His s*x Tape Exposed, I Leave Him

Chapter 8

The wooden bathroom door burst open from the inside, slamming hard into the adjacent wall.

A deafening crash rang out.

Chris came bursting out, Kaye wrapped limp in his arms, her whole body soaked through with blood. His face was deathly pale, twisted with raw panic, and he ran for the exit like a man possessed. Not once did he glance in Rose's direction, even though she stood just a few feet away.

The two rushed straight to the hospital as fast as they could, but even so, they were already too late.

When the doctor stepped out of the operating room, he looked at the two anxious people waiting, shook his head in exasperation, and scolded, "You young people can't even control yourselves long enough to show some restraint. Her pregnancy was already unstable to begin with, and you go and push her this hard. You lost the baby, and now her body's seriously damaged."

The words barely left his mouth before Kaye's eyes flooded red. Tears burst out in hot, rushing waves, and she choked out in a ragged whisper, "That was… our first baby…"

Guilt gnawed at Chris' chest. He lifted a hand and wrapped it gently around her, murmuring soft comfort against her hair, "Don't cry. It's okay. We can have another one, I'll be right here with you."

Rose, hidden in the shadow of the hallway corner, watched every second of that warm, searingly painful scene unfold before her eyes. A dense, throbbing ache spread through her chest, so intense it went completely numb, leaving nothing but a cold, hollow void where her heart used to be.

Kaye swiped at her tears, then peeked up at Chris with a timid, shaky gaze, "This is all my fault. It's all my fault."

"It's not your fault." Chris' voice was soft, thick with indulgence and aching pity.

Rose stepped slowly out of the shadows, moving to stand right in front of them.

The second Chris spotted her, his face drained of color in an instant. A flash of panic and crippling guilt darted across his eyes before he could hide it.

He pulled away from Kaye immediately and hurried a few steps forward, trying his best to smooth over his jittery panic, "Rose? What are you doing here?"

Before she could even open her mouth to answer, he was already rushing out a clumsy explanation, "Kaye got sick out of nowhere, she started hemorrhaging badly. I had to bring her here first. Don't overthink this."

Kaye immediately dropped her gaze, putting on her best act of weak, helpless innocence. She whispered softly, "I'm sorry, Rose. This is all my fault. Don't blame Chris."

Watching the two of them perform this little two-man act together, Rose couldn't believe how absurd and laughable the whole thing was.

She shook her head slowly, her voice completely flat and steady. "It's fine. I understand."

No accusations, no anger, no hurt feelings. Her complete, utter lack of emotion was so unnatural it set anyone on edge.

She turned to leave, but Chris snagged her wrist in a harsh, sudden grip.

"Rose, I need you. Stay with me, okay?" His voice shook with a barely hidden panic. "I'm a mess right now."

Rose pulled her hand back coolly, her voice ice-cold and distant. "Kaye can stay with you. I'll go home first. We have the wedding tomorrow. I can't afford to mess up the big day."

Chris stared at her cold, detached face, and his panic only grew worse. He whispered his thanks, "Thank you, Rose. You're always so understanding and considerate. Don't worry, as soon as I finish up here, I'll head straight home to you."

But that night, he never came home at all.

Late that night, a private detective sent Rose a secretly recorded video from the hospital, along with the full audio clip.

In the video, Kaye leaned back against the hospital bed, a weak, drained Kaye curled into Chris' embrace, with her best friend lingering off to the side.

The friend spoke softly, thick confusion lacing every word, "You really plan to lie low after you recover, then move abroad, and have another kid for Chris? Aren't you scared Rose will find out and blow everything up, break up with him for good?"

Kaye brushed her fingertips lightly over her stomach, a stubborn, obsessive glint in her eyes.

Her voice was soft but unshakable, "Rose will never find out. Once I have another child for him, I'll finally settle everything between me and him. Then I'll step away on my own, and I won't disturb his life with Rose ever again. This baby is what I owe him, and this baby is my last memento of what we had."

The friend couldn't help but sigh in disbelief, "You're completely insane. For Chris, you'd even film private s*x tapes for that kind of website? Aren't you scared you'll ruin your entire reputation if it gets leaked?"

Kaye let out a soft sigh, a dark longing and unwilling resignation glinting in her eyes. "I held back for so long, never dared to cross the line. But once I got a taste of what it's like to be with him... I could never let go again. I know Rose is perfect. Everyone thinks Chris and her are made for each other. But I'm the only one who knows the truth. When Chris's with me, he's actually relaxed. He's actually happy."

Her friend still didn't get it. "But years ago, Chris donated a kidney to save Rose's life! He risked his own life to protect her. Anyone can see he's crazy about her. Do you really think you can ever take her place?"

Kaye fell silent for a long moment. Then she slowly spoke, finally spilling a secret she'd buried deep for years.

"At first, I never even dared to hope I could have him. If Rose hadn't asked me to go to the company to keep Chris company for her, I would never have worked up the nerve to get close to him, not in a million years. There was this work dinner once. A client slipped something into Rose's drink. He had bad intentions. I saw Rose helpless over there, I saw Chris next to me, none the wiser... and against my own better judgment, almost like something was pulling me, I picked up that glass and drank it for her.

