My Father Picked Me a Fiancée

1
On the eve of our wedding, my fiance Arias childhood sweetheart came back.
Caleb Chrest, the golden boy who once had the world at his feet, had been reduced to a simpleton by a tragic accident. Now, he wouldn't let anyone near him except Aria.
I thought she would keep her distance.
After all, eight years ago, they had destroyed each other, a spectacular implosion that ended with Caleb fleeing the country and Arias entire family in the hospital. Since shed been with me, I was her entire world. Our friends always teased her about it, calling her famously devoted now that her long-time crushmehad finally become her fianc.
But now, she was on the phone, frantically arranging to pick him up, so absorbed she didn't even notice Id come home.
"Cancel the setup at the venue for now," she was saying, her voice strained. "Caleb can't handle the idea of me getting married."
She let out a soft, confident breath. "Don't worry, Ethan won't mind. He loves me so much. He even cut ties with his family just to marry me..."
Aria was so certain Id do anything for her.
What she didn't know was that my father's favorite game was pretending to disapprove. Not only had he prepared an astronomical "dowry" to help this 'imposter' heiress secure her position in the Monroe family, but he had also hand-picked another fiance for me long ago...
...
A few days ago, Id heard rumors that Caleb was back in the country, demanding that Aria come get him. I didn't think anything of it. She hadn't reacted to the news either, other than being too nervous and excited about our wedding to sleep.
But now, the wedding I had dreamed of for years was just an inconvenient ceremony she needed to postpone.
Her line was busy, so I drove to the hotel myself. The grand ballroom, which had been nearly transformed for our ceremony, was stripped bare. Everything had been packed away. The hotel manager conveniently avoided me.
I went home, a cold fury simmering in my gut.
Just as I was about to confront her, two vases came hurtling toward me.
"Thief! Robber! Who said you could steal my Aria?"
Shards of porcelain skittered across the floor, one slicing into my calf. I cried out in pain, stumbling backward. But Caleb wasn't finished.
He lunged at me, grabbing a handful of sharp fragments as if he couldn't feel the pain, and tried to throw them at my face. I instinctively threw my arms up to block him.
"Caleb!" Aria screamed, rushing out of the kitchen and grabbing his hand.
The throbbing pain in my leg mixed with a surge of angry, wounded betrayal. This was the woman who used to fret over a papercut on my finger, and now she hadn't even glanced at me.
"Caleb, are you trying to destroy your hand?" she cried, her voice laced with panic. She immediately fetched the first-aid kit and began tending to his wounds, her brow furrowed with heartache.
I looked around, and a wave of dizziness hit me. It wasnt just Aria who seemed like a stranger; the whole house was alien. The designer watches shed given me, the latest season's menswearall of it had been moved into a new, separate room. The rest of our home was a scene of utter devastation. Our wedding portrait and all our other photos together were shredded on the floor. The festive crimson banners wed hung were torn down and crumpled. Anything red, anything that symbolized our union, had been destroyed.
The Monroe family's housekeeper was cleaning up the mess, while Aria's neat handwriting on sticky notes directed her where to place Calebs garish action figures. Shed even installed protective corner guards on the tables. She was still so meticulous, just as she had been when she designed every inch of this home with me.
But this was supposed to be our home.
The unease I'd been feeling solidified into a cold, hard dread.
"Aria, what is the meaning of this?"
It was as if shed only just remembered I existed. She turned, the gentle, placating smile shed been giving Caleb freezing on her lips. Her eyes darted around the ruined room, and a look of guilt and panic flashed across her face.
"Ethan..."
As she started to rise, Caleb wrapped his arms around her waist and started to sob like a child. "Aria, why were you mean to me just now?" he wailed, then pointed a trembling, accusatory finger at me. "Was it because of him? Because of this pretty boy who stole you from me?"
Aria finally noticed the blood trickling down my leg. With a sigh of resignation, she gestured for the housekeeper to come bandage my wound, then pulled me tensely into the study.
"Ethan, please don't be angry with Caleb," she began, her voice hesitant. "I know he's older than you, but mentally... he's stuck at around ten years old."
"He's always been possessive," she continued, her tone pleading. "I just looked away for a second and he destroyed the house. You can understand that, can't you?"
She wouldn't meet my eyes, but her resolve hardened. "You know what happened. After his family went bankrupt, his parents disappeared. He doesn't remember any of his other relatives or friends. Caleb... he only has me now."
Then came the final blow. "He'll be living with us from now on."
The decision was so sudden, so absurd, it was almost laughable.
