After college, I went all in on starting my own business. I worked my ass off, late nights, early mornings, barely any sleep.

But no matter how hard I tried, my friend, Fraser Cooper, always made ten times more money without even breaking a sweat.

If I earned 1,000, he would made 10,000. I finally reached 100K and he casually dropped a million. I grinded for a whole year and managed to save up a million, feeling like I had finally made it… only to see Fraser flex 10 million in his WhatsApp story like it was nothing.

My wife called me useless. Said I was a loser. I was running on four hours of sleep most nights, doing everything I could to succeed. Meanwhile, Fraser was out there making bank from the comfort of his couch.

Eventually, I crashed my car from exhaustion. Literally. That was how I died. Pathetic, right?

At the funeral, my parents were so devastated they passed out from crying. My wife didn’t even shed a tear. Instead, she ran straight into Fraser’s arms like she had been waiting for this moment.

Smiling like she had won the lottery, she said, "Fraser, your system is incredible. It really makes money just like that!"

That’s when it hit me, he had a system. That was how he did it. But then, suddenly, I opened my eyes. I was alive. Back right before the crash.

——

"Jairo! Can you be a little more useful? Fraser makes money just sitting at home! How are you supposed to support me like this? Why don’t you get off your ass and find a real job?" Ysabel’s voice snapped me out of my daze.

I looked over and saw her, same angry face, same words, like nothing had changed. Except now, I knew everything.

She stared at me, annoyed I wasn’t reacting and grabbed my arm, her nails digging in deep. I winced from the pain.

"Why are you zoning out? If you’re not gonna work, I’m divorcing you!" She reached for me again, but I shook her hand off. She lost her balance and fell to the floor, eyes wide with shock.

"You—did you just hit me? I can’t believe you! I’m done, Jairo! I want a divorce!" she yelled.

Before, just hearing her say that would’ve scared the life out of me. I would beg, apologize, try to fix it, anything to keep her around. I used to follow her around like a puppy whenever she threatened to leave.

But now, I just looked at her, completely calm. Maybe even a little amused. "Yeah, alright," I said. "Let’s get that divorce."

The woman who always acted like she owned the world suddenly switched it up.

She grabbed my hand, gave me this soft, sweet look and said, "Come on, I was just messing around. Don’t take it so seriously. I just want you to work hard like Fraser, you know? So we can have a better life."

Ysabel looked so fragile when she talked like that; big eyes, pouty lips. Most guys wouldn’t stand a chance. When she played the cute card, people would trip over themselves trying to please her.

But that didn’t work on me anymore. I gently pried her fingers off my arm and said flatly, "I’m going to sleep. Don’t bother me."

She froze for a second, like she couldn’t believe I just brushed her off.

Then she grabbed at my sleeve, clearly getting anxious. "Wait! What about that big client meeting this afternoon? If you skip it, he might walk. You can’t afford to lose that deal, right?"

Funny how I remembered this exact moment, because last time, that meeting got me killed.

I had been working like a maniac for weeks. No breaks, no proper sleep, no time to even breathe. I was running on fumes. But whenever I even thought about resting, Ysabel would lose her mind, like I was lazy for needing sleep.

I didn’t figure it out until it was too late.

Fraser had a system. Some kind of cheat code. Every time I busted my ass to make a buck, he got ten times more without lifting a finger.

Worse, the system didn’t just leech off my success. It fed off my life. The more I burned out, the stronger and healthier Fraser got. While I was killing myself, he was thriving.

Ten years of grinding. Ten years of being the mule.

And what did I get? A totaled car, grieving parents and a wife who ran straight into Fraser’s arms the second I was gone.

Meanwhile, he got rich on my blood, my bones, my corpse.

If things were really like that, then what was the point of me working myself into the ground? Let Fraser go make the money. I wanted to see just how far he would get without me behind the scenes.

"I'm not going," I said, dead serious. "If you're so desperate for money, go earn it yourself."

Ysabel looked stunned. Like she couldn't believe what she just heard. For a second, she looked like she wanted to say something, but I was already done.

I walked to the bedroom, shut the door and locked it. I didn’t want to see her face anymore, let alone hear her nagging.

Next thing I knew, it was already the afternoon of the next day. The house was quiet, no one was home.

I grabbed my phone, opened the bank app and wired every last cent of that one million from the deal straight to my parents. They deserved it. They were the only ones who ever had my back.

Once that was done, I headed into the office like it was just another normal day.

But of course, the minute I stepped in, Fraser and Ysabel came rushing at me.

"What did you do yesterday? Why is a million gone from the joint account? Transfer it back, half of it’s mine!" she said.

I didn’t even flinch. Fraser came straight at me, his face full of fake concern but his words sharp as hell. "Come on, man, don’t get upset. Ysabel just panicked, that’s all. You moved the money without saying anything, so she got worried. No need to let this cause drama in your marriage."

Drama? That was rich, coming from him.

I shot him a look and said, "Why are you even in this conversation? I had a fight with my wife, since when is that your business?"

That shut him up real quick. He stood there awkwardly, looking like he wanted to disappear.

Ysabel jumped in then, trying to save face for him, not me. She raised her hand, eyes blazing. "Jairo! What kind of attitude is that? Fraser is just trying to help us! Can’t you just give me this one bit of respect?"

I leaned away before her slap could land and gave her a light push. She stumbled and landed right in Fraser’s arms, of course.

Her eyes went wide in shock, voice shaking. "You! You can't even make money and now you treat me like this? Fraser is better than you in every way..."

