Chapter 1

Willow stares at the pictures before her blankly, her heartbeat triples over the seconds. Her face runs pale, drained of blood. Every bit of energy she has in her has just gone down the drain. She looks up, gulping hard.

"W-what?" She stammers, her eyes quickly filling with tears.

"This- This cannot be. He wouldn't do this to me." She repeats like a chant, trying to convince herself even with the evidence currently sprawled on the table. She looks at the pictures again, shaking her head, she wipes her face clean, then she looks up at the person. The pity plastered on their face makes her sick. A bile rises up her throat.

She stands up, picking up her bag. "I'm sure there's an explanation behind this. Alejandro wouldn't do this." She says again, this time a tad more defensive than before. Not willing to believe it even though it is right there, in front of her very eyes. The woman sighs, standing up too.

"This is not a matter of if he would or wouldn't do it. It's happened! He's done it and there is the proof. I was able to get the pictures before they were revealed to the media. This time tomorrow, the news will be all over the country whether you believe it or not. The headlines will read his engagement and that too with your very own sister. They will call you names. The substitute wife. The one who stole her sister's fiancé. They will sympathize with him and you will be made the villain of the story. You will be cast aside and watch from the corners as your name is dragged through the mud mercilessly." With every word that leaves the woman's lips, a dagger is pushed deep into Willow's chest. Willow stares at the woman blankly a second longer before walking out of the room, her voice echoing in her head over and over again. She refuses to believe it.

~

Willow paces around the living room anxiously, her eyes flickering to the wall clock over and over again, nervously waiting for his return. She had arrived over an hour back and had been waiting for Alejandro. She has to tell him things are being taken out of context. She has to tell him people are now misunderstanding his intentions because he would never do this. He would have a perfectly good explanation for this. She knows this... Alejandro and her might have a strained relationship and things might be rocky but he wouldn't do this. Not after the night they shared.

She halts when she perceives his petrichor scent, she rushes towards the door, nervously and anxiously. Alejandro steps into the house, his scent permeating throughout the house. Willow smiles instinctively at him but it drops immediately when she sees the person behind him. Sophia. She steps out from behind him. A sly smile on her face. It irks Willow.

Willow takes a step backward, eyebrows furrowed when her gaze drops to Sophia's hand linked to Alejandro's arm. Willow blinks twice, her eyes shifting to Alejandro for an explanation.

"Alejandro.." She mutters slowly, the pictures flashing in her head again. The woman from before, Mariah's voice now echoing in her head again. She shakes her head, letting the voice and pictures wilt in her head.

"What is she doing here?" Willow asks carefully, her gaze shifting to Sophia who looks very unbothered. A large pit forms inside of Willow. She refuses to believe.

Alejandro walks past her to the living room without sparing her a glance, taking Sophia with him. A lump forms in her throat, she swallows hard and walks to the living room too.

"Alejandro." She calls out again, this time catching the man's attention. He looks at her, an angry scowl on his face. It's not like she's never been spoken to her like this ,but, this is different. 

Willow heaves, deciding to take a step. She looks at him blankly. "She shouldn't be here, not after everything she's done."

Alejandro cocks his eyebrows up now, a scoff on his lips. "Everything she's done? You're really one heck of an actress, Willow. Tell me then, what exactly did she do?" He spats out again, waiting for her to speak. A stunned Willow stares at him for what feels like minutes, her lips parted yet the words wouldn't come out. She takes a deep breath and looks at him firmly.

"Y-you can't possibly be asking me what she's done. She's right there! She shouldn't be even a meter close to you but she's here, sitting elegantly. Why is she here after everything that's happened? Have you suddenly forgotten everything?" Willow cries out, unable to keep calm any longer. This isn't possible, it cannot be happening under her watch. She's spent the last three years in constant pain and torture all because of one person. Sophia. The same Sophia who had gone and ruined her life. She's doing it all over again.

