- 22 minutes ago
Fools's Day, Fools' Love
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🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00On April Fool's Day, Grayson handed me a divorce agreement out of nowhere.
00:04Your two ex-husbands called to taunt me yesterday.
00:07Said you're too uptight to take an April Fool's joke.
00:09That there's no way you'd actually sign divorce papers.
00:12I'd been married twice.
00:13Before we got married, I'd explained everything to Grayson.
00:16The first time I helped Spencer secure his family trust inheritance.
00:19The second time I helped Ethan dodge an arranged marriage.
00:23Both times, clean breaks, no feelings, no baggage.
00:26If that bothers you, we don't have to...
00:28I trust you.
00:30The past is the past.
00:31From now on, I'm the only one you see.
00:33After we got married, he and my two ex-husbands were like oil and water.
00:37But with me, he was gentle, attentive.
00:40I thought I'd finally married the right man.
00:42Then one day, I came home early from a business trip and heard him laughing and chatting with those two
00:47ex-husbands like old friends in the living room.
00:49The second before the key turned in the lock, I stood outside the door,
00:53catching every single word of the scheming going on in the living room.
00:56Relax.
00:57I'm definitely divorcing her.
01:27She's already been divorced twice.
01:29I did it to help my childhood friend, Spencer Knox, secure his family trust.
01:33My second marriage, I did it to help Ethan Sinclair dodge an arranged marriage his family was forcing on him.
01:38I never imagined everything I'd done for them would become the very reason they thought they could manipulate me.
01:44I sat in that cafe for a solid hour before I finally headed home.
01:50Why didn't you call?
01:51Why didn't you call?
01:51I would have picked you up.
01:52You eat yet?
01:53Already did.
01:55Babe, there's something I wanted to tell you.
01:57The company's hit a bit of a snag lately.
01:59We need to do some asset separation.
02:02The lawyer suggested we file for divorce first, just to pro forma process.
02:08Once the crisis were over, we'll remarry.
02:10A few months tops.
02:12I know this is a bit out of nowhere, but Spencer and Ethan called today and was like,
02:16you used to help them without a second thought, but now for me it's a different story, just taking digs
02:19the whole time.
02:20They even said,
02:21Grayson, a woman who's been divorced twice, wouldn't dare go for a third.
02:24Josephine definitely couldn't handle it.
02:26I've got it all figured out.
02:27Tomorrow's April Fool's.
02:28We go that day, get the papers, then throw right in their faces, freak them the hell out,
02:32see if they ever dare look down on you again.
02:33Babe, you wouldn't want them thinking I can't even handle something this simple, right?
02:40I won't.
02:41Then get some rest.
02:43Tomorrow we'll sign the papers and head to the...
02:47Give them a call.
02:50So they can stop chattering about it.
02:56Babe, you're the best.
03:00She signed.
03:01Told you, Josephine's always the easiest to handle.
03:03Alright, take care of Vivian as I'll wrap up here and head over.
03:11Long time no see.
03:12Wanna grab a drink?
03:14Before, I would have replied,
03:15Sure, I would have carefully picked out what to wear, what makeup to put on.
03:20I would have thought about how to make Grayson look good in front of them.
03:23But now, I couldn't even be bothered to reply.
03:26I set my phone face down on the coffee table, got up, and walked to the kitchen.
03:30Passing by the study, Grayson was still on the phone.
03:33His voice was low, but carried a kind of ease I'd never heard before.
03:37The kitchen faucet was still running.
03:39I stood at the sink, washing the glasses one by one, setting them in the drying rack.
03:43As I finished the last one, my phone lit up again.
03:46This time, a message from Spencer.
03:48Heard you're getting divorced again?
03:51Grayson's a real piece of work.
03:52He doesn't deserve you.
03:53Don't be upset.
03:54In a few days, your grandpa's 80th birthday party is being held at the Quinn Estate.
03:58Ethan and I are coming to celebrate.
04:00Let's all catch up.
04:01What a sweet talker.
04:03Suddenly, I really wanted to know, what kind of person was Vivian, exactly?
04:07This home.
04:08This man.
04:09None of it would have anything to do with me.
04:12The person standing outside had a flush in her cheeks.
04:15Clearly, she'd had more than a few drinks.
04:17Knew you'd still be up.
