After I had my cat neutered, he suddenly started talking. “I’m going to kill you!” I thought I was hearing things. Until he lunged at me and hissed it again, clear as day. “I’m going to kill you!” 01 The hair on the back of my neck stood straight up. I screamed for my boyfriend, Caleb. Caleb told me it was just my imagination—that I was so stressed about the cat’s surgery that I was hearing things. He told me to stop overthinking. Then, he locked the cat in his carrier. But in the middle of the night, the cat spoke again: “I’m going to kill you!” I snapped my eyes open. He was sitting right on my chest, staring at me with pure, unadulterated hatred. I bolted upright, shaking. As I did, the cat swiped his claws across my throat, leaving a stinging red mark. Caleb lost it. He grabbed the cat and looked like he was about to hurl him off the balcony. I stopped him. I’d had this cat for two years. Besides, it was just a post-op stress reaction, right? It wasn’t his fault. Caleb finally calmed down and put him back in the carrier. He used heavy-duty zip ties to secure the door before he felt safe enough to go back to sleep. 02 But sleep wouldn’t come for me. I started scrolling through TikTok, hoping a distraction would settle my nerves. I stumbled across a live stream by a paranormal investigator named Silas Thorne. He was explaining why pets suddenly start acting “glitchy” or demonic. I frantically typed out what happened with my cat in the comments. The viewers mocked me. They said I was lying. Some even called me a “clout chaser” because my profile was full of cute videos of my cat. But Silas Thorne’s expression tightened. He asked if I had any video. I quickly DM’d him a clip from my home security camera. Silas watched it for exactly one second before his face went pale. He ended his live stream instantly. Five seconds later, I got a private message. “He wasn’t saying he was going to kill you. He was telling you to RUN!” 03 My scalp went numb. But I heard it so clearly! “I’m going to kill you!” Silas replied: “Cat language isn’t about phonetics. It carries its own intent.” “Why would he want me to run?” I typed back, fingers trembling. “Because someone in that house is going to kill you!” I wanted to throw my phone. The only people in this house were me and Caleb. Caleb loved me more than himself. How could he possibly want to kill me? I decided this was just another internet scammer trying to mess with my head. I replied: “Go to hell. You’re the one who needs to run.” I locked my phone and tried to shut my eyes. But then, Silas sent one more message. “Is your cat’s name Owen?” 04 My heart skipped a beat. Two years ago, I found a tiny black kitten in the park. I only meant to feed him, but he followed me all the way to my front door. My heart melted, and I took him in. Whenever he was hungry, he’d make this weird “ow-woo” sound. Caleb joked, “Doesn’t it sound like he’s saying ‘Owen’?” So, we named him Owen. How could a man I’d never met, halfway across the country, know such a specific, weird name? I typed back: “Is it illegal to name a cat Owen?” Silas ignored the sarcasm. “Did you move because of him?” Another jolt of electricity hit my spine. About six months after I brought Owen home, he started standing by the front door at midnight, howling at nothing. I thought he was just restless, so I bought him more toys. Then, the girl who lived across the hall—a popular influencer—suddenly died of a rapid, aggressive cancer. I’d heard the old folklore that cats can see things humans can’t. Was Owen seeing something? Caleb told me to stop being superstitious. He said it was just a coincidence. But then, a young professional who just moved into the building died of a sudden heart attack. I got scared. I felt like the building was cursed. Caleb agreed. He said we should leave. When we looked for a new place, we took Owen with us. If he hissed or howled in a house, we wouldn’t rent it, no matter how cheap it was. It took a month of searching before we found this apartment. Again—how did Silas Thorne know this? “Who the hell are you?” I demanded. Silas told me to stay calm. He had one last question. “Did your boyfriend suggest the neutering?” Owen had been restless lately, keeping us up all night. Caleb was under a lot of pressure at the newspaper where he worked. He’d spent weeks convincing me to get the surgery done. I finally gave in. Silas sent a final message: “Get out now! I’m certain. Your boyfriend is trying to kill you!” 05 I was livid. A routine surgery? Leading to murder? I told him if he didn’t stop harassment, I’d call the police. Silas Thorne replied: “Your boyfriend is an expert in the occult. He’s used this method to kill other girls before. If you run now, you might make it.” This was getting ridiculous. Caleb worked for a major newspaper. He was a staunch atheist. He couldn’t even kill a spider, let alone a person. He’d be ruined if he even got a parking ticket. Then Silas sent: “If you don’t believe me, go look in the southwest corner of your living room. Is there a small red bowl or a ritual candle hidden there?” The southwest corner was where the AC unit was. Half-believing, half-dreading, I walked over. Behind the AC, tucked into the shadows, was a small red offering bowl. It was almost overflowing with ash. I reached for my phone to tell Silas, my heart hammering against my ribs. Suddenly, Caleb’s voice came from behind me: “Did you find it?” I nearly jumped out of my skin. I didn’t hear him come out of the bedroom. I forced a laugh, my voice cracking. “Find what? I was just cleaning back here. I didn’t want Shadow—Owen—to get into any dust.” I grabbed a nearby cloth and started frantically wiping the AC unit. Caleb walked over and reached behind the unit, pulling out the red bowl. I took two steps back, faking surprise. “Oh! Did the previous tenant leave that?” Caleb suddenly pulled me into a hug and whispered, “I’m so sorry.” I was shaking, but I tried to stay calm. “What for, babe?” Caleb said that even though he didn’t believe in the supernatural, he’d been dreaming about his late grandmother lately. She had raised him, and he didn’t know how to properly honor her memory. He said he’d hidden the bowl to burn a little incense for her, feeling embarrassed about being “superstitious.” He turned the bowl around. Tucked into the side was a small, faded photo of an elderly woman. I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I told him to put it on the dresser—that there was nothing to be ashamed of. I told him to get some rest so he wouldn’t be tired for work. I said I’d sit with Owen for a bit longer. Caleb went back to the bedroom. I immediately messaged Silas: “Stop it. You’re a fraud.” Silas Thorne replied: “I know it’s hard to believe. I just hope your cat doesn’t go into high alert.” “Go screw yourself,” I typed. I threw my phone on the sofa. I was reaching for a glass of water when I heard a low, guttural growl. I turned around. Owen’s fur was standing straight up. He was staring at the bedroom door, hissing into the dark. 06 The hair on my arms stood up again. I reached for my phone to message Silas. But then I hesitated. I’d been so mean to him. I went to wake Caleb. But then I realized… usually, if Owen made even a tiny sound, Caleb would bolt awake. Now, Caleb was snoring. Loudly. And he’d only been in the room for two minutes. Was something really wrong? I couldn’t take it anymore. I messaged Silas and apologized. Silas replied almost instantly: “Something has entered your home!” My soul nearly left my body. The doors were locked. How? “If I’m right, it’s the thing being fed by that offering bowl!” Caleb’s grandmother? I almost screamed. Owen howled again. Then he stumbled, his legs giving out. Silas told me to go to the kitchen, find some hearth ash or charcoal, and rub it on the cat’s paws and forehead. He said ash was a conductor for positive energy—a way to anchor the cat’s spirit. As soon as I did it, Owen shuddered and went limp. I panicked, but Silas told me it was a natural reaction to his spirit re-centering. As long as the cat was alive, “the thing” wouldn’t dare touch me. But what about Caleb? Why would he do this? Silas said it was more complicated than I could imagine. The only way out was to guard the cat. “No matter what your boyfriend says, do not answer him,” Silas warned. “If you make it to dawn, you’ll live.” I carved those words into my brain. 07 I finally started to breathe again. Then Owen snapped his eyes open. His fur spiked once more. He was looking directly behind me, hissing with a terrifying intensity. I froze. I was too afraid to look. I reached for my phone to message Silas. The screen went black. Dead battery. Just as I felt I was about to collapse from the terror… I heard Caleb’s snoring right behind my ear. I turned around. He was standing right behind me, eyes wide open, staring at me while making the sound of a deep sleep. Was he awake? Or was he sleepwalking? He’d never sleepwalked before. I didn’t wait to find out. I grabbed the carrier, bolted for the door, and ran. There was a 24-hour convenience store downstairs. I could get a charger there. There would be people. I wouldn’t be alone. 08 The elevator doors were about to close when they suddenly jerked open again. I thought Caleb had caught up. But the hallway was empty. Caleb’s grandmother? Owen hissed, arching his back and staring into the empty space outside the elevator. My blood turned to ice. I mashed the buttons. Finally, the doors closed. But then Owen started spinning in circles in his carrier, growling at the corners of the elevator. I was losing my mind. I hugged the carrier tight and kept my head down. I felt a sudden, icy draft, like I was surrounded by a crowd of cold bodies. Ding. The doors opened. I lunged out. It was the basement parking garage. I had pressed ‘1’. Why was I on ‘B2’? 09 I turned to run back into the elevator. A voice boomed from the shadows: “DON’T GO BACK IN THERE!” I turned. It was Arthur, the night security guard. I felt a wave of relief. Arthur worked the gate during the day and usually hung around at night. I always gave him my recycling and old boxes so he could sell them for extra cash. We were on good terms. I ran toward him. Arthur asked what was wrong. I didn’t want to sound crazy, so I just said I’d had a fight with my boyfriend. Arthur smiled sadly, looking at Owen in the carrier. “That’s a fine cat. Too bad his heart has been shackled. He won’t last until dawn.” My heart stopped. Shackled? Wasn’t Silas Thorne trying to save him? I told Arthur everything. Arthur sighed. “Child, if it wasn’t for this cat, you’d have been dead two years ago.” My stomach dropped. Did Owen follow me home to save my life? Arthur asked: “Do you know why there are so many stray cats in the city, but none in the rural mountains?” I didn’t know. Were there just fewer people to abandon them? Arthur shook his head. He said people in the country honor the old spirits, keeping the balance. In the city, people believe only in science, leaving the spirit world in chaos. Stray cats are called “Threshold Guardians.” They exist to hunt the things that don’t belong here. I felt goosebumps break out over my skin. I remembered Arthur mentioning once that his family came from a long line of folk healers. He only took this job to pass the time. “Is Owen a Guardian?” I whispered. Arthur said Owen was a pure black cat—a rare “Night Raven.” High spiritual energy. If he grew to full age, he’d be a King among Guardians. I felt a surge of pride, then a pang of grief for how weak he looked now. Arthur continued: “True stray cats don’t just enter a home. They have missions. This one saw the ‘Mark of Death’ on you. He risked his own soul to save you.” The Mark of Death? “You started dating that boy about two weeks before you found the cat, didn’t you?” “Yes,” I whispered. “That tracks. Your boyfriend is an occult master. He knew he couldn’t drive the cat away, and he didn’t dare kill a Guardian. So, he made you weaken him with a curse for two years.” A curse? “The name ‘Owen’,” Arthur explained. My blood ran cold. “It’s just a name. How is that a curse?” Arthur sighed. “Cats only make that specific sound when they are distressed. By calling him that every day, you were reinforcing the idea that his own existence was a source of sadness to his master.” “That is an Incantation of Despair. Over time, it broke his spirit.” “He only stayed because he’s bound to you by a bond that spans three lifetimes.” My heart broke. I’d spent two years unknowingly hurting the one creature that lived for me. “That’s why he howled at the door,” Arthur said. “He was warning the spirits to stay away. They killed your neighbors just to force you to move.” “But at the new place, he never hissed,” I argued. “Because this building is the most haunted spot in the neighborhood. The spiritual interference is so loud he lost his compass. By the time he realized it, you thought he was just in heat.” I was devastated. “Then, the boyfriend had you neuter him. He cut off the cat’s source of vital energy. And when the cat told you to run, he didn’t mean from Caleb. He was warning you about the things standing behind you.” The things behind me? Arthur nodded. “They’ve been following you. The cat wasn’t trying to hurt you tonight—he was sitting on you to hide your life-force. He scratched your neck to try and grab the spirit that was reaching for your throat.” It all clicked. Caleb’s “fear” of the cat was an act to get me to go online. To find Silas Thorne. I felt sick. “But why did Silas Thorne tell me to use the ash?” “Because by using the ash to ‘lock his spirit,’ you weren’t saving him. You were sealing his powers. You helped them destroy his divinity.” I felt like the world was spinning. “So only I could destroy my own cat?” Arthur nodded. “The entities in the elevator… you felt them. If you go back now, you won’t be you anymore.” “Was it Caleb’s grandmother?” Arthur scoffed. “There is no grandmother. Those were his clients.” Clients?

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I paid for my whole family to go on a trip, but I forgot to pack kids’ toothpaste for my son. My sister happened to bring some for my niece, so I asked to borrow a little bit. My mom rolled her eyes and complained about me: “You know your sister isn’t doing well financially, and you still take advantage of her. “A little bit here, a little bit there, are you going to pay her for it?” I opened my mouth in shock: “How much is a pea-sized drop of toothpaste? I paid for your flights and hotel!” My mom waved her hand impatiently: “Who said we even like traveling? We only came to keep you company. “Dragging us all the way out here and making us exhausted, are you going to pay us for our time and labor?” I was trembling with anger. Fine. Fine. I don’t need your company. That very night, I changed their return flights and canceled the remaining six days of their hotel stay. If you don’t like traveling, then go home. 1 It’s true that I was the one who proposed the trip. But the one who instigated it was my sister, Amy. She was whining and crying to my mom and me. “I’m really not a good mother. Riley is already eight, and I’ve never even had the money to take her to the beach.” She looked up with tearful eyes and grabbed my hand. “Chloe, I’m so jealous of you. You get to take Tyler every year.” My mom glared at me as if I had committed some heinous crime. I smiled and patted Amy’s hand. “Don’t cry. I was planning to take Tyler anyway. I’ll bring you and Riley along this time.” Amy stretched her neck out excitedly. “Really? Then let’s bring Mom too. It’s too exhausting for me to look after a kid all by myself.” A smile finally appeared on my mom’s face. “Yeah, I raised you all these years, and you’ve never taken me on a trip. “It’ll be perfect, just the three of us girls and the two kids. How fun!” I felt a little uneasy, but as long as it made my mom smile at me, I was satisfied. I nodded and quickly booked the flights and the hotel. That night, I vented my discomfort to my husband, Mark. He gave a knowing, sarcastic smile. “Your mom helps your sister with her kid all the time, but she never lifts a finger for you. Has that never made you mad?” My temper flared up instantly. “Can you stop trying to drive a wedge between my mom and me? “I’ve explained this to you clearly before. My sister doesn’t have her in-laws to help, so it’s really hard for her doing it alone.” “Family needs to look out for each other. My mother-in-law helps me, so of course my mom needs to help her more.” Mark smirked, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Oh, sure, sure. You have my mom, she has nobody. Your mom and your sister are just so exhausted.” I was just about to reach out and smack him when he looked at me seriously. “You watch. You guys going on this trip together, it’s going to end badly.” If this had been the past, I would have definitely gotten into a huge fight with him. But this time, for some reason, I felt incredibly anxious, as if something I had maintained for years was about to slip away. Amy’s comment, “It’s too exhausting for me to look after a kid all by myself,” was like a thorn, constantly pricking the bottom of my heart. After all, I had raised a kid by myself too. And my mom had never helped me, not even for a single day. 2 My husband, Mark, overestimated me. We hadn’t even reached our destination before I started to feel like I couldn’t take it anymore. While we were waiting to board at the airport, my stomach suddenly cramped up, and I needed to use the restroom. I said to my mom, “Mom, can you keep an eye on Tyler for a second? I need to…” My mom’s eyebrows immediately scrunched together, and she refused impatiently. “Can’t you see I’m right in the middle of reading a story to Riley? Can’t you just hold it for a minute?” I put on an apologetic smile. “Tyler can just stand on the side and listen. He’s very good, he won’t cause trouble…” “Good? What’s good about him?! There’s no such thing as an obedient boy. Are you trying to work me to death? “Whenever I take Riley to the park, it’s always the boys who are mischievous and causing trouble. They’re so annoying!” “Can’t you just take him to the restroom with you? Are you disgusted by your own son?” I was sweating from the stomach pain. “Mom, Tyler is eight years old already. He can’t go into the women’s restroom.” “You’re just being dramatic! So many boys go in with their moms. Why is your son so special?” At that moment, Amy was standing right there playing on her phone. She barely lifted an eyelid. After glancing at me, she showed absolutely no intention of helping. She felt that our mother was her mother alone, and it was only right that she cared for her and not me. Then who exactly was I? What was my place in their hearts? I frantically found an airport staff member to help. My mom, however, didn’t even look up and continued reading the story to Riley. A smug smile flashed across the corner of her mouth, as if she was highly satisfied with the way things turned out. By the time I came out of the restroom, my mom and sister had already boarded with Riley. Tyler was standing pitifully alone next to the staff member, looking like an abandoned child. I grabbed his hand. “Why didn’t you go with Grandma and Auntie?” Tyler almost cried. “Grandma said she’s not my guardian and she can’t take responsibility, so she told me to stay here and wait for you. “Mom, does Grandma not like me? Is that why she left me all alone?” I choked up, unable to speak. Seeing my son suffer was worse than killing me. My own biological mother, how could she be so heartless? I forced a smile and took Tyler’s hand. “No, Tyler. Grandma is right. You can’t trust anyone else. You can only trust Mom and Dad. “Grandma was just trying to teach you about safety. It’s not that she doesn’t like you. You’re her grandson, she loves you the most.” But Tyler muttered quietly behind me, “I don’t think so. She only likes Auntie. She only likes Riley.” 3 My mom took Amy and Riley and claimed the window seats. Actually, those were the seats I had specifically chosen for Tyler and Riley. I had thought the two kids could sit together and look at the scenery outside. But I didn’t realize that while I had Riley in my heart, my mom and Amy didn’t have Tyler in theirs at all. Tyler tugged on my hand and said, “Mom, I want to sit by the window too…” Before he could even finish, my mom, across the aisle, immediately turned her head and scolded Tyler. “You’re the older brother, why can’t you let Riley have it? You fly out for vacations all the time. “This is Riley’s very first time. Would it kill you to miss out on the view just this once?” “So petty, and you call yourself a boy. I can already tell you’re going to grow up to be a nobody!” My mom’s words were like knives, stabbing deeply into me. Tears welled up in Tyler’s eyes, but he didn’t let a single one fall. I looked at my mom. “Mom, you’re going too far. The two kids could easily sit together and look at the view. “Why are you only letting Riley look? Tyler isn’t much older than Riley, he’s only eight.” “Riley is a little kid, and Tyler is too. Why do you have to scold Tyler like that?” My mom rolled her eyes, turned her head away, and ignored me. “I can’t reason with you. Just sit down and stop making a fuss.” Tyler, acting like a big kid, looked up at me. Then he grabbed my hand and said, “Mom, you have me and Dad.” I pulled my hoodie over my face, saying I wanted to sleep. But Tyler knew I was crying. He stayed pressed against me, warm and comforting. In my ear, I could hear Riley’s excited screams: “Mom! Grandma! Look! It’s so pretty!” It was so grating, so humiliating. The hotel I booked was a 1000-square-foot family suite. It had two rooms separated by a door. One room was a bit bigger, with a King bed. The other was a bit smaller, with a Queen bed. My mom naturally took Amy and Riley and claimed the King bed. I figured she normally helps Amy with the kid anyway, and the three of them would be more comfortable in the bigger bed. I had originally planned for them to stay in that room anyway. But that night, I completely broke down. All because of a pea-sized drop of kids’ toothpaste. I finally saw my mom and Amy’s true colors. 4 Right after we checked into the hotel, the kids started clamoring to go play at the beach. So we grabbed a quick bite and hurried down to the shore. I booked a surfing lesson for Tyler. He took his board and had a blast. But Riley, who was originally digging in the sand nearby, saw Tyler surfing and started demanding to play too. My mom poked me in the ribs. “You only booked it for Tyler? That’s not fair! “Since we all came out to play together, whatever Tyler has, Riley should have too.” Oh, really? Then why could Riley look out the window, but Tyler couldn’t? I suppressed my anger, put on a smile, and explained, “Tyler has been taking surfing lessons for a while, so I booked it for him. “Riley has never done it before, and it can be a bit dangerous. She doesn’t have a board or a rash guard. “One wrong move and she could get sunburned or scraped up. Will she be able to handle it?” My mom was furious. “How do you know if she can handle it if you don’t let her try?” I sighed. “Fine. You guys go buy some clothes and rent the gear for Riley, and I’ll hire an instructor for her.” But a short while later, Amy came back looking dark. “This stuff is so expensive! Renting gear costs hundreds of dollars. For just two hours, I have to spend that much? Do you think I’m a sucker?” My mom got angry again. She glared at me sideways, her words dripping with blame. “Look how ugly you made this situation! Making Riley suffer like this. “Of all the things to play, why did it have to be surfing? Who are you trying to show off to?” Hearing that she couldn’t surf, eight-year-old Riley started kicking her legs and throwing a tantrum. “I want to surf too! I want to surf! Why can my brother do it and I can’t?! “It’s not fair! It’s not fair! Waaaah!” My mom quickly squatted down to comfort her. “Oh, Riley, don’t cry. It’s all your aunt’s fault. “Making you suffer like this. Good girl, later your aunt will give you the money she spent on the instructor.” “Let your mom take you to get a big coconut water, okay? We can’t let my sweet Riley suffer!” After saying that, she turned to look at me. Staring at me as if issuing a command. Amy spending money to rent gear for two hours makes her a sucker. Then what about me? It wasn’t even my own kid, yet I was being forced to fork over 100 bucks to make her happy. So Amy couldn’t take a loss, but I was different. I had to take the loss. My mom grew impatient. “What are you still standing there for? Looking after kids is exhausting enough, are you trying to kill me? “You made the kid cry, and you expect me to coax her? Hurry up and transfer the money to your sister, or Riley won’t be happy!” I frantically pulled out my phone and transferred 100 dollars to my sister. Exactly enough for one hour of coaching. My sister took the money, took Riley to buy three coconut waters, and came back. I stared blankly as they sat under the beach umbrella I had rented, enjoying themselves. There wasn’t a single inch of space there for me. And there was no coconut water for me, either. The scorching beach suddenly felt freezing cold. But little did I know, enduring all this was my limit. It was nowhere near my mom’s limit. Her heart was even more ruthless. 