My boyfriend lost a game of Truth or Dare and was asked about his underwear color. His female friend Jennifer immediately answered: “Red!” Then Jennifer patted my shoulder: “We’re just good friends. He doesn’t see me as a woman. I wash his underwear for him, so don’t take it personally.” I rolled my eyes: “That’s disgusting.” My boyfriend immediately changed his tone: “Watch your words!” I covered my mouth and smiled: “My male best friend washes my underwear. How could a girl do such dirty work?” Everyone fell silent. After I said that, the private room went dead quiet. My boyfriend Ethan, who had been lecturing and belittling me, froze. Jennifer shrieked: “How can you let a man wash your underwear!?” Hearing this, Ethan finally snapped back to reality. He frowned and questioned me. “Natalie, have you no shame? How can you let a man wash your underwear?” I shrugged indifferently: “Oh come on, my male best friend and I practically grew up wearing the same pants.” “I don’t see him as a man, so what’s the problem?” “Besides, my male best friend has known me for twenty years. If something was going to happen, would it be your turn?” “Don’t worry, honey.” I ruffled Ethan’s hair and smiled graciously. Ethan’s face turned iron-blue with anger. Seeing this, Jennifer quickly pressed herself against Ethan and pulled his head into her chest. “Ethan, don’t be angry. Natalie is just being petty.” “She’s definitely jealous and saying these things to upset you. As a man, don’t stoop to her level.” “If you do, we’re cutting off this brotherhood!” Ethan didn’t push Jennifer away. He leaned against her chest and looked at me. “You don’t need to compete with Jennifer. It’s pointless.” “You’re both women. Can’t you get along? She’s just a bit blunt.” Ethan spoke with an air of magnanimously forgiving me. His buddies chimed in: “Exactly, Natalie. You can’t just make jokes like that.” “A proper woman should keep her distance from men.” I glanced at them and asked: “What about Jennifer then? Why don’t you worry about her reputation?” Ethan interrupted me impatiently: “Jennifer is different.” I widened my eyes and suddenly flipped up Jennifer’s skirt: “Wait, you actually have a dick!?” Jennifer screamed and ran away, her face flushed with anger. Ethan quickly shielded her and questioned me: “Are you crazy?” I shrugged indifferently: “We’re all bros, what’s there to be shy about.” “My male best friend asked me to go get a massage. I’m leaving.” I didn’t want to hear Ethan and Jennifer’s excuses. I waved at them and turned to leave. “Oh right, my male best friend has bigger tits than you. They’re really comfortable to rest on.” “Have some more, Ethan.” I pointed at Jennifer’s flat chest at the door and laughed, then slammed the door shut. Ethan had pursued me for half a year, bringing me meals and gifts. The day we got together, quite a few people sent me anonymous messages. Telling me not to date guys with their own little clique. No problem. He has his female friends, I have my male best friend.

Ethan and I hadn’t contacted each other for three days. Jennifer suddenly added me on SnapChat and asked me to go hiking. —Natalie, Ethan just likes to sulk. I’ve been coaxing him since we were kids. —Let me apologize on Ethan’s behalf first. —Couples need to clear up misunderstandings. How about we go hiking this weekend? Looking at Jennifer’s inappropriate tone, I admired my newly done nails and readily agreed. At the foot of the mountain, Ethan, Jennifer, and two other guys were all wearing matching sun-protective clothing. Ethan hesitantly walked over and grabbed my hand: “Dear Natalie, I was so afraid you wouldn’t come.” “What happened last time really was too much. My friends are used to running wild and don’t watch their mouths. Let’s be good.” “After all, we’ve already met each other’s parents. You’ll have to get used to it eventually.” Jennifer came over and warmly draped her arm around my shoulder: “Natalie, don’t be so petty.” “You two, hurry up and apologize to Natalie. Don’t make her angry.” The other two guys exchanged glances and reluctantly said sorry. Ethan squeezed my hand and coaxed: “You should feel better now, right?” “My buddies have never lowered themselves like this to apologize to anyone.” “Natalie, shouldn’t you show some appreciation?” Ethan unscrewed a bottle of water and handed it to me, hinting that I should say something conciliatory. Fine. Considering how thoughtful he was being, I cleared my throat. “Thank you guys.” “Natalie!” One of the guys jumped in anger. I quickly hid behind Ethan and wiped away tears. “Ethan, look, they’re so mean. They don’t like me at all.” “Maybe I should just leave?” Probably because he hadn’t seen me act vulnerable in so long, Ethan was instantly smitten. His protective instinct exploded as he stood in front of me: “Enough. Natalie is my fiancée, after all.” The two guys couldn’t say anything more. But Jennifer suddenly grabbed the water bottle from Ethan’s hand and chugged it aggressively. She drank quite boldly, water spilling out and soaking the front of her shirt. Then she unzipped her jacket, revealing the cleavage she’d pushed up. And the ring necklace around her neck. I recognized it immediately. It was the couple’s ring Ethan and I shared. “Natalie, you don’t mind me drinking Ethan’s water, right? We’ve been sharing cups since we were kids.” “Pure friendship. You can’t expect Ethan to lose all his friends just because he has a girlfriend.” Ethan didn’t notice. He frowned as he searched for tissues for Jennifer. I saw Jennifer raise her eyebrows at me provocatively. Seeing that I remained silent, Jennifer deliberately touched the necklace at her chest and continued. “We all apologized. Shouldn’t Natalie apologize too?” “Making up a man just to save face made Ethan cry for days.” Jennifer acted like she was seeking justice for Ethan. Ethan looked at me, frowning: “Natalie, you really did go too far.” I didn’t say anything. A guy in athletic wear with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and striking looks walked over. He took the water from my hand and took a sip. “Sorry I’m late. I’m Natalie’s male best friend.”

Blake’s timing was perfect. I affectionately linked my arm through his and introduced him. “This is Blake. My male best friend. We were born on the same day, same month, same year.” “He’s a friend too. I invited him to hike with us. You guys don’t mind, right?” Ethan pushed Jennifer aside and pulled me over. “Natalie! How can you link arms with another guy!?” I blinked and smiled: “Blake isn’t just anyone. He’s family.” “You’re not jealous of my male best friend, are you? Don’t be so petty.” “I don’t see him as a man at all.” As I spoke, I broke free from Ethan’s grip and patted Blake’s muscular shoulder with a smile. “Natalie, come back here!” Ethan’s face turned completely dark. After all, Blake was exceptionally good-looking, even somewhat overshadowing him. No matter how you looked at it, he was definitely a man. Blake held my hand, revealing the silver ring on his pinky finger. “Don’t misunderstand. We grew up sleeping in the same bed. If I liked Natalie, what chance would you have?” His voice was pleasant, though emotionless. But the provocative intent was clear. Ethan’s face turned bright red. He glared at Blake hatefully. “Natalie has a boyfriend now. Can you keep your distance!?” Before Blake could respond, I smiled: “Ethan, how can you be so selfish?” “I can’t just abandon my best friend because I have a boyfriend.” Ethan clenched both fists: “He’s a man!” I waved my hand: “I don’t see him as a man. Jennifer, talk some sense into Ethan.” “Why is he being such a jealous little man!?” Jennifer stood behind Ethan, as if just coming to her senses. She stood on her tiptoes, draped her arms around Ethan’s neck, and laughed awkwardly: “Come on, let’s go hiking.” “Ethan, you can’t make all of us childhood friends wait here.” Unfortunately, Ethan was too angry right now. He wasn’t buying it. He suddenly rushed over, pointing at the ring on Blake’s hand: “Why is your ring on his hand?” I patted my head: “Oh my, he said he liked it last time.” “It’s fine to lend it to him for a couple days.” Blake picked up where I left off: “We’ve shared everything since childhood. What’s mine is hers.” Ethan was so angry he nearly stamped his feet. He shouted: “That’s our couple’s ring!” “Natalie, this is cheating!” His eyes were bloodshot, as if he was about to cry. I dropped my smile and lifted my chin: “Then what is Jennifer wearing around her neck?” Ethan turned to look, then yanked the ring from Jennifer’s neck. “When did you take my ring!?” Jennifer’s neck was pulled red, her eyes tearing up from the pain: “Ethan, that hurts.” “It’s just a stupid ring. Why are you so angry?” The two guys behind Jennifer also came over to defend her: “Ethan, now you’ve gone too far.” “Back in the day we even shared socks!” I licked my lips and smiled: “Do you share girlfriends too?” The two guys fell silent, their faces flushed with anger. Ethan quickly put the ring back on: “Natalie, look. I got mine back.” “Put yours back on too. Don’t be angry anymore.” Seeing Ethan’s sincerity, I decided to give him a little reward. I put the couple’s ring back on. Ethan breathed a sigh of relief. During the hike, Ethan carried my bag and handed me fruit. He stayed by my side, attentive like when he first pursued me. Jennifer tried to chat him up several times, but Ethan ignored her. She clenched her fists in anger, glaring at me as if she wanted to tear me apart. “Natalie, I know you’re bothered by my relationship with Jennifer, so you deliberately found someone to upset me.” “Making you jealous was my fault. I’ll definitely keep my distance from her from now on.” I glanced at him but didn’t respond. Ethan quickly repeated: “How much did you pay this actor? I’ll cover it.” “Don’t let him show up again!” With that, Ethan transferred five thousand dollars to my account on SnapChat, noting it as a voluntary gift. I looked at my phone and threw myself into Ethan’s arms, glancing at Jennifer. “Why did you transfer so much money to me?” Jennifer walked over, somewhat sourly asking: “How much did he transfer?” “Natalie doesn’t know—Ethan used to transfer me thirty, fifty thousand at a time.” She tried to peek at my phone screen, then turned to Ethan: “Hey, don’t forget your buddy.” “Why didn’t you transfer any to me?” Ethan looked at my face and said impatiently: “Jennifer, settle down. Can’t you see Natalie’s unhappy?” Jennifer’s face went pale. She plopped down on the ground, saying her ankle was sprained. “Ethan, carry me up the mountain.” Her voice carried a crying tone. “It hurts so much I can’t walk.” I looked up. Those two guys had somehow already walked to the very front. Jennifer shot me a provocative look. “Ethan, have you forgotten how I brought you home when you got lost in the mountains?” “We’re pure friends. Natalie won’t mind if I’m hurt.” Ethan, who had been so assertive just moments ago, immediately caved when he saw Jennifer cry. He looked at me: “Natalie…” “Jennifer is my friend, after all.” Jennifer: “Natalie wouldn’t just leave me to suffer, would she?” I smiled sweetly: “Of course not.” I beckoned to Blake, and he crouched in front of me. “I’m tired too. See you at the summit.” I climbed onto Blake’s back, my view suddenly rising. “We’re all friends. I understand. You guys are definitely pure friendship!” Blake carried me forward. Ethan left Jennifer behind and chased after me. “Natalie! Didn’t we agree no more actors?” My voice was troubled: “Ethan, Blake is my male best friend. Why won’t you believe me?” By the time we reached the summit, Ethan had completely settled down. He didn’t even glance at Jennifer. When everyone went to get their lunch boxes, Jennifer sidled up to me with a dark expression. “I really underestimated you.” “You think finding someone to provoke Ethan will make him give up our relationship? Dream on!” I also dropped my smile and asked her: “You like Ethan?” Jennifer sneered, confident of victory: “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll back out. The only woman for Ethan is me.” I shook my head. Jennifer threatened: “You know Emma, right? If you don’t wise up, you’ll end up just like her!” Emma was Ethan’s ex-girlfriend. They’d only dated two months before she jumped off a building. Her explicit photos had been posted all over campus. I trembled and stepped back half a step. Jennifer thought I was scared. As she flashed me a triumphant smile, I suddenly raised my hand and slapped her hard across the face.

The commotion here was too loud. Several guys quickly walked over. I crashed into Ethan’s arms, crying piteously. “Ethan, Jennifer bullied me.” Jennifer took two steps toward me, covering her face and shouting: “You slapped me! Who’s bullying who!?” “Ethan, you can’t play favorites.” “Jennifer is the victim here.” Ethan’s face turned iron-blue as he asked what happened. Jennifer suddenly pushed me aside and grabbed Ethan’s hand, making him touch her face. “Ethan, my face is swollen and you’re still not going to get justice for me!?” Ethan frowned at me: “Natalie, how could you hit her? That’s too much!” I wiped my tears: “But Jennifer said I should watch out for Emma’s ghost coming to my bedside at night.” As soon as I finished speaking, not only Ethan froze, but the other two guys’ faces also turned ashen. For them, Emma’s suicide was the result of their “jokes” going too far. Ethan suddenly pushed Jennifer: “You’re crazy. We’re never associating again.” Ethan grabbed my hand and left. Behind us came the complaints of the two guys: “Didn’t we agree never to mention that name again?” “Jennifer, what’s wrong with your brain?” None of that mattered. What mattered was that Ethan promised me he’d never have anything to do with Jennifer again. After Ethan left, I vigorously wiped my hands with a wet wipe. Blake stood at the door smoking. I asked him: “How’s Emma?” He exhaled smoke, his expression grim. I nodded and took a deep breath. Three days later, it was Ethan’s birthday. The birthday party was held at his family’s villa. It was the same familiar group of friends, except this time Jennifer wasn’t there. Ethan warmly held my hand: “Natalie, I really love you so much.” “Let’s get engaged in a couple days, okay?” Before cutting the cake, his buddies insisted on giving gifts first. So a huge pink cardboard box was wheeled in, tied with a pink bow. Ethan was urged by everyone to open the gift. When the lid opened, Jennifer suddenly stood up from the box wearing a camisole minidress. “Happy birthday!” Jennifer pushed her chest together and struck a sexy pose. Everyone screamed. The men’s eyes went straight, calling her sexy. After all, a buddy turning into a goddess was quite sensational. I watched calmly as Ethan took Jennifer’s hand and asked: “Didn’t we say we’d cut off contact?” Ethan opened his mouth: “Natalie, Jennifer is my buddy after all.” “I ignored her for three whole days. That’s punishment enough. She knows she was wrong.” “Don’t be so petty. Jennifer already told me that Blake is from the theater department at school.” “You deliberately hired a male actor. This really embarrassed me.” “How could you be so intimate with a strange man!” I looked at him expressionlessly: “So what does Jennifer tying herself up with ribbons and presenting herself as a gift mean?” “Should I get you guys a bed?” Jennifer’s eyes reddened again as she loudly protested: “How can you insult my pure relationship with Ethan like this!” “He used to jerk off while I helped him, and we never had sex.” “Natalie, stop being so jealous all the time.” Ethan looked at me matter-of-factly: “Yeah, Natalie, be reasonable. I won’t have feelings for her.” I smiled and asked: “How long does he last?” Jennifer answered boldly: “Over twenty minutes! Natalie, don’t pry into our business between men.” I pretended to be shocked and exclaimed: “What? That short? My male best friend lasts forty to fifty minutes.” “Looks like the gift he picked for me is quite appropriate.” I handed over the smallest size condom. The atmosphere turned awkward again. The smile on Ethan’s face immediately vanished: “Natalie, I already told you.” “Stop hiring actors to upset me. I won’t believe it.” I spread my hands and smiled: “Why won’t you believe me? Blake and I have been classmates since kindergarten.” “Ask anyone.” “Be a bigger man. Don’t keep getting triggered. I won’t discriminate against you just because you can’t match his performance.” Ethan suddenly grabbed my hand: “Natalie! Even if he’s your male best friend, how can you two be so filthy!” I pointed at Jennifer. “What’s the problem? We’re childhood friends. How can you defile our pure relationship?” “Unless you think Jennifer is filthy too?” Ethan froze. His face flushed as he stammered without getting anywhere. Finally, he seemed to compromise, grabbing my sleeve: “Natalie, stop seeing that Blake.” “We’re getting engaged.” I asked in confusion: “What about your female friends?” Ethan suddenly kicked Jennifer out: “What are you doing here!? So embarrassing.” “Jennifer, don’t appear in front of me again!” Jennifer angrily cursed outside: “Ethan, don’t you want your daddy anymore!? Got some wings now!” “Don’t forget how I used to help you fall asleep!” “When you rested your head on my chest, you didn’t think I was embarrassing!” I pushed Ethan aside and smiled at Jennifer: “Jennifer, why are you making such a fuss?” “Aren’t you good buddies?” Jennifer glared: “You relationship-wrecking homewrecker! Just you wait.” With that, she left in anger. I turned to Ethan understandingly: “I’m not forcing you to cut ties. Talk things through with her properly.” “After so many years of friendship, can you sort it out in a week?” Ethan emotionally pulled me into his arms: “Natalie, you’re so understanding.” As soon as I left Ethan’s villa, I took off my jacket and threw it in the trash, then got in Blake’s car. “Bastard and his mistress.” I couldn’t help venting to Blake. Blake smiled and patted my head: “Thanks for your hard work.” Jennifer’s threats weren’t a joke. That very night, a post appeared on the campus confession page. Titled: My twenty-year buddy’s girlfriend is domineering and insists we cut ties. The post went viral. Countless people replied, and it was quickly pinned to the top.

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Two kids in my class got into an argument and started fighting. I got pushed to the ground by one of them. I had no choice but to call both children’s parents in. After the two mothers arrived, things got even more heated. Clutching my aching stomach, I called my boyfriend and asked him to come pick me up. The call was quickly disconnected. Then he sent me a text: “In a company meeting. We’ll talk tonight.” One of the boys’ mothers also called her husband. Ten minutes later, her husband rushed over. He pulled that mother into his arms and gently comforted her: “Baby, don’t be upset. I’ll handle this.” The next second, he looked up. Our eyes met, and I nearly collapsed. This man was none other than Ethan Rivers—the man I’d been dating for eight years. Ethan stared at me for a few seconds, a flicker of confusion passing through his eyes. I’d been too weak from the pain before, but in that moment I was so shocked I forgot about the agony. Ethan lowered his head and asked the woman in his arms, “What happened?” The woman quickly explained the situation. After hearing her out with a frown, Ethan efficiently called in a lawyer and even contacted the police. A whole crowd of people arrived. My gaze fixed on Ethan at the center of the group. I watched him comfort the mother and son in his arms, watched him handle the trouble with swift decisiveness. His eyes occasionally landed on me, only to quickly look away. Before long, the other parent was defeated and left with their child, utterly humiliated. The boy’s mother’s tears turned to laughter. She stood on tiptoe, cupped Ethan’s face, and kissed his cheek. “Thank you! You always drop everything to save me!” Ethan naturally wrapped his arm around her waist. “I promised when I married you that I’d take care of you for life.” The little boy also hugged Ethan’s leg, calling him the best dad. My lips turned pale, my fingers trembling slightly. A thousand questions stuck in my throat, but seeing this happy family of three before me, I swallowed them all down—like swallowing shards of glass, tearing me up inside and making me bleed. Just then, the boy’s mother came over with her child’s hand in hers and said to me, “Sorry for causing you trouble, Teacher. My son pushed you earlier too, right? To apologize, my husband and I would like to take you out for a meal.” I instinctively looked at Ethan. He frowned as our eyes met and gently shook his head. I looked at him, my voice hoarse. “Sure.” Ethan’s brow furrowed instantly, but I turned my head away. The boy’s mother came over and took my hand, then smiled. “I’m young, so my husband treats me like his second child. Whenever either of us has problems, we only turn to him.” I nodded bitterly, thinking about how during our eight years together, knowing how busy he was building his business from nothing, I never dared trouble him with anything big or small. When I taught at the school and was trapped in the office by unreasonable parents hurling abuse, I could only bow and apologize to the parents and children over and over. When gastritis struck late at night while I was writing lesson plans, I went to get an IV alone. When I moved, I carried all my luggage up to the sixth floor by myself, just wanting to set up our first home together after we started living together. These memories never made me feel bitter because I thought he was working hard for our future. But now, at this moment, it all seemed like a joke. The boy’s mother made a restaurant reservation and pulled me to the garage. I’d never seen Ethan drive the car in front of us. Before getting in, she realized she’d forgotten the child’s backpack and turned back to get it. I stood beside the car, my stomach still hurting badly. I held onto the car door to steady myself. I looked up and saw Ethan’s anxious face. He urgently asked me, “What’s wrong?” I pushed him away, but then his son called out “Dad.” He immediately let go and, after glancing at me, turned and got in the car.

