The flames devoured the ruby pendant in an instant.
So this was the truth—everything I once treasured meant nothing to him.
To Benjamin, it was no different from garbage.
What a cruel irony.
“We’re going to the bridal boutique later. You’re coming too,” Benjamin said coldly from the staircase, one arm wrapped around Laica.
On the way there, Laica suddenly clutched her belly and whimpered, “I’m hungry.”
“I really want noodles from that old shop in the west district. I’ve heard it’s amazing.” She clung to Benjamin’s arm sweetly. “But we still have the dress fitting...”
He immediately understood her unspoken request and turned to me. “You go get it.”
Laica smiled. “Make sure it’s hot and fresh out of the pot, okay? Thanks, Darlene.”
I frowned, glancing out the car window at the pouring rain.
On seeing my hesitation, Benjamin’s gaze turned frosty. “What, you can’t even do something this simple?”
I shook my head silently.
Without another word, he shoved me out of the car.
It was almost impossible to hail a cab in the storm. I stood in the downpour for half an hour before I finally got a ride.
By the time I arrived at the noodle shop, I was soaked to the bone.
“I’m really sorry,” the shop assistant said. “We just sold out. It'll take about an hour to prepare a new batch.”
I waited.
I didn’t want another pointless argument over something so trivial.
An hour later, I walked back into the storm, carrying the steaming hot noodles.
The rain had only gotten heavier. Even though I shielded the container with my coat, water still seeped in.
I was freezing—my lips had turned purple, and I couldn’t stop shivering.
When I finally stumbled into the bridal boutique, drenched and disheveled, Benjamin and Laica were waiting in the lounge.
He frowned the moment he saw me.
“What took you so long?”
“It’s raining. The roads were jammed,” I replied, my voice trembling as I handed the container to Laica.
She “accidentally” bumped my hand. The box slipped from my grasp.
Boiling soup splashed across the wedding gown beside her—the one she had just tried on and declared her favorite.
“Ah!” Laica screamed. “My dress!”
The pristine white lace was instantly ruined, stained with greasy broth.
“Darlene!”
Benjamin exploded. He kicked the container violently, sending the remaining soup flying—all over my legs.
The scalding liquid soaked through my wet clothes, burning my skin. I gasped in pain.
“You did it on purpose!” he roared, pointing at me, his eyes blazing with fury.
“You just can’t stand to see us happy!”
“I didn’t—”
“Still trying to lie?!”
His words sliced through me like blades.
“Kneel!”
“...What?” I asked in disbelief.
“Kneel! And don’t get up until Laica forgives you!”
All around us, the boutique fell silent. The other customers had stopped what they were doing, whispering behind their hands.
“What’s going on?”
“She looks so pitiful...”
I stood there, soaking wet, every eye in the store landed on me.
In my past life, I would have been mortified with shame.
But now—I just felt tired.
Utterly, deeply tired.
Slowly, I sank to my knees.
The cold marble floor sent a jolt of numbness through my legs.
“Benj...” Laica murmured gently, “Forget it. I’m sure Darlene didn’t mean to.”
“No,” Benjamin said icily. “She needs to understand what she did wrong.”
I knelt in silence, staring at the shattered remains of the container on the ground.
Outside, the rain kept falling.
Just like that rainy night years ago, when I had a high fever—and Benjamin sat by my bedside the entire night, refusing to leave.
