Though I was delayed, I wasn't too late getting to the set.
Chase had just changed when a swarm of entertainment reporters appeared, all trying to interview him.
I put on sunglasses and hid in the crowd, watching Chase anxiously check his watch. "Hurry up, I've got somewhere to be."
A reporter immediately jumped on this. "Is your recent marriage news causing you trouble that you need to deal with?"
Chase looked at him like he was an idiot. "Of course not! My wife's picking me up. We haven't seen each other in two days, five hours, and thirty-seven minutes. Don't make me late."
Reporter: "..."
Me: "..."
The reporter persisted. "Did your wife discuss publicly revealing your marriage with you beforehand?"
Chase frowned. "No."
Sensing a story, the reporter pressed on. "How do you feel about that?"
Chase's expression became complicated. He sighed. "She refused to go public no matter how many times I asked. Then she got mad at some random streamer and just casually dropped it. Not romantic at all."
The reporter: "Is there any possibility her name was Sophie?"
Chase: "Huh? Not important. What's important is I see my wife. Gotta go. Thanks."
Chase bounded toward me like a husky that had been locked up too long, his face glowing.
The reporters noticed me and went crazy with their cameras.
I firmly pushed away his face as he tried to nuzzle me. "There are so many people here."
Chase still rubbed against my cheek. "Babe! I missed you!"
Me: "..."
If there weren't so many people, I'd punch him.
When we got home, I told Chase about the dead rat incident. He went quiet, then made a phone call.
Soon my phone was blowing up with messages from old friends, all saying basically the same thing: "Your Chase is something else."
I realized what happened and opened Twitter to see Chase's official statement. He said certain stalker behaviors had crossed his line and he'd hold them accountable. He also posted a long text.
I read it and was floored.
He'd written out our entire history—from childhood friends to lovers. Every word emphasized that he'd shamelessly pursued me, and that getting me to date and marry him was his life's greatest achievement.
This post was quickly shared by his team and various media outlets.
The views skyrocketed.
I looked at Chase on the couch, still making calls, and held up my phone. "This took you a while to write, didn't it?"
Chase looked over, his eyes only on me. "Yeah. I wrote it ages ago, waiting for the day you'd agree to go public so I could post it."
Chase said he'd handle all the aftermath for me.
But what happened next... was kind of unexpected.