5 That night, we dragged ourselves back to the hotel, completely exhausted. It was only when we were getting ready for bed that I realized I forgot to pack Tyler’s kids’ toothpaste. The two kids were clamoring to brush their teeth together, standing side-by-side in front of the mirror. I looked at Amy. “Oh, Amy, I forgot to bring Tyler’s toothpaste. Can you squeeze a little bit of Riley’s for him?” My mom immediately stormed into the bathroom. “You’re taking advantage again! You’re taking advantage again! Haven’t you had enough? “Don’t you know your sister’s financial situation? A little bit here, a little bit there, are you paying for it?” I was completely stunned. I looked at her in surprise. “How much is a pea-sized drop of toothpaste? I paid for your flights and hotel!” My mom snatched the toothpaste and tightened the cap. With a wave of her hand, she snapped at me, “We never said we wanted to come out and play. We only came to keep you company. “You need to reflect on yourself. How many times did you make Riley cry today? Looking after kids back home was never this exhausting.” “You’ve worn your sister and me out so much we can barely walk. Riley isn’t happy either. And it was all to keep you company.” “Dragging us all the way out here, who are we supposed to ask for compensation?” “If it wasn’t for you, I would turn around and go home right now. This is torture!” I was so angry that tears sprang to my eyes. I picked up my own toothpaste and handed it to Tyler. “Use Mom’s for now. Tomorrow I’ll go look around and see if they sell kids’ toothpaste here.” Tyler put the toothbrush in his mouth and sniffled. “Spicy! Spicy! Mom, your toothpaste is so spicy!” His eyes instantly welled up with tears. Riley kept clapping her hands and cheering next to him. “Haha! My brother is crying because it’s spicy! He’s a crybaby!” My mom rolled her eyes, shoved the toothpaste into her pocket, and turned to leave. She muttered under her breath, “And he calls himself a boy. A little toothpaste is enough to make him cry. The apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree.” I was shaking uncontrollably. Tyler, with red eyes, grabbed my wrist. “Mom, I can handle it. It’s okay.” And from beginning to end, Amy didn’t say a single word, acting like an outsider waiting to pick up the scraps. After brushing their teeth, they went back to their room. I carefully listened to my mom whispering to Amy: “Make her pay. Why should she use it for free? Charge her a couple of bucks every time. “Forget the toothpaste. Every time Riley cries, I want to ask her for a hundred dollars!” Amy just half-heartedly tried to calm her down: “Mom, don’t be like that. It doesn’t look good.” I let out a soft cough, and the two of them finally shut up. Yeah, I was the one who was out of line. I don’t need anyone’s company. You want to turn around and go home? I’ll grant your wish. I pulled out my phone, changed their return flights, and canceled the remaining six days of their hotel stay. Tomorrow afternoon, they’re heading home! 6 Just as I finished taking care of everything, my mom tiptoed over and closed the adjoining door. She barged right into my room. Without asking me or Tyler, she immediately turned off all the lights in the room. Then she crawled into bed. “It’s so dark, Mom. I was still reading.” I walked over quickly and turned all the lights back on. My mom sat up and yelled at me: “What are you doing?! Can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?” I couldn’t take it anymore. I walked right over and yanked the covers off. “What are you doing sleeping over here? Don’t you normally help my sister with her kid? Go sleep with her!” My mom furiously yanked the covers back. “I’ve never squeezed into the same bed with her when I help her with the kid! “How are Riley and your sister supposed to sleep comfortably? They’re already exhausted enough from today.” I had no intention of tolerating her any longer. I threw the covers directly onto the floor. “She’s tired, and I’m not? She and Riley think it’s too cramped, but Tyler and I don’t?” My mom pointed a finger. “Isn’t there a sofa right there? Let your son sleep on the sofa, and we can share the bed. What’s the problem?” I walked over to the adjoining door and kicked it open. “Isn’t there a sofa in there too? Can’t Riley sleep on the sofa? That bed is much bigger than this one! “Why can’t you guys just sleep together? Are you both 300-pound giants? Why are you so delicate?” “You don’t have any money, you can’t afford to travel, and when someone invites you out, you complain it’s too cramped?” My sister and Riley were woken up by the noise. The two of them grumbled unhappily. “What is Auntie doing? She’s ruining my sleep. So annoying. No wonder Grandma doesn’t like you.” “Chloe! What time is it? Riley finally fell asleep! Mom had to read two stories just to get her to sleep!” I was already trembling with rage. But my mom showed no sign of backing down. She jumped up like a madwoman, standing tall on the bed and looking down at me. “You think you’re so great just because you have a little money, huh? You’re even willing to abuse your own mother! “I saw you complaining these past two days that I wasn’t helping you with the kid, so I thought I’d be nice and help you for one night.” “And look at you, what kind of attitude is this? If people heard about this, they’d laugh at you!” “What kind of animal treats their own mother like this? Huh?” “Do you want me to go back and tell your in-laws and your neighbors all about this?” “I guess you won’t be satisfied until people are pointing fingers at you!” I clenched my fists so tightly that my ten fingernails dug into my flesh, yet I didn’t feel any pain. I swallowed hard, looked up, and stared at her. “Coming on this trip… do you guys really feel like it’s exhausting and miserable?” My mom put her hands on her hips and yelled at me without a second thought, “What do you think?! We can’t wait to get on a plane and go home right now!” Fine. That’s exactly what I wanted to hear! 7 That night, my mom absolutely refused to leave. She insisted she was helping me look after the kid and squeezed into bed with us. I asked the hotel staff for another set of bedding and made a pallet on the floor. Tyler slept on the floor with me. He held my hand and comforted me: “Wherever Mom is, that’s where I am.” My tears soaked the hotel pillow. It stuck to my face, sticky and uncomfortable. But I didn’t feel as sad anymore. It felt as if a pair of large, invisible hands had completely uprooted the little thorns that had been buried deep in my heart for years. After the devastation, all that was left was anger. My mom mumbled smugly from the bed: “What a weird pair, a mother and son. There’s a perfectly good bed, but they insist on sleeping on the floor. “Don’t go saying I bullied you two! There’s plenty of space, stop putting on an act!” Saying that, she pulled out her phone and snapped a few pictures. The harsh flash stopped my tears. After tomorrow, everyone can go their separate ways! Early the next morning, my mom sneaked out of bed. She whispered to wake up Amy and Riley: “Hurry! Get up and let’s go beachcombing! It’s 4 AM, if we don’t get up now, we’ll be late.” Riley whined, “Are brother and Auntie still asleep? I don’t want to get up either, I’m so sleepy.” My mom snickered, “Don’t wake them! Let them sleep. It’d be great if they slept like the dead. We’ll go beachcombing, and when we get back, you can use the seashells to make your brother jealous. Okay?” Riley giggled and sat up. “Okay, okay, okay! I want to collect a whole bunch of big, pretty seashells, and I won’t give a single one to my brother! That’ll make him so mad.” Amy complained, “I’m too sleepy. Mom, you take Riley. I want to sleep a little longer.” My mom patted her affectionately. “Alright, you get some good sleep. I’ll take Riley myself.” They tiptoed out and closed all the doors. I opened my eyes and saw that Tyler was awake too. I stroked his little face and whispered to him, “Son, let’s go home this afternoon, rest for a couple of days, and then Mom will take you to the Maldives. Okay?” My son gave a bright smile and nodded. “Okay. Mom, I love you.” We closed our eyes. I whispered, “I love you too…” Tyler and I were woken up by the sound of Amy’s music a little after 8 AM. She heard us talking and pushed the door open and walked right in. “Hey, Chloe, you’re awake? What’s the plan for today? I saw cruise ships and speedboats at the beach yesterday. “You don’t know how much Riley loves those! She asked me to ask Auntie if she could take her for a ride!” I told Tyler to pack his things, then turned to Amy and said coldly: “The plan for today is to go home. The flight is at 3 PM, check-out is at noon. You guys should start packing.” 8 Amy was completely dumbfounded. She trembled in disbelief: “Chloe… are… are you joking…” I was serious. “I’m not joking. You can ask the front desk. I’ve already canceled the rooms for the next few days. “The flights are changed. Check the app and pick seats for yourself and Riley quickly.” Amy panicked. “What? You canceled them? You really canceled everything?” Just then, my mom came back with Riley, who had just finished breakfast. Riley ran over to Tyler, waving her arms and showing off: “Brother! I found big seashells! You don’t have any, and I won’t give you any! Blehh!” Tyler replied without even looking up: “I come to the beach every year. I collected enough seashells a long time ago. I don’t even care!” My mom was so angry she lunged at Tyler, grabbed his arm, and yelled at him. “You little brat, watch how you talk! What are you showing off for…” But Amy burst into tears. She covered her mouth and buried her face in my mom’s shoulder. “Mom… talk to Chloe… hurry up and talk to her…” My mom let go of Tyler and comfortingly stroked Amy’s hair. “Take your time. What’s wrong? Did she bully you?” Amy looked up, looking as if she had suffered the ultimate injustice. “She… she canceled the hotel, changed the flights, and this afternoon… this afternoon she’s telling us to get the hell out!” My mom was stunned for a moment, then furiously yelled at me: “Are you rebelling against me?! Who told you to cancel them? Buy them back right now! We are not leaving!” Then, she turned her glare back to Tyler. “You ungrateful little brat, apologize to your sister right now! Or I’ll beat you to death!” Tyler stiffened his neck. “If you dare touch me, as soon as we get back, my dad and my grandma will fight you to the death!” My mom’s raised hand hung in mid-air. It turned out she was afraid of things too. So the only ones she dared to bully were me and Tyler. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t have the chance to do so anymore. She turned to look at me. “Did you hear me? I’m telling you to change the flights back right now!” I waved my phone. “Can’t change them. You can only change them once.” My mom finally started to panic. She stamped her feet in anxiety. “Who told you to change them? Who told you to change them?!” I smiled. “Isn’t that what you said last night? That traveling with me is too exhausting, and you wished you could get on a plane and go home right now. “Mom, I’m just being considerate. How could I bear to make you guys suffer just to keep Tyler and me company? “Let’s go home. Looking after kids at home isn’t this exhausting, and we won’t have to squeeze into one bed together. “Everyone goes back to their own home, and there won’t be anyone to make Riley cry a hundred times a day. It’s all my fault, taking it upon myself to invite you guys to travel with me.” “I apologize. This was the first time, and it will absolutely be the last. I’m taking Tyler to the Maldives in a few days, so I won’t bother you then.” My mom turned green with anger. It was the first time I had ever seen her so flustered and enraged. Like a monster possessed, she lunged forward, frantically trying to grab my phone. “Give me the phone, I’ll change it! Buy the hotel back for us! Buy it back! “We’re not leaving, we’re not leaving! Riley hasn’t played enough yet! It’s Riley’s first time at the beach.” “Why should we leave?! We are not leaving!” Riley burst into tears. “Waaaah! I haven’t played enough, I haven’t played enough! Mom! Grandma! I don’t want to leave!”

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Tyler gave me a pill every night, and then he would carry me into the beds of his seven different fraternity brothers. They had a sick bet: “No protection allowed. Whichever one of us gets her pregnant within the month owes Tyler five million dollars.” A month later, I actually was pregnant. The second he saw the positive test result, Tyler immediately scheduled an abortion. “Get rid of this mistake,” he told me. “And then we’re getting married immediately.” I slapped him across the face, hard, and flashed our actual marriage certificate right in front of his eyes. “Screw you. Don’t interrupt my wedding with my baby’s real father.” 1 “Ms. Harper, you don’t have a stomach bug, and it wasn’t bad takeout. You’re pregnant.” The doctor’s words echoed in my skull, refusing to dissipate. Pregnant? I wasn’t even married. I hadn’t willingly slept with a man in ages. How could I be pregnant? Clutching that result slip, my mind was a chaotic mess. I had no idea how to explain this to Tyler, especially with our wedding set for next month. Would he hate me? Would he call off the wedding immediately? I was still spiraling until I stood outside a private VIP room at a high-end club and heard Tyler talking to his seven “brothers.” “It’s been a month,” Tyler said, his voice laced with casual arrogance. “By all logic, Chloe should be knocked up by now.” “Yeah, looking at the timeline, it should be about right,” another voice chimed in. “There’s no way all seven of us struck out.” Through the crack in the door, I saw Tyler holding a cigarette, his new personal secretary, Brittany, curled up in his lap. “I’m taking her to the hospital for a test tomorrow,” Tyler continued. My heart nearly leaped out of my chest. What did that mean? I couldn’t even process their words before Tyler spoke again. “If she really is pregnant, you guys better have that five million ready.” “Haha, five million? You think we can’t afford that?” “I gotta say, Tyler, you really know how to play. Most guys might bet their wives, but you actually bet your wife and the kid in her belly.” “Tyler, you’re way too generous.” Tyler’s hand slid suggestively under Brittany’s skirt. “Can’t help it. Life’s been a stagnant pond lately, totally boring. I just wanted to inject a little excitement into the routine.” Brittany let out a soft moan. “Mr. Sterling, tomorrow you won’t make me… with them…” Tyler pinched her chin. “You? You’re not qualified for my brothers’ beds.” His wolf pack raised their glasses excitedly. “Damn straight. Who else has a face and body like Chloe? Tyler, since you were willing to sacrifice this, we won’t treat you wrong in the future.” “Deal. It’s settled. In the future, every one of our wives has to play like Tyler plays, or they’re permanently kicked out of our circle.” A cold sweat broke across my back. My legs began to shake violently. These animals were using me as a bet. Using my unborn child as a wager. And the ringleader was my own fiancé. My hands clenched into tight fists. I was about to kick the door open and slaughter these beasts. Suddenly, a large hand covered my mouth and dragged me into the adjacent empty VIP room. 2 I struggled violently. “Let me go! Right now! My fiancé is right next door.” “Are you sure he’s still your fiancé?” The man’s hot breath tickled my earlobe, sending a violent shiver down my spine. Because this man was also one of Tyler’s seven “brothers”—Ethan Reid. I spun around quickly, backing against the wall. “Don’t you come near me. Stay back.” With a click, he lit a cigarette. He glanced at my stomach, then immediately stubbed it out in the ashtray. “What? Shocked by what you heard?” I was more than shocked; I was furious. Tyler and I had known each other for fifteen years and been together for five. When his family’s fortune collapsed, it was my family’s resources I used to build him back up. And our wedding was supposed to be next month. But now? He had personally delivered me into other men’s beds. Seven of them? I forced myself to calm down. I couldn’t lose my head. I needed to find a breaking point, and I had to get it from Ethan. I pinched my own leg, hard, trying to gather the nerve to speak, opening my mouth and closing it again. Finally, leaning back on the leather sofa, he spoke first. “What do you want to ask me?” I closed my eyes, too afraid to look at him, but I forced the question out. “How did I end up in your beds? Why don’t I remember a single thing?” “Because Tyler drugged you. That’s why you don’t know anything. Every night, he personally carried you to one of our beds, and then carried you back home before sunrise.” “What kind of drug?” I regretted the question the moment it left my lips. What other kind of drug could it be? “Why are you telling me this?” I stared at him. “Aren’t you afraid Tyler will find out and you won’t be brothers anymore?” He let out a sharp scoff. “Heh. Him? My brother? He’s not worthy. And besides…” He rose slowly, pulling me onto his lap in one swift motion. “And besides, there’s a very high chance the child in your belly is mine. So I…” I used all my strength to slap him across the face. “Screw you!” He didn’t move away. Instead, he pinned both my hands. “Chloe, you didn’t feel anything the first few times. How about today…” Again, I didn’t let him finish. I slammed my knee directly into his crotch. He groaned in pain and finally released my hands. But as I turned to flee, he whispered one sentence behind me. “Do you want to destroy Tyler?” 3 When I pushed open the door to Tyler’s VIP room, Brittany quickly scrambled off his lap. Since the door opened abruptly, and luckily the lights were dim, he was frantically pulling up his zipper. Those animals all looked at me with strange, knowing eyes. “Hey, future Mrs. Sterling. Are you here to check up on Tyler?” “Don’t worry, we’re keeping a tight leash on him for you. Definitely nothing going on.” Thinking about everything I had just heard, I walked straight up to Tyler and slapped him across the face. He got angry. “What the hell are you doing?” I shook out my hand. “Nothing. There was a fly on your face.” Brittany gasped. “Mr. Sterling, does it hurt? I’ll get you some ice.” I turned and slapped her across the face too. “Does it hurt? Feel it for yourself.” She clutched her cheek, her eyes red. “Ms. Harper, how can you just go around hitting people?” “Just going around?” I stared at her, smiling bitterly. “Do I look like I’m just playing around? My hands only hit trash.” She stomped her foot, whining to Tyler. “Tyler, you have to stick up for me. I can’t just be beaten for no reason.” Tyler pushed her away and gently took my hand, rubbing it. “Does it hurt?” “Nope.” I slapped him twice more, left and right. In front of all his friends, he finally lost his composure. “Are you jealous or something? Learn the time and place! With all my boys here, do you think I don’t need to save face?” Face? With so many “brothers” who had slept with his wife, what face did he have left? “Tyler, life is too boring and flat. I also want to find a little excitement.” His face changed colors. “What do you mean?” I smiled at him. “Nothing. Just talking.” As I left, I slapped every single one of his “brothers” across the face. “So sorry. If you want to return the slap, just give it to Tyler. After all, you guys are the best of friends.” 4 Tyler chased me out, apologizing the whole way. “Chloe, what is wrong with you today? Is it because of Brittany?” “You can’t care about her. That’s just business, acting. All my friends do it. If I don’t play along, I’m not part of the group, and they won’t include me when it’s time to make money.” “You know my family went bankrupt once. Life was so hard back then, everyone looked down on me. I never want to live like that again. I can’t lose these friends who can keep making me rich.” He remembered his past fall from grace, but he forgot me—the one who pulled him out of the mud. I really wanted to stab him to death right there, but I held back. I wanted him to fall from the absolute highest point. Because the higher you stand, the harder you shatter. Early the next morning, he was standing at my door. “Chloe, didn’t you say you weren’t feeling well yesterday? Let me take you to the hospital to get checked out.” I didn’t refuse. I wanted to see how he intended to perform. At the hospital, the doctor smiled and congratulated us. “Pregnant. Four weeks. Congratulations!” “Pregnant?” The hidden fury on Tyler’s face nearly made me think he was an Oscar-winning actor. He dragged me into the car. “Speak. How did this happen? When exactly did you cheat on me? Tell me, who is the guy?” I cried, shaking my head. “I don’t know. I don’t know anything.” “How can you not know?” He shook me violently by the shoulders. “Whose bed did you climb into? How could you not know? Chloe, I never knew you were such a shameless woman.” He got angrier as he spoke. “Yesterday you threw a fit over Brittany, who is just a business associate, and today you hand me this massive betrayal. Chloe, you’re good. You’re really good.” I kept crying. “Don’t ask. I really don’t know who it belongs to. It feels like there were a lot of people, but I can’t remember clearly.” A flash of panic crossed his face. “How many people do you remember?” Scum. Animal. I continued to shake my head. “I don’t remember. I really don’t remember, Tyler. Please don’t ask anymore.” He clenched his fists, took several deep breaths, and finally hugged me tight. “It’s okay. We’ll get rid of this mistake, and we’ll be just like we were before.” “It’s not possible!” I screamed through my tears. “Tyler, I’m not worthy of you anymore. I can’t marry you. Let’s call off the wedding.” He panicked. “How can we call it off? We can’t. I said no matter what happens, no matter how badly you’ve wronged me, I will forgive you.” “Chloe, as long as you get rid of this child and transfer the equity your parents left you to my name, I will definitely forgive you. I won’t tell a soul about this. You just quietly handle the abortion.” “Really?” I asked timidly through my tears. “You really won’t hold it against me?” “As long as you agree to my conditions, I won’t.” I immediately got out of the car. “Fine. Let’s go get rid of it right now.” 5 “Don’t you dare touch it!” Ethan Reid, along with the other six pieces of trash, stood in front of me. “Tyler, your fiancée is pregnant with such a massive blessing, and you didn’t even tell us the good news?” “Yeah, this is a huge celebration. How could you think about an abortion?” “Exactly. Unless this child isn’t Tyler’s? Chloe, did you cheat on him?” I hid behind Tyler. “No, I didn’t. This child is Tyler’s.” They started laughing. “Really? Didn’t we hear you guys have never even slept together?” “Chloe, didn’t you always say you wanted to save yourself for the wedding night? Now there’s a kid, hahahaha.” Tyler’s face turned bright red. “Shut up, all of you. The child is definitely mine. If you don’t believe it, we’ll know when we do the DNA test in a month.” He turned back to me. “Don’t be scared, Chloe. I definitely won’t let your reputation be ruined.” Animal. He knew perfectly well this child wasn’t his. Just to mess with me, to honor their bet, he was making me carry this child of unknown origins until next month. He just wanted to humiliate me. That night, Ethan sent me a video. Brittany was still flush-faced in Tyler’s embrace. Tyler was smoking a cigar and saying, “One more month. This wait is freaking killing me. But no matter whose it is, it’s getting aborted in the end.” Another guy, Owen, asked with a grin, “Tyler, what do you think Chloe would do to get back at you if she knew the truth about all this?” “Revenge?” Tyler was dismissive. “Does she actually have the capability to get back at me now? What leverage does she have besides that corporate equity her parents left her? And I’m holding this card of her cheating over her head. She’s already agreed to transfer all the shares to me. What can she possibly do to me?” “Scum. Tyler, you really are the biggest scumbag I’ve ever met.” Tyler took a deep breath. “None of you were saying that when you were rolling around in the sheets with her. I’m a scumbag, are you guys saints?” “Right, right, right. You’re the generous one. When do we get another round? I hear pregnant women are a totally different experience.” Tyler finally snapped. “One time. Only once. None of you are ever allowed to mention this again. If anyone leaks this, don’t blame me for flipping out. We won’t be brothers anymore! You guys have to understand, once I get my hands on Chloe’s parents’ equity, my net worth and my status will be on a completely different level.” His wolf pack finally shut up, except for one who whispered, “Yeah, Tyler, you’ll finally be back at the top. But still, you still can’t compare to Ethan Reid.” I clutched my phone tightly. My scissors had already shredded Tyler’s photo into dust. Tyler, at next month’s wedding, I am going to give you a massive gift. A gift you sent to me, which I am sending right back to you. Look forward to it. Prepare to die, you animal! I am not aborting this child. Because his biological father has already found me. 6 Tyler asked me several times when I was going to transfer the shares to him. I smiled and rubbed my stomach. “No rush. I’ll give them to you in front of everyone at the wedding.” He held me tightly and kissed my forehead. “Chloe, after we get married, you just focus on staying home and recovering. I’ll handle making money. We’ll be the happiest couple in the world.” So disgusting! I covered my mouth and ran to the bathroom, dry heaving. He patted my back and handed me a tissue, and I used the opportunity to ask him: “Can we