After getting in the car, the boy’s mother introduced herself: “I’m Bethany White, and my husband is Ethan Rivers.” She seemed very interested in me and asked, “Joanna, do you have a boyfriend?” I stared at Ethan in the driver’s seat. His eyes met mine through the mirror. I answered, “Yes. We’ve been together for eight years. He chased me for two years.” “Wow, a ten-year relationship!” Bethany exclaimed. “Ethan and I met four years ago, got married four years ago, and our son is four years old too!” “Ethan and I fell in love at first sight. I got too drunk at a bar and ran into Ethan… That was my first time. The next day, he was still asleep when I snuck back to my dorm—I was still in college then. Later I found out I was pregnant. I was so panicked I didn’t know what to do, so I went to find him. Ethan was so responsible—he immediately said he’d take me to get our marriage license and take care of me forever.” Ethan freed one hand and ruffled her hair. “Alright, you talk too much. You have to tell everyone about these things.” She playfully grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “What’s wrong? Are you embarrassed?” Hearing her words felt like knives precisely stabbing into my heart. Back in college, Ethan and I had just gotten together. The first time, he refused to use protection, insisting he wanted to “really feel my presence.” I was coaxed and half-persuaded by him. Half a month later, I found out I was pregnant. Back then, Ethan stared at the pregnancy test showing two lines and smoked for half the night. Finally, he knelt before me, his voice hoarse: “Let’s terminate it. We can’t afford to raise it right now.” An abortion was too expensive, so we could only choose medication. The medication abortion left me in agony. What’s more, the doctor informed us that I would have difficulty getting pregnant again. After learning the consequences, Ethan slapped himself over and over, saying he was inhuman. He slapped his handsome face until it swelled badly, then stared at me with those deep eyes and swore: “I, Ethan Rivers, will only ever be good to Joanna in this life. I’ll be good to Joanna Clarke forever. If I can’t do that, may I die without anyone to mourn me!” Recalling all this, I looked at the four-year-old boy beside me. How come the person who betrayed true love didn’t get his comeuppance?

Bethany booked a Japanese restaurant. This was my favorite restaurant. I’d brought Ethan here many times, and we’d promised to keep eating here until we grew old. As Bethany walked inside, she told me, “This is the first restaurant Ethan brought me to. After eating here once, I fell in love with it. We come here often.” She sat down, and Ethan and their son Zachary naturally sat beside her. Ethan’s gaze still occasionally fell on me. He seemed afraid I might say something. I lowered my head and took a sip of tea, but my hand was shaking. Bethany added me on SnapChat and chatted warmly with me. She seemed to intentionally or unintentionally show off their affection in front of me—asking Ethan to serve her food one moment, then leaning on his shoulder the next. Ethan cooperatively and attentively peeled shrimp and placed them on her plate. I remembered him saying he was allergic to seafood and didn’t like it, so I, who grew up by the sea, stopped eating seafood too. I suddenly realized Ethan and I hadn’t eaten together like this in a very long time. He was busy every day, so busy we rarely even saw each other. In the past year or two, he said he was staying at the company, so we’d be living together much later. Just then, Bethany looked up and asked me, “Joanna, why haven’t you and your boyfriend gotten married after dating for eight years?” I raised my head and met Ethan’s gaze. “He said he wants to wait until his career is stable before starting a family.” Those were Ethan’s exact words. He built his business from scratch—the entire company was something he fought for himself. I understood how hard he worked and believed in our relationship, so I never brought up marriage. Who would have thought he’d already been married for four years behind my back? Bethany’s face glowed with happiness. “Ethan and I got married so fast. The day after I told him I was pregnant, he ordered a ring and proposed to me.” I suddenly felt like all my understanding before had been a joke. “That’s enough.” Ethan suddenly spoke, his voice somewhat stiff. “Stop talking.” Bethany froze, then pouted pitifully. “You’re being mean to me…” Ethan sighed and ruffled her hair. “I’m not being mean to you. Just eat.” Watching this scene, I suddenly felt my stomach churning.

“I’m going to the restroom.” I stood up, my legs somewhat weak. Bethany was still acting cute and didn’t notice my expression. Ethan’s gaze followed me, but I pretended not to see. The restroom lights were bright—blindingly bright. I leaned against the sink and looked down to discover bloodstains on my pants. My mind buzzed. My stomach still ached dully—it hadn’t stopped since the tutoring center. I’d thought I’d just hit the corner of a desk, but now it seemed much more serious. I pulled out my phone and called my best friend. “Nina… are you still busy? Could you come pick me up? I think… I’m sick…” Nina immediately panicked. “Send me your location! I’m coming right now!” I gave her the location, hung up, and leaned against the sink. Everything I’d experienced today left me physically and mentally exhausted, deeply distressed. Just then, the restroom door was pushed open. It was Ethan. His expression showed a flash of guilt and panic. “Joanna,” he spoke first. I looked at him without saying anything. He took a step closer. Seeing I didn’t resist, he tried to reach for me. My reaction was quick—the next second, I slapped him hard across the face. He turned his head aside, pressed his lips together, and said in a low voice, “I’m sorry, but it’s not what you think.” My voice was very soft. “Then what is it?” He tried to move closer again. I dodged slightly, but he looked hurt. “Four years ago, someone got me drunk. When I woke up the next day, I didn’t remember anything—just that some young woman came into the wrong room. Then Bethany found me.” “She was only twenty that year—too young. She cried so much and told me she didn’t know what to do. She was so young—I couldn’t let her ruin her whole life because of me.” I couldn’t help it—I slapped him again. “Ethan Rivers, do you remember how old I was when you made me have an abortion?” He looked blank for a moment. My tears fell. “I was only nineteen.” His eyes immediately reddened, and his voice dropped very low. “I’m sorry, Joanna.” “Back then the doctor said you’d have difficulty getting pregnant again, so I treasure this child.” “Ethan Rivers.” I cut him off. “Let go of me.” He didn’t let go. “I’ll spend more time with you after I finish up some work. Don’t make a scene now, okay?”

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Elias is the Alpha of the Dubois pack, and I’ve had a crush on him for years. The year we both turned eighteen, neither of us had found our mates yet, so I worked up the courage to confess my feelings to him. But I discovered he’d been drugged with an aphrodisiac. Without hesitation, I had sex with him to counteract the drug’s effects. Our sex was intense. During the process, he marked me, and I became his mate. When he came to his senses, he looked at me with utter disgust. I thought that given enough time together, he would eventually fall in love with me. But on our wedding night, I felt a soul-tearing pain. I realized Elias was cheating on me. I went to find him, only to discover him having sex with my sister Vivian. That’s when I learned he’d been in love with my sister all along. After I caught them, Elias didn’t even panic. He wrapped his arm around Vivian and burned me alive in a fire. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day Elias was drugged with the aphrodisiac. Looking at Elias with his flushed face and labored breathing, I called for Vivian.

Elias opened his eyes with difficulty. A flash of disgust crossed his pupils as he said hoarsely, “Get away from me.” When he saw clearly who the woman before him was, he suddenly froze. “Vivian, why is it you?” He looked around and spotted me coming over to check on the situation. In my past life, I was the first to throw myself at him, having sex with Elias without hesitation to counteract the drug. But the first thing he did after coming to his senses was push me away, his eyes filled with revulsion. He showered for two hours straight, as if he’d just touched something filthy. But now… “Elias, I’m so glad you’re okay. I…” Vivian’s body was covered in intimate marks, her expression a mix of concern and coy embarrassment. She hesitated, deliberately covering her lips with her hand. Elias understood. He said nothing. He left with Vivian in his arms, not sparing me another glance. I knew Elias had been secretly drugged with an aphrodisiac, which caused him to lose control. In my previous life, he quickly found the culprit, so there was no need for me to remind him unnecessarily. The night wind was biting cold. I developed a fever that same evening. “Knock, knock.” My mind was fuzzy when I opened the door to see Elias. I instantly snapped awake. “…Why are you here?” Elias leaned lazily against the doorframe, giving me a casual glance. “Clara, what game are you playing now?” I looked at him in confusion. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Elias let out a cold snort. “In front of all those people, you deliberately called Vivian to have sex with me. Doesn’t her reputation matter? How can you be so selfish?” I felt a tightness in my chest. I wanted to ask him what exactly he expected me to do. If I saved him, that was wrong. If I called for his beloved, that was also wrong. I should have just left him there to fend for himself. “Think whatever you want.” I sniffled, speaking slowly. “If there’s nothing else, I’d like to rest now. I’m not feeling well.” Elias probably thought I was putting on an act to gain his sympathy. He smiled with a curl of his lip. “Playing hard to get? Clara, you’re getting more and more tricks up your sleeve.” “If you’re not feeling well, take medicine. I’m not a doctor.” Watching his retreating figure, I let out a long sigh. Everyone in the Dubois pack knew I liked Elias—liked him in a way that was both humble and stubborn. He said long hair was gentle, so from childhood to now, I’d always kept my hair long, never changing my hairstyle. He also said light-colored clothes looked nice, so dark colors disappeared from my wardrobe entirely. He liked quiet, elegant girls, so I turned down party after party to practice piano and violin at home. It took the painful lesson of my previous life to understand. Vivian met all the conditions he mentioned, simply because she was the one he loved. And no matter how hard I tried or what I became standing before him, I didn’t deserve even a passing glance from him. Soon, news spread that Vivian had sex with Elias to counteract the drug. When something happened to him, the entire territory was in turmoil. Several people in security uniforms found me. “Miss Clara, please cooperate with the investigation.” They said that because I was the first to discover Elias had been drugged, I was the prime suspect. I didn’t understand. “But I saved him.” The security guard looked apologetic. “Elias says we can’t rule out the possibility that you orchestrated this whole thing to claim credit for saving him.” I froze. Claiming credit? So that’s what Elias thought of me. They forcibly took me to a storage room in the territory and locked me in, even though I warned them this was illegal. The only response I got was: “Elias will take full responsibility.” “He said not to let you out until the truth is uncovered.”

A day and a night later, they finally released me. After I got out, I heard Elias had already dealt with the drugging incident. After the banquet ended, he personally escorted Vivian home. When I arrived, I heard Elias saying, “Vivian saved me. I’ve already marked her. She will be the Luna of the Dubois pack, and I will hold a wedding ceremony with her.” My footsteps halted. Even though I’d already resolved to give up on Elias completely in this life, hearing those words still caused a sharp pain in my heart. He believed Vivian saved him and wanted to marry her. But if I had been the one to do it, he would only think I was throwing myself at him shamelessly. In my previous life, the gossip in our social circle became so intense that it reached my father’s ears. My father was the Beta of the Dubois pack. He personally asked Elias, and only then did Elias reluctantly agree to marry me. In this life, Elias couldn’t wait to marry Vivian. When Vivian saw me at home, she put on a conflicted expression. “That’s not right, Dad. Clara likes Elias. People can say what they want about me, but Clara would be so hurt.” My father hadn’t even spoken yet. Elias’s tall figure blocked my way through the door. “Since you’ve already heard, I might as well make things clear.” “Clara, I don’t like you. No matter how much effort you put in, it’s all wasted. You’d better accept it sooner rather than later. It’s better for both of us.” I replied softly, “Yes, don’t worry.” “I won’t bother you and Vivian anymore. I wish you both happiness.” Elias narrowed his eyes, studying me intently. Behind me came my father’s sigh. “Girl, you should have figured this out earlier. You’re eighteen now. Focus on finding your mate from now on.” I tried my best to ignore Elias’s penetrating gaze and nodded with a smile. “Okay.” After getting engaged to Vivian, Elias began frequenting our house. Before, seeing him even once was like reaching for the sky. I had to ask his friends about his whereabouts and endure being mocked as a simp without getting angry. Now, in the past two weeks, I’d seen him more times than the entire previous year combined. Yet I felt no happiness at all. Vivian always pretended to be kind while actually showing off. “Clara, these are the roses Elias sent. Want me to give you one?” “This is a jewelry necklace Elias specially ordered from Europe. Want to borrow it? He’s sent me so many things, I can’t even wear them all.” Yet in my previous life, even our wedding rings were ones I bought for Elias. While I was lost in thought, Vivian suddenly broke the necklace. The lustrous pearls scattered across the floor, rolling to a pair of black leather shoes. “Elias!” She threw herself at him pitifully, glancing at me. “Clara must have done it accidentally. Please don’t blame her. It’s my fault for not protecting the things you gave me…” Elias’s face darkened. “Clara, you act so understanding in front of your father, but the moment he goes on a business trip, your true colors show, don’t they?” “You’ve loved bullying Vivian since childhood. Haven’t you had enough yet?” A bitter taste spread through my throat. I said word by word, “I didn’t do it.” Vivian immediately lowered her head. “Elias, it’s all my fault. I’m the one to blame.” Elias shielded her behind him, his tone carrying an obvious warning. “Before, your family affairs weren’t my business, but now Vivian is my mate.” “For the time being, I’ll move in here until your father returns.” In the past, I would have been overjoyed to live under the same roof as him. Seeing my silence, Elias paused, then reminded me, “Behave yourself. Keep your distance from me so Vivian doesn’t get the wrong idea.” That night, Vivian acted coquettishly, asking Elias to blow-dry her hair. She deliberately made enough noise to ensure I’d notice. When I walked past, I didn’t slow my steps for even a moment. Elias had no reaction either. But the next day, when he saw I’d suddenly cut my hair short, he wore a knowing smile. “Did you cut it specifically for me to see?”

“No, you’re reading too much into it.” Even without last night’s scene, I’d already scheduled this haircut for today. Elias clearly didn’t believe me. He looked me up and down. “You should know I don’t like women with short hair. Using this trick to get my attention is rather foolish.” I ignored him and went straight to my room, changing into a red dress I hadn’t worn in a long time. The vivid color was particularly eye-catching. Elias stood at the railing, casting an indifferent glance my way, but the hand resting on the banister was gripping it tightly. Prominent veins appeared on the back of his hand. Just then, Vivian hugged him from behind. “Elias, Clara has changed so much lately. Is she still upset about us getting married? Has she not forgiven us?” Elias withdrew his gaze. “Let her make a scene.” “Once she realizes this approach doesn’t work, she’ll stop trying to seduce me.” I left without looking back, meeting the blind date my father had arranged for me at a café. This should have been our first meeting, yet it felt like we were old friends. We had a wonderful conversation and got along very well. That evening when I came home, I was humming a tune happily. But I was surprised to see Elias sitting on the living room sofa, bent forward slightly, looking very uncomfortable. In my previous life, he was my mate after all. I’d spent time with him and knew he had some heart problems. He probably didn’t want to worry Vivian, so he was sitting here forcing himself to endure it. I hadn’t intended to care, but I was in a good mood today. Plus, I didn’t want him to have an incident at my house that could negatively affect my father. After hesitating, I spoke up. “The medicine cabinet is in the second drawer of the white cabinet.” Elias looked up, and our eyes met. He probably expected me to get it for him. He sat there without moving, just a light sneer at the corner of his lips. “What, Clara, are you trying to use this opportunity to claim credit for saving me again?” Before he even finished speaking, I turned around and went back to my room. So I didn’t notice the man’s smile freezing slightly, or the gradually deepening look in his eyes. Things remained peaceful for a few days. Until Elias suddenly threw a lace bra in my face, his face full of rage. “Clara, how can you be so shameless?” I had no idea what was happening. I stood there stunned, instinctively catching it and looking—it really was my bra… A wave of humiliation washed over me. “Wh-what do you mean?” Elias sneered. “I almost believed you’d really given up on me. Turns out you’re just playing hard to get.” “On the surface, you act like you don’t care about me anymore, but behind the scenes, you secretly put your underwear on my bed to seduce me. Are you really that desperate, that starved for a man’s attention?” I hastily explained, “There must be some misunderstanding. I didn’t…” “Stop making excuses, Clara. You truly disgust me.” Elias looked at me with disappointment. He took Vivian’s hand and strode out. “I’m taking Vivian back to my place. Next time we meet, I’ll be your brother-in-law.” Their wedding ceremony was officially scheduled. Vivian had no friends in the territory, so my father asked me to be her bridesmaid. He returned on the day of the ceremony, taking my hand and speaking earnestly. “Vivian is getting married. Now it’s just you left.” I touched the couple’s bracelet on my right wrist, my cheeks warming slightly. “Well… I’ve met my mate too.” My father looked surprised. “When did this happen? Why didn’t you ever mention it to me?” I hadn’t expected to meet my mate so quickly after being reborn either. We’d just confirmed our relationship and didn’t know each other very well yet. I was too shy to introduce him. But in Elias’s eyes, this looked like a guilty conscience. He curled his lip mockingly, probably not taking it seriously, thinking I was lying. But seeing how certain I was, his brow furrowed slightly, and he seemed inexplicably irritated. When no one was around, he cornered me at the restroom exit, leaning close to my ear and saying in a low voice: “As long as you’re sensible and don’t harbor unrealistic fantasies, I’ll still treat you like a sister, like before. I’ll make time to keep you company.” I said seriously, “I have a boyfriend now. I definitely won’t cling to you anymore.” Elias scoffed. “Wasn’t it you who deliberately put your lace underwear on my bed to seduce me?” “No!” In the distance, Vivian watched this scene jealously, resentment flashing in her eyes. Before the wedding began, chaos suddenly erupted backstage. Vivian was crying, saying several werewolves had taken advantage of the confusion to break in and try to rape her. She’d fought desperately and barely escaped. When everyone gathered around to comfort her… Her gaze locked directly on me. “Clara, I know you’ve liked Elias for nearly ten years, but you can’t blame me just because you can’t have him.” “Elias is already my mate. Why did you have to pay those werewolves to ruin the wedding I’ve been looking forward to?” The crowd erupted in shocked murmurs. I’d once pursued Elias so publicly and dramatically—I was indeed the most likely person to do such a thing. When Elias arrived after hearing the news, Vivian buried her face in his chest, sobbing. “Elias, maybe I should just give you back to Clara. Otherwise, I can’t imagine what crazy things she might do in the future…” Slap! A heavy slap landed on my face. This wasn’t the first time Elias had humiliated me publicly, but it was the first time he’d been pushed far enough to physically strike me. I looked at his furious expression, my eyes growing dim. “Alpha Elias, are you ever willing to believe me? Even once?” “Do you even deserve that?” He looked down at me coldly as I fell to the ground, cruel and merciless. “Since you don’t know your place, don’t blame me for not showing you any courtesy.” “I’ll explain things to your father myself. Someone, do it.” He had those werewolf brothers cut up my dress and use lipstick to write “SLUT” on my face. He said he wanted to use the same methods I’d supposedly used to bully Vivian to properly punish me. I kept crying and struggling. Until someone coldly shouted, “Stop!” A pair of familiar hands picked me up. I buried my face desperately in the man’s chest. I faintly heard Elias’s voice suddenly deepen, seemingly tinged with displeasure as he demanded: “Who are you? What’s your relationship with Clara?”

