My Fiancee Forced Me to Buy Her Ex's Junk House

My fiance was obsessed with a brand-new condo development and insisted I buy a unit for our future home.

But just as we were about to sign the contract, she suddenly turned her attention to a cramped, 600-square-foot fixer-upper in a run-down district.

Ethan, look at this place. It has so much vintage charm.

"I want this shack to be our home."

This rundown junk house cost exactly the same as the 1,400-square-foot luxury condo. The price was way above market value.

My fiance dragged me to the real estate agency, threatening that if I didn't buy this old place, the wedding was off.

As I hesitated, a stream of glowing comments suddenly floated before my eyes.

[This fixer-upper actually belongs to your fiance's ex-boyfriend, Tyler Ross.]

[Once you buy this house, Tyler will take your money and buy that exact luxury condo you wanted as his own place.]

[Sign the contract now. This neighborhood is slated for a city buyout. Massive redevelopment is coming. Meanwhile, that luxury condo project is about to go under. It will never be finished.]

My fiance, Chloe Harper, shoved the pen into my hand, her voice sharp with impatience.

"Ethan, if you don't buy this house, the wedding is off. I mean it."

I frowned, staring at her while the words from the floating text echoed in my mind.

Was this house really her ex-boyfriend's?

Just yesterday, she was head over heels for the luxury condo. Why the sudden, overnight obsession with this dump?

Marcus, the real estate agent, flashed a greasy smile and chimed in.

"Mr. Vance, don't let the exterior fool you. With a little renovation, this place will look brand new."

"Besides, who knows when that new condo development will actually be completed?"

"It definitely won't be ready in time for your wedding."

Chloe nodded eagerly. "Exactly! Who knows when they'll finish building it? It might end up as an abandoned construction site."

"Ethan, I'm not waiting forever to get married."

I was still skeptical about the mysterious floating text.

I lowered my head, flipping to the seller's information page on the contract.

The name Tyler Ross stared right back at me in bold, black ink.

So, the bullet comments hadn't lied.

Everything about Chloe's bizarre behavior over the last two days suddenly made sense.

I looked up, locking eyes with my fiance.

"Chloe, are you absolutely sure you want this place?"

"If we buy this, we're living here. The commute is terrible."

"Ethan, I am one hundred percent sure."

"Once we're married, you can just buy me a new car for my commute. Problem solved, right?"

She looked so desperate, as if she wanted to grab my hand and force me to sign.

"Alright, Chloe. We'll do it your way."

I gripped the pen and swiftly signed my name.

The moment the ink dried, she began pushing me to wire the funds immediately.

"Ethan, why don't we go to the bank right now and finalize the payment?"

"I won't feel at peace until the money is gone."

"You already have the funds ready anyway. There's no point in delaying."

She practically dragged me to the bank to wire the money.

The very next day, she took me to the county clerk's office to transfer the deed.

That was where I met the owner of the fixer-upper, Tyler Ross.

He was of average height, with a plain face, but he was incredibly enthusiastic.

"Mr. Vance, if I weren't in desperate need of cash, I would never have sold this place."

He didn't speak to Chloe once. They didn't even exchange a single glance.

To anyone else, they looked like complete strangers.

That night, I received a call from the sales manager of the luxury condo development.

"Mr. Vance, are you really giving up on your unit?"

"Yes."

"Alright, I'll release the hold. Coincidentally, a Mr. Ross just put down a deposit on that exact unit. He said it's for his upcoming wedding."

"He even brought his girlfriend along today to see it."

I was baffled. Chloe was willing to live in a dump just so her ex could afford a luxury condo? Did she still have feelings for him?

Well, since the "new home" was secured, we had scheduled a dinner with both families at a high-end restaurant to discuss the wedding.

Chloe called saying she had an urgent issue at work and would be late.

"Ethan, what on earth were you thinking? Passing up a luxury condo for a run-down shack?"

Chloe's mother, Eleanor, glared at me, her face pinched with dissatisfaction.

"That old house couldn't have cost much, right?"

"Since the house is such a downgrade, you'll have to make up for it with the wedding budget."

"The $30,000 we agreed on earlier is way too low. Let's make it $90,000."

"And you need to buy Chloe a new car. Nothing less than $40,000."

Eleanor's spit was practically flying across the table as she barked her demands.

It was obvious Chloe hadn't told her parents the actual price of the house.

"Eleanor, Chloe was the one who insisted on buying that house," I replied calmly.

"She threatened to call off the wedding if I didn't. And for the record, the old house cost the exact same as the new condo."

Eleanor and her husband exchanged a look of pure disbelief.

Just then, the private dining room door slid open, and Chloe walked in, panting slightly.

She took the seat next to me and hurriedly gulped down some water.

"Chloe, did you really demand to buy that fixer-upper?"

Eleanor's brow furrowed, her wrinkles deepening.

"Mom, it was just a sudden whim. Who knew Ethan would actually buy it?"

Chloe brushed it off as if it were nothing, though she had literally blackmailed me with our marriage.

"But since it's bought, let's just leave it at that."

Suddenly, she turned her head to look at me.

"Ethan, I'm already sacrificing so much by agreeing to live in that old place. You can't mistreat me."

"Tomorrow is the weekend. Why don't we go shopping for my wedding jewelry?"

