.

“Hello?”

“Lumi, who exactly do you think you are?!”

I pull the phone slightly away from my ear, wincing.

“I just spoke to Caius,” she continued, sharp and irritated. “And I must say, I’m not surprised. I always knew this would end like this.”

Of course, you did.

“I warned him,” she goes on. “You were never suitable for this family. An orphan? No background, no standing—”

My grip tightens, but I stay quiet.

“You should be grateful,” she adds, voice turning soft in that fake way I’ve always hated. “Now you can go back to whatever small life you came from.”

My jaw tightens.

“I mean really,” she continues, “what were you bringing to him? No parents, no real career, no proper upbringing—”

That’s it. Something in me snaps.

“You know what’s funny?” My voice cuts through hers. Calm as ever. 

She stops.

“You spent six years telling me I wasn’t good enough,” I say slowly.

A pause.

“Talking about background. Class. Upbringing.”

My fingers tighten around the phone.

“But you raised a son who couldn’t even be loyal.”

Silence, then in a quieter, colder tone. 

“And if we’re talking about upbringing…”

A small breath leaves me.

“It’s obvious you failed to raise him  properly.”

The silence on the other end turns sharp. Her voice comes back colder. 

“Watch your tone—“

“No,” I cut in. “You don’t get to speak to me like that anymore.”

My chest rises, but my voice doesn’t shake.

“You won.” The words come softer now, but they land heavier.

“You finally got what you wanted.” A pause. “I’m out of your son’s life.”

And before she could say anything else, I hung up. Just like that, the car goes quiet. Clover looks at me.

“You did the right thing,” she says, her tone soft and certain. 

“Even if it doesn’t feel like it yet.”

I nod, but I don’t say anything. Because it doesn’t feel right. I start the engine, and we pull away. The house gets smaller behind us. I don’t mean to look, but I do.

The rearview mirror catches Caius running out of the house. Looking around, like his favourite toy just slipped through his fingers. My grip tightens on the wheel. He didn’t run after me earlier. He’s running now.

I look away, and keep driving.

The road stretches ahead of us, long and open. For once, I don’t know where I’m going, what I’m going to do next and strangely…that doesn’t scare me.

A few minutes pass, then Clover suddenly stills beside me. I glance at her briefly.

“I’m okay..”

My phone buzzes, sharp and loud. Both of us look down. Caius. My chest tightens instantly.

Clover reaches for it. “Don’t—”

But I’m already picking it up. “I need to see what he wants,” I say quietly.

She watches me carefully, and doesn’t stop me this time. I unlock the screen. A message.

Caius:

You’re overreacting.

My jaw tightens. Another one comes in.

Caius:

It’s not what you think.

I let out a short, humorless breath.

“Of course it isn’t,” I mutter.

Another message:

Wren isn’t replacing you. She’s just there. 

My grip tightens around the phone.Clover lets out a quiet, disbelieving laugh beside me.

“He did not just say that.”

I don’t respond. Because another message drops.

Caius:

If you stop being emotional, we can talk about this properly.

My stomach turns. The audacity this man has…

Then, the next one:

I’m not ending things with you. But I’m not letting her go either. 

That one made my chest go cold. Silence fills the car.

Clover stares at me. “Lumi…”

I don’t look at her. My eyes stay on the screen. Another message comes in:

Don’t make this messy. But If you want to call off the engagement like this, return the car. Or I’ll take you to court for everything I’ve given you.

My laugh is sharp. Something inside me settles. I lift my head slowly.

Clover watches me closely now. “What did he say?”

I lock my phone.

“He said,” I reply, my voice steady in a way I don’t feel, “that I should return the car… or he’ll take me to court.”

Clover scoffs. “Is he insane?”

I didn't answer immediately. I glance at her briefly, then back on the road.

“No,” I say quietly. “He’s not taking me to court.”

My grip tightens on the steering wheel. “I’m taking him.”

Silence settled, then Clover blinked.

“What?”

I don’t look at her, because I’m already thinking ahead.

“He thinks I’ll cry and come back,” I continue. “He thinks I’ll accept whatever version of this he offers.”

A small, cold smile forms. “He’s wrong. Dead wrong.”

Another pause, then I press my foot down slightly on the accelerator.

“And if he wants to take me to court…” My voice drops. “I’ll see him there.”