In the fourth year together, I traveled abroad to ski and explore Europe.
In the fifth year, Sonny got down on one knee, pulled out a ring and asked, “Marry me.”
….
I tortured myself by recalling every wonderful memory we had together, then deleted every single photo personally, even though my heart had long gone numb from the pain. I hoped that by erasing those happy moments, my wounds might heal faster.
Once I had wiped every last photo from the phone, I wrapped myself in a blanket and tried to sleep. At first, it was hard. Dreams kept plaguing me. I kept seeing two people saying that they would spend their lifetime together. Each night when I woke up in the dark, I always found my face wet with tears.
Eventually, terrified of reliving those dreams, I started working through the night, so I would be too occupied to sleep.
I disappeared from everyone’s radar for half a month. During that time, Sonny did not make any attempt to reach out even once. The uninterrupted silence gave me the space I desperately needed to start piecing myself back together.
After twenty days of not seeing him, I received an opportunity to be promoted to work at the headquarters.
My exceptional performance had not gone unnoticed by the management. So, they invited me for another interview.
"Bella, there is a vacant position as a director at the headquarters. Are you interested this time?” they asked.
It wasn’t the first time I had been offered a chance to move up the ladder. However previously, the idea of relocating to distant Lagado City wasn’t an option. I and Sonny had been building our future together in Chester City, the salary increase did not tempt me enough to move there. Back then, I had declined the offer, much to the frustration of her supervisor.
Despite all of this, my work ability and capability were excellent. Almost every task that I took was delivered more than expected. Now, even though they half-expected me to refuse the offer again, I was the first candidate they approached.
“Thank you for the opportunity,” I replied. “I’d be honored to join the headquarters team.”
With three months left before the official transfer, I had to sort everything out before I left.
Later that day, I got a call from my father, so I immediately went home.
"Bella, the supplier suddenly backed out of their contracts. We can’t move forward with any of our projects!” my father exclaimed; his voice filled with distress. He could not accept the timber supplier that he had worked with betrayed him.
My family ran a small furniture business. They had longstanding partnerships with several lumber suppliers, all of whom were family friends. However now, every one of those suppliers had backed out from their agreements, leaving the Wendell Family with no wood for production.
"What about the penalty fees?" I asked. "Is that enough to cover the losses?"
I figured maybe we could use the penalty damages from several companies to cover all the losses.
Her father shook his head. “Those clauses are mostly for show,” he said bitterly as he burst into tears. “These are friends we’ve trusted for decades. The fines won’t even scratch the surface of what we owe our buyers.”
The sudden, coordinated betrayal of multiple suppliers suggested that this was no ordinary business decision. There had to be a larger force at play, something powerful enough to orchestrate this crisis.
“Don’t worry, I’ll figure this out,” I assured my parents and then left to think of a plan.
With only a month left before their delivery deadlines and no raw materials in the warehouse, the situation was dire. My savings were almost gone. Most of it was used for my wedding preparation.
When I was at the end of the rope, a name suddenly flashed through my mind. The name Mark Ruffus attached itself into my brain.
He was my former university classmate, now his family business had expanded into a nationwide enterprise with branches in multiple industries. Getting their hands on a lumber shipment wouldn’t be difficult for someone like him.
