One-Way Street: When Love Leaves

On the day of my wedding, the video I had painstakingly prepared was suddenly replaced with intimate photos of my fiancé and my foster sister, Lindsey Remmington. Within minutes, it hit the top of the trending list.

Overnight, I, a celebrated actress, became the abandoned bride of a wealthy family and a public laughingstock.

Just when I thought I'd reached rock bottom, Connor Presley, the heir of Elluel City's most powerful family and the boy I'd grown up with, returned from abroad. In front of flashing cameras, he knelt with a diamond ring and proposed, silencing every rumor and every sneer.

After we married, we appeared inseparable, our affection the picture of perfection. The only flaw was his infertility—his condition made it nearly impossible for me to conceive.

For three long years, I underwent countless rounds of IVF. At last, I became pregnant.

Connor was overjoyed. To celebrate, he threw an extravagant party in honor of our long-awaited child.

But in the middle of the revelry, one of his closest friends, drunk and unguarded, muttered in Russian, "Connor, you've gone too far. Just because Lindsey was afraid pregnancy would ruin her figure, you put the zygote into Rachel's body and let her carry the baby for you two? If she ever finds out the truth, you'll regret it for the rest of your life."

Connor's expression didn't waver.

"This was Lindsey's only wish. I had to grant it," he replied coolly. "Besides, having a child with Lindsey has always been my dream. Only her child deserves to be the heir of the Presley family. The days ahead are long—I'll make it up to Rachel, eventually."

I stood frozen, my body trembling uncontrollably.

That night, I made an appointment for an abortion.

When Connor stormed into the hospital, raging like a madman, I looked up at him with chilling calm and said, "I understand Russian."

"You love Lindsey so much—why didn't you just marry her in the first place?"

Connor Presley's friend took a slow sip of his drink, his face full of confusion.

Pain flickered across Connor's expression.

"Because she loves Scott," he said. "I rushed into marrying Rachel only because I didn't want my presence to stand in the way of their happiness. True love isn't about possession—it's about letting go."

His friend let out a dry laugh, a trace of mockery in his tone.

"Just don't come to regret it."

Connor downed his glass in one swallow.

"Regret? Never. For Lindsey, I'd do anything."

I swallowed my tears and left before I broke down completely.

Back home, I filled the bathtub with icy water and lowered myself into it, forcing the cold to numb the pain clawing through me. The chill cut deep, but it was nothing compared to the agony burning in my heart.

I bit down hard on my lip, tears spilling unchecked. No matter how I cried, how I tried to purge the humiliation and heartbreak, I couldn't wash away the memories of what we