I Married My Husband’s Rival

It was a weekend, and Travis had initially told me he planned to unwind and play tennis with his friends. I called him unexpectedly, asking him to come see me, which clearly upset him. "Didn't you say I could go play tennis? It's pretty awkward to bail on my buddies like this!"

I was frustrated too, and I snapped, recounting everything Sarahi had said. After I finished, his mood soured even more.

"You're dragging me over here for something so trivial? How many times do I have to tell you that Sarahi and I are just friends? Lucia, do you realize how exhausting it is to date you? Should I start updating you every time I breathe? Is that what it would take for you to trust me?"

His words cut deep. Holding back tears, I asked, "Do you really think I don't trust you?"

Travis met my gaze and after a long pause, sighed. "Alright, I get that insecurity can be common. Since Sarahi bothers you, I'll find a way to clarify things with her. But Lucia, I'm asking you, please stop making this harder for me, okay? My dad already puts a lot of pressure on me, and I hardly get any time to relax. Could you just cut me some slack?"

It was nearing graduation, and his father was forcing him to give up his passion for law to take over the family jewelry business, leading to a standoff between them. Sarahi’s father never liked me, so I couldn’t offer much advice to Travis. All I could do was give him some space to unwind.

"I'm swamped with graduation stuff right now; let's take a break from each other for a while." With that, he turned and walked away.

Watching his retreating figure, a chill crept into my heart, and for the first time, I questioned if he was worth it. Afterward, he didn’t reach out, but I often saw him with Sarahi at the library, studying late into the night. I even heard from Cade that Travis had given up on law and decided to study jewelry design abroad.

Then, my graduation project caught the attention of Celestial Jewelry Company, and they wanted to sign a deal for mass production. But suddenly, I was surrounded by reporters, their cameras pointed at me.

"Lucia Rivera, we've heard reports that claim your graduation project is a copy of Sarahi Medina’s work. Is that true?"

I was stunned, stepping back as I tried to defend myself. "I didn't do it—you're falsely accusing me!"

At that moment, Sarahi appeared, eyes red, accusing me. "Lucia, I let it slide when you copied my design for the end-of-term project. But this graduation project, the 'Thorned Rose' series, was something I created to celebrate Travis's birthday, and he even helped tweak it. How can you claim you didn’t plagiarize it?"

Instantly, all the cameras turned to Travis, waiting for his response. I looked at him too. Travis avoided my gaze and spoke to the cameras, "The 'Thorned Rose' is indeed Sarahi's concept. During our late-night study sessions, I saw her designing it myself."

I stood there, frozen, blinded by the flashlights, and walked up to him, looking him in the eye. "Are you sure I'm the one who plagiarized?"