Rowen's POV
I stood there in silence. Visibly Stunned, her slap still burning on my face.
People were staring. And I could feel it everything. The silence that fell around the parking lot
was deafening.
I hadn't expected her to slap me.
Hell, maybe I deserved the slap.
I thought she would finally talk to me. But the look in her eyes….the way she looked at me, like i
was a ghost or even worse, a monster.
And when she shouted and told everyone what I had done, what I had thrown away, I didn't
even try to stop her….I couldn't stop her.
Because how could I?
I chose Jane over her. I chose to leave Alicia when she needed me most and now here I was
standing, thinking flowers would make an apology.
She even drove away without looking back at the shame she had brought on me.
I failed Jane yet again. I failed to still get Alicia to donate her blood for jane.
I exhaled loudly and walked away from the parking lot. I hailed a taxi and gave the driver
directions to my house.
Later that day, I decided to go home, hoping to grab some hospital documents and maybe clear
my head.
Maybe take a rest from all I've been doing lately. Maybe sit in that silence, to figure out what to
do next with my life..
But the second I stepped through the house front door, the air felt….off.
My father was standing in the middle of the living room, his face twisted into something of anger
and disgust the moment he saw me. He didn't say a word. Just lifted his arm and held his phone
towards me.
I frowned. "What's going on?"
He turned the screen towards me. And I saw a video, on repeat.
My heart dropped.
It was the exact moment Alicia slapped me in the parking lot. The moment her voice rang out,
naming everything I did to her. And me, standing there like an idiot, letting her run her words
through me.
My stomach dropped further, the more I watched the video.
"I warned you," my father said with a low voice. "I told you not to let this woman put you to
shame." He added.
I couldn't look away from the video.
The exact moment Alicia slapped me had been caught on camera by some bystander with
nothing better to do and now it was everywhere.
Different social media had picked it up.
My father didn't mind staying still, showing me the repeating video. He let me drown in my own
shame.
And the comments? They were worse.
"She served him like a cold dish."
"That's not a slap, that's divine justice."
"#Protect Alicia at all costs."
"When your side chick gets to dump you and still slaps you in public."
The Laughter. The Jokes. The Memes. All of them directed to me.
My pride shattered more and more with every scroll I took
"This can't be real. It's not….. a bad moment." I swallowed hard on my word
My father didn't soften his expression. "It's real. And it's going to cost you more than just your
pride if you don't find a way to end this mess you put yourself in."
I quickly scrambled to do anything. I reported the video. Even Flagged it, I tried to contact the
original poster offering him money. But it was all pointless. The video was spreading fast like
wildfire.
My father shook his head in pity. He had already tried the same thing, but to no avail.
"I'll handle it…. I'll find a way to." I said with no plan in mind.
My father just shook his head again in pity.
"No one's listening," he said quietly. "They don't care about your side. They've already chosen
her side. She clearly looks like the victim, Rowen"
All I could do was watch, as the views kept climbing. From Hundreds of thousands. To then a
million. It was spreading fast. The slap, just one mistake and now I was the punchline of a viral
meme on the Internet.
And the worst part?
Alicia was being hailed like a hero. Like she just fought off her greatest villain.
The anger in me rose faster. My eyes burning red
Alicia?
She was just a nobody. Nothing special about her. Ordinary. Quiet. The kind of woman everyone
would pass by every day without even giving her a second glance.
And yet the whole public was siding with her, because of one….. useless video.
The public, the media, even strangers who knew nothing about us, about the past, about my
past. All of them praising her, defending her, lifting her up like some….hero. Like she did not cry
at my feet begging for my love.
Now I was the villain in every comment section.
This is unbearable.
"This is ridiculous," I whispered to myself, pacing around the room. "She played the victim and
everyone fell for it."
Something had to be done fast. And it has to be done Fast. Before everything slipped further out
of my control.
I was still walking round the room when my phone buzzed. An Unknown number. I ignored it,
probably a reporter or someone who had already seen the video. But the phone continued
ringing. Persistently, like I had to pick up.
I finally walked to it and picked it. "Hello?" my voice laced with anger.
"Is this Mr. Rowen?" a voice asked from the other end, a little calm but professional.
"Yes. Who is this?" I replied sharp.
"This is the Medical Center. We need you to come to the hospital immediately. It's regarding
your wife…Jane. Something has happened."
My heart dropped.
"What? What has happened?" I asked, my voice clearly breaking.
"I'm afraid we can't discuss the details over the phone."
"I'll be there right away." I said as the person from the other side, ended the call.
I quickly turned to the door and bolted out.