On the day Sophia and I got engaged, her first love committed suicide. To get revenge on me, she had me committed to a psychiatric hospital. Three years later, I escaped. I fear her, hate her, but I will never love her again. In the end, I was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. She knelt before me, crying and begging me to seek treatment. 0 The day I escaped from the psychiatric hospital, it was snowing heavily. I was wearing the standard blue and white striped hospital uniform, which looked like prison clothes. My feet were in worn-out slippers. Shivering uncontrollably, I hugged myself tightly. With a heart full of hope, I ran back home. It had been so long since I’d been back; my parents must have been worried sick. I started running, but as my feet got too cold, I had to slow down to a walk. If it weren’t for a kind stranger who gave me a ride part of the way, I might have frozen to death. When I arrived home, there wasn’t a single light on. A sense of unease slowly crept over me. But I reassured myself that it was late, and my parents and brother must be asleep. However, after knocking for a long time, there was still no answer. I finally panicked. I started shouting with my hoarse voice, “Mom, Dad, it’s me, Liam! I’m back!” Remembering that the last time I saw them was during an argument, I felt a pang of guilt. That’s right, my parents had tried to convince me not to marry Sophia. “She never loved you, can’t you see that? And she’s a rich heiress. Liam, it’s not that we don’t approve of her, we’re just afraid she’s playing with your feelings.” How could I have believed them? I had a huge fight with them and left, declaring, “From now on, I’m not your son anymore.” Could it be that my parents were still angry? Just as I was thinking this, the door next to me opened. It was Mrs. Lin. She rubbed her sleepy eyes, and the moment she saw me, tears welled up in her eyes. “Liam, why are you only back now? Your parents and your brother…” Seeing her hesitation, my head started pounding as if it had been struck, and I gradually lost my senses. Everything went black, and I passed out. 0
When I woke up, a familiar face appeared before me. It was her! It was Sophia. The one I couldn’t escape from in my dreams and thoughts. She was still as beautiful as ever, even more so than before. Her wavy hair, enchanting eyes, and that beauty mark under her eye that I once loved so desperately. But I was so frightened that I immediately shrank to the edge of the bed. I tightly closed my eyes, not daring to look at her. This face that I once loved more than life itself now terrified me to the core. “Hmph, what’s wrong? Not happy to see me?” Her voice was hoarse and alluring, with a hint of contempt. Of course. In the past, when I missed her, I would climb over the school wall just to find her. I would walk ten miles in the middle of the night just to see her face. I wasn’t afraid of pouring rain. As soon as she opened the door, I would hold her tightly. “I miss you so much.” “I just wanted to see you right away.” I used to love her to the point of madness. So now she thought I had come out just to see her. “Why aren’t you saying anything?” “Why did you escape?” I lowered my head and said cautiously, “I missed…” My voice was harsh from not speaking for so long. “You missed me, right?” “Three years, and you still haven’t learned anything.” Her tone was still as mocking as ever. I knew without looking that her brows were furrowed. I quickly shook my head. “No, no, I missed my parents and brother too much.” I looked up, my face covered in tears. “Can you tell me where they are?” Sophia was stunned. Her expression became a bit unnatural. “You should rest for now. After you’ve rested, I’ll send you back.” Back? To that hellish place. Where there were many men who would sneak onto my bed every night to molest and violate me. A mental patient who would throw hot soup in my face and call me a scumbag at the drop of a hat. And a group of people who would drag me in and beat me up from time to time. Too many to count. The horrifying memories from my mind suddenly overwhelmed me. I screamed, “No, I don’t want to go back, I don’t want to!” As I spoke, I retreated to the window. I looked at Sophia with pleading eyes. “Please, don’t send me back there, I’m begging you.” Sophia looked at me with some disgust. “Look at you now, not a bit of the obedient and sensible person you used to be.” Obedient and sensible? I used to be obedient too. But what did I get in return? When she told me to go west, I never went east. When she went to take care of her first love, Garrett, in the middle of the night, I didn’t say a word. But I endured it all, thinking I could finally get engaged to her. In the end, Garrett committed suicide. And I was the one who got hurt. I fell to my knees in front of her with a thud. “Please, Sophia, don’t send me back.” “I swear, I’ll never appear in your and Garrett’s world again to bother you.” She raised an eyebrow and looked at me, seeming to consider the sincerity of my words. But I had no reason to lie. Now, I truly didn’t love her anymore. What I had was fear, resentment, but never love again. 0
