Arya's POV
"I'm not making a scene," I whispered, panic rising.
He knew very well how much I hated public attention.
But it was too late. The scene had already started.
"I didn't want to inform you this way, but since you made it clear our relationship meant nothing to you, then I can as well follow your lead. I decided to get married to someone who is ready," he said, taking Diane's hand to show me the engagement ring on her finger.
A murmur rippled through the boutique, whispers and soft gasps filling the air. I could sense it all: the pity, the curiosity, the judgment, every single eye fixed on me.
For a second, I couldn't breathe. My chest tightened painfully, and a tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it. I wiped it away immediately.
Not here. Not for him. And certainly not in front of them. Because if I fell apart here… I would never be able to stand again.
I drew in a shaky breath. "Congratulations on your engagement," I said, forcing a smile. "But I still need my money."
His expression shifted slightly. Then hardened again. "I told you I no longer have it. I lost it in an investment."
Looking at him, I realised that nothing I said would make him release the money.
Seeing how some of the customers were already making a video, my fingers trembled slightly at my sides, but I kept my chin up.
"If I can't have that, can I at least have my salary?" I asked. "It's almost the end of the month. I need it."
"About that. You no longer have a job here."
My stomach dropped.
Although I suspected he would fire me from the moment he told me he was engaged to Diane. But because I couldn't afford to be jobless, I was willing to swallow my pride and keep working there.
I swallowed. "My salary…"
"That's what I'm saying. You do not have a salary. Some bags were stolen today," he said. "You were in charge of that section."
"I wasn't even there!" I snapped, my composure cracking. "I told you I left because the hospital called—"
"And that's exactly why it happened," he cut in. "For old time's sake, your salary will be used to cover the loss. Although the bags cost more than that," he added.
The words reverberated in my mind, and then I burst into hysterical laughter.
This had to be a nightmare or a cruel joke from the universe because it simply made no sense.
How could I lose everything in a single day? My salary, job, savings, relationship, dignity – but most importantly, the hope I'd clung to in the cab.
It all seemed to be stripped away in front of an audience.
On my birthday.
What more did I have to lose?
Something inside me finally snapped.
I looked around: people watching, phones recording, whispers, pity, and the humiliation pressing down from all sides.
Then my hand moved to the display beside me before my mind caught up.
I grabbed one of the designer bags and flung it. It hit the mirror behind the counter with a sharp crack.
Gasps filled the boutique.
I didn't stop. I reached for more.
"Three years!" I cried, my voice breaking now. "Three years of my life!"
I swept my arm across the display shelf, and items crashed to the floor.
"Arya!"
I heard Aurora's panicked voice, but I didn't care.
But it barely registered.
All I could hear was my own pounding heartbeat—loud, violent, and breaking.
"Arya, stop!" Aurora rushed toward me, grabbing my arm.
I yanked it away.
"No!" My voice broke. "I did everything right!" I choked out. "I worked, I saved, I endured! And what did I get?!"
Aurora pulled me into her arms and held me tightly. "I don't know what put you in this state, but I'm here. I got you," she cried.
That was all it took.
Everything I had been holding in and forcing down broke.
My fingers clutched at her shirt.
"Aura…" My voice came out in a broken whisper. "It's all gone. I have nothing left," I cried into her shoulder. "Nothing to live for. I don't know what to do. I don't know how to save him."
She stiffened slightly. "What are you talking about?"
"The hospital called," I whispered, my voice breaking completely now. "They're going to take Drew off life support if I don't pay in two days. I was counting on the joint savings, but it's gone. He used it all." My voice cracked again.
Aurora pulled back just enough to look at me, her brows knitting together in disbelief. "That's not possible."
"He told me so. And that he's getting married to Diane," I choked. "He also fired me and seized my salary." My voice dissolved into sobs.
Aurora's expression went from shock to anger in an instant."What?"
"She abandoned her shift, and some bags were stolen," Diane hissed.
Aurora didn't respond immediately. She slowly let go of me, and that made me look up into her face.
Gone was the softness and comfort.
What replaced it was pure, unfiltered fury.
"Aura…?" I whispered weakly.
She didn't answer. Her gaze shifted past me to Diane, and then to Derek, and then she took in all that was going on around the shop.
Before I could react, she stepped past me, straight toward the nearest display, which I had yet to destroy.
Immediately, I realised what she was about to do, and I forgot my tears. "Aura, don't—"
Too late.
She grabbed a stand and shoved it.
It crashed to the ground with a loud, violent bang.
Gasps erupted again.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Derek shouted.
Aurora laughed. "Mad?" she echoed. "You think this is madness?"
She picked up a jewellery box and hurled it straight at him.
It hit his chest hard.
"Madness is you cheating on her!" she snapped. "Madness is you stealing my best friend's money, firing her, and then humiliating her publicly—"
Another item flew.
"Aurora, stop this right now!" Derek barked.
"Or what?!" she fired back. "You'll fire me, too? Will you withhold my salary? You shameless jerk!"
She grabbed another display and swept it clean.
Everything crashed: the glass, the leather, the metal. The entire boutique descended into chaos.
People scattered, but phones continued recording. I stood frozen, watching everything unravel.
Aurora turned back to me, her chest rising and falling heavily, her eyes blazing. Before I could say anything, a commanding voice cut through the chaos.
"Hey! What's going on here?!"
Everything seemed to pause for a split second as two police officers stepped into the boutique. Their eyes swept over the destruction.
"That's them," Derek said immediately, pointing at us without hesitation. "They're the ones destroying my store."
"She's unstable. She's been causing trouble for a while," Diane continued, stepping forward like she had been waiting for this moment. "We want to press charges. Right, baby?"
"Right," he said without hesitation.
My chest tightened at his words.
The officer turned to us. "We're going to need both of you to come with us."