Chapter 3 Threat

Instead of finding him studying the script to his upcoming movie just like he told her he'd be doing over the phone, she'd found him in bed with another woman, but what shattered her the most wasn't the fact that he was cheating on her but the person she found in bed with him.

Her very own best friend, Olivia, a girl she'd trusted with her life.

Nadia and Olivia had been best friends since middle school, when they got to high school Serene joined the group, but she had always been much closer with Olivia.

The stabbing pain she'd felt at the sight of those two people in bed was jarring, she suddenly felt overwhelmed by a deep sense of betrayal from her fiancee and her best friend who had been more like a sister to her.

"Shit! Dia what... What are you doing here?" John had exclaimed as he frantically grabbed the sheets, then quickly began picking his clothes.

There was a shocked and frightened look on Olivia's face but Nadia didn't care to remain there anymore.

She didn't know how she dragged herself out of the apartment amidst the painful shock she was feeling at the moment, a cold gust of wind blew against her face as she stepped outside and she was finally awoken to reality.

She suddenly felt sick in the stomach, she knew it was her fault, was she expecting the man to stick with her who wouldn't satisfy his needs? Of course he would seek for pleasure elsewhere since she wouldn't provide it.

It was just that, she'd thought he'd loved her enough to wait for her till the wedding, had he loved her enough to have been just a bit more patient with her, but with this she doubted if he'd even loved her at all.

In fact she'd proved just that when he ran after her out of the apartment.

He'd pulled her arm turning her to face him, though he remained calm the ruthless glint in his eyes betrayed the words he spoke next, "Dia, I didn't mean to do it, please don't break off the engagement." He'd pleaded but the minute she glanced into his eyes, she knew what he was doing was just to reduce the level of damage a scandal like that could bring.

"You didn't mean to? John please don't lie to me, I already saw everything, you were with her willingly, how could you do this to me?" She ran her hands through her brown hair frustratedly and continued, "Even if you had to, you could have found another girl, any other girl out there but my..." She felt even more pained at the fact that he'd cheated on her with a girl she really trusted more than the actual fact that he'd cheated on her, she couldn't even bring herself to utter the words best friend anymore as it would feel like acid in her tongue.

"Am sorry Dia, you know that I would never do this to you right?"

Hearing his words Nadia suddenly had a realization. Yes, she did believe he would never have cheated on her had he truly loved her.

It wasn't as if she had never had her suspicions before, she was a woman after all and she had her intuition, but she had purposely ignored it because she repeatedly told herself that she didn't want to ruin this perfect thing she had with John.

The county's hottest top actors getting together brought a huge boost to both their careers, she had been blinded to not see that more than anything that was what John cared about the most. That suspicion that she was nothing more than just a ticket to a stable future for him in the entertainment industry which she had ignored countless times couldn't be more true.

"Tell me John, what am I to you? Am I your lover, your fiancee, or just a popular and influential actress you wish to use in order to stabilize your career?" She questioned, her voice rising in anger.

"Dia..."

"Answer me!" She cut him off, along with the feeling of betrayal, she was feeling the rage rising up within her.

But to her disappointment, her yell further unleashed the beast he had been taming inside of him, there was rage evident in his dark eyes, she couldn't help but let out a disappointed scoff, but not at him, at herself for having been so stupid all this while, because in that one moment she had just confirmed that John wasn't the type of man she would want to spend the rest of her life with.

It had all seemed so perfect, how they met on set, the sweet things that happened between them, how kind and loving John had been, but now, in this moment she suddenly realized how shallow all of it had been.

She realized it was nothing but a union of convenience between them.

The idea that the audience would go crazy about the fact that the two top actors getting together, not to mention how it would boost their films, the fans would love the fact the MCs in a movie were actually a real life couple.

The directors had encouraged it, their managers had supported it, the fans had crazily wanted it, everyone made it sound so perfect, with a union like this their careers would never end.

Most actors careers would flop if they decided to get married, but for both of them, the marriage was the sure mark to stabilize their careers, they would become the power couple of the entertainment industry.

Nadia somewhat detested herself for being so shallow as to have fallen for something like that, with how everyone made it seem like the one and only destiny for her she had made herself believe that she was madly in love with John.

She probably never loved him either and was just enticed by the words and the encouragement of everyone around her who had made it seem like there was no better person she could end up with.

Every girl had the feeling of waiting for the man of their dreams, their soulmate, the one they were destined for, and everyone made her believe it was John, so much so that she had forced herself into believing that she was in love with him because in that moment as she stared at him, she could see nothing else but the selfishness in his eyes, and she could feel nothing else for him but utter disgust.

With a firm resolve in her heart, Nadia pulled the ring off her finger smacking it against his chest, "This was a result of my stupidity, let me rectify that... It's over." To her surprise what she felt after saying those words was relief.

Yes she did feel betrayed, hurt even, the heartache she felt from her friend's betrayal was jarring, but with John, the fact that she had allowed so many people around her influence her life she suddenly felt like she had been woken up from a burdensome dream, and in that dream she had been floundering in her career, the Fame, how she had been cherished by all, she had sought to follow the only path right for her, she thought that path would be to marry John.

She must admit, she had hoped for a happy life with him since it was so convenient, she had been ready to build a life with him because he was the best bet for her career to be stable, but as for love... She was now certain what it was she felt for him, because she probably had never thought about it this way in the past, but the pain from her best friends betrayal had woken her up.

She wasn't ready to give it all for the sake of her career, for the sake of the people she didn't want to disappoint, this action of his had brought her this sense of realization that her suspicions which she had overshadowed hadn't been wrong.

He wasn't in love with her, and she wasn't in love with him either, so it was best they both ended it before they made an irrepairable mistake.

But just when she turned to leave after saying her piece, John had suddenly grabbed her roughly, forcefully pinching both her shoulders in his large palms,

"If you think for even a second that you can walk away from this marriage then you're dead wrong, if you even attempt to do that then you can kiss your career goodbye forever." His smoothly handsome face glowered with rage and ruthlessness as he threatened her fiercely,

"Just think about it, nobody would be willing to marry you after this, the scandal will ruin your career, and if you think that you can just expose me to save yourself then I will just deny it, and I can accuse you of the same thing, there is no way you can prove yourself innocent to the public,"

"This marriage is my ticket to a perfect career for the rest of my life, so don't even think about ruining it for me, before you take any action, think twice, we're both award winning actors, let's see who between us will be able to gain public sympathy,

"In the end, no one is going to believe you over me so don't even try it!" He'd pushed her away with a threatening glare in his eyes.