"No. I don't understand, and I don't accept it." The words felt like acid on my tongue. "First you cancel the wedding, now you're redecorating our home for him. Should I just give him my spot in our bed, too?"
A look of relief washed over her face.
"Oh, so you already know about the wedding?"

2
Aria started rubbing my shoulders, the way she always did to calm me down. She let out a small, placating laugh.
"Honey, you're not actually jealous of someone with the mind of a child, are you? Look, we can go get the marriage license in a couple of days. As for the ceremony, we'll have a proper one once his condition stabilizes."
I pulled away from her touch, my disappointment a lead weight in my stomach. "What does his condition have to do with us?"
Her face was a mask of guilt. "His psychological problems started after I forced him to leave the country. When he heard about our engagement, he got drunk and had an accident. It took him over a year to recover to... this state."
She finally looked at me, her eyes filled with a terrible certainty. "It's my fault. I owe him this. I have to take responsibility for him."
This wasn't a discussion. It was a declaration. I knew Aria. That unshakeable resolve, once a quality I admired, now felt like a dagger in my heart.
That night, she smoothed things over with her family and posted on social media, confirming the wedding was postponed.
My father's call came soon after. His voice was tight with barely suppressed rage. "Ethan. Is this wedding not happening?"
I gripped the phone, forcing my voice to remain steady. "No. Not for now."
The story Aria heardthat I'd cut ties with my familywas just an exaggeration of my father's anger when I'd refused to have our main wedding ceremony in our hometown of Northwood.
I didn't sleep that night, lost in memories.
I remembered the day Aria found out I loved her back. She was so ecstatic she wanted to shout it from the rooftops. My father had initially disapproved of our relationship; he already had the perfect daughter-in-law in mind. But Aria never complained. She just worked tirelessly to prove herself worthy. Even though she thought I came from a modest background, she never once treated me with anything but respect.
"It must be me," she'd say. "I'm just not good enough to make your father happy yet."
Everyone knew Aria was determined to marry me. The wild, rebellious girl I first met had slowly transformed into a poised and capable woman. It was only after she achieved incredible success at her company that my father finally gave her his blessing. On the day we got engaged, she cried with joy.
"I promise, sir," she told him, "I will never, ever let Ethan down."
And she hadn't. She was fiercely loyal, shutting down any hint of flirtation from others, always putting me first.
But the moment Caleb Chrest came back, she broke her promise.
...
The next morning, Aria emerged from Caleb's room, dark circles under her eyes. Seeing my stunned expression, she explained awkwardly, "He gets anxious. He needs someone to soothe him to sleep."
I walked past her, heading for the closet to put away the tuxedo I'd had meticulously prepared for our wedding.
But the display stand was empty.
A terrible premonition coiled in my stomach.
Laughter echoed from downstairs. I found Caleb there, wearing my tuxedo, gleefully painting on the walls with his hands. The jacket was covered in childish graffiti. The pant legs had been crudely hacked short. It was slathered in so many colors of paint it was unrecognizable.
A roaring sound filled my ears.
That suit was more than just fabric and thread. My mother, before she passed, had designed it for me, pouring over draft after draft. It wasn't just a memento; it was a mother's love and blessings for her son, woven into every stitch.
Now, it was ruined. Defiled.
He twirled in front of me, his eyes holding a clear, defiant challenge. For a split second, there was no trace of the simpleton, only sharp, calculating intelligence. I saw it all in that instant.
"Hey, bad guy," he chirped, his voice mocking. "What do you think of my new clothes? Aren't all the colors pretty?"
My fists clenched, rage, hot and blinding, shot through me.
"Take it off."
He ignored me, dipping his fingers back into the paint. "Why should I? I don't want to! Aria said this is my home now when we were sleeping last night. She said everything here can be mine."
I grabbed him by the collar and slapped him, hard, across the face. Twice.
"Aria! Help me!" he shrieked, bursting into tears.
"I said," I snarled, my voice low and dangerous, "take it off!"
He thrashed and clawed at my hands, but I didn't let go. I raised my hand to strike him again, but Aria caught my wrist. Caleb scrambled into her arms like a frightened animal, sobbing that I was trying to kill him.
Aria looked at me with a cold, guarded expression. "It's just a suit, Ethan! Why are you going crazy and hitting him?"
I was shaking with fury. "He's faking it!"
She didn't believe me. Her eyes followed my gaze to the ruined tuxedo on Caleb's body, and her breath hitched.

