Chapter 1 — It's You Don't Need Me First

On the day of the wedding, my fiance still didn't come to pick me up. The makeup artist urged me for the third time before I opened the phone. In the only two chat frames pinned to the top, there quietly lay two messages sent half an hour ago. Chu Ky Bach:【The convoy was temporarily stuck on the overpass. Please take a taxi to the hotel first. I have already given you the lucky money, don't miss the good time.】 Tham Nam Chi: 【A Mien, quickly advise your husband. I told him I just sprained my leg, but he insisted on taking me to the hospital himself.】 I didn't accept the money and didn't answer. Chu Ky Bach always said that a man's responsibility does not lie in his words, but in always standing up for the person he loves. So during the five years of our relationship, he was absent when trying on wedding dresses, when he introduced himself to his parents, he was late, even the proposal ring was brought by an assistant instead. And I foolishly believed... He was just too busy. But the night before the wedding, I saw a completely different Chu Ky Bach in the circle of friends of my best friend Tham Nam Chi. He squatted in front of her, bowed his head and tied his shoes. Make your own hangover soup. At three o'clock in the morning, he still carried her downstairs. I also asked him.

"Why is it that other people only fall a little and you're so frantic, but I waited for you all night and you didn't show up?"

He just frowned slightly.

"She has had no one to love since she was little."

Having finished speaking, he transferred me 99,000 yuan, told me not to make a fool of myself, and that the wedding would still go on as planned. Chu Ky Bach does not know how to love someone. It's just that in today's wedding, the only person who considered everything real... was only me. Outside the door, the bridesmaid knocked softly.

“Tri Mien, where is the car?”

The makeup artist stood behind me holding the lipstick, the smile on her face frozen. In the mirror, the girl was wearing an elaborately embroidered wedding dress, a veil draped heavily over her shoulders, and glitter in the corners of her eyes looked like tears that had not yet fallen. The phone screen that had just turned off lit up again with a new message. Chu Ky Bach's mother sent a voice message.

"Mian Mien, don't be stubborn. The relatives at the hotel are already here. Please come over quickly. Welcoming the bride is just a formality, don't let people laugh at you."

Five years of waiting... In the end, only those two light words remained in her mouth. Bridesmaid Hua Duong locked the door and asked in a low voice:

“Did he really tell you to take a taxi there yourself?”

Hua Duong was so angry that his face turned pale.

"Today is a wedding, not a party. Is his mind trapped?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a car horn sounded downstairs. Everyone in the room simultaneously raised their heads. The makeup artist breathed a sigh of relief.

“Is the groom here?”

Hua Duong immediately pulled the curtains. Downstairs there is only a white car parked. Not a flower car. The driver stuck his head out the window, looked up and called out:

"Miss Tong, right? Mr. Chu has already called a car for you. Hurry up and get down, I won't be able to stop for long."

The whole room fell into an eerie silence. The lipstick cap in the makeup artist's hand fell to the ground, rolling close to the bottom of my wedding dress. Hua Duong rushed to the window and angrily shouted:

“Tell Chu Ky Bach to roll over here to pick him up!”

The driver also lost patience.

“I'm just the guy who takes the ride, if you have anything, you can look for him.”

The phone vibrates again. Tham Nam Chi send a photo. She sat in the hospital hallway, her ankle wrapped in a white bandage. Chu Ky Bach was squatting in front of her, holding a pink slipper in his hand. Below is a message with a reluctant tone. 【He kept telling me not to wear high heels anymore. He just bought me these sandals. A Mien, don't be angry. Later we will go to the hotel together.】

"We."

Those two words were like a needle piercing my ear. Hua Duong grabbed the phone and after reading it, his eyes immediately turned red.

"What does she mean? Is she planning to dress like this and go with him to your wedding?"

The room door was suddenly knocked loudly from the outside. A distant aunt from the Chu family brought a few relatives to join in. As soon as she entered, she frowned.

"Why is the bride still sitting here? It's almost a good time."

“The groom hasn't arrived yet.”

Hua Duong stood right in front of me. The aunt glanced at me, her eyes as if she were looking at a child who didn't understand.

"Ky Bach has something important to do. Little Nam Chi's leg is twisted, can you just leave her on the street? Mien Mien, please be a little more generous. How many people are waiting?"

Again, generosity. Since the day Tham Nam Chi returned home, those two words have been like a rope tightening around my neck. Chu Ky Bach said that she endured too many hardships alone in a foreign country. His mother said her parents died young and there was no one around to take care of them. Relatives say my family is harmonious and happy, and there is no need to compete with a pitiful person. Today, the one wearing the wedding dress is me. The phone rings. On the screen appeared the name Chu Ky Bach. Everyone in the room looked towards me. As soon as the call was connected, the other end of the line heard the loudspeaker calling the hospital number.

"Tong Tri Mien, the car has arrived. What are you waiting for?"

My throat felt tight.

“Chu Ky Bach, do you still remember that you are the groom today?”

The other end of the line was silent for half a second.

"Don't talk so harshly. I've made all the arrangements. Just go to the hotel first, take Nam Chi for a checkup, I'll come over right away."

“What about the bridal shower?”

“Are you determined to stick to that form?”

His voice was low.

"Tri Mien, understand the situation a bit. Nam Chi is in so much pain that she can't walk. Do you want me to leave her at the hospital?"

Hua Duong angrily grabbed the phone.

"If she's sick, does she have the right to steal someone else's groom? Chu Ky Bach, do you still have any shame?"

The other end of the line suddenly changed to Tham Nam Chi's soft voice.

"Hua Duong, don't scold him. I'm not good. Ah Mien, maybe I won't go anymore, you two don't fight because of me."

Chu Ky Bach immediately spoke:

“Nam Chi, don't move.”

The sadness in those words... Even though it was a phone call away, I still heard it clearly. I sat on the bed covered with wedding blankets, each finger tightening around the wedding dress. The aunt stood at the door and smiled faintly.

"I haven't married into someone else's house yet but I want to take care of my husband. How can I still live in the future?"

As soon as he finished speaking... The car downstairs honked again. The shrill siren rang out over and over again, even the window panes vibrated.