Allie's POV

“It’s still you—”

I leaned in a little closer, lowering my voice. “You actually don’t know how to write my name, do you? So, who exactly was the guy you slept with? Whose ID did you see that night?”

Kiera snapped instantly. “Of course, I know! I just didn’t bring a pen because I rushed out!”

“That’s fine. I have one,” I said. “And I’ve got my ID too. Don’t worry, I’m not afraid of the truth.”

“You— you— you—!” she sputtered, but in the end, she had no choice but to write down my name.

She wrote painfully slowly, like every stroke required deep thought. When she finally finished the last letter, I picked up the paper and took a look. Then I couldn’t help but laugh.

She had written "Ali" while my name was "Allie."

Just two letters different, but enough to tell male and female apart.

She didn’t know I was a woman, so of course she guessed wrong.

I immediately took out my ID and covered everything except the name. “Take a good look. This is my actual name. Miss Hastings, it’s okay to look for someone, but when you rush in blinded by emotion, you only end up hurting yourself.”

The crowd began whispering. People who had yelled at me minutes ago were now wondering if Kiera had accused the wrong person.

Sensing the shift, Kiera burst into loud, dramatic sobs. “You did it on purpose! You got me drunk that night and drugged my drink! Of course, I couldn’t remember clearly! Maybe I forgot exactly how your name was written, but that Porsche you drove? I could never forget that car! You tricked me with it!”

Ah. So, she was after the car.

As for my name, she must’ve heard Gwendolyn call me earlier and made sure to remember it.

I nodded and leaned closer. “Then tell me, how exactly did I trick you? If you hate me so much, surely you remember that part clearly?”

Her face went pale. “That was the most painful night of my life. Do you really want to force me to say it out loud? I’m already miserable enough. Do you have to push me until I break?”

Right after saying that, she lowered her head and pinched her child hard where no one could see. As a result, the kid woke up screaming.

The crowd immediately forgot about yelling at me and scrambled to help her calm the baby down.

But I turned, ready to walk away with Gwendolyn. Yet, suddenly, someone grabbed my wrist hard.

Before I could react, my whole body was yanked backward. My feet left the ground, and I crashed onto the pavement half a meter away.

“Your kid is crying, and you wanna run? Be a man for once!”

“Don’t worry, miss. I’ve caught him for you! He’s taking that kid whether he likes it or not, and if he doesn’t, I’ll beat him until he does!”

Gwendolyn was so terrified she burst into tears. She tried to rush over to help me, but the crowd blocked her.

I slowly pushed myself up, staring straight at Kiera. “What do you want?”

She looked pitiful again, voice trembling. “I just don’t want to raise the child alone. I really… don’t have the ability…”

I lifted a hand, cutting her off, already irritated. “Get to the point. How much? Say a number.”

“I told you, I’m not that kind of person…” She still put on an act.

I let out a cold laugh and slipped my bank card back into my wallet. “Alright then. Since you came here just to dump a kid on me, I’ll accept him. You can go now. No need to thank me.”

Her smile froze. Her eyes looked wounded, like she couldn’t believe I’d said that.

“How could you think that of me? That’s not what I meant. I don’t want your money, but I borrowed from every relative I have just to raise him, so—”

I inhaled slowly and interrupted her. “You want me to pay back your debts?”

Allie's POV

“Can you?”

The innocent-yet-overly-dramatic look on her face almost made me gag.

“You wrote my name wrong. You clearly don’t know anything about my car except the brand. And you honestly think a few words from you are enough for me to pay off your debts? Do I look stupid to you? Whoever slept with you, go find him. If you keep framing me, don’t blame me for taking legal action,” I said, then pushed myself to my feet, wobbling a little, ready to leave.

Kiera panicked. She bounced her crying child in her arms and shouted, “Fine, go! But if you walk away now, don’t you ever dream of seeing this child again! I’ll jump right now with my son, and we’ll die right in front of you. I won’t interrupt you and your new girlfriend again!”

Before anyone could react, she ran straight through the crowd with the child in her arms.

Two minutes later, warning lights lit up at the highest point of the roller coaster. She was sitting up there with the baby, body swaying dangerously.

“Allie,” she cried, her voice echoing through the amusement park. “I don’t blame you for forgetting me… or for pretending you don’t know me. I only blame myself for trusting the wrong person. If there’s a next life, if I had the kind of family background that your girlfriend has, would our ending have been different?”

Her voice was so tragic that even I felt a secondhand chill. Gwendolyn and I never imagined a scam artist could take things this far. We stood there, stunned.

Suddenly, someone shoved me hard from behind. A man yelled in my ear, “What the hell are you standing around for? Go save her! She’s talking suicide, just agree to whatever she wants! A life is at stake! If she really dies, that’s on you! I’ve never seen a more shameless man. Your wife and kid are about to jump and you just stand here? You probably acted the same way at your parents’ funerals! Surely, you’ll get what you deserve soon!”

I wanted to shout that the child wasn’t mine, that I had zero reason to panic, but this really wasn’t the moment for explanations.

Because someone had already started livestreaming. And of course, the camera was pointed right at me.

For views, the streamers exaggerated every detail. In their narrative, I was a heartless cheater dumping my wife and child for a new woman, and now the ex was about to kill herself because of me.

Within seconds, the livestream room had tens of thousands of viewers, and the comments were exploding.

[Girl, don’t do it! The one who should die is him!]

[If you die, you’re just giving that cheating bastard and the homewrecker a chance!]

[Think of your child! He still needs you!]

[Trash man! Hope you get struck by lightning!]

Phones were pointed at my face from every angle. The screaming crowds and the curses online were drowning me.

I had no choice but to try negotiating with Kiera. But no matter what I said, she refused to come down unless I paid her one million and a half.

After half an hour of this nightmare, the police finally arrived, and I almost collapsed in relief.

“Officer, I want to report a crime! She falsely accused me of getting her pregnant and is extorting me for one million and a half! But I’m not even—”

I couldn't even finish saying “a man” because Kiera’s hysterical sobs came from above. “Officer, don’t believe him! I have proof! I secretly did a paternity test!”

The officers tried to coax her down, telling her everything could be sorted out on the ground and they would protect her rights. But she refused. Instead, she threw two sheets of paper from the top.

They fluttered to the ground in front of me, then a heavy sense of dread settled in my stomach.

I asked the officer quietly, “Officer, can she hear what I’m saying from up there? I’m not even speaking loudly. How did she know exactly what I said?”

The crowd looked like they were seconds away from rushing over to beat me up.

“Officer, did you hear that? How can he talk like that? He didn’t believe the girl from the start! She knew he doubted her, so of course, she prepared evidence. Isn’t that normal?”

I tried to explain, but no one listened.

The officer held the report in his hands and slowly unfolded it. A hush fell over everyone, and all eyes locked on the page.

At the same time, a notification popped up on my phone from an unfamiliar number.

[After today, you’re completely finished, Allie. This is my first gift to you.]

Before I had time to process those words, a heavy thud sounded from a distance.

The entire crowd erupted in panic.

“Someone jumped! Someone jumped! Help!”

“That poor girl must’ve died with resentment. She won’t let that bastard go even as a ghost!”

The officer froze. Then he shoved the report into my hands and sprinted toward the commotion without looking back.

“That kid is yours! You’ll never clear your name now!”