"Come on, put it back on," Parker said.

Michelle feigned a yawn, her tone listless, "Tomorrow. I'm getting ready to shower and sleep."

The next morning, when she woke up, Parker seemed to have forgotten about the matter entirely. Together, they drove to the Smith Family home.

Having proposed the day before, today was naturally the time to visit his future in-laws. As soon as they arrived, Janet cheerfully pounced on Parker.

Instinctively, he caught her, but after a brief pause, he tossed her to the ground, "How improper! Do you still think you're a little kid?" Parker frowned darkly and reprimanded her in a deep voice.

Janet, rubbing her bruised bottom, looked aggrieved and pitiful, "I'm sorry, Parker. I just got home and feel insecure. Seeing an old playmate, I couldn't help but get close."

Parker remained unmoved, his tone cold, "You're an adult now, stop using childhood as an excuse. Michelle might misunderstand." The hand that held Michelle's suddenly tightened, causing her pain.

Her eyes flickered with faint mockery. He had shared such intimacy with her behind her back but insisted on acting righteous in front of her. How absurd!

Hearing the commotion, the Smith's couple arrived to see their biological daughter upset and immediately turned their anger on Michelle, "Janet just reunited with us, it's understandable she might not know better. Michelle, as her older sister, you should let things go. How could you make her feel wronged?"

Adele said, "Don't forget what the Smith Family did for you. You can't turn your back on our kindness just because you've found someone influential!"

Lowering her gaze, Michelle concealed the disappointment in her eyes. She had heard such words no fewer than a hundred times this past month.

Ever since Smith's couple found their long-lost daughter, Janet, their favoritism had been glaringly obvious. They seemed to forget the vows they made when they adopted her from the orphanage, that they would treat her as their own, loving her like a biological daughter.

Parker's face darkened like a storm brewing. Pulling Michelle behind him protectively, he snapped, "Enough! This was Janet's fault to begin with. Why blame Michelle?" His thin lips curved into a sarcastic smile.

Sensing his displeasure, Janet quickly stepped in to mediate, her eyes brimming with flattery, "Parker, don't be upset. This is all our fault. My sister is so magnanimous, she won't mind, right?"

Adele glared sharply at Michelle, her gaze filled with implicit threats.

Forcing a bitter smile, Michelle shifted the subject, "I'm hungry. Let's eat first."

At the dining table, Janet seized the seat next to Parker and clung to his arm.

Looking up, she coyly said to Michelle, "Michelle, Parker and I haven't seen each other in years. I want to sit close to him. You don't mind, do you?"

Parker frowned and was about to refuse. But under the cover of her thick clothes, Janet secretly pressed a sensitive trigger point.

Parker's expression immediately turned subtle. His body stiffened and he didn't dare to move.

Michelle's face went pale, her nails digging deep into her palms. Forcing a weak smile, she said with great effort, "I don't mind." But how could she not?

To see her fiancé openly flirting with her younger sister was enough to enrage anyone. Even more so for someone like Michelle, who still harbored some hope for Parker.

The meal felt tasteless to Michelle. As soon as it was over, she couldn't wait to leave that suffocating house.

On the drive back, she sat silently, staring out at the passing scenery.

At a red light, Michelle caught sight of a young couple by the roadside taking wedding photos. The bride's radiant smile pierced her heart, bringing tears to her eyes. So, this was how much she craved happiness.

"Honey, don't envy them. Tomorrow, we'll take our wedding photos too. I'll make you the happiest bride in the world," Parker whispered sweetly into her ear, kissing away her tears.

Michelle didn't refuse. Instead, she posted a photo of the two of them on her social media with the caption: [Tomorrow's the big day, my wedding photoshoot! I'm so excited!] She wanted to see if, come tomorrow, they'd truly take those photos.

The next morning, Michelle woke early, only to find the space beside her already empty.

All that remained was breakfast on the table and a note: [Honey, I'm sorry! Something urgent came up at work. Let's reschedule the photoshoot for tomorrow.]

She touched the bowl of breakfast, it was still warm. He hadn't left long ago.

Turning on the car's dashboard camera, Michelle saw it all, crystal clear. Her fiancé cheating with her younger sister played out like a script repeating itself again and again.

Tears blurred her vision as she quietly threw the breakfast into the trash and turned off the footage. Those obscene noises, like her lingering feelings for Parker, were abruptly silenced.

When Parker returned that night, he was surprised to find Michelle hadn't prepared dinner, an unusual occurrence.

He searched the entire apartment but didn't find her. Panic seized him and he rushed out to look for her.

