Chapter 1 Chapter 1

A friend of mine sent me an Instagram video. I clicked on it and watched as a couple playfully doted on each other. The guy fed the girl a strawberry with his mouth, then embraced her lovingly. I was about to exit the video out of boredom when the guy turned his head, and I froze. He looked just like my boyfriend, Julian Lawrence. Julian had been dabbling in social media ever since he graduated, though he was far from famous. His content mostly consisted of selfies, and I'd never seen him post any videos. However, I checked and confirmed the Instagram account belonged to Julian. Since when had he started filming couple videos, and with another girl, no less? Not only that, but the way they fed each other with their mouths and kissed while hugging made me feel sick. Did he even think about how I'd feel? To make things worse, the video had gone viral with over 200,000 views. It was the widest reach Julian had ever gotten on social media. In fact, it was probably beyond his wildest dreams. I confronted him right away. "Julian, what the hell is this? Who's that girl? Explain yourself!" Julian hastily took my phone, and his expression faltered for a split second before he regained his composure. He smiled and pulled me into a hug. "Why? Are you jealous?""I said, explain yourself." I pushed him away, unamused. "Her name's Winter York. She just broke up with her boyfriend and asked me to help her make him jealous. There's nothing between us. I swear. You know I wouldn't do that to you, Vicky." Then, Julian even showed me photos of Winter and her ex, along with their chat logs. His upfront behavior eased my doubts. I figured maybe I was overreacting. After all, if Julian had feelings for someone else, why would he post a video for me to see? Still, the thought that over 200,000 people had seen my boyfriend being affectionate with another girl bothered me a lot. Sensing that I was still upset, Julian added, "We only made the video for fun. I didn't expect it to blow up. Honestly, I don't understand why people are so into these fake videos." He put extra emphasis on the word "fake", then complained about how he and Winter had zero chemistry despite the comments saying they looked so in love. "We can film something like that together if you like," Julian suggested as he pulled me in for a kiss on the cheek while recording it on his phone. I never liked being on camera, so I grabbed his phone and told him to delete it. But Julian refused, saying it turned out cute and he wanted to keep it for himself. After some playful back-and-forth, we were back to normal. I glanced at the plate of fruits he had cut for me on the table—a nightly routine ever since I started prepping for my exams. He would make sure I had snacks for my breaks, which was thoughtful. As Julian had always been a kind and considerate boyfriend, I decided to drop the issue and trust him. But little did I know that my trust would soon be shattered by an even greater betrayal.

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

I thought Julian had stopped seeing Winter after that, but I was wrong. The views and income from their viral video had lured him into filming more videos with her behind my back, and the content had become increasingly suggestive. I found out one evening while Julian was in the shower. He had left his phone unlocked on the living room table. A message from Winter popped up, asking him when he was coming over to film again. Feeling betrayed, I opened their chat and read their messages. To my horror, their conversations were ridiculously flirty, as if they were a real couple. I furiously checked Julian's Instagram page and saw five new videos that made my blood boil. In one, Julian was shirtless as he showed off his abs to let Winter run her hands over him. In another, he pinned her against a wall and kissed her passionately. There was even one video of them playfully wrestling on a bed. Each video had an absurd number of views, and the comments were all gushing about how perfect they were together. Some praised their chemistry and even urged them to get married. Julian hadn't bothered to deny any of it, either. In fact, he'd responded to the comments by saying, "We've always been in love and plan to stay together forever." I felt sick to my stomach. How could he lie to my face and claim there was nothing between him and Winter while he was out there publicly shipping himself with her? By the time Julian finally came out of the shower, I had reached my limit. I told him to delete the videos immediately, or we were done. Julian panicked and tried to explain. "Vicky, it's all because the last video blew up. A media agency noticed the high engagement and offered me and Winter a contract to keep making content as a couple. "All these videos are planned out, and none of it was my idea. I didn't even want to do it at first because I knew it'd upset you. But the money's really good, and it's not like I'm losing anything." "What about me? How am I supposed to feel about this? If I were out there cuddling and kissing some other guy for everyone to see, would you be fine with that?" I snapped. It was really hard not to feel angry when thinking about him showing off his love with someone else and being showered with blessings from the public. Julian argued, "I'm only doing this to make more money, so I can save up for us to get married. And I promise that nothing is going on between me and Winter. Those flirty texts are all scripted by the agency. I can show you the contract if you don't believe me." He proceeded to bring me the contract, and sure enough, it laid out the terms in which he and Winter were bound to act like a couple for their videos, all for the sake of gaining more followers. I stared at the contract, speechless. This whole time, Julian's dream had been to make it big on social media. His account had been stagnant for so long, and now, he finally had a shot at success. How could I be the one to crush that dream? As long as he wasn't actually cheating on me, perhaps I could endure it. "Vicky, I promise you that as soon as I've built up enough of a following, I'll get out of this contract and start doing my own content. Then, once I've saved up enough, we can get married," Julian reassured me. I reluctantly agreed. I figured I could tough it out for a while longer, even if it meant avoiding watching his videos entirely. With my reluctant approval, Julian threw himself into filming even more videos with Winter. When the agency wanted them to shoot travel vlogs, he started traveling for work, and we ended up in a long-distance relationship.

