Crashing My Wife's Fake Engagement

After taking connecting flights through three different countries, I finally landed—only to receive an invitation to my wife's wedding. The groom wasn't me. Right outside the airport terminal, I ran into a bunch of my old high school classmates. "Cole? Wow, haven't seen you in years. Down on your luck, aren't you? By the looks of it, you just finished an Uber Eats shift, huh?" "Tonight is Brandon's engagement party. Perfect timing. Let's take this country bumpkin to see what high society actually looks like!" It took me a second to remember who Brandon was. Our old class president. Tonight was his engagement party. He had invited all our old classmates, including me, but they hadn't been able to reach me. I never imagined running into them here. "Sorry. I'm busy. Not coming." I had no interest in their superficial, pointless networking, so I politely declined. "Busy doing what? Busting your ass all day for pocket change? Makes sense. Not everyone can make it big like Brandon." "Brandon's fiancée is the CEO of Apex Global, you know! She's worth billions! Tonight is probably the only chance in your pathetic life to see someone at that level!" "All that studying back then, and what did it get you? You're still nothing compared to Brandon!" Basking in the crowd's praise, Brandon spoke up, acting magnanimous. "Cole, everyone used to say you had a bright future. Doesn't look like it panned out. But hey, we're old classmates. I don't hold grudges." "Make sure you come to my engagement party tonight!" Without giving me a choice, he shoved an invitation into my hand. When my eyes landed on the address, I froze. Twelve Clearwater Bay? Isn't that the luxury villa I bought on a whim just to relax? Then Brandon pulled out his phone and flashed a photo in front of my face. In the picture, a couple leaned intimately against each other. The woman was wearing an exquisite gown, smiling radiantly. Her silhouette matched the lock screen on my phone down to the finest detail. My heart lurched. "Serena?" Brandon seemed surprised by my reaction. He stared at me for a second, then smirked with condescending pity. "Well, she's the CEO of Apex Global. Guess it's normal for a nobody like you to know her name." Except Serena was already married to me! Look at her go. Holding a marriage certificate with me in one hand, while turning around to be someone else's fiancée with the other. "Too bad for you. Serena is crazy in love with me," Brandon scoffed. Right in front of everyone, he tapped open two voice memos Serena had sent him. That sweet, breathy voice echoed among the group. "Babe, work is so crazy today. Take care of yourself, okay? If you get sick, I'll be worried sick." "I made some warm soup for you. Don't forget to drink it. Love you tons, sending you big kisses!" No matter how much I wanted to lie to myself, I couldn't deny it. That was my wife's voice. And right now, she was whispering sweet nothings to another man. She was even about to throw an engagement party with him. How the hell was I supposed to swallow this? Wear a bright green cuckold hat and smile like nothing was wrong? Seeing me stand there in stunned silence, the others piped up again. "What's the matter? Did you realize our class president's fiancée is your dream girl and get completely shattered? A toad dreaming of swan meat." "Go look in a mirror. A broke loser like you? A woman like that wouldn't look at you twice!" Brandon waved his hands, suddenly putting on the act of a benevolent leader. He cleared his throat and patted my shoulder patronizingly. "Cole, we go way back. I know times are tough for you." "I really want everyone to witness my happiest moment. Tell you what—come bus tables and serve food for us tonight. I'll pay you a thousand bucks." "That's gotta be worth several days of grinding for you, right?" "Damn, Brandon is so generous! Hurry up and thank him, Cole! A grand for one night? You couldn't make that much on the streets. Only Brandon would be this charitable..." "Honestly, two or three hundred would've been more than enough. If he weren't an old classmate, you wouldn't even get that..." The hangers-on chimed in, grabbing my arm to shove me forward. I almost thought they were going to force me to kneel and bow to him. Brandon yawned, saying he needed to get ready for tonight's party and didn't have time to waste on me. He turned and walked away. Right after, my phone buzzed wildly in my pocket. Serena had sent a barrage of messages. "Hubby, I'm going on a trip with my bestie for a little while. Take care of yourself on your