章 2: Suicide?

Ryland remained silent, listening to Abigail's trembling voice.

Behind her calmness, he could see that Abigail must be deeply hurt. He felt sorry for her but couldn't do much to comfort her.

Even though Abigail was the girl of his dreams—beautiful, intelligent, and kind—she was too conservative in her relationships.

They had been dating for years, but she never allowed him to sleep with her. She was one of the rare women nowadays who only wanted to make love if they were officially married.

How could he wait that long? Especially when Vanessa appeared? He was an average man; he couldn't hold back his needs.

Over time, his love for Abigail slowly faded as he started to notice how his heart raced wildly whenever Vanessa was around. His heart began to shift towards Vanessa.

"I'm sorry, Abigail," were the only words that could leave his lips.

"Brother Ryland, I feel dizzy," Vanessa's voice distracted Ryland. His arms wrapped around her tightly. Tilting his head slightly to see her face, he became increasingly worried, seeing her pale.

"Baby, go sit on the sofa. I will settle with her first," Ryland said between his loving, gentle smiles.

Abigail couldn't bear to witness these two cheating lovers torturing her mind and heart, displaying their affection before her eyes.

She couldn't stay here for too long, or she might cry. The only thing she didn't want to do in this life: cry for her scum ex-fiancé and Vanessa-slut-Snow, her dear step-sister. However, before she left, there was something she needed to do.

"Vanessa Snow," Abigail called her in a calm, soft tone.

"Yes, sister Abby?" Vanessa smiled politely, but her smile vanished instantly when she saw Abigail raise her hand and swing it hard at her face.

A loud, crisp slap echoed in the room, shocking both Ryland and Vanessa. Her body stumbled as Abigail's slap landed on her cheek.

If Ryland hadn't grabbed Vanessa's hand and pulled her to him, maybe now, she would have landed on the floor.

"ABIGAIL SNOW! What the hell are you doing?" Vanessa's gentleness vanished as she yelled, holding her swollen cheek. She felt humiliated. Her sharp, bloodshot eyes stared at her older sister, holding back her urge to slap her back. "Why did you slap me?"

Abigail's lips revealed a barely noticeable smile, satisfied to give her little sister a taste of her real slap. Before she could answer her, Ryland interrupted.

"Abigail Snow! I'm disappointed in you. Your sister was so kind to you. She apologized sincerely, but you still slapped her!?" Ryland stared at her in annoyance while tightening his embrace around Vanessa.

Nevertheless, Abigail ignored Ryland. Her gaze remained on Vanessa.

"You asked why I slapped you?"

"YES!" Vanessa snapped.

"To allow you to taste my real slap. Now, you know how it feels, right?" Abigail was amused to see Vanessa's angry face. It looked like her poor sister had just seen someone spit in her lunch. "Do you want to feel it again? Come here, let me slap your other delicate cheek."

Vanessa, "…"

Ryland was clueless about what had happened. He worried these two women would fight, so he hurriedly stood between them.

"Stop! Leave her alone, Abigail! You deal with me!" Ryland raised his voice.

Abigail turned her gaze to Ryland. Though she had a strong urge to deliver a mighty slap to his face, she held back. She no longer wanted anything to do with him. The thought of her hand having to touch this scum's cheek to slap him suddenly disgusts her, making her want to vomit. Now, she just wanted to disappear from his sight forever.

"Ryland Wood, our engagement has officially ended because you chose her. Congratulations to both of you," Abigail said.

A frosty smile slowly emerged on her lips before she continued to express her peace of mind: "You both succeeded in ruining my life! I hope your life becomes hell from now on. Karma is a bitch!"

Abigail left with her thorned heart, but as she stepped out of the room, a glint of light and happiness slowly appeared in her heart; she was free from her scum ex-fiancé.

...

Ryland Wood felt displeased as he saw Abigail leaving with no trace of sadness on her face, as if calling off their engagement was casual for her.

He felt offended.

