My parents wanted me to marry one of my three childhood sweethearts, but they all refused me.

The bad boy, Cedric Shaw, glanced at me dismissively, "I prefer someone more docile. She? No way."

The cute guy, Oliver Finch, shook his head. "I can only see Jennie as my sister."

The straight-A student, Blake Aston, said coldly, "She's too reckless and dumb, not suitable to be my wife."

They tore me down without hesitation, while my parents sat there forcing awkward smiles.

I was completely disheartened.

So I told my parents, "Mom, Dad, I have a boyfriend now."

***

Cedric had his sleeves rolled up, one arm lazily slung over the back of the chair, sitting with a cocky slouch.

He was chatting and laughing with Oliver.

Blake, meanwhile, was staring at his phone.

His long fingers casually swiped across the screen, and the glare of his glasses made him look even colder and more aloof.

My parents were trying to smooth things over with nervous laughter, but none of the boys were really listening.

The room suddenly fell silent until I said that sentence.

Cedric and Oliver turned to look at me at the same time.

Blake also raised his head with a deep gaze.

I ignored all of them.

Instead, I looked at my stunned parents and said, "You should've told me this was about marriage earlier. That way we wouldn't have made such a mess of it.

"They're right.

"Although we knew each other when we were children, I only see them as friends, no romantic feelings."

My parents hadn't told me this was a matchmaking dinner because they were afraid I'd be too embarrassed to show up.

They planned it carefully.

Their chosen candidate was Oliver. He was two years younger than me, adorable and lively, and rarely argued with me.

But I didn't know why the other two guys also came.

I was a bit annoyed they'd kept this from me.

But more than that, I felt hurt and bitter.

Back when things weren't as bad for our family, my mom once asked me if I liked anyone.

I turned my face away and stayed silent.

She understood instantly.

Smiling, she asked if it was one of the three boys I grew up with.

I blushed and angrily stopped the topic.

My mom immediately understood. It must be one of them.

But then I got more guarded and hid my feelings well.

So my parents couldn't guess who I liked.

Then my dad's investments failed, and everything fell apart.

Our Glenn family went downhill fast, and the other three families gradually started distancing themselves from us.

My mom thought she should do something to help me.

Otherwise, I'd probably never confess my feelings because of my pride and stubbornness.

So she took a chance and planned this matchmaking dinner.

Although Oliver's parents didn't come, the sons of the Shaw family and the Aston family showed up.

My parents took the dinner seriously.

They opened up about our family's situation.

They said, if I had mutual feelings with any of the boys, marriage would be a wonderful thing.

If not, it was fine. We could just have a nice meal as friends.

They can treat this dinner as a casual gathering, and my parents wouldn't force anything.

But they didn't expect today's situation.

The three boys I grew up with rejected their daughter so harshly and so publicly.

Actually, I was used to it.

But watching my parents struggle to maintain their smiles, my heart was broken, and I felt a long-lost pain.

And in the end, I couldn't take it anymore. I had to stop them from humiliating us further.

Before my parents could ask what happened to me, I stood up, glanced around coldly, and said, "Doesn't seem like any of you really want to have this dinner."

"If that's the case, let's just get an end."

My parents went to get the car first.

I was about to follow when someone grabbed my arm from behind.

I turned and saw Cedric's displeased face.

He was wearing a white shirt casually, with a black low-cut T-shirt underneath.

His sexy collarbone was exposed, with two new diamond piercings. The style was fashionable yet rebellious, just like his personality.

He looked down at me with an ironic smile, "Haven't seen you for a while. Are you getting more irritable?

"Aren't you on a long vacation? Where did you find a boyfriend?

"How old is he? What does he look like? Do I know him?"

He fired off a series of sharp questions.

Each one seemed to show his concern.

But once I opened up, he would blink, mock me, and make harsh criticisms of me.

It happened many times.

I almost reacted immediately.

I shook off his hand and shouted uncontrollably, "It's none of your business!"

Cedric looked at his hand that was shaken off. He was a bit stunned.

He stopped smiling.

He frowned and stared at me, his expression getting more and more unpleasant.

Oliver poked his head out from behind Cedric.

He grinned, showing his sharp little canine teeth, "What's the big deal?"

He often spoke in a cute tone, making his words sound playful and mischievous.

It easily made people feel close.

But what he said was completely different.

"Oh no, Jennie, are you really dating another man?

"Wow, isn't it enough to have us?"

His smile deepened, staring at me with a teasing remark, "You're really promiscuous."

Oliver always said the three of them were my men.

It seemed like I was so promiscuous and special with such a high status.

But in our group of four, I was the one who tried hard to fit in.

I used to deceive myself.

Although they always teased me, looked down on me, and often found ways to make fun of me, I thought maybe it was normal for boys to do this.

