STUCK BETWEEN TWO RIVALS.

[Faculty of Business Management, Morchester University, River City, Gilead.]

It is graduation day for the Business Management class of 2025, and the graduating students are seen seated in a large hall.

"Ashley Rodriguez!" Professor Morgana Ryan, the dean of the Faculty of Business Management, called softly with a bright smile on her face.

"Present." A young blonde girl answered softly before standing up from her seat and walking up to the stage where Professor Morgana Ryan was standing.

"Congratulations, you've graduated... here's your certificate," Professor Morgana Ryan said to Ashley Rodriguez softly before posing for the cameras with her while the graduating students cheered in excitement.

"Thank you, ma'am," Ashley said softly with an excited tone before walking back to her seat.

"John Beckham!" Professor Morgana Ryan called softly with a bright smile on her face.

"Present." A young black-haired guy answered softly before standing up from his seat and walking up to the stage where Professor Morgana Ryan was standing.

"Congratulations, you've graduated! Here's your certificate," Professor Morgana Ryan said to John Beckham softly before posing for the cameras with him while the graduating students cheered in excitement.

"Thank you, Ma'am," John Beckham said softly with an excited tone before walking back to his seat.

"And last but not least, our best graduating student with a first upper class honors in our MBA program, Rachel Shen!" Professor Morgana Ryan called excitedly in a loud tone with a bright smile on her face.

"Whooooooooohhh!" The graduating students cheered loudly as a young, beautiful girl with strawberry blonde straight hair and blue eyes stood up from her seat, walked up to Professor Morgana Ryan, shook her hand, and accepted a flower from the vice chancellor, Professor Wilhelmina Noah.

"I'm so proud of you, Miss Rachel Shen," Professor Wilhelmina Noah said to Rachel Shen warmly as Professor Morgana Ryan handed the certificate to her.

"Thank you, Ma'am," Rachel Shen said warmly in an excited tone while bowing to Professor Wilhelmina Noah and Professor Morgana Ryan.

"Let's give the cameras some poses," Professor Morgana Ryan said happily before posing for the cameras with Rachel Shen alongside Professor Wilhelmina Noah.

After their pictures had been taken by the photographer, Professor Wilhelmina Noah smiled at Rachel Shen and said, "Why don't you give your fellow graduating students a speech?"

"Okay," Rachel Shen said gleefully before taking the microphone from Professor Morgana Ryan and turning towards the graduating students.

"Well, I don't really have much to say except that this first-class upper honors wouldn't have been possible without God and the fact that I wanted to impress my beloved boyfriend, Liam Paige," Rachel Shen said warmly with a bright smile on her face while using her eyes to search for her boyfriend, Liam Paige, in the audience.

After searching for a while in vain, she became worried that Liam Paige was sick, so she gave the microphone back to Professor Morgana Ryan before running out of the hall as if the devil were chasing after her.

"Rachel!! Rachel!! Rachel!!" Professor Morgana Ryan called out to Rachel Shen, but her calls fell on deaf ears.

"Where is she going?" Professor Wilhelmina Noah asked Professor Morgana Ryan softly, but all she received was a blank stare.

The graduating students, surprised by Rachel Shen's actions, began to whisper among themselves, curious about why she had run out of the hall so suddenly.

Meanwhile, Rachel Shen, outside Morchester University, hailed a cab and got inside hurriedly.

The cab driver, noticing Rachel's worried and anxious expression in the rearview mirror, smiled and said, "Where to, Miss?"

"House number 20 Zarx Street," Rachel Shen replied anxiously as she continued to dial Liam Paige's number.

"Okay, your cab fare is fifty Gilead dollars," the cab driver said warmly, turning on his trafficator light.

"Alright! Please drive... Hurry!" Rachel Shen urged the cab driver as she typed in the words ["Hey, Babe, where are you? I didn't see you at my graduation today, and I'm worried. Are you sick? Why aren't you picking up my calls? Please pick up my calls or text me. I'm worried, anxious, and scared." on her phone and texted it to Liam Paige's phone number.

