Chapter 4

"Think about it," Marcus said, leaning back on the sofa and crossing his legs. "That alley didn't even have streetlights. Why would Sarah conveniently walk past there in the middle of the night?"

"Those thugs were hired by Sarah. She paid them to put on a show just so you would fall head over heels for her!"

"What did you say..." I felt like I had fallen into an icy abyss.

Three years ago, I was planning to confess my feelings to a girl I had liked for years, Aurora.

On my way, Sarah blocked my path, holding a massive bouquet of roses, and confessed her love to me in public.

I rejected her without hesitation.

"I'm sorry, Sarah. I already like someone else, and I'm going to see her today."

I still remembered how Sarah’s face darkened instantly. She was always so proud.

At the time, I thought she was just bowing her head in sadness.

But I never could have imagined that on that very night, I would be brutally ambushed in that alley...

"Too bad the actors took it too far," Marcus sneered, leaning closer to me.

"She didn't expect those thugs to actually lose control and beat you half to death."

"Even though Sarah sent them to prison afterward, she’s been disgusted by you ever since."

"She told me that every time she looks at you, she pictures you pinned to the dirt, getting beaten up like a dog."

"She thinks you're a coward. You have no backbone. How could she ever be attracted to a guy like you?"

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug deep into my palms.

Marcus continued, his voice dripping with utter contempt:

"She said a man who gets beaten like that and doesn't even fight back is pathetic to look at."

"Unlike me. I actually know how to make her happy."

I stared at him without saying a word. My eyes were as cold as ice.

Marcus was momentarily intimidated by my gaze, but he quickly recovered his smug expression.