Besides, they would also hang out with me, and when I was bullied by others, they would stand up for me.

After all, we grew up together.

I thought I was still special to them.

But I finally understood everything until that incident happened.

I was just a toy they could play with whenever they wanted.

I was a clown to entertain them when they were bored.

I met Oliver's gaze.

His lips were still curved, waiting for my reaction to his hurtful words.

But I just looked at him expressionlessly for a moment.

Then I turned and walked away.

I didn't take a few steps when another cold voice called out to me.

"When are you coming back to class?"

I paused, and I didn't turn around.

But I did respond to this normal question, "Maybe in a couple of days."

Then I heard Oliver click his tongue in annoyance.

He deliberately spoke loudly enough for me to hear.

"You're only willing to talk to him. Alright, you two dated before after all.

"But...

"You guys have been broken up for so long. Jennie, why are you still treating him differently?"

It was quite funny.

Among these three guys, Blake was the one who resisted and hated to marry me the most.

His words were the harshest. He said I was stupid, and he wouldn't marry someone like me.

But I dated him before.

It was even Blake who confessed his love to me first.

The wealth of the Shaw, Finch, and Aston families accumulated from generation to generation.

But our Glenn family was different. We became wealthy later.

To be precise, my dad caught the chance of the times early on.

From then on, we became rich and joined the circles of the top wealthy families.

But that was just on the surface.

Many people behind our backs mocked us.

They said we were just a newly rich family, not deserving to be in their circle.

We would return to our original circle sooner or later.

At that age, I was young and impulsive, ready to confront them.

It was my dad who stopped me. He spoke seriously, "If we want to truly establish ourselves, we have to get along with these people."

So, I endured them.

I started acting naive, trying to fit in with those rich boys and girls.

Later, I realized Cedric and the other two men's special status and always followed them from elementary school through middle school.

I went from being ostracized to gradually being accepted by them.

Until I entered the university.

I was initially guided by my dad, so my intentions to get close to them weren't pure.

But over the years, I genuinely considered them my best friends.

Until my dad's investment failed and the stock market crashed, they began to distance themselves from me.

I was confused at the beginning, but I gradually understood everything.

In fact, our positions were unequal from the beginning.

This time, I didn't try to please them anymore.

Instead, I went to school as usual, adapting to a life without them.

Then, I was kidnapped.

When a group of people cornered and extorted me, I was still stunned.

I recognized there were a few friends among them who usually got along well with me.

So I found it hard to believe they would target me.

I even thought they were joking with me.

I smiled and said if they needed money, I could lend it to them.

But they asked for an amount I couldn't afford.

Then I realized they were serious.

All my valuable things were taken by them.

I was locked up for two days without any food or drinks.

I heard them discussing that they didn't dare to directly extort my parents, so they planned to sell me.

I felt a sense of absurdity and despair welling up inside.

It was like seeing a group of kids with knives claiming they were going to kill someone.

I found it funny because of their young age.

But I also found it dangerous because of their serious expressions and sharp knives in their hands.

Yet that funny feeling disappeared when they stripped me and took my naked photos.

It turned into chilling coldness and fear.

I tried to curl up, cursing and threatening them wildly.

But everyone could see my bluff and fear.

There was a guy named Dylan James, who used to be my friend.

He crouched down and sighed.

He reached out his hands to touch me, saying, "Jennie, forgive me.

"Actually, I really like you. I didn't want to do this..."

His words turned into a scream.

I used all my strength to bite his finger.

I almost bit his finger off.

The group fell into chaos, trying to stop me.

Just then, the warehouse door opened.

A beam of light shone in, illuminating the entire dark and old warehouse.

At the entrance stood a tall figure with his back to the light.

He stood there, filling my vision.

It was Blake.

After I was rescued that day, I didn't dare to go out for a long time.

Friends betrayed me without warning, and they suddenly kidnapped me.

They took off my clothes and took many photos of me without any respect for me.

These all left a dark shadow and painful marks in my heart.

My mental condition was about to be crushed.

During that time, Blake stayed by my side. He used to be cold and distant.

I never saw him being so gentle and patient.

He took good care of me.

Blake seemed to sense my despairing mood.

He wasn't talkative, but he started finding topics to chat about with me every day.

I lived in his private apartment.

Blake helped me get time off from the university and helped me hide it from my parents.

He used his connections to teach Dylan and those guys a lesson privately.

He even tried hard to hide the whole thing from his closest friends, Cedric and Oliver.

Blake didn't reveal any information about this incident.

He didn't let anyone bother me or trigger my trauma.

He was like a cold rain turning into a warm mist.

Blake quietly wrapped me in his protective embrace.

His maturity and reliability made me slowly open up. I couldn't help but rely on him.

