Lena patted her chest, beaming.
"Trust me, sis. I've got it all set up perfectly for you."
I glanced around. The whole bridal apartment was beautifully done.
If I were still the woman who'd been so set on marrying Sid,
I'd have been over the moon.
But now all I felt was a faint regret, knowing that in a few hours every bit of it would be reduced to rubble and trash.
"It's nice."
I turned to look at the two of them. "You've both worked hard. Go home and rest."
"I'll take care of the rest."
Lena looked a little reluctant, still wanting to stay and help, but seeing how calm my face was, she had no choice but to pick up her bag. "I'll get going, then."
"My phone's almost dead, though, so it's hard to call a cab. Mind if I borrow your boyfriend to give me a ride?"
Back when Sid was short on budget, he'd bought the bridal apartment out in the suburbs, a bit far from downtown.
Before I could even say anything, Sid was already taking her bag for her.
"Penelope, it's dark out, and this area isn't safe. I'll go drop Lena off first."
"I'll come back for you after."
It wasn't a question. It was a notification.
Without waiting for my answer, they left, one after the other.
And once they were gone, I pulled up the security feed for the apartment.
I'd had the cameras installed during the renovation.
To keep an eye on the workers and stop them from slacking off.
After the work was finished, they'd served no further purpose.
But on some strange impulse I opened the footage, and sure enough, I saw the scene that shattered my heart.
At half past, the moment the door opened, Lena's voice came through.
"What a dump of a rental. It got high ratings because it's right by the beach, but who knew the bed would be that hard? Worst stay ever."
Then came Sid's voice, warm with a smile.
"That's my clever Lena, thinking to come to the bridal apartment. It's out of the way. Penelope would never come over here."
On the feed, Sid loosened his tie with one hand while pinning Lena against the wall.
"Two and a half hours until nine. A moment of a spring night is worth its weight in gold…"
But Lena laughed and pulled him toward the balcony.
"It's just gone dark out there. Want to… try the balcony?"
The two of them shoved the balcony door open.
Kissing, stumbling backward.
I closed my eyes for a moment and exited the feed.
I already knew what was happening. Why torture myself by watching on, only to shame myself?
I watched the workers haul out all the new soft furnishings they'd just arranged in the apartment.
Only once it had all been thrown out as garbage did I let out a breath.
The workers looked dismayed. "Miss Henson, these all look freshly installed. Weren't they meant for the wedding? Why throw them out?"
"Because they're dirty."
Besides, I was the one who'd paid the down payment on this place. Since the bride had been swapped out for someone else,
it had no business being tied to me anymore.
The worker hesitated, wanting to say more, but I took out my wallet and gave them a little something for their trouble.
"Thanks for your hard work. Take the sofa and the bed too. They're yours, free of charge."
Through the cameras I'd seen that Sid had brought Lena to the apartment in secret, more than once.
The bed and the sofa were dirty too.
Even if they hadn't used them, just looking at them turned my stomach.
By past nine that night, Sid still showed no sign of coming to pick me up.
This was the suburbs, and cabs were hard to come by. Every other time we'd come to the apartment, Sid had always driven me there and back himself.
I was about to message and ask him when Lena's post popped up on my social media feed.
"Watching the night view, watching the ocean~ It really does feel different when someone's here with you."
Below it was a single photo of the sea, and in the bottom right corner you could just make out a man's hand caught in the frame.
