On my wedding day, just because my fianc insisted on wearing an old, broken watch with the million-dollar designer gown I’d bought him, I called off the wedding right then and there.
Julian looked at me in utter disbelief, Just because of a watch?
I pulled out the divorce papers, urging him to sign quickly. “Yes, exactly because of a watch.”
Everyone called me crazy, saying I’d torn apart ten years of love over a stupid watch, right at the altar.
My dad stepped forward and slapped me hard. “You ungrateful brat, get on your knees!”
Mrs. Hayes cried, screaming that I had dumped her son right at the altar, ruining the rest of his life.
I looked at the watch on his wrist, pointing at 3:07, and smiled.
I dialed my assistant Sarah’s number directly.
“Those things? You can release them now.”
“I want a divorce.”
“Take off the watch.”
The moment we were about to exchange rings, I gripped Julian’s hand, my gaze fixed on his wrist.
It was an old, silver wristwatch, its face yellowed, the hands forever stuck at 3:07.
The happy smile on Julian’s face froze. He instinctively tried to pull his hand back.
“Stella, don’t mess around. Everyone’s watching.”
I didn’t move. I just repeated myself, my voice not loud, but clear enough to echo through the entire chapel.
“Take off the watch.”
His face completely changed. A flicker of panic and sharp anger, something I’d never seen before, crossed his eyes.
“What do you mean? You know what this watch means to me!”
“I know.” I released his hand and pulled a pre-prepared document from my clutch.
“Because I know, that’s why we’re getting a divorce.”
Julian stared at me in disbelief, then at the document with “Divorce Agreement” on the cover. His body started to tremble.
“Stella, say that again?”
“I said, divorce.” I flipped open the page I’d already signed and pushed it towards him.
“Because of this watch.”
The entire crowd gasped.
“Is she insane? The Sterling heiress wants a divorce because of a broken watch? What kind of joke is this?”
“Is it an act? Just to add some drama to the wedding?”
“Feel bad for Julian, marrying such a psycho. What humiliation on his big day.”
The whispers were like a thousand needles, piercing Julian’s pride.
Tears instantly welled up in his eyes, his rims red, his lips trembling, but he couldn’t utter a single word.
His mother, my soon-to-be mother-in-law, was the first to rush forward, clutching my dress collar tightly.
“Stella! You bitch! For a watch, you humiliate him like this in front of all these guests?”
“That’s just a keepsake from his deceased friend. Are you so jealous you’re even competing with a dead person? You’re nothing like a woman.”
She swung her fist, hitting my chest.
I ignored her, my gaze fixed on Julian.
Ten years, from high school sweethearts to walking down the aisle, I thought we were each other’s forever. But until this moment, seeing the way he protected that watch, I finally understood: I wasn’t even his starting point.
“Why?” He finally burst into tears, clutching the agreement tightly.
“Just because of a watch? What about our ten years together?”
“Yes,” I nodded, my voice calm, almost chillingly so.
“Exactly because of a watch.”
I urged him, “Sign it. Let’s not make this any uglier than it needs to be.”
Those words completely shattered him.
Julian’s whole body trembled. He snatched the divorce agreement, tearing it into tiny pieces with furious hands.
“Stella, I won’t agree!” His bloodshot eyes glared at me, like a cornered beast.
“You want a divorce? Over my dead body!”
I looked at his hysterical face and smiled.
Turning away, I pulled out my phone and dialed my secretary.
“Sarah,” my voice was soft, but laced with an icy satisfaction.
“Those things? You can release them now.”
“I’m ready for a divorce.”
My dad was the first to storm onto the stage. Having built his empire from the ground up, he was now shaking with rage, and slapped me hard across the face.
“You ungrateful brat! Get down on your knees! If you can’t give me a good explanation today, I swear I’ll skin you alive!”
A searing pain erupted on my cheek. My head snapped to the side, and I tasted a hint of blood.
My mom followed quickly, grabbing me, tears streaming down her face.
“Stella, tell me, what is going on? You and Julian grew up together, we saw your love, it can’t possibly be about a watch, can it?”
“Exactly,” my dad pointed a finger at me, roaring, “Have you forgotten who used to follow you around with water, who stayed by your side for three days and three nights when you were sick? It was this boy right here! How can you treat him like this today? How can you be so heartless?”
