Chapter 4The Third Wheel in My Own Marriage

I was completely stunned. Before I could even react, I was slapped hard across the face.

"You look so young and pretty, why are you so damn cheap?"

Zoe, hearing the commotion, rushed out and immediately shielded me.

I slowly snapped out of my daze.

"What does this mean?"

Several middle-aged women threw a stack of printed chat logs directly into my face.

"What do you have to say for yourself? Leaking such incredibly private details to the public, you're absolutely disgusting."

I caught a glimpse of those private details, yet the tone and phrasing of the messages sounded exactly like Vanessa.

A blinding fury instantly engulfed me. I promised the women I would give them an explanation, and then I stormed directly into Declan's booth.

Seeing me, a flicker of panic crossed Declan's face, but it vanished completely amidst my ensuing interrogation.

I grabbed Vanessa by the collar.

"You did this, didn't you? You used my name online to have explicit chats! Let me tell you, that is illegal! I can call the cops and have you arrested right now."

Vanessa's eyes instantly turned red with fake grievance.

"It wasn't me! Olivia, those little details about you... it's not like I'm the only one who knows them."

I was so furious I reached for my phone to dial 911, but Declan violently snatched it out of my hand.

"Stop throwing dirty water onto everyone else. How do we know you didn't do this yourself? You were probably lonely and desperate and just found random guys online."

I stared at him in absolute disbelief.

After all our years together, is this really how he viewed me?

He actually believed the "female bro" he met years later over his own wife.

A sharp, agonizing pain seized my chest, so intensely that when the middle-aged women started hitting me again, I forgot to even react.

"What else do you have to say?! I am so furious I could die! At my age, I still have to deal with my husband getting seduced. What are you trying to do to our families?!"

Someone edited the video of the confrontation and uploaded it. In the footage, my "sins" were magnified a hundredfold.

I was brutally cyberbullied. People dug up my address and phone number.

No matter where I hid, an endless stream of curses and insults pushed me to the absolute brink of insanity.

And Zoe was dragged into it too. Everyone assumed that since we hung out together, we were both worthless trash.

We were both suspended from our jobs because of this incident.

I gritted my teeth, meticulously organizing the evidence. Just as I was about to go to the police station, Declan showed up with Vanessa.

Avoiding my gaze, Declan said:

"Let this end here. Vanessa knows she was wrong. She proactively admitted her mistake to me, and she told me she wanted to come apologize to you. The internet mob will move on soon. Don't ruin a person's life over this."

My suppressed emotions completely erupted. I slapped him across the face with everything I had.

"You want me to live the rest of my life carrying this infamy?! Declan, you have incredible nerve! What makes you think I will listen to a word you say? Let me tell you, I am going to the police."

Declan's face instantly turned ugly.

"Then what do you want?! Vanessa was just being playful. Do you absolutely have to destroy her?"

I curled my lips into a cold sneer.

She hid in a safe zone, yet she wanted to sacrifice half of my life and my best friend's life.

What a beautiful delusion.

I didn't want to engage with him anymore. I just wanted to go file the police report, but Declan physically blocked me.

"The IP address and account Vanessa used were registered under your name. If you insist on calling the cops, I will personally testify that you were the one using it. This is finally about to blow over. If you do this, your situation will only get worse. You should know perfectly well that you don't have enough solid evidence to prove Vanessa did it."

I dug my nails fiercely into my palms, my voice thick with unshed tears.

"You love her that much? You are willing to ruthlessly destroy me like this?"

Declan frowned in displeasure.

"Where is your mind going again? I just don't want anyone else getting hurt. The damage is already done, let's just turn the page as fast as possible. You still have me. She has nothing. Real cyberbullying will cause serious mental health issues for her."

Vanessa made a dramatic show of apologizing to me.

"Olivia, I really didn't do it on purpose. I just thought it would be fun at the time."

In that fraction of a second, I truly, deeply regretted ever meeting Declan, regretted ever being with him.

I tried to take a deep breath, but my legs gave out and I slumped weakly to the floor.

The door was unlocked. A strong, sturdy body caught me and lifted me up.

"Don't worry. I have plenty of ways to prove she did it."

My heart inexplicably settled, but I was also confused.

"Weren't you on a business trip? You're back so early."

Declan stared at the man in front of him in absolute disbelief.

Because years ago, they used to be best friends, brothers. But they mysteriously had a massive falling out, and Sebastian eventually moved abroad. They hadn't seen each other since.

I had asked Declan about the reason multiple times, but he never told me, only giving vague, evasive answers.

"Just stay away from him, that's all."

Back then, I loved him too much, so naturally, I obeyed.

Sebastian glared coldly at the two of them.

"See yourselves out. You two are not welcome in this house."

Declan let out a harsh laugh.

"Sebastian, you're the one who needs to leave. This is Olivia's house. I am her legal husband. Who the hell are you?"

Sebastian didn't get angry. He just offered a slight smile.

"Not for much longer."

Ever since I decided to get a divorce, I hadn't returned to my old apartment. I had been staying at Sebastian's place.

He looked at me, his eyes filled with unwavering certainty.

"Olivia, kick him out. We'll discuss our matters behind closed doors. We don't need an outsider interfering."

To Declan's utter shock, I intertwined my fingers with Sebastian's hand.

"He's not an outsider anymore. I accepted his proposal. This will be our marital home from now on."

Declan listened in disbelief, then laughed again.

"Olivia, you're just messing with me on purpose, right? Trying to make me jealous? Look at the pathetic excuse you came up with. I told you a long time ago to stay away from Sebastian."

If I hadn't held him back, Sebastian looked like he wanted to plant a fist right into Declan's face.

I sighed. I had long since found my peace.

"Declan, we are divorced. That document I had you sign the other day was the divorce agreement. Black and white. Even if you hadn't agreed, I would have filed a lawsuit. Either way, it's impossible for us in this lifetime."

"Oh, and my hymenoplasty? That was for him too. He didn't care, but I wanted to give him the best of me."

Declan still refused to believe it.

"Olivia, stop joking around. You're just mad that I took Vanessa's side in this incident. I can explain everything, and I know I wronged you. But you still have me. She has no one backing her up. Why can't you understand this simple logic?"

As he chattered on endlessly, my patience completely ran out.

"Declan, you are truly shameless. The moment you chose to protect her at the cost of destroying my life, I felt nothing but hatred and profound disgust for you."

Declan stood there, stunned. He finally started to reflect.

Maybe he had realized something, or maybe he truly understood how far he had crossed the line.

In the past, it wasn't like I hadn't used divorce as a threat, throwing a massive, hysterical fit. But every single time, Declan couldn't be bothered to care. It was always me who softened first and actively repaired the relationship.

But now, that was never going to happen again.

Declan stared into my icy eyes, his tone softening.

"Forget it. If you don't agree to this, fine. Once I send Vanessa away safely, you can clear your name. Just stop talking about divorce."

He tried to quickly flip the page on this massive betrayal.

This made Vanessa unhappy. She pulled at Declan's sleeve.

"How can you do that? How am I supposed to face the internet then? I can already imagine how brutal it will be."

Declan didn't comply with her like he usually did. He just brushed her off dismissively.

"Just endure it and it will pass. Besides, I'll send you somewhere isolated. Just stay off the internet for a while."