business trip abroad!" "If you get sick, I'll worry myself to death." "I told our housekeeper to make you some nutritious soup when you get back. I already left your favorite tea blends in the usual spot." "Don't miss me too much, hubby. Mwah!" She thought I was still abroad on business. She had no idea I had already flown back and taken a day off to surprise her. Serena's voice sounded the same as always. Playful, sweet, and clingy, with that subtle charm that made it impossible to stay mad at her. If I hadn't just heard Brandon bragging with her identical voice notes, I would have sworn she loved me with all her heart. The wording was almost identical. The tone was the exact same. Serena, did you ever actually love me? We met five years ago. Dated for three. We only got married recently. Whenever I was exhausted from work, she would quietly bring me a cup of warm tea and gently massage my temples. When my chronic gastritis flared up and put me in the hospital, she would spend hours meticulously brewing light, soothing soups to nurse my stomach back to health. She talked with me whenever I was down. She remembered every single one of my picky little habits. Serena kept my personal life running smoothly and effortlessly. I used to believe that real love hid in those casual, everyday moments. Deep in the tiny details, felt with the heart. Until today. Everything that just happened ripped the veil right off. Serena, I want to hear the truth straight from your mouth. I looked into the distance. Brandon was strutting away, surrounded by his sycophants like a peacock spreading its feathers. "Serena... CEO of Apex Global?" "How come I never heard about that?"That evening. I had my driver pick me up right on time and take me to Twelve Clearwater Bay. The venue for Brandon's engagement party. I bought this villa a year ago. I loved the secluded layout and the prestigious location—quiet, private, undisturbed. Perfect for unwinding. I bought it thinking Serena and I would eventually move in together. Because of work, though, I rarely came here. I just hired professional cleaning staff to come by every month to maintain the place. Whenever I bought rare, exotic plants, I'd have them shipped here to be tended carefully. They were my prized collection, after all. The black executive SUV rolled smoothly into the gated community. The security guard nodded respectfully at me. From a distance, I noticed the flashy decorations plastered across the villa exterior. Two massive banners stood right at the gate, featuring a giant photo of Serena and Brandon making out. Serena looked radiantly happy and lost in the moment. The sight plunged another dagger straight into my chest. Brandon stood in the center wearing a sharp black suit. Before I even reached the gate, I could hear his bootlickers gushing around him. "You've peaked in life, man! You're insane—bagging the female CEO of Apex Global herself! Do you know how jealous everyone is?!" "Brandon, I called it back in high school. You were always destined for greatness. Look at you now, half of Apex Global is basically in your pocket!" "Remember back then, everyone praised Cole for his grades? Said he'd make something of himself. What a total joke." Brandon couldn't wipe the smug grin off his face. Waving casually, he pulled a thick stack of hundred-dollar bills from his pocket and tossed them into the air. The others immediately bent down to scramble for the cash, piling on the praise: "That's our boy Brandon!" "Pocket change for you is rent money for the rest of us!" "Apex Global's CEO is already wrapped around your finger, so the whole company is basically yours! Let me be the first to call you President Vance!" Brandon's grin grew even more nauseatingly arrogant. It made me want to throw up. I even spotted our former class representative—the guy who used to despise Brandon the most, the one who trash-talked him constantly. Right now, he was bowing his head, lightly slapping his own cheeks in front of Brandon. "I was blind back then, Brandon. Total idiot. I thought that loser Cole actually had potential. Look at him now—a complete bum." "Probably doing food deliveries just to survive." His face was contorted into the most groveling, repulsive smile imaginable. Completely shameless, pouring out one flattering line after another. Hearing them constantly bring up Serena's title, a realization suddenly hit me. When I first brought her into Apex Global, I only gave her light, administrative tasks. She had worried I was a workaholic who neglected his health and begged to work closer to me. She knew nothing about