3
"Caleb! Didn't I tell you not to touch Ethan's things? You"
Caleb gasped for air, and then his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed.
Aria caught him, her face pale with panic. She had the housekeeper change his clothes while she made a frantic series of calls, urging a doctor to come immediately.
"Ethan," she whispered, her voice pleading. "Please... don't provoke him."
She still wanted me to be the one to yield.
I numbly picked up the tattered remains of my suit from the corner where it had been tossed. A profound sense of powerlessness washed over me.
When Aria came into my room later, she saw me packing a bag and her face fell.
"Ethan, I'll have it restored."
"It's my fault, I should have been clearer with him," she said hastily. "I'll make him apologize to you right now."
She pulled me into Caleb's room. He was clutching the corner of her shirt, looking lost and confused. "Aria, don't be mad at me."
"You said... you said this was my home. Why should I listen to... to him?" He looked at me, and his expression suddenly twisted into a mask of pure desperation. He scrambled off the bed and started banging his head on the floor.
"Please, I'm begging you, just leave!" he sobbed. "You can have all my toys! I just want Aria!"
I saw shock and conflict flicker in Aria's eyes. She didn't immediately pull him up. When she finally moved to comfort me, Caleb let out a wild scream and pulled out a knife hed hidden, holding it to his own wrist.
"Aria is all I have! Make him get out!"
The psychologist later told her Caleb had a "physiological aversion" to me.
Watching him sob until he could barely breathe, Aria wrapped her arms around him, shielding his eyes from the sight of me.
"His emotional state is too unstable," she said, her voice strained. "Ethan, you need to leave. For now."
Two nurses she had called for backup escorted me firmly out the door.
It was pouring rain outside. I knocked, but no one answered. My vision blurred, and a deep chill settled into my bones. I didn't have my phone, and I was still in my pajamas. My only option was to walk out of the gated community to find a place where I could call for a ride.
...
I ended up in the hospital with a fever from the cold. As I was waiting, I saw Aria rushing down a hallway and instinctively followed her.
"It's been six months. Why hasn't his condition improved?"
It was the psychologist's voice.
"Aria, his obsession is you. That's why you're the only person he remembers." The doctor sighed. "You're the one who deliberately sent him the engagement announcement that triggered his accident in the first place..."
"The reason he hasn't gotten better is because you used to only visit him once a month. Of course he's terrified you'll abandon him again. It's perfectly normal for him to be hostile toward your fianc. If you don't want Caleb to have another breakdown, you need to remove the source of his insecurity."
Aria's voice was sharp with warning. "That's enough. Don't talk nonsense."
So. They had been in contact for a year. No wonder she was so practiced at handling him. The irony was suffocating. All those "monthly business trips" she'd told me about... My complete and total trust in her was now a cruel joke.
Because of today's incident, she had even hired bodyguards for Caleb.
That evening, Aria picked me up so I could pack some of my things. She stared at my red-rimmed eyes, her voice soft and cautious. "Ethan... would you be willing to move out for a little while?"
She showed me her phone. She had already booked our appointment to register the marriage.
I nodded, turned off my screen, and closed my burning eyes.
When we got back to the house, there was a puppy in the backyard. The engagement ring Aria had worn was now hanging from its collar. The reason? Caleb was afraid the puppy would get lost, and the unique ring would make a perfect dog tag.
I calmly slipped my matching ring from my finger and dropped it into my pocket.
Then, I opened my phone and accepted a friend request I had been ignoring. A message came through immediately.
[Don't worry. All the years of support Mr. Kensington has given the Monroe family will not be in vain.]
Attached was a wedding plan, updated annually to reflect my changing tastes. In the past, my father had always declined it on my behalf.
This time, I replied with a single word.
[Approved.]
...
Two days later, a message from Aria popped up.
[I thought we agreed to get our marriage license today? Ethan, why didn't you show up?]
I was busy with work transitions and ignored her calls. A few hours later, she sent me the address of a remote, no-name hotel.
[Is this about the wedding? Fine. I'll give you a wedding.]
[Stop throwing a tantrum. We've been together for nearly ten years. Don't let a small thing like this...]
Someone leaked a screenshot of the cheap, thrown-together venue to our friends' group chat, along with the fact that Aria had only invited a handful of people and begged them to keep it a secret. The same friends who had once envied our love story were now openly and privately mocking me.
Our ten years, it seemed, couldn't compete with Caleb's ten-year-old mind.
The messages in the group chat kept coming. I paused, typed out a short reply, and hit send.
[Wedding's off. We broke up.]

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