My dress had been cut to shreds, practically to the point of indecent exposure. Leo tenderly took off his suit jacket to cover me, using his tie to wipe the lipstick from my face. Only then did he spare a glance for Elias. “Do you really need to ask?” “Can’t you tell? I’m Clara’s boyfriend.” Elias clenched his fists, his gaze fixed intently on Leo’s hand around my waist. On his wrist was a bracelet similar to mine—matching couple’s bracelets. Two seconds later, he suddenly relaxed his tense nerves. He wore an expression as if he’d seen through everything. “Clara, you’re quite something. You even know to hire someone to help you put on a show.” “Where did you find this actor? He’s pretty convincing, I’ll give you that.” Seeing Elias’s attention had been diverted, Vivian started crying plaintively again. “Clara, if you have a boyfriend, you should let go of your feelings for Elias even sooner. Why make such a big scene?” “Even if you’ve ruined my wedding today, do you really think you’ll have a chance to marry Elias yourself someday?” Elias sneered. “She’s delusional!” My father must have received word and came from the front hall. He still didn’t understand what had happened. He only saw me being held in Leo’s arms, their posture intimate. He asked in bewilderment: “Alpha Leo… what’s going on between you and Clara?” As his words fell… Elias froze, his expression changing. He muttered to himself, “Alpha Leo of the Ashclaw pack…” He finally recognized Leo’s identity. An inexplicable sense of unease rose in his heart. But he still maintained his surface composure, chin slightly raised. A cold laugh escaped him. “I didn’t realize the Alpha of the Ashclaw pack had so much free time.” “Coming all this way just to play house with a little girl in a pretend couple’s game?” Leo completely ignored him, answering my father’s question instead. “I’ll explain the details about Clara and me to you later.” “Right now, the priority is dealing with the current problem.” At this point, my father also noticed Vivian hiding behind Elias, her eyes red and teary. “Vivian, why are you crying?” “What happened? Did someone bully you?” “Tell me, and I’ll make it right for you!” Vivian choked up twice, looking at me fearfully. “No… no one bullied me.” She clearly looked like someone swallowing grievances despite being wronged. “Vivian is kind by nature and doesn’t want to put you in a difficult position.” Elias spoke matter-of-factly. “I’ll be direct—Clara paid several werewolves to rape Vivian out of jealousy. Her intentions were truly vicious.” “So I gave her a small punishment.” Hearing him speak with such certainty, my father looked at me in disbelief. “Is this true? Clara, didn’t you promise me you didn’t like Elias anymore? Why would you do such a thing?” “Speak, Clara! Don’t avoid responsibility! If you did it, admit it. If you didn’t, explain yourself clearly!” My tears soaked Leo’s shirt. I could feel the arms holding me tighten. Being misunderstood by Elias just made me angry and aggrieved. But if even my father didn’t trust me, I was truly heartbroken. I lifted my face. When he saw the lipstick marks not completely wiped from my face and the faintly visible writing, he gasped. “Dad, I didn’t do it.” “They’re framing me. They didn’t give me any chance to explain.” My father’s furious gaze returned to Elias, his voice shaking with rage. “So without solid evidence, you decided it was Clara and dared to treat her like this!” “This is what you call a ‘small punishment’?!” Elias met his gaze without fear. “Those werewolves got away.” “Clara is the most likely suspect. It couldn’t have been anyone else.” “They got away?” Leo suddenly raised an eyebrow. “How convenient. My Beta warriors happen to be excellent at finding people.” Vivian’s face instantly went pale.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “376911”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster

My roommate, Sierra, loved to cam naked in our dorm room. Late at night, suggestive and provocative noises would constantly drift from her side of the room. “Daddy, where do you want to look?~” “Don’t be so impatient, babe… my roommate is asleep~” “You’re so bad~ tilt your camera down a little…” I gently advised her that camming with strangers wasn’t safe. If someone took screenshots, the consequences could be disastrous. Sierra took my advice and stopped doing it. But then, a girl in the dorm next door hooked a billionaire heir through a sugar baby app. He even rented a helicopter to drop rose petals over the campus to ask her out. It made waves across the entire university. Sierra went absolutely psychotic with jealousy. “It’s all your fault, you interfering bitch! If you hadn’t run your mouth, that billionaire would belong to me right now!” She heated her curling iron until it was searing hot and shoved it into my body, burning me to death from the inside out. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the exact day she was camming. 01 I woke up from a phantom, agonizing pain, my body drenched in a cold sweat. “Daddy, where do you want to look?~” The familiar, sickeningly sweet, coquettish voice drifted from the bed opposite mine. I stiffly turned my head. Through the crack in her bed curtains, I saw Sierra posing seductively at her phone. She was wearing heavy makeup. The strap of her black lace camisole deliberately slipped down her shoulder. She had purposefully tousled her hair to create a messy, provocative look. My nails dug deeply into my palms. The pain told me this wasn’t a dream. I was reborn! I had returned to the day Sierra was streaming naked. Memories flooded back like a tidal wave. In my past life, I warned her out of the goodness of my heart. I told her that if the guy screen-recorded it and leaked it, it would ruin her life. Sierra’s face instantly dropped. She cared about her image more than anything else in the world. School had just started, and she didn’t want to become infamous for the wrong reasons. But giving up the camming meant giving up the digital gifts and cash transfers. She wasn’t going to let that go easily. She immediately put on a pitiful, victimized expression and faked a few tears. “Harper, I don’t want to do this either, but my parents completely cut off my allowance…” My bleeding heart took over. I immediately Venmoed her $500 to help her out. After that, she stopped the naked video chats. But instead, she started treating me like her personal maid, ordering me around constantly. If I wasn’t taking out her trash, I was making her bed. The worst part was my skincare products and my clothes. If she liked something of mine, she would just take it and use it without even asking. I endured it all in silence. I thought giving up some material possessions was worth it if it meant Sierra had changed her ways. After all, my family had plenty of money. But later, when a girl in the next class managed to snag a trust-fund billionaire through the exact same app… When the guy rented a helicopter to drop rose petals all over the quad to declare his love… Sierra went rabid with jealousy. And she took all her resentment out on me. “It’s all your fault, you interfering bitch! If you hadn’t run your mouth, that billionaire would belong to me right now!” She waited until I was asleep, tied me to the bed frame, and gagged me with duct tape. Then, she took a scorching hot curling iron and shoved it brutally inside me. The pain tore my soul apart, but the tape muffled my screams. Sierra’s smile was twisted and demonic. “Only a complete idiot like you would believe my parents cut me off! You got played like a fool, you self-righteous saint! You deserve to die!” It turned out she had been scamming me the entire time! The blistering metal burned through my flesh. My vision went black from the sheer agony. I took my last breath in the most excruciating pain imaginable. But now, I was back. I bit down hard on my lower lip, only letting go when I tasted the metallic tang of blood. In this life, I wouldn’t say a single word to stop her. I was going to let her swallow the bitter fruit of her own actions and fall straight into hell! 02 Inside her bed curtains, Sierra’s voice grew even more saccharine. “Don’t be impatient, babe… my roommate is asleep~” After a rustling sound, she lowered her voice. “You’re so bad~ tilt your camera down a little…” My stomach violently churned. I pretended to roll over, intentionally making a loud noise. Sierra jumped, poking her head out to look at me. “Harper, you’re awake?” I forced a sleepy, innocent smile. “Yeah, I just had a nightmare.” “Oh, I’m just FaceTiming my boyfriend right now.” She giggled, intentionally tilting her phone screen toward me. On the screen was a greasy, balding, middle-aged man, staring hungrily at Sierra’s exposed skin. In my past life, this was the exact moment I intervened and planted the seed for my own murder. This time, I changed my strategy entirely. “Wow, your boyfriend is so handsome!” I leaned in, faking absolute envy. “How did you guys meet?” Sierra was visibly stunned for a second, but then she proudly tilted her chin up. “A dating app, duh. He’s a senior executive at a publicly traded company. He said he’s going to buy me a Louis Vuitton bag!” She lowered her voice. “He loves looking at me… you know what I mean.” Suppressing my urge to vomit, I put on a worshipful expression. “Sierra, you’re amazing. I can’t believe you can pull such a high-quality guy.” Sierra floated on my praise. “Oh, this is nothing. I have guys lining up around the block for me.” She paused, shooting me a condescending glance. “But don’t get any ideas. A boring block of wood like you couldn’t handle a man like this even if you tried.” “I could never compare to you,” I said. I lowered my head, pretending to be insecure, while I sneered coldly on the inside. For the next few days, I played the perfect role of Sierra’s ultimate fan. When she cammed, I stood guard at the door. When she went on dates, I signed her in for attendance at lectures. When she bragged, I gassed her up at the exact right moments. Sierra began to trust me more and more. She even started shamelessly showing off her “prey” to me. 03 But as time went on, Sierra’s prey started showing their true colors. The bald guy who promised her a Louis Vuitton bag blocked her the second he got a full-body naked show. Another guy claiming to be a trust-fund kid sent her a pathetic $5 Venmo and then completely ghosted her. “What a bunch of broke losers!” Sierra slammed her phone onto her bed, shaking with rage. “They say they’re going to buy me gifts, and then they don’t even transfer enough to cover a decent dinner! Wasting my damn time!” I leaned in, faking concern. “Really? That sucks. I thought their Instagram profiles made them look super rich?” “Photoshop! It’s all fake!” Sierra’s chest heaved with anger. “They act like billionaires online, but they ain’t shit in real life!” I sneered internally. In my past life, she scammed me by saying her parents cut her off, and I stupidly subsidized her life. Then she turned around and used my money to buy luxury goods to flex on social media. Now, she couldn’t scam a single dime out of these guys. She deserved every bit of it! I let out a sigh and lowered my voice, acting mysterious. “Actually… I know a secret sugar dating app. It’s packed with legitimate millionaires. My cousin met her husband on there, and she married straight into extreme wealth.” Sierra’s eyes instantly lit up. “Really?! What app?” I acted hesitant. “But… I heard the verification process is super strict. They don’t just let anyone connect with the top-tier guys…” Sierra’s face darkened. “What do you mean? You think I’m not good enough?” “No, no!” I waved my hands frantically. “I’m just worried you might run into scammers.” Sierra scoffed coldly. “Only an idiot like you would get scammed. I know how to spot the real ones. Just tell me the name!” I pretended to hesitate for a moment longer before finally giving her the name of the app. Of course, I didn’t tell her the truth. It wasn’t a billionaire dating app at all. It was an underground, niche fetish and escort platform! It was a cesspool of deviants, scammers, and predators. I only knew about it because my older brother, a detective in the cybercrimes unit, had mentioned it to me. His unit had been monitoring the site for months and was waiting for the perfect moment to execute a massive raid. But until that happened, Sierra could go ahead and enjoy herself to the fullest! 04 Sierra downloaded the app and eagerly registered an account. She meticulously selected her most provocative photos, added some seductive captions, and quickly attracted a swarm of men in her DMs. Among them, a user named “Richie” was especially enthusiastic. He immediately CashApped her $500 as a “nice to meet you” gift. Sierra smugly waved her phone in my face. “See? Now this is a genuine, high-quality man!” I leaned over to look. Richie’s profile picture was him leaning against a Rolls Royce. His bio claimed he was the CEO of a boutique finance firm, and his feed was full of yachts and Rolexes. I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing. What kind of high-rolling CEO driving a Rolls Royce would be stingy enough to only send $500? And on top of that, he sent it in three separate installments? Only someone as sheltered and greedy as Sierra would actually fall for this bait. But I faked a gasp of amazement. “Wow, Sierra, you’re incredible!” She smirked proudly. “Just watch. I’m going to hook a massive whale this time!” That night, the noises coming from behind Sierra’s bed curtains were more explicit than ever. She was almost entirely naked, using her blanket to just barely cover herself. “Daddy~ Do you like me like this?” She intentionally dragged out her syllables. “Move the camera lower? You’re so bad! I’m not that kind of easy girl!” I fought back my nausea and kept listening. I could hear a heavy, ragged breathing coming from the phone speaker. “Get closer… yeah…” “You’re so bad~” Sierra let out a sickeningly sweet giggle. “When are you going to buy me the present you promised, Richie?~” “I’ll take you to the designer boutique tomorrow.” The greasy male voice took on a commanding tone. “But right now, moan for me!” Amidst the sound of fabric rustling, Sierra let out a high-pitched, exaggerated scream. “Ah! Richie, you’re so naughty… my roommate is right here!” My entire body broke out in goosebumps. My stomach flipped. In the past, Sierra used to lower her voice when she cammed. But ever since I started acting like her loyal sidekick, she stopped hiding it entirely. It gave me a brand-new perspective on just how degenerate she truly was. She had absolutely zero boundaries! 05 The next day. Sierra woke up at the crack of dawn to get ready for her date. She dug out a sheer, black lace dress and practically bathed in half a bottle of cheap perfume. She even meticulously curled her hair into bouncy, seductive waves. “Harper, how do I look?” She spun around. Her mini skirt was so short it barely covered her underwear. I forced back my disgust and put on a look of pure envy. “You look stunning. Richie is going to be obsessed with you!” Sierra gave a triumphant hum and swayed her hips as she walked out the door. At 11:00 PM that night, our dorm door was violently kicked open. Sierra stumbled into the room, reeking of cheap liquor and terrible cologne. Her black lace dress was wrinkled like a dirty rag. The neckline was ripped open, and her neck was covered in shocking, aggressive hickeys. There were even suspicious, dried white smudges near the corner of her mouth. “Look! The Cartier bracelet Richie bought me!” Sierra shoved her wrist right into my face. The rhinestone-encrusted bangle glinted with a cheap, plastic shine under the dorm lights. I took one look and almost burst out laughing. This fake was so bad it didn’t even qualify as a high-end replica. The logo was engraved crookedly, and the metal edges were sharp and jagged. But I dramatically covered my mouth. “Oh my god! Richie treats you so well!” “This is nothing!” Sierra scoffed proudly, adopting a secretive look as she pulled a small, pink remote-controlled vibrator out of her purse. “Richie said that if I wear this to my lectures tomorrow, and if I’m a good girl and do exactly what he says, he’s going to buy me a Birkin bag next time!” My eyes went wide in genuine shock. This was even more unhinged than I anticipated! But I forced myself to act shy. “Isn’t that a little… extreme?” “It’s called having a kink!” Sierra rolled her eyes at me disdainfully. “A basic country bumpkin like you will never understand how high society plays!” She waved the toy in the air. “I’m going to leave it turned on all day tomorrow, and Richie is going to be watching me on video call the whole time!” Looking at her twisted, arrogant expression, my stomach violently churned. This wasn’t a billionaire CEO. This was a complete, utter psychopath! 06 The next day, Sierra actually wore the toy to class. She sat in the very back row, her face flushed with an unnatural, feverish red. “Mnn…” A suppressed, ragged gasp slipped past her lips. A student sitting in front of her turned around in confusion. The professor adjusted his glasses. “Is the student in the back feeling unwell?” Sierra bit her lip and shook her head, but her legs clamped tighter and tighter together. Suddenly, her entire body spasmed, and she went completely rigid. The professor at the podium was right in the middle of a crucial explanation. “So, the solution to this equation is…” “AH!” A piercing, sharp scream interrupted the lecture. The entire auditorium whipped their heads around to look. Sierra jumped up, her face bright crimson, knocking her chair over with a loud CLANG. The professor frowned. “Is there a problem, miss?” “I-I…” Sierra’s eyes darted around in absolute panic, her legs trembling violently. I glanced down and saw a suspicious wet stain spreading across the fabric of her skirt. A few guys nearby were already snickering behind their hands. The professor’s face turned stormy. “Quiet! You, please step outside!” Mortified beyond belief, Sierra grabbed her bag and bolted for the aisle. I “accidentally” stuck my foot out and tripped her. “AH!” She crashed hard onto the floor. And that was when the little pink toy slipped right out from under her skirt. The entire lecture hall went dead silent for a split second, before erupting into deafening, explosive laughter. “Holy shit! She’s playing with that in class?! Legend!” “Oh my god! Who knew Sierra was such a freak behind closed doors!” “Record it! Record it! Put it on the campus Discord!” Sierra scrambled frantically on the floor to grab it, but her hand slipped, and she accidentally hit the max-power setting. BZZZZZZZ— A loud, aggressive buzzing noise echoed through the auditorium. She shrieked in horror. The toy slipped from her grasp, skittered across the floor, and landed right at the professor’s shoes. The elderly professor stared at the vibrating plastic object at his feet, his face going from red to a terrifying shade of purple. “This is an absolute disgrace! I am reporting you to the Dean for disciplinary action!” Sierra had a complete mental breakdown, grabbed her toy, and sprinted out of the classroom. I watched her fleeing figure, a cold, sharp smile playing on my lips. This is just the beginning, roomie.

