No Booking for Your Betrayal

In my family, everything ran on a strict booking system. Whatever you wanted to do, you had to reserve a time slot in advance on our shared family app. Ever since the "real" biological daughter returned, I hadn't managed to book a single slot. Whether it was a dress I loved or anything else, all I could do was watch Sienna take it. On my birthday, all I wanted was for Mom to blow out the candles with me and make a wish. I waited by the app's reservation screen early, but the moment the page refreshed, my request failed. Mom gave me an apologetic glance, turned around, and boarded a flight with Sienna to see the cherry blossoms in Japan. Only Julian, my childhood sweetheart, stayed by my side, murmuring softly: "It's okay. I'll always be here for you. You never need an appointment with me." I thought he was different. Until the day of our wedding. My wedding dress was gone. As I was frantically searching for it, glowing text suddenly hovered before my eyes like live-stream floating comments: [Stop looking! Your fiancé gave your wedding dress to Sienna hours ago!] My heart dropped. I still refused to believe the guy who treated me so well would take Sienna's side. Then I saw her. Sienna was wearing my custom gown, and Julian was standing right beside her. My blood ran cold. The final string holding my heart together snapped. Fine. If I could never book a slot, I didn't want this family, and I didn't want this love anymore. Mom probably still had no idea that her precious biological daughter wasn't related to her at all. …… Seeing me, Mom walked over with Sienna, who was glowing in my white gown. "How could you forget to book the wedding slot for such a huge day?! Sienna is going to take your place today!" I turned to Julian. "Do you think I'm in the wrong too?" His tone was as gentle as ever, but the words cutting from his lips were ice-cold: "Forgetting to reserve the slot really is your fault, Chloe. I'll go through the ceremony with Sienna today." "Just don't be this careless when we go get our marriage license." With that, he took Sienna's hand and led her toward the banquet hall. A dull, suffocating pain spread through my chest. I could barely breathe, as if wet cotton were stuffed down my throat. "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us to celebrate the union of Julian and Sienna!" The officiant's voice echoed through the microphone. I looked up. Mom had tears of emotion in her eyes as she took off the heirloom jade bracelet from her wrist and slipped it into Sienna's hand. "Sweetheart, you're getting married today. This belongs to you now." My eyes stung. That bracelet was supposed to be left to me by Grandma. When Sienna came back, Mom made us fight for it on the app—whoever tapped fastest got it. That was the only time I beat her. Yet Mom never took it off for me. She just patted my hand dismissively: "I'll give it to you when you get married." Now my wedding was Sienna's, and the bracelet went to her too. Maybe she never planned on giving it to me in the first place. Noticing my gaze, Julian reached out, trying to boop my nose playfully like he always did. "When we register our marriage, as long as you remember to book the day, I'll buy you something even better." The floating comments exploded before my eyes: [A booking for the wedding, a booking for the license... does she need a damn appointment to sleep with him at night too?!] [Chloe, don't fall for his crap! He literally told you that being with him required zero appointments!] Bitterness welled up inside me. I stepped back, dodging his touch. "Julian." I called his name softly, my voice raspy. "I'm not signing any marriage license with you. We're done." The room fell dead silent. Panic flickered across Julian's eyes. Sienna tugged nervously at my sleeve. "Chloe, please don't be mad." "If you care that much about the ceremony, I can give it back to you..." Before she could finish, Mom glared at me in disgust. "You forgot to make the reservation yourself, and now you're throwing a tantrum?" She grabbed Sienna's hand and placed it firmly into Julian's palm. "Go get married. Nothing else matters today!" Then she shoved a wrinkled bridesmaid dress into my arms. "Put this on and be her bridesmaid. Consider it your way of participating. Hurry up and get dressed!" Without giving me a chance to refuse, Mom pushed me toward the dressing room. Julian opened his mouth, seeming to want to say something. But his eyes fell onto Sienna's hand, which was gently resting over her lower stomach. Without another word, he