Chapter 4

After hanging up the phone, Stella glanced at the conspicuous red exclamation mark on the SnapChat icon and clicked on it. With her fingertips sliding down, there were dozens of contacts. They were all sending half-hearted condolences after seeing the hot search, indicating that today's wedding had become their topic of discussion.

Stella didn't have many friends in the US, and these people who sent messages didn't have deep relationships with her. She only opened the group of 3 members. Her friends Natalie and Layla had already scolded Aaron and Avery hundreds of times in their messages:

Natalie: Damn it, I used to think Aaron was not bad, but I never expected that I'd be so blind at such a young age.

Layla: Please lock them up and let Avery try Aaron's mother's tricks to see if she can expose that hypocrisy.

Natalie: Oh my, Aaron and I are just like siblings, otherwise, back then, it wouldn't have been... how could you misunderstand again, my cousin?

Layla: Ah! I feel like throwing up when I think of that. On Valentine's Day, she deliberately got drunk and said she was harassed to get Aaron to leave. And she still has the nerve to say Stella is overthinking! Bullshit siblings!

Natalie: Damn it, is that the necklace Avery got? A seven-figure pink diamond to help her establish herself as the entertainment circle princess? I'm so angry.

Layla: Stella made money for him, just for him to buy diamonds for other women?! I really want to slap them on their faces!

Natalie: I am furious! Their disgusting robbery has tarnished my elegance. I want to roll them into a ball, spin them around with Thomas, and then kick them out into the distant skyline, so they understand what true justice is!

...

The content after these was too intense. Stella glanced at it and scrolled directly to the bottom.

Layla: Stella, can I still be your bridesmaid?

Since Natalie was already married, the bridesmaid duty naturally fell on Layla.

Last night, Stella had intended to let her stay in the hotel, but she said she had to go early to deliver a contract to the client's father, so she didn't come over in advance.

Stella replied: Don't worry, there's a groom now.

Layla: Tears in my eyes. I never thought that even someone like Ethan, a piece of shit, would have more conscience than Aaron.

Natalie: I get it now. Poisonous guys like Ethan, who crush all love interests with just a few words, also have some advantages.

Stella didn't say a word. No need to compliment him like that if they really didn't have a reason.

...

At 11 o'clock, Simo Hotel, all guests arrived.

Natalie and Layla, dressed in evening gowns, stood gracefully in the wedding banquet hall, welcoming guests with smiles. With Thomas bedridden and Stella's parents deceased, she was fortunate to have two good friends.

Under the pretext of the marriage alliance between the Carlson and Malone families, invitations were sent to more than half of Seattle's prominent families, along with some former classmates from Jefferson High School and the Radiant Arts Institute. Naturally, the Malone family was not notified again, and due to the news of Aaron's runaway bride trending, only half of the originally invited guests showed up. Most of them were curious about how this wedding would end for the Carlson family. Perhaps those who were friendly with the Fletcher family wanted to see Stella's embarrassment on the spot.

Though the crowd was smaller, it was enough.

In the middle of the banquet hall sat Jimmy Warner and Tom, two well-known playboys in the industry who loved to organize social events. Upon arrival, Tom tried to engage Natalie and Layla in conversation, but they remained silent, refusing to mention anything about the upcoming wedding, which only piqued his curiosity even more.

In the bride's dressing room.

Aurora pushed the door open and walked in, saying, "Miss Carlson, everything is ready."

"Thank you," Stella replied.

Stella leaned back on the sofa seat, getting her makeup done by the makeup artist. She gazed at Aurora through the mirror, then smiled brightly, her charming eyes sparkling.

Aurora shook her head in disbelief. "No problem. It's all part of my job. But the groom..."

The wedding was all prepared, but the groom was no longer there in any sense of the word.

Aurora remembered her previous sarcastic remarks in mind: If Mr. Malone wasn't blind, why would he ignore his fiancée, who was stunningly beautiful, and instead favor Avery, who only knew how to market her beauty like a duck trying to imitate a swan?