The cab driver, who was curious about why Rachel Shen looked so worried, looked at Rachel and opened his mouth to ask some questions, but before the words could come out of his mouth, the traffic light turned green. So he ignored his curiosity and stepped on the accelerator of his cab while turning on the radio in his car to entertain Rachel Shen.

The cab driver finally reached Zarx Street after around thirty minutes of driving through River City's streets, and he stopped in front of house number 20 Zarx Street.

"Miss, we are here." The cab driver turned to face Rachel Shen and spoke to her in a kind manner.

"Oh! So quickly? Here's your money." After giving the cab driver his money, Rachel Shen exited the vehicle and shut the door.

After taking a deep breath and adjusting her blouse, she proceeded to the front door and pressed the doorbell.

Seeing that Liam didn't answer the door, she got worried again, so she pulled out her phone to try calling him again, but all she heard from her phone was the automated message, "Sorry, you've reached Liam, but I can't come to the phone at the moment, so please leave a message, and I'll be sure to get back to you as soon as I can."

"Why isn't he answering his phone?" Is he truly ill?" She mumbled softly in a worried and frightened tone before opening the door with her spare key and walking inside.

The moment she entered the house, her gaze was drawn to the light brown Gucci high heels that were resting carelessly on the floor.

"Strange, I don't think I have these heels." Rachel Shen said softly as she passed the light brown Gucci high shoes and made her way to the stairs.

"Liam!!" Rachel called softly as she climbed the stairs, but she received no answer, which increased her level of worry and anxiety.

A female voice began speaking as Rachel approached her and Liam Paige's bedroom, saying, "Your cock is so big, Liam... Slow down, Liam... Please go easy on me."

Rachel Shen's heart tightened at the sound of these words, but she gently opened the door to her and Liam Paige's bedroom and entered only to find Liam Paige having sex with a woman she knew.

"Oh my God! Liam"! Rachel Shen screamed as she started to cry in a broken voice. "Rachel? Why... Why... Why... Why are you back so soon?" Liam Paige asked Rachel Shen in an incoherent voice as he began to put on his pants and trousers.

Is "Why I'm back so soon" the phrase that should be escaping your lips right now? Won't you at least tell me why you are having sex with this woman when I am your girlfriend? Rachel Shen screamed violently as she glared at the woman behind Liam Paige.

After becoming enraged by the screams and the look on Rachel Shen's face, Liam Paige approached her and gave her a slap before yelling, "Since when do I answer to you, Rachel Shen? How dare you yell at me? How dare you glare at her? Do you know who she is?

"Who the hell is she?!" Looking directly into Liam Paige's eyes, Rachel Shen yelled at him.

With a scowl, Liam Paige grabbed Rachel Shen's hair and pushed her aside, declaring, "She's my new girlfriend."

"Your new girlfriend?" Rachel Shen asked Liam Paige in shock while looking at him incredulously, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Yes, my new girlfriend, and that's all the more reason you have no right to glare at her like that because I don't play or joke with her." Liam Paige gave Rachel Shen a firm response before grinning at the woman behind him.

"No! No! No!" This cannot be happening." In a raspy voice, Rachel Shen muttered to herself as she collapsed to her knees and started to recall all of the wonderful times she had spent with Liam Paige, which caused her to burst out laughing.

"What's wrong with her?" As she looked at Rachel Shen, who was still laughing uncontrollably, the woman behind Liam Paige asked quietly.

"Don't mind her, Charlotte; I think she's gone nuts." Answering the woman behind him, Liam Paige took her hand and escorted her out of the bedroom.

When she noticed Liam Paige leaving the bedroom, Rachel Shen, who had been giggling wildly, paused.

Rachel Shen sprang to her knees, sprinted as fast as her legs would allow, and blocked Liam Paige and Charlotte's path.

"What does this mean? Please move out of my way." After yelling aggressively, Liam Paige shoved Rachel Shen aside.