Julian sobbed, crying almost to the point of collapse in front of countless guests.
“Stella, you hate this watch, don’t you? I’ll take it off, I’ll just take it off, please don’t leave me”
He cried as he tried to unfasten the watch strap, his movements clumsy and slow, as if every fiber of his being was resisting.
“Don’t bother taking it off. It’s too late.” I said coldly.
Those words hit him harder than any slap.
Julian’s movements froze. He looked at me in disbelief.
My dad’s blood pressure surged with anger. He kicked the back of my knee, forcing me to my knees in front of Julian.
“Apologize! You rebellious daughter. You will get married today, whether you like it or not!”
I stiffened my back, my chin held high, refusing to speak.
The guests below had transitioned from shock to outrage.
“Stella is truly an animal! The poor guy is willing to compromise, and she’s still so cold and heartless?”
“The Hayes family must have the worst luck imaginable to end up with someone like her.”
“Bitch! A total bitch!”
Seeing that brute force wasn’t working, my dad softened his tone.
“Honey, Dad knows you’re not unreasonable. There must be another reason. Tell us, and we’ll solve it together. Don’t break Julian’s heart.”
All eyes were on me, waiting for my explanation.
But I just smiled, looking up at Julian’s forlorn, tear-streaked face, and said, word by word.
“I don’t want to marry you anymore. I’m bored. Is that not allowed?”
Those words were like pouring cold water into boiling oil; the entire room exploded with chatter.
Julian knelt before me, his body limp like a ragdoll, the light in his eyes completely extinguished.
“Stella, you can stop loving me, but you can’t insult me like this.” His voice was barely a whisper, filled with despair.
“Are our ten years of love really worth nothing to you?”
“You’re a heartless bastard!”
My mom’s gaze, too, shifted from heartbreak to utter disappointment.
My dad clenched his fists, veins bulging, looking as if he wanted to strangle me the next second.
But I didn’t look at them anymore. I slowly stood up, brushing the dust from my knees.
Then, in front of everyone, I glanced disdainfully at Julian and uttered my final words.
“Then, I’ll see you in court.”
The wedding became a colossal farce.
My dad immediately announced his support for Julian, declaring that if I didn’t back down, he’d disown me.
The next day, headlines like “Sterling Heiress Calls Off Wedding Over Watch, Ten Years of Love in Vain” and “Heartless Sterling Daughter Crushes Devoted Man” exploded across all social media platforms, topping trending lists.
Someone had filmed the wedding scene, and my cold, contemptuous, insulting face towards Julian was turned into countless memes, going viral across the internet.
I became the notorious “bitch of the century.”
“Who does she think she is? Ruining an engagement over a broken watch? Typical entitled brat!”
“Julian is so pathetic. Ten years of his youth wasted, and then publicly humiliated like that.”
“I heard that watch was a keepsake from Julian’s deceased friend. Stella is so insecure she’s jealous of the dead! Is she even a woman anymore?!”
My company address and private residence were doxxed by the all-powerful netizens. My front door was splattered with paint and eggs daily.
Sterling Group’s stock plummeted by billions overnight.
My dad swiftly held a press conference, reiterating that he had disowned me, and that all of Stella’s actions were her own and had nothing to do with the Sterling family.
Relatives and friends who once fawned over me quickly blocked and deleted my contact info, afraid of any association.
I became public enemy number one.
Yet, here I was, lounging leisurely in a top-floor hotel suite, watching Julian’s exclusive interview on TV.
He wore a plain white shirt, his face pale, eyes swollen like peachesthe perfect image of a deeply wronged yet resilient man.
“Please, everyone, stop attacking Stella,” he choked, looking into the camera.
“I believe she was just confused for a moment. Our ten years of love weren’t fake; there must be some misunderstanding.”
“She was just too concerned about me, which is why she was so sensitive about that watch.”
“I’ll wait for her to come to her senses. We won’t get a divorce. We’re going to be together forever.”
His words were perfectly crafted, not only portraying himself as a loving, forgiving gentleman but also nailing me to the pillar of shame as someone “jealous and overreacting out of love.”
Reporters applauded his magnanimity, and the comment sections were flooded with overwhelming praise.
I watched his flawless face on the screen and chuckled.
Then, I dialed his number.