I don’t know why, but hearing me say this, Sophia seemed somewhat displeased. She waved her hand. “You should have learned your lesson after three years.” “If it weren’t for your provocation, Garrett wouldn’t have committed suicide due to depression.” “Three years was too lenient for you.” I nodded repeatedly. I was too tired to argue. At our engagement party back then, Sophia was indecisive, and after receiving Garrett’s farewell call, she broke down and left immediately. Before leaving, she slapped me hard. She angrily questioned me: “What exactly did you say to him? If it weren’t for our years of friendship, do you think you’d have a chance? Did you really think you were my husband? Let me tell you, if anything happens to Garrett, I won’t let you off!” But I didn’t do anything. Later, Garrett was rescued after a suicide attempt by slitting his wrists, and Sophia found screenshots of my provocative text messages on his phone. With those screenshots, she had me committed to a psychiatric hospital without a second thought. Even though I said a hundred times that I didn’t do it. She still looked at me with that expression of extreme disgust. “Not sending you to prison is already my mercy to you.” Her eyes were like knives, stabbing my heart again and again. She used to like me before. Before she met Garrett. She used to hate her father for having an affair and causing her mother’s death. She hated even more how her father was so good to that mistress’s child. But the moment she saw him, Sophia said to me, “I like him so much, Liam. Do you know what it feels like to have your heart skip a beat?” How could I not know? Every time I looked at her, my heart skipped a beat. Those words were enough to make me give up. But how could I let go? We had beautiful memories together and made firm promises. Not to mention that Garrett was her nominal brother. They couldn’t be together in the first place. So Garrett, who couldn’t marry her himself, wouldn’t let Sophia marry me either. Before that, Sophia had dragged me by the collar to Garrett’s hospital bed. She wanted me to kneel before him and apologize. I refused. I loved her, but as a man, I had my own dignity. This angered her. Garrett took advantage of Sophia’s absence when she went to buy porridge for him, and spoke to me with an arrogant expression. “She only loves me.” “Even if I can’t marry her, you can’t either. I’ll always be the only one in her heart. With just a crook of my finger, she’ll come running like a dog. You’re nothing but a pathetic substitute.” “You disgust me.” I was furious, and felt that Sophia’s true feelings were not worth it. “Is being the other man something to be proud of? You’re just like your mother. She stole Sophia’s father and destroyed their family. And you, having inappropriate feelings for your sister, happy to be the third wheel.” He glared at me fiercely, but suddenly changed his expression. Covering his face, he sobbed. “I know you don’t like me, Liam. I’ve wronged you. I’ll just go and die, so I won’t be an eyesore to you anymore.” I was sick of his act. He was better at pretending than any woman I’d ever met. “Then go ahead and die. This time, make sure to cut deeper.” I knew he didn’t really want to die; this was just another act. How could he give up the wealth and status he had now? But as I turned around, I met a pair of cold eyes. It was Sophia, who had returned with the porridge. She threw the porridge in my face. The scalding porridge burned my skin, causing blisters. But she didn’t care at all. “You’re so vicious, it makes me sick.” “It seems I’ve been too lenient with you before. Someone like you deserves to be sent to a psychiatric hospital.” Yes, I was sent there. Those three years not only cured my love sickness, But also gave me severe depression and insomnia. Now, just thinking about Sophia, seeing her, or having any contact with her would make me tremble uncontrollably. In severe cases, I would even pass out. 0
Sophia went to the company. I quickly found a phone and called my parents. But all that awaited me was the message that no one was answering. What had happened to my parents? Why did Mrs. Lin, the neighbor, cry? And why did Sophia seem hesitant to speak? I called my best friend next. “Hello, who is this?” Hearing his voice, I felt so moved I wanted to cry. When Sophia forcibly sent me to the psychiatric hospital, my phone was taken away. I tried to escape from that place countless times, but each time I was caught and brought back. Then they would give me stronger doses of medication. I would be in a daze for a long time before gradually regaining consciousness. I used to fantasize that Sophia would come to see me and take me out. As long as she could take me out, I would do anything she wanted, be her dog, or completely disappear from her sight. I had been tortured to the point of completely losing my sense of self. But I waited and waited, until I couldn’t wait anymore. My nose stung, and tears suddenly welled up in my eyes. My best friend Ryan was the person I missed most after my parents. “It’s me, Ryan. It’s me, Liam.” “Oh my God, Liam, you’ve finally shown up. Where have you been these three years? You don’t know how crazy your parents went looking for you.” “Later, they went to find Sophia, I don’t know what happened. When they came back, they were in a daze. Not long after, there was an accident… your whole family, your parents and your brother, they all died in that car crash.” “What?!” By the end, Ryan