"No, I can't simply let you go, I can't! Not after everything." As she clutched Liam Paige's right leg tightly, Rachel Shen spoke to him in a sorrowful tone with tears streaming down her face. "

"Let go of me!!!" Liam Paige angrilly snapped at Rachel Shen as he struggled to get free of her strong hold on his right leg.

"No, I won't!" I refuse to let you go!" With a desperate expression in her eyes, Rachel Shen snapped angrily at Liam Paige.

Charlotte, who couldn't take it anymore, grabbed a flower vase that was on her right side and smashed it on Rachel Shen's skull before saying, "Let go of my boyfriend, bitch!!"

"Ouch, it hurts!!" Rachel Shen winced in pain as she got to her feet.

"Look, Miss Twerp, this has nothing to do with you... I'm talking with my boyfriend here, so shut the fuck up." Rachel Shen snapped at Charlotte before turning to face Liam Paige, who was already furious.

"Did I make a mistake, Liam? Did I do something wrong? Tell me, Liam, I swear to...

Rachel Shen was interrupted when Liam Paige yelled at her, saying, "Yeah, you did something wrong."

"Oh, really? Since this isn't the you I know, I had that thought. So tell me, then, what did I do wrong? I want to apologize and make amends." Rachel Shen looked at Liam Paige questioningly and said to him in a kind manner.

"Well, you just yelled at Charlotte, my girlfriend." Liam Paige angrily retorted to Rachel Shen.

"To defend myself, she attacked me first... By the way, what's the deal with her being your girlfriend? How about me? Do you not consider me as your girlfriend anymore?" With sorrowful eyes, Rachel Shen said to Liam Paige in a sad tone.

"You heard correctly, she's my new girlfriend... And in my opinion, you are merely a shabby shoe that I have grown tired of wearing." Liam Paige mockingly responded to Rachel Shen while grinning at Charlotte.

"Me, an old shoe? Liam, you have no right to say that to me." Rachel Shen said to Liam Paige angrily while raising her right hand to slap him but leaving it hanging in midair as she glared at him angrily.

"Did you intend to slap me? Haha! I assumed you had gained enough courage, but I guess not." Liam Paige said to Rachel Shen, in a contemptuous manner while laughing at her.

Dropping to her knees, Rachel Shen gave Liam Paige a tender look before breaking down in tears and saying, "Look, Liam, I don't want to fight with you, okay? I apologize if I have offended you or caused you any harm. Please forgive me, I... I... I... I can't live without you, Liam.... I really can't, Liam! I can't."

"Then die for all I care!!" With an angry remark, Liam Paige kicked her away.

"Are you the one saying this, Liam? Remember how I....,"

"Remember how you what?" Rachel Shen hadn't finished what she wanted to say when Liam Paige interrupted her with a snap.

"We were friends for three years after I first met you when I was twelve. I remember when I turned fifteen, you did a surprise party for me and in the presence of your parents and sister, you asked me to be your girlfriend, which I joyfully accepted, and we have been dating for five years since that day... Five years, Liam! We've gone too far, don't you think? Do you not see how far we've come? How is it possible for us to just split up like this?" Rachel Shen said softly to Liam Paige, her eyes beseeching him.

Liam Paige took a deep breath before turning to Rachel Shen and saying, "I didn't ask you to do all those things you did to impress my parents... For starters, since you founded Paige Corporation at the age of thirteen and built it into a multimillion-dollar business in just two years and gave my parents all of the company's shares... Believe me, that was the start of my nightmare because my parents were constantly pressuring me to keep you with us, and the only way I could do that was to ask you out and date you even though I never liked you.... Rachel, I have nothing but hate and contempt for you."

"Liam, that is untrue! Look me in the eyes and tell me you never felt anything for me all these years." Rachel Shen said to Liam Paige with a straight-faced look.

Chuckling softly, Liam Paige approached Rachel Shen, took hold of her chin, met her eyes directly, and declared, "I never was in love with you, and I never will be! NOT NOW! NOT EVER!!"

