It was the day of our marriage. We were supposed to meet up at the City Hall, but my fiancee stood me up. I waited for her the whole day, and the only answer I got was a picture from her assistant.

My girlfriend sat astride on his lap, and her arms were wrapped around his neck while they were locked in a deep kiss.

"Sorry, Mr. Terraton. Sophie insisted on comforting me. You don't mind, do you?"

I demanded answers from my girlfriend, but that only made her impatient. "He donated his blood to me. Yeah, I was with him, but so what? Man up, will you?"

That killed any love I had for her, and I called my soon-to-be ex-girlfriend's sister. "Hey, Sylvie. Yeah, about your proposal. So will you marry me?"

Moving Out

Sylvie Riverson fell into silence. A pregnant pause later, she asked, "Are you being serious?"

"I am," I answered, determination overflowing from my voice. "What about you? Does your proposal still stand?"

"I'm abroad, but give me a month. No, two weeks. I'll come back in two weeks, and then we'll get married."

"I'll be waiting."

I hung up and looked at the photo Fabian Focker, Sophie's assistant, sent me, then I turned my phone off. Five years. We spent five years as a couple, and Sophie decided to chase novelty instead.

…

It was midnight when Sophie Riverson came back. I didn't welcome her with open arms. Instead, I was quietly packing up. Even though we only had two weeks left, I refused to spend even a single moment with her.

"Get me some water and fetch me my pajamas."

Her voice was dripping with imperiousness. She wouldn't even look at me. Typical. She only saw me as her servant. Her making me take her pajamas was her form of reward. That meant she would share the bedroom with me tonight.

The old me would be leaping with joy, but the new me didn't feel a thing. I kept on packing my stuff.

Not too long after, Sophie came out of the bathroom and realized I hadn't done as I was told. A frown creased her forehead, and she grumbled, "Don't just stand there! Fine, I'll wear the pajamas you love."

Quietly, I answered, "I'm going home for a bit." I zipped my suitcase up. Naturally, I didn't tell her I was going to marry her sister.

Sophie noticed my suitcase, and it reminded her of something. Her frown deepened, and she took a deep breath. "Can you stop this tantrum?" She was calm, as if this meant nothing to her.

"Fabian donated his blood to me. He's my savior, to an extent. His birthday doesn't come every day. So what if I celebrated with him? It's nothing. You're throwing a tantrum just because I missed out on getting that marriage license? Seriously?"

Just because? Just. Because? I laughed at myself. I see. So, getting our marriage official meant nothing to her. Another man's birthday was more important than that.

Perhaps she grew too audacious because I'd relented far too many times in this relationship. Maybe she subconsciously thought I would treat her as the center of my life forever.

It was… an exhausting life. I was exhausted. I did not need a relationship where I was nothing but a doormat to be stepped on and spat on.

She took my silence as an agreement and came up to me. Gently, she held my hand. "Come on, stop messing around. You don't have to leave home over something so unimportant. We can get that stupid license anytime. It's just a piece of paper. Why do you care so much about it?"

And that made my fury flare higher than before. She thought this would work as a de-escalation?

"A piece of paper? A. Piece. Of. Paper?" No, I couldn't hold it in anymore. "Our marriage license is worth less than Focker's birthday to you?"

"Yeah, it is!" Sophie answered without missing a beat, and she shot me a glare.

I wanted to say something, but the words died on my tongue. I gazed at her in disbelief. How could she even have the audacity to say that with such confidence?

Oh, I noticed that look. She was taking everything for granted. Fine, that was a good enough answer for me. I felt a weight getting dropped off my shoulders. And my heart.

"Fine, then I guess we'll not be taking that stupid piece of paper anytime soon." I turned to the guest room and slammed the door shut. That slam shattered my heart into a million pieces.

"Don't say that, Christopher! I know you're just being mad! You know I'd marry you!" Sophie shouted outside the door, still as impatient as ever. "You're my boyfriend. We've gone steady for years. Do you trust me that little? At least stand in my shoes for a moment! Have you ever thought about how I feel?"

I did not answer. She kicked the door angrily and stormed off.

I didn't expect more from her, anyway. Every time we fought, I was always the one who apologized, even if she was blatantly and utterly in the wrong. In the end, I was always the one who had to run de-escalation.

It was a miracle that she would apologize to me. There was no way she would hope so adamantly for forgiveness, especially not from me.

Burn Them All

As I lay on my bed, I kept going through the memories of my relationship. When I first dated Sophie, she was… clingy. She even said the air tasted sweet whenever I was around.

Whenever I called her, she would drop everything she was doing just to come to me. And she was a jealous woman. If she noticed any girl lingering around me, she'd throw a tantrum. Her jealousy went so far, she insisted on personally vetting my guy friends.