high-level business operations or corporate politics. I never intended to put that kind of pressure on her. Then came an emergency. My executive assistant was stuck out of town on an assignment and couldn't make it back in time. The rest of the leadership team was tied up in a critical department summit. So I let Serena handle a few routine matters for me. To my surprise, she actually did a decent job. I saw potential in her. Letting her just serve tea and remind me to eat lunch felt like a waste of her talent. After asking for her input, I had senior executives mentor her, training her on our core operations to sharpen her skills. Over time, she proved herself competent. I gradually felt comfortable handing over small, manageable business lines to her. Maybe that was why she—or Brandon—somehow convinced themselves that she was the CEO of Apex Global, going around bragging about it. It made my blood run cold. I had tried to build her up, to give her confidence and independence. And this was how she repaid me! I stepped out of the car and walked toward the villa's main gate to enter. But Brandon saw me and slammed the heavy iron gate shut with a loud clatter. His voice filtered through the bars. "Cole, take the side entrance. The main gate is reserved for real guests..." "You're just here to bus tables. I don't want you ruining everyone's mood." I glanced over at the tiny side gate a few feet away, a bitter sneer spreading across my face. I knew exactly what that door was. It was a dog flap I had specially cut into the side wall because Serena loved dogs. He wanted me to crawl through a dog flap? A blatant, deliberate humiliation. "Hurry up and crawl in, Cole! The food's getting cold, and we're waiting for you to serve it!" "What are you acting so high and mighty for? Stepping foot inside Brandon's luxury villa is a privilege you couldn't earn in eight lifetimes!" "Seriously, don't kill the vibe. Brandon letting you in at all is pure charity!" Brandon stood behind the gate with his arms crossed. The corners of his lips curved upward in sheer amusement. He was dead certain I couldn't get in. Dead certain I'd have to swallow my pride and crawl through the dog flap. Too bad for him. Crawling through a dog flap was never going to happen. I walked up to the main gate's smart lock and pressed my thumb against the scanner. *Beep.* "Fingerprint recognized. Welcome home." The locked iron gate swung open right in front of me. "How the hell did you get in?! Why do you have your fingerprint registered on this villa?!" "With your measly two-grand-a-month job, there's no way in hell you belong in this neighborhood! What kind of shady trick did you pull?!" Suspicious glares locked onto me. Every single one of them looked at me with venom, accusing me and throwing wild assumptions. My anger flared. Just as I turned ice-cold to shut them down, Brandon's booming voice rang out: "Cole... have you been sneaking around behind my back, trying to seduce my woman?!"His beady eyes darted back and forth. As if a sudden puzzle piece clicked in his head. "No wonder Serena told me not to drop by here randomly! Turns out she actually registered your fingerprint!" "What, you trying to play side piece here?!" This was obviously an ultra-exclusive luxury neighborhood. Brandon knew damn well that a supposed scrub like me couldn't possibly afford this place. The only logical explanation in his warped mind was that Serena had registered my fingerprint herself. He actually thought I was trying to steal his girl?! At that thought, rage shot straight to Brandon's head. He lunged forward and threw two hard punches straight at my face. "And here I thought you were just a harmless loser, Cole! You really have the balls to steal another man's woman?! Living in my girl's villa?!" "You shameless home-wrecking bitch!" I was caught off guard by the sheer absurdity of it. Steal his woman? Living in *his* woman's villa? First of all, pulling out the marriage certificate would prove Serena and I were legally husband and wife. Who was the actual homewrecker here wasn't even up for debate! Second of all... I bought this damn villa with my own money. The deed had my name on it. The biometric system was programmed with my fingerprint. Was there an issue with that? He was the delusional, illegitimate trespasser! Looking at Brandon's righteous, arrogant confidence, I almost laughed out loud. The other classmates looked back and forth with weird expressions. They glanced at me, then at Brandon, murmuring hesitantly: "Brandon, could this be a misunderstanding? Look at Cole's scrawny, broke