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Oliver Sterling’s high school sweetheart, Chloe, was driving her car when she hit me while I was riding my bike. Oliver rushed to the scene. Chloe let out a sigh of relief. “My boyfriend is here. If you want any compensation, just talk to his assistant.” Oliver draped his suit jacket over her shoulders. Then, he frowned, staring at my bleeding knee for a long time. Chloe’s voice was hesitant. “Do you guys know each other?” Oliver lowered his eyes, took her hand, and turned to leave. “I don’t know her.” I sat quietly on the curb, putting on a band-aid, showing no reaction to his words. After all. When he handed me our prenuptial agreement three years ago, the very first clause demanded that our marriage remain an absolute secret. I couldn’t get an Uber during the morning rush hour. As I limped my way to work, I thought to myself: My three-year contract marriage with Oliver Sterling was about to expire. I could finally leave. 1 I always knew Oliver had a girl he couldn’t forget. I just didn’t know it was the woman who had just hit me. Not until Oliver arrived. For a split second, I froze. My subconscious mind actually thought he was coming to pick me up. The girl in front of me stood up and jogged over to him. Her white dress fluttered as she threw herself into his arms. “Oliver, what should I do? I hit someone.” The man took off his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders. His voice was as deep, mellow, and gentle as always. “I’ll handle it.” I sluggishly pulled my gaze away, staring down at my wound. It suddenly dawned on me why Oliver hadn’t been coming home much lately. The girl in his arms. His unforgettable ex, Chloe, had returned from abroad. 2 Chloe let out a sigh of relief. She pulled back from his embrace and looked back at me. “My boyfriend is here.” “If you want any compensation, just talk to his assistant.” She offered an embarrassed, apologetic smile. “I am so, so sorry. I made you late for work, and I hurt you.” “Please, don’t worry. Ask for whatever compensation you need. My boyfriend is very wealthy; he’ll agree to anything!” I softly replied, “Thank you.” Oliver’s assistant looked incredibly awkward. He was one of the very few people who knew Oliver and I were secretly married. “Mrs… uh, no, Miss.” “Well, um…” His eyes swept over my wound and locked onto it. “Why is your cut still bleeding?” “It’s been half an hour since the accident.” “Do you have a blood clotting disorder?” I nodded. “It’s only mild.” Oliver looked over, his voice dropping slightly. “A clotting disorder?” Chloe looked confused. “Is something wrong?” He seemed not to hear her. His gaze was fixed on my bleeding knee, his brow furrowed deeply. Chloe finally sensed that something was off. She looked at me with confusion, then looked at Oliver. “Do you guys… know each other?” Oliver was never going to let his first love know he had a secret wife. He snapped out of it, lowered his eyes, and masked his emotions. “I don’t know her.” He immediately took Chloe’s hand, casually instructing his assistant before walking away. “Take her to the hospital.” 3 As their silhouettes faded into the distance. I declined the assistant’s offer to drive me. “I’ve already called a Lyft.” “Just send me the $237 for my lost wages today, please.” The assistant left, looking incredibly uncomfortable. I slapped a band-aid on my knee. Unfortunately, the driver called to say he was stuck in traffic and couldn’t make it. I had no choice but to push myself up off the pavement and limp slowly down the sidewalk. Today is September 28th. There are exactly two months left on my contract with Oliver. It’s time to start preparing for my departure. 4 From high school all the way through college, my tuition was funded by a scholarship program Oliver sponsored. For college, I specifically chose to go to a university in his city. During my junior year, I interned at his company for three months. At that time, Chloe was already in Europe getting her Master’s degree. So, I had no idea she even existed. Oliver kept me close, teaching me a lot about the corporate world. He was a man who rarely showed emotion, but once, when a sleazy client tried to grope me, Oliver kicked the guy square in the chest. Oliver placed a heavy liquor bottle in my hand. He stood behind me, his arms practically enveloping me, and whispered, “Do you know what I’m teaching you today?” I was completely enveloped by his cold, cedarwood cologne. I kept my breathing shallow, forcing myself to stay calm as I answered. “You… you’re teaching me to fight back when appropriate.” “To control the situation by knowing when to push and when to pull back, instead of…” His large, elegant hand wrapped around mine, gripping the neck of the bottle. “Good student. But this isn’t a multiple-choice test. Don’t be so textbook.” He guided my hand, raising it high into the air. “It’s just a brawl.” Smash— Without holding back, he guided my hand to smash the bottle over the client’s head. The impact sent a shockwave up my arm, making my hand go numb. Oliver pulled the pocket square from his suit jacket and looked down, gently wiping the sweat from my palm. “Don’t ever forget this. I’ve got your back.” “Don’t let anyone bully you.” I hurriedly pulled my hand away, muttered a hasty “I got it,” and ran off. Because if I stayed a second longer. The crush I had on him would have been impossible to hide. 5 Right before I graduated. Oliver came to me with a contract. He needed a marriage of convenience to fend off the relentless pressure from his parents to settle down. The term was three years. The main condition was that our marriage had to be kept an absolute secret from the outside world. I just had to accompany him to his family’s estate occasionally to put on a show for his parents. We were not required to fulfill any marital duties. We were not responsible for each other. I could even date other people, as long as I kept it low-profile and didn’t let his parents find out. Upon completion of the contract, I would receive a payout of $3 million. 6 Maybe it was because it was the first time I had ever loved someone. Or maybe Oliver’s occasional indulgence made me lose sight of my place. After marrying Oliver, I moved into the new mansion he had bought. The thing I looked forward to most every day was waiting for him to come home from work. We ate dinner together, chatted, and sometimes he’d even watch a movie or go for a walk with me. One night, he drank a lot at a corporate event. He was brought home by his female executive assistant. His arm was draped over her shoulder, his face buried in the crook of her neck. “Mrs. Sterling, please step aside.” “I need to help Mr. Sterling inside.” A heavy, invisible knot formed in my chest. I didn’t move aside. I reached my hands out to her. “I’ll take my husband. You can leave him to me.” As I supported a groggy Oliver and prepared to close the door. The secretary offered a condescending smile. “Being Mr. Sterling’s wife, you should learn to be a little more open-minded.” “With jealousy like that, you’re going to drive yourself crazy sooner or later.” “What, do you expect Mr. Sterling to fire every female employee in the company just for you?” I didn’t realize Oliver was still somewhat lucid. He heard her entire speech. And he naturally realized what my true feelings were. When I brought out the hangover soup I had made. The man was slouched on the sofa, staring at me with clear, sobering eyes. “You’re awake, perfect.” “Drink some of this,” I said, my voice tight as I pushed the bowl toward him. “It’ll make you feel better.” I was still angry about him being so intimate with his secretary, so I didn’t want to talk to him much. Oliver just glanced at the bowl. He didn’t touch it. Out of nowhere, he asked me: “Do you know why I never let you go into my study?” I was confused for a second, then shook my head. He stood up, grabbed my hand, and led me toward his study. His steps were unsteady, and I tried to support him. He shook his head, rejecting my help. He pushed the study door open. A massive canvas dominated my field of vision. A teenage girl, maybe sixteen or seventeen, was standing in a field of flowers, her eyes closed, head tilted down as she smelled a blossom. From that angle, you could only see half of her face. Which is why, when I met her earlier today, I didn’t recognize her immediately. Oliver leaned against the doorframe and lit a cigarette. “I’ve loved her since I was seventeen.” “It’s been exactly ten years.” “If we hadn’t had a massive fight, and if she hadn’t left the country in a fit of rage, she would be the one I married.” He was speaking in a casual, conversational tone. But every word struck my eardrums like a hammer, bringing a sharp, stinging pain. Oliver didn’t seem to notice my reaction. He cut straight to the bone. “I can’t give you the response you want.” “So, Audrey, whatever inappropriate feelings you have… it’s best you get rid of them.” He used the same tone he used in boardroom negotiations: “I will be drafting a supplemental agreement to add this clause.” “If you cannot manage your emotions properly and overstep your boundaries by interfering in my personal life, it will be considered a breach of contract.” “In the event of a breach, not only will you forfeit your payout, but you will also be liable for a corresponding penalty fee.” The study lights were off. The light from the hallway behind us spilled across the hardwood floor. I saw my own shadow turn rigid, like a piece of wood. I didn’t move an inch. Inappropriately, I remembered a comment Oliver made during my internship about greedy people. “They hover around the boundary lines, itching to cross. It’s absolutely nauseating to watch.” Now, I had become the exact type of person that nauseated him. I don’t know when Oliver left. I just stood there in the same spot. I stood there until the sun came up. I stood there until the heavy, suffocating knot in my chest finally dissipated. From that day on, I managed myself perfectly. I never leaked a single trace of inappropriate emotion again. Calm, polite, and respectful. That was the only attitude I ever showed him. Over time. It felt like I truly didn’t love him anymore. 5 Snapping back to reality, I found a random urgent care clinic to get my leg patched up. I texted my manager to take a sick day. Once I confirmed there was nothing urgent at work, I went straight to the hospital to be with my mom. “Oh, come on, since we can’t get an appointment with the specialist, I might as well just discharge myself.” “Staying here like this is just a waste of money, sweetheart.” My mom had a tumor in her brain. The location was extremely precarious. There were no more than three surgeons in the entire country who could successfully perform the operation. I stuffed a piece of pear into her mouth, stopping her from talking any further. “Absolutely not.” “Did you forget? Last time you went to the third floor for a scan by yourself, you passed out.” “Besides, I heard that one of those top surgeons, Dr. Monroe, is going to be doing consultations here for the next two months.” My mom’s attending physician had also said that if the rumor was true, she would try to get us a spot the second his schedule opened. Thinking about how my mom’s illness might soon be cured… My steps felt much lighter as I went to the cafeteria to get lunch. The head nurse stopped me, looking hesitant. “Audrey…” “What’s wrong?” I asked. “Did a spot open up in the VIP wing?” This hospital was one of the best in the country. Even the VIP rooms were constantly fully booked. My mom was currently in an 8-person shared ward without a private bathroom. The environment wasn’t great. So I had asked the head nurse to keep an eye out for any available VIP rooms. She sighed. “A room did open up.” “And I immediately reserved it for you.” “But a new patient with some serious connections just came in, and her daughter took it right out from under us.” “Oh, right, her mom also has a brain tumor.” “I heard people saying her boyfriend’s last name is Sterling, that he’s the CEO of some massive conglomerate, and the hospital administration didn’t dare say no…” Almost simultaneously. I caught a glimpse of a silhouette passing by the staircase corner. The same white dress. The exact same dress I saw Chloe wearing this morning. I pulled my gaze back and offered the nurse a reassuring smile. “Thank you anyway.” “The VIP room isn’t that important. I just hope my mom can get her surgery as soon as possible.” 8 When I got home that afternoon. Oliver was standing at the espresso machine by the kitchen island. I paused. He was actually home right now, not with Chloe. But that had nothing to do with me. I offered a slight nod. “Mr. Sterling.” After greeting him, I turned to head to my room. “How’s the scrape on your knee?” The man suddenly asked. “I put some ointment on it. It’s fine.” Oliver set his coffee down. He stood up straight and checked his watch. “I need you to come to my parents’ house for dinner tonight.” “Are you available?” Oliver really didn’t need to ask so politely. After all, according to the contract. Even if I wasn’t available, I had to cancel everything else to accompany him and put on a show for his family. I nodded. “Yes, I am.” To go to the Sterling estate, I couldn’t dress as casually as I usually did. I picked out a designer outfit from my closet. I expertly applied my makeup, put on jewelry, and sprayed on perfume. I ensured I was immaculate from head to toe. Arriving at the Sterling estate gates. As usual, I linked my arm through Oliver’s, walked in with a docile smile, and greeted every elder perfectly. During dinner, Oliver’s mother suddenly dropped a bomb without warning. “Are you two trying for a baby?” I was mid-sip of my soup. Hearing that, I choked and started coughing violently. Oliver, sitting next to me, handed me a napkin and naturally patted my back. “Audrey is still young.” His mother disagreed: “She’s 25. That’s not too young.” “You both need to start taking this seriously, understand?” I swallowed hard and nodded. “I understand, Mom.” It started pouring rain that night. Oliver and I had no choice but to stay over at the estate. One bed, but we each had our own separate blanket. We were used to it, so it wasn’t awkward. I changed into a nightgown, came out of the bathroom, and sat on the sofa to apply ointment to my knee. Oliver looked over. “I’m sorry I couldn’t personally take you to the hospital today.” He furrowed his brow, seemingly trying to figure out how to explain his relationship with Chloe to me. I interrupted him first. “It’s fine.” “The contract doesn’t require you to fulfill any obligations to me. Don’t worry about it.” “And I won’t pry into whatever is going on between you and Ms. Chloe.” “Please rest assured, I won’t expose our arrangement to her. I will continue to cooperate with you until the two months are up.” He half-raised his eyes. “Two months?” It seemed he had forgotten. I reminded him: “Yes. In two months, the contract expires, and we can get a divorce and finalize the transaction.” Oliver lost interest and set his wine glass down. “You certainly remember the date clearly.” He threw out that bland, unreadable comment and walked into the bathroom.

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When Elias and I broke up, we made a pact. Total silence. We were never supposed to see each other again. But I couldn’t let him go. Years later, at a disastrous dinner party with old friends, I had one too many drinks. I ended up clinging to the bar owner—who bore a haunting resemblance to Elias—sobbing as I made him an offer. “I’ll give you five grand a month. Just… be mine. Will you do that?” No one could pry me loose. I just kept calling him by Elias’s name, over and over. The owner looked incredibly awkward at first. But then, a look of realization, almost excitement, flashed across his face. “Wait,” he whispered, looking closely at me. “Are you the girl who dumped my big brother back in college?” 1 We were playing Truth or Dare at dinner. Classic, right? The bottle stopped, pointing right at me. One of my friends asked if I was in love with anyone right now. I didn’t hesitate. I nodded. “Yes.” The table went nuts. They demanded to know who he was. I refused to say another word and took three penalty shots instead. But after that, every time the bottle landed on me, they asked the same thing. I was drunk, spinning, and I couldn’t drink anymore. So, I snapped and told the truth. “It’s my ex.” The room went dead silent. Then, a few heads leaned in close. “Maya, seriously? How good could this guy have been? It’s been five years and you still can’t move on?” “Why did he dump you, anyway?” “Come on, spill. Maybe we can help you get him back.” The alcohol was screaming in my head. I slammed my hand on the table, looked around the circle, and slurred my words. “He didn’t dump me. I grabbed him and threw him away.” “And there’s something else. We have a kid.” 2 My story with Elias started because I was shallow. He was just so incredibly good-looking. Physically, from his face to his build, he was exactly my type. So, even though I knew our backgrounds didn’t match at all, I decided to chase him. On the day he finally said yes to being with me, he asked a question. “If we know for a fact that we have to break up after graduation, do you still want to do this?” Let’s be real. Very few college couples make it to “happily ever after,” and we had a massive wealth gap between us on top of that. Honestly, I just wanted to date him. I wanted the romance. So, I nodded. “Yes. I do.” And just like that, Elias and I were a couple. Our relationship was as sweet as any other college romance. Except for one thing: we both tacitly agreed to keep things from getting too intimate. Once, celebrating a birthday in a hotel room, we were kissing intensely. My knees went weak, and I almost slipped to the floor. He caught me, lifted me onto the bed, and leaned over me. His scent completely overwhelmed me. But at the critical moment, he stopped. He fought for control and just tucked the blanket around me. “I’m going to take a shower. I’ll be right back.” I didn’t stop him. He wasn’t going to commit to a life with me, and I didn’t want to give him everything. That was our unspoken agreement. Honestly, the entire time we were dating, I kept reminding myself not to fall too deep. I knew the breakup would be devastating if I did. But in the end, I still failed to protect my heart. 3 It was Christmas Eve. Elias had made reservations for dinner. But my advisor assigned a last-minute project, forcing us to work late in the lab. I had to stand him up. When I finally came out, it was snowing hard. I hadn’t brought an umbrella. A senior guy in the lab offered to walk me back to my dorm. Just as we stepped out of the science building, we ran right into Elias. He was wearing a black pea coat, holding an umbrella, with a gift box in his other hand. It looked like he’d been waiting down there for a long time. We were keeping our relationship a total secret. I was terrified his family would find out, so in front of others, we acted like strangers. I planned to walk past him like usual and text him later to meet up. But Elias grabbed my hand. He aggressively pulled me under his umbrella. The senior guy was stunned. Before he could ask anything, Elias explained, “I’m walking my girlfriend home.” The guy was in total shock. “You… you’re dating someone?” Not just dating. It had been almost three years. Elias pulled me away, walking fast. I had to jog to keep up. “I’m sorry you waited so long. That guy is so slow at everything.” “But Elias, why did you tell him we’re dating? He talks a lot. It’s going to get out.” “I’ll explain it to him tomorrow. I’ll say you were joking.” Elias set his jaw and didn’t say a word. He didn’t take me back to my dorm. He took me to a hotel near campus. As soon as we were inside the entryway, he broke character. He pinned me against the door. I could tell something was wrong. “Did you misunderstand something?” I whispered. “He’s just a guy from my lab. There’s nothing else…” Before I could finish, he pinned both my hands over my head and kissed me hard. Elias was usually so gentle with this stuff, but this time, he was dominant. Aggressive. He started pulling at my dress and asked me straight out, “Can we?” I was stunned. I tried to stop him. “Wait…” He was pressed on top of me, sweating from fighting his impulses. His voice was raw and deep. “I want you, Elara.” “Let’s just go public. No more hiding. And we’re not breaking up after graduation.” “Give me three years. I will marry you.” His hand was on my waist, palm scorching hot. I noticed a scratch on the back of his hand, like he’d been pricked by a needle. My eyes landed on the gift box behind him. It had fallen to the floor, spilling the Christmas gift he’d prepared for me. It was a handmade chunky-knit blanket. They were really popular on campus just then. I pointed at the soft, pink blanket. “Did you knit that yourself?” He didn’t understand why I was asking about that right now, but he answered anyway, keeping his patience. “Yeah.” “You said you wanted one, so I looked up tutorials online and learned how to do it.” I pressed my lips together and said nothing. He saw my silence and slowly let go of my hands. The look in his eyes was pure devastation. “I’m sorry. I crossed a line tonight. I’ll go take a cold shower.” “But Elara, what I said wasn’t impulsive. I am seriously committing to you.” Before he could get up and leave, I found the courage to grab him. “Okay,” I said, my voice shaking. Elias froze. “What?” “I love the blanket you made me.” “And… I want you, too.” Elias took a sharp breath. He violently flipped us over, pressing me into the bed. But at the critical moment, he still hesitated. He fought his desire and told me: “Elara, you can still change your mind. It’s not too late.” “I won’t regret it.” All I remember from that night is crying out until my throat was raw. I didn’t close my eyes until dawn. Once you cross that line for the first time, there is a second, and a third. We were always meticulous about protection. Except for one time. The day of graduation. Elias lost control a bit. He kept begging for more, and it went on for a long time. When we finally woke up, I realized the condom had broken at some point. Even though I took the Morning After pill immediately, I still got pregnant. 4 The moment I found out I was pregnant, I went to the clinic. I had zero intention of keeping the baby. But the doctor told me I had a unique physical condition. If I terminated this pregnancy, I might never be able to conceive again. So, I hesitated. That night, I called Elias. I was going to tell him. But before I could speak, he started talking about his cousin. He said his cousin had picked up some “gold digger” who got pregnant and was now causing a massive scene at his family’s house, trying to force a marriage. His family looked down on that kind of manipulative behavior. They absolutely refused to acknowledge her and forced her to terminate the pregnancy. He was just telling it like it was gossip, but it sent a shockwave through my system. “Elara? You said you wanted to talk about something?” I didn’t mention the pregnancy. I made up a lame excuse to hang up. He was coming to see me this weekend. It was probably better to talk about it in person. But that weekend, Elias stood me up. Instead of him, I met his mother. Mrs. Sterling looked at me with a fake, polite smile. She was actually quite nice, offering a few standard compliments. And then, she smoothly shifted topics. She told me the family was arranging for Elias to marry an heiress from another prominent family. “Because of you, he is fighting the arrangement. Maya, if you two still want to be together, I won’t stop you. I just want to tell you one thing: I have three sons, not just Elias.” “If he insists on being with you, fine. He will be cut off completely. I have two other sons I can groom for the family business. But Elias has grown up in luxury. Do you honestly think he will last a day living a hard life with you? Maybe a day or two is fine, but as soon as time passes, are you sure he won’t resent you?” “You’re a smart girl. Think it over.” Mrs. Sterling was wearing a massive emerald necklace. Every gesture screamed old money. She looked completely out of place in my tiny, rented apartment. She didn’t say a single cruel or ugly word. Before leaving, she even smiled. “Maya, if you ever need any help, you can contact me.” That arrogant, high-class way of speaking made the reality undeniably clear. The Sterling family was not a world I could ever belong to. So, the next weekend, when I saw Elias, I was calm when I broke up with him. “Why?” He looked lost. “Did I do something wrong?” “Is it because I couldn’t come see you last week? A crisis came up at work, I’m so sorry. I promise to cancel everything next time, okay?” “Oh, and that cake you wanted to try? I bought it! Taste it and see if you like it.” I was so scared when he was like this. The better he was to me, the harder it was to let him go. But I didn’t want to destroy his future. I took a deep breath, trying my best to stay calm as I used the excuse I had prepared. “Elias, long-distance is too hard. I don’t want to do this anymore.” “My family is pressuring me to settle down. I’m going back home to let them set me up on dates.” Elias froze for a long moment. Then, with sudden determination, he said, “Then I’ll move to your city. I’ll marry you. Okay?” He wouldn’t stop compromising. He even lowered his pride, crouching on the floor in front of me, begging me not to leave. “Don’t break up with me, okay? Where you go, I go. We can be together forever.” But how could his family ever allow that? I didn’t want this golden boy to sink into the mud, ending up in a marriage where we both resented each other. I hardened my heart and lied to him. “Actually, I don’t like you as much as you think I do.” “We’ve been together four years. I’m bored. I want someone new.” That day, we faced off for a long, long time. Finally, his eyes went red, and he gritted his teeth as he looked at me. “How is it that you get to decide when we start, and you get to decide when we break up? Do you even see me as a person?” “Elara Vance, after this, we are never contacting each other again.” His words were harsh, but before he left, he still left me a bank card. There were three million dollars in it. I didn’t take it. Being with him was never about the money. At the time, I was naive. I thought by not taking the money, I could still hold my head up high in front of him, that I still had my dignity. After that, we never spoke again. I moved to a new city and gave birth to Leo Vance. I worked jobs and made money while raising Leo as a single mom. My own mother stopped pressuring me to get married. She said it didn’t matter if there was a man, as long as I had a child, I was set. But over all these years, despite how flippant I acted, in my heart, I never let go of Elias Sterling. Even though I was drunk, I still had a thread of sanity left. The story of Elias Sterling stayed swallowed down in my stomach; I never said it out loud. I just ordered two more drinks and poured them down my throat. Just as I was drinking, the door to the private room opened, and a man walked in. My hand froze. This man—his eyes and brows looked exactly like Elias. Especially the eyes, with the exact same slope. But I knew instantly: it wasn’t him. I don’t know if it was the alcohol hitting my brain, but before I realized what I was doing, I was grabbing his jacket, my speech slurred as I asked him: “Are you the new model?” “How much to book you for the night?” 5 My friends were scared to death. They rushed over to pull me away, explaining that this was the bar owner. I refused to let go. I squinted my eyes, studying him. “I like your face. It looks a lot like someone I used to know.” “If you’re the owner, does that mean you cost more?” I did the mental math for my monthly salary, morgage, Leo’s living expenses, and my savings. I held up one hand, five fingers spread. “Five grand. Is five grand enough to book you for a month?” The owner was stuck in a massive, awkward spot. He muttered under his breath, “Wow, is that all I’m worth?” I gritted my teeth and offered a raise. “Okay, fine. I’ll add another grand. Six thousand, okay?” My friend grabbed my sleeve, trying to talk sense into me. “Maya, it doesn’t matter if you add another zero.” “This guy is a trust-fund kid. He doesn’t need money. I know he’s hot, but drop it. You have a better chance of winning the lottery than booking him.” I brushed my friend’s hand off. Staring at the owner’s eyes, a massive wave of bitterness flooded my chest. I grabbed his arm and started crying. “I have never seen anyone who looks so much like Elias Sterling.” “I finally find one, and of course he’s another damn trust-fund billionaire.” “Why is the world so full of trust-fund billionaires? Why couldn’t just one be available for me?” The owner had been tense, trying to find a way to escape. Hearing this, he suddenly got interested. He asked me, “Who did you say I look like?” “My ex.” He pressed his lips together. A strange hint of excitement crept into his voice. “Is your name… Elara Vance?” My mind was a total fog. I didn’t have the energy to figure out how he knew my name. I just tightened my grip on his arm, still trying to haggle. “Yeah, I’m Elara Vance. Since you know my name, we’re basically friends. Come on, can I get a friends and family discount for the booking?” “If you won’t do it by the month, how about by the day?” The owner just looked at me with a half-smile. He leaned close to my ear and whispered, “Babe, I am definitely not the booking type. If my big brother found out, he would literally murder me.” I didn’t understand what he was talking about. I only knew he was turning me down. I was devastated. It wasn’t because he rejected me. It was because the memory of Elias Sterling had come flooding back, and it hurt so much. Alcohol amplifies your emotions. I clung to the owner’s arm and sobbed hysterically. He was frantically handing me tissues while simultaneously unlocking his phone. He started a video call. I didn’t know who he was calling. The call was picked up almost instantly. A deep, slightly familiar voice spoke: “What?” “Liam, listen to this. I’m at the bar, and I just met this girl who wants to book me for five grand a month.” “I said no, and now she’s clinging to my sleeve, sobbing her heart out.” “Come on, analyze this for me. Should I take the offer?” The man on the other end sounded irritated. “I have zero interest in your trashy soap opera life, Ryan.” “Wait, Liam, don’t hang up yet. First, take a look at who this girl is.” With that, he pointed the camera directly at me. I didn’t understand. What did my desire to book him have to do with his brother? But from what he was saying, it sounded like if his brother agreed, he would accept my offer. Fine. I’d convince his brother. I took a deep breath and looked up at the camera. 6 I planned to say a polite hello. But I’d had too much to drink. My stomach violently revolted. Before I could say a word, I clapped my hand over my mouth and dry-heaved. The nausea surged up my throat. I couldn’t stop it. The next second, I threw up. I threw up right over the owner’s arm and jacket. He was so startled he dropped his phone. It hit the floor with a loud thwack. On the other end of the line, the man’s patience was totally gone. “Stop wasting my time.” He bluntly hung up the call. I was crouching on the floor, throwing up, thinking in my hazy mind: That voice is so beautiful. It sounds exactly like Elias Sterling’s voice. Only his was colder, deeper. These brothers were truly walking treasures. One had Elias’s face, the other had Elias’s voice. I scrambled to grab napkins and tried to clean the owner’s jacket. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to throw up.” “Please… please don’t refuse to let me book you just because I threw up on you.” “Can I just have you as a stand-in for a few days? I promise I’ll only touch your face and hold your hand. Nothing else.” I have zero alcohol tolerance. I completely blacked out after that and collapsed. When I woke up, I was at my best friend Sarah’s apartment. She looked at me helplessly. “It’s the afternoon. You finally decided to join the living?” My hangover was giving me a massive headache. She handed me a glass of honey water. “Do you remember what happened last night?” I remembered the broad strokes. Remembered reminiscing about Elias, then running into that owner who looked exactly like him at the bar. “You have zero memory of the best parts,” Sarah said, putting her hands on her hips. “You were completely wasted. You clung to the bar owner and begged him to let you book him.” “He said no, so you threw up all over him, and then you forced him to take his jacket off, saying you were going to wash it and bring it back.” “Oh, and you stole his phone and forced him to add you as a friend on Snapchat.” I was convinced Sarah was screwing with me. Until I saw a man’s jacket hanging on her balcony. I stood there, totally speechless for a long time. On my phone, I had indeed added a new friend. I forced myself to send him a message: [Hi, this is Maya Vance from last night.] His name was Ryan Sterling. He immediately sent back a voice message, his tone full of barely suppressed laughter: [Well, hello, Ms. Vance. Back already? Does this mean you still want to book me?] I quickly typed an explanation: [I had way too much to drink last night. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I am so, so sorry.] [The reason I’m messaging is that I realized the stain on your jacket won’t wash out. Can I buy you a replacement?] After a pause, Ryan replied: [That jacket is actually sold out.] [Then tell me how much it costs. I’ll pay double for the damages.] Ryan was surprisingly easy to deal with: [It’s fine. Just pay the original price.] Before I could even type a “thank you,” two numbers popped up on the screen. [$8,000.] I rubbed my eyes, thinking I must be seeing things. It was just a jacket. This felt like extortion. Just as I was about to snap at him, he sent a link. It turned out the jacket was from a foreign luxury brand, and it actually retailed for $8,000. I was speechless. [Actually, Ms. Vance, you don’t necessarily have to pay. I have a favor to ask.] [If you agree, we can forget about the jacket entirely.] He said the bar had been a bit quiet lately and hoped I would bring some friends by more often. [Just to help liven the place up.] [Especially for the anniversary party coming up in two days. It’s really important to me, and I’d really appreciate it if you could make it.] I thought about it. Eight thousand dollars. That was a family vacation with Leo. That was a new bag and jewelry. That was a lot of things. Hesitating for even a second would be disrespectful to that eight grand. So, I agreed. “Okay.”