Finally, he spotted her returning from the direction of the cemetery, looking utterly lost and broken.

Relieved, he strode forward and enveloped her in his arms, his voice filled with concern, "Why didn't you call me to go with you to see your mom's grave?"

Parker didn't know Michelle had recently reunited with her biological mother. He assumed she had been visiting the grave of her long-lost biological parent, who was likely deceased.

Michelle quietly extricated herself from his embrace, her voice calm, "Just went to bury some things."

"What this time? A flower or old belongings?" Parker chuckled. He always found her belief in superstitions amusing.

She didn't reply but answered silently in her heart. Of course, I buried all the love I had for you.

Parker took her hand as they returned to the apartment, but his attention was glued to his phone, occasionally responding to messages.

Michelle tilted her head, observing him. She couldn't understand. Though he was right there beside her, holding her hand firmly and warmly, it felt like he didn't belong to her.

Meanwhile, her phone began vibrating incessantly. It was Janet, sending a string of photos, used condoms, thirteen in total. The last image was of Janet's body, covered in suggestive marks.

[Michelle, does Parker treat you like this too?]

[Oh, silly me! I forgot, Parker hasn't even touched you yet.]

Michelle's fingers trembled uncontrollably as she scrolled through the images, her eyes red. In just one day, Parker had slept with Janet thirteen times! Was his desire truly that insatiable?

Noticing her pale complexion, Parker looked at her with concern, "Honey, are you feeling unwell?"

Her tears fell uncontrollably, like broken strings of pearls, but she forced herself to lie, "No, I'm just missing my mom too much."

She wasn't fully lying. Michelle truly longed to reunite with her biological mother and never see Parker again.

Parker let out a faint chuckle but still coaxed her patiently, "Don't cry, my love. Seeing you cry breaks my heart."

Before Michelle could respond, the apartment's door suddenly swung open. A figure darted in and threw itself before them, "Michelle! Parker! I had a fight with Mom and Dad. Can I stay over tonight?" Janet's wide eyes brimmed with tears as she pouted pitifully.

The warmth that had just barely returned to Michelle's heart froze again. Her mind swirled with the images of the photos Janet had sent earlier.

Beside her, Parker's body went rigid and his face clouded with irritation, "No, you can't."

Janet's expression fell instantly and she turned her pleading gaze toward Michelle, "Sis, would you really let me sleep on the streets?"

Parker shielded Michelle, his brow furrowing deeply, "Don't guilt-trip your sister! Janet, what nonsense are you trying to pull now? You can leave, right this minute! This house doesn't welcome you!" He had once sworn that this home would bear traces of only one woman, Michelle.

Janet's face showed disappointment as her teary almond eyes darted toward Michelle, harboring a subtle hint of menace, "Michelle, if Mom and Dad find out you didn't let me stay, they'll come after you again. You wouldn't want to upset them, would you?"

Michelle moved Parker aside and replied evenly, "You can stay."

Janet's face lit up with glee, but it quickly froze as Michelle added, "There's just one correction I'd like to make. They're your parents, not mine."

The unnatural calm in her tone unsettled Parker. For the first time, he sensed that she had changed. She began to care less about the relationship between her and her adoptive parents and even ... she cared less about him.

That night, as they lay in bed, Parker instinctively leaned in to kiss Michelle, but she avoided him.

His panic flared instantly, reddening his eyes. Holding her tightly, he rasped, "Honey, did I upset you? Was it because we didn't take the wedding photos today?"

Michelle broke free from his hold, her gaze unwavering as she suddenly smiled, "Parker, my friend got cheated on. She found out her fiancé was sleeping with another woman. What do you think she should do?"

Parker frowned, "So you've been bothered about your friend's issue lately?"

"Yes," she said casually.

Parker heaved a sigh of relief, "What's there to think about? Why would any woman be foolish enough to marry a cheating man? She should break up with him right away! Once unfaithful, he's forever untrustworthy. Isn't that common sense?"

"Break up?" Michelle's heart clenched. "But they've been together for so many years. Is it really worth it to just end it?"

Parker shrugged, "It depends on your friend's awareness. Realizing the truth about someone after a few years is worth it."

"Mm," she responded.

Taking ten years to see someone for who they truly are was better than wasting a lifetime. Parker, these were your own words. Once unfaithful, forever untrustworthy.

In the dead of night, Michelle awoke with a start, only to realize she had noise-canceling headphones on. But they didn't block out the sound coming from downstairs.

Under the faint glow of the dim light, two familiar figures writhed together, lost in their own world.

The creaking of the bedframe echoed sharply in her ears, each sound cutting into her heart.