The call was answered quickly. The reporters on-site, realizing it was me, the protagonist, immediately aimed their microphones at the speaker.
“Stella?” Julian’s voice was full of surprise and anticipation.
“You finally called me! Have you thought things through? I don’t blame you for the wedding. We can start over”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself.” I cut off his self-indulgent performance with a light laugh.
“Just a reminder: tomorrow morning at nine, court. Don’t be late.”
As my words dropped, I could clearly hear a sharp gasp from his end of the line.
The entire press conference erupted into chaos.
Immediately after, even more furious condemnations rained down on me.
“Scumbag! Animal! Even after Julian’s words, she’s still so cold-blooded!”
Julian’s sobs came through the receiver, broken and heartbreaking.
“Stella do we really have to go this far?”
I chuckled, then responded, my voice not loud but clear enough for everyone to hear, firm and resolute.
“Of course.”
“Not only are we getting divorced, but I, Stella, will reclaim every single piece of property, every share, every fund I ever gifted you. Not a single cent will remain.”
“From now on, we go our separate ways, for good.”
The next day, I appeared at the courthouse entrance.
Reporters swarmed like sharks smelling blood, surrounding me, making it impossible to move.
“Ms. Sterling, are you truly divorcing Mr. Hayes, your love of ten years, just because of a watch?”
“There are rumors you already have a new lover, and the watch is just an excuse for divorce. Is that true?”
“How can you publicly humiliate Mr. Hayes like this? Doesn’t your conscience bother you?”
Countless microphones practically jabbed at my face.
Expressionless, I walked straight into the courtroom, security guards clearing a path for me.
Julian was already there. He wore all black today, his face gaunt, tear tracks clearly visible at the corners of his eyes.
Seeing me, he hoarsely called out, “Stella”
I ignored him, walking directly to the plaintiff’s seat.
The trial began, and I stated my simple request:
“I, Stella Sterling, request the dissolution of my marriage with the defendant, Julian Hayes.”
The judge asked, “Reason?”
Before I could answer, Julian broke down. He slammed his hand on the table, crying out:
“I refuse to divorce! Stella, tell me why! We loved each other so much! Is it really just because I didn’t take off that watch? It’s a keepsake from my best friend! If something happened to you, I would cherish your memory with my life! Why can’t you understand?”
His passionate words and insistence moved many in the gallery to wipe away tears.
But I simply smiled faintly, meeting everyone’s gaze, and calmly said:
“Yes, it’s because of that watch. No other reason.”
He froze, as if he hadn’t expected me to be so blunt.
“Really just because of that?”
“What kind of reason is that? It’s absurd!” Mrs. Hayes shrieked from the gallery.
“Because of a broken watch, you’ve ruined my son’s life! You monster!”
My dad sat on the other side, clutching his chest in anger, pointing at me, his lips trembling.
“You rebellious daughter! You’ve disgraced our family!”
The gallery erupted completely.
“She’s crazy! Stella is absolutely insane! To ruin her engagement just because she’s jealous of a watch C she’s clearly sick!”
“Julian must have been blind to his true nature, how could he fall for someone like this?!”
“Bitch! A menace to society!”
Several emotional netizens even threw eggs and rotten vegetables at me.
Sticky egg yolk ran down my hair, blinding my eyes.
I was a mess.
The judge pounded his gavel, frowning slightly.
“Order! Plaintiff, your reason for divorce is too tenuous; it does not constitute a legal ground for divorce. Do you have any other evidence?”
I glanced down at my phone; the screen was still dark.
The time hadn’t come yet.
I could only shake my head. “No.”
“In that case,” the judge picked up his gavel, ready to pronounce sentence,
“Due to insufficient evidence from the plaintiff, this court rules to deny the plaintiff’s petition for divorce from the defendant”
“Wait!”
Just a second before the gavel struck, my phone screen finally lit up.
A massive weight lifted from my shoulders.
I held up my phone, facing the judge and the entire court, a chilling smile on my face.
“Your Honor, I just received my evidence. May I request to play it?”
The next second, the courtroom’s large screen lit up.
The projected image drained all color from Julian’s face. He froze in place.
It wasn’t until a familiar name and a familiar face appeared on the screen that he finally realized what it was.
He let out a desperate, piercing scream, rushing towards the screen regardless of everything.
“No! Turn it off! Turn it off now!”
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