It was supposed to be a happy night. Twinkling stars adorned the night sky. The guests filled the engagement party held beside the swimming pool of a five-star hotel. After the private proposal Jake had made three months ago, tonight he would finally announce their engagement publicly. Many of the guests came from the upper class, especially colleagues and business partners of Corner Corp.
Caroline's face was radiant. Her eyes shone with immense happiness. Caroline had loved Jake her whole life. She had given him everything she had because she believed she would receive as much as she had given. The sleeveless red dress hugging her body made her look incredibly sexy. Her breasts and buttocks had perfect curves, with every bit of fat gathered in all the right places.
Caroline gazed at Jake, a sweet smile adorning her lips. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the twenty-five-year-old man speaking up front. Jake looked incredibly dignified in his black suit.
“On this joyous night, I'd like to introduce a woman who has successfully stolen my heart. A woman who has accompanied me through all these years. A woman with whom I've decided to build a new family. I feel so blessed to be the man she loves. We have a simple dream: to have two children and watch them grow up together.” Jake spoke without looking at Caroline even once.
Caroline felt incredibly nervous, her heartbeat erratic. Her chest pounded wildly, and her legs trembled slightly. She had never felt this nervous in her entire life. At last, she was going to marry the man she loved so deeply, be acknowledged by him, and be invited to spend the rest of her life with him. She felt like the luckiest woman in the world.
“Emily, let me ask you one more time. Will you marry me?” Jake asked with a sweet smile on his lips. He looked at the woman in the maroon dress standing not far from him.
Emily smiled shyly, gave a small nod, and stepped toward Jake. They looked perfect together. Though she wasn't as beautiful as Caroline, Emily looked incredibly charming and captivating.
Caroline froze where she stood. All she knew was that Jake would propose to her in front of everyone tonight, so why was another woman's name being called forward? For a few moments, Caroline felt as though her heart had stopped beating.
“Jake, what about me?” After forcing herself to stay strong, Caroline finally managed to say those words. Her eyes burned as she stared at the man before her.
“What’s wrong with you?” Jake put on an expression as if he had no idea what she meant.
“You said you were going to marry me. What are you doing now? Is this some kind of joke? Why are you proposing to another woman at our engagement party?” Caroline's voice trembled, showing just how deep the pain she felt was. Her eyes brimmed with tears as she stared at the man before her.
“Are you kidding? How could I possibly marry a woman from a poor family? Do you think I don't know that your family went bankrupt last month? All that's left is a mountain of debt. I don't want to spend my life helping pay off your parents' debts.”
“You can't dump me just because my parents went bankrupt.”
“Of course I can. There are plenty of women who want to marry me. Look at you—you came here wearing nothing but that cheap outfit!” Jake pointed at her arrogantly.
Caroline let out a faint laugh. She couldn't believe Jake could be so cruel to her. All this time, Jake had treated her with such tenderness. She had known him as a gentle and responsible man. Who could have imagined that he would abandon her so easily just because her family had become poor?
“Oh, right. Return the ring I gave you.” Jake stepped closer and snatched the diamond ring from Caroline's ring finger. “I've asked you repeatedly to return this ring, but you never would. You wanted to keep it because you knew it was expensive, didn't you? This is a family heirloom worth ten million dollars. Thank goodness it wasn't lost while it was in your hands. You couldn't afford to repay its value even with your life.” Jake spoke harshly, then walked over to Emily.
Caroline truly couldn't believe that the happy night she had been waiting for had turned into the night she hated most. She had thought it would be the happiest night of her life, but instead, she had been humiliated.
“I'm sorry I made you wait so long to get this ring.” Jake spoke gently to Emily. He slipped the ring onto Emily's ring finger. A roar of applause from the guests followed.
Caroline could only stand there in silence. Her legs felt stiff, as though both feet had been rooted to the spot. She desperately wanted to leave, but all her strength suddenly abandoned her.
Jake and Emily kissed passionately amid the guests' thunderous applause and whistles. No one cared about Caroline's feelings at all. Everyone was happy—everyone except Caroline.
Caroline felt as though her chest had been stabbed a thousand times. The lips she used to kiss were now kissing another woman. The arms that used to circle her waist were now wrapped around another woman's waist. Caroline was completely shattered. She felt as though life no longer had any meaning.
“Are you going to keep standing here and watch our happiness? Aren't you ashamed? You don't belong here.” Emily spoke arrogantly to Caroline. She kissed Jake's lips again, deliberately fanning the flames of Caroline's pain.
“She really has no shame. Does she think she deserves to stand beside the Corner family?”
“Does she think she can marry into the Corner family just because she's pretty?”
“There are so many poisonous women these days who want to get rich overnight by marrying into wealthy families. She really has no shame.”
Caroline heard the vicious comments from the guests. They trampled her dignity even further. The longer she stayed, the more insults she would have to endure.
“Go home and get back into the arms of your poor family!”
“Don't ever dream of becoming part of the Corner family!”
The jeers cut even deeper into Caroline's heart. She wanted to cry, but her tears were too precious to waste on a piece of trash like Jake. Caroline turned around and half-ran, desperate to leave the party. She was too lost in her thoughts to pay much attention to where she was stepping. Without realizing it, Caroline fell into the pool, which was three meters deep. She couldn't swim, and wearing a dress made it even harder for her to move.
“Help! I can't swim!” Caroline struggled to call for help. She gasped desperately as water filled her mouth and nose. She fought with all her strength to get out of the pool, but she couldn't. The water continued to splash as Caroline thrashed and kicked, trying to keep her head above the surface so she could breathe.
Everyone there simply laughed as they watched Caroline fall and struggle because she couldn't swim. They were delighted to have free entertainment.
“Hel—p.” Caroline grew weaker and weaker. She kept trying to reach the surface, but her strength steadily ran out. In the end, she stopped struggling. All she could do was surrender, preparing herself to die that very night.