Three years after I announced my death due to illness. My son ran into Ryan Hayes, who had just returned to the country, at the airport. He let Ryan lead him along, blinking his eyes and speaking to him, “Uncle, you look just like my dad.” Ryan squatted down, smiling as he ruffled his hair. “But your mom didn’t choose me in the end, did she?” Today was my fifth anniversary with Ryan, and his idealized first love, Serena, suffering from depression, called again. Her voice was soft and sweet, as if it held a magic, easily stirring up deep memories and emotions within Ryan. “That ocean view we saw before, it was so beautiful. Will you remember Serena in the future, Ryan?” Ryan’s hand, which had been fiddling with his hair, froze. His voice trembled slightly, “Serena, what are you saying? Ryan really likes you.” “I’ll come pick you up. Shall we go to your favorite seafood restaurant for crab, okay?” Ryan’s voice carried a tension others might not have noticed. I watched him turn away without hesitation. My phone smashed onto the floor. Ryan heard the sound and turned back, looking apologetic. He rushed over to me and knelt down. “Baby, I’m so sorry. I’ll make up our anniversary to you another day.” “You’ve always been an understanding girl. Serena has been by my side all this time.” “I can’t just leave her alone.” I looked at his almost pleading eyes, slowly, imperceptibly, I loosened my grip on his sleeve, though my heart was screaming. Still, I couldn’t help but demand, “If you walk out that door today, we might really be over. Don’t you care?” “Even if her leg can’t dance anymore because of you, it’s been so many years. Whatever you owed should have been paid back long ago.” Ryan’s eyes hardened instantly, sharp as a blade. “Summer, stop being unreasonable. You shouldn’t be so jealous.” My vision blurred as his figure shrank, disappearing into the distance. Serena was his untouchable. No one could mention her, no one could touch her. His words from when he was deeply in love still echoed in my ears, “You’ll always be my first choice. I’ll never let you be sad.” Ryan, you broke your promise.
I couldn’t help but recall our college days, me, Ryan, and Serena. I always thought Ryan and Serena had met through me. It wasn’t until the second year Ryan and I were together that I accidentally overheard a conversation between them. That’s when I found out they had known each other for a long time and shared some unforgettable memories. “Now that you’re with Summer, treat her well. She’s a very good girl.” “As for me, a cripple won’t have a bright future.” Her face was devoid of expression, utterly bleak. Serena’s words successfully stirred up Ryan’s guilt. He hugged her tightly. “Serena, I’m so, so sorry! I’ll stay with you until you truly find your own happiness.” “Summer won’t mind.” Many things I didn’t realize at the time. He called her Serena, he called me Summer. I actually wanted to rush out then and ask, “By ‘forever’ staying with her, do you mean the three of us will live together?” But as an understanding girlfriend, I couldn’t do that. It wasn’t until I returned to the dorm that night, looking at each other, us two girls who shared a strange similarity. Serena spoke with a triumphant sneer, “See? Just a few words, and he can’t bear to leave me. You’re just a disposable replacement.” “You probably don’t know this, but Ryan studied medicine because of me. He came to this university because of me too.” I said nothing. Serena slowly, leisurely, stood up from her wheelchair and limped towards the bathroom. “He’s with you out of guilt, unable to get past a hurdle in his heart, that’s why he found you.” She smiled sweetly as she said that. A knot of unease tightened in my stomach. I vaguely guessed they had a complicated history. Looking at the wheelchair Serena had left aside, I chuckled, “Well, you’re in the past, after all. Does Ryan know your leg is almost healed?” Ryan came from a prominent family. Serena’s father was a murderer, and her mother was a gambler. Ryan’s father was obsessed with appearances, so as long as he was alive, he would absolutely never let Ryan and Serena be together. At the time, when Ryan’s father found out that Ryan, still in high school, was dating a girl from a troubled background, he was furious. He went straight to the school and took Ryan home. Serena was lost and desolate all day until the news of Ryan going abroad broke. She got into a car accident on her way to the airport. “For a dancer, not being able to dance is like taking my life.” She went on hunger strike, cut her wrists, took sleeping pills. And Ryan stayed by her side through it all. In the end, her voice choked. “But your appearance gave me a sense of crisis. Summer, I’m not like you. I only have Ryan.” The next day, Serena was found having cut her wrists in the dorm. I was scared by the blood everywhere and instinctively stepped back. She looked at me, her face pale. “Do you think Ryan will blame you for provoking me?”
