Betty drove home with her headache pounding and her heart still raw. All she wanted was silence, just a quiet space where she could breathe and pretend the world wasn’t falling apart. But the moment she pushed open her apartment door, she froze.
Francis was standing right there in her living room.
He rose from the couch as soon as she stepped in, looking nervous, like he had been rehearsing something. She didn’t give him the chance.
“What do you want?” she snapped, her voice sharp with anger. “And what are you doing here?”
Francis took a small step toward her. “Betty… I’m sorry. I know you’re still mad about what happened.”
“You’re damn right I’m mad,” she cut in. “But I also don’t want to see your face again. Don’t ever come to my apartment without my permission. Give me back my keys.”
For a moment he looked stunned, almost hurt, but she didn’t care. He reached into his pocket and slowly pulled out the spare keys she had given him months ago. He held them out to her, and she snatched them from his hand.
“Betty, please,” he said quietly. “I’m really sorry for everything. I know I hurt you.”
She laughed—short, bitter, exhausted. “I don’t want to hear a single thing from you, Francis. You’re a liar. A loser. You should have never come into my life.”
She reached for the ring on her finger, yanked it off, and threw it at him. It hit his chest and bounced to the floor.
“I don’t want this marriage anymore,” she said, her voice shaking. “I don’t want you anymore. I refuse to marry a man like you.”
Francis swallowed hard, but instead of fighting, he surprised her with brutal honesty.
“I love you, Betty… but I’ll be honest. I love Anna more,” he said, his voice soft but steady. “I’ve loved her for a long time. I just… I didn’t know how to tell you. I’m sorry it had to come out this way.”
Betty stared at him as if he had slapped her. “You stupid scumbag,” she shouted. “Get out of my house! Out of my apartment! How dare you say that to my face?!”
“I just felt you needed to hear the truth,” Francis said weakly. “You saw us together… and you deserve to know the whole story.”
Betty’s hands shook with anger. “Veronica warned me. She warned me over and over that you were a liar and a manipulator. And she was right! You never loved me. You were just using me, playing with me like some toy.”
“That’s not true,” Francis said quickly.
“Oh, really?” she fired back. “You made me sign half of my property to you! You lied to me and acted like it was for my future. You conned me, Francis.”
“I didn’t deceive you,” he insisted, raising his hands slightly as if trying to calm her. “I was only looking out for you. I wanted to—”
“Get out,” she hissed, pointing toward the door. “Get out before I lose my mind. You’ll regret everything you’ve done, Francis. I swear you’ll regret it.”
Francis hesitated, his expression flickering with guilt, then defeat. Without another word, he picked up his jacket and walked toward the door. He paused, as if wanting to speak again, but Betty glared at him, her chest rising and falling with fury. He stepped out and closed the door behind him.
And just like that, the anger broke.
Her knees buckled and she slid down to the floor, tears spilling out uncontrollably. The apartment felt too quiet, too heavy, like the air itself was pressing against her chest.
She hugged her knees and buried her face in her hands.
She cried for the betrayal, for the humiliation, and for the piece of herself she’d lost last night.
Her world had collapsed in less than twenty four hours.
And she had no idea how she was going to put herself back together again.
Betty wiped her face with the back of her hand and sniffed hard. “No,” she muttered to herself, jaw tightening. “I won’t let that son of a bvtch win. I won’t let him break me. Not again… not ever.”
She grabbed her phone with shaky fingers and dialed Veronica. The call rang once.
“Are you home now?” Veronica’s voice came through immediately, warm and concerned.
“Yes,” Betty breathed out. “I just got home… and I met that son of a bvtch sitting comfortably in my house like nothing happened.”
“Oh my God. Did you kick him out?” Veronica asked, already sounding ready to fight him herself.
“Of course I did,” Betty said. “I threw him out, and I broke the engagement too. I’m done with him, Veronica. Completely done.”
Veronica sighed softly, full of sympathy. “Oh, Betty honey… please don’t beat yourself up. There’s always a better day coming. You won’t feel like this forever, I promise. Everything is going to settle soon. You’ll forget all this pain.”
Betty closed her eyes, letting the words sink into her aching chest. “I know, Veronica. It’s just… it doesn’t feel easy right now. But I guess I’ll eventually get better.”
“You will,” Veronica said firmly. “And if you ever need to talk—morning, night, anytime just come to me. I’m always here for you.”
Betty felt her throat tighten again. “I will, Vero. Thank you.” She hung up before more tears spilled.
She took a deep breath, pushed herself off the floor, and walked toward the mirror slowly. When she finally looked up, her reflection startled her.
A pale, exhausted girl with swollen, puffy eyes stared back, like someone she barely recognized.
Aksara