She took care of everything in my life. It was a smothering love for most people, but I loved it.

Still, she was no longer the old her. She'd changed. I was no longer the same man who only cared for her.

And then my phone buzzed. I checked who it was—Fabian Focker, Sophie's assistant.

"Best birthday ever, Sophie. Thank goodness you're around. You made me a happy man. Oh, and I have a surprise for you on my Instagram. Check it out."

I was in a daze, but before I could say anything, the message was deleted. "Sorry, Mr. Terraton. I didn't mean to send that to you."

I snickered and shook my head, then I tossed the phone aside. Didn't mean to send it to me? As if.

I first met Fabian when he was just a fresh graduate. He knew nothing about his job, and everyone ostracized him. He eventually made a big blunder that risked his job.

His boss wanted to fire him, so he came to me, crying his heart out. Then he told me about his life. It was a sob story. I decided to give him a chance and teach him how to do his job.

Thanks to that, he got Sophie's attention. When she asked for him to be her assistant, I was happy for the guy.

I did not think someone who looked like an honest man could be so conniving. The one I taught myself ended up as the one who cut through my relationship the most.

…

The next day, I bought a ticket for a trip back home, then I went to the company and handed in my resignation letter.

Sophie was surprised to see that letter. "Are you for real?"

"Obviously." I smiled.

She fell silent. A long while later, she replied, "Stay. The company needs you."

"You don't get to call all the shots here." I turned around.

Before I could leave, Sophie came after me and held my arm. "Two days!"

I looked at her.

For once, a hint of panic flickered on her face as she continued, "Two days. After I'm done with my work, we'll get that marriage license. Just trust me one more time, alright?"

I looked at her, calm and quiet.

"Just give me another chance." Sophie seemed worried. It almost felt like she was waiting for my answer.

I was seized by an urge to tell her that I was going to get married to a woman who was not her. That woman was her sister, the very one she grew up fighting against. I wondered how she would feel.

In the end, I said nothing and left the place. I got back home and scanned the study. The whole house, really. There were photos everywhere, and they reminded me of the past.

Was I moved? No. Frustrated and restless? Absolutely. I tore off all the photos and threw them into an open brazier.

Halfway through the burning, Sophie came back. She was supposed to be at work.

Late-night Call

"What are you doing?" she screamed. Sophie lunged at the brazier, worry etched on her face. She tried to salvage the photos, but they were all burned to a crisp, and the flames roared higher.

She couldn't even get close. "Why did you do that?" Sophie glared at me, and her eyes were red with rage. I could hear the tremble in her voice. Perhaps it was not an act. Perhaps she really did feel that way. Perhaps.

Even so, the only urge I had was to laugh. She cherished the pictures so much, yet she couldn't care less about my feelings. Ironic.

Impassively, I grabbed the photos she was holding and tossed them into the flames. "Keeping the photos of the one you fell out of love with is a bit weird, don't you think?"

Sophie froze. "You're still mad about what happened that day?"

Before I could say anything, she screamed, "What do you want? I've explained myself, and I promised we'll get that license in a couple of days! What more do you want from me?"

Compared to her rage, I was calm. I smirked. "Then, these photos have no reason to stay. We can go on a trip after we get married. We can get a lot of wedding photos by then."

My sudden change came out of nowhere. It stunned Sophie for a moment, and she repeated what I said. "Trip…"

Then, something struck her, and she nodded. "Fine. Fabian wanted to go on a trip anyway. We can do it together."

My heart was already dead enough. What she just said added another wound to it. All she could think of was Fabian, no matter what the conversation. Even though it was supposed to be a trip for the two of us, she wanted him to tag along.

'Typical Sophie,' I thought, and I cursed my stupidity. I couldn't believe I expected more from her when I knew her true colors.

It was late at night, and Sylvie called me. "I'm going to bid for our wedding rings, and when I get them, I want you to wear them around my finger."

She sounded cheeky and a little less like her usually sophisticated self. I said yes immediately.

Then, silence. Moments later, Sylvie grumbled, "Do you have anything you want to tell me?"

I mused over the matter and heaved a sigh. "I do, but it can wait until you're back."

"Fine by me." Another pause later, Sylvie asked, "You do know what marriage means, don't you?"

Loyalty. I knew what she was worried about. After all, her sister used to be my whole world, and Sylvie was worried I might betray her. "I do."

I added, "But I chose to marry you. I will not pay any attention to any other woman."

"Good. I can't wait for the day we meet."

That cheered Sylvie up, and she hung up.

After coming out of the shower, I noticed an email in my inbox. It was an invitation to a music conference.

For once, I got excited. Music was my dream, but I gave it up to help Sophie's career and joined her team instead. Now that I had another chance, I refused to let it slip away.