04:19What are you doing here?
04:20She didn't answer.
04:21Just swayed her way inside.
04:22It wasn't until she spotted me standing in the living room that she paused.
04:26Josephine's home too.
04:28Josephine, she's had too much to drink.
04:30We were taking her home, but she insisted on swinging by here.
04:33Grayson, your wife's right there.
04:35You ever heard of keeping things appropriate?
04:36You got her wasted and dropped her off at my place, and now I'm the one who needs to mind
04:39appearances?
04:40I got her drunk?
04:41You're the one posting on Insta about being newly single.
04:43Fine.
04:44You're a saint.
04:44You're the upstanding one.
04:46I delivered the girl who got drunk over you.
04:47Handle it however you want.
04:48The air felt frozen over.
04:50Spencer, caught in the middle.
04:52All right.
04:53All right.
04:54Knock it off.
04:55Vivi just wanted to swing by on the way.
04:57I stood in the middle of the living room, watching the whole show from start to finish.
05:01Way too insane.
05:03All this time I thought the bond between me, Spencer, and Ethan was unbreakable.
05:08I'd even married both of them.
05:09When I was little and got hurt or upset, Spencer was always the one by my side.
05:14Ethan once even shielded me from a kidnapper with a knife.
05:16To me, they were closer than family.
05:19When Vivian showed up, bit by bit I became the afterthought.
05:22They only remembered I existed when they needed something from me.
05:25I walked to the coffee table and picked up the divorce agreement.
05:29Good timing, all of you.
05:31There's something I'd like you to witness in person.
05:34I've signed both copies.
05:35Since everyone's here, why not take a good look?
05:38Grayson's expression shifted slightly, but he recovered fast.
05:43Josephine, we can talk about this in private.
05:45You don't have to...
05:46Josephine's already put it out there.
05:48Mind if I ask, when are you moving out?
05:53This house is under my name, after all.
05:57You're not planning to stay here forever, are you?
06:00The house in her name?
06:02He didn't deny it.
06:04In that instant, a flood of images rushed through my mind.
06:07This is our home.
06:09I'll handle the paperwork.
06:10Don't worry about it.
06:11And me, happily picking out the curtains, the couch, the dining table.
06:15Every single piece of furniture in this place, I'd picked out myself.
06:19Trip after trip to the store.
06:20I never cared whose name was on the deed.
06:22But it never crossed my mind that the home we built together would be under another woman's name.
06:27I'll leave right now.
06:28Josephine.
06:28Tomorrow, 9am.
06:30See you at the courthouse.
06:33Waiting for the elevator, I could still hear voices from inside.
06:36Nailed it!
06:37She was even more cooperative than the day I asked her to marry me.
06:40The reflection in the mirror looked calmer than I expected.
06:45Come get me in a few days?
06:46Like I'd just stepped out for some air and would be back any minute.
06:50No need, Grayson.
06:51Don't bother coming for me.
06:559am the next morning.
06:56When I arrived, Grayson was already there.
07:01Where'd you go last night?
07:02Grandpa's.
07:05Josephine, you backed me up in front of Spencer and Ethan.
07:07I know that, and I appreciate it.
07:09As for the house, Vivian needed to handle some paperwork at the time and needed a property under her name.
07:14I figured it was just putting her name on it, that's all.
07:17You've never been short on anything.
07:18I didn't think you'd care, so I didn't mention it.
07:21Wouldn't care?
07:22He put our home under another woman's name.
07:24And brushed it off with, you've never been short on anything?
07:27He didn't think I wouldn't care.
07:28He just didn't care whether I cared or not.
07:31Anyway, you still have the right to live there.
07:33After the divorce, you stay somewhere else for a while, and once I've sorted things out on my end, I'll
07:36come get you.
07:40Let's go.
07:40Time to file.
07:43The process was quicker than I expected.
07:46The divorce papers in my hands, just a few thin pages, almost identical in format to the ones we'd signed
07:52when we got married.
07:53I need to take a call.
07:53Wait here.
07:54I'll drive you back later.
07:57Vivi, it's me.
07:59Something came up.
08:00Head back on your own for now.
08:01I'll talk to you later.
08:09April Fool's Day.
08:10Right?
08:11Today.
08:12He picked up, and the two talked for nearly ten minutes.
