The New Year was just around the corner. While I was doing a thorough cleaning, I stumbled upon something beneath the couch. It was a damp, used condom, and it still had a faint lipstick stain on the edge. One thing I was sure of was that I didn't use this brand, but the lipstick color? It matched perfectly with my girlfriend Lindsey Stirling's.

Having Doubts About My Girlfriend

In the days leading up to the New Year, our house was constantly filled with waves of visiting relatives and friends. After seeing off the last of our guests, my girlfriend Lindsey Stirling and I collapsed onto the soft, cozy couch in our living room.

"Babe, you've worked so hard these past few days." Lindsey lifted her soft feet and placed them on my lap, and I massaged them for her.

"I'm completely worn out. So, how do you plan to make it up to me?" She lay back on the couch with her mobile phone. Her fingers moved swiftly across her phone screen, the clattering of her typing filling the room as she messaged someone whom I had no idea about.

"How about a nice dinner tonight? Get yourself ready and put on some makeup. I'll take some nice pictures of you for your social media."

Several notifications popped up on her phone, one after another. I asked who it was, but she just smiled and kept typing away.

I got up and inched closer to her to take a glance at the screen. The display showed a profile picture of a man from the waist up, labeled as "Kenny." Just as I was about to take a closer look, she noticed and quickly locked the screen before shoving her phone beneath her.

"What are you doing? Why are you being so paranoid?" she snapped.

"I was just talking to you, but you ignored me," I said.

She paused for a moment, then responded with a defensive edge. "So what? You don't have anything better to do than snoop around?"

I took a deep breath, suppressed my anger, and forced myself to smile and not argue with her. "Alright, babe, go put on your makeup. I'll make sure to take some great photos of you tonight."

Her expression softened slightly. "That's more like it. This place is such a mess right now. Clean it up a bit while I get ready."

With a mock salute, I grabbed the broom from the balcony. After tidying up the living room, I noticed she was still in the bedroom, putting on her makeup.

I didn't know what got into me, but I decided to clean under the couch and coffee table as well. When I reached beneath the couch, I pulled out a condom wrapper branded "Dr. Dixie." It was already opened, and the blue packaging sent a jolt through me.

In the two years I had been with Lindsey, I had never bought that brand. I had always been a loyal user of "Mr. Kingo" instead. So, where did this come from? Without even realizing it, my mind instantly flashed to that profile picture of Kenny on Lindsey's phone.

Just as I stood there, lost in my thoughts, Lindsey called out coquettishly from the bedroom, "Honey, I can't go out with you tonight. One of my girlfriends just asked me to go shopping. I'll make it up to you tomorrow, okay?"

"Which friend? Do I know her?"

"It's Kenny Hudson, you know, the one I mentioned before. You've met him."

My hand clenched into a fist. 'Oh, so it's that Kenny again,' I thought.

I sat down on the floor, trying to think about my next move. My gaze wandered to the couch, and a bitter thought crossed my mind. 'If my suspicions are right, then this 20,000-dollar couch that I bought has been completely disrespected.'

I had been renting this place for two years now. The couch that came with it was so uncomfortable that, a while back, I decided to splurge and buy one I had been eyeing for a long time. I planned to move it to my own place when I finally bought a home next year.

While I was lost in thought, Lindsey finally emerged from the bedroom. It was so chilly in February, yet she wore black stockings and knee-high boots, coupled with the mink coat I had given her as the New Year gift. She rarely wore makeup when we went out, but today, she had on a full Western-style look, one I didn't see her wear often.

"Where are you going? Let me drive you there."

"No need, honey. I've already booked a ride. You've been so tired these days, so just stay home and relax."

"Alright, take care."

"Love you, babe. I'm off." She sprayed on some perfume at the entrance, and I felt another wave of unease.

However, I felt that I was a little narrow-minded to have doubts about her just because I saw her chatting with that fella. As such, I decided to observe a while more and see what was really going on.

Playing Paparazzi

After Lindsey left the apartment, I removed the couch covers in the living room and tossed them into the washing machine. Then, I headed into the bedroom to see if I could uncover any sort of clue. I searched for a long time, and before I knew it, the sky outside had turned dark. However, I didn't find anything. Maybe I was just overthinking things.

Just then, my stomach growled. I decided to call Lindsey, thinking we could grab a meal together.

"Hey, babe, where are you?"

"What is it now? It hasn't been that long since I left, and you're already calling? I told you I'm out shopping with Kenny." Her tone was laced with irritation, and I could practically picture her frowning on the other end of the line.

"Oh, nothing. I was just wondering which mall you guys are at."

"We're at Wonder Plaza near our place. Why are you asking so many questions?"

"I'm hungry and thought maybe I could meet you for dinner. If your friend doesn't mind, he can join us. It'll be my treat." I figured it was a good excuse to meet Kenny and see who he really was. To my surprise, Lindsey rejected me right away.

"Ugh, you really don't get it. No woman wants her boyfriend tagging along while she shops. That's just awkward. We're planning to get a foot massage later, so I'll be back late. Don't wait up. You've been working hard lately. Get some rest."