After hearing Liam Paige's words, Charlotte grinned triumphantly and then protruded her tongue at the stunned Rachel Shen.

"Not possible!" Liam, you're lying to me!" Rachel Shen let out a loud cry and shook her head wildly in shock and disbelief.

"Keep telling yourself that then." After answering Rachel Shen, Liam Paige turned to face Charlotte and said, "Let's get outta here, babe."

"What about all those wonderful things you've done for me? What about all those sweet words you said to me? What about all the promises you made to me? You promised to propose to me after my graduation!! Why are you going back on your words now? Or did all those promises and sweet words you said to me mean nothing to you at all?!" As Liam Paige walked past her with Charlotte in his arms, Rachel Shen queried him while looking at him incredulously.

Liam Paige grinned back at Rachel Shen and replied, "What can I say? I was acting, and I was playing around.... With your heart."

"You bastard! How could you play with my sincere feelings for you? How could you, jerk?! You are an asshole, Liam!" Rachel Shen yelled aggressively at Liam Paige while shedding tears profusely.

Staring at Rachel Shen's face, Liam Paige smiled mockingly at her and burst into laughter while saying, "You should see how funny your face looks right now."

"At least I'm prettier than that slut that's sticking to you like gum." Rachel Shen snapped at Liam Paige while glaring at him in fury.

"How dare you call her a slut? She's everything you can only dream of." Liam Paige yelled angrily while taking a deep breath before approaching Rachel Shen and slapping her.

"You slapped me for this, bitch?" Rachel Shen asked Liam Paige in shock, with her eyes filled with disbelief.

"That's what you get for insulting my woman." Liam Paige replied to Rachel Shen firmly with a straight face.

"Liam, for eight long years, I have stood by you and made many sacrifices for you; how is she better than me? Rachel Shen asked Liam Paige angrily while looking at him with tears in her eyes.

"Her superiority over you comes from the fact that you are a mere orphan with no family, no background, no connections, and no financial resources... With all the part-time work you do, you are actually no better than a walking corpse because you constantly smell like painkillers. But Charlotte, for example, is a wealthy heiress and the second daughter of the Dylan family, whose assets and net worth total billions of Gilead dollars... Being with her will enable me to reach new heights and transform myself into a dragon among men... Is it now clear to you why she is superior to you?" Liam Paige gave a sharp response to Rachel Shen while looking at her mockingly.

"So, the reason you are breaking up with me is because you found a rich heiress?" Rachel Shen asked Liam Paige in disbelief.

"What can I say? I'm an ambitious man, and you can't give me what I want, but Charlotte can." Liam Paige walked up to Rachel Shen and whispered softly in her ear before bursting into laughter.

"I never knew you could be this low, Liam!!" Rachel Shen yelled in anger with tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Blame yourself for introducing me and my family to wealth... Wealth is like honey; when tasted for the first time, you simply can't get enough of it." Liam Paige said to Rachel Shen warmly before walking away with Charlotte.

"Come back here, Liam!! We aren't done yet!!" Rachel Shen yelled at Liam Paige, but all she got from him was a mocking laugh.

"Someone tell me this is a dream... Someone, please wake me up from this nightmare." Rachel Shen said to herself in tears as she watched Liam Paige and Charlotte getting farther and farther away from her.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to picture her life without Liam Paige in it, but she couldn't bring herself to accept such a reality, so she stood up from the ground and ran after Liam Paige and Charlotte as if the devil was chasing after her.

"Liam!! Liam!!" Once she was outside, Rachel Shen called urgently, but she didn't get a response until she heard a car's engine.

When Rachel Shen turned to face the direction of where the car's engine was sounding from, she froze in shock when she spotted Liam Paige and Charlotte in a white BMW car speeding at her.

Upon regaining her senses, Rachel Shen tried to avoid Liam Paige's incoming white BMW, but it was too late; as he ran her over and sped off, leaving her behind.

As she watched Liam Paige drive farther and farther away from her, Rachel Shen, who was bleeding heavily, faintly called his name softly before closing her eyes.