Chapter 2 Pointless Guilt
My hands shook as I set the phone down. I tried to calm my racing breaths.
By the time Micah reached my car, I had pulled myself together.
During the wedding dress fitting, he kept glancing at his phone. His mind was clearly elsewhere.
I acted like I didn’t notice. Deep down, I already knew we wouldn’t make it to the altar. This time, I’d be the runaway bride.
After the fitting, Micah hurried off, saying he had something urgent to deal with at work.
I let him go without a word. Instead, I drove straight to the cinema and used a few connections to get access to last night’s surveillance footage.
The moment I saw Micah walk into the theater holding Piper’s hand, I felt completely numb.
They watched one of those cliche romance films—the kind where the lovers were fated to be torn apart.
Midway through, Piper started crying. Micah pulled her close and whispered something in her ear.
As he held her, the space between them vanished, and their lips met.
The cinema’s surveillance footage was sharp and unforgiving. Even in the dim light, nothing was hidden.
Soon after, things escalated. Micah slid his hand beneath her shirt.
How revolting.
If they truly loved each other, why couldn’t they just be together and shut everyone else out?
Why drag two innocent people into the wreckage of their own tangled relationship?
Did they really believe that inflicting pain on us would somehow make their secret, shameful affair more justified?
Watching him kiss Piper destroyed the last shred of hope I had. All that remained was pure disgust and hatred.
I despised myself for trusting such a hypocrite and wasting five precious years of my life.
I obtained a copy of the cinema’s surveillance footage, planning to deliver Micah an unforgettable surprise on our wedding day.
Since they were so skilled at sneaking around, I’d make sure to expose them in the spotlight.
Once I got home, I immediately pulled out the stock certificate for my shares in Micah’s company.
I decided to contact Jared Porter—Micah’s former friend.
They had been close in college, and after graduation, they co-founded a company together.
At first, their partnership was solid. But as the business grew, tensions began to surface.
Jared favored steady, sustainable growth, while Micah pushed for rapid, aggressive expansion.
Over the last two years, their clashes grew more frequent, and their relationship soured until they became bitter rivals within the company.
Honestly, I leaned more toward Jared’s approach. I tried to reason with Micah, but he wouldn’t listen.
On the surface, the company appeared to be booming, but underneath, cracks were forming. Since these issues hadn’t reached a breaking point yet, Micah chose to ignore them.
Micah owned just one percent more shares than Jared, which kept Jared under his control.
But with the 5% stake I held, the balance of power could shift significantly.
At first, Jared refused to meet with me.
It wasn’t until I mentioned I was willing to transfer my shares in T&P Tech to him that he finally agreed.
We met at a cafe near my place. Jared sat down across from me and narrowed his eyes while looking me over carefully.
“You’re marrying Micah in just a few days. Why do you suddenly want to sell your shares to me? What’s going on? Is he cheating on you?”
“That’s not important,” I replied. “If you’re not interested, I’ll find someone else.”
“What do you mean? Of course I’m interested.”
A smirk tugged at the corner of Jared’s lips as he took the transfer contract from my hand. He skimmed it quickly and signed without hesitation.
I was a little surprised. I’d offered the shares at a price slightly above market value and expected some negotiation.
After signing, he slid one of the documents back toward me while raising an eyebrow. “So, Micah really is cheating on you, huh?”
Since he was so willing to cooperate, I answered evenly, “Yes, he is.”
“Is it with that high school classmate of his?”
My fingers tightened around the contract as I met his gaze. “You knew about her?”
“He used to stay up late talking with her in his dorm during our freshman and sophomore years. One day, they suddenly cut all contact. After that, Micah went through a rough patch and never mentioned her again. We all assumed it was over.”
“So that’s the story…”
Since Jared and I weren’t close, it wasn’t surprising he hadn’t told me sooner.
As I stood up to leave, he called out, “Are you still going to marry him?”
I gave a bitter smile. “If I were, do you think I’d be selling you my shares?”
A flicker of amusement appeared in Jared’s eyes. “But I haven’t heard any news about the wedding being called off.”
“It’s not going to be canceled.”
After that final remark, I turned and walked away.
When I arrived home, my mother, Ruth Fairfax, was waiting at the door. My face immediately hardened.
As soon as I stepped out of the car, she approached me with a fawning smile.
“Tabitha, you’re back…”
I met her gaze coldly. “What are you doing here?”
I never had a close relationship with my mother. Before I was sent to boarding school in middle school, living with her was nothing short of a nightmare.
She had my younger brother, Caspian Roswell, when I was just two years old.
From that moment, he was the apple of her eye, and I was nothing but a forgotten ghost.
Every day, I woke early to help her prepare breakfast and do the family’s laundry. Meanwhile, Caspian slept in until 10:00 am.
At meals, I wasn’t allowed to sit at the table. I had to wait until he finished before I could eat whatever was left.
Every New Year, Caspian got two brand-new outfits, while I was stuck wearing my mother’s worn-out hand-me-downs that were patched and altered just to fit me.
I’d always done well in school, but my mother didn’t care. She didn’t want me to continue on to middle school. In her eyes, it was better for me to marry young and start bringing in money.
Meanwhile, my brother’s grades were terrible, and my mother spent thousands each month on his tutoring.
In the end, I offered to tutor him myself to save money.
I even promised that any money spent on my education would be treated as a loan, which I’d repay once I started working. Only then did my mom agree to let me keep studying.
When I went to university, I cut almost all contact with my family, except for sending money home every month.
For many, home was a place of warmth and comfort.
For me, it was a dark, suffocating place I had spent my whole life trying to escape.
Whenever I missed going home during the holidays, my mom would bombard me with angry calls. She would call me heartless and spread nasty rumors about me.
It wasn’t until I started sending money during winter and summer breaks that she finally eased up.
I had never truly felt loved as a child. Maybe that’s why I fell for Micah so easily the moment he showed me even a flicker of kindness.
When she saw the coldness in my eyes, my mom’s expression softened as if weighed down by unspoken pain.
“Tabitha…” she said, “I didn’t come here to ask for money. I heard you’re getting married and thought I’d bring you some gifts.”
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a bank card, hesitating before offering it to me.
“There’s 20 thousand dollars on it. It’s all I’ve been able to save over the years. I know it’s not much… but I hope you won’t refuse.”
I glanced down at the card but didn’t take it.
“We’ve long since severed ties. You don’t need to pretend to be a loving mother now. Just don’t come back.”
With that, I stepped past her and headed inside. Suddenly, she grabbed my hand. Her voice was breaking. “Tabitha, I know I was wrong… I won’t bother you again. This is just a little something from me. Please accept it!”
She forced the card into my hand. I frowned and shook it off without hesitation.
The card slipped to the floor, and she scrambled to pick it up. I watched her coldly, completely unmoved.
“Tabitha, I’m begging you. Just take it. I swear you won’t see me again!”
Her eyes were swollen and red, but all I could do was laugh bitterly.
“Do you honestly believe a simple apology now can undo all the pain and injustice I’ve carried? If I take this money, will you finally be at peace? Will you think I’ve forgiven you?
“I’m sorry, but forgiveness isn’t possible. If you truly regret what happened, then stay far away from me. Every time I see you, those wounds reopen. Don’t make me hate you.”
With those words, I turned away and shut the door behind me, refusing to look back.
How could she possibly understand?
A few empty acts of kindness couldn’t erase years of neglect and being cast aside.
A lone flicker of light couldn’t break through a lifetime of darkness—it would simply be swallowed whole.
Keeping my distance was the only way I could stop myself from falling apart all over again.
