Years of Devotion, A Lifetime of Betrayal

Years of Devotion, A Lifetime of Betrayal

Gavin

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"Maya, we need to talk about the Nova Fellowship." Ethan's voice was smooth, but his eyes held a look I knew well before he asked for something big. The final interviews for my dream fellowship were just next week. He sighed, running a hand through his perfect brown hair, then dropped the bombshell: Chloe, the Harrisons' "lost" daughter, suddenly wanted to apply. I stared, my heart pounding, realizing the application deadline had passed months ago, and Chloe knew nothing of astrophysics. He quickly explained they were making an exception for Chloe due to "hardship," courtesy of the Harrisons' pulled strings. A cold feeling started in my stomach when he gently suggested I withdraw my application for "family goodwill." He squeezed my hands, urging me to "give Chloe a fair shot" because she was "fragile." I pulled my hands away, reminding him this fellowship was my entire future. He insisted I'd find other opportunities, painting my sacrifice as a "gesture for family." His words felt like cotton, trying to smother the fire of my lifelong dream. He believed this was reasonable, that I should sacrifice everything for a girl he barely knew, who had appeared out of nowhere. My carefully built world, with Ethan at its center, felt like it was tilting, as I realized I was just in the way. Then, he left me stranded in a furious Nor'easter, sick and alone, rushing off to comfort Chloe's "panic attack." Weeks later, the Harrisons, with Ethan's complicity, publicly branded me a plagiarist, expelled me from Blackwood, and stole my groundbreaking dark matter algorithm. I saw Chloe presenting my life's work as her own, celebrated as a "rising star." My reputation was in ruins, my academic dreams destroyed, my love for Ethan shattered into a million pieces. How could Ethan, the man I loved, betray me for an imposter, and why did the family treat me as expendable after years of devotion? Publicly shamed, injured in an angry crowd, I truly hit rock bottom, lying feverish and abandoned in a hospital bed. Just as despair threatened to consume me, I remembered the private investigator's card, tucked away in my wallet, leading to the biological family I thought were dead. That night, lying shattered and alone, I reached for my phone, found the investigator's number, and made the call to choose myself and reclaim my life.

Introduction

"Maya, we need to talk about the Nova Fellowship."

Ethan's voice was smooth, but his eyes held a look I knew well before he asked for something big.

The final interviews for my dream fellowship were just next week.

He sighed, running a hand through his perfect brown hair, then dropped the bombshell: Chloe, the Harrisons' "lost" daughter, suddenly wanted to apply.

I stared, my heart pounding, realizing the application deadline had passed months ago, and Chloe knew nothing of astrophysics.

He quickly explained they were making an exception for Chloe due to "hardship," courtesy of the Harrisons' pulled strings.

A cold feeling started in my stomach when he gently suggested I withdraw my application for "family goodwill."

He squeezed my hands, urging me to "give Chloe a fair shot" because she was "fragile."

I pulled my hands away, reminding him this fellowship was my entire future.

He insisted I'd find other opportunities, painting my sacrifice as a "gesture for family."

His words felt like cotton, trying to smother the fire of my lifelong dream.

He believed this was reasonable, that I should sacrifice everything for a girl he barely knew, who had appeared out of nowhere.

My carefully built world, with Ethan at its center, felt like it was tilting, as I realized I was just in the way.

Then, he left me stranded in a furious Nor'easter, sick and alone, rushing off to comfort Chloe's "panic attack."

Weeks later, the Harrisons, with Ethan's complicity, publicly branded me a plagiarist, expelled me from Blackwood, and stole my groundbreaking dark matter algorithm.

I saw Chloe presenting my life's work as her own, celebrated as a "rising star."

My reputation was in ruins, my academic dreams destroyed, my love for Ethan shattered into a million pieces.

How could Ethan, the man I loved, betray me for an imposter, and why did the family treat me as expendable after years of devotion?

Publicly shamed, injured in an angry crowd, I truly hit rock bottom, lying feverish and abandoned in a hospital bed.

Just as despair threatened to consume me, I remembered the private investigator's card, tucked away in my wallet, leading to the biological family I thought were dead.

That night, lying shattered and alone, I reached for my phone, found the investigator's number, and made the call to choose myself and reclaim my life.

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My world revolved around Jax Harding, my older brother's captivating rockstar friend. From sixteen, I adored him; at eighteen, I clung to his casual promise: "When you're 22, maybe I'll settle down." That offhand comment became my life's beacon, guiding every choice, meticulously planning my twenty-second birthday as our destiny. But on that pivotal day in a Lower East Side bar, clutching my gift, my dream exploded. I overheard Jax' s cold voice: "Can't believe Savvy's showing up. She' s still hung up on that stupid thing I said." Then the crushing plot: "We' re gonna tell Savvy I' m engaged to Chloe, maybe even hint she' s pregnant. That should scare her off." My gift, my future, slipped from my numb fingers. I fled into the cold New York rain, devastated by betrayal. Later, Jax introduced Chloe as his "fiancée" while his bandmates mocked my "adorable crush"-he did nothing. As an art installation fell, he saved Chloe, abandoning me to severe injury. In the hospital, he came for "damage control," then shockingly shoved me into a fountain, leaving me to bleed, calling me a "jealous psycho." How could the man I loved, who once saved me, become this cruel and publicly humiliate me? Why was my devotion seen as an annoyance to be brutally extinguished with lies and assault? Was I just a problem, my loyalty met with hatred? I would not be his victim. Injured and betrayed, I made an unshakeable vow: I was done. I blocked his number and everyone connected to him, severing ties. This was not an escape; this was my rebirth. Florence awaited, a new life on my terms, unburdened by broken promises.

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