Chapter 1: The Setup

My fiancé is always complaining about me to his close friends.

“She’s so obsessed with love, it drives me nuts. If it weren’t for my mom, I would’ve dumped her a long time ago.”

Those words burned hotter than the whiskey in my glass, and I froze with my drink halfway to my lips. Hearing him talk about me like I’m some high school drama queen always stings, but that’s Derek for you—vent first, feelings later. He never realizes that even the sticky floor, the neon beer signs, and the smell of stale fries in the cheap bar they haunt every Friday can’t muffle his voice. His friends don’t just listen—they take notes.

After hearing him vent so much, his best friend decided to step in.

“I’ll try to seduce her for you. Once you have proof she’s cheating, you can break up with her and not look like the bad guy.”

It’s classic—everyone wants to dump the blame, but nobody wants to be the villain in the group chat. It’s so bro-code, like they’re pulling a college prank. Instead of manning up, Derek’s determined to keep his reputation squeaky clean.

My fiancé sneered, “She’s so lovesick she’d throw herself in front of a train for me. No way she’d cheat. But if you don’t believe me, go for it.”

I could see him now—feet propped on his desk, twirling a pen, putting on that jaded act like nothing surprises him. The bravado is almost as thick as his ego.

His buddy slid into my DMs from a fake Instagram, sending a gym selfie with abs straight out of Men’s Health and telling me to guess who he was.

Classic move: new Insta, no followers, but the ab shot was pure thirst trap. His message read like a middle school dare: “Guess who? ;)”

I shot back instantly: “Dude, I have no idea who you are, but you seem pretty far away. Ugh, whatever, I can’t keep pretending. Let me just ask—are things big where you are?”

If this was some game, I might as well play along and up the ante. If they wanted drama, I’d give them a headline—let’s see who blinks first.