I didn’t even blink. I knew exactly how that sentence ended. I had heard it in different forms a hundred times over.

She had been putting me down and lifting Fraser up since year one. Always comparing. Always belittling me. And I let her do it. I let her wear me down until I didn’t even recognize myself.

I used to feel guilty around her all the time, thinking it was my fault she didn’t have the life she wanted. That I wasn’t good enough.

But looking at things now, that was all bullshit. Guilt kept me chained to someone who never cared.

I gave her a flat look. "If he's so amazing, go be with him. Fraser clearly likes you. Do yourselves a favor and stop dragging me into whatever mess this is."

Ysabel instantly pulled away from Fraser, eyes wide like I’d just accused her of murder. "How can you say that? Fraser and I are just friends! A pure, innocent friendship between a man and a woman! You’re just disgusting for even thinking like that."

I was already done with the conversation. "Sure. Whatever you say. Just stay out of my way."

That hit a nerve. She hated being brushed off more than anything. Her pride couldn’t handle it. I watched her turn on her heel and stalk off, dragging Fraser with her like she expected me to come chasing.

But Fraser, being Fraser, paused halfway and came back like he was trying to play mediator. "Come on, Jairo, don’t be like that. We’re really not doing anything wrong. She’s just emotional, you know how it is.

“I’ll go calm her down, but you should probably transfer that one million back before things spiral. Women can be unpredictable, don’t mess up your marriage over a misunderstanding."

I looked him dead in the eye and pulled out my car keys. "Here. Take her out somewhere nice. Chill her out. Just return the car when you're done."

He grinned like I just handed him a gift, took the keys without a second thought and jogged after her.

I watched them go and the feeling in my chest turned from anger to suspicion. Fraser had ten million, right? So why was he acting like that one million in my hand was such a big deal?

Something didn’t add up. And I had a feeling I was finally starting to see the truth.

Fraser went out of his way to stop me, practically begging me to return the one million. Seriously? Was it really that important to him?

I slouched back in my chair, pulled out my phone and opened the dashcam app.

This was a new car, one I really liked, so I had splurged on a high-end dashcam. 4K video, full audio recording, everything. I figured it would come in handy if I ever got into an accident or ran into trouble.

But what I found… yeah, I wasn’t ready for that.

I leaned in, holding my breath as the audio kicked in. "Why didn’t you make him go seal the deal? Do you know how long I’ve been planning this? Jairo has to die for us to take all the money. You get that?"

That was Fraser. His voice was low, tense and full of impatience.

Then came Ysabel, sounding like she was the victim. "What do you want me to do if he doesn’t wanna go? I can’t force him. Besides, what’s the rush? Let him live a bit longer, he can still make money for us."

Fraser let out this annoyed sigh. "You’re being greedy. The system’s got rules. If Jairo moves that money, I’ll get hit with a tenfold penalty."

I froze. Tenfold?

So that was why they were panicking over just one million. Fraser wasn’t losing one, he was losing ten. No wonder he had been losing his mind.

Then came the part that really hit me in the gut. "So we need to fix this. Fast. The rest is on you."

Ysabel's voice turned all sweet and fake. "Relax. When have I ever let you down? Just give me a little more time. I’ll make sure he doesn’t make it back tonight."

Fraser chuckled, his tone turning sleazy. "Well, Jairo is not home yet... what do you say we enjoy ourselves here for a bit?"

I heard a chair scrape loudly, followed by… yeah. I didn’t need to hear more. I saved the footage, every damn second of it. My fingers were steady, but the hatred boiling in my chest was anything but.

Ysabel. The woman I gave my heart to.

I had spent years making excuses for her. Blaming myself. Telling myself she deserved better, that I wasn’t doing enough. I let her walk all over me because I loved her, because she was my first love.

Back in high school, she was this quiet, smart, beautiful girl everyone was obsessed with. I thought I had won the jackpot.

Now I knew better. She had been playing me the whole time. I spent over ten years treating her like she was made of glass. Always scared she would get tired of me, that one day she would leave.

I kept trying to be enough, for her, for us. It became second nature, following her lead, always giving in, thinking if I just held on tight enough, she would stay.

I was making 3000 dollars a month and still tried to stretch every dollar just to spoil her. Even if it meant skipping meals or wearing the same shoes for years, I didn’t care. I thought that was love.

But to her, it was never enough. She never once looked at me like I was good enough. Just that same tired expression, like I was holding her back.

And when I died, she didn’t even wait. She ran straight into Fraser’s arms like she’d been dying to all along.

I would never forget what I saw, they were kissing right in front of my grave. Like I was never even there.

"Hubby, I stayed with him all these years for you," she said. "You have to make it up to me."

Fraser chuckled and said, "Babe, aren’t you scared Jairo’s ghost is watching? What if he died with his eyes open?"

Ysabel just laughed, soft and sweet. Like none of it mattered. "What’s there to be scared of? He was a loser when he was alive. Now he’s dead. In the next life, he’ll beg me to take him back. He’ll crawl if I tell him to."

That voice… that smug tone, burned into my brain. It answered every question I ever had. Fraser didn’t just want to ruin my life. He wanted me dead. And she helped him make it happen.

She gave him the knife. Smiled while she twisted it. So what kind of love was I even holding onto?

I hated them. Both of them. But I couldn’t blow everything up yet. If I divorced her now, she would take half of everything. I needed a plan.

Besides, I still didn’t know the full extent of what they were up to. There was more, I could feel it. That night, she didn’t come home. Then, right before sunrise, she called like nothing had happened.