08:16Why hadn't Josephine come out yet?
08:22Sorry.
08:22The two sets of documents lay tangled together on the ground.
08:25One, his divorce decree.
08:27It's fine.
08:27The other, a marriage certificate.
08:29Congrats.
08:29Getting married today?
08:31Congrats to you too.
08:33Today was April Fool's Day.
08:35Who gets married on April Fool's Day?
08:37And that voice, that build, he could swear he'd seen this man somewhere before.
08:41Wait.
08:44Have we?
08:50He was about to head back inside to find Josephine when his phone buzzed again.
08:54This time, a location pin from Spencer, with a message attached.
08:59He thought back to graduation day at prep school.
09:02She said that before she got married, she wanted everyone to go to that island and go
09:06wild for three days and three nights cash in the last of their youth.
09:10Now she was actually getting married, and it was time to make good on that promise.
09:14The resort on the island was private invite only for members.
09:18Among their whole group, the only one with that kind of access was him.
09:21So, he couldn't be late.
09:23Grayson glanced at the dress and paused.
09:25It was the one he'd bought her for her 17th birthday, three months of odd jobs to save
09:29up for it.
09:30What took you so long?
09:31We've been waiting forever.
09:33Three penalty drinks, no backing out.
09:36Fine.
09:36I'll drink.
09:38Grayson still spoils Vivi like crazy.
09:41What, jealous?
09:43By the time they reached the resort, the sky had gone dark.
09:46Speaking of which, Vivi, you're getting married next week, and none of us have even met the
09:50groom.
09:50You've been keeping this pretty tight.
09:52The groom?
09:53What groom?
09:54Aren't you getting married next week?
09:57April Fools.
10:01After all these years, how do you guys still fall for it every single time?
10:05All right, all right.
10:06You got us.
10:07Fooled us and everything.
10:07Oh, come on.
10:08I just needed an excuse to get everyone together.
10:10Don't tell me you can't take a joke.
10:11We can take it.
10:12We can take it.
10:13We should be thanking you.
10:15We'd never have made it onto this island without you.
10:17For real, somebody has been playing favorites.
10:20Been working on getting access to this island ever since you announced your engagement.
10:23Well, your dreams officially come true now.
10:26Go nuts.
10:27Three days, three nights, all yours.
10:32Thanks for still remembering my dream.
10:38Hey, wait a minute.
10:40Vivi's not getting married and Grayson just got divorced.
10:43So doesn't that make everyone single right now?
10:48After all these years, you two are still out here pretending to be just friends.
10:51Everyone knew what was going on back in school.
10:53The two of you acted like you'd die without each other.
10:56I'm not drunk.
10:57I'm not drunk.
10:58I'm serious.
10:59One of you never got married.
11:00The other just got divorced.
11:02If that's not perfect timing, what is?
11:03You two should just this.
11:05Kiss, kiss, kiss.
11:06Come on.
11:07Grayson divorced his wife for Vivi.
11:10If Vivi doesn't step up, who will?
11:13Grayson stood there, listening to the chorus of egging on all around him.
11:17But a scene that didn't belong here flashed through his mind.
11:20That look in her eyes too calm.
11:22So calm that even after he'd gotten on the island, he'd replayed it in his head a thousand times.
11:26Before, he'd had a perfectly reasonable explanation for her composure.
11:30She knew it was a fake divorce, so there was nothing weighing on her.
11:33But now, suddenly, he wasn't so sure.
11:36Grayson?
11:36You're not gonna gang up on me with them, are you?
11:39He's not teasing.
11:40He means it.
11:41He clearly wanted to say something, but it caught in his throat and never came out.
11:45What was wrong with him?
11:47Wasn't this exactly the wild night he'd wanted?
11:51No one remembered when the party ended.
11:53All Grayson remembered was drinking, glass after glass.
11:56By the end, the string lights had blurred into hazy halos.
12:00After that just fragments the hotel hallway lights.
12:02Too bright, the bed too soft, someone loosening his tie.
12:05He thought he'd been calling out a name the whole time.
12:08It wasn't until a sliver of white light fell across his eyelids that Grayson opened his eyes.
12:13He turned his head and saw long hair splayed across the pillow beside him.
12:16He shot upright.
