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My king-sized bed felt impossibly wide between my long-term boyfriend, Ethan, and me. I' d poured years into him, supporting his struggling architecture dreams, always his loyal rock. I believed in our future, a quiet, stable life together. But then I heard his confession. "Sarah' s great, you know? She' s comfortable. Safe. But the passion... it' s not there. Not like with Jessica." His manipulative ex, who' d once abandoned him, was back. He was preparing to win a public auction to spend a day with her. I watched him publicly fawn over Jessica, outbidding everyone, his eyes only for her. Days later, after a life-threatening car accident, I called him from the hospital. He dismissed me, again, through Jessica. At the formal proxy wedding I' d agreed to for my best friend, Jessica orchestrated a physical attack on me. And still, Ethan chose to save his ex, leaving me behind. "Comfortable. Safe." Each word was a physical blow. How could the man I loved see me as so inconsequential? The betrayal ran bone deep. Was this all I was meant to be? My friend' s plea echoed: "Marry the reclusive billionaire in my place." It was insane. But what was left to lose? I wouldn't be comfortable or safe again. I would choose my own escape. My own fight.