Betrayed and Broken : My Touch Reveals Your Secrets

Chapter 1

“Excuse me! Excuse me!”

A man pushed his way through the crowd of graduates filling the University of Stockholm courtyard this afternoon. He paid no attention whatsoever to the scornful glances and sharp remarks from the people he passed.

Peter glanced at the small gift in his hand and smiled broadly. Today, he was going to propose to his girlfriend, Clara. He had spent most of his savings to buy that gift.

Peter had been dating Clara for a year. She was incredibly beautiful, kind, and willing to accept all his flaws. His difficult days seemed to vanish every time he saw Clara’s smile.

Graduating at the top of his class and landing a job at a company in the capital had convinced him that he could make her happy.

Peter stopped to survey his surroundings. While he was busy looking for Clara, his gaze suddenly fell on a large crowd by the lake.

“You two are a perfect match!”

“I’m so jealous!”

Those shouts instantly caught Peter’s attention for a moment. His feet were about to carry him toward the crowd, but he chose to continue searching for Clara. Strangely, the crowd suddenly parted, opening a path for him.

“I love you so much, Simon!”

Peter gasped as he heard those words. He recognized that voice, as well as the woman passionately kissing a man amidst the applause and congratulations from the graduates.

From every angle, that woman looked exactly like Clara. However, he chose not to believe it.

Eyes can sometimes be deceiving.

The kind and caring Clara would never do anything bad to him, let alone betray him, he thought.

Peter blinked repeatedly, hoping the scene before him was just a hallucination or a daytime nightmare. But with just one glance from that woman, all his hopes vanished instantly.

For several long seconds, Peter stood frozen, eyes and mouth agape. He felt his legs go weak as jelly. His chest tightened, making it hard for him to breathe.

That woman was truly Clara, passionately kissing that man again.

“Ah, you’re here too, Peter,” said a man beside Clara as he broke the kiss. He briefly kissed her forehead, smiling. “You’re happy about this news too, aren’t you?”

The man was Simon—one of the jerks who often bullied him.

“Clara, what’s the meaning of all this?” Peter asked, clenching his fists. He was still trying to smile even though his chest felt incredibly tight. His left hand hid a gift box behind his back.

Simon snorted in annoyance. “How dare a piece of trash like you ignore me!”

Clara flicked her hair while rolling her eyes. Her arms were crossed over her chest. “What do you want, Peter? You didn’t come here to ruin Simon and my happy moment, did you?”

Peter stared intently at Clara. The cold tone just now was completely different from Clara’s usual voice whenever they met. There was hatred and contempt in every word.

“If you don’t want to talk, get out of here right now! Simon and I still have important business to attend to! Don’t bother us!”

Peter bit his lip before speaking, “Are you cheating with Simon?”

The atmosphere suddenly grew deathly quiet, but erupted into uproar as Clara, Simon, and the graduates suddenly burst into laughter.

Peter was taken aback, staring at the people around him with a confused look. He hadn’t heard anything funny in what he’d just said.

“You bastard!” Simon shouted, “What did you just say? You think of Clara as your girlfriend?”

“Why are you accusing Clara of cheating? Do you think she wants to be your girlfriend?” said Sean, Simon’s close friend. “Who do you think you are, huh?”

“You must be out of your mind, Peter! Why would Clara want to be the girlfriend of a poor, good-for-nothing guy like you? Come on, everyone knows Simon is far better than you in every way!” snapped Cindy, Clara’s best friend.

One by one, the graduates began to sneer at Peter, but Simon stopped them with a single wave of his hand.

Simon stepped closer, patting Peter on the shoulder. “You might be smarter than me, or even the smartest among all the graduates today—so much so that you’re the valedictorian. But you’re just a poor man who has nothing, Peter.”

Simon smiled, holding back a laugh. “I’ll forgive your behavior just now because I’m happy right now. So, you have to leave now!”

Peter brushed Simon’s hand aside, walking past him. “Clara, you need to explain something to me about this.”

“You jerk! You’re ignoring me again!” Simon shouted, grabbing Peter’s shoulder. He suddenly smiled when he saw a small gift in Peter’s hand.

“Stop bothering me, Peter! Aren’t you satisfied with bothering me for the past year?” Clara screamed as she threw her shoe.

Peter stopped in his tracks as the shoe landed on his chest. He looked at Clara intently, making sure she was the woman he had loved all this time.

“Clara, why have you changed?”

“Oh my! I didn’t know you were that clueless—that you haven’t realized your own situation! You think of me as your girlfriend and are cheating on you? And now you’re saying I’ve changed! That’s absolutely ridiculous!”

“We’ve been in a relationship for a year. We’ve been through so much during that time. Why have you....”

“Have you really gone crazy, Peter? Am I dating a guy like you?” Clara pointed at herself, laughing dismissively. “Why should I date you? Just because I’ve treated you well all this time doesn’t mean you can brag all you want, let alone think I’m your girlfriend!”

Peter was still trying to convince himself that Clara was just pretending.

Clara rolled her eyes. “Everyone knows Simon and I have been dating for a year—he even proposed to me today. He’s a far better man than you in every way!”

“What?” Peter snapped his head toward Simon, then back to Clara, who stood haughtily before him. “That’s impossible! You’re just messing with me, right?”

“If you and Simon have really been dating for a year, why haven’t I heard anything about it? You… also act completely normal whenever Simon is around.”

Clara stomped on the grass in frustration. “Oh my god, why have you suddenly become so dense that you don’t realize the situation right now, Peter? I’ve never felt like I was dating you! Stop lying!”

Peter clenched his fists tightly and stepped forward. “I’ve done so much for you, Clara. I helped you with your studies, stayed by your side when you were sick, bought you things....”

Clara gave him a cold stare. “Did I ever ask you to help me with my schoolwork? Did I ever ask you to take care of me when I was sick? Did I ever ask for those cheap trinkets from you, Peter?”

Clara smiled cynically. “I never asked for any of that! You did all of that of your own free will. Just because I treated you well doesn’t mean you can assume I’m your girlfriend!”

“You said there’s no way I could be dating Simon?” Clara burst out laughing. “You’re so self-absorbed you don’t even realize the truth. Everyone knows I’ve been dating Simon all this time. Everyone witnessed Simon proposing to me just now.”

“I’m absolutely certain you saw Simon and me kissing. Do I need to demonstrate again just how passionate and intimate we were while kissing?”