12:18Something detonated inside his skull.
12:20He closed his eyes, trying to piece it together.
12:22Last night came back in shards drinking, cheering, the hotel, the bed and then...
12:28Morning.
12:29Grayson stood by the bed, instinctively reaching for his phone, looking for some kind of comfort.
12:33But there wasn't a single message from Josephine.
12:36She hadn't asked where he was last night.
12:38Hadn't asked why he never reached out.
12:39It wasn't like the other two times when he and Spencer, and then Ethan had...
12:43Divorced.
12:44Air.
12:45Back then, she'd still text to check on them.
12:47Ask if they were okay.
12:48Ask how things went.
12:50Follow up on the aftermath.
12:51But this time her own divorce she hadn't asked a thing.
12:56Grayson?
12:59Last night.
13:01I'm sorry.
13:03You're apologizing to me?
13:12See?
13:13I can't even stand up straight.
13:17Grayson.
13:18How much longer are you going to keep up the act?
13:22Back in school, her grandfather used his sponsorship of you as leverage.
13:25That's the only reason you got with her.
13:27You've made it to where you are now.
13:29You really still scared of some retired old man from the Quinn family?
13:34Her grandfather didn't force me into anything.
13:37I went after her.
13:39Back then, that girl had dyed her hair some trendy color and wanted nothing to do with marriage.
13:43Her parents had divorced, then died one after another.
13:47She grew up under her grandfather's wing.
13:48She'd seen too many relationships fall apart to think marriage meant anything at all.
13:52She was a ride or die.
13:54She'd sign a marriage certificate for the guys she grew up with without blinking twice.
13:57But she never put an equal sign between love and marriage.
14:00To her, they were two different things.
14:02Love was freedom.
14:03Marriage was a cage.
14:05She'd put on the cage for her friends, but never for her own love.
14:08It was him.
14:09He went after her, again and again, proving over and over that he was different.
14:14He told her.
14:15I won't let you regret this.
14:17He told her.
14:18Our marriage won't be a grave.
14:20He tore himself open and laid every piece bare for her to see, until she finally said yes.
14:25She placed her love in his hands, careful as glass.
14:28Signed a marriage certificate that, this time, actually meant something.
14:32And now, what the hell had he done?
14:36Vivian didn't expect him to say that.
14:39Then I was reading too much into it.
14:41Go.
14:45Grayson felt like he'd finally been let off the hook.
14:48What the hell happened last night?
14:50Dude, you crossed a line.
14:51Don't forget.
14:52You and Josephine's divorce is fake.
14:56I'll take responsibility for her.
14:58Responsibility?
14:59With what?
15:00You got divorced yesterday, and today you're talking about being responsible for someone
15:03else?
15:03How is that fair to Josephine?
15:05Then what do you want me to do?
15:07Ethan didn't answer.
15:09Just looked at him.
15:10All right, all right.
15:10Enough, both of you.
15:11Grayson, cool off first.
15:12In the state you're in right now, any decision you make is the wrong one.
15:16I need a smoke.
15:17He really did need a moment to figure out where things stood between him and his wife.
15:21That obsession with Vivian from back in school it was like a thorn lodged deep in his chest.
15:25Didn't really hurt, didn't really itch, but it had never truly been pulled out.
15:29At 17, he really had been close with Vivian.
15:32Back then, he didn't know Josephine yet.
15:35It wasn't until Spencer and Ethan brought that girl into his world that he realized Josephine's
15:39grandfather had been funding more than half the students at the school, including him.
15:43The circle he'd been fighting tooth and nail to break into she'd been born at its center.
15:48He'd done everything he could to become part of that circle, and eventually, he won her over.
15:53He clawed his way onto the Forbes 30 Under, 30 Top 10.
15:56But the end of every marriage is the same monotony.
15:59This time, he really had planned to use April Fool's as an excuse to end the marriage to
16:03honor his promise to Vivian, and to give himself room to breathe.
16:07In that moment, it hit him, he should go back to her.
16:10Even if she was furious, even if she wanted to tear into him, at least...
16:14Grayson!
16:17Vivian was standing on the windowsill, half her body leaning out.
16:21Don't come any closer!
16:22Get down first! We can talk about this!
16:24Back in school, you wrote me a love letter.
16:28He'd never written her one.
