Blossom

“Assholeee!” I slammed my forehead against the bar counter with a loud thud, then banged my empty glass beside it. “Screw everything!”

No one cared.

Not here.

And thank God for that. This was an exclusive bar, filled with CEOs, celebrities, and socialites—people too busy drowning in their own secrets to care about mine. No cameras, no gossip vultures. I was safe here. Safe to fall apart.

I grabbed the bottle and tilted it to check—nearly empty. Figures. Just like my life.

I glanced around. The low buzz of conversations had grown louder. Laughter echoed off the walls. People were enjoying themselves, living like they had no weight in their chests.

I still hoped he followed me.

Leo.

Even though I shouldn’t.

I sighed and rested my chin on my hand, staring at the last of the wine as I reached for my glass. I twisted the cap off lazily, sulking like a rejected movie star. But just as I was about to pour it, a hand gripped my wrist.

My brows furrowed, and I looked up, dazed.

A man in a suit. Sharp, frowning. Eyes full of judgment.

My eyes widened.

“Storm?” I blinked—and then kicked him in the shin. “You nasty, two-faced asshole!”

“Shit!” he hissed, hopping on one foot. “What the hell was that for?!”

I shoved him hard. “If it weren’t for your cousin screwing around in my marriage, I wouldn’t be here in the first place!”

He rubbed his leg and rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on. Is it my fault your husband doesn’t love you?”

I froze. That one hit deep.

“What did you just say?” I spat, my voice rising.

“Relax. I’m just saying—don’t blame Erin for everything. Maybe Leo just… doesn’t want to be with you. Why is that such a shock? You don’t even like him, right?”

His words stopped me cold.

Storm Madison. Erin’s cousin. My supposed best friend.

I hadn’t told him much since the wedding. I didn’t want to destroy Leo’s image in front of him. I still held on to hope, even if it was killing me inside.

But now... he stood there, saying everything I feared was true.

I grabbed my bag and turned away. “Whatever.”

“Blossom, wait—do you even like Leo?”

I ignored him and stormed into the parking lot, fumbling with my keys. My vision blurred—not just from the alcohol, but from the heat behind my eyes.

He followed me.

“Blossom,” he said again, just as I reached my car. “Talk to me.”

I shoved the key into the lock, missing twice before finally getting it. I pulled the door open, but he wedged himself between me and the frame.

“Why do you care if I like my husband or not?” I snapped. “What does it matter? I married him. I have his last name. That makes it real—legal.”

He looked frustrated. “You know he has a relationship with Erin—”

“Relation?” I hissed. “What do you want me to do then? Just step aside so they can play happy couple? Let them turn me into a footnote in my own damn story?”

“That’s not what I meant—”

“But that’s exactly what it sounds like, Storm!” I glared at him. “I thought you were the only person who had my back. Turns out, even you want them to get their fairy-tale ending. Screw me, right?”

“Blossom, that’s not true.”

But I was already done listening. I slammed the car door shut, started the engine, and peeled out of the lot, leaving him yelling my name behind me.

Everything throbbed—my head, my chest, my heart.

Why does everyone make me the villain? Why is it so easy for them to point fingers at me while excusing the people who destroyed me?

I didn’t even realize I was crying until I had to pull over to the side of the road. My hands trembled on the wheel. My breath came in short, panicked bursts.

“Why… Why… Why?!” I screamed into the silence, pounding my chest as if it would stop the ache.

They all wanted me to stay quiet. Even my own parents. The moment they found out Leo had cheated, I expected them to be furious—for me. To fight for me, to remind me that I deserved better. But instead, all I got was cold silence… followed by carefully measured words that cut deeper than betrayal ever could.

“Endure it,” they said.

“It’s just for business.”

“Think of the family name.”

“Take a trip. Cool off. Don’t make a scene.”

As if my pain was some inconvenient rumor they wanted buried.

As if my marriage wasn’t mine to grieve—but theirs to protect.

So, I listened. Like the obedient daughter they raised me to be. I swallowed the heartbreak, forced my lips into smiles, and boarded one plane after another until airports became my home and strangers my distraction.

Two years.

Two years of pretending I was okay.

Two years of traveling from city to city, smiling for cameras, sipping wine at events I didn’t care about, surrounded by people who didn’t know I was hollow inside.

But all along, I knew I’d come back.

Not to beg.

Not to heal.

I came back to ruin them. To watch Leo and Erin crumble under the weight of what they did to me. To take back everything they stole—my dignity, my peace, my place.

But instead...

I’m the one unraveling.

Piece by piece, I’m coming undone.

I leaned forward, resting my forehead against the steering wheel, my breath shaky, my eyes blurry with tears I swore I wouldn’t cry.

How did it come to this?

Why does it feel like I’m the only one left bleeding while everyone else gets to move on?

And then—

Headlights.

A sudden flash of white light cut through the darkness, blinding me for a second.

I looked up slowly.

A sleek black BMW pulled in front of mine, its engine humming low, steady—familiar.

No.

Even before I saw the license plate, my heart knew.

Leo.

Of course, it’s him. It’s always him.

The man I’ve loved for years.

The man who broke me without even blinking.

The man I still ache for, even when I wish I didn’t.

And now, here he is. The last person I ever wanted to see me this way—fragile, shattered, wrecked.

The person I both love… and hate the most.