Sophia stands up, a cocky smile on her face, she places her hand on Alejandro's shoulder, looking at Willow in the eye. "You're really an amazing actor, Big Sis. You have such a huge victim mentality and you've managed to turn yourself into some victim now, haven't you?"

Willow balks angrily "Victim?"

"Okay fine! I know I messed up. I should've stood my ground and stayed. I should've fought more instead of doing what I did. I get it. I promise you, I get it but I'm back now. I'm here. You've substituted for me long enough and now, it's time you give the position back to its original owner, don't you think? I know you've seen the pictures. I know you have seen everything happening around, even though you pretend not to. The families are in support of our plans. We had dinner with them last night and officially decided to get married again. We deserve this so much after being separated for years but this, this will mark a new beginning for us. The only problem here, is you." Sophia finally lets out.

Willow staggers back, her face pale-like. She just witnessed the most horrific thing to ever happen. Her knees weaken, body drained. Her gaze shifts to Alejandro whose stance was just like Sophia's.

"You- Alejandro, say something. Tell me that it's a-" she's cut off abruptly, a brown file thrown at her. She barely catches it, her eyes wide with fear.

"The divorce papers. Sign them." Alejandro's gritted out. Willow's knees weaken and she falls to the ground with a thud, a tear slipping out of her eye.

Divorce papers? Has she not done enough? She had sacrificed her life for her family and three years to being Alejandro's wife but this is what she gets in return?

Alejandro walks closer to her, he stops right before her, his polished shoes shining. He lowers himself, their height matching. A cocky smirk rested on his face, his finger trailing her cheek. He leaned closer to her, his hot breath fanning against her ear.

"You will use and then throw me aside when I'm no longer useful?" Willow mutters lowly. The reality of it all finally dawned on her. She had deluded herself so far and so much too.

"You should've been more careful, Willow. I shouldn't have seen them." He whispered, leaning back. A tear slipped down her cheek again, she stared at Alejandro whose eyes held not even a candle of sympathy for her.

"Seen them?" She asks, tilting her head up to look at him

Alejandro rolls his eyes. He takes out his phone and scrolls through it for a bit before shoving it right in her face. Willow's jaw drops open at the sight before her. Right there in the pictures was her and Matthew, he had his arms around her waist. For an outsider, the picture would seem like the two were a couple. The truth was far from that. In fact, Willow couldn't remember when a picture like that had been taken. How long has it been? 

Willow's eyes widen dramatically, she shakes her head "This is fake. I- Matthew is my editor. We don't have that kind of relationship. I have been-" she's cut off abruptly.

"Spare me the bullshit, Willow. You've been unfaithful and that, too quite a number of times, with this, I'm giving you the freedom you so badly want. I'm freeing you from everything and will instead build my life with Sophia like it was meant to be. I won't be giving you anything in alimony. You will leave exactly as you came, penniless." He spat out, eyes void of emotion.

"What about the night we shared? Didn't it mean anything to you?" Willow asked, her voice shaky, terrified of his response, and yet knew his response would finalize it all.

Alejandro scoffed, eyebrows raised like he couldn't believe his ears. "The night we shared was utterly insignificant, Willow. It meant nothing to me. Don't delude yourself into thinking it held any importance." A tear falls down Willow's cheek, her heart only crumpled even more.

Alejandro looks at her dead in the eye emotionless "Sign the divorce papers, Willow, and leave. I don't ever want to see your face around here anymore."

Willow heaves heavily, getting to her feet, she wipes the tears that trickled down her chin harshly. She looks at a smugly-looking Sophia and a disgusted-looking Alejandro.

"You want me to leave, fine! I will." She grits out and grabs a pen. She signs the papers hastily, blinking back the blurred lines of tears threatening to fall down her cheeks. She refused to shed another tear in front of the two. She's wasted three years, she won't waste more.

"I hope this relationship is all you hoped it would be, Alejandro."