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Oliver Sterling rested his elbow on the window seal of his car, smiling at the paparazzi. “If you’re looking to sell those scandalous shots, make sure you find my wife. She’s the one who actually enjoys handling this crap.” Mention Oliver Sterling’s wife, and everyone in our high-society circle would roll their eyes in unison. “The ultimate gold-digger. She’d never dream of divorcing him.” Nobody seemed to remember that three years ago, when Oliver actually deigned to marry me, he had explicitly warned them all to go easy on me. “This is my wife. She’s young, so try to cut her some slack in the future.” Everyone expected me to do what I always did: write a massive check to the tabloids, bury this latest affair, and continue playing the role of Oliver’s adoring, wealthy wife. But this time, I was done. I pushed open his father’s study door. “It’s been three years. It’s time you let me go.” 1 In Los Angeles, the tabloids have an unwritten rule. If an entertainment reporter is short on their quota for the month, they go go stake out Oliver Sterling, the CEO of Sterling Group. He has a new girlfriend every month, and he’s flagrant about it. It requires zero effort to catch him. He’s a powerful, handsome man; scandal is just par for the course. But what about his wife? She keeps things polite, maintains an immaculate reputation, and when you catch her husband messing around, you can take the footage straight to her. She pays top dollar to kill the story, no questions asked. It was just another business transaction, until the script flipped. A rookie paparazzi had managed to get footage of Oliver and cornered him. Oliver had directed him to me, and the clip arrived just as I was getting home from the office. I stood in the foyer of our sprawling mansion in the Hollywood Hills. I looked out the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, taking in the panoramic view of the Los Angeles skyline. The voice on the phone continued, trying to sound tough but clearly amateur. “Mrs. Sterling, it’s just fifty grand. That’s, like, what you spend on a handbag. Only fifty grand to bury your husband’s scandal. It’s a total steal. Think about it, and call me back at this number…” This paparazzi wasn’t very bright. His first mistake was following Oliver, and his second was brazenly knocking on Oliver’s car window. Oliver’s cars aren’t exactly inconspicuous. He has hundreds in his collection, yet he insists on driving the same flashy Lamborghini for days at a time. In the video, Oliver rolls down the window. In the passenger seat is a woman wearing almost nothing. Last month, when I received photos of the previous girl, that seat was occupied by a rising starlet from New York. Oliver removes his sunglasses, revealing a face that is, quite frankly, nearly perfect. He hooks his finger, motioning for the paparazzi to come closer. When the guy approaches, Oliver speaks in a lazy, encouraging drawl. “New guy? You’re not very smart, are you? You’re supposed to take the pictures, then find my wife. I don’t pay for this crap. She does.” “You don’t have her number?” He pulls a piece of paper, scribbles a few numbers down, and slaps it into the paparazzi’s hand. Then, he glances at the woman beside him and tsc’ks. “Get out.” The woman leans in, whining, “Oliver, honey, you said we had three days. It’s only been a few hours…” Oliver tosses a platinum credit card at her and hits the unlock button. “Only a few hours and we’re already caught. Are you getting out, or do I have to drag you? Scram.” I clicked off the video, my expression perfectly calm. I sat at the long dining table as the housekeeper began placing one elaborate dish after another in front of me. The grandfather clock in the hallway struck eight. 2 I looked up at the antique clock. Oliver had brought it back for me from a trip to Paris seven years ago. I was seventeen when I applied to college in California, and eighteen when I met Oliver Sterling. Back then, aside from that face, he was entirely low-key. Despite being incredibly intelligent, he’d pretend to be completely lost in class, claiming he’d forgotten everything, just so he could hang around me and ask for my help. Within two weeks, people who knew him were pulling me aside, whispering, “You really think he’s just another pretty face? That’s Oliver Sterling. His father is on the board of trustees, and Oliver is the heir to the Sterling Group.” Later, Oliver left school, refusing to listen to anyone’s advice, and spent his days driving between campus and downtown LA, waiting for me. Those years were a blur of minor arguments and passionate reconciliations. I guarded my heart, opening it up only to shut it tight again, over and over. At twenty-five, after survives a hundred trials of our own making, I finally married him. The wedding was a spectacle, a ‘wedding of the century’ that still made the tabloids occasionally. It was one specific, trashy rag that went too far, using a headline so disrespectful it managed to grab attention from the major outlets. Oliver saw the paper the next morning. After reading it, he simply pressed his coffee cup down onto it. Later, I found out that that elaborate newspaper was the very last one that tabloid ever published. Small things, one by one. If I thought about it from the beginning to the end, I could convince myself that Oliver and I had once truly loved each other that deeply. But in the end, how did we end up like this antique clock—old, useless, with barely enough energy to keep ticking? The elevator numbers flashed, indicating it had reached the third floor, and the doors opened. Oliver walked in, his suit jacket draped over his arm. The harsh overhead lights of the elevator did nothing to diminish the striking lines of his face. I spared him one glance, then returned my focus to my dinner. A minute later, I heard the sound of his jacket hitting the sofa. Then, the scent of woodsmoke and expensive cologne—his signature scent—instantly enveloped me as he approached. Oliver stood behind me, leaning down with his hands gripping the table edge on either side of me, effectively caging me in his embrace. His voice was casually dismissive. “Good evening, Mrs. Sterling. Let’s see… what’s this latest news worth to you?” He reached out and tapped my phone, clicking onto the text message folder. “Fifty grand? Wow, reporters are cheap these days. That’s less than you spend on dinner. If I didn’t know better, I’d think my reputation was depreciating.” I set my fork down, my back perfectly straight, keeping a deliberate inch of space between me and his chest. I didn’t acknowledge his jab. Instead, I changed the subject. “I am not approving Maya Jenkins for the position of Marketing Director. I will be rejecting her application.” Sure enough, at the mention of that name, Oliver immediately stood up, and that overwhelming, enveloping presence vanished. He sat in the chair directly opposite me, his hands gripping the back of the chair, his gaze fixed on the view outside. “You don’t need to worry about her.” “Or maybe—” Oliver shifted his gaze back to me, resting his chin on his hand as he studied my face. “You just can’t stand her?” I looked directly into his eyes, searching for something, anything. I found nothing. The outside world only knew that Oliver Sterling had a revolving door of girlfriends. Nobody knew that they were all just a smokescreen for Maya Jenkins. Two years ago, Oliver sent her to London for grad school, just to pad her resume so he could install her as a director at the company upon her return. It wasn’t that I couldn’t stand her. I was simply doing my job. Sterling Group’s hiring standards are notoriously strict. We only recruit from the top twenty universities. Maya Jenkins, a high school graduate, had spent eighteen years working at a department school. The school she went to in London was a total diploma mill. If this was his idea of “unconventional talent search,” I failed to see the talent. My voice was flat. “We are talking business. I don’t let my personal feelings interfere with work.” Oliver didn’t respond. After a long moment, I heard a voice message play from his phone. The voice was dripping with seductive affectation. “Oh, Mr. Sterling, I think I left my… little panties… in your car. When would be a good time for me to come get them?” The volume on his phone was high, seemingly intentionally, and the voice echoed unpleasantly through the silent room. Oliver watched me, resting his phone against his lips, his voice lazy. “Wrong number, Miss.” I stared at his cool, indifferent expression, trying to recall the man who had once loved me. 3 In the beginning, Oliver actually used to apologize. He had given Maya a gift that was extremely valuable, completely ignoring the fact that that specific item was one I had had a prior claim on. The wealthy social circle is too small; the tiniest clue could expose everything. Oliver drove home in a panic, handing over his phone, his wallet, and every single bank account password. “She did me a small favor. Mark picked the gift; I’ll give him hell for it later.” He had only given me a slight explanation, and I had believed him. There was no reason not to. But that day, word somehow got out that Oliver and I were fighting. On a rainy day, Maya Jenkins knelt outside the gates of our mansion. “Mrs. Sterling, I swear, there is truly nothing going on between Mr. Sterling and me. You have to believe us.” Her excessive denial only confirmed my fears. My anger burned through my rationality, so I didn’t see the fleeting hint of pain in Oliver’s eyes as he watched her from the window. A man pitying a woman can be the start of romance, if there are only two people involved. If there are three, it’s just dangerous. None of that mattered. The hardest days were already behind me. If I remembered correctly, today was November 27th. There were only a few days left in my three-year contract with his father. I looked at Oliver, about to speak. He suddenly received a call, and I could faintly hear the voice on the other end. I recognized that voice anywhere; it was Maya Jenkins. “The power went out… it’s completely dark in here, and I’m really scared.” “I’m on my way,” Oliver said, standing up. He spared me one glance. I swallowed the words I was about to say. He didn’t speak again and walked out without looking back. After Oliver left, I drove to the Sterling family estate. The main house was a massive, century-old colonial mansion, filled with furniture that was an awkward mix of antique European and modern American styles. Oliver’s mother was sitting on the sofa, a housekeeper massaging her shoulders. She glanced at me, then closed her eyes. I didn’t bother trying to win her over. I went straight up to the second-floor study. “Father—” I carefully considered my words. “Our three-year contract is up. I want to leave the Sterling family.” Years ago, I knew that Oliver had sent Maya Jenkins away, ostensibly to get rid of her, but in reality, he was funding her education abroad. When I was hospitalized after my miscarriage, I checked his flight records. He had been flying back and forth between California and London. That’s when my heart truly died. I had approached his father then, at a time when the Sterling family was facing its own internal crises. He had asked me to stay for three more years. He promised that if Oliver hadn’t changed his ways by the end of that time, he would personally ensure I could divorce him and leave the family. His father’s太师椅 (rocking chair/armchair) rocked gently. He opened his eyes and looked at me. “I thought after giving you three years, you would have gotten used to it. Why are you still set on leaving?” When I didn’t respond, he sighed. “When you married into this family, you should have expected this. Look at your mother-in-law. When she was young, she was even more headstrong than you. But in the end, didn’t she still secure her position as Mrs. Sterling? None of his bastards could ever replace her son, Oliver, as the family’s sole heir.” My mother-in-law, that woman who now spent her days in meditation, had been a formidable force in her youth. “Do you know why she succeeded?” “Why?” “Because I decided it. As long as I say so, your position as Mrs. Sterling is secure. With me backing you, those other women are no threat.” “Furthermore, I’m not talking to you about feelings; I’m talking about a business transaction. You’ve done an exceptional job these past few years, both with the company and the family. Cultivating another person like you would take too much time and effort. As a businesswoman, you should be able to calculate that leaving is not a sound investment.” If we didn’t talk about feelings, and only talked about business, this was undoubtedly the soundest investment I could make. I poured his tea, speaking softly. “You know that if we were just talking about business, I wouldn’t even be sitting here.” I had once thought about it—that holding onto the title of the ‘official wife’ would keep those other women from ever truly entering the Sterling family. But I hadn’t married Oliver Sterling for the title. I had become Mrs. Sterling because I had married Oliver Sterling. Years ago, I had pushed him away, telling him his marriage wasn’t even freedom, so how did he have the nerve to be with me? Oliver had frowned. “How am I not free? I want to marry you. I have plenty of tricks up my sleeve. Did you really think I’d just watch you marry someone else, like I’m some total loser?” I hadn’t believed him. What ‘tricks’ could possibly get past all the obstacles his family would place in our way? He hadn’t mentioned it again, but he had systematically taken over Sterling Group, slowly working his way into the core of the family’s power structure. And after I graduated, I successfully entered the company, starting as an intern. Back then, during the day, I would work under his guidance. At night, he’d give me private lessons. My growth was explosive. By the time he proposed again, he was sitting in the family council, and nobody dared to object. Except he did have respect for his father, and the next day, he came up with a wild plan to force his father to accept reality. “You brat, you really thought I was senile and wouldn’t figure it out?” “I don’t know which agency you went to, but you found some pretty-boy actor, held his hand, and dragged him to the courthouse to get registered for a marriage certificate. Did you really think that would work? I was shocked, but I turned a blind eye to it, hoping you’d get over this nonsense.” “It’s only been a few years, and now you’re divorcing.” “I’m going to make one thing clear: once you leave the Sterling family, I will not let you back in. Think carefully before you decide.” I lowered my head, the past seven years of our marriage flashing before my eyes like a movie. “Leaving the Sterling family is a decision I’ve been waiting to make for three years.” He waved his hand. “Wrap up whatever affairs you have left. Someone will contact you when the time comes.” As I came downstairs, my mother-in-law was still sitting on the sofa. I walked to the door, then turned back. “In the future, I will not be here to celebrate your birthday. I hope you remain in good health.” With that, I turned and walked out. The living room of the Sterling estate was filled with shadows. The woman was enveloped by the darkness, staring straight ahead. All the light in the house seemed to be carried away by that figure walking quickly out the door. As she watched, it was almost as if she saw her younger self, walking out. A housekeeper bent down and whispered, “Madam, it’s late. Time for bed.” The living room was plunged back into a deeper darkness. Oliver’s mother pulled back her gaze. “Let’s go.” 4 As I got into my car, I remembered his father’s condition. I immediately contacted the paparazzi and arranged to wire him the two million dollars the next morning, buying up all the scandalous photos and footage of Oliver from today. The next communication I received from Oliver was days later, via text. Since Maya Jenkins’s return, he had toned things down significantly. Thinking of my arrangement with his father, I instructed my driver to make a detour and pick up Oliver. The front door was open when I arrived. Inside, a group of people were playing cards, Maya Jenkins among them. She had just managed to win a hand, and the man sitting across from her was flattery. “Wow, you’re on a roll tonight! Taking everyone to the cleaners. Little bro here might have to put up his underwear as collateral. Please, have some mercy.” Maya smirked, just about to speak. Oliver Sterling lifted his eyes and saw me standing in the doorway. He took a drag of his cigarette and snapped, “The woman standing at the door is your true sister-in-law. Are you blind, confusing people like that? No wonder you’re losing every hand tonight.” The man saw me and jumped up in panic, stuttering, “S-sister-in-law…” When Maya Jenkins saw me, her face turned pale. Seeing this scene, I knew Oliver was doing this on purpose. He always did things like this intentionally, making sure I saw it. He was doing everything in his power to push me into divorcing him, yet he refused to be the one to actually do it. His reasoning was always simple: “She’s just a kid with no world experience. Fine for keeping around for amusement, but nobody sane would bring her home. Mrs. Sterling is you. That’s enough.” I scanned the room, then addressed the driver behind me, instructing him to take Oliver Sterling home later. Then, I offered a polite nod, turned, and left. As I reached the door, Maya Jenkins stopped me. The girl who had been eighteen two years ago was now barely twenty, looking vibrant and full of life. She was slightly out of breath, her voice soft and fragile. “Mrs. Sterling, I’m so sorry. I truly didn’t mean to break up your family. I tried to leave, tried to forget, but I just couldn’t.” “I can’t forget Oliver. I love him so much. But please believe me, I truly, truly have no intention of breaking up your family.” “Between Oliver and me… we simply met too late. If he had met me back then, I would have been Mrs. Sterling…” “I’m sorry, I don’t mean it that way. In short, I am sincerely apologizing to you. If there’s a next life, I will dedicate it to making amends to you.” “But in this life, I can’t return Oliver to you. I’m so sorry.” I studied her from head to toe. The girl who had only been able to afford fifty-dollar outfits two years ago was now covered in quiet luxury. The shoes she was wearing probably cost more than what she used to make in a year at the department school. There are many sparrows in the world. Once it was me, and now it was Maya Jenkins. I didn’t open my mouth. I didn’t care enough to open my mouth to talk to her. I was not going to attempt to use words of morality and conscience to awaken a mistress. If she had even the slightest concept of what morality was, she wouldn’t be so happily acting as his mistress. “You should divorce Oliver!” Her voice came from behind me. “Let him go!” Meanwhile, inside, the people were exchanging glances. Finally, someone humanized themselves enough to look at Oliver Sterling, whose face was like ice. “Oliver, not going to chase after your wife? Once a woman gets this angry, she might actually divorce you.” Oliver Sterling was staring at the photo of the two-million-dollar check, lost in thought. After a long moment, he finally chuckled. “Divorce? Even better. Free and clear.” 5 Oliver Sterling was the very last person in the Sterling family to find out that his wife was serious about the divorce. When he heard the news, he lifted his eyes, looking at the person who had told him. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” The person, his cousin Sarah, exaggerated, “Kidding? Grandpa already agreed to it. Besides, you’ve been turning this family upside down for the last two years. Weren’t you doing it just to get a divorce?” “If you ask me, divorce is fine. Men always end up getting tired of the ‘old ball and chain’ anyway.” She rested her chin on her hand, leaning in close and whispering, “And Chloe is still waiting for you, you know. All these years, she’s never gotten married. If you get a divorce, give her a chance, will ya?” Since she was a child, Sarah had always considered Chloe to be her ideal ‘sister-in-law,’ so when this Audrey came out of nowhere, she had been furious. On Oliver’s wedding day, she was gritting her teeth with envy, yet still forced to offer a congratulations and hand over a generous wedding gift. Poor Chloe. All these years, she had channeled her sorrow into her career, rejecting every man, turning herself into a powerhouse businesswoman. Oliver rubbed his temples and told her to get out. Sarah grabbed her bag and stomped out. As she opened the door, she ran smack into Maya Jenkins. Maya’s mouth was still twisted in a smirk she hadn’t managed to hide. Sarah crossed her arms, smiling sweetly. “Wow, look at that mouth. You look like a venus flytrap. Are you going to eat a baby? You’re so pathetic. This Audrey could get divorced eighteen times, and you still wouldn’t be anywhere close to taking her place as my sister-in-law.” Maya Jenkins’s expression remained unchanged, her voice soft. “Then who would? Your precious Chloe? She seems even more pathetic from where I’m standing.” Sarah clapped her hands. “Wow, as expected from a mistress. Your skin is thicker than a city wall. You aren’t even worthy to shine Chloe’s shoes.” Maya Jenkins watched her leave, her gaze distant and profound. Oliver Sterling sent her abroad, bought her a house, and let her live a life in upper society. And for her, he was getting a divorce. If that Audrey could sit in the seat of Mrs. Sterling, why couldn’t she? Two years ago, she had knelt outside the gates of that Hollywood Hills mansion. Back then, she had thought that one day, the doors to that mansion would be open for her. 6 After his father agreed to the divorce, I never had the chance to discuss it with Oliver Sterling. I knew he had gotten the news. I had assumed he would contact me immediately to negotiate. But many days passed, and he was still staying in Las Vegas. However, even the worst-case scenario had a legal backstop. Under California law, a married couple who has been living separately for two years can unilaterally file for divorce, and it does not require the other spouse’s consent. But I guessed that neither Oliver Sterling nor the Sterling family would allow that. If he would just nod his head, the divorce could be finalized in an instant. So I waited. Finally, he pushed open the mansion door again. Pleasantries were unnecessary. He got straight to the point. “If you divorce me, you get nothing. Are you doing this just to be dramatic?” Before we married, his father had only one condition: that we sign a prenuptial agreement. If the marriage ever failed, I couldn’t take a single dime of Sterling wealth. Oliver hadn’t wanted to sign it, but his father had been adamant. He didn’t trust Oliver. He would absolutely not allow the massive wealth of the Sterling Group to be tied to Oliver’s personal feelings. In the end, Oliver had compromised, but he had used his own personal funds to establish a trust fund for me. That trust fund was my separate property. Over the years, through investments and appreciation, it was now worth nearly $80 million. While $80 million was a drop in the ocean compared to the immense wealth of the Sterling Group, it was still a significant amount. Back then, it was the entire amount of liquid cash Oliver Sterling could deign to mobilize. I hadn’t wanted it at the time, but he had smiled and said, “A woman’s true confidence comes from having her own money, not from a man.” He used a cynical example: “Maybe I’ll betray you, but money won’t.” They say the closest yet most distant relationship is between a husband and wife. No matter how much we had loved each other, it didn’t stop us from now staring at each other with cold indifference, like enemies. I stared at him for a long time, recalling the Audrey who had acted like a crazy person years ago. In the beginning, my extreme mental fastidiousness had taken hold of me, and I had screamed the most vile insults at him. I had told him to go die, told him I hoped he got run over by a car tomorrow and crushed into a thousand pieces. Why did he have to destroy my entire belief in love, yet still walk around so casually? When the pain was at its worst, I had actually tried to drive my car into his, determined to go to hell with him, so we wouldn’t have to suffer day after day. When I was lucid, I had only one thought. Thank God we didn’t have children. Thank God that child had never come into the world. I looked at him, realizing we had already yelled everything there was to yell. Only calm remained. “You should be thanking me. In the future, you won’t have to hide when you’re cheating.” He clicked his lighter, lighting a cigarette, and looked at me through the smoke. “You’re right. I should thank Chloe, too. Thanks to you for clearing the path.” I ignored his sarcasm. “Our appointment is in three days. I hope…” He picked up his jacket, heading for the door. “Whatever.” After pushing the door open, he paused and looked back at me. “Audrey, don’t regret this.” “But if you do regret it, and you beg me, I might still hearten to you.” “After all, we are husband and wife. Nobody can take your place.” 7 Oliver Sterling didn’t show up in court on the day of our appointment. An hour later, I received the divorce decree. I drove back to the mansion. However, the group had a major event coming up, so the divorce announcement would be temporarily delayed. When I got home, there was an unexpected guest in the living room. I frowned, calling for security. The guard explained, “She had Mr. Sterling’s authorized access card…” Maya Jenkins looked at me, her head held high. “I came to get the enamel jewelry that Mr. Sterling bid on for me.” She ran her hand over the leather sofa. “He said he was giving it to me, but you’ve been hoarding it.” This mansion was in my name. The day I decided to divorce him, I had thrown all of Oliver’s things out. I hadn’t thrown out the expensive stuff, but it was probably moved to his penthouse in Santa Monica. I didn’t waste words with her. “Get out.” “Audrey.” She wasn’t calling me Mrs. Sterling anymore. “As fellow women, I know what you’re thinking. Stalling for all these years, then intentionally bringing up divorce… you just want your husband to have a change of heart. That ‘playing hard to get’ trick won’t work.” I glanced over and called, “Elara.” Within a moment, a woman came up from downstairs. I sparing her one glance. Her eyes lit up. She dropped her dust rag, stepped forward, grabbed Maya Jenkins, and started dragging her out. “Ah—you psycho!” Elara and her sister, Sarah, were old-timers with the Sterling family. They had come with Oliver’s mother from her family home years ago. Sarah was calm and intelligent; Elara was brute force. They were my mother-in-law’s right-hand women. Back when Oliver’s mother was handling his father’s mistresses, Elara had probably slapped a hundred of them. When I joined the family, my mother-in-law had sent her to my side. Unfortunately, I was never one to make a massive scene, so she had been completely useless for years. Today, I was letting her recreate some of her former glory. From outside, I could hear Elara’s voice, booming with power. “You trash! Young and desperate for a man. Los Angeles had its fair share of mistresses, but none had the nerve to show up at the main house. Raised by trash, for trash. Even the landfill wouldn’t take you…” It was rare for her to get to use all her pent-up energy, and her insults were extremely creative. Maya Jenkins actually had a decent online presence; she had built an ‘influencer’ persona for herself. In her posts, she was the girl from the wrong side of the tracks, who had a chance meeting with a wealthy, powerful man. That man loved her to pieces, treated her like nobility, loved her as his equal, and helped her move up in the world. Naive followers would comment: “Girl, you must be incredibly talented to be loved that way.” She accepted every compliment. “He takes me to see the world, teaches me how to navigate society. He made sure that even if we don’t last, I’ll still live a good life.” Creating a fairytale of Prince Charming and the poor girl… as if she really were the heroine of a romance novel.