face. Who would ever look at him twice?" "Yeah, I don't think your girl would have such terrible taste." Brandon scoffed, grabbed my hand, and slammed my thumb against the scanner again. The door chimed with another successful recognition chime. He roared furiously: "Serena told me she needed time before she could register my fingerprint!" "And this bastard is already in the system! Goddammit, if he's not a side piece, what is he?! If he didn't seduce Serena, why the hell would she give him access?!" The crowd was instantly convinced. They turned on me with righteous indignation, swarming to corner me with pointed fingers. A couple of them even spat on the ground near my shoes in disgust. "No wonder we couldn't reach him all these years. Turns out he's been hiding in the shadows being a kept boy!" "Seducing a taken woman. Disgusting." "Remember earlier at the airport? The second Brandon showed the photo, Cole blurted out her name. I thought it was weird back then..." "He knew her all along and was actively homewrecking! Society is full of trash like you—that's why everything is so messed up!" "Brandon!" I shoved off the hands grabbing at me, my eyes freezing over as I laid out the truth: "This is *my* villa! It's *my* fingerprint!" "You're the one who needs to get the hell out. You're the side piece!" Hearing that, Brandon laughed out of pure fury. He ordered two guys to shove me into the corner. His face twisted into a grotesque sneer, looking like he wanted to swallow me whole. "Your villa?" "Don't delude yourself into your own daydreams, you pathetic loser. Once a scrub, always a scrub." "If this is really your villa, watch me smash it to pieces." Brandon glanced around. He picked up a few heavy stones from the landscaping and hurled them straight into the decorative glass paneling. Shattered shards rained down, leaving massive holes. Then he stomped right over to the garden beds. "I'm warning you—those are newly cultivated hybrid species worth tens of millions. You can't even buy them on the market..." "Can you even afford to pay for that?!" I glared daggers at Brandon as he raised his boot toward my prized, rare botanical collection. "Oh, look at you!" Brandon sneered contemptuously, raising his chin to look down his nose at me with mocking pity. "Acting like it's real. You care about this place that much, huh?" "Then I'm definitely trashing it!" I quickly whipped out my phone, furiously dialing community security and property management. But before I could get two sentences out, someone snatched the phone from my hand. Brandon waved a hand at the classmates. Taking their cue, they grabbed whatever tools, shovels, and metal rods they could find from the lawn and began gleefully tearing the front courtyard apart. Several hands pinned me tightly against the wall. I couldn't move an inch. I had to watch helplessly as they completely destroyed my hard work. Old classmates showed no mercy. Desperate to kiss Brandon's ass, they wrecked the courtyard with sick enthusiasm. "Fucker actually claimed this was his house! Just a cheap gigolo spreading his legs, and you dare step on Brandon's toes?!" "Serena must have been blinded by his lies. We need to help Brandon blow off some steam. We can't let this punk act so cocky!" "You're all going to pay for this!" I snarled. *Slap!* Brandon struck me across the face, his patience completely gone. "Who the hell do you think you are? Making me pay?!" He pulled a permanent red marker from his pocket and scribbled large, crude letters right onto the stone pathway in front of the house: *Cole is a cheap whore who seduces other men's wives.* The bright red ink made the veins in my temples throb. I had never been anyone's side piece!Consumed by rage, I roared the words out loud. Brandon merely gave a mocking smirk. "Still won't accept reality until you hit rock bottom, huh? Open your pathetic eyes and look at who the real homewrecker is!" He grabbed my collar, choking me, and shoved his phone screen right into my face. Practically pressing it against my eyeballs. Without warning, pictures of Serena's bare, exposed skin flashed across the screen. I saw dozens of intimate photos in his camera roll. Holding each other in hotel suites, kissing in elevators, cuddling in bed... and worse. Doing *that*. Brandon proudly flashed the ring on his finger right in front of me. "Serena had this custom-made just for me. You've never seen anything this expensive, have you? And check out this watch..." I watched in cold horror as he pulled out one familiar item after another, using them as trophies to brag in front of me. Those were the sentimental gifts I had given Serena. Couple accessories we had picked out together. Anniversary presents I spent months looking for. And she had handed every single one of them to another man. My heart felt like it had plummeted into the depths of a frozen lake, turning numb and lifeless. The chilly evening breeze rustled through my hair. Almost like it was mourning how pathetic I was. What a sick joke. *Spit.