Chapter 90
*25 BONUS
90
I stood there, speechless. I didn’t know what to say, let alone what could say.
I never thought things would spiral to this point. Every time Irvin accused me of needing to fare the “cnrisequences” of my actions, I could tell he believed I had done something horrible. And somehow, it always tied back to Juliane.
But I had always assumed it was a misunderstanding.
Julianne was a master manipulator, skilled at creating misunderstandings. She thrived on making Mom, Dad, and Jeremy believe I couldn’t tolerate her, that I wanted to harm het, or that I was jealous of her and wanted to take everything away from her.
Because of this, I had never paid much attention to Irvin’s accusations. I didn’t care if he misunderstood me—I didn’t want him anymore. He could believe whatever he wanted.
But now…
This was different.
No matter how real that video seemed, no matter how much it looked like me in the footage, I couldn’t believe I was capable of doing something so heinous.
Just as I was about to speak, Dad beat me to it. “Irvin, stop coddling her! Why are you even giving her a choice? She has no right to choose!”
His voice grew harsher, tinged with frustration.
“If you hadn’t stopped me two years ago if you’d let me report her to the police back then, we wouldn’t be dealing with this mess now!”
Two years ago?
The mention of that time triggered something in my memory. I thought of the diary entries I’d found, the ones I’d written before I lost my memory.
Two years ago, Irvin’s career skyrocketed. He’d gone from a struggling entrepreneur to one of the most powerful figures in the city , untouchable and admired.
I had thought we’d finally made it, that the hard times were behind us, and we could finally enjoy the fruits of our labor.
But just when I was ready to embrace the good life, Julianne had come back.
I remembered how Mom and Dad had forced me, back when I was entering high school, to give up my spot at the best school in Claudeville so Julianne could take it instead. Despite that, Julianne had failed miserably at her SAT, unable even to get into the
most basic state university.
Not wanting to tarnish her image as the perfect golden girl , my parents had spent a fortune to send her abroad to a prestigious private university. After graduating, she had chosen to stay overseas and never mentioned wanting to return home.
But then, just as Irvin’s business took off, she suddenly came back and just like that, she became the center of his world.
The good life I had dreamed of vanished before it even began. My days were consumed by torment, and every moment with Irvin felt like a punishment.
In my diary, I’d written a line that haunted me now–If I had left Irvin the moment I realized he and Julianne were childhood sweethearts, would I have avoided all this pain?
Yes, I had thought about leaving him.
It was during our first winter break together. I had discovered, by accident, that he and Julianne weren’t just acquaintances- they were childhood sweethearts. They had grown up together, inseparable, until Julianne’s parents died in a car accident when
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she was 15, and my family took her in.
Julianne had even saved Irvin’s life when they were kids.
The discovery shattered me. I didn’t want to be connected to Julianne in any way, let alone compete with her for someone’s affection.
At the time, I had resolved to break up with Irvin.
But then, tragedy struck. Irvin’s mother passed away unexpectedly and his father, in a cruel twist, kicked him out of the house. He lost everything–his status, his family, his security.
I remember the night he came to me, drunk and broken, clinging to me like I was his last lifeline. He even fold me I was all he had left.