Paper Roses and Broken Vows

I woke up inside a modern romance novel I'd been reading.

The original male lead, Liam Richardson, had lost his legs saving his ex-girlfriend, only to meet a gruesome end later.

So, I crossed over to his side, determined to change his fate.

When he grew insecure after losing his legs, I stayed by his side day and night..

When no doctor dared treat him, I knelt outside the hospital in the freezing snow, begging, doing every dirty job to sway just one physician.

Until he made his comeback and proposed to me.

That same day, his ex-girlfriend crashed into his arms, tears streaming down her face.

"Liam honey, does that promise you made me still count?"

After that, he started staying out all night for her. For her, he even wanted to abort the baby I'd fought so hard to conceive.

That's when I finally understood: some fates aren't meant to be changed. Some people just aren't meant to stay.

"System," I whispered, my heart breaking. "Take me away."

But after I died he went insane, screaming that he loved me.

...

"Mr. Richardson, could you clarify what you mean?"

The doctor stammered, clearly terrified to answer.

Liam's voice was eerily calm, as if discussing the weather, not the life of his unborn child.

In the corner, I started trembling.

"Hannah injured herself years ago, kneeling in the snow to beg doctors to treat my legs."

"I remember the doctors telling me then that she'd have difficulty getting pregnant, and any pregnancy would be high-risk."

"If she has an abortion now what are the consequences?"

The doctor hesitated, then answered carefully

"Mrs. Richardson's pregnancy is already a one-in-a-million miracle.

Termination not only guarantees she'll never conceive again, but carries a significant risk of requiring a hysterectomy."

"Mr. Richardson, if you're concerned about the delivery being more difficult than average"

Liam raised a hand, cutting him off.

He frowned, eyes downcast. After years together, I knew that lookhe was weighing options, calculating risks.

He was seriously considering this plan.

This plan to end my pregnancy.

It suddenly made sense.

Why he'd come home looking troubled that day, why the news of my pregnancy hadn't brought him the joy I'd expected.

Had he been thinking about this even then?

Why?

My heart hammered against my ribs. Tears spilled uncontrollably down my cheeks.

I couldn't bear to hear Liam's answer.

Forcing myself to stay quiet, I slipped out of the room unnoticed.

When did things start going wrong?

Probably the moment Chloe Bennett C the female lead who should have been living happily ever after with the male lead by the book's end C burst into Liam's proposal scene.

Liam was on one knee, balanced precariously on his prosthetic leg.

Sweat beaded on his forehead as his hands trembled with the effort of holding out the ring box.

"Hannah Shaw, will you marry"

I thrust my hand out before he could finish.

Yes.

Of course, yes.

As a reader, I'd fallen for the quiet, selfless man he was portrayed to be.

And after living beside him all these years I'd genuinely fallen in love with him.

Naively, I thought this was our happy ending.

Until Chloe, tear-streaked and stumbling, crashed into his arms.

The prosthetic leg gave way instantly. They tumbled to the floor together.

Liam was stunned to see her.

His carefully maintained composure shattered the second he saw the bruises and knife marks on her arms.

"That bastard, Connor! He dared to hit you!"

A raw, terrifying fury radiated from Liam. I'd never seen him so enraged.

Not even when he found out I'd knelt in the snow, begging doctors to treat his legs until I passed out.

When I woke, he'd just looked at me with a sad smile. "Why bother? I'm just a cripple."

This was his anger.

Chloe shook her head, biting her lip and glancing around.

"Liam honey, there are outsiders here. I can't say..."

It was just me.

Who the "outsider" was needed no explanation.

Liam didn't spare me a single glance.

"Okay, let's get you up. We'll talk somewhere else."

They helped each other up.

As they left, Chloe slipped her arm naturally through Liam's.

"I heard about the proposal so I knew I'd find you here."

"Our secret spot even outsiders know about it now..."

I couldn't hear the rest.

The engagement ring on my finger felt like a a ton of lead, crushing my chest.

The news of my pregnancy I never got to tell him first.

After overhearing Liam's plans, my mind was a chaotic mess the whole way home.

I wasn't paying attention and bumped straight into someone.

Chloe Bennett.

She looked surprised to see me, then pleased.

"You got to the hospital fast."

"Guess I'm still top priority for Liam honey."

"Don't take it too hard. The bond between us runs too deepyou've only been by his side a few years. You should be grateful he married you at all."

I didn't understand a word Chloe said.

But the smug satisfaction radiating from her was unmistakable.

"Miss Bennett, I don't follow. Could you be clearer?"

"What do you mean, 'got to the hospital fast'?"

"I was just here for a prenatal check..."

Chloe cut me off, a flicker of disappointment in her eyes.

"Oh. Is that all?"

"Well, it'll happen soon enough."

"Get ready. It'll hurt less if you're prepared. It's just unavoidable."

Chloe clearly had no intention of explaining. She just basked in her perceived superiority over me.

She even tilted her chin up proudly.

That movement drew my eye to her collarbone.

A scattering of faint, petal-like love bites.

My heart lurched violently.

No.

It couldn't be Liam. Right?

In my memory, Liam he always left marks right there. Only there.

Exactly like the ones on Chloe's collarbone.

Noticing my stare, she made no move to hide them, letting me staring, a small, cruel smile playing on her lips.

I felt sick, dizzy. I took a step closer, needing to see

A hand grabbed my arm from behind.

"Chloe, what are you doing out here alone? Are you feeling okay?"

Liam.