She blamed herself for being a jinx. Mr. Malone really must be blind. No, he didn't deserve the respect of being called Mr. Malone for embarrassing his fiancée by trending as a runaway groom for his confidante! He deserves to be cremated and scattered in the wind!

Luckily, Miss Carlson hadn't gotten married yet.

A beauty like her should marry a man of integrity who can outshine any playboy, be more handsome than a top actor, and have a face more valuable than her bank account balance!

Just as she finished saying that in her mind, there was a sound. The door of the dressing room was opened.

Aurora and the makeup artist both looked up involuntarily.

A stranger, yet handsome young man stood at the doorway, his back against the resplendent crystal chandelier in the corridor, his tall and straight figure blocking out much of the light. With indifferent eyes scanning the room for a moment, he walked in with long, graceful strides.

Stella, with her makeup done, had turned her head by now, her gaze lingering on Ethan's impeccable handsome features.

His finely scattered hair fell on his strong brow bone, his nose was straight, and his lips were nice. His blue eyes were deep and profound, with slightly upturned corners that seemed to have a hint of blush. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing his smooth neckline and hinting at his collarbones. Despite the attire of a suit and tie, he exuded an air of casual nonchalance.

His appearance overlapped with the figure in her memory, leaving Stella momentarily stunned.

With one hand in his pocket, Ethan strode up to Stella, slightly bending down to meet her gaze for a few seconds. Suddenly, he extended his clearly defined, slender knuckles and lightly tapped her forehead. A faint smile curved his lips as he teased, "What? Are you stunned and infatuated?"

Stella lowered her eyes, reminded of her need for assistance, and reluctantly ignored his flamboyance. Then she lowered her gaze for a moment of silence before lifting it again, responding, "Ethan, you stepped on my shoe."

Ethan raised an eyebrow, slowly lowering his head, only to find the tip of a woman's flat shoe crushed under his foot. Under the combined pressure of external force and gravity, a few carefully embedded white pearls had split open.

Ethan was silent for a moment.

"See, it's cracked," Stella continued. "No worries, five thousand bucks, accept the transfer."

Ethan couldn't help but chuckle at being so confidently extorted by her.

The polished leather shoe slowly moved away from the submissive flat shoe, and he chuckled lightly, "Well, I come over with good intentions, and you're really heartless."

"Pot calling the kettle black," Stella replied.

Ethan raised an eyebrow slightly, understanding now that she was still holding a grudge against him for that "metaphor" over the phone.

He looked at Stella with a smirk, carefully observing her expression. "What? Not pretending to be good anymore?"

Stella hesitated at his words, suddenly recalling the words he used to often say in high school, always in that casual tone, "Stella, don't you get tired of pretending to be good and taking all the crap?"

In high school, Stella's personality label at school was obedient, dull, and inconspicuous. Having spent too long in the orphanage, she knew very well that being a good kid without aggression would make her less disliked and live more comfortably. In school, this law applied more to girls. If a girl was too outstanding, trouble and rumors would follow.

Being carefree requires confidence.

Stella knew the attitude of the Fletcher family, and she could only rely on her grandfather. But she didn't want to cause trouble for her grandfather, nor did she want to spend time dealing with it. So she curled up like a snail, desperately trying to shrink herself. Being obedient to the point of being passive, perfectly hitting Ethan's intolerable nerve.

By a twist of fate, what Ethan enjoyed most was tearing off her so-called good temperament. This was also the reason why Stella and Ethan became arch-enemies.

After a moment of bewilderment, Stella regained her thoughts, meeting the man's scrutinizing gaze but not answering Ethan's question. Instead, she pointed at him and turned to look at Aurora, who was already standing still in place, and said, "The groom is here, so the wedding can begin."

Indeed, Ethan had always been well aware that she wasn't the type to just accept things and certainly not particularly "obedient." She was no longer the same person she was years ago, and there was really no need to pretend, especially... in front of him.