just abort it now? You know it’s not yours, why do we have to keep it?” He still refused. “I need to prove to them that this child is mine, that you didn’t cheat on me.” I asked him again: “But what if the real father actually comes looking for me? What then?” He was supremely confident: “That’s impossible, Chloe. You don’t need to worry about that. He will never, ever come looking for you.” His absolute certainty made me want to destroy him even more. The sooner, the better. When I walked into Tyler’s company headquarters, Brittany was half-undressed. Seeing me, she didn’t even panic, just lazily adjusted her blouse. “Ms. Harper, I heard you’re pregnant, but you don’t even know who the father is.” I backhanded her, grabbing the collar of her shirt so hard the buttons popped off and clattered onto the floor. “Who told you that? Who is spreading rumors about me?” She clutched her shirt tightly, stomping her feet in fake distress. “Mr. Sterling, look at Ms. Harper! She’s so aggressive! How can a woman with this kind of temper be the lady of the Sterling Group? She’ll make us a laughingstock.” I slapped her across the face again. “Get your facts straight. I’m the owner of Harper Enterprises, not some accessory to your boss.” She played the victim even harder, whining to Tyler. Tyler kicked her aside. “Get out! Who told you to talk out of turn and piss off my wife? You have no situational awareness. You deserved it!” Brittany was furious. She picked up her blazer from the floor and stormed out. Tyler came over and took my hand. “What brings you to the office today? Didn’t I tell you I’d handle all the company affairs for you?” “Nothing, just felt like dropping by. Maybe pregnancy really does make people act differently.” His eyes drifted to my stomach, and he reached out to touch it. “It’s fine. In a month, we’ll get rid of it. Chloe, our marriage will be happy.” I suddenly asked him a question: “Are you really okay with the fact that my first time wasn’t with you?” The corners of his mouth curled up. “It doesn’t matter. As long as every day from now on belongs to me, that’s all that matters.” Trash. He really knows how to put on an act. He didn’t care because he thought he was my first, and his frat brothers were just waiting in line behind him. But that wasn’t the truth at all! 7 Brittany refused to take the loss lying down. She texted me: [Do you really think Mr. Sterling doesn’t care? What man wants to raise a bastard child from an affair?] When I ignored her, she sent a video. Tyler was looking ecstatic on top of her. “Mr. Sterling, are you really going to help Chloe raise a little bastard?” Tyler answered while panting: “Relax. Next month, as soon as the results are out, it’s getting aborted. I’m just playing a game. I don’t actually have a cuckold fetish.” “But you literally handed her over to them. All seven of them.” “It’s just a game. In the future, they’ll hand their wives over to me. It’s no big deal. It doesn’t affect my relationship with Chloe at all.” No big deal. He kept saying it was no big deal. On the day of the wedding, I would make him understand exactly how big of a deal it was. I called the wedding planner. “The groom is changing.” After a brief moment of shock, the planner replied: “Understood. I will make all the necessary arrangements.” The way Tyler’s friends looked at me was getting increasingly disturbing. At gatherings, they were always staring at my stomach. And Tyler sat right next to me, laughing: “Don’t even think about coveting my Chloe. In a few days, she’ll officially be my wife.” It was nauseating. I got up to go to the restroom. When I came back, the guys were in the room begging Tyler. “Let us have one more round.” “Yeah, we already played once, what’s the harm in one more time?” “Tyler, be a good sport. Let me go first tonight.” Tyler smashed his whiskey glass on the floor. “I warned you, only that one time! And if you guys mess around and she miscarries, how the hell are we going to settle the bet?” “That’s easy. We’ll just each give you the five million anyway.” Tyler still adamantly refused: “Only that one time.” A chorus of groans erupted. “Boring. You whet our appetites and won’t let us have another taste.” Someone asked Ethan Reid: “Ethan, tell us, don’t you want to play again?” Ethan stood up and grabbed his jacket. “I don’t like pregnant women.” Standing outside the door, I really wanted to bomb this room and eradicate all these scumbags. Ethan grabbed my wrist and pulled me away. “Let’s go look at the custom wedding dress that just flew in.” The dress was truly breathtaking, encrusted with diamonds. He pulled me onto his lap. “Do you like it?” Every girl wants the most beautiful wedding dress. Of course I liked it. “One more week. I promise you’ll be the most beautiful bride in the world.” He said this while leaning in to kiss me. I put my hand up to stop him. “Didn’t you just say you don’t like playing with pregnant women?” He smirked, an evil, charming glint in his eye, his hot breath hitting my ear: “I only like playing with you. It doesn’t matter if you’re pregnant or not.” He wanted to play, but I’m a human being, not a toy. Why should he get to play whenever he wants? I slid off his lap. He reluctantly kissed the back of my hand. “It’s fine. Just one more week until I can be with you openly and legally. Chloe, just wait and see how I’ll thoroughly enjoy you then. You won’t be able to escape.” 8 Tyler also brought me a wedding dress, equally magnificent. He handed it to me with both hands. “Chloe, try it on for me, please?” I ran my fingers over the fabric, remembering the video Brittany had sent me. She had put this exact dress on before me. In the video, she was happily spinning in circles. “Tyler, tell me, who is prettier in this? Me or Chloe?” Tyler was groping her chest. “You’re different. You’re a slut, and she’s pure.” “So do you prefer sluts or pure girls?” “Can’t I like both?” Brittany had mocked me: “Take a good look at your wedding dress. It has the marks of my and Tyler’s love all over it.” It was too disgusting. I grabbed a pair of scissors and sliced right into it. Tyler was horrified. “You don’t like it? But I had a top designer custom-make this. It took six months.” I laughed as I cut it to shreds. “Right. I don’t like it. It smells like something I find repulsive.” He got very nervous. “That’s impossible. Let me smell it.” I cut out the most obvious stained section and shoved it against his mouth. “Smell it. What does it smell like?” His face flashed with embarrassment for a split second. “What kind of master designer is this? I’m definitely filing a complaint. It’s okay, Chloe. I’ll buy you another one immediately. I promise to give you the most perfect, perfect wedding.” “No need.” I sent him a photo. A photo of me trying on the dress with Ethan. “I already found one I like. I’ll just wear that one.” He looked at the photo, his eyes filled with awe. “Chloe, you look so beautiful. So pure.” Of course I looked beautiful. It’s just that this beauty didn’t belong to him. He stared at the photo for a while before suddenly frowning. “Who went with you? Why is there a man’s hand in the frame?” “Just a store employee.” “Bridal boutiques have male employees helping in the dressing rooms now?” I couldn’t even be bothered to engage with him. If he didn’t believe me, he could go see for himself. Scumbag! Six days before the wedding, he took me for the DNA test. I purposely asked him: “If you know it’s not yours, is there really a need to check?” “I’m just doing it to show them. Chloe, no matter whose it is, after the test, we’ll abort it immediately, and our wedding will proceed as scheduled.” The results would take three days. During those three days, Tyler was unusually excited, to the point where he refused to leave my house at night. “Chloe, wifey, the wedding is almost here. Let me stay, please.” I could read the lust in his eyes. “No. I said we wait until the wedding day.” “But you’re not a virgin anymore, why are you pretending…” He blurted it out, then immediately caught himself and hugged me. “I didn’t mean it like that. I just… Chloe, have some pity on me. I really want to be with you. So badly.” “Please, just let me stay tonight, okay?” “No. I’m pregnant, Tyler. I’m a pregnant woman.” He got even more excited. I knew it. He was exactly like those other scumbags—he wanted to play with a pregnant woman. But how could that happen? Wouldn’t the baby’s father go insane if he found out?

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The day before I was supposed to meet my online boyfriend for the first time, I heard my stepbrother on the phone. When I heard the deep, raspy voice coming from the bathroom—the exact same voice I was hearing through my phone—I completely lost it! Are you telling me… My stepbrother, who usually treats me like I don’t exist, is the guy I’ve been dating online?! Consumed by guilt, I sent a dramatic breakup text: [Baby, I love you.] [But I’m sick. Death is coming for me faster than our meeting date.] [Forget about me. I wish you the best.] 1 During my freshman year of college, I started an online, long-distance relationship with a guy I met in a video game. We dated for six months. We didn’t really have a time difference, so our schedules synced up perfectly. Plus, we were both college students close in age, so we just kept talking. When I found out he was graduating this year and moving back to the States to work, and since we both agreed we wanted to take the relationship to the next level, we decided to finally meet in person after my final exams. The day before we were supposed to meet, I came home from campus, planning to get a good night’s sleep and look my absolute best for our date tomorrow. But when I went to look for the bathroom to take a shower, I made a horrifying discovery. My stepbrother, who usually treats me like I don’t exist, was my online boyfriend! Here is exactly how it went down: I was on a voice call with my online boyfriend while carrying my clothes to the hallway bathroom to take a shower. This was my stepdad’s house. A year ago, my mom remarried and brought me here. They gave me a large guest bedroom. It didn’t have an en-suite bathroom, but otherwise, it was great. I knew my stepdad had a son who lived abroad and rarely came home. Plus, college was demanding, so I didn’t come home often either. My relationship with my stepbrother was cold and distant. We had zero overlap and had probably only seen each other once or twice. I honestly thought we would just keep ignoring each other forever. Until I heard his voice in the hallway bathroom. He had just returned from overseas a few days ago. The water heater in his en-suite bathroom had an issue because the room hadn’t been used in so long. So, for the past few days, he had been using the hallway bathroom to shower. I didn’t expect to run right into him the moment I got home. I waited outside the door for a bit, chatting idly with my online boyfriend. My online boyfriend was calling me while he was taking a shower. I heard the sound of running water from both sides—through the phone and through the door—and a sliver of doubt crossed my mind. But I was quickly distracted by what my online boyfriend was saying. Online Boyfriend: “Baby, want to see my abs?” The sound of the water was mixed with his voice. It sounded like my stepbrother was also on the phone in the bathroom. I didn’t think much of it. “You want to video call?” We had been talking for six months. Other than voice chatting while gaming and falling asleep on the phone together, we hadn’t taken things any further. We hadn’t even exchanged pictures or video called. I didn’t even know his real name. I only knew his screen name, Vincent. I used a screen name too—Annie. We had an unspoken agreement not to bring up our families. We both just wanted to find a soulmate on the internet, nothing more. But now that our real-life meeting was approaching, I had been nervous ever since we set the date. My hand subconsciously tightened around my cold phone. I absentmindedly pulled at my shirt, trying to make it look like an “accidental” slip of the shoulder. I was actually ready for this. He noticed my nervousness through the phone and chuckled. “Don’t worry. I won’t break the rules before we meet.” We had agreed from the start not to look at each other’s faces before meeting in person. Me: “…” You really don’t have to be such a rule-follower. Him: “I just remembered you sending me those TikToks. You seem to really like abs.” “I happen to have some. I’ll let you take a peek first.” “I’m trying to earn some bonus points for tomorrow.” Don’t let my good-girl act in real life fool you. On the internet, I’m a menace. I’m used to talking a big game. For example: “The sun is so bright today, almost as bright as you…” “My canine teeth are a little sharp, you’ll have to endure it…” “If I leave my phone plugged in all night, will the charger get tired?” I had a million lines like that. But he was usually very reserved, so I didn’t expect him to be so forward today. I naturally wasn’t going to turn him down. “Let’s see ’em!” “If you show me your abs tonight, I’ll show you something else tomorrow.” “I’m ready to go three hundred rounds.” His deep voice came through the sound of the running water, sounding like it was right next to my ear. “Baby, you better not just be talking a big game. I can go all night.” I kept up the bravado. “Who’s scared of who?” “I’m going to rock your world.” His laughter grew louder and clearer. I subconsciously took out one of my AirPods and pressed my ear against the bathroom door. My stepbrother inside the bathroom was laughing too. A very bad feeling started creeping into my chest. The next second, my online boyfriend decisively sent a photo of his wet abs. The eight-pack was well-defined, glistening with water droplets. The water trailed down his sexy V-line, and further down… well, that was probably reserved for tomorrow’s programming. My mouth instantly went dry. But the longer I looked at the bathroom tiles in the background of the photo, the more familiar they looked. As I was deep in thought, I heard my online boyfriend say: “How is it? Do you like what you see?” I had one AirPod in, listening to the phone, and my other ear pressed against the bathroom door. The voices from both sides… why did they sound exactly the same? The sound of the water slowly stopped. My eyelid twitched violently. I held my breath and listened closely. The guy on the other end deliberately lowered his voice into a raspy whisper. “Baby, why aren’t you saying anything?” The voice in my ear and the voice I was hearing live were exactly the same words, exactly the same voice. No way. What are the odds? Is the universe playing a joke on me? Oh my god! I made him say a few more things just to confirm that both voices belonged to the same person. My heated mood felt like it had been doused in ice water. It was like a bolt of lightning from a clear sky. I drifted back to my room like a ghost, struggling to accept the fact that my online boyfriend had suddenly transformed into my stepbrother. I guess calling him “Daddy” online had really manifested some family ties. When I didn’t say anything for a long time, my online boyfriend asked: “Did my photo leave you speechless?” I mumbled a few incoherent responses. “Babe, I’m getting a little sleepy.” He was in a great mood, giving a low chuckle. “Go to sleep early, baby. When we wake up tomorrow, we’ll finally see each other.” I hung up the phone and stared at the ceiling, a million emotions swirling inside me. …I don’t think we’ll be seeing each other. Common sense and basic morality dictated that a stepbrother and stepsister dating was probably a bad idea. Plus, he already hated me and my mom for moving into his dad’s house. If he found out I was his online girlfriend, he’d probably think I deliberately seduced him to get my hands on his family’s money. I tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. I was anxious, heartbroken, miserable, and tormented. Finally, I steeled my resolve and sent a dramatic breakup text: [Baby, I love you.] [But I’m sick. Death is coming for me faster than our meeting date.] [Forget about me. I wish you the best.] After sending that triple-threat combo, I pulled the covers over my head and cried my eyes out. Mourning my dead romance. 2 I didn’t sleep a wink. Sporting two massive dark circles under my eyes, I heard movement outside my door early the next morning. My room was right next to the stairs. If my stepbrother, Lucas Vance, wanted to go downstairs, he had to pass my door. Hearing the noise, I whipped my door open. It was indeed Lucas. I forced a dry greeting, “Hi, Lucas. Heading out so early?” Lucas glanced over, gave a dismissive nod, clearly not wanting to talk to me. He was dressed to the nines today, looking incredibly handsome. But no matter how he dressed, he couldn’t hide the dark circles under his eyes, which were heavily bloodshot. A grown man… he couldn’t have actually been crying, right? And this early? I already texted him saying we weren’t meeting. Where was he going? Where could he possibly go? I went back to my room to grab my phone, just in time to see a message he had sent to my burner account. [I will wait for you. No matter how long it takes.] It was the dead of winter, and it was snowing outside. I couldn’t just let it go, so I secretly followed him. Lucas went to the arcade and the movie theater we had agreed to go to. He was doing all the things we planned to do together, just by himself. Finally, I followed him to the romantic restaurant we had booked for dinner. On the table was the candlelit dinner he had ordered in advance. There was a violinist playing nearby. According to the plan, we would be eating, confessing our feelings, and being all lovey-dovey right now. Just as my heart was a tangled mess of conflicting emotions, a waiter walked over holding a very familiar gift box. My eyes widened. I recognized that box. I had wrapped it myself a few days ago. Oh crap! I forgot about that! That was the gift I had prepared a few days ago and sent to the restaurant ahead of time as a surprise for him. He froze for a second. When he took the gift box, the emotions he had been holding back completely shattered. A single tear unexpectedly fell from his eye. Then, a string of large teardrops hit the table. His eyes were red and wet, his expression broken, and his body trembled slightly… I hid in the distance, so shocked my jaw almost hit the floor. No way. You’re making me look like a heartless monster right now. 3 As a heartless monster, I sadly slept for three days straight. But I heard Lucas hadn’t slept in almost three days. My mom burst into my room bright and early. “Sleep, sleep, sleep! That’s all you do all day!” “It’s already noon, and you’re still not out of bed.” In my groggy state, I heard her aggressively pull open the curtains and turn off the heater. I checked my phone. It was only 10 AM. “Mom…” I’ve been in a bad mood these past few days. What’s wrong with sleeping a little extra? My mom plopped down on the bed, looking at me like I was a disappointment. “You’re the only one in this house still sleeping. I’d be better off raising a dog than raising you!” I replied weakly, “Then you better hurry up and get a dog.” My mom: “?” “If you get one now, it can take care of you when you’re old.” My mom anticipated my reaction. When I jumped up to dodge her slap, her other hand was already waiting and landed squarely on my arm. “Get your butt out of bed right now!” “While your stepdad is annoyed with Lucas, you need to step up and show him what you can do! After you graduate, you can go straight into Vance Corp., and he can set you up with a good position.” My mom was furious at my lack of ambition, and to be fair, I really didn’t have any. My first priority was gossip. “What’s wrong with Lucas?” My mom, playing the role of a “qualified” stepmom perfectly, said, “I don’t know what kind of trauma he went through.” “A few days after he got back, he started carrying this ratty box everywhere he goes.” Me: “…” Mom, if my guess is correct, that’s the box of chocolate cookies your daughter personally baked. “Your stepdad asked him to go into the office, but he refused. He just mopes around all day, looking like a zombie.” “If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was carrying an urn around.” Mom, you can’t say things like that. I rubbed my arms, feeling a chill in my bones. At lunch, my mom put on an act and told me to go call Lucas down to eat. “Maya, go tell your brother it’s time for lunch.” I went upstairs and knocked on the door for a long time before Lucas reluctantly opened it. He was holding the urn—I mean, the chocolate box I gave him. I felt too guilty to look him in the eye, so I stared at my feet. “Arthur says it’s time to eat.” Lucas responded by slamming the door in my face. He had always been cold and hostile toward me and my mom, treating us like we were just mooching off his dad. I took the rejection and slinked back downstairs. My mom asked, “What happened? Is he still refusing to eat?” Her expression of deep concern was a complete 180 from her wicked-stepmom routine this morning. “A man needs to eat. He can’t keep this up.” Arthur scoffed, “Ignore him! He’s a grown man. I refuse to believe he’ll starve himself to death!” The more Arthur thought about it, the angrier he got. “That brat! I know he’s unhappy that I told him to come back and work at the company.” No response. He yelled louder. “Does he really think I have to rely solely on him?!” “I’m remarried now, and I have a daughter! If he won’t do it, someone else will!” Honestly, I didn’t want to do it either. I just wanted to be a happy couch potato. I turned and saw my mom grinning so hard she could barely close her mouth. “Don’t be mad, Arthur. Maya definitely won’t let you down.” Mom, I’m useless! “Lucas just got back. Don’t push him too hard. If he really doesn’t want to do it, Maya and I will always be here to support you.” Mom, please dial back your ambition a little. I’m afraid you’re going to start cackling out loud. 4 It was almost Christmas, and Arthur’s son was back. The house should have been filled with joy. But because of the heartbroken, depressed Lucas, Arthur—who didn’t know the truth—was angry, and I—who knew the truth—was living in agony, suffering every single second. Only my mom was living her best life. I counted the days on my fingers. My desire to go back to college reached an all-time high. Finally, it was almost time for the new semester to start. But during dinner one night, Lucas suddenly announced, “After the holidays, I’m going to take a teaching position at NYU.” Arthur, who had been planning for his son to join the company, stopped mid-chew. He looked at his son in disbelief. “What did you just say?” We all silently wondered if we had misheard. Lucas repeated it. This time, all three of us heard it loud and clear. Arthur was older, so his reaction was a bit slow. My mom couldn’t suppress the corners of her mouth turning up. As for me, the sky was falling. NYU? Isn’t that the university I go to? Could this be the surprise Vincent mentioned he was preparing for me before he came back? Arthur asked, “Are you going to teach from now on?” Lucas gave a rare explanation: “The foreign language professor at NYU was my mentor when I studied in Malaysia. She’s about to go on maternity leave, so she recommended me to the university. She asked me to fill in for a semester.” I breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness it was only one semester. Arthur also seemed relieved. “It’s good for you to come back and adjust for a bit.” One semester is only six months. As long as he wasn’t planning on teaching forever and it didn’t affect him taking over the company later, Arthur wouldn’t object too much. When my mom heard this, her smile instantly vanished. Arthur looked pleased. “What a coincidence. Your sister, Maya, also goes to NYU. You guys will be at the same school.” I wasn’t naive enough to think this was a coincidence. “When you leave, just take Maya with you. It’s on the way.” Lucas’s gaze instantly locked onto me. Usually, this stepbrother of mine was cold and distant, practically treating me like air. It was rare for him to spare me a glance. Even though I didn’t want it. For no reason at all, I felt guilty and panicked. Lucas asked, “Maya goes to NYU too?” I kept my head down, shoveling rice into my mouth, pretending to be very busy. “Mmhmm.” My mom kicked me under the table and scolded me with her eyes. I knew exactly what she meant: [Eat, eat, eat! That’s all you know how to do!] [He’s asking you a question, act presentable! Stop embarrassing us!] Motherly love runs deep, but her expectations are brutal. I decided to play dead until the end! My mom answered for me: “Yes, Maya is majoring in English at NYU.” Lucas said, “That really is a coincidence. The mentor I’m filling in for teaches in the English department.” His online girlfriend was also an English major. If I had known, I wouldn’t have said so much. Why did I tell him my major and my university? I hate myself! Why didn’t I just tell him my real name and family situation early on? Then none of this would have happened. I was deeply regretting my life choices. Although it was hard for Lucas to hear that his online girlfriend was terminally ill, the person who knew the truth was suffering even more. After dinner, I went back to my room and saw the messages Lucas had sent me. He had been trying to send his online girlfriend money through WeChat over the past few days, but I hadn’t replied or accepted any of it. Lucas: [Before the semester starts in a few days, I’m going