16:30The only letter he'd ever written was for Josephine.
16:32He just never sent it.
16:33Then she showed up, and you didn't want me anymore.
16:38Now you've divorced her, and you still don't want me!
16:41There's nothing to talk about.
16:44I'm not leaving.
16:45I'm staying with you.
16:48Really?
16:50Really.
16:57When you figure out what your heart really wants, and you want to leave, I won't stop you.
17:03Okay.
17:05Every trace of Josephine's contact info had been wiped clean.
17:08There.
17:09Now you can keep your promise, and really be with me.
17:13Do you remember my other dream?
17:17With things turning out the way they did, Spencer and Ethan had no choice but to play dumb.
17:22After three days on the island, they showed up at Grandpa Quinn's 80th birthday party like nothing had happened.
17:27As Josephine's closest friends, they'd been there every single year.
17:30This year's party was held at the Quinn estate.
17:32I'm sorry.
17:33Your names aren't on the guest list.
17:35Take another look.
17:36Josephine and I grew up together.
17:37I've been coming to the Quinn estate every year for the last ten years.
17:41I'm sorry.
17:42Your names aren't on the guest list.
17:43Aren't those the two losers from the Knox and Sinclair families?
17:46Married into the Quinn family, then ran their own businesses into the ground.
17:49Get back together.
17:49You haven't heard?
17:50The old man's announcing some happy news today.
17:52We've got more right to be in there than anyone else here.
17:54The guard glanced at him, calmly tapped his earpiece, and two minutes later, Butler Harrison walked out.
18:03Stop.
18:04Neither of you needs to come back here.
18:06Please leave.
18:07He opened his mouth to say something, but Harrison had already turned and was walking back inside.
18:17Guests filtered past them in twos and threes, heading inside.
18:21Let's go.
18:22Why the hell?
18:23As they walked by, their eyes carried curiosity and pity.
18:25Josephine and I, we go back to...
18:27Ethan's expression darkened.
18:30Back to growing up together.
18:32Back to being the closest people in each other's lives.
18:34He couldn't finish.
18:37What the hell did you piss off recently?
18:40The permits for the Brooklyn project just got frozen.
18:42They said it's some new regulations.
18:45That project's been running for three years!
18:47Nobody ever said a word about new regulations!
18:49Spencer gripped the phone.
18:51He couldn't get a single word out.
18:53He knew exactly who.
18:54That plot of land was something he'd locked down back when he and Josephine were.
19:00He scrolled to Josephine's number, hesitated for a long time.
19:04Must be her.
19:05The same recording came back.
19:08The number you have dialed is no longer in service.
19:12Other than being born a Knox, he had no real skills to his name.
19:16And now, his aging father was the one running around cleaning up his mess.
19:20I'll be the daddy and I'll be the mom.
19:22Something inside him just caved in.
19:27The person he'd always assumed would be standing right where he left her waiting for him to come back whenever
19:32he was ready had vanished over these three days as if she'd never existed in this world.
19:36If his family's business hadn't gone completely under, if his parents hadn't been turned away everywhere they went for help,
19:41he probably wouldn't have even had a way to hear anything about her.
19:44He set the phone down.
19:46Suddenly, a memory surfaced a winter, many years ago.
19:49That year, his family was in crisis.
19:51Josephine grabbed his hand and said,
19:53Don't be scared.
19:54You've got me.
19:56Back then, he believed the whole world could change, but Josephine never would.
20:00That was the kind of trust that Ethan, Grayson, and Vivian could never compare to.
20:04The rest of them loved to play around, and he he was reckless.
20:08So, on certain things, they ran in the same circles.
20:10But if he was ever down to one last way out, it would always be Josephine.
20:14And now, suddenly, he had no idea what to do.
20:17Ethan wasn't doing any better.
20:19Three major clients, ones his logistics company had partnered with for five years, all terminated their contracts on the same
20:25day.
20:26The official reason was polished.
20:27Business restructuring.
20:29But when he had someone make a few calls, the other side hemmed and hawed before finally saying,
20:34Word about you being turned away at Grandpa Quinn's birthday party.
20:37It's made the rounds across the entire circle.
20:40Everyone's reassessigating the stability of doing business with your family.
20:42Ethan hung up and slammed his phone on the desk.
