You Crushed Me, I Crowned Myself

Sky

“I’ve decided to go get treatment. I’ll show him—Felix means nothing to me.”

“The flight tickets will be ready in two days. We’re happy to have you back.” Dante's voice sounded—firm and convincing.

I hung up the phone and stared at the piece of paper bearing the logo of the best private hospital in the city—a paper that had thrown my emotions into chaos.

For three years, I believed my marriage to Felix was built on love. But in truth, it was just an illusion I created for myself. His temperamental and indifferent behavior—I had blinded myself to the reality of who he truly was.

That night, when Felix didn’t come home, I waited for him in his study. While organizing his scattered documents, I found a folder sticking out of the pile. Something about it caught my eye.

It was a DNA report.

For a moment, I wondered why such an important document was in Felix’s study. Then I read the name written on the paper:

Jayden Moretti.

The boy Felix once brought home with Sofia, his childhood friend. A boy who always looked at me with hatred, like I was some eternal enemy. Everything suddenly made sense.

I had lost.

I was paralyzed. Despised by a child who thought I had stolen his father from his mother. I had been living in a house full of pity and lies because of my disability.

“I don’t care about your condition, Sky. I love you. I’ll make you the happiest woman in the world.”

Those promises Felix once made used to give me confidence. He convinced me that he accepted me for who I was. Foolishly, I believed every word.

But the way he treated Sofia and Jayden was nothing like the way he treated me. Felix’s eyes sparkled when he talked to Jayden—as if he were already stepping into the role of a father.

Once, Jayden even called Felix “Dad.” And Felix didn’t correct him—he smiled, responded warmly. Back then, I thought Felix was only trying to comfort a boy who had lost his father as a baby.

But it had all been an act. He was never that enthusiastic about me. Trying to fix things and make a little family with me. I know, he is not giving up on my fate. He just doesn't want to.

Felix had been toying with our marriage. I refused to be his puppet anymore. I wouldn’t live in their shadows. If Felix never wanted this marriage, then I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me broken.

**

For the past three years, I had lived on the edge of despair. I never had children with Felix—not because we didn’t try, but because even before we were married, the doctors had diagnosed me with severe uterine damage. Felix never touched me. He said he didn’t want any accidents. It sounded ridiculous... but I convinced myself it was love.

We got married because of an accident.

Three years ago, after returning from a taekwondo championship in Paris, I was in a car crash that nearly ended my life. The doctors said I was paralyzed from the waist down, and that my internal organs had been crushed by the impact. I remember thinking... maybe it would’ve been better if I had died.

I remembered when Felix proposed to me. He kept encouraging me to live, to try. And I did. I supported him through his startup days—through the years of building his business until it became a city-wide empire.

But things changed when she came back.

Sofia. Felix’s childhood friend.

“Was she crippled by fate? Karma always finds cruel people,” were Jayden’s exact words the first time he stepped foot into our home.

He didn’t hate me because I was disabled. He was only protecting his mother. And now, with this DNA report in my hands, the truth was undeniable—Jayden was the son of Felix and Sofia. They had a child out of wedlock.

I wiped the tears from my cheeks—tears I hadn’t realized were falling. I folded the DNA paper and slipped it into my bag. I needed to hear it directly from Felix, even though the paper had already said everything.

That bar downtown—the one people called majestic—I built for Felix using the prize money from my championship and donations from my recovery fund. And yet, all I got in return... was betrayal.

I rolled my wheelchair inside. The bar wasn’t too crowded yet. I headed upstairs, toward Felix’s office.

But when I opened the door... I found Sofia sitting there.

She looked surprised.

“Oh! Hey, Sky. What brings you here?” she asked cheerfully.

I used to see Sofia as a sister. But now that the truth was in my hands, I saw her differently. Her warmth—fake. Her smile—an act.

I stared at her, expressionless. “Do I need a reason to visit my own husband?”

She hesitated. “O-of course not. I just... I’m afraid Felix might get upset that you came without telling him.”

“Is that so?” I smiled bitterly, pushing my chair closer to her. “Or are you worried he’ll be mad because I interrupted your little date?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sky.”

“Stop pretending.” I threw the DNA report in her face.

She flinched, opened it—but I knew she didn’t need to read it. The moment she saw the paper, her expression changed. She let out a soft laugh, like it was all a joke.

“Oh, so you found it? Felix really is sloppy.” She leaned down, bracing herself on my wheelchair armrests. “You’re smart enough to figure it out, Sky. So what do you want me to explain? Do you want me to describe how wild your husband is when he’s on top of me?”

“Shut your mouth!” I clenched my fists, chest rising and falling. I thought I was ready for this confrontation—but clearly, I wasn’t.

Sofia laughed again. She was enjoying this. In her eyes, I was just a helpless rabbit waiting to be devoured.

“Don’t play the victim, Sky. You should know who the real intruder is here.”

“I said shut up!”

I grabbed a beer glass on the table and threw its contents at her. She screamed, shocked. I hadn’t expected it to sting her face.

Her cheek turned red. She stared at me furiously. Then, in a flash, she slapped the glass out of my hand—it shattered on the floor. She picked up a shard... and held it toward me.

“I’ve been patient long enough, Sky. If it weren’t for Felix begging me to stay silent, I would’ve killed you already.”

Her eyes burned. I felt fear for a second.

But then, without warning—Sofia dragged the glass across her own cheek. Blood gushed out instantly.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Moretti! I didn’t mean to upset you!” she screamed, collapsing at my feet, sobbing.

I was still processing what had just happened when the door burst open—Felix. His face red with rage, his eyes sharp and furious. Then he saw Sofia, passed out on the floor, drenched in blood... at my feet.