Chapter 2

On the other end, tears streamed down her face.

Sadness and shock poured from her eyes as she kept mumbling.

"How could this happen...?"

I couldn't answer her, because even I didn't know.

All I could say was,

"You won't be happy after you get married, Sophia. Promise me, okay?"

She wiped away her tears, looking at me with bloodshot eyes.

"But he's not here with me right now. He went to Europe to find an orthopedic specialist to help cure me."

I froze.

Right, I almost forgot.

At that time, due to a stage accident, both my legs were severely injured, making it difficult to even stand.

Ethan, who was even more upset than me, stayed up all night, every night, by my side.

He changed my dressings and massaged my legs, sometimes for an entire night.

By chance, we learned that there might be an orthopedic specialist in Europe who could treat me.

So he left without hesitation.

But now...

I couldn't help but touch my leg; it was healed, but we had drifted apart.

Even more ironic:

"Do you know who the woman downstairs, Chloe, is?"

She shook her head, her eyes red like a rabbit's.

A deep pang of pain twisted my lips. "She's the orthopedic specialist's granddaughter."

Her breathing hitched.

She covered her mouth, whimpering.

"So, Ethan fell in love with someone else on his way to save me?"

I shook my head.

"I don't know. Maybe it wasn't love back then. They reconnected two years ago—which would be five years from your current time."

We fell silent.

Just then, the sound of the smart lock unlocking came from the door.

I instinctively put my phone behind my back.

Ethan looked over.

His gaze lingered on my movements, but he didn't ask anything. His eyes were red at the corners, and he looked somewhat dejected.

"Are you satisfied?"

A sarcastic curve played on his lips. "I sent her away."

I looked at him expressionlessly.

In reality, my hand, hidden behind my back, was digging into my palm, stinging with pain.

"Satisfied..."

"Ethan, is this marriage just my responsibility? Am I the only one who needs to make an effort?"

He yanked off his tie and tossed it casually onto the couch.

Leaving a terse "Don't be unreasonable," he pushed past me into the bathroom, slamming the door shut.

My entire body stiffened.

After a long while, I slowly took out my phone again.

Sophia on the screen was already in tears. "That's not the Ethan I know, it's not..."

I couldn't cry.

I wanted to release it all like her, but I blinked and blinked, no tears came, just a dry ache.

"Maybe people just change."

Just as I was about to grab my luggage and leave, a rumble of thunder outside heralded a torrential downpour.

My phone also received a flight cancellation notification.

I sighed.

Looks like I couldn't leave tonight. So I picked up my luggage again and pushed open the guest room door.

"You... you've been sleeping in separate rooms?"

She asked cautiously.

My hands paused, then I hid the bitterness in my eyes. "Yeah, we've been sleeping separately for almost a year."

She kept sobbing.

"But at my time, Ethan can't sleep unless he's holding me..."

My eyes trembled slightly. It had been so long, so long I'd almost forgotten.

The Ethan from before had severe sleep issues; only when I was by his side could he sleep peacefully.

So we were never apart.

I said softly.

"He's found someone else who can help him sleep now. That Chloe is very skilled in medicine."

After a long silence, Sophia looked at me with red eyes.

"Three days. Ethan will be back in three days. And I'll use these three days to completely give up on him."

I nodded. "Okay."