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After I made another group of kids at the residential treatment center break down in tears, the director dragged me into his office. He planted me right in front of a wealthy-looking young couple. “If you’re looking for a companion for your autistic son, this girl is your best bet,” the director said, sighing. “She’s the biggest chatterbox in the entire system. Actually no… let’s call it ‘vibrant.’ She is very vibrant.” He leaned in, his voice drops to a serious whisper. “But here’s my one condition. If you adopt her, you absolutely cannot send her back. Consider this my only request.” The young couple didn’t seem to hear the director’s warning. They looked at me, their eyes sparkling with excitement. “We want her!” they said simultaneously. I didn’t really understand what autism was. But my new mom told me later, “Autism just means you can talk to him as much as you want, and he’ll never tell you to shut up.” My eyes lit up. A match made in heaven. I was a born talker, and he was the ultimate designated listener. 1 My new mom and dad led me to a bedroom door that was tightly shut. They looked at me with expectation written all over their faces. “Go on in, sweetheart. Your brother doesn’t talk much, but he’s actually very sweet once you get to know him.” Mom added, “If you can just get him to say a single word back to you, Dad and I will give you anything you want.” My eyes gleamed. I reached out and pushed the door open. Before I could even introduce myself— SLAM! The door flew shut, narrowly missing my nose. I stared at the wood, thoroughly confused. Mom and Dad sighed behind me. “It’s alright, Nan Yu. That’s just how he is,” Dad said gently. “Why don’t you try again tomorrow? Let’s show you to your room so you can get some rest.” Their posture was slumped with disappointment and helplessness. It made my chest ache. Maybe I just used the wrong greeting. I was determined to crack this nut. A few minutes later, I knocked and cracked the door open. “Hey, Big Bro—” SLAM! “Dear, beloved brother—” SLAM! “Oh mighty and powerful brother of mine—” SLAM! I just stood there, staring at the closed door. It felt like it had been welded shut this time. 2 The next morning, I took a screwdriver and took the door off its hinges. Mom and Dad stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching me. I could see the total validation in their eyes. Mom whispered to Dad, “With a sister like this, I’m not worried about him never talking again. She’s an absolute angel.” I really had to lean into the screwdriver. I popped the doorknob off first. Then, with one final, mighty twist, the whole door came down. I looked inside and my eyes went wide. I didn’t expect him to be so good-looking. He was like a K-pop idol, only paler. “Hi, brother! I’m Nan Yu, and I’m going to be your sister forever—” He didn’t say a word. Instead, he took the thick hardcover book he was holding and hurled it at the cabinet, a clear expression of fury at the intruder. I just smiled at him, totally unfazed, and did a swan dive right onto his bed, tunneling under his comforter. Mom and Dad exchanged a silent look in the hallway and quietly disappeared. I reached out and tried to grab his hand. He yanked it away. I tried again. He yanked it away again. We played this game of hand-tag for about five minutes. I gave up. Time for the nuclear option: talking. I snatched the stuffed alligator he was clutching and hugged it to my chest. “You know, brother, back at the treatment center, I used to tell stories to all the stuffed animals every night. Now that I’m here, I’ll tell stories to you instead.” The boy, let’s call him Ethan, didn’t say anything. He just stared blankly at his bedspread. Honestly, I was already satisfied. At least he wasn’t calling me names like the kids at the center did. He hadn’t even tried to grab his alligator back. I flashed him a bright smile. “Brother, I’m going to tell you the story of my life. Living in the group homes was actually pretty wild. Something crazy happened every day.” “I was three when the director found me. My arm was broken. The director said it was lucky he found me, otherwise I would have ended up a disabled chatterbox. Haha.” “After I moved in, I realized the other kids loved acting. They were always playing ‘Mean Girls,’ pretending they were royalty.” “They made the little kids, like me, bow down to them. We had to tie their shoes, wash their clothes, and clean the whole place. I told them I couldn’t clean because my arm was broken. Guess what?” “They said since they were royalty, even the disabled kids had to work. I wasn’t going to listen to that. I intentionally spilled dirty water all over the leader and called her a fake bitch.” Ethan’s fingers twitched slightly. He shot me a quick look out of the corner of his eye. I didn’t notice. I just kept babbling. “But then the director walked in and heard me swearing. He got so mad. He made me clean all the bathrooms for a week. So I just fell asleep in one of the stalls for the night and didn’t do any work at all. Aren’t I smart? Hahaha.” “And those other kids, because I was small, they always called me ‘Short Stack.’ Every time I heard that, I’d jump up and crack them over the head with a plastic shovel. Nobody called me that twice.” “Of course, the big kids I couldn’t beat up, so I just got wrecked by them every time I fought back. Good thing I’m tough as nails. Hahaha.” “Eventually, I just learned to use my mouth. I could make those bullies cry just by verbally decimating them. I’m pretty good, right? Haha.” I adopted a very serious tone, like I was teaching him a life lesson. “Listen to me, brother. If anyone ever gives you crap, you just call them a psycho. Say it with total conviction. It makes them think you’re crazy, and they’ll back off.” “Psycho… just remember that, psycho.” I laughed and reached out to grab his hand again, hoping for some reaction. But as soon as I raised my hand, Ethan flinched and pulled his away violently. What the…? So we started the game again. I reached, he flinched. We did this for about thirty minutes. Eventually, I pressed him so hard he scrambled out of bed and fled to the living room. I was hot on his heels, hand outstretched. “Don’t run, brother! I haven’t finished the story yet!” Mom and Dad were in the living room and watched us burst in. Mom turned to Dad, tears in her eyes. “Honey, his mental state already looks so much better. He’s… vibrant. We definitely picked the right girl.” Dad nodded, smiling. “We did, honey.” Ethan looked completely fed up. 3 Mom and Dad decided that me just getting Ethan out of his bedroom made me some kind of genius miracle worker. They immediately rewarded me with a mountain of gifts. I dragged every single one of them into Ethan’s room (the one that still didn’t have a door). “You don’t have to be jealous,” I told him seriously. “Whatever I have, you have half. Don’t worry, I’m loyal like that!” My eyes began to gleam as I tore into the boxes. “Oh wow, a Louis Vuitton backpack! This one is mine, sorry, I need it for status.” “Ooh! Fancy Victoria’s Secret silk pajamas! Definitely mine.” “Whoa! Cute hair clips! Mine.” “Kawaii pink fuzzy bunny slippers! Mine.” “Pink dress? Mine.” “Shiny black patent leather shoes? Mine.” “Actually… everything is mine.” I stared at the sea of pink, girly gifts on the floor and then looked up at him thoughtfully. “Maybe… do you like pink?” I stood up and reached for his hand. I caught him off guard and successfully grabbed it, then immediately shoved a small pink purse into his palm. “Haha! A gift for you!” Ethan acted like he had been struck by lightning. He violently whipped his hand away, hurling the purse across the room, and then began frantically scrubbing his palm against his sleeve. I looked at my hand, then at his. “Brother, your skin is so soft.” Ethan started scrubbing even harder. 4 Mom and Dad saw that I had brought all my gifts into Ethan’s room and assumed I didn’t like them. They decided to take me to the mall so I could pick things out myself. I looked over at the doorless bedroom. “Is brother coming? We should take him shopping with us.” Mom and Dad looked uneasy. “Ethan doesn’t really… like shopping,” Mom said. I tilted my head, confused. “Who doesn’t like shopping? It’s therapy! You probably just haven’t introduced him to it the right way.” “It’s not that,” Dad explained. “He can’t handle crowds. He gets extreme sensory overload and feels very unsafe. He… he might lose control.” They took my hands and started leading me to the front door. I looked back over my shoulder. Through the sliding glass doors to the patio, I saw Ethan standing there, his face completely blank, staring at nothing. I stopped walking. I broke free from their grip and walked back toward him. He looked so lonely. I bet he wanted to be like a normal person, to just go out and live life. I turned back to Mom and Dad. “I’m not going. I’m going to stay here and hang out with my brother. Whatever you buy for me, I’m sure I’ll love!” I bolted up the stairs toward the second floor. I knew he was just standing there, waiting. Below, I heard Mom burst into tears. “Oh my god! She is an actual angel sent from above.” I burst through the doorless entryway and grabbed Ethan’s hand before he could flinch. “I’m not going. I’m going to tell you stories instead.” To my surprise, Ethan didn’t yank his hand away this time. He actually let me lead him to the sofa, and he sat down right next to me. My eyes gleamed. I was a chatterbox unleashed. “Okay, brother! I’m going to tell you the story of ‘The Little Match Girl’!” Ethan: “…” “Okay, so there was this little girl, right? She was super poor, but she lived in a house filled with nuclear bombs. She went out to sell them, but nobody wanted to buy any. She was freezing and starving, and she really missed her grandma, so she lit one of the nukes to get warm. That night, the whole village got to meet her grandma.” Ethan: “…” I was really getting into it. “And then there’s the story of Little Red Riding Hood—hey, don’t cover your ears, brother!” 5 Mom and Dad bought me even more gifts. The bedroom was almost overflowing. I started to feel a little guilty receiving all this, especially since I still hadn’t gotten their son to talk. He hadn’t even had a significant emotional reaction yet. But I still opened the closet doors to shove the new clothes in while yelling down the stairs for them to stop buying things. Mom and Dad just shared a smile. “We’ve decided to enroll you in school. Since we’ve adopted you, we’re responsible for you. Education is mandatory.” I looked at the doorless entryway. “Can I go to the same school as my brother?” Mom looked uncomfortable. “Honey, Ethan is a grade ahead of you. Even if he went, you wouldn’t be in the same classes. And we honestly think home tutoring is better for him.” I frowned. “But he needs to try to be around kids his own age. I did some research online, and it said socialization can really help.” “Don’t you want him to talk and communicate? If he goes to school, maybe he’ll make a friend. Maybe that’ll give him a reason to speak.” They saw how adamant I was. They hesitated, but finally nodded. “Alright. We’ll try it.” I cheered and bolted toward Ethan’s room. “Yes! That means we can have matching backpacks! Spiderman and Ghost-Spider!” Ethan: “…” 6 I was right about school. As soon as Ethan arrived on campus, he had a massive emotional reaction. His face went pale, his hands were shaking, and I could see the sweat on his forehead. The veins in his neck were bulging. He looked terrified. I immediately grabbed his hand and started guiding him through the crowded hallway, one step at a time. “Brother?” Ethan didn’t flinch this time. Instead, he gripped my hand with terrifying strength. It felt like he was trying to break my fingers. I gritted my teeth and endured it. But then I started hearing the comments from all around us. “Look at the freak. Why did they let the r-word back in school? If your brain is broken, stay home. You’re bad luck.” “Look at him, he can’t even walk straight. He’s twitching like a glitching video game.” “The freak brought his own personal nursemaid. Hilarious.” “Look at his hands. That’s so weird. That’s that psycho-stimming thing they do, right? Haha. Normal people don’t do that. We do this!” One kid started wildly waving his hands in a mocking gesture. In that moment, I understood. I understood why Ethan fought so hard against going to school. I turned on them, baring my teeth, my fists clenched. “Say one more word, and I will personally deliver you to the ER!” “Imagine being a literal child making fun of someone over a disability. Look in a mirror before you judge someone else, you absolute losers.” “Stimming? Yeah, he’s stimming. What are you doing? Some kind of seizure dance? Maybe you need a nursemaid, you absolute joke!” I pointed at each one of them as I went down the line, decimating them. The crowd of bullies quickly dispersed. “The mute’s got a crazy dog on his leash. Let’s go, let’s go.” I immediately turned back to Ethan, who had his head down, his fists clenched tight. I grabbed his hand gently. “Don’t be scared. I’m here now. Nobody is going to mess with you.” “They’re just psychos. Don’t pay any attention to them.” I reached into my bag and pulled out a matching Fitbit Dad had bought us. I snapped the bands around his thin wrist. Then, I dramatically snapped the matching one around my own. “If anyone gives you trouble, you call me on this immediately. I promise I will be there in five seconds!” Ethan didn’t say anything, but he stared at the Fitbit on his wrist like it was an alien artifact. 7 My morning performance at the school gates apparently scared off most of the casual bullies. Nobody messed with me in my classes. I focused on my schoolwork, but in the middle of my last period, my Fitbit started buzzing aggressively. I answered. All I heard were noises and cruel laughter. “Hey, dummy! Where’s your crazy sister now? Weirdos shouldn’t be allowed in a normal school. Go back to the institution!” I threw my books in my bag and bolted out of the classroom, ignoring the teacher. I ran toward the playground and saw Ethan. He was surrounded by a group of older boys. They were kicking and punching him, but he wasn’t reacting. He was curled in a ball, his right hand tightly protecting the Fitbit on his left wrist. I went absolutely feral. I charged into the circle, shoulder-checking two boys to the ground. “You absolute animals! Picking on him?! Fight me, you cowards!” The group of boys quickly recovered and surrounded me. “Oh look, the nursemaid. You really think you can take all of us?” I was preparing my verbal assault when I felt a hand on my arm. Ethan had stood up and was gently shaking his head at me. I finally noticed the cut on his lip. I took a deep breath, trying to control my rage. “Don’t be scared, brother. I forgot to tell you, I was the unofficial heavyweight champion of the treatment center. I can take three of them, easy.” I dropped my backpack and, under their shocked stares, I pulled a thick wooden dowel out of the side pocket. I had scavenged it from a shop class. “Holy shit. This bitch is actually insane.” 8 By the time Mom and Dad arrived at the Principal’s office, only Ethan and I were there, staring at each other. I gave a little smile and reached out to pluck a piece of grass from his hair. “My brother is so good-looking, he even looks good with a lawn on his head.” Ethan turned his head away. “What happened?!” Mom’s voice was full of panic. I immediately felt a lump in my stomach. This is it. I’m going to get in trouble. They’re going to send me back. I nervously gripped Ethan’s hand. He didn’t pull away. Instead, he gripped my hand back, hard. I was shocked. In a fit of absolute joy, I slid my fingers between his, interlacing our hands properly. “This girl… she used a wooden weapon and put three students in the hospital,” the Principal said, looking terrified. “The parents are demanding police involvement…” Mom and Dad looked at me. I shrank back, already imagining my backpack being packed. But before I could apologize, Mom and Dad surprised me. They hugged me. “Nan Yu, don’t be scared. Tell us the truth. We will handle this.” I was stunned. So you can mess up and not get screamed at or kicked out? I pulled my Fitbit out of my pocket and played the recording. “They were picking on my brother first. I didn’t beat up people. I beat up animals!” The Vice Principal rolled his eyes. “No class whatsoever…” But when the recording finished playing, the administration went silent. Mom and Dad’s faces were stony. When they heard the words “freak” and “retarded,” I could see Mom’s hands shaking with rage. “This is what you call a ‘safe educational environment’?” Dad asked, his voice low and deadly. “I think the Sterling Group needs to reconsider donating that new library wing.”