20:45He had no idea why Josephine had suddenly done this.
20:48She hadn't given him a second to react.
20:50He wanted to explain, wanted to say something, but he didn't even know where to begin.
20:55Back then when she married him, it was to help him dodge the arranged marriage his family was pushing.
20:59The day they signed the papers, he played it cool and said,
21:02It's just a formality, don't stress about it.
21:05But deep down, he never wanted it to be just a formality.
21:09He'd been in love with her since the very first time Spencer brought her around.
21:12He'd taken a knife for her during a kidnapping.
21:15He thought she'd never forget him for the rest of her life.
21:19But she only ever saw him as a brother.
21:22Once the arranged marriage situation was over, she simply said,
21:26Time to end this.
21:27He stalled for three months, made up every excuse to avoid meeting, refused to sign.
21:32Until she finally said,
21:33Ethan, don't make this hard for me.
21:35But then the woman who had always run from marriage, who wanted nothing to do with it,
21:39actually married Grayson.
21:40For love.
21:41What did Grayson even have?
21:43Back in school, the guy was clearly into Vivian.
21:46Then Spencer and Ethan introduced him to Josephine, and he just switched targets?
21:50How the hell could she choose a two-timing Grayson over someone who'd been devoted to her all along?
21:55So, from the moment Vivian announced her,
21:57Engagement.
21:58Ethan had been planning.
22:00He was the first to come up with the idea use April Fool's Day to get Josephine to sign the
22:04papers without a fight.
22:05Once she was divorced, once she was single, he'd finally have his shot.
22:09His phone buzzed again.
22:10A message from his father.
22:15Tomorrow we're going to the Quinn residence to apologize in person.
22:18You're coming with me.
22:20Ethan stared at the screen for a long time, then replied with a single word.
22:24Okay, he put down the phone and dug out an old photograph from the very back of the drawer.
22:29In the picture, Josephine was 15, hair in a ponytail, standing under a magnolia tree, smiling.
22:36He'd taken it without her knowing, kept it hidden for over a decade.
22:40Vivian loved the ocean.
22:41She wanted to visit every coastal city that was her other dream.
22:45In the past, Grayson would have told Josephine he was, going on a business trip.
22:50Then he'd take Vivian on a getaway he'd have the time of his life, riding that thrill.
22:54And then, out of guilt, he'd come home and be twice as good to his wife.
22:58But this time was different.
23:00This time, he was.
23:02Single.
23:02The car traced the coastline south.
23:04They'd seen the ocean a thousand times over, and Vivian's excitement never wavered.
23:09Grayson though was growing more and more distracted.
23:11By the second month, he wanted to go back.
23:14The moment he brought it up, Vivian got sick.
23:17He had no choice but to stay a while longer.
23:19A few days became a week.
23:21A week became two.
23:22Two weeks dragged into a month.
23:24One afternoon, a friend on a business trip nearby asked to meet at a cafe.
23:28He was halfway there when he realized he'd left his phone behind and turned back.
23:34The bedroom door was slightly ajar.
23:37Vivian's voice drifted through the crack she was on FaceTime with a friend.
23:40Girl, you've had the man to yourself for months and you still haven't sealed the deal?
23:44Don't tell me he's actually some kind of saint.
23:48Grayson's feet stopped dead.
23:50Ugh, faking sick and hurt.
23:52Can't really do much else.
23:55But, even though I haven't sealed the deal, I sent all our photos together to Josephine Quinn.
24:00If she has any self-awareness at all, she should know it's time to go.
24:04What did you send to Josephine?
24:09You didn't think I'd find out?
24:11Grayson, you...
24:12Why are you back?
24:14I... I was just joking around with my friend.
24:17So you were never actually sick?
24:18It was all just to keep me here?
24:20Grayson didn't stay to hear the rest.
24:22He turned and stormed out.
24:24The car tore all the way back to New York.
24:26On the road, he tried to message her.
24:28The truth was, these past few months, it wasn't that he'd never thought about reaching out.
24:32It was that every time he picked up his phone, he'd remember what he'd promised Vivian.
24:37He was afraid that one reply from Josephine would break him afraid he'd see.
24:40He typed out a message and sent it.
24:43The screen read,
24:44Undelivered.
24:46Josephine, it's me.