Less than half an hour later, Ryan burst into the hospital room, breathless. He slammed into me, sending me sprawling. My arm hit the nearby metal cabinet. “You were supposed to have moved out. Why were you even here, near Serena?” He took out the soup from the meal tray and carefully fed it to Serena. He then thoughtfully propped a pillow behind her back, before fixing me with a cold stare, his voice laced with accusation. “You knew Serena’s situation was delicate. Why didn’t you stay away from her?” Serena gently wrapped her arms around his neck, whining softly, “Ryan, it hurts so much. I can’t walk like a normal person anymore.” But her triumph was impossible to hide in her eyes. Someone genuinely suffering from depression wouldn’t have that look in their eyes. Yet Ryan hugged her tenderly, gently rubbing her leg. “Serena will get better. Ryan’s here for you.” His entire focus was on Serena, he didn’t notice my bleeding arm, covered in cuts. I comforted myself countless times, telling myself Ryan was only acting out of guilt. Every time, I compromised. I knew exactly what he was thinking. He knew Serena’s illness wasn’t severe to this extent. But later, on a mountain drenched in a downpour, amidst a howling blizzard, on a deserted highway in the dead of night, even at our own wedding, Ryan abandoned me without a second thought and chose Serena. This was his last chance. I ran after him. “Ryan, have you really thought this through?” Ryan’s footsteps faltered. From a distance, I saw guilt in his eyes. “Summer, I’m sorry. I can’t abandon Serena. Her leg is like this because of me.” The outcome was clear long ago. For the first time, I used a hidden ability and heard Ryan’s inner thoughts: “Summer, I’ll make it up to you properly when I get back.” I shook my head, my voice raw and strained. “Ryan, no need. We’re breaking up.” Ryan finally turned and walked towards me, his brows furrowed, his tone filled with displeasure. “Stop being unreasonable! Our relationship and helping Serena recover aren’t mutually exclusive. Why do you have to make it a competition?” “Serena’s by the ocean, it’s dangerous. Her life is on the line, what are you even thinking about?” The atmosphere between us instantly solidified. People around us cast curious glances, eager for drama. A lump formed in my throat, choking back the words. It was useless because Ryan’s mind was completely consumed by Serena at the beach. I managed a faint smile, opening my mouth to speak. But before I could say anything, Ryan’s phone rang. It was our mutual friend, saying Serena’s condition was very bad. In just a few seconds, Ryan made his choice. He abandoned me again without a second thought. Right then, I thought my decision to give up a prestigious university’s exchange program for Ryan was absolutely terrible. I dialed that number, hidden at the very end of my contacts for a long, long time. “Caleb, I’m giving in. I accept your offer.”
Back home, I threw away all my things that were connected to Ryan. I only took a few pieces of clothing. Yes, I left. I walked away from Ryan. My name is Summer, because my mom hoped I’d live my life open-minded, optimistic, kind, and proactive. But I failed not only to do that, I even lost myself. “Summer, long time no see.” Caleb, long time no see. I looked at the man before me. He was still as radiant as he’d been years ago. “How did you end up so miserable without me around?” Caleb took my suitcase, a hint of schadenfreude in his voice. Hearing his familiar voice, my nose stung, and my voice involuntarily caught in my throat. “Yeah, I’m pretty miserable. And I’ll have to trouble the great Caleb, top influencer, for a while.” Caleb haughtily snorted twice. “Summer, I told you long ago to leave him.” “Caleb, I’m pregnant.” Caleb’s grip on my hand tightened abruptly. He seemed agitated. “And you? Do you want to keep it?” I pulled my hand from Caleb’s grasp. “I’m ready to start a new life.” In the following days, I steadily began my new life. I paid no attention to the chaos that had erupted back home. When Ryan returned home the next day, he unexpectedly noticed many things missing from the house. He called our mutual friends. “Has Summer contacted any of you?” All he got were words of advice: “Ryan, I’m just telling you, in this toxic relationship with Serena, you might as well let Summer go.” Everyone’s consistent answer was that they had no idea where Summer went, until Summer’s family was asked. “Summer has a really good friend overseas. You actually know him – Caleb.” Ryan didn’t understand why everyone thought he had wronged me. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the prenatal check-up results on the vanity table. Ryan left the country that very night, taking Serena with him. The next time I met Ryan was at the supermarket downstairs. “Summer!” Caleb reacted faster than I did, swinging a punch at Ryan’s face. “You bastard! How dare you show your face?!” They wrestled, their identities too prominent. If no one pulled them apart, tomorrow’s headline would be “A-List Celebrity and Corporation Heir Brawl in Public: What’s the Real Story?” “We broke up. Don’t come looking for me anymore.” I shielded Caleb behind me, casting a cold gaze at the man and woman opposite us. Ryan pulled out the prenatal check-up results. “Summer, stop messing around. You can’t let our child grow up without a father.” “I terminated the pregnancy.” He froze. He threw down the suitcase he was holding and clamped my arm tightly. “You’re lying to me, aren’t you?”
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “297278”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #现实主义Realistic
Leave a Reply