to take a teaching position at NYU’s English department.] [I originally wanted to surprise you.] I guessed right. [You told me you envied the couples holding hands and walking around campus.] His tone was pleading. [No matter what, can you just let me see you one time?] [Even if it’s for the last time.] [I know you’re sick, but money isn’t an issue.] [If you’re willing, I can contact the best doctors to treat you. I just want to see you.] It was all my fault for being soft-hearted back then. I was afraid he wouldn’t be able to handle it, so I didn’t just tell him I died. Now, I was giving him false hope. I gritted my teeth, lying as easily as breathing. [I dropped out.] Compared to how excited I was for the semester to start a few days ago, my desire to drop out was now at an all-time high. [It’s terminal. Incurable.] [Don’t come looking for me.] [Our destiny ends here.] 5 After I dropped those harsh words, he actually went quiet for two days. But on the third day, when Lucas was driving me to NYU, he suddenly asked, “Do you know a girl named Annie in your major?” Annie, Annie… my English name is Annie! My heart leaped into my throat again. Dude, are you still not giving up? I played dumb. “Annie… I don’t think I’ve heard of her.” “What’s wrong, Lucas?” “Why don’t you tell me a little more about her? I can help you look.” I offered some fake politeness. Lucas didn’t hold back: “She’s also a freshman. English major. She has long, dark, shiny hair, big beautiful eyes, fair skin, tall and slender build, and a fiery, passionate personality…” Wait, I just said those things casually back then, and he remembered them perfectly to this day? My palms were sweating. Other than the “fiery, passionate” part, everything else matched me pretty well. If he paid even a little attention to me, he’d probably realize I fit his description perfectly. Thank goodness he never paid any attention to his cheap stepsister. Thank goodness I always acted like a good, quiet girl. As soon as I got back to campus today, I was going to cut off my long hair! I was going to throw away all my two-inch heels and wear flat shoes! Me: “Did you need to find her for something, Lucas?” Lucas: “Yeah. She’s someone very important in my life.” Someone important in his life? My conscience suddenly started gnawing at me. Arthur had told me his son was cold and had no interest in women. I didn’t expect him to be such a hopeless romantic when he actually fell for someone. Me: “If she’s so important, why don’t you just contact her directly?” Lucas’s voice choked up: “She’s sick and doesn’t want to see me.” Me: “Oh my god, how did she get sick?” I put on an exaggeratedly shocked expression. “I think I understand why she doesn’t want to see you.” “Girls are self-conscious. When we’re sick, we don’t look our best. If it’s a terminal illness, she’ll probably lose her hair and stuff. She definitely wouldn’t want the person she loves to see her like that.” Lucas looked over at me while we were stopped at a red light. I bit the bullet and tried to counsel him: “I think you should respect the patient’s wishes, Lucas. She probably just doesn’t want to make you sad…” Please stop looking for me! Just pretend I’m dead! Wait, no, no, Grim Reaper, I’m just joking! Please don’t actually take me! Sitting in Lucas’s car felt like sitting on pins and needles. After an agonizing half hour, we finally arrived at my dorm. School had just started. Families weren’t allowed inside, so they could only drop students off at the building entrance. As soon as I got out of the car, I ran into my roommate, Jenna, who came running over enthusiastically. “Maya!” “Did your boyfriend drop you off?” Lucas was getting my luggage out of the trunk for me. I quickly slapped my hand over Jenna’s mouth. My roommates all knew about my long-distance online relationship, and I couldn’t let her spill the beans. “No, he’s my brother. Lucas.” Jenna: “Oh, oh!” Lucas handed me my luggage and asked, “Are all the English majors in this building?” I gave a vague “Mmhmm,” then grabbed my luggage with one hand and Jenna with the other, sprinting into the dorm. Jenna was dragged inside, completely confused. “Maya, is your stepbrother a monster or something? Why are you so scared of him?” During our late-night dorm chats, I had mentioned my family background. When my roommates heard his last name was Vance, they knew he was from my stepdad’s side. I quickly drank some water to calm my nerves. “Lucas Vance… why does that name sound so familiar?” Jenna suddenly remembered something, pulled out her phone, and checked our class schedule. “Holy crap, is your stepbrother the Lucas Vance?” I looked too. The name for our English specialized course had changed from the pregnant foreign professor to “Lucas Vance.” “Yeah, that’s him. He’s our substitute professor for this semester.” Jenna: “…” A professor. That was definitely monster territory. “What kind of person is your stepbrother? Is he easy to get along with?” I shook my head. Jenna: “Never mind, let’s drop it.” “By the way, Maya, we haven’t properly congratulated you on getting a boyfriend yet!” She winked at me. The other roommates, who were busy doing their own things, immediately dropped what they were doing and gathered around. “As the first person in our dorm to get a boyfriend, don’t you owe us a big meal?” According to the plan, yes. But plans change. “Don’t mention it. The online dating thing was a disaster.” I let out a long sigh. “Sorry to disappoint you guys, but our dorm remains the Forever Single Dorm.” Roommates: “What happened?!” “Did he turn out to be a jerk?” I shook my head. Jenna: “Was Vincent just too ugly? Did you feel like you couldn’t kiss him?” “I told you, online dating without seeing pictures or video calling is super risky!” I agreed with the second sentence. But the first sentence… Lucas had deep-set eyes, a high-bridged nose, exquisite features, and a cold, ascetic vibe. He had inherited great genes. If it weren’t for his identity, I would have thrown myself at him. Why let a perfectly good handsome guy go to waste? It was a shame. Jenna could tell I was feeling down and offered a word of comfort: “It’s fine. Out with the old, in with the new. He’s just a guy. No need to let him break your heart like this.” The situation was too dramatic. I didn’t tell my roommates the truth. In reality, I was the one who broke the guy’s heart. “We can just find another one in a game! It’ll be a piece of cake for our resident flirt, Maya!” I met Vincent while playing a game. By chance, I teamed up with him in League of Legends. I saw that he was really good, and I wanted to rank up, so I proactively added him as a friend and asked him to play with me every day. We just played and played until feelings developed. At first, Vincent was very aloof. He was an aloof jungler who didn’t say a single word the entire game, just coolly carrying the team to victory. I instantly imagined a handsome guy in my head, and then I fell head over heels for the fantasy I had created. I shamelessly started pursuing Vincent. It took a long time to melt his iceberg of a heart. I originally thought that finally getting to meet Vincent in person was a blessing from God, but I didn’t expect it to be a punishment. I had learned my lesson. I wouldn’t dare flirt with guys in games ever again. I reflected on my past mistakes and decided to focus on my studies. Before, when I was pursuing Vincent, I learned he was studying abroad. I often shamelessly asked him to tutor me in English and speaking. I was constantly mesmerized by his clear, authentic British accent. My mind would wander, my lust would take over, my legs would tingle… Without Vincent’s English tutoring, I’d have to rely on myself from now on.

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When the reality show Tracking Down My Teenage Crush went viral, I found myself getting dogpiled by fans during my live stream. Curious, I clicked on the link to the show. My live stream was suddenly flooded with thousands of viewers, their fingers flying across their keyboards. “Do you regret ruining his life?!” I couldn’t help but laugh. I turned and yelled toward the hallway: “Hey hubby, my followers want to know if you regret marrying me.” 1 It was just a normal day. I was doing my usual makeup live stream, showcasing the brand I was sponsored by. One of my long-time followers asked: “Hey Chloe, have you been watching that reality show that blew up recently?” I paused mid-blending. “I’ve been pretty busy lately, so I haven’t really been keeping up. You guys will have to fill me in!” The chat kept rolling: “Yeah right, she’s just a lifestyle influencer who streams for four hours a day. How busy could she possibly be? There’s no way she hasn’t seen it online.” “Hey, chill out in the chat. If you’re not here to buy, just leave.” “Chloe, it’s a show called Tracking Down My Teenage Crush. It’s all about finding normal people’s high school crushes and revealing what happened to them and their romantic rivals.” I read the chat while finishing my makeup. “Sounds interesting. I’ll definitely check it out when I have some free time.” My phone buzzed on the table beside me. It was a link sent by one of my top moderators in my VIP fan group. “Chloe, you need to watch this. The ‘romantic rival’ in the latest episode sounds exactly like you. It’s causing a massive controversy.” “Yeah, it’s blowing up. It’s trending number one on Twitter right now, and a lot of people are saying the person they’re talking about is you.” Curiosity got the better of me. I told my stream I was taking a quick break and clicked the link. The guest on this episode did look faintly familiar. In the video, she was introducing herself: “Hi everyone, my name is Sarah. I’m from Seattle, and right now I’m just a corporate drone.” The host laughed and complimented her: “You’re too modest! The producers looked at your resume. You were the valedictorian of the entire Seattle school district, and you currently hold a senior position at a major tech firm.” Sarah winked playfully. “Just a high-level corporate drone.” The live chat on the screen exploded with likes and praise. “Omg, the valedictorian is so humble! I love her!” “Turns out valedictorians are corporate drones just like us. The only difference is she’s a senior drone.” The host continued: “So, what is the crush story you brought for us today?” Sarah’s face fell, her expression turning somber. “If he had taken his SATs that year, I wouldn’t have been the valedictorian of Seattle.” That single sentence instantly captivated the entire audience. 2 According to Sarah’s story, she had a childhood friend who lived next door. “I won’t say his name, so let’s just call him Mr. L. He was an incredibly brilliant guy. Straight A’s in everything, but he was always very cold and distant with people.” Sarah smiled shyly at this point. “Of course… present company excluded.” “He once asked me what my dream was, and what college I wanted to go to. Back then… we were at our absolute best.” The host offered a knowing smile. “That doesn’t sound like a crush! That sounds like two childhood sweethearts who had mutual feelings. Looks like our show might have a happy ending today!” But Sarah shook her head. “No, I wasn’t the female lead in his story. He fell in love with a girl who went to the vocational cosmetology school next door. Her last name was Ev…” “Oh, I’m so sorry, I accidentally slipped her last name. Could the editors please bleep that out?” The host comforted her: “It’s fine, don’t worry about it. There are a million people with the last name Evans.” The live chat was going crazy. “This is the classic trope of the aloof genius falling for the absolute lowest-tier trash, abandoning his equally brilliant childhood friend.” “He threw away a diamond for a piece of gravel~” “Sigh, he was young and stupid. I bet he regrets it so much now.” “Oh, definitely. A vocational cosmetology school? Everyone knows the academics there are a joke. Parents only send their daughters there to keep them off the streets.” “God, what did the genius even see in her? Just her face?” “Where are the internet sleuths at? We already have the school and the last name. Go find this trashy rival who can’t even compare to our valedictorian!” I was watching the screen intently, completely unaware that at that exact moment, a massive wave of viewers was flooding into my own live stream. 3 On the show, Sarah continued her story. “Later on, on the day of the SATs, Mr. L abandoned the exam. He chose to go find Miss Evans, simply because she was throwing a tantrum and refused to reply to his texts.” The host looked absolutely stunned, and the chat was speechless. “Oh my god, this isn’t just a regular test, it’s the SATs! Was he insane?! Going to find his girlfriend during the biggest exam of his life???” “Seriously! Just because she didn’t text him back, this idiot threw away the most important test of a student’s life.” “After watching this show, I’m going to watch my son like a hawk. Finding the right girlfriend is crucial.” “Exactly! I’m keeping a close eye on my kid too. If Mr. L had ended up with Sarah, they would have been a power couple. But he got involved with some vocational school dropout and ruined his entire future.” I watched this with a blank expression until the episode abruptly ended. The next episode hadn’t aired yet; the screen showed it would premiere live tonight at 7 PM. My phone rang. It was my assistant, Tara. I put in my wireless earpiece and answered, keeping my voice low: “What’s up? I’m streaming right now, can’t really talk.” Tara was frantic on the other end. “Chloe! Chloe, look at your stream! You’ve broken 100,000 viewers! You’re going viral!” I paused for a second. “That’s great.” Tara was exasperated. “Great?! It’s a hate-raid! Everyone is here to attack you!” Only then did I snap back to reality and look at my stream. She was right. The chat was flooded with thousands of viewers, their fingers flying across their keyboards. “Are you kidding me? This is the girl? She’s just an influencer?” “Oh my god, she can’t even compare to Sarah. Sarah is so elegant and classy. Look at this girl’s face, she looks like a homewrecker. She was destined to be a high school dropout and a parasite.” “Is it you? Did you intentionally give him the silent treatment on the day of his SATs? Did you not know he had an exam, or did you do it on purpose because you’re too stupid to take it yourself?!” “Lol, this is what happens when you don’t go to college. You end up streaming online trying to snag a sugar daddy.” Many of my casual followers turned into haters because of the reality show. Only a few of my hardcore fans were trying to defend me. “That’s not true! Our Chloe only appeals to female fans.” But they were immediately drowned out by the haters. “Everyone knows women’s money is the easiest to make. And how do you know she only makes money from women?” “She only streams for four hours a day. Who knows what she’s doing for the other twenty hours.” As the hate escalated, a verified account with millions of followers popped into my stream and left a comment. It was a highly influential college admissions counselor. The Endless Sea of Knowledge: “Do you regret ruining someone else’s life?” I couldn’t help but laugh. I turned and yelled toward the hallway: “Hey hubby, my followers want to know if you regret marrying me.” 4 Liam walked into the room wearing an apron, carrying a bowl of soup. “Wifey, what are you talking about? We’re just waiting on one more dish and then we can eat.” Liam probably guessed that people in the chat were asking about him. This happened occasionally. But I preferred to keep him off-camera, so he had never actually shown his face on stream. Setting the soup down, Liam added: “Wifey, I am incredibly grateful that you agreed to marry me. I made your favorite chicken soup today.” I felt my face heat up. This guy… why is he saying all this while I’m live? Once Liam left the room, I made sure the door was shut tight. “Did you guys hear that?” The chat was still flooded with hateful comments. “I feel so bad for Sarah. She’s sitting there feeling regretful, while the person who caused the trauma is living happily ever after.” “This is what happens when you don’t study. You end up being a house husband cooking for a woman.” “A real man stays out of the kitchen. He was destined to be a high-level executive at a major tech firm!” “What is Sarah going to do? My poor Sarah baby. Sob” “Hmph, even if this guy regrets it now, we don’t want our Sarah to take him back. She needs to thrive on her own.” I was about to explain when I received a text from my boss, who was also my best friend. “Save the engagement for tomorrow afternoon. It’s the weekend. Don’t respond to anything right now, just end the stream.” The boss’s word is law, especially since she’s my absolute best friend. “Copy that, boss! (≧▽≦)” Amidst a sea of insults, I gave a quick “See you tomorrow” and abruptly ended the stream. 5 Someone knocked on the door. I ran over to open it. Liam, having just brought out the final dish, let out a soft huff. “The freeloader is here again.” I opened the door, and my best friend, Mia, immediately tackled me in a hug, kissing me all over my face. “You poor thing! You poor thing! Mwah mwah mwah!” I shoved her away in disgust. “You got your spit all over me.” Mia held up my favorite boba tea as a peace offering. “Tomorrow, we’re launching the new company lip gloss! I want you to do a full face of gorgeous makeup, put on the new gloss, and then explain everything.” Liam walked over and snatched the boba tea away. “No drinking that. We’re having soup today. Boba isn’t healthy.” Mia rolled her eyes. “If I had known, I never would have approved of you two getting married.” “You monopolize my Chloe every single day.” I dragged Mia to the bathroom to wash her hands. “Hurry up and wash so we can eat.” Once we were in the bathroom, Mia whispered to me: “I watched that reality show too. It’s huge right now. Did your Liam actually have a thing for Sarah back then?” Liam, seemingly with supersonic hearing, immediately appeared and pulled me into his arms. “You want to know? Tune into the live stream tomorrow.” Mia rolled her eyes again. “I’ve lost my appetite. I’m leaving so I don’t interrupt your PDA.” I laughed and walked Mia to the door. I knew she had a lot of work to do tonight. If we utilized the hate and vitriol directed at me effectively, it could drive a massive wave of traffic to our new product launch. Mia wasn’t actually mad; she was just rushing back to buy bot farms to control the comment section. But Liam was genuinely angry. “Just for a spike in traffic, you’re letting them say those horrible things about you? I never had any relationship with Sarah.” I ruffled his hair. “The internet isn’t entirely wrong, you know.” “You really did abandon your SATs for me.” 6 Liam held me tight and let out a long sigh. “You know perfectly well that I didn’t want to take that exam in the first place…” I buried my face in his chest. We didn’t say anything more, but the corners of my eyes felt slightly damp. After dinner, I received the info packet Mia sent over. It contained all the details for the product I’d be selling tomorrow. Mia: “Tomorrow is probably going to be your last stream, huh?” “Even though it breaks my heart to see you go, after all these years of being ride-or-die besties, I want you to finally achieve your dream.” I smiled warmly. “I promise I’ll crush it on this last stream.” “Oh, by the way, that reality show is airing again tonight. You should watch it with your handsome hubby.” “He is your childhood neighbor, after all.” I nudged Liam, who was sitting next to me. “Turn on the TV. Your childhood friend is about to make an appearance.” Liam looked completely lost. He only knew that someone was maliciously doxing me and leading an online mob against me. He had no idea that the catalyst was his former neighbor, Sarah. “Sarah? I barely even remember her.” Liam queued up the show and lazily rested his head on my shoulder. “I don’t remember anything from back then. My heart only has room for you.” I playfully punched him, and we cuddled up with a bag of chips to watch the show. Come to think of it, it had been a long time since we watched reality TV together. The narratives on these shows flip so fast nowadays, it’s impossible to tell what’s real and what’s scripted. Sarah appeared on screen almost immediately. Because the last episode was such a massive hit, the network had clearly given her professional styling this time. The chat was scrolling wildly: “She’s so gorgeous! Sarah, baby, who are you trying to kill with those looks?” “If her ex sees this, he’s going to regret it so much.” “Uh, I don’t think he counts as an ex.” “He’s definitely going to regret it! I already checked out that influencer’s stream. She’s so trashy. She can’t even hold a candle to our Sarah.” I gently pinched Liam’s arm. “Your ex?” Even though I knew Liam had absolutely nothing to do with Sarah, jealousy rarely listens to logic. Liam rubbed my hand, his expression darkening. “Are we really just going to let them slander you like this?” 7 I knew Liam was hurting for me, but I also wanted to use this opportunity to give Mia’s launch a massive boost. Back in the day, Mia had helped Liam and me out tremendously. “This is all free traffic for tomorrow’s stream! We can’t let it go to waste.” I playfully kicked Liam off me. “If you can’t handle it, go wait in the bedroom.” The tips of Liam’s ears turned bright red. “No. I’m staying right here with you.” I focused back on the show. But Liam was entirely focused on me, gently pressing a kiss to my cheek. “I’m sorry. Because of me, you’re dealing with all this hate.” “I’m going to make a quick phone call downstairs.” I was too engrossed in the show to look away. “Grab me a bag of spicy duck claws while you’re at it.” Right then, the recap of the previous episode ended, and the new segment began. The host asked: “Do you know what happened to Mr. L after he walked out of the SATs?” Sarah bit her lower lip, tears shimmering in her eyes, before letting out a bitter laugh. “I have no idea. He… he deleted my contact info a long time ago.” The host looked shocked. The live chat exploded. “I bet a hundred bucks Mr. L didn’t delete her himself.” “It was definitely Chloe, that stupid, jealous, pathetic woman.” “Who is Chloe?” “Bro, are you living under a rock? Mr. L fell for the ‘beauty queen’ of the vocational school. She’s a streamer now named Chloe. Go search her up, she’s verified.” The host sighed and handed Sarah a tissue. “Perhaps… deleting you wasn’t what he truly wanted.” Obviously, the host also assumed that I was the one who deleted Sarah from his phone. Sarah shook her head, but a tear managed to escape and roll down her cheek. “He probably hates me.” “That day, I tried to stop him from leaving the testing center, but he wouldn’t listen. He told me to stay out of his business.” At this point, Sarah offered a brave, resilient smile. “That was when I realized you have to respect other people’s destinies.” 8 This season of the reality show utilized an innovative live-streaming format. The viewers, furious after watching the segment, stormed straight to my social media accounts. Even though I wasn’t currently streaming, the comment sections on my regular videos were open to the public. My phone was vibrating non-stop with notifications, all of them insults and hate directed at me. The host was about to ask another question when a producer suddenly stepped into the frame and whispered in the host’s ear. The host’s eyes lit up instantly. Once the producer stepped off-camera, the host turned to Sarah: “Sarah, we are going to add a special live segment to your episode.” Sarah looked momentarily confused. “But I’ve already finished sharing my story.” The host smiled. “Yes, and normally, the next phase of the show involves us tracking down your crush and your rival to interview them.” “But coincidentally, the person you want to see was watching the show and actually called us! He requested to speak with you face-to-face. Would you be willing to do that?” Sarah immediately looked panicked, but quickly composed herself. “Ah… oh, of course! I have a lot I want to say to Mr. L too.” The chat erupted again. “Yes, Sarah! We’re rooting for you!” “My hands are shaking I’m so excited! This is going to be epic! I love a good confrontation. What is he going to say?!” “But Chloe is his actual wife.” “Whoever said that is delusional. That influencer is no ‘wife.’ Not everyone deserves that title.” Liam walked back through the door at that exact moment. “I got your favorite spicy duck claws.” I immediately jumped up, hugged Liam, and snatched the duck claws from him. “Love you!” Liam smiled as he opened the packaging for me. “Don’t eat too many, or you’ll complain about breaking out again.” I shoved a duck claw into my mouth without a second thought. “Did you call the producers?” Liam froze instantly. “I’m sorry…”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “404832”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

