Six Years After Ditching My Bride

On the day I'm supposed to get engaged to my childhood sweetheart, Rachel Miller, I run away. As my flight heading overseas takes off, I delete all my contacts. Six years later, my parents' graves are being relocated, so I have no choice but to return. But outside the cemetery, I run into Rachel. She grabs my wrist, her eyes bloodshot. "Why did you run away?" She's lost a lot of weight. Dark circles shadow her eyes, as though she's the one who's been losing sleep every night for the past six years. "Because I didn't want to marry someone I didn't love," I say. Her body sways, as though her soul has left her body. "Is there anything else?" I ask. She falls silent. I wait patiently for a moment, then step around her and walk away. I'm not lying. Six years abroad have extinguished every last trace of the passionate love I once felt for her. Chapter 1 At the cemetery entrance, someone grabbed my wrist again. Rachel Miller stood in front of me, her eyes bloodshot. "Joseph, we need to talk." "There's nothing for us to talk about," I said indifferently and yanked my hand free. Her fingers curled slightly in midair before eventually falling limp at her side. "Joseph Caldwell, how dare you show your face here again?" Stella Sullivan, Rachel's best friend, strode forward, barely containing her anger. "Don't you think you've hurt Rachel enough already? Did you hear she's getting engaged to Norman and decide to come back and ruin things? Please, I'm begging you. Just leave her alone." I had no intention of getting dragged into this. I turned to leave. But Stella lost control and stepped in front of me. She shoved me hard, sending me crashing to the ground. A sharp pain shot through my elbow and knee. Almost instantly, Rachel instinctively stepped forward, reaching out to help me up. Her brows knitted together, and a flicker of concern crossed her eyes. "Don't touch me." I pushed her hand away and got up, ignoring how disheveled I looked. Her outstretched hand froze in midair, and her face turned as pale as a sheet. "Rachel…" A gentle voice interrupted us at just the right moment. I looked up. Norman Holt was approaching from beside a parked car. The moment he appeared, Rachel took a step back, putting some distance between us. Then, she walked over to him and took his hand. "It's freezing outside. You're not in good health. Why did you come outside?" she said as she slipped his hand into her pocket. Norman wrapped an arm around her. "You worry about me too much. Going out for a walk now and then is good for my health. Besides, I missed you. I wanted to spend some time with you." He lifted his gaze and looked at me. "Joseph, you finally came back." I didn't respond. Instead, I raised my hand to hail a cab. As I opened the car door, I heard Rachel call softly from behind me, "Joseph!" I didn't look back. The car drove off. In the rearview mirror, I saw her standing where she was, watching me with a complicated expression. Not long after I got in, the driver spoke excitedly. "Sir, was that Rachel Miller from Baytona back there? Her love story with her fiancé is famous around town. People say she nearly fell apart when her ex-fiancé left her a few years ago… Thankfully, she met the man she's with now." He sighed to himself. "I wonder if the man who ran away from her regrets it now." "He doesn't," I said quietly, watching the streets blur past the window. "Don't be so sure. You're not him." I lowered my gaze and gently traced the faint mark the ring had left on my ring finger. I felt perfectly calm. He wouldn't regret it. … I stared down at the faint white ring mark on my finger. Memories came flooding back. Everyone said Rachel was the pride of Baytona, born into a world of privilege. What they didn't know was that one winter day when we were eight years old, I had seen her curled up beside a frozen trash can. I stood in the alleyway, my feet rooted to the spot. The next second, I rushed over and grabbed her icy wrist. I brought her home, leaving her no chance to protest. That night, I gave her every last meatball on my plate. She kept her head lowered, not saying a word. Only the movement of her throat as she swallowed betrayed how miserable she felt. I later learned that her parents had an arranged marriage for the sake of their business. There had never been any love between them. When Rachel was three years old, she had been sent to live with her father. But she might as well have been invisible. Even her nanny dared to treat her poorly. From that day on, I always seemed to find an excuse to pass by that alley. She wasn't much of a talker, but she would quietly follow behind me. Before long, we grew closer. Chapter 2 