I switched my phone to speaker and turned up the volume. I paid close attention to the background noise on her end, hoping to catch something unusual.

"Alright then, I'll eat by myself. So, you're still at the mall, right?"

"Yeah, yeah. Oh, Kenny, come over here and check if this dress looks good on me. I think it's really cute."

'Hmph. It's so quiet on her end that I can hear a pin drop. If she's really in a mall, there would be background music or the chatter of people. Something fishy is going on,' I thought bitterly.

"Okay, I won't bother you anymore. Just come home soon." Lindsey didn't even bother replying before she hung up abruptly.

I listened to the monotonous beeping from the speaker, and my heart felt empty. The apartment lease we had just renewed for another year, the new furniture we had bought, and the future we were building together, all of it felt like it was hitting rock bottom.

It was during my senior year of college that I crossed paths with Lindsey. We were both art majors. I majored in photography while she majored in Latin dances. Now, two years after graduation, our jobs had become fairly stable. I was a freelance photographer, and thanks to my skills and creativity, I gained quite a bit of attention in this field, which brought in a good income. Lindsey, on the other hand, worked as a dance instructor at a dance school.

Compared to my earnings and prospects, hers were much more limited.

I stubbed out the cigarette that was nearly burned down to the filter and told myself to stop jumping to conclusions. Seeing was believing, and even if what I thought about Lindsey was true, I needed undeniable evidence before I made any assumptions.

I grabbed my camera and a 200mm lens from my work desk and put on a baseball cap.

Who would've thought my first experience playing paparazzi would be to take some photos of my girlfriend, who was possibly cheating? What a ridiculous situation.

Wonder Plaza was just a short drive from our place. Unexpectedly, the underground parking lot was practically empty.

I parked in a spot that gave me a good view of the mall entrance. Then, I turned off the headlights and was about to get out with my camera when I heard a playful and flirtatious voice.

"Oh, Kenny, you're so bad!"

"Haha, but you like me this way, don't you?"

"Gosh, do you have to be so blunt? You're terrible!"

The words, clear as day, sent my mind into overdrive. A man and a woman emerged from the mall's underground exit, arms wrapped around each other. The woman was wearing a mink coat, black stockings, and long boots. It was Lindsey, alright.

I took several deep breaths to steady my racing heart. Once I felt calm enough, I lifted my telephoto lens and focused it on them. I had to see who this "Kenny" really was.

When I finally locked onto his face through the viewfinder, my brain nearly short-circuited again. I was very familiar with this man. It was Kenny Hudson, the husband of Paige Hudson, who was the owner of Lindsey's dance school.

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I never would've believed that the "Kenny" saved in Lindsey's phone was him.

Some recent memories suddenly emerged in my mind. Lindsey had mentioned that her boss was interested in buying a unit in our neighborhood, so she invited her over to our house to chat and check out some available apartments.

That day, a few of us were hanging out in the living room, playing the Switch. Lindsey and Kenny got hooked on playing Mario Kart together, so I ended up taking Paige to check out some houses that were up for sale in our neighborhood.

'But now, thinking back, could it be that while we were out looking at properties, those two were doing something inappropriate right in my living room?'

I quickly pushed the thought away and didn't dare to think about it further.

I held up my camera and snapped shot after shot. "You two, just wait. I've got the evidence now." I was determined to make them pay for this.

As I zoomed in to capture the details, I noticed several tears in Lindsey's black stockings. The shape and intensity of the rips clearly indicated they had been torn by force.

The sight tore at me, but I clenched my teeth and began to formulate my plan for revenge.

I watched as the two of them, confident that the empty parking lot gave them privacy, kissed passionately. However, they were completely unaware that I was quietly parked less than fifty yards away. From my spot, I calmly switched my camera to video mode and started recording everything.

I picked up my phone and dialed Lindsey's number again. She pulled out her phone, glanced at the screen, and then shut it off with a frown.

"Is it your boyfriend again?"

"He's so annoying. Every day, it's the same. Being with him is just so boring."

Kenny laughed while running his hand along her thigh. "Remember what we did on the couch last time? That was so thrilling. We almost got caught."

Lindsey giggled. "You're so wicked, Kenny. My heart was pounding because he almost caught us."

"Then let's plan something exciting again in a few days. This time, let's take things up a notch," he suggested.

"Hehe, I'm totally in. But what about your wife?"

Sitting in my car, every word felt like a knife. It took everything in me not to rush out and confront them right then and there. But I wanted to collect more proof, so I called Lindsey again.

"What do you want? Why are you calling me nonstop?"

"No reason. I'm already at the Wonder Plaza parking lot. Come on out. We're heading to your parents' place for dinner."

"What? Who told you to make a decision without consulting me?"

"Just hurry up. I'll be there in two minutes. We need to talk about something important."

Lindsey hung up right in front of my eyes.

I watched as the two embraced each other tightly and kissed goodbye reluctantly. My gaze shifted to the red dot blinking on my camera's LCD screen that was still recording every moment. I smirked.