I realized then, whenever Chloe and I were together, his eyes always found her first.

Chloe pouted slightly, playing the coy little girl, and lifted her hand.

I saw the bag of Chinese herbs she was carrying.

"Liam honey, I was just picking up some fertility herbs."

"Hoping this brew will finally help me conceive."

"Liam honey, you..."

Liam seemed unwilling to pursue that topic. He cut her off quickly.

"Is it heavy? Come on, Chloe, I'll take you home."

Only after Chloe nodded, and he gave a soft chuckle, did he finally glance my way.

He reached out and gently ruffled my hair.

"Let's go home, Hannah."

But there was no room for me beside him.

Chloe slipped her arm through his again as they walked away.

The love bites on Chloe's collarbone the fertility herbs Liam's recent distance

A deep unease settled in my heart.

Liam had been coming home late these days.

After reclaiming his position at Richardson Holdings, he'd been busy with work, but he always made time for me, avoiding the workaholic tendencies the book described.

Lately, that had changed.

He'd come home after I was asleep, leave before I woke.

Until one night, I forced myself to stay awake.

I heard the soft thump of his prosthetic being removed, then slipped into bed quietly.

"Liam are you excited about this baby's birth?"

I caught the scent of his shower gel.

Not the one we used at home.

I took a deep breath.

It was Chloe's scent.

It pierced my heart like a needle.

He paused, surprised I was awake, then stayed silent for a long moment at my question.

After a long moment, he patted my head again, habitually.

"Hannah, what are you worrying about now?"

"Of course I'm excited for our baby."

"I promised you, remember? I'll love him, make sure he's always happy."

Liar.

Liam Richardson, you're a born liar.

He lied so convincingly.

If I hadn't overheard him with the doctor, if I didn't know how coldly he'd spoken about the life inside me

Maybe I would have believed him.

Liam, do you remember what you said?

When you confessed, I told you feelings are unpredictable, but I demanded one thing: honesty.

No lies.

That New Year's Eve, we were holed up in that rundown, condemned apartment.

Our "feast" was three measly dishes.

The stump where his legs had been was throbbing, pain making him sweat.

I tried to go out, find a doctor, anyone.

It always took groveling and endless dirty work to get someone to see him, but it helped, eased the pain.

That time, he grabbed my wrist.

"Hannah Shaw I think I'm falling for you."

I crouched by his wheelchair, crying and laughing at the same time.

I thought if he loved me, maybe he wouldn't end up like the book said: alone, broken, dying in despair.

I was thrilled I could save him.

He promised me, swore to me, there would be no lies between us ever again.

Liar.

I pushed Liam's hand away as he tried to touch me again and turned over, closing my eyes tight.

The next morning, he was still there when I woke.

His first words were

"Hannah, I'll take you to the hospital today."

It wasn't my appointment day.

So it begins.

Panic surged through me.

I grabbed the nearest thing C a glass C and hurled it against the wall.

"I'm not going!"

"I won't go!"

Liam tried to soothe me, his voice patient.

Until the glass I threw shattered at the feet of Chloe, who had appeared in the doorway. Shards cut her leg.

"Ouch! That hurts!"

Liam was across the room instantly.

Taking Chloe away, he shot me a look full of reproach.

As if I'd committed some unforgivable sin.

I was just trying to protect my child.

Not long after they left, my phone buzzed. A video from Chloe.

Bodies tangled, skin slick with sweat, the sounds of sex unmistakable.

The man was Liam. The woman was Chloe.

No. Maybe I shouldn't say "his ex."

I was the interloper.

In Liam's heart, maybe there was only ever one person.

Those lips that had traced my collarbone now pressed against hers.

A wave of nausea hit me.

That video shattered every illusion I'd clung to.

It ripped away the last shreds of my dignity.

I heard their gasping voices.

"Liam honey thank God you're here."

"I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Marrying into the Connors I had no idea how awful it was inside. Years of not conceiving even Connor gets frustrated"

"And Connor doesn't know he's the problem."

"Thank you, Liam honey. If I can just have a baby I'll be safe. The family elders won't torment me anymore."

"Liam honey seeing you today I knew. You still love me. She looks a bit like me, doesn't she? Is that why you're marrying her?"

Liam stayed silent.

My heart shattered with every second of that silence.

"No."

"Ha! Liam honey, I don't believe you! You're willing to get rid of her baby for me!"

"You know if I have your child, and she has yours they'll look alike. It'll be a disaster. So you'll kill her baby for me. Right?"

Silence.

"I'll spend my life making it up to her."

"She matters to me too."

I was shaking violently, cold sweat breaking out everywhere.

I could barely think.

Hannah Shaw, why do you cling to him like a pathetic puppy?

You worship him, but his heart belongs only to me. If I were you, I'd accept my fate and leave.

Some people, you can't steal. He'll always be mine.

Suddenly, I saw how laughable my "rescue mission" was.

No matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, even when he said he loved me

The moment the female lead appeared, the devoted second male lead's gaze snapped back to her.

My presence was just a footnote.

The second lead always belongs to the heroine.

I was exhausted.

I closed my eyes and called out to the System I hadn't used in so long.

System, I want to leave.

Understood, Host. Processing will take time.

I couldn't stay in this disgusting world a second longer.

Host, please be aware: your child cannot return to the real world with you.

My hand trembled as I touched my belly.

If its father didn't want it, and I had to leave

Bringing it into this world only to abandon it would be cruel.

Tears streamed down my face.

Liam you'll get your wish.