Chapter 3

How did Chloe and I end up like this? I felt a wave of grief and confusion.

My mind drifted back to the beginning.

Our story was like a dramatic romance movie. From the moment we met, our path was bound to be rocky.

It was a sunny afternoon during our college club fair.

As a member of the photography club, I was busy snapping photos of the crowd.

That was when Chloe stepped into my camera lens.

She was wearing a white sundress, her long hair blowing in the wind. She stood in the crowd with an effortless, radiant confidence that set her apart from everyone else.

Her smile was like warm spring sunshine, bright and beautiful. In that exact second, my heart skipped a beat.

Chloe wasn't just beautiful; she had a captivating personality.

She had a sweet voice and knew exactly how to charm people.

She was always the life of the party, bringing energy wherever she went.

Meanwhile, I was a quiet, introverted guy. But around her, I slowly began to open up.

I started making excuses to talk to her, trying to find a way into her world.

But winning her over wasn't easy. She had a line of guys waiting to date her, and I was just an ordinary guy in the crowd.

But I didn't give up. I showed my love through quiet, steady care.

Whenever she needed help, I was always the first to show up. Whenever she was down, I did everything to comfort her.

Eventually, my sincerity touched her.

Six months later, she agreed to be my girlfriend.

In that moment, I felt like the luckiest man alive.

What I didn't know back then was that she didn't say yes because she actually loved me.

She only accepted me because her first love, Julian, had moved abroad.

Finding that out later felt like a knife to the heart.

I began to doubt if our relationship was even real, or if I was just a rebound to fill her loneliness.

Despite the lingering insecurity, I chose to trust her. I believed our love could overcome anything.

We got married shortly after graduation, and at first, our life together was wonderful.

We planned our future and worked hard to build a life together. Everything felt full of hope.

But the honeymoon phase didn't last.

Early last year, Julian suddenly came back to the country.

His return shattered Chloe's peace.

She became restless, constantly making excuses to go out, sometimes not coming home until dawn.

I knew she was seeing Julian.

At first, she would try to reassure me.

"Ethan, you know you're the only one I love now. What Julian and I had is in the past."

"I've been feeling down lately. You can't expect me to stay cooped up at home all day. I get lonely when you're at work."

"You understand me, right, Ethan?"

I forced myself to believe her. I told myself they were just hanging out as friends, and that I was overthinking.

But as time passed, she grew cold. She started lashing out, accusing me of smothering her and not giving her freedom.

"Stop interrogating me! Every time I go out, you nag. I need my space! I don't need to report my every move to you!"

"Who I hang out with is my business. If you can't respect that, you don't really love me. Grow up, Ethan. I'm exhausted!"

Exhausted? I had no idea what she was so exhausted from.

Those months were pure agony.

Watching Chloe drift further and further away broke my heart.

I started doubting myself. Was I not doing enough? Was I not good enough? Is that why she was so easily pulled away? But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't change her.

Maybe that was the point of no return. Chloe's heart had checked out a long time ago, flying straight back to Julian.