interlaced his fingers with hers and walked out. I let out a bitter laugh. Under Mom's impatient nagging, I reluctantly slipped into that ill-fitting bridesmaid dress. When I walked out, Julian and Sienna had just finished toasting with their arms linked. The guests cheered, "Kiss her! Kiss her!" For a split second, Julian's eyes met mine. His feet instinctively took a step toward me. But at Sienna's shy, soft murmur, he closed his eyes and leaned down, pressing his lips against hers. I stared at them for a long time. Not until my eyes burned did I stiffly turn away. Mom nudged my elbow and shoved the ring box into my hand. "Hurry up and bring them the rings!" I looked down at the bands. The inside engravings, which were supposed to bear my and Julian's names, had already been replaced with his and Sienna's. Once upon a time, everything Julian owned had my name on it. He had laughed and told me, "Your mom forces bookings on everything to act 'fair,' but I will always belong only to you." I had believed him. In the end, he had stopped belonging to me a long time ago. My heart felt like it was being poked with countless needles. "Deliver them yourself." I gritted my teeth, tore off the bridesmaid sash, and walked toward the exit. Nobody stopped me. Only the floating comments kept scrolling: [Trash family and trash man! Neither is worth your tears!] [Don't forget, you still have the offer for that overseas fellowship!] That woke me up. Two days ago, I received an acceptance email for an elite design fellowship abroad. To marry Julian, I had chosen to ignore it. I stopped in my tracks and pulled out my phone, opening the email. The comments were right. A family and a man like this weren't worth looking back for. Without hesitation, I typed my reply: [I'll be there to report in three days.]On my way home, I bumped into our next-door neighbor. She looked at me in shock. "Aren't you supposed to be getting married today? Why are you back so early?" Hearing the wedding mentioned again didn't hurt as much as before. I just smiled calmly. "Everything wrapped up early, so I came back." Though confused, she didn't pry further. Instead, she handed me a small wrapped gift box she had prepared. "Julian has been protecting you since you were kids. He even gave up his family inheritance just so he could marry you." "You two have to stay happy together, okay?" He really did only have eyes for me back then. He had rejected an arranged corporate marriage and gave up his claim to the family business just to be with me. Yet ever since Sienna showed up, everything had twisted beyond recognition. My grip on the gift box tightened. My heart gave a faint, painful shudder. Still, I smiled at her. "Don't worry, Mrs. Evans. He's going to be very happy." Just... not with me. Back at the house, I started packing my bags to leave. I noticed Sienna's handbag sitting half-open on the desk. I didn't have a habit of going through other people's stuff, but just as I turned to head to my bedroom, a flash of red caught my eye. A marriage certificate. The bold letters stung my eyes. My hands trembled as I pulled out the document. I opened it. Julian and Sienna's smiling photo was right there on the page. The registration date was exactly one month ago—on my birthday. That day, Mom used her usual excuse that I failed to book her time, taking Sienna to a hot spring resort instead. I was disappointed, but I didn't make a scene; I had grown numb to being let down. Yet that entire night, Julian had ignored my texts too. I waited all night, but he never showed up. It wasn't until dawn that he dragged himself through the door and pulled me into an exhausted embrace. "Chloe, let me hold you for a second to recharge." Seeing how drained he looked, I forgot to ask where he had been. I completely overlooked the faint scent of jasmine clinging to his collar, and the faint reddish mark on his neck. Tears finally spilled over, hot and uncontrollable. I was the only fool kept in the dark the entire time. Once my tears dried, I expressionlessly put the certificate back. Just as I stepped out of the study, I ran straight into Julian. "Chloe, please don't be mad, okay?" He had run all the way here; beads of sweat lined his forehead. He reached out to grab my hand, but I sidestepped, letting his fingers brush empty air. He froze. Soon, he sighed and loosened his tie impatiently. "I know you're hurt. But the booking system is your family's rule. I couldn't just break it." "Don't worry. Even if the ceremony went to Sienna, you have to believe me—you're the only one I love, and you're the only one I want to marry." Seeing my silence, he sighed again, his voice carrying a hint of compromise: "In three days, let's go register our marriage, alright?" The floating text rolled across my vision again: [Oh, sure, you only love Chloe! Doesn't stop you from knocking Sienna up though, does it?!] The stinging pain in my chest finally faded into nothingness. