Chapter 4On the Day He Proposed, His First Love Returned to Crash the Wedding

From then on, Zachary started being a bigger part of my life. Even though I didn’t have many friends, someone was finally willing to talk to me. Somehow, he found out about my birthday and invited me to watch the sunrise together.

The morning light was golden, spreading warmth beneath my eyelids.

“Madeline, let me protect you from now on,” Zachary said with a smile, pulling out a small, delicate box from his backpack. Inside was a necklace engraved with our initials. The sunlight made everything feel magical, and Zachary’s ears turned a little red. He hugged me, his eyes filled with affection, and gently brushed his lips against mine.

That day, Zachary and I officially became a couple.

“Madeline!”

I snapped back to reality and saw a young, cheerful face waving at me. It was someone I didn’t know.

“How did you know I’m Madeline?” I asked, a bit puzzled since I had graduated a year or two ago.

“Madeline, who at the design institute doesn’t know you? I actually met you in person!” the girl said excitedly, hugging me directly.

The hug was warm and comforting.

“My name is Lily Turner. I’m a big fan of yours,” she said with a bright smile.

She was a cute little schoolgirl. We wandered around the campus for a while, chatting about the changes and our design dreams.

When I got home, Zachary still wasn’t back. He usually doesn’t stay away all day. I made a simple dinner, leaving out his portion, thinking he wouldn’t return. Emma had just added me to her contacts and sent me photos of them hanging out, with Zachary passed out on the sofa.

“How about letting Zachary hang out with us for the night; you don’t mind, do you?”