My sister invited me to her wedding, but standing at the altar was a face I knew all too well. It was the man who had pressed a soft kiss to my lips just this morning before leaving our apartment. Now, I was watching them recite their vows and exchange wedding rings. My sister looped her arm through his and elegantly reminded me: “I specifically asked Caleb to take care of you before, but now, Hazel, it’s time you found a real boyfriend.” I glanced at Caleb Wright. He smirked slightly, gazing lovingly at my sister, offering absolutely no explanation. Whatever. I didn’t want him anymore. Even if Caleb stood outside my rundown apartment door in the future, calling me “sweetheart” over and over again, I still wouldn’t want him. 1 When Caleb left the house this morning, he had pressed a light kiss to my cheek. He reminded me, just like he always did: “Food is in the fridge. Heat it up when you wake up, and make sure you eat.” So, when I saw Caleb’s face at the wedding, my first reaction wasn’t anger, but pure, disorienting disbelief. As the officiant read the vows, Caleb looked at my sister with absolute devotion, leaving me with only a view of his profile. There was a tiny mole right at the corner of his eye. So many times, when he had to cancel a date because he was “busy” and made me mad, he would cling to me and whine sweetly. “I’ll let you kiss the mole by my eye. Don’t be mad. I know it’s your favorite.” I never mistook him for someone else, but why was it Caleb? After being taken back to the Thorne family, I rarely appeared in public. I never told anyone I was a member of the Thorne family, and I never coveted anything that didn’t belong to me. I didn’t get to choose my origins, but I had tried my absolute hardest to stay away from the Thornes. So why was my boyfriend standing at the altar with my sister? My eldest brother, Sebastian, suddenly grabbed my wrist tightly just as the officiant asked Caleb: “Do you take Vivienne Thorne to be your lawfully wedded wife, regardless of…” At the same time, Sebastian’s voice dropped into my ear. “Forgot to tell you, Caleb and our little sister are childhood sweethearts. We’ve spoiled her rotten, so she does whatever she wants.” “I apologize to you on her behalf.” The “little sister” he was talking about wasn’t me. It was Caleb’s bride, Vivienne, the elegant heiress of the Thorne family. Sebastian always did whatever he pleased. He was speaking to me so politely not out of respect, but out of sheer disgust. I deliberately ignored Sebastian’s words and stared intensely at Caleb. He didn’t even spare me a glance out of the corner of his eye. He just looked at my sister, his gaze tender and affectionate, and answered firmly: “I do.” I couldn’t ignore those words. A sharp, stinging pain pierced my chest, and tears instinctively rolled down my cheeks. The hand gripping my wrist pulled away. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sebastian using a tissue to meticulously wipe his long fingers. His disdainful voice floated down lightly. “Hazel Thorne? You really have some nerve, dreaming about things way out of your league.” 2 “Vivienne, come here. Let your big brother see how beautiful his little sister is.” Vivienne lifted the hem of her wedding dress and jogged over. Caleb followed closely behind her, guarding her carefully. “Sebastian, is it pretty? Caleb spent months picking it out.” There were tiny rhinestones near the corners of Vivienne’s eyes. As she moved, they caught the light beautifully, matching the diamonds on her dress. It was indeed beautiful. Sebastian reverted to his usual nonchalant demeanor. “Of course my sister is beautiful. Even if you weren’t wearing the dress that brat Caleb picked out, you’d still be gorgeous.” His tone was incredibly familiar. After speaking, he looked at Vivienne and Caleb with a gentle smile. Caleb wore a faint, confident smile on his face—a look I had never seen on him before. “Sebastian, we still have to go toast the guests. Vivienne and I are going to find Mom and Dad first. We’ll catch up later.” Throughout the entire exchange, I didn’t get the chance to say a single word. In fact, no one even spared me a glance. The disdain was blatantly obvious. It was exactly like the day I first stepped into the Thorne estate. My mother was kneeling on the floor, begging: “She’s your daughter, you can’t just abandon her…” Their entire family had sat on the sofa, doing their own things, even discussing an interesting news article, as if they didn’t even see us standing in the doorway. The simplest form of being ignored was enough to shatter us completely. It was the same now. I suddenly lost all desire to argue. I didn’t even want to know how Caleb ended up becoming my sister’s husband. I just wanted to get as far away from the Thorne family as possible, go back to my tiny, rundown apartment, and cry my eyes out. When I woke up tomorrow, I would still be Hazel—a girl who had absolutely nothing to do with the Thorne family. 3 “Sebastian, I should get going then.” I tried my best to maintain my composure, making myself look a bit more dignified. “Don’t. Why are you leaving? Caleb took care of you for so long, saying hello is the least you could do.” “My little sister is just spoiled. She insisted Caleb go take care of you. You didn’t misinterpret anything, did you?” Misinterpret what? The time Caleb clung to me and whispered, “I love you”? Or when he whined and said I was the only person he liked? Were these all just a game you guys knew about all along? And I was just the idiot being played for a fool. Now that the truth was out, you just had to check on the mental state of the idiot you played. You people really have too much time on your hands. I collected my emotions and lifted my chin. “I didn’t misinterpret anything.” “Sebastian, if you had told me earlier that Caleb was someone Vivienne specifically hired to ‘take care’ of me, I would have treated him better.” “At the very least, I wouldn’t have made him squeeze into a cheap apartment with me.” Sebastian probably didn’t expect me to pivot so quickly. He froze for a second. From behind came Vivienne’s voice: “Hazel, come here. Your brother-in-law and I want to toast you.” She walked toward me, holding a champagne glass. Mrs. Thorne, who was standing next to her, shot me a look of utter contempt before turning her head away. Vivienne stopped in front of me. Caleb stood beside her, whispering a reminder: “Drink less, your stomach will hurt again later.” Looking at this display of deep affection, I sighed internally: Wow, you guys really are incredible actors. The man who had been clinging to me for kisses when he left this morning could seamlessly shift roles in under three hours and carefully tend to another woman. It was absolutely nauseating. I raised my glass: “Wishing my sister and brother-in-law a century of happiness and a beautiful baby soon.” I couldn’t stay a second longer. I turned to leave. She called out from behind me. “Hazel, all those cheap plushies and watches you gave Caleb… I threw them all away. Don’t blame your sister, okay?” I stopped in my tracks. I remembered when Caleb and I were together, he cared so much about ceremony. He would always act cute and beg for gifts on every minor holiday. I didn’t have much money, so I used the wages from my lab internship to buy him small things. Scarves, flowers, watches. I carefully selected each one, hoping to see the happy look on his face when he received them. But the gifts I gave him always seemed to disappear the very next day. He lied and told me that he safely stored away everything I gave him. So, this was the real reason. That woman who gave birth to me never taught me much, but I remember her telling me when she was at the peak of her glamorous life: “The more desperate your situation, the more dignified you must act.” Although she couldn’t keep that promise herself in the end, I remembered those words. Being stabbed right in the wound, I dug my fingernails into my palms and feigned indifference: “They weren’t anything important anyway. If they’re thrown away, they’re thrown away.” With that, without looking back at their expressions, I forced my trembling legs to walk forward. 4 When I got home, I started packing Caleb’s things. From the bedsheets and duvet covers he had picked out, down to his toothbrush and the ring he left behind. I ended up packing quite a lot. I separated them into three trash bags and planned to take them downstairs to the dumpster. This apartment complex was beautiful. There was no shortage of gardens and trees. Right now, I could see the blooming Dogwood tree outside the window. When we were apartment hunting in the spring, Caleb had chosen this place at first glance precisely because of the tall Dogwood tree by the entrance. But the rent here was too high. I had to double my freelance workload just to barely afford it, not to mention I still had to go to the lab every day. In the end, he hugged me and pleaded, blinking his puppy-dog eyes at me, and I caved, nodding in agreement. The building didn’t have an elevator, so I dragged the bags down the stairs. The Dogwood tree was in full bloom, looking like a giant pink cloud of cotton candy from afar. It was a hot day, and my back was quickly drenched in sweat. The heavy plastic bags left deep red indentations on my hands. I felt a surge of frustration. I pulled a bit too hard, and one of the bags ripped open, spilling his clothes all over the stairs. I froze, staring at the clothes tumbling down to the landing below. I blinked, unable to describe what I was feeling in my chest. I just dragged my stiff body back upstairs to find a thicker trash bag. While I was squatting on the stairs picking up the clothes, the elderly neighbor lady happened to be coming home. Seeing me, she greeted me warmly: “Hazel, packing things up? I see Caleb could still wear these clothes. Don’t spoil him too much.” Even a neighbor I had only run into two or three times knew I spoiled Caleb. I paid the rent. I paid for our meals out. Even the clothes on his back were bought by me. All he had to do was whine a little, and I immediately abandoned all my principles. Maybe it was because I was so starved for love growing up. The moment I caught someone, I spoiled them desperately, completely blind to what their actual intentions were. My throat tightened. I wiped my face with my forearm, taking a moment to steady my voice before answering the grandma. “I know, Grandma. I won’t anymore.” After throwing everything into the dumpster, I threw myself onto my bed and forced my eyes shut. When I opened them again, the room was pitch black. I grabbed my phone and called my senior lab partner, Clara: “Clara, I want to live in the university dorms. Can I still get a room?” After that was settled, I sent a text to my landlord: “I want to terminate my lease.” I buried my face in the pillow, muttering to myself uncontrollably. “It’s fine. Just treat Caleb like a bad dream.” “I’m still me. The normal girl who got into the research lab on her own merit.” “My mom was wrong. I need to stay away from the Thorne family. I have nothing to do with them. I have nothing to do with them.” … 5 “Hazel, you came back at the perfect time. The lab is insanely busy. Marcus and I practically want to sleep here.” Caleb and Vivienne’s wedding was incredibly lavish. Anyone in Boston who used the internet probably saw photos of that gorgeous ceremony, let alone my lab partners Clara and Marcus. Clara led me down the hall to a dorm room, handed me the key, and quietly tried to comfort me. “You’re finally back. We can go grab some drinks tonight to celebrate.” I took the key and nodded blankly. After going inside, I sat on the bed and looked out the window. My first subconscious thought was: There’s no Dogwood tree outside this window. It looks so bare. Then, I rubbed my face vigorously, quickly unpacked my things, and hurried to the lab. “Come here, Hazel, look at this. Help me out.” “You’re finally back. We just got a new project, and we’re swamped.” “I can finally breathe a sigh of relief.” … I watched people in white lab coats bustling in and out, and tossed my backpack onto my desk. This was the only place that made me feel grounded. This was the lab I had clawed my way into, step by step, entirely on my own. Putting on my safety goggles, I inevitably thought of Caleb again. It was just last Friday. Caleb had insisted on picking me up. Because a data set had errors, all the experiments had to be redone. He leaned against the glass door of the lab, waiting for me. Every time I looked up, I could see his profile as he frantically typed on his phone. I should have realized it then: Why was his phone glued to his hand during that time? Why did I always see him looking anxious while texting? I thought he had met someone more interesting or was planning to cheat on me. But I wasn’t afraid. If worst came to worst, we’d just break up. You can’t keep what isn’t yours, so I didn’t even bother checking his phone. I was willing to bet on him, and I was prepared to lose. But I never expected that my entire relationship with Caleb was a setup. It was a scheme from the very beginning. From the very first time we met, it was all lies. That boy who smiled faintly at me was just a tailored illusion designed specifically for me. They were trashing someone else’s genuine feelings. I should have known better. Why would Vivienne Thorne ever let me off easily? “Focus, your pipette is about to hit the side of the test tube.” Marcus patted my shoulder, pulling me back to reality. “I’m focused, I’m focused.” But, playing with people like that… won’t karma catch up with them eventually? 6 “Drink! No one is allowed to leave tonight.” “See? We really did need our Hazel. We finished more than half of it, we can slack off a bit tomorrow morning.” “Drink up, don’t be shy!” … I was curled up in the booth, not understanding how things had escalated to this. One second we were happily discussing data, and the next it turned into a massive drinking competition. Clara walked over to me with a glass. “Hazel, have a drink. Relax a little.” The neon lights flashed. I looked up at the red lights behind Clara, mesmerized by the atmosphere in the private room. I took the glass and downed it in one gulp. It was sweet and sour, with a slightly spicy finish, but manageable. Where there’s a first glass, there’s a second. Clara didn’t stop me. She just watched me drink, glass after glass. I burped and slumped onto the sofa. In my ears, Clara’s voice sounded hazy: “You take the other guys back first…” It felt like there was a layer of gauze over my eyes. The lights were blurry, and in the haze, I thought I saw Caleb. Our first meeting was so simple. He dropped a fountain pen. Out of kindness, I picked it up and chased after him. He looked at the pen in my hand, his eyes curving into a shy smile: “Thank you. I really needed that pen. To thank you, let me buy you dinner.” The breeze gently blew his hair. It was such a clumsy pickup line, but looking at his shy smile, I broke my own rules and said yes. Later, we grew closer. The more time we spent together, the more I realized we shared so many hobbies and our perspectives were incredibly similar. He could sing almost my entire playlist; we liked the same violinist; we both loved reading in the afternoons… Two weeks later, we started dating. Maybe they also talked about me like this: “Oh, that bastard daughter of the mistress? So cheap. Caleb just crooked his finger and she took the bait.” … “Cry. Let it out. It’s not your fault.” It was Clara’s voice. She carried a faint scent of disinfectant that made me feel safe. “Cry. It’s just me here. Marcus went home.” “It’s better when you let it out. It’s better when you let it out.” “In this life, you’re bound to run into some garbage people. It’s not your fault.” … Clara patted my back gently. My head was spinning, and unknown emotions flooded my chest. I bit my lip hard, not wanting to show my weakness, but a sob slipped through my lips uncontrollably. My vision blurred. One second, it was Caleb gazing lovingly at Vivienne; the next, it was my mother kneeling on the floor, kowtowing relentlessly. The things I thought I cherished were just a nightmare woven from someone’s malicious intent. Driven by the alcohol, I couldn’t suppress my emotions any longer, and I finally burst out crying. 7 “The lab is establishing a branch overseas, and I’ll be heading there. Anyone who wants to go can submit an application by the end of this month.” “You’ll need to cover your own living expenses and tuition. Submit your applications to me by the end of the month.” At the Monday group meeting, Professor Adler calmly dropped this bombshell while sipping his tea. He was older, and his hands trembled slightly when he held his teacup. Back when I took the grad school entrance exams, my written scores were stellar, but my English speaking skills were a disaster. In the massive interview hall, the moment I opened my mouth, a faint, mocking smile appeared in the eyes of several professors. When my interview ended after a rushed two minutes, I walked out numbly, wondering what I would do if I didn’t get in. I never expected him to take me. The titan of biological research was my top-choice advisor. He only had two years left until retirement, and nobody wanted to produce groundbreaking results to prove he hadn’t made a mistake in choosing me more than I did. Marcus and Clara kept glancing at me from the corner of their eyes. I sat frozen in my seat, my body going cold. I had known for a long time that a person can withstand almost anything—except a lack of money. I instinctively rubbed my cold hands, comforting myself internally: It’s fine. It’s fine. Worst case, I’ll just take on more freelance work. But I also knew the truth. How could I possibly scrape together tens of thousands of dollars in just one month? After the meeting, Clara walked over. She never bothered with pleasantries; she always got straight to the point. “Hazel, you have to go overseas. This is the only chance for ordinary people like us to break through.” “I don’t come from a rich family either. Here’s twenty thousand. I saved it myself. I’m lending it to you first.” As she spoke, she pulled out her phone and transferred me $20,000. She spoke loudly, making no attempt to hide it. Marcus walked over, putting on a boisterous act. “Well, if Clara is stepping up, I can’t be left behind as your senior.” He transferred me $30,000 as he spoke. Fifty thousand, plus the forty thousand I had saved up, made ninety thousand. The tuition alone was $120,000, and that was after a discount. But if I worked myself to the bone this month, saving up the tuition wasn’t entirely impossible. With the oral English I had practiced desperately over the last two years, I could get a part-time job once I adapted over there, and if I lived frugally, I could barely manage to support myself. I mentally calculated everything, met Clara and Marcus’s gazes, and accepted the transfers without hesitation. Clara smiled immediately, her usual bright smile returning. “That’s right. Don’t be the kind of idiot who refuses help from the people around you.” When I returned to my dorm, I was still in a daze. I stared out the window. Was I really leaving? I was sent to this city by my mother when I was ten. For college, I deliberately chose my dream school here just to escape her, and then I somehow ended up staying for grad school. Counting it all, I had been in this city for exactly ten years. There was a moon out tonight. The moonlight filtered through the curtains and hit the dorm floor. I was still a bit dazed, but there was no denying I felt lighter inside. I wanted to go. I wanted to escape. It was under these circumstances that Caleb called me. I never thought he would contact me again. Maybe to prove I didn’t care, I hadn’t blocked his number. Or maybe he was calling because my sister wanted to revel in the sound of my crying? I only hesitated for two seconds before answering. “What do you want?” There was the sound of wind on his end, and no one spoke for a moment. “If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up.” He finally spoke: “The dogwood flowers are blooming beautifully tonight.” That single sentence instantly yanked my thoughts back to our apartment. Every night, the shadows of the dogwood blossoms would project onto the floor, swaying in the breeze under the moonlight. The two complementing each other… it really was beautiful. Now, my head just throbbed. I wanted to be decisive, but I barely kept my tone in check: “What the hell does that mean? Stop calling me. We have nothing to do with each other.” “I’m outside your old apartment building. Can we meet?” I had witnessed his wedding to Vivienne with my own eyes. I had seen the tender way he looked at her. And now? Barely a month into his marriage, he was coming to see his ex’s ex. It just made me sick. It made me wonder what kind of garbage I had actually been in love with. He didn’t know I had moved out, and kept talking: “Baby, come down and see me. Let me explain.” “I had my reasons.” I felt utterly disgusted and snapped: “Get lost.” I hung up, deleted his contact, and blocked the number. 8 These past few weeks, I had been running non-stop between the lab and my freelance gigs, but I felt more grounded than ever before. I could escape. I never had to come back here. The moment that thought popped up, I felt happy. I went to submit my project proposals and reports, but was told they wouldn’t be accepted. My heart sank. I couldn’t get a clear reason why; they just said they didn’t meet requirements. But they had accepted the exact same format just a month ago. Why was it suddenly a problem now? I didn’t give up and went to the next company I had collaborated with before. Same result. Rejected. A total of four proposals, three biological research reports, and one new drug testing result. All the companies I had previously negotiated with rejected them, as if they had all attended the same training seminar. Even their excuses were identical: they didn’t meet company standards. Holding my backpack, I waited outside the office of a company I had worked with multiple times, unable to understand what had gone wrong. When the VP I usually dealt with came out, I immediately stood up. The dizziness from sitting for so long made me feel slightly nauseous, but I didn’t stop. I pushed forward through sheer willpower. “VP Davis, can we talk?” The words tumbled out. At the same time, another voice pierced my eardrums even more clearly: “Then I’ll leave it in your capable hands, Mrs. Thorne. Let me know if you need anything.” As the dizziness faded, the scene before me came into focus. VP Davis, who had always been so professional with me, was now completely silent, respectfully holding the door open for the person behind him. Mrs. Thorne walked out, chatting and laughing with the people around her. Her gaze fell on me imperceptibly, and the person next to her immediately chimed in: “Where did this little girl come from? Shoo, go away.” Mrs. Thorne’s expression didn’t change. She still wore the same elegant smile she had when she walked out the door. “Thank you for your trouble. I look forward to the launch of the new drug.” She was deliberately saying it for me to hear, making no secret of the reason why nobody was accepting my project proposals. The VP I knew stood respectfully behind them, bowing repeatedly. I realized then that Mrs. Thorne wasn’t going to completely ignore me like she had so many times before. She stopped in front of me, acting as if she had just noticed me, adjusting her glasses with a look of feigned surprise: “Oh, what are you doing here? What is your business?” The scent of her perfume washed over me. Her makeup was flawless, while my clothes were stuck to my back from the sweltering heat. I knew I looked like a complete mess right now. I opened my mouth to explain, but the person next to her jumped in immediately: “Oh, you know Mrs. Thorne? What a coincidence! This young girl did some drug testing for our company before.” Mrs. Thorne smiled again: “Well, that’s unfortunate. The Thorne Group is handling the drug testing for this project.” “What a shame. I guess we won’t be collaborating anymore.” Listening to them tag-team their insults, I gripped my reports tightly. These were things I had stayed up for nights to produce; every word was written in blood. I knew about corporate suppression, and she had a thousand ways to crush me. But this time, why did she go out of her way to reach out and strike someone she usually ignored completely? I didn’t understand, and I wasn’t willing to let it go. But her next words cleared up my confusion. “Come back to the family estate this weekend. Vivienne and Caleb will be there. You should come and give your blessings to your sister and brother-in-law.” “Are you very short on money right now? If you come, the Thorne family will sponsor you.” Her words dripped with superiority, like she was offering charity. I gripped my papers tightly and shook my head: “No thank you, Mrs. Thorne. I have to work, I’m very busy. I won’t be going.” Her face changed. She took a few steps forward, closing the distance between us, completely disregarding the other people present. She raised her hand and slapped me hard across the face. Smack. My head snapped to the side. She resumed her usual elegance, leaned in close to my ear, and whispered softly: “What kind of delusions are you harboring? Just because Caleb came looking for you once, you really thought you two were boyfriend and girlfriend?” “What right do you have to speak to me like that? You will go whether you want to or not.” “Weren’t you the one begging to get into the Thorne family in the first place? Who are you pulling this attitude for now?” … I understood now. This unprovoked hostility, demanding I go to the Thorne estate when she despised me the most—it was because she knew Caleb had come looking for me. But at the same time, she reminded me of something. My mind flashed back to the woman who taught me to always maintain my elegance, kneeling in front of the Thorne family’s door, kowtowing relentlessly, just begging them to take me back. Covering my cheek, I lowered my head and answered, word by word: “I’ll go.”