Clenching his fists tightly, Ryland walked quickly after Abigail. He wasn't done talking to her yet. Despite not loving her anymore, he still needed her to stay in the company and help him until he found someone capable enough to match her abilities.

"Wait, Abigail! Stop, I need—" Ryland couldn't finish his words when he heard Vanessa's weak voice calling him. He halted and saw Abigail vanish from his line of sight.

'Why did she walk so fast? Did she cry?' he wondered, sighing silently before turning to see Vanessa.

"Yes?"

"Ryland, please help," Vanessa cried softly while holding her head with both hands. "I feel like my head is spinning and hurts, maybe because my sister slapped me so hard."

He approached her while gritting his teeth, so angry at Abigail.

"Do you want me to drive you to the hospital?"

Vanessa shook her head.

"I'm better now, but I feel hungry, Brother Ryland. Can we go out for lunch? I'm afraid my sister will come again and hit me," she said, pretending to worry and looking at the door.

"Alright, let's go."

***

Abigail walked toward the emergency exit, following wherever her feet led her, and she ended up on the roof.

What had just happened in Ryland's office still lingered in her mind.

No matter how much she tried to forget, she couldn't erase the image of Ryland's intimate moment with Vanessa and how he humiliated her by expressing his feelings to Vanessa.

She felt hurt. It felt like something was crushing her chest, making it difficult to catch her breath.

Abigail opened the metal door before her and quickly strode toward the edge.

This rooftop was the only place in the building where she could calm down when dealing with family issues or work stress. It was a secluded place that few people in the building ever visited.

Climbing a meter-high wall, she stood there, looking at the greenery behind the building. She couldn't enjoy the view as she wanted to vent her anger.

Many things had happened in just a few minutes: her now ex-fiancé became a scum of the Earth. Also, her step-sister turned into a slut. Both are now the most wicked people she ever met and her mortal enemies.

Now, the urgent matter she needs to do is to move on. And first, she must find a new place to live and move out of that scum's house. The thought of living under the same roof or even a block with Ryland makes her nauseous.

"Ryland!! You cheating scumbag, how dare you ruin our future by sleeping with my sister? I hope God punishes you for what you have done to me!"

"And you, Vanessa! I pray God punishes you too with heavenly lightning—"

Abigail didn't care how loud she spoke; she knew no one would come to this place at lunchtime. She continued to curse them to make herself feel better.

***

A few minutes ago, on the cozy and quiet rooftop:

Sitting under a patio umbrella, a man immersed in deep thought while enjoying a freezingly cold beer. He was there in peace while waiting for his friend to arrive.

However, his tranquility was disrupted by a loud bang from the metal door behind him. Someone slammed the door so hard the man could feel the vibration. Seconds later, a small woman wearing jeans and a black blouse emerged beside the metal door. Her long brown hair swayed as she walked quickly to the rooftop's edge.

There was no grace in her steps as she quickly stormed past him. She seemingly didn't notice he was there, and her irritated demeanor piqued his curiosity.

Placing his cold beer bottle on the table, suddenly, a scary thought filled his mind.

'What the hell happened?! Is she going to jump off the building? Is she going to commit suicide? Oh, God! This sucks! Can she do it when I'm not here?'

The thought of the troubles of becoming a witness to a suicide worried him. So, he stealthily approached the woman, intending to stop her from suicide. But he was stopped when he heard her start venting her anger to no one.

'Hold on. This might not be a suicide! But what if I'm wrong?' he wondered in confusion.

Deciding to wait, he listened to her ramblings for a few more seconds. However, the more he heard, the more he felt sorry for her.

Feeling impolite about eavesdropping on her distressing situation, he looks toward where the metal door is, slowly walks backward, and chooses to leave her alone. He worried she would be embarrassed if she noticed his sudden interest in her.

"Rghh…"

He was startled to hear the woman's scream and immediately looked at her, shocked to see that she slipped toward the rooftop end and almost fell.

With an impressive reflex, he swiftly ran, jumped, and grabbed her hand. Then he pulled her slowly toward his position.