A Shattered Anniversary

A Shattered Anniversary

Gavin

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The aroma of roasted rosemary filled her home, a warm promise Ava Green had meticulously crafted for her anniversary. The candles flickered, jazz hummed, and the dining table was set for two. Everything was perfect, yet building intimacy with her own husband felt impossible. Then, the key turned in the lock, and Mark walked in, his eyes sliding past the romantic scene. "Happy anniversary," she whispered, only to be met with his weary sigh, "I' m exhausted. Can we not do this tonight?" He ignored her, leaving her standing amidst the dying romance of her own creation. Later, unable to sleep, Ava wandered downstairs, only to hear Mark' s voice from the patio, laced with an intimacy he never used with her. "It was so suffocating," he laughed, speaking of the dinner. Then came another voice, sickeningly familiar: Chloe. Her best friend since childhood, mocking Ava' s desperation. The air left Ava' s lungs. Her world shattered. She felt invisible, a punch to the gut of all her failed attempts. How could the two people she trusted most betray her so completely, so cruelly? But as Mark stormed out, labeling her "paranoid" and "hysterical," a cold, sharp clarity cut through her pain. No more tears. No more self-blame. They had played her for a fool, but tonight, the game changed.

Introduction

The aroma of roasted rosemary filled her home, a warm promise Ava Green had meticulously crafted for her anniversary. The candles flickered, jazz hummed, and the dining table was set for two. Everything was perfect, yet building intimacy with her own husband felt impossible.

Then, the key turned in the lock, and Mark walked in, his eyes sliding past the romantic scene. "Happy anniversary," she whispered, only to be met with his weary sigh, "I' m exhausted. Can we not do this tonight?" He ignored her, leaving her standing amidst the dying romance of her own creation.

Later, unable to sleep, Ava wandered downstairs, only to hear Mark' s voice from the patio, laced with an intimacy he never used with her. "It was so suffocating," he laughed, speaking of the dinner. Then came another voice, sickeningly familiar: Chloe. Her best friend since childhood, mocking Ava' s desperation.

The air left Ava' s lungs. Her world shattered. She felt invisible, a punch to the gut of all her failed attempts. How could the two people she trusted most betray her so completely, so cruelly?

But as Mark stormed out, labeling her "paranoid" and "hysterical," a cold, sharp clarity cut through her pain. No more tears. No more self-blame. They had played her for a fool, but tonight, the game changed.

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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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