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During a game of Truth or Dare, someone asked my husband, Carter: “If you were given another chance, who would you choose? Harper or Serena?” Carter downed a glass of whiskey and said, his voice laced with a strange sense of loss, “We were too broke back then. Serena would have only suffered if she stayed with me.” So, he chose me. But things were different now. He had money, power, and status. He had built a gilded cage to protect Serena perfectly. He would even drop to one knee just so she could rest her foot on his thigh. As for me, he simply didn’t understand. “I’ve already given you the title of Mrs. Hayes. What more do you want?” One Today was my birthday. Carter asked me what my birthday wish was. I took off my earrings, tossed them aside, and blew out the candles with absolute apathy. But then, I clasped my hands together reverently and said with absolute sincerity: “I wish we could get this divorce finalized quickly.” That single sentence stopped Carter dead in his tracks. The smile on his face, which hadn’t been very bright to begin with, slowly vanished. After a long moment, he sighed and rubbed his temples in frustration. “Are you still mad?” “I rushed all the way back here for you, didn’t I?” “Stop throwing the word ‘divorce’ around so casually. I might actually take you seriously one of these days.” I just looked at him. The exhaustion on his face was obvious. He had just spent a week playing tourist in Scandinavia with Serena. He must be exhausted. Then, a nine-hour flight. Followed by a non-stop drive straight to our estate in The Heights, just to see me. He had his assistant order a custom cake in advance and had the housekeeper buy fresh groceries. The minute he walked through the door, he personally cooked an entire table of my favorite food. He was so busy rushing to get this done that he hadn’t even changed his clothes. All just to celebrate my birthday. If he had done this any of the previous years, I would have been crying tears of joy, convinced I was the luckiest woman in the world. But this year was destined to be different. I felt absolutely no emotion. In fact, I was a little annoyed. I looked him dead in the eyes, my expression blank: “Divorce. Divorce. Divorce. Did you hear me clearly enough? If not, I can keep saying it. I am begging you to take me seriously.” Carter’s face turned to stone. He clenched his jaw so tightly I could see the muscles pulsing in his cheek. He violently kicked a dining chair, the wood scraping harshly against the floor. “Harper, that’s enough.” “How long are you going to keep throwing this tantrum? Is this fun for you?” He took several deep breaths, trying to force his temper down. “I didn’t miss your birthday. I rushed back to accompany you. You’ve made your point. Drop it.” “I’m going upstairs to take a shower. You need to calm down.” With that, he turned and marched upstairs without looking back. I looked at the sickeningly sweet buttercream cake and the still-steaming food on the table, feeling genuinely baffled. Why did he think that rushing back to celebrate my birthday meant a damn thing to me? My friends had prepared fireworks, top-shelf liquor, and hot guys for me. I could have had a perfect, wild birthday with them. But it was completely ruined by Carter showing up uninvited. He had played the gentle, devoted gentleman, grabbing my hand firmly in front of everyone. He smiled politely at my friends and said, “Do you mind if I borrow Harper for the night?” And then he aggressively dragged me away. I didn’t struggle. I didn’t fight back. I even kept a smile on my face. Not because I was happy. But because I was so used to maintaining my dignity in public that I instinctively avoided making a scene. Two Carter was taking a shower on the second floor. I leaned back on the sofa and lit a cigarette. My phone rang just as I was lighting my second one. It was a call from Serena. It rang for a solid thirty seconds. I just sat there watching the screen, ignoring it. I crushed the cigarette butt into the ashtray and poured myself a glass of wine. The phone rang again. Still Serena. I hit accept and put it on speaker. Serena’s spoiled, arrogant voice blasted through the speaker. “Where is Carter? Put him on.” I didn’t answer, taking a slow sip of my red wine instead. “Harper, say something. I know you’re listening.” “Put Carter on the phone. I need to talk to him.” “Tsk. If his phone wasn’t off, do you really think I’d be calling you? You’re so annoying!” I could hear the barely suppressed rage in her voice. I offered a cold, detached smirk. “He’s in the shower.” “What do you want?” Serena went dead silent. A few seconds later, she finally spoke again, her voice dripping with venom. “You two really don’t waste a single second, do you?” “Is screwing the only thing you two ever do?” “Disgusting!” Her outburst actually made me laugh out loud. “I’m sleeping with my legal husband. The cops couldn’t arrest me if they tried. Why are you so pressed?” “Or what, did you expect him to save himself for you?” “What the hell are you talking about?!” Serena snapped defensively. “I wouldn’t stoop so low as to sleep with him. Carter might be a prize to you, but to me, he’s nothing.” She sounded pretty confident saying that. But I was too lazy to argue with her. “Tell me what you want, or I’m hanging up.” “The passcode!” Serena demanded urgently. “What’s the passcode to the house? It’s a long string of numbers, and it’s so annoying to remember.” Three The passcode. The passcode to every single property he owned, and the lock screen code to Carter’s phone. It hadn’t changed in all these years. I had asked Carter once what those six numbers meant. Carter had answered casually, “Nothing. Just random numbers.” For a while, I actually believed him. Later, I was holding his phone and casually punched those numbers into the T9 keypad. The predictive text spelled out a word: Serena. I didn’t say another word, hung up the phone, and tossed it onto the sofa. Just as I was pouring myself another glass of wine, Carter walked out in a bathrobe. He was towel-drying his hair as I handed him a document. “What’s this?” “Divorce papers. Sign them.” Carter glared at me coldly and tried to walk right past me toward the liquor cabinet. I swung my arm out and swept the entire table of food onto the floor. The loud, chaotic crash of shattering plates was deafening in the quiet, early-morning house. Carter lost his temper and stepped aggressively toward me. “What the hell do you want? Is this really just because I didn’t get back in time for your party?” I let out a harsh, mocking laugh. “Who the hell do you think you are? Get over yourself.” “These divorce papers… you can either sit down and sign them peacefully, or we can wage a scorched-earth war and you can sign them then.” Carter’s jaw was clenched tight. He angrily threw the towel onto the floor. “You’re being completely unreasonable.” He turned and started walking toward the stairs again. I spoke up. “Serena just called.” “She said she couldn’t reach you and didn’t know the passcode to get into her house.” Carter stopped dead in his tracks. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” “Did you give her the passcode?” “Why would I give it to her?” I said coldly. Carter’s frown deepened into a scowl. He started rushing up the stairs to change his clothes. But I moved faster. With lightning speed, I charged up the stairs and kicked him square in the back. As he fell forward, I drove my knee into his spine and wrenched his arm behind him. Carter let out a muffled groan and yelled in pain and anger. “Harper, what the hell are you doing?!” I leaned down close to his ear and slapped the contract against the side of his face. “Sign the divorce papers.” “Otherwise, you’re not leaving this house.” “And your precious little princess can freeze outside all night.” This time, Carter was silent for a very long time. “Do you know what I hate most about you? It’s that you always resort to violence.” Four My relationship with Carter was complicated. During our poorest years, we lived in the same crappy apartment building—him upstairs, me downstairs—but we never spoke a single word to each other. My mom was beautiful. She had me when she was nineteen, and after that, there was a revolving door of men in her life. My grandmother, deeply regretting how my mom turned out, raised me like a tomboy. She even sent me to learn self-defense from the guy who lived downstairs. That guy was a boxing coach, built like a brick house, but he had a sickly, fragile son who he treated like a delicate porcelain doll. That was Carter and his dad. When we were kids, I would drag Carter around to play. I protected him, told him he was my sidekick, and said I’d always have his back. I had his back for ten years. Until my grandmother passed away, and his father died. We became two kids with absolutely no one to rely on. We should have clung to each other to survive the cold. But weirdly, without any specific reason, he started distancing himself from me. I wasn’t an idiot. I felt the rejection. So I stopped trying to force my way into his life. He had good grades and he was good-looking, but his personality was cold and his body was weak. He didn’t fit in with anyone. In high school, teenage boys are full of aggressive energy. Some guys started bullying him. I overheard a few guys from the basketball team talking: “That pretty boy is so annoying. We should just break one of his fingers.” Carter’s fingers. Those were the fingers he used to read, to write, to claw his way to a better life. I followed them after school and used the techniques Carter’s dad had taught me to beat the living hell out of them. I got banged up too, but it didn’t matter. I had thick skin. I could take it. As I was walking up the stairs to my apartment with my backpack, I saw Carter waiting in the shadows with a dark expression. He pulled me into his apartment, brought out a first-aid kit, and expertly cleaned and bandaged my wounds. That was the first time I had been inside his apartment since his dad died. Carter’s dad had been stabbed to death while trying to stop a mugging. With his skills, he could have easily handled those guys, but one of them pulled a knife. The knife went into Carter’s dad’s stomach, was pulled out, and plunged in again. He didn’t even survive long enough to see Carter one last time. The person he saved moved away overnight, disappearing completely. The guy who stabbed him went to prison, but didn’t pay a single cent in restitution. Carter knelt in front of his grave, expressionless, saying his dad had it coming for playing the hero when he couldn’t handle it. He said the thing he hated most in the world were people who only knew how to solve problems with their fists. And it was from that moment on that he refused to speak to me anymore. That day, he kept his head down, tending to the cuts on my hands. His voice was very soft and slow. He said: “Harper, don’t ever fight anyone again. Especially not for me.” Five It had been a long time since Carter looked this pathetic. He forcefully scrawled his signature on the last page of the document. He threw the divorce papers onto the floor. He threw his clothes on and stormed out of the house. I slept like a baby. I woke up naturally, then called a moving company to start packing my things. When Carter got back, the movers were carrying a massive oil painting out the front door. “What are you doing? Who told you to move that?” Carter jumped out of his car and jogged over, looking furious. The movers exchanged confused glances. I slowly walked out of the house. “I told them to. What’s the problem?” Carter took a deep breath. “What are you pulling now?” “Isn’t that my painting? Harper, I bought that. Why didn’t you tell me? You are so annoying.” Serena stepped out of the passenger side of the car. Even though she was saying ‘annoying,’ her eyes were sparkling as she looked at the painting. Carter froze, instinctively looking at me. I offered a faint smile. “Actually, I bought it.” “I was blind back then. I spent almost twenty grand on this massive thing, and now, the more I look at it, the more it disgusts me.” That was during the hardest period of Carter’s startup phase. He was working himself to the bone, but he still made time to take me out. He took me to an art exhibition. I didn’t know how to appreciate art. I couldn’t tell what was good or bad. But I noticed he stopped in front of one specific oil painting for a very long time, looking reluctant to leave it when we walked away. So, I lived on a shoestring budget and used all the money I had saved over those years to buy that oil painting as a birthday gift for Carter. Over the years, we moved many times. The houses got bigger and bigger. And we always took that oil painting with us. I always thought he cherished it because it was a birthday gift from me. Until he rushed to Paris to bring Serena back. Serena posted a picture of a painting from a courtyard. The signature on the painting was exactly the same as the one on the oil painting. What does it feel like to have your entire world shattered by a single, heavy blow? It’s hard to describe. I just know I crouched on the floor for a long time, my face deathly pale, biting my teeth together so hard I tasted blood. Six My words clearly triggered Serena. She angrily stepped forward, ready to confront me. “What is that supposed to mean?” Carter grabbed her arm, stopping her from reaching me. Serena stared at him in disbelief. “You’re protecting her?” She shook off Carter’s hand, her eyes red with anger, and turned to run back to the car. Carter didn’t grab her again, but his voice softened. “Alright, go wait in the car. I’ll take you to meet Director Ford in a minute.” Serena puffed out her cheeks, looking furious. She glared at me. But ultimately, she obediently got into the car. Carter looked like he wanted to say something. I looked at him with a mocking smile. “Serena doesn’t get it, but I do. You look like you’re stopping her, but you’re actually protecting her.” “But you don’t need to worry. I wouldn’t touch her. Risking myself to hurt her isn’t worth it.” Carter’s expression stiffened for a fraction of a second. But he was a master manipulator, and he quickly recovered his composure. “You need to stop imagining things.” “Serena… I’m just helping her out because of our past.” “You don’t need to project those filthy, malicious thoughts onto her and me.” Hypocrite! That was the only word I could think of. I let out a cold laugh. “Is it that you don’t want to?” “No, it’s that you don’t deserve her!” Serena was a rich, spoiled heiress. When Carter and I were surviving on five dollars a day, she was wearing a twelve-thousand-dollar hairpin. A little princess like her… we shouldn’t have ever even crossed paths. But that year, she transferred to our school and spent a year in our class. The arrogant, privileged little princess took one look at Carter and decided she wanted him. “Hey, can I sit next to you?” “No.” “Can you tutor me in math?” “I don’t have time.” “Carter, I like you.” “I don’t like you.” After being rejected over and over again, the little princess turned her embarrassment into anger. She started targeting Carter. Like pouring milk all over his homework. Like dumping a whole bowl of soup on his clothes. Like mocking him for not even being able to afford a new pair of shoes. Like framing him for stealing her fountain pen. Carter told me to stay out of it, saying he could handle it. But the reality was his grades kept dropping. I took it upon myself to find Serena. I warned her that if she touched Carter again, I wouldn’t go easy on her. Carter was furious with me that time. He forced me to apologize to Serena, then carried me home on his back. He said to me: “We can’t afford to mess with people like Serena. We just have to endure it. We endure it until we don’t have to look at their faces anymore.” I always thought Carter hated Serena. But people are complicated. There is no pure love, and there is no pure hate. It’s always a tangled mess of both. Seven Carter ignored the busy movers in the mansion, grabbed the documents he needed, and turned to leave. He left me with one sentence: “Do whatever you want.” Well, if he said I could do whatever I wanted, then I would. I threw away the oil painting, threw away our wedding photos, threw away the bed from the master bedroom, and even threw away Carter’s entire closet full of clothes. Finally, a moving truck hauled away all my belongings, driving off in a grand procession. That night, I slept on a floor mat in my still-unpacking new apartment, staring at the ceiling until the sun came up before finally falling asleep. When I woke up, I was already lying in a properly made bed. I wasn’t surprised. I didn’t think I was sleepwalking, or that a burglar had broken in. The only person who could find me here was Carter. Sure enough, when I walked out of the bedroom, he was in the kitchen boiling pasta. Carter was quick at everything. Back in the day, when we were too poor to afford any pre-made food. Carter did everything himself. Cooking rice, stir-frying, making soup—he could always whip up something decent on the first try. I was the exact opposite. He never understood it. “Can’t you just follow the recipe? Why do you have to get creative?” I didn’t understand him either. “We’re just missing green onions. Does it really matter? Why do you have to run all the way downstairs to buy them?” Those chaotic, messy days were full of the warmth of real life. But thinking about it now, it feels like it happened in another lifetime. “You’re up? Brush your teeth, wash your face, and eat breakfast.” I didn’t move. “My name is on the lease for this place. Don’t come here anymore.” Carter’s hand, stirring the pasta, stopped. He turned off the stove, shut off the range hood, and turned around. He asked me: “I can promise you right now that Serena’s presence will never threaten our marriage. You will always be Mrs. Hayes. What exactly are you dissatisfied with?”

