Episode 5

Mag opened the box with a mixture of expectation and apprehension. Upon seeing the sneakers, her heart skipped a beat.

They were exactly like the ones Catherine had posted on her social media that night, but with a subtle difference: the women's version.

The photo's caption echoed in Mag's mind:

"Soon, we will be running towards our happiness together."

Feeling a weight in her chest, Mag put the sneakers back in the box and returned to her room. The atmosphere was charged with memories, but she was determined to move on.

The next morning, as Adam left for work as usual, Mag got up and followed her morning routine. She looked around the house, now almost empty and carefully decorated by her.

Every detail seemed like an echo of what was once a happy home.

She let out a long sigh of relief. Finally, she had managed to get rid of that situation that tormented her. The certainty that she would not interfere with the happiness of her fiance and his lover was now comforting.

...*****...

The night before the wedding, Mag received an unexpected call from Adam's friend. The voice on the other end of the line was filled with worry and suppressed laughter.

"Mag, Adam is drunk! You need to come pick him up."

A knot formed in her stomach as she drove to the bar where he was.

Upon arriving, the scene she found was a mixture of laughter and teasing. Adam's friends didn't miss the opportunity to joke about the situation.

"President Watson, your deaf little girl came to take you home!"

A laugh echoed in the room, and Mag felt the heat rise to her face.

Catherine was there too, laughing smugly as she pushed Adam away from her. In a deliberately exaggerated tone, she pretended to defend Mag:

"Oh, come on, don't bully the disabled!" The sarcasm in her words was clear and cutting.

Then, leaning close to Adam's ear, Catherine said with a malicious smile:

"President Watson, your little deaf girl is here."

Mag's heart raced with humiliation.

Adam, staggering and smelling of alcohol, looked at Mag with half-glazed eyes. He approached her and shook her shoulders forcefully, throwing the accusation into the air as if it were poison.

"Mag!! Why didn't you die in that fire with your parents?! Are you really that pathetic? I already agreed to marry you, and yet you keep clinging to me like a lapdog, chasing me every day?!"

Each word was a burst of contempt that hit her squarely.

She had already planned to leave, decided that no matter what she saw or heard, her heart would no longer waver. But now, in the face of that explosion of anger and contempt, anger and sadness shook her deeply. Mag felt tears welling up in her eyes, but fought them back.

She didn't want to give Adam the satisfaction of seeing her fragile.

The room was full of laughter and teasing from his friends, but to Mag everything seemed distant and muffled. She felt as if she were in a dark tunnel, only hearing Adam's words echoing in her mind.

Adam struggled to suppress his emotions, calling her name softly.

Then, she took a deep breath, looked at him, and said.

"I won't be a dog anymore."

Adam, still dazed by intoxication, suddenly woke up.

He looked at her in shock.

"You...."

Before he could figure out what was happening, Catherine leaned in provocatively.

"President Watson, are you coming with me or her?"

The question interrupted Adam's thoughts.

Without hesitation, he pushed Mag aside and pulled Catherine into his arms like a drunken idiot.

"Of course, I'll go with you. She's just a deaf girl, how can she compare to You?"

His push caused Mag to fall on the coffee table, the pain piercing her knee like a knife.

His friends burst out laughing, watching her struggle to get up from the floor.

"Deaf girl." Mocked one.

"Weird cripple." Said another.

The words etched into her ears.

Even so, Adam remained indifferent, without a hint of anger on his face.

If it were her... Even if she saw a complete stranger being humiliated in that way, she wouldn't have stood by without doing anything.

Much less someone who had been by his side for ten years.

Her disappointment with him reached its peak.

She grabbed a wine bottle and smashed it over the head of the man who was laughing the loudest.

"Are you proud of mocking a disabled person?"

"What?" The man looked at her in shock.

Shards of glass scattered everywhere before they could react.

She turned to Adam and sneered:

"Do you think I give a damn about filthy trash like you?"

Then, limping, she left the room.

Behind her, furious shouts erupted.

Someone was calling her name.

But who cared?

Beasts belong to beasts.

That night, Adam went to Catherine's house.

The next morning, Mag left the engagement ring he had given her on the coffee table.

She got into a taxi and told the driver to take her to the airport.

She ignored the flood of calls from Adam's parents.

Adam must have sobered up.

He sent a message;

..."When will you arrive?...

...You have to look beautiful today...

...I can't wait to see you."...

Thinking about those matching sneakers, she quietly blocked him.

A minute before the plane took off, an unknown number called.

She swiped to answer.

Adam's angry voice barked through the phone, accusing her:

"Why are you taking so long? Today is our wedding, you deaf girl! All the guests are waiting for you."

That was ridiculous.

A man who spent the night before his wedding rolling in bed with another woman.

What right did he have to question?

The boarding announcement played on the speakers.

Her voice hardened.

"Where are you?", his voice sounded nervous.

Then, realizing that she couldn't hear, he hurried to hang up and send a message.

Just before he could hang up, Mag spoke calmly:

"Adam, I can hear you."

Before he could react.

She hung up the call.

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