Chapter 6

That evening, our department manager organized a team dinner at a steakhouse to welcome Alice.

Everyone was laughing and ordering food.

Alice came back from the drink station, holding a plastic cup of Coke.

She navigated the carpeted stairs perfectly fine.

But the moment she reached the flat carpet right in front of me, she suddenly "tripped."

The entire cup of sticky Coke splashed all over my sweater and jeans.

Sarah, who witnessed the whole thing, stood up in anger.

"You bitch! Nice stunt. Anyone with eyes can see you did that on purpose!"

Alice straightened up, looking down at me with zero remorse.

"Oh, my bad. Victor's little Kate~"

The mockery was practically dripping from her face.

Sarah couldn't take it. She grabbed Alice by the collar. "I cannot stand fake-ass bitches!"

"You know you're trying to slide into a relationship that isn't yours, so why don't you keep your hands off another girl's man?"

"Do you think your pathetic act actually works on everyone—"

Before Sarah could finish, a hand violently shoved her aside.

Victor wrapped his arms around Alice, shielding her. He glared at me.

"Kate! Since when did you become such a bully?"

I stared back at him. My stained, dripping clothes were right in front of his eyes.

He chose to ignore it.

The pain and confusion in my chest suddenly turned into a cold, dead calm.

"Victor, are those two things on your face actually eyes, or just decorations?"

Victor froze, staring at me in utter disbelief.

In all the years we had known each other, I had never spoken to him like this.

Even when he made me angry, I would usually hide in a corner and cry quietly.

Then, I'd wait for him to feel guilty and buy me food to make up.

But this time, I wasn't going to wait.

Alice clung to his chest, her voice trembling with fake tears.

"It's my fault... Kate didn't trip me. I just lost my footing and spilled it on her."

"Don't get mad at her because of me. It's fine. It's normal for Kate to be upset. I'll just apologize."

She flipped the script effortlessly.

"I know you two are going to get married eventually. It's only right that you take her side. I don't blame you."

"Why should you suffer like this?" Victor interrupted her, his eyes cold as ice as he looked at me.

"There is no marriage. It was just a joke my mom made."

"Why would I ever marry a bitter, toxic girl like her?"

He guided Alice toward the exit.

Alice buried her face in his chest, her voice muffled but clear enough for the room to hear. "Well, your description of her was certainly accurate..."

Bitter. Bitch.

He had painted me as a monster to her. A cold shiver ran down my spine.