24:47Let me know you got this.
24:48Still undelivered.
24:49His fingers slowly tightened around the steering wheel, knuckles turning white.
24:53The number you are trying to reach is currently unavailable.
24:58It's fine.
24:59She's probably just busy.
25:01Maybe her phone died.
25:02The next evening, the car finally turned onto that familiar road.
25:06He knew she was close with her grandfather after the divorce.
25:09She'd be staying at the Quinn estate for sure.
25:11He jumped out of the car, practically pounding on the door.
25:14The door opened.
25:16Josephine stood behind it.
25:18She was already carrying my child when we signed the papers?
25:21She didn't say anything, not because she didn't care,
25:24but because she was waiting for him to come back on his own.
25:27She was carrying his child.
25:28Josephine, let me take you home.
25:31Let's remarry.
25:32Remarry?
25:33Why don't you ask my husband first if he's okay with that?
25:36A hand stopped him square at the chest.
25:39Josephine took a step back.
25:41Grayson froze.
25:42It's you.
25:42He remembered the day of the divorce.
25:44You two?
25:45The baby?
25:47Is it mine?
25:49What do you think?
25:50Frederick's hand rested on her shoulder.
25:52He didn't say a word.
25:53He just looked at her belly.
25:55Grayson suddenly understood.
25:57It wasn't his.
25:58It had never been his.
26:00Josephine, what are you doing?
26:01Did you forget what we agreed on?
26:03The fake divorce?
26:04The April Fool's?
26:05Sorry, I don't celebrate April Fool's.
26:07His mind exploded.
26:09But if you want to celebrate it, I can wish you the best.
26:13Happy April Fool's!
26:16Grayson stood there, staring at that door for a long time.
26:19The shadow of the magnolia tree by the entrance fell across his feet.
26:22He suddenly remembered the way she'd looked up at him when she signed the divorce papers.
26:25Now he got it.
26:26That wasn't calm.
26:27That was the look of someone who'd given up.
26:29He leaned against the wall by the door and slowly slid down to the ground.
26:32This time, it was really over.
26:34Spencer and Ethan, after the Quinn family publicly announced they were cutting all ties with both
26:38their families, found themselves struggling to stay afloat in the business world.
26:41Both companies shriveled into hollow shells.
26:43Grayson had some real ability, but the truth behind the divorce slowly leaked out.
26:47Asset separation, April Fool's joke it had all just been a cover for forcing his wife
26:51into a divorce so he could be with another woman.
26:54Once the news spread, several major deals fell through one after another.
26:57Carter Technologies' IPO plans stalled.
26:59Investors pulled out, one by one.
27:01And his head wasn't in the company anyway.
27:03He kept telling himself Josephine was just upset once she cooled down.
27:07She'd come back.
27:08He even convinced himself that Frederick was just some opportunist who'd swooped in.
27:11The baby had to be his.
27:13She was just being stubborn, refusing to admit it.
27:16He went through her old photos over and over, scrolled through their old text threads, until
27:20the screen of his phone was practically worn smooth.
27:22He was certain she was still waiting just too proud to say so.
27:25Vivian watched the three men she'd leaned on most fall apart, one by one losing themselves
27:29over Josephine, watching their family businesses crumble until her heart finally went cold.
27:34At their lowest point, she swept up the last of all three men's savings, and quietly flew
27:38off to Europe.
27:39When Spencer tried calling, the number was already disconnected.
27:43Grayson would occasionally see the Ashworth group in the Forbes headlines.
27:46Youngest billionaire attends charity gala with wife and daughter.
27:49In the photo, Frederick was in a deep navy suit, with Josephine beside him in a champagne-colored
27:54gown.
27:55In her arms, a little girl with tiny braids, eyes crinkled up in a smile.
27:59Then he saw Frederick's name in Bloomberg again, Business Person of the Year, attending
28:03a foundation gala with his wife and daughter.
28:05In the photo, Josephine wore a dark green gown, standing beside Frederick, the little girl in
28:11her arms, eyes crinkled up in the same smile.
28:14That smile he'd seen it a long, long time ago.
28:16The streetlights outside flickered on, lighting up the small apartment he was renting alone in
28:21Queens, empty, his phone screen lit up, then dimmed, no new messages, there never would be again.
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