If he were not asking me about the design of the wedding ring, he would be asking me about the material of the wedding dress.

The panic on his face dazed me. It had been too long since Jared cared so much about me.

Since Vincy appeared, Jared became busier and had no time to reply to my messages.

He was either in an international meeting, on a business trip or working overtime to complete proposals. When, in truth, he was spending all that time with Vincy.

Afraid of losing him, I became more dependent on him. Perhaps it was this dependency that solidified his belief that I would never leave him for anyone else.

Perhaps this was why he dote on someone else so openly, without fear of losing me.

“Answer the phone, Jenny!”

“Are you still angry at me, Jenny? You’re not even going to choose your ring and dress?”

I ignored the long line of missed calls on my phone. On the way to the airport, I texted him one last time. “Cancel the wedding. Don’t text or call me again.”

At the same time, I received an image from Vincy. It was a selfie of her in a wedding dress, and Jared could be seen in the background glaring at his phone.

“I’m trying out your tailored wedding dress. Maybe it’s because I’m thinner, so the dress is a bit big on me. The style fits me, though!”

The way she was boasting made me laugh. “You really do like hand-me-downs, don’t you? Since you want this so much, sure. Why the heck not?”

I was referring to both the wedding dress and the man.

The last call for boarding was broadcast through the speakers. ‘I can finally leave this place,’ I thought to myself.

Just as the plane began to taxi, I suddenly saw a group of bodyguards rush towards the gate. Surrounded by them was Jared.

I quickly faced away, but I could feel a piercing gaze fall on me through the walls.

As figures on the grounds slowly became black speckles, I took a deep breath and bid my youth goodbye.

The flight took 3 hours, and I left the cabin as quickly as possible.

From a distance, I saw my parents waiting for me upon arrival, with a mountain of presents in their hands.

Dad grabbed my luggage and looked at me with warmth and love. Mom placed a bouquet in my hand. “My daughter’s all grown up now. She looks so pretty, much prettier than on call. I’m so glad you’re back. No more running away from home now, okay?”

“Don’t you worry, Jenny! I promise you’ll love the boy we found for you!” Dad sounded proud of himself, “He’s had a crush on you since he was a kid! He knows that you’re still single, and I heard that he never dated anyone because of that! But if he makes you angry one day… Hmph! I’ll go teach him a lesson! No one makes my daughter cry!”

I forced a smile and rubbed my face on Mom’s shoulders.

My parents had wanted to bring me home more than once, but Jared always persuaded me not to. He convinced me they must resent me for leaving home and would scold me if I returned before I was happily married.

How foolish of me to believe him.

Seeing the tears of excitement on my parents’ faces, I was overwhelmed with guilt. “Don’t worry. I’m not a kid anymore. I won’t cry so easily. And I trust you, Dad. I know you’ll find someone good for me.”

My parents visibly relaxed at how easily I accepted this marriage.

“Good, good. We were worried you’d miss that boy… But! It’s all in the past now. Did you deal with everything on that side? You two only got engaged, not married anyway. It’s best if you two distanced yourselves from each other, too. It won’t look nice to still be in contact.”

I nodded.

We returned home, and Mom insisted on cooking something grand for me. After dinner, I decided to take a walk outside.

The sky began to darken, and I felt like someone was watching me for some reason.

Just then, I received a message from my best friend. “Jared reached out to his connections and he knows where you are. Be careful.”

Confused, I stopped walking. I heard a familiar voice call out behind me as I tried to decode what the text meant.

“Jenny.”

My head whipped around. It was Jared.

Slowly, he adjusted his tie and growled, “How dare you run away, my dear fiancée?”