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When I became a stay-at-home mom, my husband gave me only $200 a month for household expenses. He expected me to use that $200 to buy groceries, cook, pay the utility bills, and cover the entire family’s expenses. He even had the audacity to say that $200 was too generous. Since the man at home wouldn’t provide, naturally, I found other men who would pay me. Once my wallet was full, I rightfully started dressing up, buying premium skincare products, and enrolling in high-end training courses. Faced with my husband’s suspicions, I casually told him: “I bought it with the $200 you gave me!” But he panicked: “$200 isn’t even enough for groceries! Where are you actually getting the money for this high-end stuff?” Hilarious. Turns out, he knew perfectly well that $200 was nowhere near enough! 01 My name is Emma. After dating my college boyfriend, Mark, for a few years, we naturally got married and eventually had our daughter, Mia. Since we had no one to help with the baby, Mark talked it over with me, suggesting I quit my job to become a full-time stay-at-home mom. I was reluctant. “I want to work and earn money too. Why don’t I just keep my job and we hire a full-time nanny?” Mark reasoned with me: “A good postpartum doula or nanny these days charges five or six thousand a month, which is way more than your salary. We’d be losing money! “Besides, can you really trust a stranger with our baby?” I wavered. Mark went on to say that his only goal in making money was to give me and Mia a good life. He promised to hand over his entire paycheck to me—his “boss”—and swore he’d never mistreat me. Since he was willing to surrender his salary, I didn’t have much else to argue about. “Alright then.” So, Mark became the breadwinner, and I managed the home. We lived like this for three years. Stay-at-home moms don’t earn a paycheck, so my daily routine involved meticulous budgeting and finding ways to save. One night, while I was taking advantage of Black Friday sales to stock up on household essentials, Mark walked by. He glanced at my phone screen and shouted, “You just spent $400 on toilet paper?!” “We’re not exactly rich! How could you blow that much money on toilet paper?!” I didn’t expect him to freak out like that, so I calmly explained, “It’s not just toilet paper. It’s tampons and pads for me, and baby wipes for Mia. This is a full year’s supply for our family of three.” Mark was incredibly stubborn. “You still shouldn’t drop $400 all at once! Do you think we just have money to burn?” I found his tone highly offensive. “You have to compare the unit prices! This is the lowest price of the year. Everything is 50% off. Buying in bulk now saves us half the cost compared to buying it month by month!” In the past three years, Mark had never bothered to look at our household expenses. He had no idea how much bulk buying saved us, so he just stubbornly insisted I was wasting money. I finally lost my patience. “Look, since you manage the outside and I manage the inside, how the household budget is spent is my business, right?” I brushed past him and went to Mia’s room to put her to bed. I thought the issue was over. I never expected that after I coaxed our daughter to sleep, Mark would march up to me with a dead-serious look on his face: “Emma, I think we need to have a serious talk about household expenses.” 02 I was completely baffled. “Is there a problem with our expenses?” Mark made about $8,000 a month. Our regular expenses were $4,000, the mortgage was $2,000, leaving us $2,000 to save every month. To ensure Mia had a college fund, I locked those savings into a high-yield CD. We weren’t exactly wealthy, but I thought we were doing pretty well. Mark shook his head. “I trusted you too much before. That’s why I handed over my paycheck and never asked how you spent it. “If I hadn’t accidentally seen it today, I wouldn’t have known how reckless you are. Blowing $400 on paper products!” He still wasn’t over it? I was speechless. “I’ve told you several times, that $400 is the total price for a whole year’s worth of hygiene products. Take the tampons and pads, for example. If I buy them every month, it costs me close to $60 a month. But buying a year’s supply at once only costs $300 total.” Mark kept shaking his head. “I don’t care. You lie around the house all day and still spend money like water. Do you think it’s easy for me to earn that paycheck? “Starting today, I’m not giving you my debit card anymore. I’m only giving you $200 at a time.” The way he said it made it sound like I did absolutely nothing at home. Did he think the hot meals he came home to and the clean clothes on his back just fell from the sky? And what exactly was $200 going to cover? My face instantly darkened. Seeing my expression change, Mark quickly added, “Once you spend the $200, just ask me for more! It’s not like I’m cutting you off.” He put on an exaggerated look of hurt. “I’m just trying to teach you how to be frugal. I work so hard to make money; the least you could do is show some sympathy for me!” Of course I cared about Mark’s hard work. So I reluctantly nodded. “Fine. Let’s do it your way for now.” Mark happily Venmo’d me $200. “Honey, I knew you loved me the most! “Take this $200 for now. When it’s gone, I’ll send you more!” I originally thought, We’re a family. It doesn’t matter whose account the money is in. Besides, I just had to ask him when I ran out. But I quickly realized how wrong I was. 03 The next day, the local dairy delivery service called me. “Hey Emma, your milk subscription expires next week. Would you like to renew?” To make sure we got fresh, high-quality protein, I had set up a daily organic milk delivery for the three of us. Three bottles a day cost about $150 a month. I wanted to renew it, but when I went to pay, it showed insufficient funds. I only had $200, and I had already paid a $60 water bill that morning. I was short. Mark was in the bathroom. I knocked on the door. “Honey, transfer me some money. I need to pay for the milk delivery.” Dead silence from inside. I knocked harder a few more times, but Mark acted like he was completely deaf. I realized he was ignoring me on purpose. I started to get angry, but the delivery rep was still on the phone waiting for my answer. Left with no choice, I just paid $50. “Just renew it for one person for this month.” The adults could skip the milk, but Mia was still little and needed the calcium. Just as I finished paying, Mark walked out. He peeked at my payment screen and put on an exaggerated look of pleasant surprise. “You only spent $50 on milk this time? “See? I told you giving you $200 at a time would work! You’re already learning how to save money!” I laughed out of pure frustration. He clearly heard me knocking and asking for money, but he deliberately ignored me. And now he was praising me for saving money? I only ordered enough for Mia! Of course it was cheaper! “I didn’t have enough money, and you didn’t—” Mark suddenly cut me off, grabbing his breakfast from the table as he headed for the door. “Alright honey, gotta run! I’m gonna be late for work!” I stared at the front door in stunned silence, watching him hurry away. It was just a milk subscription. Did he really need to run away like he was dodging a restaurant bill? 04 That afternoon, after paying a $100 electric bill, I only had $40 left in my account. I went to the supermarket. Vegetables and a few staples cost me $15. I had $25 left. I walked up to the butcher counter, remembering Mark saying he wanted beef stew for dinner. There was a beautiful cut of chuck roast left. The scale read 3 pounds. $28. I was short by three dollars. The payment declined. I quickly texted Mark: [Honey, send me some money. I don’t have enough for the groceries.] Two minutes passed. No reply. The butcher stood there, arms crossed, waiting for me to pay. I smiled awkwardly at him and sent Mark more messages. [Hurry up, the cashier is waiting!] [I’m not joking, I need it right now! I’ve been standing at the counter for a while!] Mark never replied. Meanwhile, a customer behind me eyed the meat. “Are you getting that chuck roast? If not, I’ll take it.” I felt even more humiliated. “Yes, I am. Just a second, please!” Thinking Mark just hadn’t seen the texts, I called him. The phone rang exactly once before he declined the call. That meant he was staring right at his phone! So why wasn’t he replying? I was dumbfounded. The butcher finally spoke up. “Ma’am, you’ve been standing here forever holding up the line. I can’t sell it to you. The guy behind you wants it.” It was a prime cut of meat; of course, it was in high demand. The man behind me took the meat and sneered lightly, “If you can’t afford it, don’t stand in line wasting everyone’s time.” My face instantly burned bright red. 05 When Mark got home that evening, he took one look at the dinner table, and his smug smile immediately dropped. “Where’s the meat?” he complained. “I told you I wanted beef stew! Why didn’t you make it?” I glared at him with a stony face. “I texted and called you this afternoon. Why did you pretend you didn’t see it?” Mark mumbled vaguely, “I was in a meeting. Couldn’t text back.” Seeing that I didn’t buy it, he flipped the script and interrogated me instead. “Can we just eat in peace? Are you going to let me enjoy my dinner or not?” I suddenly felt incredibly exhausted. I didn’t even have the energy to fight with him. I simply told him, “Then send me some more money. The $200 is basically gone. I won’t have enough for groceries tomorrow.” Mark stopped shoveling food into his mouth and shot me a sideways glare. “If I hadn’t come up with this method, I never would have known you could blow through $200 in a single day! At this rate, you’d spend $6,000 a month! “Emma, can you please learn to be a little more frugal? Money doesn’t just fall from the sky. “I’m the only one bringing in a paycheck. I’m under a lot of pressure. Can’t you just make things a little easier for me?!” Being despised by Mark like this was infinitely more humiliating than being mocked by a stranger at the grocery store. I was so angry I lost my appetite. I pulled out my phone and shoved the transaction history in his face. “Look closely! $50 for Mia’s milk, $60 for water, $100 for electricity, $15 for vegetables! I had exactly $25 left! “The beef was $28! I was short by three dollars! Because you ignored my messages, those three missing dollars meant I couldn’t even buy the meat! “Do you have any idea how long I stood at the butcher counter with no money, getting mocked by strangers?!” Remembering the humiliation made my eyes well up with tears of sheer frustration. Mark swallowed his mouthful of rice. “You spent my money, so I’m allowed to say something about it, aren’t I?” As he spoke, he pulled out his phone and transferred the money, looking increasingly impatient. “Whatever, stop giving me that long face. I sent you the money. What else do you want?” A notification popped up. Another $200. But recalling Mark’s words, my chest felt even tighter. 06 After my shower that night, I went to do my skincare routine and realized my serum was completely empty. I carefully tapped the bottom of the bottle, trying desperately to coax out one last drop of the liquid. After I finished, I texted a friend who worked at a beauty counter, asking to order another bottle. She texted back: *”Hey! We actually have a massive promo on the gift sets right now. It’s buy-one-get-one-free for the whole luxury set, only $200! “Buying just the single serum for $80 isn’t worth it!”* I was very tempted, but my account balance was exactly $225. If I bought the set, I’d have to ask Mark for money again tomorrow. For some reason, the thought of asking Mark for money—even for perfectly normal expenses—made my skin crawl with irritation and discomfort. The feeling of holding out my hand and begging for cash was suffocating. I sighed and texted her back: [Just the $80 serum. I’ll pass on the rest.] Mark had showered but didn’t bother wiping down the bathroom. The floor was soaked, and there were even urine stains on the toilet seat. Terrified Mia might slip and fall, I resigned myself to grabbing a mop and cleaning it up. But when I walked back into the bedroom, Mark was holding my phone, glaring at me with furious eyes. “You couldn’t bear to spend $28 to buy me a decent piece of beef, but you have no problem dropping $80 on a tiny bottle of serum for yourself! “No wonder you always complain we don’t have enough money! You’re blowing it all on cosmetics! “If you’re going to be this selfish, fine, Emma. I don’t need to be nice to you anymore! “Starting today, I am only giving you a flat $200 a month for the household! Not a penny more!”

I was the only college student Providence Hollow had produced in a century. My parents were dying of cancer, but to save every penny for my tuition, they refused to go to the hospital even once. When my little brother accidentally bumped into the piggy bank my mom had been religiously filling for me, she beat him so severely he couldn’t get out of bed for three days. To scrape together my tuition fees, the entire town pooled their resources, emptying their life savings down to the last dime. Everyone said I was the pride of Providence Hollow. Unmatched and deeply loved. In the dead of countless nights, I secretly swore to myself that I would remember exactly what they had all done to me. So, the day I received my acceptance letter to Harvard, I took out all my savings and treated the entire town to a massive feast. A literal last supper. Looking at their twisted, contorted corpses scattered across the floor, tears streamed down my face as I knelt down and pressed my forehead to the blood-soaked floor three times. 01 The air was thick with the pungent stench of poison and the heavy metallic tang of blood. The sickening smell hit me right in the back of the throat. When the police sirens wailed outside, I was in the middle of inspecting the final body. It was Old Man Miller. The man who, when I was a little girl, always used to give me candy. He hadn’t drank much of the spiked water, so the poison was acting slowly. His face, wrinkled like old tree bark, was tightly scrunched in agonizing pain. “Freeze! Step away from him!” Crack— As the police officer’s roar echoed through the room, I cleanly snapped Old Man Miller’s neck. With that, all ninety-eight residents of Providence Hollow—excluding myself—were dead. Not a single survivor. “Put your hands in the air! Hands behind your head! Do not resist!” Officers swarmed the room, surrounding me, the barrels of their guns locked squarely on my chest. I raised my hands, admiring my handiwork with a satisfied smile. I made no attempt to resist as the cold steel handcuffs clicked tightly around my wrists. On my way out, I casually kicked the corpses of my parents lying by my feet. “Gemma, why the hell did you do it?” In the interrogation room, the seasoned veteran, Detective Vance, asked me this question for the fifty-eighth time. Watching his grave, hardened expression, I gave a nonchalant shrug. “Detective, I already told you. I was doing society a favor. “Those old hags and geezers were useless alive anyway. They were just draining state resources. I took them out. Doesn’t that count as community service?” “You take this seriously right now!” The young rookie taking notes, Officer Davies, couldn’t stomach my attitude and slammed his hand on the table, barking at me. Detective Vance flipped through the thick stack of files in his hands, his face growing darker by the second. “Do you have any idea that your parents had cancer, but to save money for your education, they refused to get medical treatment even once?” “Oh?” I tilted my head, feigning innocence. “Wow, I really didn’t know that. But whatever, it doesn’t matter. They were going to die from the cancer eventually anyway. That’s an even bigger waste of resources. Rather than waiting for them to slowly die, it’s better that I stepped up as a good citizen and put them out of their misery early.” “And your grandmother! To ensure you had a comfortable life at an Ivy League school, she cashed out her burial fund just to pay for your books.” “Ugh, don’t even bring her up.” My face darkened, showing visible annoyance. “That old bat hoarded money for years, pinching pennies, and she only handed me two hundred bucks. What, was she tossing spare change to a beggar?” Detective Vance choked on his own breath, completely taken aback by my brazen sense of entitlement. His face looked like he had just swallowed a fly. I let out a yawn and decided to finish his line of questioning for him. “I know what you’re going to say next. You’re going to say the Mayor, Old Man Miller, and Mrs. Higgins all did me favors, right? Yeah, well, I figured they’d be lonely in hell, so I sent them down together to keep each other company. “Tell me, Detective. Aren’t I considerate?” “Enough!” Officer Davies slammed his hands onto the desk so hard he snapped his pen in half. “Gemma! Did all that elite education go straight to the gutter?! These people were your benefactors! Your own flesh and blood! And you sit here and laugh about massacring them? You are worse than an animal!” He stood up furiously, spitting on the floor in disgust. If he hadn’t retained the last shred of his professional restraint as a cop, he probably would have lunged across the table and strangled me. But despite his fury, I wasn’t scared in the slightest. “Officer, why are you so angry? If you’re that upset about it, you can go down there and keep them company too.” “You—!” The young cop’s face flushed a violent crimson. His chest heaved rapidly before he finally lost it and stormed out, slamming the door behind him. “I can’t interrogate her! Bring someone else in! This psycho makes my skin crawl!” I curled my lip. My absolute refusal to show remorse had dragged the interrogation into another dead end. But the older detective, Vance, still refused to give up. He tapped his fingertips against the metal table, his eagle-like eyes staring unblinkingly into mine. “Everything happens for a reason. Every effect has a cause. Gemma, if you confess the real truth right now, there might be a chance for you to plead out and get a reduced sentence.” “A reduced sentence?” I looked at his dead-serious face and couldn’t hold back a scoff, looking at him like he was an absolute idiot. “Hey, Detective. Do they not test IQs at the police academy anymore? I murdered nearly a hundred people. And you’re sitting here trying to sell me a plea deal? Are you stupid?” “You’re a lost cause!” Detective Vance finally hit his breaking point, his face turning an ugly shade of green as he stormed out and slammed the door. Two down. Tch. How boring. 02 When the heavy door to the interrogation room opened again, three hours had passed. This time, alongside the police, they brought a familiar face. My high school homeroom teacher, Miss Clara Evans. I thought she would look at me with the same deep disgust everyone else had. I didn’t expect that the moment she saw me, her eyes would well up with tears. “Gemma… how could you do something like this?” She rushed forward, throwing her arms around me, sobbing uncontrollably. “Is there some secret behind all of this? Is there something they did to you? Sweetheart, what pain are you hiding in your heart? Tell me, please? I refuse to believe you would do something like this for no reason.” Listening to her choked, sobbing voice, my face remained entirely blank. I lifted my eyes toward the intimidating, unfamiliar man standing in the doorway and gave a mocking grin. “What, you realized everyone who actually knew me is dead, so you went and dragged my teacher down here? The hard approach didn’t work, so you’re trying to play good cop?” The man’s dark eyes were unreadable as he pulled out a chair and sat down. “My name is Arthur Sterling. Deputy Chief of Investigations. The societal impact of this case is massive, and the nature of the crime is exceptionally heinous. From this point forward, I am leading your interrogation.” Oh, so they brought in the heavy hitters. I rolled my neck lazily, ignoring the red, chafed skin around my handcuffed wrists. “Hey, Miss Evans. You should probably step out.” Miss Evans froze, her eyes red as she stood up. Sterling tapped his pen against the metal desk. The rhythmic sound echoed like a judge’s gavel in purgatory. “Gemma, your academic records were flawless. Your behavioral records were perfect. Your teachers and peers all gave you the highest possible praise. “Furthermore, your psychological evaluations show zero abnormalities. You have no anti-social tendencies. So when you tell us you committed a mass murder for absolutely no reason… I don’t buy it.” He narrowed his eyes, his sharp gaze practically piercing straight through my chest. But since I hadn’t blinked while poisoning an entire town, I certainly wasn’t going to be intimidated by a cop. “I thought the police were supposed to deal in evidence? If you think I’m lying, go find the proof. I’ve already told you everything there is to tell. I was just doing society a favor.” “Gemma, this isn’t right! You were such a good girl at school, why would you—” “Shut up!” I barked sharply, violently cutting off Clara Evans’s sentence. “I don’t need you speaking for me! Get out!” She jumped, terrified by the bloodshot, manic look in my eyes. Her lips trembled for several seconds before Sterling gave her a subtle nod. Weeping silently, she walked out of the room. Watching her back disappear through the door, my chaotic emotions slowly began to level out. When I shifted my gaze back, I realized Arthur Sterling was staring at me intently, as if refusing to miss a single micro-expression flitting across my face. “A model student with no criminal history and a perfect academic record suddenly commits a mass extermination.” He pulled several sheets of paper from a manila folder. They were sketches—drawings of my posture and facial expressions from different angles during Vance’s earlier interrogation. “I have to admit, you possess a psychological resilience and anti-interrogation awareness that is incredibly unnatural for someone your age. “But human micro-expressions don’t lie. “Gemma. You are lying.” The absolute certainty in his voice and the calculated confidence in his eyes made it clear he thought he had me entirely figured out. I found it laughable. “Deputy Chief, if someone as arrogant as you can make it to the top of investigations, the state police force must really be scraping the barrel.” Sterling wasn’t provoked by my sarcasm. He leaned forward. “Tell me I’m wrong.” “Alright. You guessed it.” The new note-taking officer sitting beside him clearly didn’t expect me to fold that fast. He froze in shock. I glanced at the ticking clock on the wall, then back at Sterling. “I know you’re the one pulling the strings here. If you agree to one condition, I will tell you the absolute truth.” “You’re a mass murderer! Do you honestly think you have the right to negotiate?! Deputy Chief Sterling, this girl is definitely plotting something. Do not agree to this!” Sterling raised an eyebrow, ignoring the furious note-taker beside him. He stayed silent for a moment before looking up at me. “Tell me what it is. If you’re asking for a reduced sentence, the answer is no.” I smiled. If I was afraid of dying, I wouldn’t have killed them in the first place. “I don’t want a reduced sentence. I just want to go outside and take a look.” 03 I told Sterling I wanted to go to the observation deck of the Apex Tower, the tallest skyscraper in the city. They debated internally for two hours, but eventually, they agreed. Even though I would be handcuffed the entire time, it felt like a brief, fleeting moment of freedom. But I never expected the chaos that erupted the second we walked out the front doors of the precinct. The station was completely surrounded by an enraged mob of the public. The moment they saw me step outside, they looked like they wanted to tear me apart and eat me alive. “Look! It’s the ungrateful psycho!” That single shout sent a tidal wave of fury through the crowd. People immediately started hurling whatever they had in their hands straight at me. Even with the police struggling to maintain a barricade, I was bombarded by rotten eggs, spoiled food, and trash. The disgusting stench exploded across my clothes and face. “You little monster! How dare you even show your face?! Kill her! Kill the animal!” “Officers, you can’t let her live! Putting a bullet in her would be an insult to the bullet! She deserves to be tied to cars and ripped apart in the streets!” “Do you see this?” Sterling asked. “Your crime has caused a massive societal uproar. There are tens of thousands of people out there right now who want you dead. Even knowing that, do you still want to go out there?” I calmly wiped a streak of raw egg yolk off my cheek and looked at him. “I do.” He frowned, clearly failing to understand my bizarre persistence. “Everyone, move!” Someone in the mob roared, and the chaotic crowd immediately parted to form a narrow path. Before I could even register what was happening, a bucket of unidentified, putrid liquid was hurled directly at my face. The suffocating, stinging stench of feces and urine instantly saturated the air. The person who threw it was a teenage boy, maybe seventeen or eighteen. He held an empty, filthy bucket in his hands, his face twisted in vicious righteousness. “Someone like you just being alive is polluting the air we breathe! Allow me to give you a wash!” The crowd went dead silent for a split second before erupting into deafening cheers and applause. Surrounded by their praise, the boy’s chest puffed out in pride. He looked like a war hero who had just won a glorious battle. Meanwhile, I stood there, dripping with raw egg, spoiled soup, and a mixture of human waste. I smelled so foul that I felt utterly disconnected from the rest of the world. Watching the boy’s triumphant, arrogant face, I suddenly lost all desire to go to the city. “Forget it. Let’s go back inside.” I turned my head and looked at Sterling, who had instinctively stepped back to avoid the splash zone. I didn’t miss the brief flash of confusion in his eyes. “I originally just wanted to see it. I wanted to see what this big, beautiful city that everyone desperately tries to claw their way into actually looked like. But seeing these people right now… I suddenly realized it’s really nothing special.” I pushed a strand of filth-soaked hair behind my ear, desperately trying to cling to my last shred of dignity. “So, I have no interest in seeing it anymore. “Let’s go back inside, Deputy Chief.” 