Chapter 3 Chapter 3

Julian and I video-called each day while he was away to update me on his work, and he often sent me luxury gifts from his earnings. It felt like our relationship hadn't suffered at all from the long distance, and I trusted him completely. We managed to see each other two to three times a month, and every time he visited, I was overjoyed. We'd go out on dates and enjoy each other's company. One time, Julian returned from his trip just in time for my birthday. I recorded a short video of us celebrating over dinner and shared it on my Instagram along with a photo of the gift he bought me so that I could look back on that memorable day. I hadn't been one to post much before. But ever since we started the long-distance relationship, I had developed the habit of sharing snippets of our life together online. It helped ease the longing when he wasn't around. Julian stayed the night but left again the next day. Afterward, I scrolled through my Instagram feed, drawing motivation from others' posts to keep pushing forward in my studies for the upcoming grad school entrance exam. Later that evening, I got a message from someone claiming to be from Julian's agency. They told me to take down the photos and videos of us from my public feed. Confused, I asked, "Why can't I share moments from my life with my boyfriend?" The staff explained, "Julian's career is taking off right now. He's gained tens of thousands of new followers recently. If his fans find out that you're his real girlfriend and not the one in the videos, it could seriously damage his job and reputation." I hadn't considered the potential fallout. It hadn't crossed my mind that his newfound fame would come with so many complications. "Even though we know his relationship with Winter is just a marketing ploy, the public will regard the truth differently. They'll accuse Julian of cheating, and the backlash could be brutal. You know how good he is to you, so please think of what's best for him." The realization hit me hard. After thinking it over, I agreed and switched my Instagram account to private so that the posts were viewable only by me. However, even though I made these sacrifices, it felt like I was the only one making an effort. Not long after, I checked Julian's Instagram page again, and the comments on his videos were filled with fans urging him and Winter to get married. Julian didn't correct them, and Winter was enthusiastically engaging with viewers by sharing stories about all the sweet things Julian had supposedly done for her. I couldn't stand it any longer. In frustration, I replied to one of Winter's comments and questioned their relationship. That only resulted in me getting viciously attacked by their fans, who mocked me for being single and jealous. They accused me of being bitter and envious of a happy couple. My blood boiled, and I called Julian to demand when he was going to cut ties with Winter. I couldn't take it anymore. It felt like I was the homewrecker in my own relationship. Julian merely said it wouldn't be long. He claimed they were already planning to stage a breakup and end the fake relationship. But I was so annoyed that I hung up and refused to listen to any more excuses. … That weekend, I was home alone, sulking, when the doorbell rang unexpectedly. To my surprise, it was Julian. He told me he had come to apologize, saying he couldn't control the situation with Winter but wanted to make it up to me by taking me out for dinner. We went to a trendy couple-themed restaurant. I was on edge the whole time, terrified someone might recognize Julian and ruin his carefully crafted online persona. Julian wore a baseball cap and glasses, altering his appearance just enough to feel safe holding my hand in public. Seeing him take such a risk for me calmed me down, and strangely, the secrecy of it all made the night feel exciting in a way. Thus, all my pent-up frustration eventually dissolved.