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The lavish hotel room was suffocating, the air thick with the scent of expensive perfume and shattered intentions. Alice stood by the window, the shimmering, pristine white of her abandoned engagement dress a cruel mockery of the evening. She was still on the phone, her posture rigid.
The door burst open. Angela stormed in, her face a mask of scarlet fury. Her eyes immediately fixated on the phone. With a primal shout, she lunged and snatched the device from Alice's ear.
"What are you did? Are you out of your mind!" Angela roared, her voice cracking the silence.
Alice didn't flinch. Her expression was cold, distant. "Are you think I will marry a person who denied me twice in front of everyone?" she asked, the question delivered like a shard of ice.
Angela's eyes were bloodshot. "Then why did you agree to this engagement?"
Alice finally turned, a slow, dark laugh bubbling up from her throat. "Because... I want to reject him in front of everyone." A truly evil smile curved her lips. "And... I want to give the same pain that I suffered before." Her voice rose to a terrifying shout, fueled by pure rage.
Angela was shocked, stumbling a step backward. She could barely recognize the cold, calculating woman standing before her as her daughter. "Do you think he upset because you denied him? No!" Angela's voice was sharp with venomous truth. "He is engaged to Ameya!"
Alice froze. For a single second, the control broke, and her eyes widened in stunned silence. Then, she threw her head back and laughed—a harsh, maniacal sound devoid of warmth. "Who wants him? I'm happy what I did earlier to him. I don't want to marry a person who doesn't like me!" she yelled, her rage returning, though this time it felt like deflection.
Alice stalked toward the door, pausing with her hand on the knob. "Don't blame me, Mom. I got this behavior from you." She donned a pair of large black cooling glasses, covering her eyes completely, and walked out, leaving the stunned Angela alone with the wreckage of the night.
Angela's rage spiked. She pulled out her own phone and quickly saw the news: Herman's Group Heir Rico's Engagement Canceled—Engaged to SuperNova Member Ameya. With a frustrated cry, she hurled her phone across the room, watching it smash against the television screen.
She immediately grabbed another phone and made a call. "My daughter flopped my plan," Angela said, the earlier fury replaced by a chilling calm. She smiled—a predator's smile. "Arrange my next plan. No one can stop me to destroy Herman's Group."
The Shock and the Smile
Across the city, in Ameya's Luxury Apartments, the living room was quiet, lit only by the massive television screen. The news headline flashed in bright, bold letters:
RICO'S ENGAGEMENT CANCELLED! MILLIONAIRE HEIR CONFESSES LOVE TO SUPERNOVA'S AMEYA!
Ameya's father sat rigid, his jaw tight. Her elder sister, Asina, was holding her sleeping eight-month-old baby, her husband beside her, all of them staring in stunned silence. They watched the footage of Rico placing the engagement ring on Ameya's finger.
"Mom!" Asina called out, bewildered.
Ameya's mother rushed in, saw the flashing screen, and widened her eyes in initial shock. The reporter's voice continued: "Rico, also a former member of the FJ4 group, and Ameya, a member of the disbanded SuperNova... How will their fans react?"
Ameya's father's face was rapidly changing from shock to barely-contained rage. Asina and her husband were simply aghast. Ameya's mother, however, after the initial widening of her eyes, broke into a small, pleased smile.
A Promising Exchange
Back at the glittering, empty Engagement Area, Ameya was already moving toward the exit. Rico quickly reached out and gently grabbed her hand.
"Where are you going?" he asked, a hint of desperation in his voice.
"My house," Ameya replied.
"Wait, I will drop you."
Ameya gently removed his hand. She didn't look back as she spoke in a normal, level tone. "No, I can go myself."
Rico watched her retreating figure, a mixture of frustration and determination in his eyes. A warm hand settled on his shoulder. He turned to see his mother, Clara, smiling serenely.
"Is my daughter-in-law still angry with you?" she asked playfully.
Rico grinned, the determined look returning. "I think so," he conceded. "But... I know how to convince her." He wore a playful, utterly confident smile.
Morning Confrontation
The next morning at Ameya's Luxury Apartments was heavy with unspoken tension.
Ameya emerged from her room, casual and refreshed after a long sleep, still processing the surreal events of the night. She froze for a second, seeing her entire family—Father, Mother, Asina, and her husband (still holding the baby)—sitting silently on the sofa, waiting.
"Good morning," Ameya said casually, but they offered no reply.
Asina spoke, her tone tight with maternal authority. "Why are you late yesterday?"
Ameya walked to the table and took a sip of coffee. "I told you, right? I went to Jenna's engagement, so it's late."
Her father's voice cut through the air, sharp and sudden. "Is that your friend's engagement... or your engagement, Ameya?"
Ameya choked, sputtering her coffee back into the mug. She was stunned, the room spinning. Everyone was staring at her, their expressions a mix of suspicion and demand. Asina's husband, holding the baby securely, chimed in, "We saw everything on the news."
"We are waiting for your reply. Tell me," Asina demanded.
Ameya froze. Her voice was barely a whisper as she started to explain. "Actually, I also shocked what happened there... My brain stopped processing... I don't expect this will happen there..." She took a deep breath, lowering her gaze. "And Rico proposed me too..."
Everyone was looking at Ameya with deep suspicion. Just then, Asina's eight-month-old baby, overwhelmed by the tense atmosphere, began to cry. Ameya quickly took the baby from her sister's husband and moved to the other side of the room to soothe the infant.
Suddenly, a knock echoed through the apartment. Ameya went to open the door, still holding the baby, and froze once more.
Rico was standing there, radiating confidence in a casual white t-shirt. Behind him, his Assistant struggled to balance an absurd number of overly wrapped, enormous gifts.
Ameya's eyes widened to saucers. "You... Why did you come here? Wait... How did you know my new address?"
Rico took out his phone, dialed, and put the call on speaker. "Thanks, Jenna. I reached her house."
Ameya was aghast. "Jenna, you..." Before she could complete the sentence, Rico hung up the phone, rolling it in his hand before slipping it into his pocket. He then removed his black glasses.
Rico's casual demeanor shattered when he suddenly noticed the bundle in Ameya's arms. His expression changed, shock wiping the confident smile clean off his face. "Is this baby...?"
Ameya, confused by his sudden alarm, looked down at the infant, then back up at Rico, realization dawning on her face. "What are you thinking, Rico...?"
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