I was the only man in Rachel's life. Then, the year we took our SATs, she became the top scorer in Baytona, only to mysteriously disappear the day she was supposed to enroll in college. I searched for her frantically. In the end, my father had to use his connections to uncover the truth. Afraid that she would compete for the family fortune, her stepmother had hired someone to kidnap her. The night I found Rachel in an abandoned warehouse, she was covered in injuries. Yet, she gritted her teeth, refusing to shed a single tear. I cried and begged my father to save her. He used a business deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars to secure her release and get her back into college. Afterward, he secretly paved the way for her success, introducing her to influential people and helping her gradually establish herself as the rightful heiress. Rachel was truly the most remarkable person I had ever met. There was nothing she couldn't accomplish if she set her mind to it. And she always managed to be the best at whatever she did. I always looked at her with admiration. "You're incredible. Someone as capable as you would make the perfect wife," I told her. My father wasn't doing all this out of the kindness of his heart, either. I had no talent for business, while he needed someone he could trust to take over the family empire. The day Rachel officially became the heiress to Miller Group, my father asked whether she was willing to marry into the Caldwell family. She didn't refuse. Holding the ring she had made herself, she looked at me and said sincerely, "Joseph, I'm not agreeing to marry into the Caldwell family for business reasons. I genuinely want to be with you. Will you be with me?" The ring wasn't perfect, but my heart overflowed with happiness. I thought we would be together for the rest of our lives. But fate always seemed to have other plans. When I started college, I noticed that my roommate, Norman, could barely afford to feed himself. So, I decided to sponsor his education. I even brought him home. One day, Rachel came looking for me and ran into Norman at the front door. She froze. The shock in her eyes was unlike anything I had ever seen. Later, I learned the truth. When Rachel was kidnapped back then, it was Norman who had risked his life to save her. From that day on, I treated him like a hero. I paid for his education and welcomed him into our lives. I even thought I was repaying a debt on Rachel's behalf. It never occurred to me that I'd end up losing my own place in her life while trying to repay that debt. The cab driver dropped me off at my destination. I paid the fare and got out. Before driving away, the driver glanced at the place I was living in, his eyes filled with sympathy. "From the looks of it, you must've grown up spoiled and well-loved. You should hurry home. Your parents must be worried sick about you." His words were like a needle, striking the softest part of my heart. I stood frozen, my eyes instinctively turning red. Home? What home? My eyes stung, and suddenly, I was taken back to six years ago. Back then, I had the warmest home in the world. My parents treated me like their most precious treasure. They even scheduled my engagement on my birthday, wanting to give me twice the reason to celebrate that day. Before that, they traveled all over Baytona, searching for the perfect rings. My mother gently cupped my face and said with a loving smile, "Your father and I searched all over Baytona. We finally found the perfect rings." She stroked my cheek tenderly and said, "Our precious son deserves a lifetime of happiness." I was so wrapped up in happiness that I had no idea that would be our last conversation ever. My parents were involved in a horrific car accident on their way to collect my suit for the ceremony. Both of them died. They didn't even have a chance to say goodbye. Guilt and grief tore me apart. It was all my fault. If it weren't for me, they wouldn't have gone through any of that. During that time, Rachel stayed by my side every waking moment. She took care of all the funeral arrangements and held me as I fell apart, comforting me over and over again. "Joseph, you have to pull yourself together. Your parents wanted nothing more than to see you happy. Don't let them down." I believed her. For my parents' sake, I forced myself to go through with the engagement. That day, clutching the ring that carried my parents' love, I went looking for Rachel. But as I passed the lounge, I saw something I would never forget for the rest of my life. Inside, two naked bodies were tangled together. I clapped a hand over my mouth in disbelief. "Rachel, are you really going to get engaged to him?" It was