Chapter 3

"Ethan, you bastard!"

"You don't know anything—"

I lunged forward, my body shaking with pure rage and grief.

Before I could control myself, I slapped Ethan hard across the face.

*Slap!*

The entire room fell into a dead silence.

Nina immediately stepped up, wrapping her arm around Ethan's shoulder and pulling him toward her chest.

"Clara, women like you are such a pain. Ethan and I are just friends. Do you really have to be this dramatic?"

"Nobody else thinks it's a big deal. Stop being so dirty-minded!"

Her words made the crowd look at me with even more disgust. The murmurs grew louder.

Ethan kept his head turned, refusing to look at me.

Something inside my chest shattered completely.

Nina’s provocation, the crowd's humiliation, Ethan's silence—all the pain and unfairness of the past years slapped me back like a physical blow.

"Ethan, I’ve tolerated you two for so long! 'Friends, friends'—it's always about your friends!"

"Whenever I needed you, you were never there. I told you I wanted to see the Northern Lights, and you said it was boring. But the moment Nina mentioned it, you ran after her like a dog."

"My miscarriage and the loss of our pup didn't even compare to Nina’s power outage! Last time, the time before that, and the time before that... every single Mate Ceremony we planned, you abandoned me the very next day for some minor emergency of Nina's! And now today!"

"I am humiliated and provoked by her, and you still stand by her like an idiot. You casually expose my deepest wound just so these people can mock me!"

"Ethan, am I really that worthless to you?!"

I gasped for air, tears blurring my vision.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ethan reach his hand out toward me, but the waves of whispers around us felt like they were going to drown me.

I couldn't take this agonizing pain anymore. I turned and ran like a coward.

Before the door slammed shut, the last thing I heard was Nina’s teasing voice.

"Wow, you really are a great friend, Ethan. Giving up your bride for me."

"But hey, if you're just pretending not to care and want to go after her, we won't judge."

Ethan’s confident reply echoed through the hallway:

"Without me, no one will ever want her."

They made a five-million-dollar bet that I would crawl back and apologize within three days.

At that moment, the very last spark of hope in my heart died out.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a number I hadn't called in years.

Within three seconds, the call was answered.

"My Mate Ceremony is in three days. Be there."

The voice on the other end was incredibly excited. But before he could ask anything, a text message from Grandma Rose popped up.

"Clara, how is the planning for the Mate Ceremony going? Do you want to come over for dinner tonight? I cooked your favorite dishes."

Attached was a photo of a lavish feast.

Grandma Rose had prepared every single dish that Ethan and I loved. The table was packed.

I forced down the lump in my throat. I couldn't tell her the truth. I couldn't let Grandma Rose, who had worked her entire life to raise me, worry about me anymore.

I recorded a voice message, trying to sound as cheerful as possible:

"I got it, Grandma! I'm on my way back to see you now. But Ethan has a pack meeting tonight, so he won't be able to join us!"

Before getting into the car, I instinctively looked back at Ethan’s villa.

He and Nina were surrounded by the crowd, laughing and joking.

His ears were flushed red.

My cheek stung with a burning pain. Tears, which I thought had dried up, filled my eyes again.

I covered my face with my hands, refusing to let anyone see my breakdown.