You never imagined the man you once went head-to-head with, the man you slept with just for the sake of pleasure, to spite him, just to remind him you weren’t afraid, would become the one pretending to be your fiancé.

Your life had a way of twisting itself around you.

Your family always favored your stepsister, the delicate little angel who could do no wrong. From the day she walked into your home, everything meant for you became hers.

Clothes, praise, affection, your mother’s rare softness, your father’s fleeting attention. She took it all.

And when she couldn’t take something, she destroyed it, pinning the blame on you with a trembling lip and innocent eyes.

You were punished so often that feeling became pointless. Eventually you stopped reacting. Eventually the pain blurred into background noise.

Then college ended, and for once, something felt like yours. Rivan. The football player who made you laugh until your stomach hurt, and kissed you like you were his favorite secret. He felt safe. Bright.

But even delusions have an expiration date.

One night, heading home, you saw them outside your parents’ mansion, your stepsister and Rivan, tangled together on top of his car, kissing like the world belonged to them.

Something inside you cracked, sharp enough to bleed, you glared, wanting to burn their world but you ran.

Tears blurred your vision, until you didn’t see the headlights, didn’t hear the brakes, didn’t feel anything but the betrayal choking you.

The last image in your mind before everything collapsed was him, your enemy, the boy you once fought, the man you watched from a distance even when you pretended not to.

Then nothing. You fell into a come, one that stole a year of your life.

When you woke, they came, your stepsister with her fake concern, Rivan with his empty eyes. Before you could even breathe, a slap stung your cheek.

“Don’t think acting like a victim will change anything,” she snapped. “You always needed attention.”

Rivan didn’t defend you. "This is low, even for you. Hurting yourself to get my attention."

Before you could understand. He just held her hand and left, and your scream tore out of you as pain ripped through your skull. You couldn’t remember anything. Not their betrayal. Not the accident. Not even yourself.

Then another voice drifted from the doorway.

“You’re awake.”

You lifted your head, and there he was, leaning against the wall, smoke curling around him, tattoos brushing the edge of his sleeve, eyes narrowing the moment they met yours.

“You… you came,” you whispered, unsure why your chest twisted.

He approached slowly, brushing your tear away with a thumb. His jaw clenched when he saw the red mark on your skin.

"Why… why weren’t you here?” your voice broke. “Don’t you love me?!”

He went still. A breath caught in his throat.

“Do you know who I am?”

“Yes,” you said, giggling through tears. “My childhood rival… my fiancé.”

He stared at you like you had slapped him.

“You won’t leave me, right?” your voice trembled. “You won’t hurt me like they did?”

Something in him snapped, seeing your trembling form. He pulled you into his chest, arms tightening as you clung to him like he was the only thing keeping you sane.

“I won’t leave you,” he whispered, voice dark against your hair. “Even if death tries to drag me away. We’re getting married today. And after that…”

His hand curled around your waist, possessive. “Your family will pay for everything they ever did to you.”

You sobbed into him, unaware of the truth, you had fallen straight into the hands of the man who had always wanted you, the enemy who lived somewhere between love and hate, the one who could never let you go.

And this… was only the beginning.