Before I could even open my mouth, Eleanor chimed in, listing off how many carats the diamond should be.

The three of them launched into a heated, enthusiastic discussion.

My parents and I sat in silence, completely shut out of the conversation.

Suddenly, another stream of glowing text floated before my eyes.

[Your fiance wasn't working overtime today. She was at a luxury jewelry boutique.]

[She and Tyler already picked out the exact designs. She's just waiting for you to pay for them tomorrow.]

[After buying the jewelry, she plans to drag you to a dealership to buy a car.]

[Oh, by the way, she intends to 'lend' both the jewelry and the new car to Tyler for his wedding.]

[Your fiance is really giving her all to make sure her ex has a perfect wedding.]

When the waiter served the food, Chloe's family finally quieted down.

"Ethan, it's not convenient to commute without a car. Let's go car shopping right after the jewelry store tomorrow."

Sure enough, her words matched the bullet comments perfectly.

But I still couldn't understand. Why was she doing this?

If she still loved Tyler, why didn't she just marry him?

Instead, she was exhausting herself to fund his wedding with someone else.

I tapped my fingers rhythmically against my teacup, my brow furrowing.

"Chloe, I just bought the house. My liquid cash is a bit tight right now."

"There's no rush for those things anyway. I want to prioritize the renovation budget first."

Instantly, Chloe's face turned sour, her eyes flashing with anger.

With a loud bang, Eleanor slammed her hand onto the table and stood up.

"Ethan, what is the meaning of this?"

"Not only are you making my daughter live in a dump, but now you won't even buy her basic jewelry and a car?"

"Let me tell you, plenty of wealthy men are begging to marry our Chloe."

"Come on, Chloe. We're leaving. This wedding is off."

The moment she finished speaking, Eleanor grabbed Chloe's arm and marched toward the door.

My parents stood up, trying to defuse the situation, but I shook my head at them, signaling them to stay put.

Noticing Chloe had left her phone on the table, I picked it up and followed them out.

I caught up with them near the restaurant entrance.

"Mom, what are you doing? This is so embarrassing," Chloe was whining.

"Chloe, this is how you handle men. Now Ethan will crawl back and agree to everything."

"Even if Ethan is tight on cash, his parents have deep pockets."

"If he won't pay up now, he never will after you're married."

I couldn't help but sneer inwardly. They were actually targeting my parents' retirement savings.

"Oh, wait. I think I left my phone."

Chloe patted her pockets, turned around, and froze when she saw me standing there.

Shock flickered across her face, followed by awkwardness. She stammered, "Ethan... how long have you been standing there?"

I handed her the phone. "I came to bring you this."

"My mom was just joking earlier. Don't take it to heart," Chloe said quickly, trying to smooth things over.

I looked her up and down. She felt like a complete stranger to me now.

Two years ago, we met at a party.

She had been so gentle, sweet, and always put others first. We fell in love quickly.

She had told me she wanted us to live on our own after marriage, in our own little world.

My career had been going well, and I had saved enough to buy a house in full.

She had fallen in love with that luxury condo development at first sight.

She used to talk about how great the neighborhood was, how close it was to good schools, and how perfect it would be for our future kids.

We had looked at other properties, but she rejected them all. She only wanted that one.

She had repeatedly emphasized that she would never accept a secondhand house.

And yet, almost overnight, she had become a completely different person.

"Ethan, actually, the renovations can wait."

"We can just make do with the current state of the house and renovate it when we have more money later."

Chloe's voice pulled me back from my thoughts.

Eleanor immediately chimed in.

"Chloe makes a good point. The priority right now is buying the jewelry and the car."

"Gold and diamonds only go up in value. Chloe is actually helping you save money, Ethan."

By this time, my parents had caught up and walked out of the restaurant.

"We can talk this through. It's a waste to leave all that food. Why don't we go back inside?" my mom suggested gently.

Hearing this, Chloe nodded. "Yes, let's go back inside."

"My mom was just hot-headed. Please don't be angry."

But as they tried to walk past me, I stepped in and blocked the entrance.

"Chloe, I won't be buying the jewelry or the car anytime soon."

"And I will not be using a single cent of my parents' money."

Chloe's eyes went red. She clenched her fists so hard the veins on the back of her hands popped.

"Ethan, do you really have to do this?"

"Fine. Then let's just call off the wedding."

Once again, she used our marriage to threaten me.

I let out a soft, dry laugh. "Fine."

After that disastrous dinner, I cut off all contact with Chloe.

My parents urged me to apologize, even offering to pay for the car and jewelry themselves, but I flatly refused.

Three days later, Chloe finally called me.

"Ethan, are you going to buy the jewelry and the car or not?"

"If you take me shopping today, I'll overlook everything that happened."

"But if you're going to remain stubborn, then we're done. Let's break up."

My hand gripped the phone tightly.

After a moment of silence, I spoke calmly.

"I told you, I'm not buying them. If you want to break up, I won't stop you."

She unleashed a stream of furious curses on the other end. Even without seeing her face, I could picture her livid expression.

"Fine, Ethan. Don't you dare regret this."

"Go ahead and rot in that garbage shack. Let's see what kind of woman would ever be willing to live there with you."

"By the way, did you even bother to check the actual value of that dump?"