was choking up and could barely speak. It was like a bolt from the blue. Although I had a premonition, when the real news came, I still couldn’t accept it. Seeing that I remained silent for a long time, Ryan anxiously called my name. “Liam, don’t scare me. Where are you? What exactly happened to you?” The pain in my heart made it difficult to breathe, but at this moment, I couldn’t shed a single tear. I raised my hand and mechanically slapped my own face. Again and again. Until it was swollen and numb. “It’s all my fault. I killed my parents and brother.” I said mechanically. Endless regret overwhelmed me like a tide. But I could never bring my parents back. The one who should have died was me, so why did the retribution fall on my loved ones? Ryan said he was on a business trip out of town and told me to stay at Sophia’s house for one night. He would come to pick me up tomorrow. I agreed. I sat with my arms wrapped around myself from day to night. Not eating or drinking anything, feeling nothing. When Sophia came back, the sudden light hurt my eyes. “Why aren’t you resting? Were you waiting for me?” she asked. Her expression was unusually gentle. Sophia’s attitude towards me had never been good after that incident, and it only got worse. Only occasionally, when she was in the mood, would she show me a bit of kindness. I always gave her whatever she wanted, and even when she was in a bad mood and took it out on me, I didn’t mind. And the few times we shared a bed, she never faced me. I thought she was tired. Later, I found out that she simply didn’t want to look at my face. She would get up in the middle of the night to call Garrett. Comforting him when he was jealous. “You know I treat him as if he were you. When I’m with him, I never look at him directly.” At that moment, my heart felt like it had fallen into an ice pit. But I still believed that people’s hearts were made of flesh, and that over time, she would remember my kindness and fall in love with me again. But it was all just my wishful thinking. Sophia came closer, her breath on my face. Her voice was low in my ear, making my whole body tingle. “I’ve had a bit to drink.” She lowered her head, about to kiss me. But I quickly dodged. A flash of displeasure crossed her face. Her slender fingers gripped my chin. Forcing me to face her. “Playing hard to get, huh? Didn’t you used to beg me to kiss you?” I couldn’t bear to listen anymore. My stomach churned. I pushed her away and started dry heaving. She walked away, disappointed. “What are you pretending for? You used to do everything you could to seduce me into your bed, and now you’re rejecting me.” I smiled. “That’s right.” “But when you were with me, weren’t you always thinking of Garrett’s face?” Hearing this, her expression changed. First, she hurriedly explained, “That’s not what I meant, Liam.” Then, realizing she had misspoken, she coldened her face, “You eavesdropped on my phone call?” I patted my chest. Changing the subject. “What did you tell my parents when they came to find you back then? It led to them being in a daze and getting into a car accident.” I stared at her intently. She turned her head away. Speaking unnaturally, “I just told them you were sick and went to the hospital for treatment.” “Is that so? If that’s all, then why didn’t you let them visit me? Moreover, you knew very well that I wasn’t sick! Sophia, I loved you for ten years, starting from your freshman speech in high school. You know very well how I treated you during these ten years. If you were tired of me, I could have stopped pursuing you, but why did you have to kill my parents and my brother? He was still so young.” “If you hated me, you could have taken revenge on me. Why did you have to hurt them!” I cried out these words to her. My mind was on the verge of collapse. “I didn’t kill them! It was an accident! I know you’re heartbroken, but that’s no reason for you to go crazy at me.” “Just stay here and calm down.” “I’ll sleep in the guest room tonight.” Sophia threw out these cold words and left. What did she mean? Was she planning to sleep with me tomorrow? I let out a cold laugh. “Sophia, it’s been three years. You love Garrett so much, why haven’t you married him?” “Don’t tell me you’re still waiting for me.” “Or could it be that you actually have some feelings for me?” Sophia was stunned for a moment. She quickly denied it with a cold laugh. “Like you? How is that possible? Don’t dream on.” “It’s just that you’re not as clingy anymore, so I’m a bit less disgusted with you.” “As for you, having loved me for so long, I’m afraid getting over me won’t be so easy, will it?” I nodded, not answering. Indeed, it wasn’t easy. It was like being skinned alive. Seeing this, her expression showed a hint of satisfaction. Convinced that I still loved her. Pleased with my obedience and understanding, she nodded. She reached out her hand, patting my head as if rewarding a dog that comes when called. “If you had been this sensible earlier, I wouldn’t have sent you to the psychiatric hospital.” “If you can know your place and stop causing trouble for Garrett, I might consider keeping you by my side.” As if bestowing a favor. For the past me, staying by her side was my greatest dream. But now, it was the most terrifying curse.
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