I Lost The Game But Won In The End Chapter 01
I had been competitive for as long as I could remember. Whatever the game, I had to come in first.
So when someone suggested a “don’t look back” challenge on the Sinclair family’s private yacht, everyone said I was guaranteed to win.
The rules were simple—stand where you were, and no matter what happened behind you, you weren’t allowed to turn around. If you looked back, you lost.
My fiancé, Ethan, and my best friend, Zoe, stood behind me, while my brother Julian was in charge of coming up with ways to trick me into turning around.
The game had barely started when Julian called out, “Nora, Ethan’s holding Zoe’s hand.”
I didn’t even blink.
When I didn’t react, Julian laughed again. “Seriously not looking? They’ve got their arms around each other now.”
I still didn’t move.
Then Julian’s tone suddenly changed.
“Nora… they’re kissing.”
I knew it was supposed to be a trick to make me turn around.
But I turned anyway.
And then I saw it—Ethan with his head lowered, Zoe’s face tilted up, the two of them actually kissing.
My mind went blank.
I walked over and slapped Ethan across the face.
Zoe’s eyes instantly reddened. Ethan was silent for a long time too.
In the end, Julian was the first to speak.
“Nora, we obviously just got carried away.”
“And… we thought there was no way you’d turn around because you wanted to win so badly. Who knew you actually would?”
Only then did Zoe speak.
“Nora, I don’t want to hide it from you anymore. Ethan pursued me for four years in college.”
“We just… didn’t want to look back on those four years with regret.”
I had always known Ethan spent four years in college chasing a girl.
During those four years, I had seen him get blackout drunk over her. I had sat beside him and cursed her for being blind to what she had.
But I had never known that girl was my best friend, Zoe.
Everyone else knew.
I was the only one who had been kept in the dark all this time.
…
The deck fell so quiet that only the sound of the waves remained.
Under my stare, Ethan still said nothing. Zoe was the one who spoke first.
“Nora, I’m sorry. I really did have feelings for Ethan.”
I smiled. “Then why didn’t you get together with him?”
“They weren’t a good match. You know what the Sinclair family is like and what Zoe’s family is like.”
Julian stepped in to answer for her.
“Back then, she thought she wasn’t good enough for Ethan. That’s why she never said yes, even though he pursued her for four years.”
He was my own brother, and he had known about Zoe all along.
When Ethan had been at his craziest over her, Julian had lent him his private jet and even arranged for a celebrity to put on a private concert just for her.
I was the only one who had never taken part in that grand, four-year campaign to win her over.
My gaze swept over my brother, my fiancé, and my best friend.
“Was it fun? Watching me spend four years guessing like an idiot?”
Under my stare, Julian opened his mouth, then thought better of it.
I turned to Ethan.
“You tell me. Was it fun?”
Ethan finally spoke.
“Nora, nothing has happened between Zoe and me since you and I got together.”
“Besides, our families are worlds apart. There was never any possibility between us. Today was nothing more than an impulsive kiss.”
“Do you really have to make such a scene and humiliate everyone over this?”
Julian nodded along, then unconsciously moved until he was standing in a line with Ethan and Zoe.
I had always thought the four of us were close.
But now the three of them stood together, while I stood alone on the other side.
Footsteps sounded behind me. My parents and Ethan’s parents had come down from the upper deck.
The yacht belonged to the Sinclair family. Other than the crew, only our two families were on this trip.
My mother saw the handprint on Ethan’s face and hurried over, pulling me behind her.
“What happened? Did he hurt you?”
“He kissed Zoe just now.”
My mother’s expression froze.
I waited for her to explode.
Instead, she only turned and looked at my father.
“Mom? Don’t tell me you knew too.”
I yanked my hand out of hers.
“Nora, don’t get worked up… The truth is, back in college, Ethan came to us a few times and asked me what kinds of things girls liked.”
Seeing my expression, my mother reached out and smoothed the hair beside my ear.
“Later, when we saw how close you and Zoe were, telling you would only have made things awkward for all of you.”
“Anyway, didn’t Ethan end up with you after graduation? So don’t dwell on it.”
My father cut in directly.
“Our families have known each other for years, and we’ve always done business together.”
“You and Ethan grew up together. Don’t be petty over something this small.”
When I said nothing, Ethan’s mother came over and took my hand too.
“Nora, marriage isn’t just about two people dating. It’s about two families.”
Ethan’s father frowned and said earnestly, “Nora, it’s perfectly normal for a man to have someone he can’t forget when he’s young.”
“Once he’s actually married, he’ll naturally settle down.”
“Families like ours can’t build a life on love alone.”
I didn’t say anything else.
I turned and went into the cabin.
Once inside my room, I locked the door and ignored every knock from outside.
But after a while, the knocking stopped.
Half an hour later, Julian’s voice came from outside.
“Ethan, you’re really not going to check on Nora?”
Then came Ethan’s voice.
“No need. She’s been like this since she was a kid. She has to win at everything.”
“She lost the game today, then suddenly found out about all that old stuff. She just can’t take it all at once.”