* Brandon spat right in my face again. "Still want to show off in front of me? Serena just gave you a fingerprint pass, that's all. The one she truly loves is me. You've never seen luxury like this before, have you?" "You're disgusting, you know that? Out of all the things to do, you sold your body to be a homewrecker. Wonder what your dead parents would say if they saw you now..." Hearing him drag my parents into this was my breaking point. I couldn't take it anymore. Summoning every ounce of strength, I broke free from their grip and threw myself at Brandon, landing several solid punches right on his jaw. Seeing him get hit, the classmates swarmed me to defend him. Punches and kicks rained down on me like a storm. My tailored suit was ripped and covered in dirt. Pain shot through every inch of my body. The corner of my mouth tore, and my cheek swelled rapidly, sticky with blood. Brandon pinned my head against the stone and dragged the marker across my face, writing out four bold words: *I am a homewrecker.* "Hahaha, looks perfect on him!" "Suits a scumbag like him! Teach him a lesson so he never dares mess with Brandon's marriage again!" The classmates laughed hysterically, whipping out their phones to snap photos of my bruised, defaced face. I gasped for air. My eyes swept over every single face in that crowd. I memorized every one of them. You will pay for this. Suddenly, Brandon yanked open my collar. He noticed the small silver pendant resting against my chest and burst out laughing. "Oh? What's this? Is this your dead mom's ashes? You still wear this shit?!" With a cruel grin, he reached out to rip it off. "Today is Brandon's big engagement day! Why the hell did you bring such bad luck here? Gross, carrying someone's cremated ashes against your chest. Aren't you sick in the head?" I trembled violently with raw fury, my voice dropping to a guttural snarl: "Stop! Trash my house, call me a side piece—do whatever you want. But if you touch that pendant... you're dead!" I grabbed Brandon's wrist with a death grip, trying to stop him. My family had been poor. My father fell sick when I was little and passed away despite medical efforts. My mother raised me all by herself. During the cold winter nights when I stayed up studying, she would wash dishes at a diner late into the night just to afford fresh fruit for me, her hands chapped red and swollen from the freezing water. Countless times, I swore to myself that I would study relentlessly and make it big. I wanted to give my mom a good life. I never wanted her to suffer again. Yet right before my college entrance exams, she passed away quietly in her sleep. My mother had walked me through the darkest days of my life. All she left behind was a small urn of ashes. This pendant was the only piece of her I had left in this world. I couldn't let Brandon destroy it! I lunged forward with everything I had. But I was too late. Right in front of my eyes, Brandon yanked the chain with vicious force and slammed the pendant onto the stone pavers. The small capsule cracked open. Ashes scattered across the cold ground. Laughing maniacally, Brandon stomped his heavy leather shoe right onto the scattered ashes, grinding them into the dirt. "Brandon!" My vision turned completely red. My entire body shook so hard my lungs felt emptied of oxygen. I lost my mind. I threw myself on him, raining blows straight into his face. I broke his nose. Blood sprayed everywhere, mixing with snot and dirt. I pounded his eyes with relentless fury. *Thud!* The crowd finally realized Brandon was getting demolished and rushed in, kicking me savagely until I crashed to the ground. "I won't... let any of you get away with this..." One man couldn't fight off twenty. Curled up on the ground, bruised and bleeding, stars danced in my blurred vision. "You? You dare hit me?!" "Come on then! You think I'm scared of you?!" "I'd love to see how you make us pay! Look at you right now, beaten like a dog, unable to even move! Hahaha!" Brandon laughed through his bloody teeth. Suddenly, the front doorbell chimed. Outside the gates, a row of towering men in crisp black security uniforms stood in formation.