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I crashed the wrong wedding, snagged three envelopes of cash during the games, and ended up brawling with the groomsmen. One of the groomsmen was incredibly handsome, and I definitely hit him the hardest. But after the reception, that same groomsman blocked my exit. “Are you on the bride’s side or the groom’s side?” he asked. I thought about it for a second. “The bride’s side. I’m the step-niece of her brother-in-law’s great-uncle.” The groomsman laughed. “Then you should be on the groom’s side. But unfortunately for you, I’m the bride’s brother-in-law, and I definitely don’t have a great-uncle.” 1 This weekend, my mom forced me to attend the wedding of some distant relative. She was too busy with her weekly bridge game to go herself. I told her to just Venmo the wedding gift money, but she looked at me with wide, innocent eyes. “They’re too old-school for Venmo, sweetie. They don’t even have the app.” I tried to refuse again, but she used her ultimate mom-logic: “We already committed the money! If you don’t go and at least eat the food, we’re losing out!” Thinking about it, she wasn’t wrong. Plus, I didn’t have lunch plans anyway, so I headed over early. Because I got there so early, I actually ended up tagging along with the bridal party for the “door games”—a tradition where the bridesmaids block the door and the groomsmen have to bribe or fight their way in to get the bride. At the hotel where the wedding party was getting ready, I was waiting around bored when a group of enthusiastic older aunts grabbed me, dragged me downstairs, and shoved me into a car to join the chaotic bridal procession. Among the groomsmen, there was this one guy who stood out. He had strong, dark eyebrows and striking eyes. He was easily six-foot-two and incredibly noticeable. I followed that handsome face all the way up the stairs and into the bridal suite. The bridesmaids were blocking the bedroom door, demanding red envelopes full of cash. The groomsmen were simultaneously shoving money under the door and throwing their shoulders against the wood. The groom’s side had two guys who were built like linebackers. They hit the door with a combined charge, completely misjudging their own strength. The door literally flew off its hinges. The bridesmaids screamed and scattered. Luckily, no one was hurt. But the girls were definitely not happy. The planned, organized games were thrown out the window, and they immediately grabbed their inflatable squeaky hammers and started swinging. I was just standing on the sidelines watching the chaos when, suddenly— The handsome groomsman reached out a long arm, grabbed my shoulder, and yanked me directly in front of him. Before I could even process what was happening, an inflatable hammer smacked me square on the head. It didn’t hurt, but being used as a human shield was highly insulting. In that instant, I switched sides and fully joined the bridal defense squad. I grabbed a dropped inflatable hammer off the floor and started wailing on the groomsmen. Naturally, my primary target was the handsome jerk who used me as a meat shield. 2 Maybe my performance was just too stellar, but I successfully integrated into the bride’s squad. For the rest of the morning’s events, I enthusiastically participated alongside the bridesmaids, tormenting the group of guys. And of course. My main focus remained tormenting the best-looking guy in the room. When he was forced to push his face through a sheet of plastic wrap held up in a frame, I perfectly timed my phone camera to capture the exact moment his face was hilariously squished and distorted. Finally, during the scramble, I managed to snag three red envelopes full of cash. Maybe it’s just easy for young people to bond, but by the time the door games were over, I was basically best friends with the bridesmaids, running around helping them with last-minute details. Then, we headed to the actual wedding venue. Because there were so many people in the wedding party, only the Maid of Honor and Best Man rode in the lead car. The rest of us were dispersed among the following vehicles in the motorcade. I deliberately lingered in the back, picking the car with the fewest people to hop into. However… I ended up in the passenger seat, and the driver was none other than the groomsman from earlier. The 6’2”, dark-eyebrowed, strikingly handsome guy. …Is this guy a professional freelancer or something? A groomsman and a chauffeur? Obviously, the handsome guy remembered me too. Our eyes met. He smirked. “Did you have fun hitting me earlier?” 3 I offered an awkward, sheepish smile. “Just playing the part, you know? Sticking to the script.” Thankfully, the motorcade started moving right then. He pulled his gaze back and put the car in drive. We were the very last car in the line, and we didn’t pick up any other passengers before the lead car pulled out. The ride was silent. The handsome guy was giving off a very aloof vibe. Aside from asking me if the AC temperature was okay, he didn’t make a peep. But halfway through the drive, his phone, resting on the center console, started ringing. I subconsciously glanced over. The screen flashed with three bold words: “The Ex”. He glanced at it, and saw that I saw it. “Can you answer that for me?” He kept one hand casually on the steering wheel, his voice flat. “Do me a favor. Tell her you’re my girlfriend.” “What’s in it for me?” “I’ll give you two more red envelopes later.” I immediately answered the phone and softened my voice to a sweet purr. “Hello? Who is this?” The line was silent for two seconds before a screeching roar blasted through the speaker: “Who the hell are you?! Tell Liam to get his ass on the phone right now!” Good lord. Her scream made my ear ring for a solid five seconds. “I’m so sorry, Liam is asleep right now.” I smiled, intentionally making my voice sound husky and breathless. “He was just so incredible earlier, he’s a little exhausted right now. Whatever it is, you can tell him tomorrow.” With that, I hung up the phone. But right before I hit the red button, I added one last sentence: “Actually, don’t bother calling tomorrow either. I won’t let him answer.” The handsome guy—Liam—turned his head to look at me. He was smirking, his tone deeply suggestive: “How exactly was I ‘incredible’ earlier?” 4 …This guy. Asking questions he already knows the answer to. I just helped him block his crazy ex, and he turns around and flirts with me? No good deed goes unpunished. I ignored him. While he was stopped at a red light, I flipped the phone in my hand and tossed it back onto the console— A perfect, flawless toss. It landed directly on his lap. Right in the danger zone. Liam let out a muffled groan, his thighs instantly snapping shut, his face turning pale. “Are you going to pay for it if you broke it…” I leaned against the window, smiling brightly, and pointed ahead. “Light’s green. Drive.” Liam grumbled under his breath and hit the gas. We pulled up to the reception venue and got out of the car together. Liam didn’t forget he was still a groomsman. He adjusted his suit jacket, preparing to head inside. “Hey.” I couldn’t help myself, calling out to stop him. Liam paused and turned to look at me. “That bridesmaid with the long, straight black hair. Is she your girlfriend?” I clasped my hands behind my back, twisting my fingers together. Earlier, I had noticed that when we were all aggressively hammering Liam, that specific bridesmaid had quietly stepped in to shield him. Even though it was chaotic, I still caught the tender look in her eyes. Plus, she was easily the most beautiful bridesmaid in the group. Liam froze for a second, then his lips curved up. “No. Just a friend.” He finished speaking and raised an eyebrow. “Come on. Let’s go get some food.” 5 Inside the hotel ballroom. I found a quiet corner and sat at a relatively empty table, waiting for the reception to officially start. Before sitting down, I had stopped by the welcome table to drop off the wedding gift money. Since the familial connection was so incredibly distant, my mom had instructed me to just leave $200. The rest of the events unfolded like any standard American wedding. The bride walked down the aisle on her father’s arm. The father handed her over to another man and gave a speech. The emotional tone and heartfelt words had people in the audience wiping away tears. The only part of the ceremony that caught my attention was when the groomsmen and bridesmaids walked down the aisle in pairs. That beautiful bridesmaid with the long black hair clearly wanted to walk with Liam. But when it was their turn, Liam subtly shifted his weight, pushing the buddy standing behind him forward. Under the gaze of all the guests, the bridesmaid had no choice but to press her lips together and walk down the aisle with the guy who had been shoved forward. A moment later, on the dais, Liam’s gaze swept over the crowd and landed lightly on me. Then, the corner of his mouth ticked upward into a smirk. In that moment, sitting at the very back table in the corner, looking at that smiling face on the stage… My heart did a quiet, unexpected flutter. 6 The ceremony ended, and the reception dinner began. Since I didn’t know a single person at my table, I just kept my head down and focused on the food. I have to admit, the catering at this hotel was fantastic. As I gnawed on a short rib, I silently thought to myself: When I get married, I’m booking this place. That way, after the ceremony, I can eat an amazing meal. Fully stuffed and satisfied, I let out a small burp, grabbed a napkin to elegantly wipe my mouth, and decided that since I paid my $200 and didn’t know anyone, it was time to bounce. However— The moment I stood up, someone blocked my path. It was him. Liam. He had one hand resting on the back of my chair, a smirk on his lips. His relaxed, confident posture made it seem like he had been waiting for me for a while. “Full?” I subconsciously wiped the corner of my mouth again. “Yeah.” Thinking about it, I tried to salvage my image. “I actually have a very small appetite usually.” Liam’s smile widened. “Yeah. I can tell.” He didn’t say anything else, just stood there smiling, looking at me. His gaze was making my heart race. I tried to sidestep him to leave, but he blocked me again. Liam leaned down slightly. “I still haven’t figured it out yet. Are you here for the bride, or for the groom?” I thought about it for a second. “The bride’s side. I’m the step-niece of her brother-in-law’s great-uncle.” Liam laughed. “Then you should be on the groom’s side. But unfortunately for you, I’m the bride’s brother-in-law, and I definitely don’t have a great-uncle.” I froze. No… great-uncle? I didn’t make that relationship up. My mom drilled it into me this morning. In case anyone asked at the wedding, I had basically memorized it like a script. Our eyes met. Liam’s gaze was sincere; he didn’t look like he was lying at all. Panic set in. I quickly pulled out my phone and dialed my mom. To confirm the relationship, I asked, and my mom replied in a serious tone: “Chloe, the groom’s last name is Davis. You didn’t go to the wrong venue, did you? … Gin Rummy! I win!” Ignoring the triumphant roar at the end of her sentence, I slowly turned my head to look at Liam. “What’s the groom’s last name?” Liam raised an eyebrow. “The groom is my older brother. So his last name is also Sterling.” …I’m dead. Before my mom could start yelling at me over the phone, I hung up, snapped back to reality, and sprinted toward the doors. Behind me, Liam called out in confusion, “Where are you going?!” Where am I going? I’m going to get my two hundred dollars back, obviously! 7 However… I failed. The welcome table refused to give the money back, and I was too embarrassed to make a scene since it was my own stupid mistake. But I was incredibly depressed. Two weddings, same hotel. The only difference was that one was in Ballroom A, and the other was in Ballroom B. I stood by the lobby doors and texted my mom: “You didn’t give a gift to that distant relative, did you?” My mom replied almost instantly: “Do you want me to cut off your allowance for next month?” …I bowed my head to the reality of needing to survive. I ran over to Ballroom B, dropped another $200 in their card box, and walked out feeling completely defeated. I was supposed to use my mom’s “company dime” to score a free meal, and instead, I was out two hundred bucks. As I walked out of the banquet hall, Liam’s figure appeared in my line of sight again. He was highly amused. “What, did you crash the wrong wedding?” I refused to admit defeat. “The party over there was too boring. I came over here on purpose to see the action.” Liam chuckled, pulled something out of his jacket pocket, and tossed it toward me. I scrambled to catch it. It was two red envelopes. He raised an eyebrow. “The red envelopes I promised you. Keep them.” These kinds of envelopes usually only had a few bucks in them anyway, so I didn’t refuse and stuffed them into my purse. I let out a heavy sigh, preparing to leave this place of heartbreak. But my path was blocked by Liam again. He pulled out his phone and held it in front of me. “Let’s exchange numbers. You started helping me, you might as well finish it. I might need your help dealing with my ex again.” “What’s in it for me?” Liam smiled. “More envelopes?” “Deal!” I quickly added his number. Honestly, the money wasn’t the main draw. Mostly, I just wanted an excuse to keep talking to a hot guy. After saving my number, Liam put his phone away. “Come on. I’ll drive you home.” However, I followed Liam toward the hotel exit, and just as we were about to walk through the doors, he slammed on the brakes. I almost crashed into his back. I looked up to see Liam lowering his voice. “Girl, I got a situation.” ?? I was completely confused. Then, I saw Liam nod slightly toward the front, and I followed his gaze. Standing a few yards ahead was a girl, arms crossed over her chest, looking very slender. Liam gently grabbed my hand. His palm was warm. “That’s my ex. The real one. She’s fierce.” 8 The hand Liam was holding trembled slightly. What the hell is this? I just collected two measly envelopes, and the client is already demanding service? And… This guy is holding my hand, pretending we’re some passionately in love couple, and he didn’t even bother to tell me how “fierce” this ex of his is? I swallowed hard, silently studying the girl in front of us. Tsk. She has twig arms and legs. She can’t possibly cause that much trouble, right? I was wrong. Liam was right. His ex… was terrifyingly fierce. The slender girl marched straight up to us, her sharp gaze sweeping over our joined hands. Her opening line was a nuke: “Liam Sterling, I haven’t agreed to a breakup yet. This is cheating! You better believe I’m going to ruin you!” “You’re a three-minute-man, and you have the nerve to cheat?!” Hold up. That is a lot of information. I instantly looked at Liam, my eyes full of questions. He looked back at me, his face and neck completely red with anger. He didn’t say a single word, but his eyes clearly screamed: “I AM NOT!” As Liam frowned and stated they had been broken up for six months, and that he now had a new girlfriend, the girl didn’t say another word. She just raised her hand and swung a massive slap directly at my face! Me: ?? I didn’t even say anything! If you’re going to slap someone, slap Liam! With ninja-like reflexes, I grabbed Liam’s arm and yanked him forcefully in front of me. SMACK! The crisp sound of a slap echoed loudly. 9 That aim. That power… I swallowed hard, finally believing what Liam had said earlier. This was a life-or-death situation. How could I possibly fight someone who just throws hands like that? So, I did the only thing I could. I secretly pinched my own thigh hard, and my eyes instantly welled up with tears. Since she was playing the violent psycho, I had to play the innocent victim. With tears in my eyes, I turned and grabbed the arms of a few older ladies who had stopped to watch the drama. “Ma’am, look at them. They broke up six months ago, but she constantly stalks my boyfriend. And today she just runs up and hits him…” My leg was throbbing from the pinch, and tears streamed down my face. “Ma’am, who bullies people like this? Look what she did to my boyfriend…” I pointed at the bright red handprint swelling on Liam’s cheek. Sure enough, the nosy, good-hearted older women were instantly outraged and began scolding Liam’s ex. You do not mess with American grandmas. When it comes to public shaming and street-level debate, they absolutely obliterated Liam’s feral ex-girlfriend. The women were loud, and their scolding quickly drew a crowd of onlookers. And then— I used the chaos to grab Liam and run. Are you kidding me? Did you think I was going to stand there and wait to get slapped again?

