After Selena fell, two of her friends immediately rushed to help her, but Justin still wasn’t reassured. He glanced briefly at me, then turned and walked straight toward her.
“Snake! There’s a snake! Thalia, get out of the way!”
I was holding a flashlight and an umbrella, my eyes locked on Justin. I hadn’t noticed the snake slithering toward me until it was too late.
A sharp, searing pain shot through my calf. When I looked down, the snake had already vanished into the dark.
My best friend ran over with an umbrella, knelt down quickly and examined the wound. She wrapped it as fast as she could.
“I don’t know how to drive! Where’s Justin? We have to get you to the hospital right away!”
The bite mark began to swell almost instantly. My skin around the wound turned a sickly black and dark blood oozed out. My breathing grew shallow. Dizzy, disoriented, I pulled out my phone and called Justin.
“I was bitten by a snake,” I said faintly. “Can you take me to the hospital?”
On the other end, his breathing was heavy and uneven. Then his irritated voice came through.
“You got bitten by a snake now—just as I’m helping Selena? Thalia, could you at least come up with a believable excuse? It’s a day like this; everyone’s helping everyone. Can you stop stirring up trouble for no reason?”
His voice was cold—brutally so—and he hung up on me.
My best friend was livid. Seeing how pale I’d become, with sweat dripping down my forehead, she frantically dragged me to look for Justin.
We found him just as he was finishing up Selena’s tent. Selena leaned against him, wiping away tears. They looked so intimate, so comfortable.
“Justin!” my best friend exploded. “Thalia was bitten by a snake and you’re here flirting with this woman? Do you even care about your wife?”
Only then did Justin notice the state I was in. His face turned pale as he rushed over, lifting my leg slightly to see the bite.
“I’ll take you to the hospital right now!”
But just as he was about to carry me, a scream pierced through the rain.
“Selena!”
We all turned in time to see Selena lose her footing and tumble down a nearby slope.
Justin’s face turned white in panic. He shoved me toward my best friend.
“Find someone to take her to the hospital. Call me later!”
With the last of my strength, I grabbed his sleeve, my voice trembling with desperation.
“Justin! I want you to take me to the hospital! Someone else can go save Selena!”
He froze. His brows furrowed and his face twisted with inner conflict.
“I don’t feel comfortable... I’m sorry.”
And in that moment, something inside me shattered.
I passed out on the way to the hospital. When I woke up two days later, my best friend was sitting beside me, her eyes red from crying.
“Thalia, you’re finally awake. You’ve been unconscious for two days... you scared me so much.”
“Did Justin come?”
She hesitated before answering.
“He came by yesterday. But Selena twisted her ankle and he’s been with her ever since. Honestly, I don’t think he cares about you at all. What kind of husband chooses his childhood friend over his own wife?”
I gave her a weak smile and forced myself to sit up.
I made my way to Selena’s hospital room. Through the glass window, I saw her teasing Justin like a mischievous child, while he stood beside her, arms crossed, a cold expression on his face.
“I did it on purpose,” she pouted. “You care more about Thalia than me. I’m jealous.”
“She’s my wife. It’s my responsibility to care for her. Using your body to throw tantrums is just childish,” he said, clearly annoyed.
He grabbed her hand, as if trying to keep her in check, but Selena only grinned wider.
“I’m willing~”
And with that, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him—boldly, possessively.
Justin stiffened, his arms awkward at his sides… until they slowly embraced her back. The two of them collapsed onto the hospital bed, kissing with reckless abandon.
I stood outside, frozen, my heart turning to ash.
But my best friend wasn’t one to stay quiet. She stormed up, kicked open the door and barged in like a hurricane.
Seeing them startled and tangled together, she marched straight up to Selena and slapped her across the face.
“Justin! Have you forgotten who your wife is? Thalia is your wife! Selena is her sister! How could you do this to her?”