"The second the drug kicked in, I knew it. The peaceful, steady balance between the three of us was shattered forever. That night, I lost control and went to him first. And from that moment on, I fell completely and hopelessly in love with him, and I could never pull myself out again. I know I'm selfish. I know I'm cruel. But I can't help how I feel. Chris can give Rose a name, a wedding, the whole world's love and devotion. But I have nothing. All I ask for is one child, something to tie him and me together, something that's just ours."

A flicker of loneliness and regret crossed her face. "If I'd met him first, maybe... things would have ended differently."

The recording cut out, and the video froze on her face.

Rose stared at the screen, not moving a muscle for the longest time. The last faint, fragile little bit of hope she'd clung to in her heart crumbled completely to ash.

All the things she'd held onto for all these years, gratitude, obligation, patience, swallowing her pride to step back, none of it mattered. It had all just been one big, stupid joke.

Then, in the dead of night, the sound of a key turning in the front door echoed through the quiet apartment.

Chris tiptoed into the bedroom, the faint scent of hospital disinfectant clinging to his clothes. He leaned down and wrapped his arms gently around Rose where she lay in bed.

"Rose, I'm sorry I kept you waiting so long."

Rose lay perfectly still, letting him hold her. Dead emptiness filled her eyes, no trace of emotion left.

She lifted a hand and gently hugged him back, her voice soft and docile, just like always. "It's okay. You must be tired. Go to sleep early."

Before they went to bed, she heated a cup of milk for him with her own hands, and slipped a full dose of sleeping pills into it without a sound. It was exactly what he had done for her years ago, when he'd calmed her down after she'd had an emotional breakdown.

Suspecting nothing, Chris tilted his head back and drained the whole cup in one go. Then he pulled her close against his chest and mumbled sleepily, "Tomorrow, I'm going to give you the grandest wedding ever. I'll make you the happiest bride in the world."

Rose's lips curved into a faint, empty smile. There was no joy in it, only bone-deep, icy coldness that seeped straight to her soul.

"Okay. Go to sleep."

Once he was fully under, his breath deep and steady, Rose carefully pulled her hand free from his grip. She got out of bed and packed every last one of her belongings into a suitcase.

Dragging her small rolling case behind her, she slipped out into the dead of night and headed straight to the hospital, straight to the ward where Kaye was staying.

When Kaye saw Rose show up in the middle of the night, she froze in shock for a second before a flicker of wariness and panic darted across her eyes.

Rose's face was perfectly calm. No anger, no accusations.

She just said evenly, "I have already fixed the arrangements with the wedding planner. Tomorrow, the bride will be you."

Kaye's pupils blew wide with shock, her entire face frozen in disbelief.

A few seconds later, wild, overwhelming ecstasy surged into her eyes. The corner of her mouth tugged up before she could stop it, and the smug glee of a victor shone through as she gushed, "Rose, thank you! Thank you so much for letting us have this! This is the best ending for all three of us, really."

Rose stood there quietly, staring at her. Finally, she asked the last question that had been gnawing at her heart, the one she'd never been able to make sense of for all this time.

"If you two are so in love, why did you film those private videos for that website?"

Kaye froze for a beat when she heard the question, then let out a low, mocking snort, her eyes holding a touch of mockery and unbridled boldness.

"You really don't know? When Chris is with you, he's always holding back, always in control, always putting on that polished, polite act. You're too prim, too cold. He can never truly let go around you. But I'm different. I can be crazy with him, I can be wild with him, I can give into all his dark, hidden cravings he'd never dare mention to anyone else. He approved those videos. He wanted them. The kind of raw pleasure you can never give him? I give him all of that. Rose, just admit it. You've been the best at everything since we were kids. Everyone always loved you more… but when it comes to Chris's heart, I've always been the one who won."

Those words drove a freezing cold blade straight through Rose's already tattered and hole-ridden heart. It brought the sharpest humiliation, the most burning shame… and in that same blow, it left her completely, brutally clear-headed.

Rose stared at her steadily. The sweet little girl who'd once protected her, cared for her, and always let her have her way in everything was gone, vanished without a trace.

Years had slipped by, the world had turned, and her heart had changed completely.

The last tiny scrap of reluctance and stubborn longing in Rose's chest dissolved into thin air, gone for good.

Right as she turned to walk away, Kaye called out to her.

"We promised when we were little, we'd never miss the most important moments in each other's lives." Her voice oozed the smug pride of a victor as she went on. "Even if you don't stay for the wedding, I'll send you the photos. I want you to see us get our happy ending with your own eyes."

Rose gave a soft, dry laugh. There was no resentment, no pain in her gaze, nothing but faint pity.

"Don't bother. I hope you get what you want, and never regret what you've done for the rest of your life."

Once the words left her mouth, she hefted her suitcase, turned, and strode away, never looking back.

The night pressed in thick and dark, and a cool breeze stirred through the air.

After years of tangled love and hate, she bowed out gracefully, leaving them to have each other at last.