Serena’s POV
I scoffed, looking Ryan straight in the eyes."You know, all this could’ve been avoided if you’d just agreed in the first place."
Without waiting for his response, I turned and walked out of the mansion with my head held high, the crimson fabric of my dress swishing against my legs with each confident step.
The morning air felt fresher sohow, like I could finally breathe freely after years of suffocation.
Ryan and Ivy followed to the courthouse, where we’d complete the divorce proceedings.
While waiting for our turn, I pulled out my phone and began responding to several collaboration requests that had co in overnight.
In the past, I would have ignored these opportunities, knowing Ryan preferred to focus solely on being his wife rather than pursuing my own career.
But things were different now.
I was determined to rebuild my professional life, starting with expanding my network in the design world.
I sent my contact information to several studios who had reached out, still using my designer pseudonym, Lazuli.
Within the few minutes we sat waiting, seven or eight design studios had already added to their contacts.
The offers they presented were quite impressive—exclusive contracts, creative freedom, substantial compensation.
A small smile curved my lips as I scrolled through the ssages.
Without Ryan, I wasn’t helpless as he might have thought. I had my talents, my vision, my own path forward.
Ivy’s voice broke through my concentration, her tone dripping with malice as she spoke to Ryan.
I could feel her challenging gaze on , but I kept my eyes on my phone.
"Ryan, are you absolutely certain about this divorce? If Sophie knew about this, she’d probably be thrilled, wouldn’t she?"
"After all, no matter how much Serena resembles my sister, she’s nothing but a replacent anyway..."
I didn’t bother acknowledging her pathetic attempt to provoke .
In my eyes, Ivy had beco nothing more than an annoying pest, desperately seeking attention.
Finally, our number was called, and we were directed to proceed with the divorce formalities.
The clerk, a middle-aged woman with kind eyes, reviewed our paperwork with professional efficiency until she noticed that the divorce agreent bore only my signature.
"Mr. Blackwood, you’ll need to sign here," she said, pointing to the designated line.
Ryan’s jaw tightened as he took the pen, his eyes scanning the docunt before landing on the financial settlent section where I had waived all rights to his assets.
His expression darkened as he signed with a forceful stroke.
"What the hell is this?" he growled, keeping his voice low but intense.
"You’re taking nothing? Not even the legal minimum? Is this so kind of statent, Serena? Another way to sha ?"
"Your money has nothing to do with , Ryan," I replied calmly. "I never wanted it in the first place. I can earn my own living."
"This is ridiculous," he continued, his pride clearly wounded. "You were my wife for three years. You’re entitled to—"
"I’m entitled to my freedom," I cut him off, turning to the clerk. "Please continue with the process. We’ve both signed now."
The clerk glanced between us, sensing the tension but maintaining her professionalism. "Very well. Everything appears to be in order."
After a few more signatures and verifications, she handed us each a copy of the divorce certificate. Just like that, three years of marriage dissolved in a matter of minutes.
"Congratulations," Ivy said with mock sweetness as we exited the courthouse. "Now you can go back to being the nobody you were before Mr.Blackwood rescued you."
I didn’t even spare her a glance as I walked straight to the waiting taxi.
Ryan stood on the courthouse steps, his expression unreadable as he watched leave.
In the backseat of the taxi, I finally allowed myself to process what had just happened.
Three years of marriage—three years of trying to be soone I wasn’t, of desperately seeking approval from a man who could never truly see —all over in the blink of an eye.
Strange how sothing that took so long to build could crumble so quickly.
Yet instead of sadness, I felt an overwhelming sense of relief washing over .
The divorce certificate in my hand wasn’t a symbol of failure but of new beginnings.
When I arrived at the Dreamland Studio, Maya was waiting for , pacing anxiously in the reception area. Her eyes widened when she saw .
"Serena! Tell you didn’t actually go through with it!" she exclaid, rushing over to .
I held up the divorce certificate in response.
"Holy shit," she whispered, staring at the docunt in disbelief. "You actually did it. You left the CEO of Blackwood Enterprises,one of the most powerful n in the entire world."
"It was long overdue," I said with a small shrug, walking past her toward my office.
"Are you okay? You must be hurting," Maya followed closely, her voice full of concern. "You liked him so much..."
"Less than staying would have," I replied honestly.
Once inside my office, I placed my purse on the desk and turned to face her. "It’s done, Maya. I’m free now."
She studied my face for a mont before pulling into a tight hug. "I’m proud of you, girl. It took guts to walk away."
When she finally released , her expression turned serious.
"But there’s sothing else we need to discuss. Celeste hasn’t left her apartnt in days. The online harassnt has gotten completely out of control since Ivy’s accusations. "
"People are calling her a fraud, a thief... it’s brutal out there."
I frowned, imdiately feeling responsible. "Contact her and tell her that the studio will handle this completely. She should just stay ho and wait for good news."
"How?" Maya asked. "The damage is already done."
"Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it," I assured her.
"Thank goodness! Serena, you’re truly my lifesaver!" Maya exclaid, throwing her arms around in excitent like she wanted to plant a kiss on my cheek.
"Alright, I need to get to work now. Doesn’t the studio have orders to complete?" I reminded her.
"What would you like to eat? I’ll go get it for you. Serena, I’m your loyal servant—command as you wish!" My best friend clung to my arm playfully, making laugh despite myself.
"Co on, you don’t need to be so formal with . If you hadn’t taken in, I wouldn’t have had anywhere to go after the divorce."
My words made Maya’s eyes well up with tears. Before she could launch into another emotional speech, I sent her away with a simple request.
"I want a vanilla latte, half sweet, with oat milk!"
"No problem, coming right up!" she called as she left.
After Maya left, I logged into my social dia account on my computer. In my friends list was a user called "WhisperStream." I opened a chat window.
This person was a well-known internet influencer who always appeared wherever there was gossip.
His sharp comntary had earned him quite a following.
Now a famous figure in the gossip community, any news that ca from him received maximum attention.
I organized the evidence I had about the design competition judges and typed a ssage.
[Are you there? I have solid dirt on Martin, one of the judges from the *** design competition.]
His response ca almost instantly, jumping straight to business.
[How much to share it?]
I smiled, typing quickly.
[You don’t need to pay for this information. Consider it a favor—just take these materials, find Martin, and get him to publicly clarify that Celeste didn’t plagiarize anything. Otherwise, you can expose him with what I’m sending.]
There was a mont of silence as he presumably considered what he stood to gain.
[And if he refuses to make the clarification?]
[Then you can handle it however you want. If he does clarify the situation, I’ll give you other exclusive scoops that I guarantee you’ll find satisfying.]
Well, my counterattack has begun, Ivy.
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