Vanessa rushed over to shield Derek. “Ethan, how could you hit someone like that?”
“First of all, I didn’t hit him. But even if I had, wouldn’t he deserve it?”
Vanessa glanced around the room. “Derek, what did you do to the place?”
“Vanessa, didn’t you say I could make myself comfortable? I really didn’t like your house’s decor, so I changed it to match my own style.”
“These things weren’t cheap. Don’t they look good? I was just trying to help.”
Vanessa frowned. “Ethan, I agree that Derek shouldn’t have changed the decor without asking, but that doesn’t mean you should’ve hit him.”
“Just apologize to him, and I’ll let it go.”
I laughed in disbelief.
“Vanessa, are you blind? Can’t you see he’s pretending? We’re supposed to get our marriage certificate tomorrow, so why don’t you just marry him instead?”
I turned to leave, furious.
Vanessa quickly chased after me and grabbed my arm.
“Ethan, don’t be mad. Derek’s still immature—just ignore him.”
“Then have him restore everything and get out immediately.”
“I don’t even want this house anymore. It feels filthy!” I pointed toward the bedroom. “He slept on our wedding bed—I feel sick!”
“Alright, alright. We’ll sell the house and get a new one.”
Derek panicked. “Vanessa, why are you always siding with him? He’s the one who hit me!”
“Stop talking, Derek. I shouldn’t have let you move in.”
Hearing that, Derek ran out crying.
Vanessa became flustered. “It’s so late. It’s not safe for Derek to be alone. Let’s meet at the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow.”
I was so angry I couldn’t stop crying. I wanted to break up on the spot—but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.
Still, I showed up at the Civil Affairs Bureau the next day right on time.
But no matter how long I waited, Vanessa never arrived.
I called her—she didn’t answer for a long time.
Finally, she picked up and said, “Derek sneezed twice this morning. I got worried and took him to the hospital. There’s no rush for the marriage certificate. Let’s reschedule.”
Before I could respond, she hung up.
I was livid.
Reschedule with your sister! I’m done!
I sent her a single word: “Breakup.” Then blocked her on everything.
I figured I’d just wasted my time. So I called Sophie.
“You still want to get married? If yes, come here now!”
Ten minutes later, Sophie arrived at her red Ferrari.
I brought her straight to the Civil Affairs Bureau. “If you want to back out, now’s your last chance. Once the red booklet is stamped, there’s no going back.”
Sophie grinned. “Don’t worry. I promise you won’t regret it!”
After we got our marriage certificate, I received a Facebook message from Derek.
“I told you—you wouldn’t get married.”
I snapped a photo of the certificate with Sophie and sent it back.
“Thanks. I’m officially the son-in-law of the Bennett Group.”
