As expected, Jackson didn't notice I was gone.

A week had passed, and he was still grumbling about the mess in the house.

"There's a coworker's wedding tomorrow and a singles party tonight. You should come."

"I don't want to," I replied. I had always disliked these kinds of gatherings, and he knew it.

"I know you don't like them, but everyone else is bringing a plus-one. Who am I supposed to bring if you don't come?"

I almost told him to bring Rebecca but kept it to myself.

I ended up agreeing to go.

Men were so concerned with appearances, and I didn't want things to end on a bitter note.

I told myself it would be the last time.

After work, Jackson picked me up and actually seemed interested in my outfit for once.

"That dress looks great on you."

"Thanks."

He seemed to have forgotten that I used to care about fashion, too.

I had plenty of clothes, but since we'd been together, I'd mostly worn the same few outfits.

Now that I was back to living alone, I was starting to rediscover my old, confident self.

When I opened the passenger door, I noticed a woman's handbag inside.

I wasn't naive enough to think it was a gift for me.

I took a seat in the back.

Jackson started to explain, "It rained yesterday, and I gave her a lift partway. She must have left her bag."

I just nodded.

"Aurora, don't read too much into it. There's really nothing going on."

I closed my eyes, too exhausted to argue.

Since Rebecca came back, I'd often find her things in the passenger seat.

Each time, her clumsy attempts to act like the victim only made me seem petty and overreactive.

Jackson always sided with her, adding to my frustration.

Her behavior became more audacious as time went on.

She knew I'd be in the passenger seat and would deliberately leave her bag there, marking her territory.

It felt like a blatant provocation.

I chose to ignore it.

As we were getting out of the car, Jackson opened my door and said, "Aurora, I know you're still upset, but please try to keep your cool at this party."

"There will be a lot of old friends there. We can discuss things when we get home."

I nodded, too exhausted to argue.

It wasn't until I walked in that I realized what he meant by "upset."

Rebecca was there.

As soon as Jackson pushed open the door, Rebecca ran up and wrapped her arm around his.

"Jackson, where's my bag? My lipstick is in there, and they've been laughing at me for ages."

Rebecca pointed at a group of people nearby, then pulled out her lipstick and handed it to him.

"Jackson, help me fix this, please! I don't want to be the center of their jokes."

Jackson stood there awkwardly, glancing at me with an uneasy look.

"Go on," I said coldly, walking past them without a second glance.

Jackson, clearly flustered, hurried after me, smudging lipstick on my clothes in the process.

I looked at the red stain with distaste.

"Aurora, Rebecca's just kidding. Don't take it the wrong way."

Rebecca came over, too. "Aurora, don't be upset. With so many people here, if I had any real intentions, I wouldn't be so obvious about it. It's just friendly teasing. Don't take it seriously."

"I'm not upset, but please let go. You've stained my dress."

I went to the restroom to clean up, taking my time as I preferred not to see them.

When I returned, Jackson was clearly drunk.

He had a glass of wine in one hand and was holding Rebecca's hand with the other.

He hiccupped and buried his face in Rebecca's hand, his voice breaking with rare emotion.

"If I hadn't been late that day, you'd be my wife now."

"Rebecca, I'm sorry."

The people around us looked at me nervously, their raised glasses lowering awkwardly.

They kept their eyes on me, worried I might ruin the mood.

I smiled faintly, walked up to them, and took off my wedding ring.

"I know you've got one, but this one's bigger and more expensive."

"Congrats on your upcoming wedding. Here's to two kids in three years and three more in five."

The crowd was shocked by my gesture but quickly got into the spirit, cheering loudly.

"Marry him! Marry him!"