Eventually, I couldn't hold back.

With hope and anxiety, I asked Blake, "Why...why are you so good to me?"

I still remembered that moment.

Blake was in casual home clothes, sitting on the floor with me.

He had his sleeves rolled up, showing his strong arms, his fingers playing with a pen.

His glasses were off, and a few strands of black hair fell over his forehead. He looked a bit lazy.

When Blake looked at me, he was very gentle.

He answered with a question.

With a slight smile, he asked me, "Do you want to be with me?"

It was like an arrow hitting my heart.

I fell into his rare yet extremely tempting gentleness.

I had no reason to refuse.

With Blake's care, I slowly got out of the shadow and became cheerful again.

Looking back now, I still felt a bit dazed.

Blake seemed indifferent, but he was very dominant inside.

During the time I dated him, Cedric was forced to keep a distance from me.

Oliver also had to speak politely to me.

Even if I had the slightest discomfort, Blake took it seriously.

I was so happy that I almost fell for him.

I even imagined countless times what kind of wedding dress I'd wear when I married him.

But Blake was pretending.

He was acting.

Everything he gave me was fake.

I would never forget that day.

I cooked for the first time. My hands were full of cuts, and I failed many times.

I made a table full of dishes, eighteen in total.

Just because Blake said he wanted to taste my cooking at his birthday party.

The doorbell rang.

I opened the door, expecting his compliments.

Instead, I got laughter.

Strange laughter.

A group of people laughed at me mercilessly.

Oliver held his stomach, laughing so hard. He couldn't even stand up.

Cedric was smirking and whistling, recording me with his phone. I was in an apron, holding a frying pan, looking completely awkward and lost.

Blake leaned lazily against the door, casually looking at everything inside with a light smile.

He was like a confident player, calmly enjoying his winning moment.

"Didn't expect our proud Ms. Glenn to be a housewife.

"Fortunately, our bet was only for a month. Otherwise, Blake, she might really be willing to have your baby! Hahaha.

"Interesting. Next time it should be my turn."

When Cedric said this, he paused.

He glanced back at me.

Then, with a shrug, he turned without a word.

Cedric smirked, "She heard it. Alright. Next time, let's try something new."

I stood there for a long time.

An extreme coldness grew from my feet, spreading all over my body.

I had trouble swallowing, like a knife in my throat.

Then I trembled.

I couldn't stop the slight shaking.

I turned my eyes, silently looking at the farthest Blake.

My lips trembled as I opened them.

I wanted to ask him, "Is this real?"

When I asked why you were so good to me before, you didn't answer me.

I finally knew the reason today.

But after more than a month together, didn't you have a bit of affection for me, not even a little guilt?

Blake and I looked at each other for three seconds, and his smile faded.

Then, he calmly shifted his gaze.

I slowly closed my mouth.

No need to ask, no need to humiliate myself.

I understood his answer.

I thought I would cry.

I thought I would cry my heart out and drown them all in tears.

Then I could watch them panic, and scramble around.

But I couldn't cry.

My throat ached, my heart pounded, and I felt cold all over.

But my eyes were dry, and no tears came out.

I couldn't say a word.

I stood quietly among them.

I was surrounded by their mocking laughter. That laughter was like sharp knives.

When they laughed enough, they slowly stopped.

They started to wonder about my strange frozen reaction like I was dead.

Then I let out a breath lightly.

My voice was very hoarse.

I said to them, "Let's end our friendships."

After that day, I took time off from the university.

Soon, my dad's reputation and business took a nosedive.

But he was not willing to give up. He always thought he could win the money back.

So the situation of my family got worse and worse.

If it wasn't for my mom holding on to some money, and not letting my dad touch it, I might not even be able to afford my tuition fee.

We moved out of the wealthy neighborhood.

I sold all my luxury items, including my motorcycle, piano, and luxurious watches.

Seeing the increasing balance in my bank account, my anxiety eased a bit.

Besides that, I also asked my boyfriend, Louie Harrison, to help persuade my dad.

Louie was smart. He successfully started his own business early in high school.

He was better at handling business matters than I was.

I felt no burden asking him.

The first day I went back to class, Louie's driver came to pick me up from my new home in the suburbs.

I sold the car, but my quality of life didn't drop.

At the gate of the campus, Louie gently opened the car door for me, ready to hold my hand.

Suddenly, a loud roar came from afar.

I heard a sharp tire screech sound.

Cedric pulled up on his cool black motorcycle and took off his helmet.

He swaggered over with a dark face.

He stared at Louie's hand holding mine.

Suddenly, Cedric smashed his helmet over.

Louie and I were forced apart.

Before I could get angry, Cedric sneered at me, "This is your new boyfriend? Your taste is really off.

"When did you hook up with him behind our backs?"