04 Because I was a high-risk mass murderer, my handcuffs couldn’t be removed. Combined with the fact that everyone in the precinct was deeply disgusted by me, absolutely no one was willing to help me wash off the human waste. Except for one person: Clara Evans. She hadn’t left. Instead, she volunteered to help clean me up. Right now, acting as though she possessed no sense of smell whatsoever, she scrubbed me meticulously from head to toe. Watching her, I gave a hollow, sneering laugh. “Miss Evans, why are you always so obsessed with sticking your nose in other people’s business?” She didn’t answer. She just stayed silent and continued wiping the grime off my arms. A few female janitors passing by couldn’t stomach the sight. They stopped and glared at me with pure venom. “Miss Evans, why are you bothering to help that ungrateful little psychopath? Her kind doesn’t remember anything good anyone ever does for her. For what she did, dying a hundred times wouldn’t be enough!” “Yeah, exactly! She deserves to rot and die covered in her own filth!” I thought Clara Evans would nod along and join in their disgust. Instead, she threw the washcloth directly onto the wet floor. A rare flash of genuine anger appeared on her usually gentle face. “Is the case closed?” “What?” “I asked you: is the case closed?” The janitors exchanged confused glances. Clara Evans continued, her voice sharp. “You work in a police station. You are surrounded by the law every single day. Do you really lack the most basic understanding of the legal system? Even if my student is guilty, the law will judge her and pass a sentence. It is not your place to stand here and gossip like vultures.” The women stayed silent for a second before bursting into mocking laughter, looking at Clara like she was insane. “Wow. I actually thought this woman was normal. Turns out she’s an idiot trying to save a rabid dog.” “Whatever. Why are we even talking to her? It’s not like the psycho appreciates it.” “Guess we were just being nosy. Makes sense, though. What kind of ‘good teacher’ raises a mass murderer anyway?” Rolling their eyes, the women walked out of the washroom. I glanced at the back of Clara Evans’s head, fully prepared to throw out a few more sarcastic insults. Instead, she silently walked behind me. Her long, slender fingers gently combed through my wet hair. She took the small, floral hair tie she always wore on her wrist and expertly twisted my hair into a neat braid. She wasn’t bothered by my terrible attitude in the slightest. “A teacher for a day is a parent for a lifetime. Whether you acknowledge me as your teacher or not, the fact that things ended up this way means I failed to teach you properly.” My allotted shower time was short, but she continued to murmur to me softly. She talked about little, mundane things from high school. Tiny things. She even remembered the time in biology lab when I managed to nurse a dying, withered sapling back to life. So annoying. “Gemma, time’s up.” It wasn’t until a police officer knocked on the door that her hands finally stopped. Wearing cold, heavy shackles once more, I began walking toward the interrogation room—my final judgment. “Gemma.” Clara Evans suddenly called out to me. “There’s one last thing I want to say to you.” I didn’t stop walking. I just thought to myself: God, this woman is so annoying. I’m about to get the death penalty, and she still wants to give me a boring moral lecture. “Happy birthday.” My entire body violently stiffened. “Gemma. Happy 18th birthday, sweetheart.” Her voice, laced with the gentle, quiet warmth of a peaceful life, acted like a razor-sharp sword, slicing directly through the impenetrable walls around my heart. The officer escorting me paused, shooting her a strange look. “Such a nice lady. How the hell did she end up teaching a monster like you? So weird.” I turned a deaf ear to his muttering. It wasn’t until a hot drop of liquid splashed against the back of my handcuffed wrists that I snapped back to reality. I closed my eyes and mocked myself internally. Looks like I lost after all. The soft approach… it really does work. “Hey, Officer,” I whispered, aggressively wiping my tears away on my shoulder. I tugged lightly at his uniform. “Take me to Deputy Chief Sterling. I’m ready to tell the truth.” When the other officers heard that the toughest, most uncrackable suspect in the precinct was finally willing to talk, they secretly crowded around the observation window to watch. Even though there were only two people in the room with me—Sterling and the note-taker—I knew there were dozens of eyes watching from behind the two-way glass. The note-taking officer grumbled in annoyance. “What kind of ‘hidden truth’ could there possibly be? She’s just a pure psychopath. I bet you anything she’s just going to spit out more sick lies.” Despite his complaints, his eyes remained glued to me. I looked up at the ceiling and suddenly let out a laugh. It started as a low, quiet chuckle and quickly escalated into hysterical, manic laughter. Soon, involuntary tears were streaming down my face. Just as everyone in the room became convinced I had completely lost my mind… I opened my mouth and dropped a sentence that shattered everyone’s reality. 05 “Hunter is my son.”

On our wedding anniversary, Lena Dante ditched me to attend her ex-husband’s welcome dinner. The video went viral that day. Lena, usually so reserved and proud, gently embraced her ex-husband. I looked at the unknown text message on my phone: “Mr. Thompson, there was never any love between you and her, but my son needs a mother.” I chuckled. I, Alistair Thompson, the sole direct heir of the Thompson family. Anything I desired was within reach. I wouldn’t play the clown, fighting a man for a woman. 1. At the welcome dinner, photos of the couple embracing were posted online by busybodies. Rumors of the Dante family heir’s marital woes. Quickly shot to the top of the trending list. Before I could do anything. The “hot” tag that had just been there instantly vanished. Dante Corporation’s official account quickly issued a statement. And served court summons to the most aggressive commenters. All within ten minutes. After all, Lena Dante wouldn’t let anyone disrupt the alliance between the Dante and Thompson families. No sooner had I put down my phone than all the large screens across the city displayed intimate photos of Lena and me. Proclaiming my status as her rightful husband. But I found myself lost in thought, staring at the neon lighthouse. In five years, this was the first time. A woman always so meticulous, so orderly in everything she did. Had missed our anniversary. The next day, as I was about to leave. I saw Lena’s car pull into the driveway. Lena stepped out of the car, carrying an Ultraman backpack that seemed at odds with her elegant demeanor. She held a small boy by the hand. She knelt, pulling the little boy into a hug. Her eyes held a softness I had never seen before. Behind her stood a fair-skinned man in a white shirt. I recognized him, Lena’s ex-husband. She saw me by the car, paused, and then stopped. “Alistair, Tommy has to go to school here in the capital because of enrollment issues,” she said, her gaze lowered, as if explaining to me. Before I could speak, the man beside her interrupted. “Mr. Thompson, I’m sorry, I’m just a single father with my child, I really had no other choice.” I stood in my dress shoes, looking down at him, a hint of sarcasm in my demeanor. “When my wife and I are speaking, why do you interrupt?” Lena frowned but said nothing. Seeing the man’s face flush, I then turned to the somewhat serious woman. “Because of this morning’s photos, the joint ventures between the Dante and Thompson families have already dropped 10 percentage points.” My face was stern, scaring the little boy in Lena’s arms to tears. “Go away, you’re a bad uncle trying to break up my mommy and daddy!” Lena frowned, quickly patting Tommy’s back to soothe him. She looked at me with a touch of helplessness. “Alistair, it was just a hug. I’ve already arranged for someone to handle the joint venture crisis.” Her tone was resigned, but it tightened my chest. Just like the past five years. She would only protect my reputation as her husband. But it seemed she had forgotten that I also needed love. I had once taught her how to make me happy. Now, I realized. If this relationship still needed me to teach it, it was too much of a failure. “Before I return tonight, send them away.” I turned, leaving Lena with that one sentence, then drove to the office. After all, as the Thompson family heir. I didn’t have much time to waste on dealing with outsiders. I worked until late into the night. I was confident that Lena, knowing what was important, would handle the two of them. But the moment I pushed open the door, my certainty abruptly ended. “Mr. Thompson,” Ethan Davies was wearing my casual pajamas, “You’re back. I’ve asked the butler to prepare dinner for you.” My eyes narrowed. He was acting like the master of the house? I walked over, a sarcastic smile plastered on my face. I reached out and tugged at his collar. “You like wearing hand-me-downs?” Ethan’s face stiffened. Clearly, he hadn’t expected me to be completely unfazed by his provocation. “Can you give her back to me? You two don’t love each other, but my child needs his mother.” I paused my ascent up the stairs, turned, and raised an eyebrow. “Family heirs only need interests, not love,” I said with a mocking smile. “Your perspective is too narrow.” My disdainful gaze deeply wounded Ethan’s sensitive pride, his face paling. I curved my lips, preparing to leave, but the man, losing control of his emotions, blocked my way. “You know she was with me yesterday, right? But do you know what we did?” He then tapped his phone, and a hotel bedroom photo appeared on the screen. “Mr. Thompson, can you really tolerate that?” I lowered my gaze, instantly recognizing Lena Dante’s hand. The ring on that hand, I had placed it there myself. My fingers unconsciously clenched slightly. But my face remained that of the perpetually stern Thompson family scion. “Too much fine dining, sometimes you need a little wild grass, don’t you?” Ethan’s breathing hitched, his face flushing with humiliation. Back in the room, I looked at the woman who was already asleep. Her usually perfect hair was a little disheveled. I unconsciously stroked the ring on my hand. My fingertips traced from her forehead, over the bridge of her nose, finally resting on her thin lips. Lena, don’t disappoint me. 2. Waking the next day, the space beside me was cold. Opening the door, I heard laughter. It was a sound this usually quiet villa had never known. I stood at the railing, looking down at the scene below. The woman who had never once entered the kitchen in our five years of marriage was making eggs. The young man and the adorable child were playing on the sofa. I felt a mix of mockery and a pang in my eyes. For a moment, I even felt. I was the outsider. When I came downstairs, the harmonious atmosphere instantly shattered. “Alistair,” Lena said, carrying a plate, her expression showing no change. “When are you sending them away?” It was the first time I had spoken to her in such a tone. Lena didn’t answer. Instead, she settled Tommy in his high chair, and only after he was comfortable did she look up at me. With that look of restrained impatience that I despised. “I told you, he needs to go to school here.” I felt a surge of irritation. “Don’t tell me, President Dante, you can’t even sort out school enrollment!” I grew more uncontrolled with each word. “Do you want to keep the child close, or the man?” “Alistair!” Lena interrupted me, her voice firm. “Watch your words. Ethan is Tommy’s father. He’s still so young; how can he be without his father?” At this, the little boy immediately spilled a bowl of hot porridge on me, crying. “I hate you, you’re a bad uncle breaking up Mommy and Daddy!” Feeling the hot burn on my leg, I winced and frowned. My piercing gaze instantly shot to him. “I’m sorry, Tommy didn’t mean it. He just misses his mom too much.” Ethan quickly interjected, blocking my view. I suppressed the suffocating breath in my chest. It was only then that I realized how much the three of them looked like a family. And I, ridiculously, stood in opposition to them. A momentary surge of anger made me lose all reason. I looked coldly at Ethan. “Do you think the Dante family would welcome a child who, at five years old, still doesn’t know proper manners, a foolish…” “Alistair Thompson!” Lena’s voice, cold as frost, instantly extinguished my rage. Her demeanor carried an iciness I had never seen before, confronting me without emotion. “Tommy is my son, Lena Dante’s son. As my husband, you must accept his presence. And, you were out of line today.” With that, she picked up the tearful little boy and turned to leave. And Ethan, behind her, naturally took her bag. He turned back, a triumphant smirk on his face. The noisy villa instantly fell silent again. A bitter taste rose in my heart. In Lena’s mind, I was the perfect Thompson heir, and a proper, sensible husband. So I couldn’t have my own emotions. And I certainly couldn’t lose my composure… Listening to the roar of the car fading into the distance, my previously straight back finally slumped. Lena, you still disappointed me. Five years ago, there was a financial crisis. The Dante and Thompson families, as the leading powers in the capital, proposed an alliance through marriage to counter overseas capital. As the only son of the Thompson family, I chose Lena Dante, who had just divorced. I knew she had an ex-husband and a son. But at the time, I thought, who doesn’t have a past? Who doesn’t have someone they cherish? After marriage, Lena was an almost perfect woman. But when such a self-controlled and disciplined woman suddenly had her exception by her side. I realized then that I couldn’t be as calm as I thought. … The next day was Grandfather Dante’s birthday banquet. As Lena’s husband, I had to attend. In the evening, she appeared at the villa door punctually. After getting in the car, there seemed to be an invisible boundary between us. After a while, perhaps with a sigh, Lena sighed, closed the partition, and sat beside me. “Alistair,” she broke the silence, “My husband will only ever be you.” Feeling the warmth in my hand, I was somewhat lost in thought. I knew this was her way of making amends. The kaleidoscopic reflections from outside illuminated the woman’s chiseled features. Her deep eyes now mirrored only me. After getting out of the car, Lena held my hand the entire way. Leaving me somewhat dazed. But this daze was quickly shattered. “Lena,” Ethan, dressed in a traditional Chinese suit, greeted guests flowing in and out like a host. He naturally took the birthday gift from her hand, then feigned surprise, speaking timidly, “Mr… Thompson.” I frowned, not losing my composure amidst the crowd. I simply looked at Lena, my eyes filled with accusation. “He’s Tommy’s father, and Grandfather wants to see his great-grandson on his birthday.” Lena’s eyes were completely frank as she spoke. The flowers that had just begun to revive in my heart. Withered once more. “He appears so openly in the Dante family, where does that leave me?” Lena then looked at me as if startled. I let go of her hand, the warmth in my palm gradually replaced by coldness. Lena, a perfect heir who had fought her way out of the cutthroat world of powerful families. How could she not understand Ethan’s intentions? She simply didn’t intervene. She simply indulged him. Looking at the curious, scrutinizing guests around us. I wiped the bitterness from my face. And became the perfect arranged marriage partner. Amidst the flickering lights, my thoughts felt muddled, a tangled mess. Unknowingly, I found myself on the long corridor of the Dante family’s back garden, sobering up. This was also where Lena and I first met. Our tenderness began in late autumn; we came together in summer. But now, in the depths of winter, we were drifting further apart. “Mr. Thompson, still putting up with being provoked right to your face?” A clear, bell-like chuckle came from behind me. I glanced sideways. It was Serena Thorne, the current head of the Thorne family. “This isn’t like you.” She then draped her lily-of-the-valley-scented jacket over me, warding off the chill. “Just say the word, and I can make him disappear.” I didn’t find anything wrong with that; after all, without such ruthlessness. One would have long become a casualty in family feuds. “No need, he can’t stir up much trouble.” Serena suddenly moved closer, her sweet scent enveloping me. “Then why are you drowning your sorrows here?” She placed both hands on my shoulders. “When you got into that arranged marriage, I wasn’t able to resolve the obstacles in the Thorne family in time. But now, can you consider me?” Serena had always been flippant in front of me. Now, seeing her so serious, I suddenly realized the woman before me had long shed her childish innocence. “Lena and I aren’t divorced yet?” Serena looked unconcerned. “I can be the other woman for love, I’d be thrilled.” I smiled, pinching her arm a couple of times, just about to speak. But I was suddenly pulled into a strong embrace. Lena stood there, her face grim, glaring at Serena with ill intent. Two formidable women confronted each other, the temperature around them dropping noticeably. “Let’s go home.” After a while, Lena spoke first. In the car, Lena closed the partition. To my surprise, she leaned down. Unlike her usual gentle kisses, This time, the intensity made me frown. After a while, Lena, breathless, pulled away from me, her deep eyes holding an emotion I had never seen before. “Alistair, stay away from her.” 3. The pain on my lips made me push her away. But I also felt a surge of anger. I had only exchanged a couple of words with Serena. Yet, she brought Ethan into our home, what right did she have to demand anything from me? “Why?” My tone was cold. Lena looked up at my words, her deep eyes like a whirlpool, drawing me in. “Because you are my man.” I frowned, “I’m not, Ethan is.” Lena laughed at my words, her usually cool face softening. “Mr. Thompson, you’re jealous.” I pushed her away, with an unreasonable tantrum I despised even myself for. “Send them away.” The atmosphere instantly froze. Lena’s smile vanished, as if the earlier intimacy was just my imagination. “Alistair,” she smoothed her hair, sighing with extreme helplessness, “He won’t threaten you.” “Besides, Tommy is my son. I can’t abandon him.” I looked out the window at the retreating streetscape. It was then I noticed a light drizzle falling outside, blurring my vision. “I never stopped you from looking after Tommy.” Lena looked at me as if I were an unreasonable child. “Ethan raised our child alone abroad. I owe him for these five years.” A sudden, indescribable bitterness rose in my heart. “So you’re telling me I have to accept him constantly hovering in my life, is that it?” Lena lowered her gaze, turning my body towards her. Her palm gently covered my slightly reddened eyes. “I hope you can understand me. No matter what they do, my husband will only ever be you.” Listening to her defensive evasions. I suddenly found it all incredibly tedious. Including those moments I had genuinely given my heart, they now seemed so pointless. In this grand expectation, she still disappointed me. Just then, my phone rang. It was an unknown number. “Mr. Thompson, Lena and I were inconsiderate today, my apologies.” The message came with a photo of Lena holding Tommy in the moonlight, with him standing beside them, laughing. My eyes narrowed. A suffocating tightness filled my chest. A low-level tactic, but highly effective. I tossed the phone to Lena, my tone cold. “It seems I’m the third party between you two, isn’t that right?” She froze, glanced at the phone, but still instinctively defended him. “He just thought you might be uncomfortable and wanted to apologize.” I let out a laugh of anger, laced with furious sarcasm. “Lena Dante, are you playing dumb or do you truly not understand? Do I have to catch you in the act for you to admit it?!” “Alistair,” Lena said, her voice deep, with a warning tone, “Watch your language. There’s nothing improper between Ethan and me.” I scoffed, a choked sound only I could hear. “Nothing improper?” “Only when clothes are off does it count as improper, right?” The car instantly fell silent. The look in Lena’s eyes beside me was an icy coldness I had never seen before. “Alistair Thompson, don’t tell me you lack even this much tolerance!” I don’t know how to describe the feeling at this moment. Only that the field of flowers that once bloomed for her in my heart. Had become barren. I suppressed the bitterness in my heart, my eyes reddening. “I lack tolerance? Ha…” “If I did, I would have kicked them out on the very first night! Would he still be provoking me with your bed photos?” “If I did, the Thompson family would have already dealt with her when your social media photos went viral!” My sudden burst of emotion. It all stemmed from a feeling of being misunderstood. This situation was like the thorns on a rose. Pricking my heart, yet outsiders found it beautiful. Lena looked somewhat lost, turning to look at my bloodshot eyes. “I…” I turned my head, lowering the car window. Letting the drizzling rain hit my face, masking my weak tears. “Mom and Dad said I was the only one they truly cherished, the only one.” I took a deep breath, resuming the proud demeanor of a Thompson scion. “So, if to you, I am merely a dispensable product of your cost-benefit analysis, then we will inevitably part ways.” Lena’s face paled at my words, a panic she herself found startling rising in her.

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