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, there was only cold detachment in my gaze. "Congratulations on becoming a father." "Now stop bothering me."Panic washed over Julian's face. "I..." Before he could finish, his phone rang frantically. "Julian! Get to the hospital right now! Sienna's stomach hurts!" Mom's panicked voice came through the speaker. The panic on Julian's face was instantly replaced by raw worry. "Chloe, I have to go. Wait for me to come back and explain everything!" With that, he sprinted out the door. I didn't follow him. I simply went back to my room. Exhausted, I lay on my bed, my hand instinctively resting against my lower abdomen. Julian and I had conceived a baby once. One night, I woke up in unbearable abdominal pain, thinking my appendix was bursting. Barely conscious, I called Mom, begging her to take me to the hospital. Before I could even explain, Sienna's giggles came through the line, followed by Mom's irritated scolding: "Didn't I tell you that everything needs an appointment first?! Breaking the rules like this—do you think that's fair to Sienna?!" The pain choked the words in my throat, and I passed out. When I woke up in a hospital bed, the baby was already gone. Julian had held me with bloodshot eyes, soothing me: "We'll have another baby in the future." Mom had even softened her tone for once: "Mom was in the wrong this time." "Next time something like this happens, speak up right away! Don't be an idiot and follow the booking rules blindly!" The sudden ring of my phone broke my reverie. It was an overseas call from the academy. "Your fellowship has been approved. Please upload your design portfolio from the past three years for final verification." I let out a long breath and agreed. But when I booted up my laptop, the desktop was completely wiped clean. My head exploded with a loud buzz. Those design files represented countless sleepless nights of hard work. The floating text popped up right on cue: [You don't even have to guess—Sienna deleted them all!] I didn't have time to process it. Grabbing my laptop, I rushed straight to the hospital. Outside the VIP room door, I heard Sienna sobbing softly. "Julian, I'm so sorry... I never thought Chloe would find out." "If you regret it... I can take the baby and leave. I swear I won't ruin your relationship with her!" Julian remained awkwardly silent. Mom sighed beside them. "Chloe is just so immature. In any relationship, people look the other way sometimes. Why does she have to make such a big deal out of it?!" I wasn't the one who did anything wrong. Yet Mom still dumped all the blame onto me. My eyes burned, and I took two steps back. The sound alerted the three people inside. Seeing me, Sienna stumbled out of bed and dropped to her knees right in front of me. "It was my fault! I took advantage of Julian when he was drunk! Please don't blame him, don't be mad at him!" "As long as you let me keep the baby, I'll do anything you want!" Mom's heart broke for her, and she hurriedly helped Sienna up. "Sienna, you did nothing wrong!" "Chloe stole your life for so many years. She owes you this! You don't need to apologize!" My breath caught in my throat; my ears rang violently. Julian checked on Sienna with concern. Once he was sure she was fine, he let out a relieved breath and turned to me. "What happened between Sienna and me was an accident." "If you're angry, you can hit me however you want. But you were almost a mother once. You know the child is innocent." When the heart hurts for too long, it goes numb. I stared at Julian with hollow eyes. "I don't care about your drama. I just want to know—did Sienna delete my design files?!" Guilt flashed across Sienna's eyes. Julian instinctively stepped in front of her, shielding her from me. "I saw your laptop was running out of storage, so I cleared some old files for you. Don't blame Sienna." My fingers twitched. Julian knew that I knew he was lying for her. Yet he didn't take it back. He just sighed helplessly. "Sienna is pregnant. Can you stop sweating the small stuff?" Staring at the familiar stranger before me, my heart turned to pure ice. "Fine," I said softly. Without a single trace