That night, I stood alone on the balcony, staring up at the night sky.

On my phone, a local livestream popped up through the algorithm. The hosts were Mariah and Ashton.

Mariah faced the camera with tearful eyes, smiling through her tears. "Ashton always brings me here. He says sweets make everything better when you're feeling down."

Then, she changed tone. "Such a great guy is about to get married, but his fiancee just doesn't know how to appreciate him. She keeps making a fuss over small things and throwing tantrums in front of his friends. It's really hard for Ashton to be stuck in the middle."

The camera shifted slightly. Ashton was sitting right beside her.

He took a tissue and gently wiped her tears. Then, he scooped up a piece of cake and naturally fed it to her.

Mariah blushed as she ate it, and he looked at her with tenderness in his eyes.

"Stop overthinking."

His voice came through the mic a little muffled, but every word still landed straight in my chest.

"Even after I get married, I'll always be your knight."

My stomach twisted violently. I opened the comment section, and thankfully, not everyone was blind.

"What did the fiancee even do to deserve this? This is disgusting."

"That fiancee is honestly pitiful. I can smell the manipulation of this woman through the screen."

"I'm literally gagging. Please, just stay together forever so you don't go out and ruin anyone else's life!"

"The guy's not innocent either. About to get married and still doing this? Knight? Seriously?"

Ashton actually jumped into the fray himself. His reply came in fast and aggressive.

"Shut the hell up! Mariah and I grew up together. Of course, she cares about me.

"You people know nothing. My fiancee is always in a bad mood. I can't say anything, and I can't criticize her. The moment I do, her heart acts up. She's so fragile that it's exhausting.

"We're about to get married, and she's still so immature. She's always making a big deal out of nothing."

Every word felt like a blade.

My heart felt as if it had been pierced through. The pain dulled into a cold numbness, and suddenly I coughed up blood.

Not a single tear fell. I calmly dialed 911.

The ambulance arrived quickly. I lay on the stretcher, feeling my life slowly slipping away.

Flashes of memories passed before my eyes.

Ashton had kneeled under the aurora, promising to love me for a lifetime.

He had forgotten our anniversary, but he spent the whole night with Mariah at a concert.

I had been at the hospital alone, hooked up to an IV with a high fever until the early hours of the morning. When his call finally came, he complained that I'd forgotten to iron that white shirt Mariah gave him.

While I was hospitalized, he was skiing in Lucerra with Mariah. Her laughter echoed in the background of the video as she said, "Ashton, look! The snow here is beautiful!"

Every time I needed Ashton, he was somewhere else, playing the devoted attendant to Mariah, while leaving me with nothing but his cold indifference.

He always said he was busy, yet he always had time for Mariah.

Every movie he promised and every trip he swore we would take always got replaced by one of her calls.

Promises turned into obligations, and love turned into pressure. The half of my heart I gave him became a chain he both flaunted and resented.

Blood rose in my throat as I coughed until my whole body shook.

I was tired. I was so tired.

They were still live-streaming. Mariah wore a sweet smile as she brought a spoonful of cake to Ashton's lips affectionately.

He accepted it, looking at her with a warmth I hadn't seen in a long time.

How disgusting.

Before the darkness swallowed me completely, my phone screen flickered once, then died.

When I woke up again, it was several days later. My phone was flooded with over a dozen messages from Ashton.

"Laura, I was wrong. I'm sorry. Stop this, okay?

"We're getting married soon. Can you be a little more reasonable? Stop making things so hard for me."

He sounded drunk in some of them. He was slurring nonsense.

"Can't you… just understand me once?"

I listened but I felt nothing.

He wanted understanding. Fine, I would give it to him.