Norman's voice. "Yes." Rachel's reply was devoid of emotion. "Then, what about us? Rachel, I really love you." "You're the only person I've ever loved. Getting engaged to Joseph is just a way to secure the shares his parents left him. Norman, you'll have to bear with it just a little longer." Rachel's voice was piercing, her words cutting into my heart like a blade. Chapter 3 For a moment, I could practically hear my heart shatter. I stood there holding the ring my parents had prepared for me, on the very path they had hoped would lead me to happiness. But what I heard was my own fiancée plotting how to squeeze every last bit of value out of me. It felt as though every drop of blood in my body had frozen. Even my heart seemed to stop beating. I wanted to storm in and confront Rachel. I wanted to ask her why she was doing this to me. But in the end, I turned and walked away. See? I was a coward. I didn't even have the courage to demand an explanation. It only took a second to fall from heaven to hell. Like a ghost, I wandered back to my dressing room. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, dressed in my suit. How ridiculous. The suit that carried my parents' deepest blessings had become the cruelest irony of all. A pathetic little thought began to take root in my heart. Maybe I'd heard wrong? Maybe she had her reasons? Maybe I should give her one more chance… After all, she was all I had left. Back then, some part of me was still foolish enough to hope. By the time I walked out with the ring, Rachel was already gone. Norman was leaning against the wall, casually straightening his collar. The suggestive red marks on his neck were jarring. "I'm the one she loves. She's only with you to get her hands on the Caldwell family's shares." I clenched my fists tightly, my nails digging into my palms. "I treated you like a brother. Why would you do this to me?" He looked at me as though I'd just told the funniest joke in the world. "Mr. Caldwell, every bit of kindness you've ever shown me just feels like a reminder that you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth." He suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip shockingly tight. "Why is it that I'm the one who saved her, yet you're the one who gets to stand by her side? You only sponsored my education to make yourself look like some kind of saint!" I tried to explain. But he suddenly grabbed my hand and shoved it against his own body. Then, he threw himself backward, letting out a piercing scream. "Ah!" His scream drew the attention of guests. Rachel rushed out of the crowd and immediately pulled Norman into her arms. Then, she glared at me furiously. "Joseph, what the hell are you doing?" Norman, nestled against her, took her hand. "Rachel, don't blame Joseph. Maybe he just doesn't like how close we've become." I looked at Rachel, my voice barely audible. "Is that really the kind of person you think I am?" Her lips moved, but before she could answer, the pungent smell of smoke suddenly filled the air. "Fire!" Flames shot up in an instant. "Come with me!" Rachel let go of Norman and grabbed my wrist. But when he slumped to the floor, she released me and turned back to him. For a moment, time seemed to stand still. I saw the conflict in her eyes. I saw her fists clench. In the end, she bent down and helped Norman to his feet. "Joseph, he's injured. I'll get him out first. I'll come right back for you!" Those were the last words she said to me before I left six years ago. The smoke was so thick that I could barely keep my eyes open. I tried to find a way out. But the fire spread too quickly, cutting off every escape route. Smoke filled my lungs, and my consciousness began to fade. Then, everything went black. I had no idea who pulled me out of the burning building. By the time I woke up, I was lying in a hospital bed. I waited an entire day and night, but Rachel never showed up. On the day I was discharged, I packed all my belongings. As I passed a hospital room with its door slightly ajar, I stopped. Rachel was sitting beside the bed, carefully feeding Norman his medicine. Her choice couldn't have been clearer. I picked up my suitcase and walked out of the hospital without looking back. My phone rang, pulling me out of my memories. "Honey, have you finished taking care of everything back home? When are you coming back?" A smile crept into my voice. "It's all taken care of. I'll be back next week." "Come back soon, honey. I miss you." I chuckled softly. "I know, my sweet wife. I miss you too." After hanging up, I turned to leave, only to come face-to-face with a pair of bloodshot eyes. Rachel stood right in front of me, trembling from head to toe. "You're… married?"