of hesitation left, I turned and walked away.I spent a lot of money and effort hiring a tech expert, and finally recovered my files. Julian didn't come looking for me in person, but his messages flooded my phone: [Chloe, I swear, my heart only belongs to you.] [Giving birth is so painful, and I was terrified your body couldn't handle it. In the future, Sienna's baby can call you mom. Can't the three of us live together?] The floating text flashed frantically: [What do you mean his heart only belongs to Chloe? He's literally rubbing Sienna's feet right now...] My flight abroad was scheduled for this afternoon. Counting the hours, I just had enough time to do my pre-travel medical checkup. Before finishing the comments, I drove straight to the hospital clinic. Just as I parked my car, a loud gasp came from outside. My eyes widened in shock, and I rushed out to check. Sienna was lying on the pavement, clutching her stomach. "What are you—" Before I could finish, Julian and Mom, having heard the commotion, rushed over. "Sienna!" Mom's eyes turned instantly bloodshot, her steps stumbling. Julian took three strides in one, scooping Sienna into his arms. "Sienna, are you hurt anywhere?!" Sienna leaned weakly against his chest, tears streaming down her cheeks on command. "I know it's all my fault... but Chloe... why... why did you hit me with your car..." Already worried sick, Mom began trembling with uncontrollable fury upon hearing that. "Chloe!" In a blind rage, she swung her hand and slapped me hard across the face. "I raised you like my own daughter, and this is how you treat my flesh and blood?! Do you have a shred of conscience left?!" "I wish I had never raised an ungrateful beast like you!" My head jerked to the side. Inside me, everything went deathly quiet. After making sure Sienna wasn't bleeding, Julian looked up at me. The disappointment in his eyes was sickeningly genuine. "Even if I wronged you, if anything happened to Sienna, that's an innocent human life!" "When did you become so venomous?!" He didn't give me a single second to explain. Every word was aimed straight at my chest. Only the floating comments screamed across my sight: [What a scam artist! The car didn't even touch her!] [And he claims he loves Chloe most? He can't even offer basic trust!] The corner of Sienna's mouth twitched upward in a subtle, triumphant smirk. I ignored her, calmly took out my phone, and dialed 911. "Since you claim I hit someone with my car, let's let the police handle it." Sienna's body went rigid for a second. She gripped Julian's shirt tightly, shaking her head. "Julian, there's no need to take it that far. I don't blame Chloe." A flicker of doubt crossed Julian's eyes. Yet seeing the tears on her face, he swallowed his questions after all. He turned back to me. "Chloe, just apologize to Sienna, and we'll drop this." He clearly noticed that this was a trap Sienna set up. Yet he still wanted me to apologize. I couldn't help it—I burst out laughing. "Sorry, but my dashcam caught the whole thing in 4K. I'm not taking the fall for a cheap scam!" Seeing Sienna break into a nervous cold sweat, Mom quickly dragged me aside. "Sienna isn't even pressing charges! Know when to stop and quit making a scene!" "Don't forget, I spent twenty-four years raising you with sweat and tears!" It was a reminder, and a blatant threat. I threw my head back and laughed out loud. Julian looked unsettled. He stepped forward nervously, trying to get close to me, but Sienna clung to him tightly. I stopped laughing and stared straight into Mom's eyes. "Twenty-four years of raising me, traded for keeping Sienna out of jail for insurance fraud. Sounds like a bargain to me." "From this day on, consider yourself childless as far as I'm concerned!" "And you—" I turned to Julian. "We will never see each other again!" Without looking back, I got into my car and drove away. As the car sped past, I faintly heard Julian's voice. He was calling my name: "Chloe..." He only shouted twice. He didn't run after me. When I arrived at the airport, Julian's call came through. I didn't answer. He kept calling relentlessly, his name flashing across the screen over and over. The floating comments chimed in together: [Ooh, look who's regretting it now!] Too late. I was never looking back. I powered off my phone. The world finally fell quiet. Meanwhile, Mom, who had just returned home, received the DNA test results I had scheduled to be delivered to her door. In crisp black ink: [Conclusion: Biological relationship between Eleanor Vance and Sienna Vance is excluded.]