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My daughter, who lives abroad, specifically mailed me a box of imported, supposedly very expensive strawberries. I happily followed her instructions, washing them three times in a saltwater soak. Just as I was about to eat one, my one-year-old grandson started crying. After I finished feeding him and came back out to the living room, all that was left of the strawberries on the coffee table were a few green leaves. My husband of thirty-five years criticized me for being careless, saying I shouldn’t have used a colander to hold them. “I don’t know what you do all day. Look at this, there’s water all over the coffee table.” My son swallowed the very last strawberry, too busy playing a video game on his phone to even look up. “Mom, these strawberries are actually pretty good. Ask my sister where she bought them. I want to buy some for Chloe. She’s been working so hard lately, I need to treat her.” Looking at the puddle of water on the coffee table, I suddenly felt that this life was entirely meaningless. So, I turned around and called my daughter. “That visa you mentioned last time… can we still apply for it?” Later, my daughter posted a video of me picking giant strawberries at a farm abroad. I was smiling, looking ten years younger. The father and son back home saw it and their eyes went red. “It was just a strawberry. Why wouldn’t she come back?” 01 “You’re this old and you’re still so clumsy. I really don’t know how you manage to be a grandmother.” My husband, Arthur, leaned back in his recliner, his legs crossed. He took a deep drag of his cigarette and continued nagging me through the cloud of smoke. “And you’re still thinking about going to be a nanny for someone else? You’d be lucky if they didn’t fire you on the first day.” Looking at the face I had stared at for thirty-five years, I suddenly felt nauseous. It was like looking at a pile of old, rotting manure in a vegetable patch. I walked over and snatched the cigarette from his mouth, crushing it out in the ashtray. The movement was so sudden that Arthur froze for a good moment. “Have you lost your mind?!” I picked up the rag nearby and wiped the water off the coffee table. “My daughter-in-law said no smoking in the house. The baby is too young to be inhaling secondhand smoke.” Arthur’s eyes went wide. “I wasn’t smoking right next to my grandson! What’s the big deal? The smoke clears in a minute!” Seeing him reach for his lighter again, I slammed the rag down on the coffee table. “Then you still can’t smoke!” My suddenly raised voice finally caught the attention of my son, Mark. He looked up blankly from his phone screen, looked at me, then at his dad. He didn’t say a word, just stood up and walked into his bedroom, still yelling at his game. “Push the lane! Push the lane! I’ll tank the turret!” Honestly, I was famous for having a soft temper. In all our years of marriage, I rarely ever raised my voice at Arthur. Because every time I showed even the slightest hint of dissatisfaction, he would say: “Helen! Have your wings grown too stiff? Did you forget how I worked myself to the bone from dawn to dusk to support you all these years? You should be grateful!” Just like now. After I yelled at him, Arthur immediately stiffened his neck and started throwing out harsh threats. “I think you’re getting senile. Throwing a fit out of nowhere! If you don’t like the smoke, then get out of this house. If you’ve got the guts, leave my house!” “This is my house too! It’s marital property, what right do you have to kick me out?!” My daughter, Emma, taught me to say that. Ever since she became independent, she always loved telling me I was a pushover, letting her dad control me for decades. She wanted me to grow a spine. “Women hold up half the sky! Mom, are you planning on indulging them for the rest of your life? You’re only in your fifties. Instead of being an unpaid maid for them, you should come with me and see the world.” I used to mumble and not know how to argue back with her. For decades, I had lived the first half of my life exactly like this. No one ever told me it was wrong. My mother, who died young, and Emma’s grandmother, both said men were the sky, and women should yield and endure to keep the peace in the family. But Emma said that was wrong. She said a family is built by both partners, that a woman raising children is just as formidable as a man making money, and that there’s no rule saying women have to serve men. Emma said it so often that a tiny bit of it finally stuck with me. And it came in handy right now. He yelled, so I yelled back. Arthur had never seen me stand my ground like this. For a moment, he was actually choked up. He panted heavily like an old ox, but in the end, he didn’t light the cigarette. I looked down at the empty basket that used to hold the strawberries and said softly: “Those were the strawberries Emma bought for me. I didn’t even get to eat a single one.” “What?” Arthur acted like he didn’t understand. I repeated it again. He looked at me in disbelief. “Just because of a strawberry, you’re throwing a temper tantrum at me? How old are you, and you’re still this gluttonous?” Right. Just because of a strawberry. But I served my in-laws, managed all the household chores, and raised two children. In all these years, I had never eaten a strawberry. When I was young, we didn’t have the money for them. Now that I’m old, I just wanted to eat one strawberry, and my husband calls me a glutton. “Forget it. If you want to eat them so badly, go buy a pound and eat them. I’ve never seen such a gluttonous old woman.” Arthur’s face was dark, acting like he was doing me a favor by forgiving me. He was definitely waiting for me to soften up and apologize to him like I always did. But I didn’t want to deal with him, and I didn’t even want to take care of my grandson right now. I slowly went into the bedroom, dug out my ID and passport, and walked out the door. 02 Emma had gotten me a passport half a year ago, wanting me to visit her in Australia. But my daughter-in-law had just given birth, so I couldn’t find the time. Hearing that I had finally decided to visit her, she was overjoyed. She had one of her colleagues teach me how to apply for a visa. The young girl was very nice. She helped me with everything and didn’t mind my technological incompetence at all. “Auntie, it’ll take a week at most. I’ll let you know the second your application is approved.” One week. Not long. On the way home, I felt like the air today was exceptionally sweet. Even the little dog in the elevator looked adorable. I had been terrified of dogs since I was a kid. But for some reason today, I suddenly gathered the courage to pet that little golden retriever. It wasn’t as scary as I thought, and it even wagged its tail at me. This good mood lasted until I reached my front door. Before I even walked in, I heard my daughter-in-law, Chloe, throwing a fit. “Is he not your son? You don’t even bother to look at him? He’s so small, he gets hungry constantly! Is this whole family dead?!” I paused as I opened the door, then walked in pretending I hadn’t heard anything. Seeing me, Mark, who had been keeping his head down like a scolded dog, looked like he had found the culprit. “Mom! Where did you run off to all afternoon!? The baby was crying his lungs out from hunger!” Arthur suddenly seemed to come alive too. He walked out of the bedroom with his hands behind his back, his face grim as he started nagging. “If you’re going out, go out, but at least take the baby with you.” “We don’t know how to soothe him. My grandson cried all afternoon.” “If you have to leave, can’t you at least tell someone? Coming back this late, not making dinner… is the family supposed to starve…” Thinking about how I’d be leaving to see my daughter in a few days, I originally didn’t want to fight with him. But I tried to hold it in, and I just couldn’t. “If you don’t know how to soothe him, learn.” Emma said it best. No one is born knowing how to cook, do laundry, or soothe a baby. Arthur hadn’t washed a single piece of clothing or a single bowl in his entire life. Starting today, I wasn’t washing them either. If he doesn’t know how to cook, he can learn. If he doesn’t want to learn, he can starve. After all, we had just bickered that afternoon. Seeing that I was still angry, Arthur shut his mouth. But Mark had just been scolded by his wife, and he was genuinely angry. “Mom, what is wrong with you!? Are you trying to ruin this family?” “Chloe worked all day, and I finally get a day off. You’re the only one sitting around doing nothing. If you don’t cook, who will?” I didn’t bother arguing with them. I walked straight into my room, leaving the three of them staring at each other in the living room. Through the door, I could hear them whispering. “Dad? What’s going on?” “I don’t know! She has no real responsibilities, but a massive temper. It’s like she’s got a black hole in her mouth. She didn’t get to eat a single strawberry, and she completely lost her mind.” “Ugh, all this over something so small? If I had known, I would have saved two for her. Besides, we can just buy some more tomorrow, right?” Chloe didn’t say a word. She grabbed the baby and went back to her mother’s house. I didn’t cook that night. I didn’t make breakfast the next morning, either. 03 I broke my own rule and slept in. Outside my room, it was pure chaos. Mark woke up late and was rushing to get to work. “Mom, where did you put my white dress shirt? I need it for a meeting today. Did you iron it?” “I didn’t wash it.” “Then what am I supposed to do?” Mark was dumbfounded. Arthur followed me around as I got out of bed, rushing me. “Fine, you didn’t do the laundry. But my son is about to leave for work. Hurry up and make some noodles so he can eat before he goes. I’m supposed to meet Old Man Lee to go fishing.” I simply pulled the covers over my head. “I don’t feel well. Make it yourselves.” There was silence outside the covers for a few seconds, followed by a cold scoff from Arthur. “If you won’t cook, we’ll eat out! I refuse to believe the earth stops turning without you. If you’ve got the guts, don’t ever cook again! The whole family will just pay to eat at restaurants. Let’s see how many days you can keep this up.” I thought to myself, I’ll keep it up for six days. By then, whether you want to cook or not, you’ll have to. After they both left, I got out of bed and went to find my old friend, Mary. She was lucky. Her husband died early, and her neighborhood got bought out by developers twice. She was living a fantastic life now, going out to line dance in the park every single day. Hearing that I was going abroad, she dragged me to a high-end department store. “You’re going abroad, you have to buy some nice clothes! Look at what you’re wearing, it’s washed until it’s practically transparent. I’ve seen you wear these clothes for ten years.” The full-length mirror next to us reflected the awkwardness at my temples and the frayed white edges of my cuffs. It gave me a moment of daze. Thirty-five years ago, I was a young girl who loved dressing up, too. When we got married, Arthur said he would let me be a young girl for the rest of my life. But the ravages of time meant that in the blink of an eye, I had become an old woman. Mary picked out quite a few things for me, saying she wanted to gift them to me. I politely declined again and again. I was used to being frugal, so I only picked one item. Even that one piece was fifty dollars, and it made me feel a little panicky. But then I thought about how the fishing rods Arthur left collecting dust at home cost way more than this piece of clothing. Thinking like that, I added one more item, bringing the total to a lucky hundred dollars, and bought them. When I got home, Mark hadn’t finished work yet, but Arthur was home early. He leaned awkwardly on the sofa, giving me side-eye. My gaze quickly passed over him and landed on a plastic produce bag on the coffee table. Seeing me notice it, Arthur arrogantly lifted his chin. “Four dollars a pound, you really know how to cause trouble for me! Hurry up and eat them, then go make dinner!” The bag was open, revealing a dozen shriveled, sad-looking strawberries. They looked like the bad fruit that hadn’t sold for days. They weren’t washed. Arthur obviously didn’t plan on eating bad fruit like this. He bought them for me. It had always been like this. The money-making husband ate the best, the kids ate the best, and whatever was left over or spoiling was for me. Back then, times were tough for everyone. Being a little deprived didn’t feel like a big deal. But now, Arthur gets a pension every month, and the kids are grown. I didn’t want to eat them anymore. Right in front of Arthur, I threw the bag of strawberries into the trash can. Before he could explode, I beat him to the punch. “They’re rotten. Unedible.” Then, taking advantage of his shock, I turned and walked into the kitchen. Before I came home, my daughter-in-law called and said her father was coming over tonight. He was a guest, after all. I couldn’t let people go hungry. 04 Chloe was from a single-parent home. Her father had suffered a stroke before the New Year and was paralyzed on one side. He looked even worse now, arriving in a wheelchair. As soon as we sat down at the dinner table, Chloe brought up the idea of moving her father in. “Mom, my dad can’t be left alone. I did the math. Hiring a live-in caretaker or nurse would cost at least three thousand a month. My salary combined with Mark’s isn’t even ten thousand. We just can’t afford it. Instead of paying a caretaker, we should bring him here to live with us. The family can take care of him together. “We have that extra storage room anyway. We can clear it out for my dad. We can rent out his old apartment, and the rent can help cover living expenses.” Before I could even speak, Arthur and Mark nodded in agreement. “Of course, of course. A son-in-law is basically half a son. It’s our duty to be filial to our father-in-law.” “Don’t worry, Chloe. With all of us here, we’ll definitely take great care of him.” … The braised ribs I had specifically prepared for our guest tasted like cardboard in my mouth. I looked up at Arthur and Mark amidst their chorus of agreement. “Are you two going to take care of him?” My son and daughter-in-law work every day, and Arthur is a man who wouldn’t lift a finger to do a household chore. This massive burden would undoubtedly fall on my shoulders. The memory of serving my father-in-law and mother-in-law day and night for years involuntarily sprang to mind. Sick elderly people can’t be hit or scolded, and they often cause a ruckus that gives you no peace. It was truly exhausting. I had finally seen my sick in-laws pass away, and now they wanted me to take care of a half-paralyzed patient. Just thinking about it was suffocating. My voice was very soft, but it instantly froze the atmosphere at the table to absolute zero. Arthur furrowed his brows. “What’s your problem these past few days? You’re giving attitude left and right. What exactly do you want? It’s just taking care of a half-paralyzed patient. You’re used to doing it. Why won’t you do it now?” He put down his bowl. “Helen, you spent a hundred dollars this afternoon. What kind of clothes did you buy? Were they made of gold? I let that slide. I consider it paying for peace. But you’re pushing your luck. If you keep this up, I won’t give you another dime. “You’re an old woman. You don’t care about your son, you don’t care about your grandson. Are you trying to leave this family, find some shady guy outside, and demand a divorce at your age?” The word “divorce” made me freeze. Right. Divorce. Why hadn’t I thought of divorce before? Seeing me stay silent, Arthur paused and softened his tone. “I know you’re upset. That’s why I went out of my way to buy you strawberries this afternoon, didn’t I? You should be grateful.” Mark nodded vigorously in agreement. “Exactly! Mom! Am I not your biological son? Is it really that hard to help us out?” Mark looked exactly like his dad did when he was young. His face was full of dissatisfaction with me, as if I owed him something. “Do whatever you want. I’m not taking care of him anyway.” As soon as the words left my mouth, the bowl in Arthur’s hand came flying at me. It crashed to the floor, shattering loudly. “Fine! We don’t need you! It’s just taking care of a person. You seriously think this family will fall apart without you? If you don’t want to do it, then leave! Mark, from now on, pretend you don’t have a mother!!” I clutched my bleeding forehead. It took me a long time to recover from the shock. By the time I reacted, the entire table of people had already left the dining room. Mark was still muttering. “Mom, don’t blame Dad. You’re being completely unreasonable! Making a huge fuss over and over again about such a small thing.” That night, I asked my daughter about getting a divorce. 05 The father and son were men of their word. As soon as the caretaker left, my father-in-law’s luggage was moved in. At the same time, my daughter told me my expedited visa had been approved, the plane ticket was bought, and my flight was the morning after next. “Mom, you don’t have to worry about a thing. As soon as you get off the plane, you’ll see me.” Maybe it was an unspoken understanding between mother and daughter, but I didn’t mention this to the father and son, and Emma didn’t either. On the first day her father-in-law moved in, Arthur really did step up to take care of him, just as he said he would. Except he gagged for half an hour while changing adult diapers, and threw up for another half hour while giving him a sponge bath. He had only been taking care of him for one day. That night, as soon as Mark got home, he started complaining. “My back is completely broken. Someone acts like she’s blind, sitting on the sofa watching TV all day. Her conscience was eaten by a dog.” I pretended not to hear him, silently tending to the potted plants on the balcony. The two Rieger begonias I planted were very temperamental. Too much or too little water and they’d die. It wouldn’t be convenient to take them abroad, so I could only give them to Mary to look after. Arthur was passive-aggressive, and Mark was sarcastic towards his dad. Both of them looked at me eagerly, waiting for me to bow my head again, waiting for me to say what they wanted to hear. But I just turned around and went into my bedroom. I understood these two men too well. They were counting on me being soft-hearted, to take over the responsibility first, and then they’d wash their hands of it and leave the whole mess to me. But this time, they were going to have to suffer the consequences of their own actions. In our thirty-plus years together, Arthur had never seen me refuse to yield. He always assumed I wouldn’t be that cruel. That night, Old Man Lee called to invite him fishing the next day. He agreed without a second thought. He intentionally put the call on speakerphone in front of me. Naturally, I heard the whole conversation. But since he didn’t speak to me, I acted like I hadn’t heard a thing. I left the house early the next morning, ahead of him. I just didn’t expect that when I came back, my key wouldn’t open the front door. It was a brand new lock. The old key didn’t work. I called Mark. He hemmed and hawed for a long time on the other end of the line, finally squeezing out one sentence. “Mom, just apologize to Dad. I still have to work. I really shouldn’t get involved in you guys’ business.” At this point, how could I not understand? Arthur did it on purpose. When I made it so he couldn’t leave the house, he made it so I couldn’t enter it. Through the security door, I heard Arthur’s angry voice from inside. “Now you know how to come back? You like running outside so much, right?! Then you can stay out there forever!” I stood outside the door for a good while. I don’t know why, but all the events of the past flashed through my mind like a slideshow, stopping at a specific moment. When we were young, Arthur and I had a similar scene. At that time, I had just given birth to Mark. I hadn’t even finished my postpartum confinement when I discovered my husband flirting with the widow next door. That was the biggest fight I ever had with him. I packed up Mark, crying as I ran back to my parents’ house. At that time, I really thought about getting a divorce. But I hadn’t even stayed at my parents’ house for a week when I heard my sister-in-law complaining to my brother. “We’re already tight on money, and now we have two extra mouths to feed. What married woman runs back to her parents’ house to freeload?” My mother also advised me: “Men are all like that. They have wandering eyes. As long as he knows to come home, he’s a good man. For the sake of the two kids, just endure it and it’ll pass. You’re married. A married daughter is like spilled water. We can’t interfere too much.” I realized belatedly that I had suddenly become a person without a home. So, I could only quietly return. That time, Arthur also intentionally locked me out, only opening the door when Mark was crying so hard he could barely breathe. He had a “I knew it” expression on his face. Just like now, mocking me. “Now you know you need to come back?” Last night, my daughter asked me why I suddenly wanted a divorce. I didn’t know how to answer her then. But now I had the answer. The things I didn’t have the courage to do when I was young, I couldn’t just not do them for the rest of my life. 06 Fortunately, I had sent my luggage to Mary’s house early on. Crashing for one night wasn’t a big deal. Early the next morning, Mary drove me to the airport. Before boarding, Mark sent me a message. [Mom, can you please stop being so stubborn? Is it really that hard to just call or text Dad and admit you were wrong? You’re making it so awkward for me and my wife at home.] Arthur sent me a message too. [Helen! You’ve really grown a spine! I won’t stand in your way. If you want a divorce, fine!] I replied with a single word, “Okay,” then turned off my phone and swapped it for the new SIM card Emma’s friend had helped me get. Mary smiled from the side. “You’re really going through with the divorce?” I smiled too. “I still have a lot of days left to live. It’s time for a change of lifestyle.” 07 In his thirty-plus years of marriage, Arthur had never felt that life was so thoroughly unpleasant. He had just sent a message giving his wife an out, and then called his son. “I bet your mother will stay out for a few days, but then won’t she have to come crawling back home?” “Dad, I’m with you on this. I tried talking to Mom too. It’ll be fine. Just wait a few days, and then have Mom take over.” But before he even finished the call… In the living room, his half-paralyzed father-in-law was yelling that he needed to pee and needed his adult diaper changed. In the bedroom, his grandson, who couldn’t even speak clearly, was crying from hunger and needed a bottle. He was frantically trying to juggle the old and the young. In his rush, he accidentally dropped a glass baby bottle, spilling freshly mixed formula all over the floor. Seeing his grandson crying until he was breathless, he rushed to grab a mop to clean the floor, but slipped and banged his head against the foot of the bed. His vision went completely black for a moment. By the time he recovered, his grandson’s face was red from crying. He had no choice but to rub his bruised arm, limp back to the kitchen, and mix another bottle of formula. After his grandson finished the bottle and fell sound asleep… Arthur sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly out the window. He didn’t know why, but he suddenly thought of thirty years ago. Right after his wife, Helen, gave birth to Mark. Their older daughter, Emma, was only two. In the dead of winter, she accidentally fell into a cesspit. The stench was unbearable. He was so disgusted that he yelled at his wife to clean her up immediately. Back then, there were no water heaters. You had to boil water for a bath. By the time his wife had finally boiled the water and prepared to bathe their daughter, Emma’s lips were blue from the cold. But right at that moment, two-month-old Mark got hungry and started crying loudly, just like the baby earlier. His wife was frantically trying to manage both. “Arthur, feed the baby some formula. There’s rice cereal in the cupboard. I really can’t free up my hands.” What did he say back then? “You need my help for something this small? Did you forget how to eat? “Ugh, it stinks. Stay away from me!” And then? Then he didn’t go feed the baby. He used working overtime as an excuse and went out to play poker. When he finally came back, his son was full and sleeping soundly, and his daughter was clean. Before this, Arthur had never considered how Helen managed to take care of both kids at the same time. He just thought that since she could do it, and insisted he help, she must just be looking for trouble. But in this moment, for some reason, he suddenly remembered this insignificant little incident from decades ago. Since that day, Helen had never asked him to take care of the kids again, sparing him the trouble for his entire life. Arthur used to think he was just incredibly lucky in this life. He never imagined that one day, his partner of over thirty years would go on strike! She wouldn’t cook, wouldn’t wash dishes, wouldn’t help their son, and wouldn’t even look after their grandson. It was like she was possessed, yelling about gender equality. What kind of nonsense was that? When have men and women ever been equal? Thinking of this, he remembered the message he had sent to Helen earlier. Forget it. They were an old married couple. Bickering all the time was pointless. Maybe he would just take a step back and apologize. They couldn’t just stay in this deadlock forever. But when he picked up his phone, put on his reading glasses, and tried to type a softer-sounding message, he only saw a single, lonely word in response. “Okay.” Okay to what? To a divorce?

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