My dad slammed his hand on the table.

"That boy has some nerve! We've always treated him like a future son-in-law, and this is how he treats you! So polite to our faces, but stabbing you in the back!"

My mom was wiping away tears, holding my hand tightly.

"Honey, we were blind. We never saw that boy's true face. This engagement, we're calling it off."

Hearing my parents' support was a huge relief.

"But if we call it off, won't it look bad for our family? Grandpa was the one who arranged it."

"What's more important, our reputation or your happiness? Besides, your dad and I aren't afraid of a little small-town gossip."

"Okay. Thanks, Mom."

That evening, as we started dinner, Ethan showed up with Lila.

He walked in like he owned the place, telling Lila to have a seat and that my parents would make her something delicious, all without even looking at me.

My parents had always been good to him, saving him a plate whenever they made something special, treating him like their own son.

He'd clearly gotten used to the special treatment and really thought he was the man of the house.

"Mrs. Miller, I heard you made a roast chicken today. Lila hasn't had a good meal in a while, so I brought her over for a bite. She's gotten so thin."

"Chicken? Oh, what a shame. Our Grace was so hungry, she ate it all."

"What? How could she eat it all herself?"

Ethan's voice shot up, laced with annoyance at me.

My mom's expression soured instantly, and the sound of her chopping vegetables on the cutting board got louder and louder.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Even someone as dense as Ethan could see something was wrong with my mom.

He frowned at me, motioning for me to say something to smooth things over.

I shot him a glare and ignored him.

Lila, sensing the tense atmosphere, gently tugged on Ethan's sleeve.

"Ethan, it's okay if there's none left. Don't make things difficult for Mrs. Miller."

Just then, my dad came out from the back room, looking at him coldly.

"What's this? You've forgotten your manners in my house?"

Only then did Ethan rein himself in.

During dinner, Ethan kept putting food on Lila's plate, completely ignoring me as if I were invisible.

I just laughed to myself and kept eating.

Suddenly, as if he just remembered I was there, he put some food on my plate too.

"Grace, you're looking thin too. Eat up."

I pushed the food he gave me aside and went back to my meal.

He didn't get angry when I ignored him.

"Mr. and Mrs. Miller, Grace is still mad at me. It's my fault, I've been so focused on the SATs lately that I've been neglecting her."

The way he said it was clever, seemingly putting himself down while hinting that I was being immature.

In the past, my parents would have fallen for it and probably told me to stop being difficult.

But after what I had told them, they weren't buying his act anymore.

Seeing my parents stay silent, he must have thought he'd won them over.

He cautiously tested the waters.

"Mr. and Mrs. Miller, I actually brought Lila over today to get those review materials. Grace promised to give them to me, but then she suddenly changed her mind..."

"When did I ever say I'd give them to you?"

"It's not up to you. I want to hear what Mr. and Mrs. Miller have to say."

My dad put down his fork.

"Ethan, because you and Grace were engaged, we treated you with every kindness. But you bullied her. From this day forward, your engagement to Grace is canceled. Don't come to our house again."

Ethan's eyes went wide.

"Mr. Miller," he said in disbelief, "you must have misunderstood something. If you don't want to give us the materials, that's fine. There's no need to get so angry."

My mom spoke up, her voice sharp with anger.

"Misunderstood? We know all about the things you've done to Grace. We would never marry our daughter to someone like you."

Lila, seeing things go south, started to cry her crocodile tears.

"It's all my fault. I'm the one who caused a problem between Ethan and Grace. If you're going to blame someone, blame me."

I let out a cold laugh.

"You can stop pretending. I've seen right through your little games."

Ethan tried to defend Lila, but my dad cut him off and showed them the door.

"You two should go. And don't come back."

After they were kicked out, I grabbed a big, greasy chicken leg and went to the door to "see them off."

They both turned back, their eyes locked on the delicious-looking chicken, swallowing hard.

They shot me one last hateful glare and left.

After that, Ethan tried to see me a few times, but I refused to meet him.