Chapter 4 He Lost Me Forever
978 Words
The day before the press conference, Damian's grandfather Harold Langston came to see me.
He brought two thin sheets of paper, yet both felt heavy enough to crush me completely. One was a divorce agreement between Damian and me. The other was a property transfer statement.
Harold let out a long sigh before speaking in a grave, measured tone. "Celeste, your brother did save Damian's father back then, but we both know how this marriage truly came about."
"Damian doesn't resent you out of respect for your brother's sacrifice. He already repaid the debt our family owed." His expression hardened slightly. "Please... let him go."
Then he handed me a black card. His words sounded polite, but beneath them lay authority that allowed no refusal.
"This money is enough for you to live comfortably for the rest of your life. Since the person Damian truly loves is Ella, you should leave with dignity."
Something inside me finally went completely silent. Even so, I still forced myself to ask one final question. "Does Damian know about this?"
Harold paused briefly before nodding slowly.
At that moment, I stopped hesitating. I signed my name. From then on, the Parker family and the Langston family became strangers.
*****
The day of the press conference arrived. Reporters flooded the entire venue, leaving only Ella and me backstage.
She smiled at me provocatively. "Five years ago, you ruined my life," she said softly. "And today, you'll finally get what you deserve. Public humiliation. Total disgrace."
I curled into the corner silently, too exhausted to argue anymore.
Mistaking my silence for weakness, she suddenly grabbed my hair viciously and leaned close to my ear.
"I should've left you to die in that riot zone," she hissed viciously. "I can't believe you survived and dragged me into this mess with you."
Her nails dug brutally into my scalp. "So what if you fought desperately to survive? In the end, wasn't I still able to steal your food whenever I wanted?"
Pain exploded across my head as her manicured nails tore through skin.
"You and your brother really are pathetic," she sneered. "Not trusted by your husband, forced to hand over your hair like this. Honestly, both of you deserved to die."
Then she tightened her grip even harder.
"Damian already told me he'll never forgive you," she whispered cruelly. "After all, you're the one who tore us apart."
"Celeste, stop overestimating yourself." Hatred twisted her expression beyond recognition. "No matter how hard you fight me, you'll always end up crawling around like a stray dog."
Blood from my torn scalp mixed with tears at the corners of my eyes until the pain blurred my vision completely. A surge of rage suddenly exploded inside my chest.
I shoved her away violently. "So what?" I snapped hoarsely. "The woman the world recognizes as Mrs. Langston is Celeste Parker, not Ella Sullivan."
Ella clearly hadn't expected me to fight back. Her expression twisted instantly with fury.
"Enjoy this while you can," she spat. "Your public execution is about to begin."
The moment the scissors were raised, countless camera flashes exploded across the stage.
Instantly, shattered corpses and blood-soaked streets flashed through my mind again. My emotions collapsed completely. I stumbled backward in terror, desperately trying to flee the stage.
"Don't come near me..."
The entire venue descended into chaos.
Down below, Damian immediately pulled the frightened Ella into his arms, gently wiping away the redness at the corners of her eyes while lowering his head to comfort her softly like she was some priceless treasure he couldn't bear to lose.
Meanwhile, for me, the woman who was legally his wife, he ordered the bodyguards to pin me to the ground.
Pain shot violently through my body. Damian's coldness hurt more than every beating I endured during the riots combined.
Even my lower abdomen began aching faintly. Almost instinctively, I curled into myself as cold sweat soaked through my body.
But Damian only assumed I was trying to escape responsibility again.
"What kind of stunt are you pulling now?" he snapped angrily. "I don't care what excuse you have. Today, your hair belongs to Ella."
He kept advancing toward me. And I kept retreating. Neither of us realized I was already standing at the very edge of the elevated stage.
One more step backward, and my body crashed violently onto the ground below. The sickening c***k of bone echoed through the venue.
Bruises bloomed across my skin almost instantly as swelling spread beneath the blood, while large pools of crimson slowly spread across the floor around me.
Pain surged through every inch of my body like thousands of steel needles piercing straight through flesh and bone.
Damian rushed toward me immediately. For the first time all day, genuine panic finally appeared on his face as he reached down, trying to carry me to the hospital.
But I collapsed weakly against the floor, breathing raggedly as I deliberately avoided his touch.
"I won't give her my hair..." I whispered weakly. "What if I give her my life instead?"
His expression froze completely.
Looking straight into his shaken eyes, I forced myself to raise a trembling hand and pull out the divorce agreement, along with the pregnancy report I had received that very morning.
"If I die here with the baby," I whispered weakly, "will that finally be enough for her?"
The moment Damian saw the blood soaking through the papers, his pupils contracted violently. The fury that had filled his face moments earlier vanished instantly, replaced by visible fear.
He stood frozen in place like stone, unable to move.
Tears filled my eyes as I smiled faintly.
"What are you pretending for?" I whispered. "Wasn't it you who asked your grandfather to bring me the divorce papers?"
"Damian Langston..." My voice trembled weakly. "This nightmare between us is finally over."
- Writer
