My girlfriend keeps saying that she comes from a poor family, but she gives her childhood sweetheart a yacht on our anniversary.

I text her to ask about this, but all she does is berate me. "Who do you think you are? How dare you stick your nose into my business! I'll give anyone whatever I want. My money, my call. Get lost!"

Unbeknownst to her, I'm covered in blood on the other end of the line.

The call ended abruptly.

I turned down the reckless driver's offer to give me a ride and slowly headed toward the rundown rental.

Today marked my anniversary with Julia Rivers, and it was also her birthday. I was crossing the street with her gift in hand when a speeding sedan ran into me.

I was rushed to the hospital and had to get 15 stitches. I didn't want to worry Julia or miss out on celebrating her birthday, so I turned down the doctor's suggestion to stay for observation.

Before I even left the hospital, I got a photo from Tobias Atwood, Julia's childhood sweetheart. "Austin, thanks for the awesome gift from you and Lia. That yacht is impressive."

I was frozen in place, feeling lightheaded and disoriented.

Julia always played the part of the fragile, helpless maiden as if her family was weighing her down. How the heck did she manage to buy a yacht?

I called her for answers and heard the sound of glasses clinking and people cheering from the other end.

Julia was obviously drunk. She slurred, "Austin, you're such a busybody, aren't you? Since when do you get to make decisions for me? Quit taking yourself so seriously! I'm only dating you for fun!"

I had no clue how I made it home or how long I sat there, completely dazed, on the couch.

When Julia stumbled through the door, the smell of alcohol hit me right away. She was fumbling around, trying but failing to take off her heels.

I wasn't even surprised, because I was the one who usually helped her take off her heels when she was drunk.

She struggled for a moment, then yelled in annoyance, "Austin! Are you blind or something? Why aren't you helping me get these heels off?"

I slowly got off the couch and headed to the bedroom.

Julia's eyes widened as if she couldn't believe I was ignoring her orders. She flung her bag at me, and it hit my wound.

I clenched my teeth, fighting through the sharp pain.

"What's with the long face? I still haven't settled things with you for framing Toby!" Julia snapped.

Her temper flared again. She stomped toward me in her half-off heels and punched me hard in the same spot.

"Am I not doing enough? I cleaned up your mess. Do you realize how much I paid for that yacht? Seven million, that's right, seven million! You'll never make that much in your whole life!"

Her eyes were full of fire, and all I could feel was a heavy bitterness inside me. She finally told the truth, but it was just to make me feel small.

I thought I had found true love over these five years, but it seemed like I was just a clown in her heart. I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm of emotions inside me.

I kept my tone as even as possible and said, "I'm tired. I'm going to my room to rest."

But Julia wouldn't drop it. She clung to my clothes, her nails digging right into my freshly stitched wound. "Austin, I'm warning you—just do what you have to and stay in line!"

Before I could say anything, her expression shifted abruptly. "What's that smell coming off you? It stinks!"

The spot where she was gripping me grew wet. My wound had opened up again.

Without a word, I pushed Julia away.

She looked completely shocked. "You're actually shoving me now? Austin, have I been too nice to you or something?"

Julia went ballistic, yanking at me and pounding my wound without holding back.

I could feel the sharp pain stabbing through me again and again. My temples throbbed, and the dizziness from losing blood fogged my brain.

Julia's yells slowly faded as I drifted out of consciousness. The last thing I heard from her was, "Austin, quit pretending!"

When I finally woke up, it was already noon the next day. I was still lying on the cold ground, and Julia was gone.

I got up, my head spinning, with blood-soaked clothes clinging to me. I gritted my teeth, ripped off the bloody clothes, and changed into something clean.

My skin felt like it was on fire. I knew it was because my wound had reopened and gotten infected. I had to get to the hospital fast, but my head was dizzy, and even getting to my feet was a struggle.

I managed to drag myself to the door when my phone suddenly blared as if trying to give me a heart attack. The screen lit up with Julia's name. I pursed my lips and reluctantly answered the call.

Julia's voice came through, impatient. "Why didn't you answer my calls?"

Oh, I'd missed a few calls from her.

Before I could answer, Julia continued, "Forget it. Are you up yet? I made some soup for you. Help yourself."

I was taken aback. We'd just had a huge fight before I passed out. Still, she reached out and even made me soup. Was she trying to patch things up? A flicker of hope sparked inside me.

When I first met Julia, we were still in college. I was on the student council, helping with financial aid registration. She gave me a shy look, her youthful innocence shining through.

She told me her family wasn't wealthy, but her parents were too proud to let her apply for student loans. So, she had to rely completely on her part-time job to pay for everything.

Her beauty and strength struck me. From then on, I did whatever I could to help her. I finally confessed my feelings on her birthday and gave her a gift I'd been saving up for.

Julia was shocked. "Austin, my family's not doing well, and I've got a younger brother to look after. Are you sure you want to be with me?"

I nodded firmly. "Lia, I admire how strong you are. A person like you shouldn't let family problems hold you back. I want to do whatever I can for you."

Julia blushed but finally took the gift.

Those sweet moments now felt painfully ironic. The money I'd worked so hard to save probably meant nothing to Julia, who could easily afford a yacht.

I couldn't tell if my sincerity actually got to her or if she was just mocking my naivety when she took the gift. But I had loved her for so long that even a glimmer of hope kept me from giving up.

"Lia, I—"

Julia cut me off sharply. "After you're done with the soup, bring the papers I left at home to my office."

My hand went still around my phone. The thought of making up with her felt like a joke.

The company Julia worked for was one of the top 500 in the city. She'd mentioned before that she landed an internship there and that things were only going to get better for us.

Back then, I held her close and said, "Lia, I'm happy as long as I'm with you."

I shook off those unwanted memories that suddenly popped up in my head and walked into the company. As expected, Julia's office was on the highest floor.

I kept my face blank as I went along. The more extravagant the office looked, the more our past of relying on each other felt absurd.

Julia wasn't in her office, but a photo of her with Tobias, her childhood sweetheart, was on her desk.

They were hugging each other on the yacht I'd seen once and couldn't forget. Julia puckered her lips, ready to kiss Tobias on the cheek.

My fingers froze up and started shaking on their own. Suddenly, it felt like all the noise just vanished, and all I could hear was my heart pounding. My blood was on fire, and it went straight to my head.

I heard the door open, and Julia appeared in the doorway, looking displeased. "Who allowed you to touch my things? Why are you being so rude?"

She marched over, yanked the photo out of my hand, and gently put it back on her desk.

I felt like I was going to pass out, but I managed to say, "I brought you the documents. I'm leaving now."

Julia checked the documents in her hand and casually glanced up at me. She paused, then dropped the papers and rushed over to help me.

"Austin, you don't look so good. What's wrong?" she asked, a look of guilt crossing her face. "I was wasted last night, and honestly, I don't remember much. Please don't take it personally."

She reached out to feel my forehead, then snapped, "What did you do to get such a high fever? Sit here, I'll get you to the hospital later!"

I sat, feeling disoriented as if the Julia I knew—gentle and strong—had returned. But then the door creaked open again, pulling me out of my daydream.

Tobias entered, head to toe in designer labels. He seemed like the perfect guy for Julia. He looked at me, pretending to be concerned. "Austin, what's wrong? You look terrible."

Before Julia could explain, he added, "Are you seriously still mad about her giving me the yacht?"

Julia's face immediately shifted, and whatever hope I had left was gone.

I gave a weak smile. "That's between you guys, not me."

I thought saying those words would crush me, but strangely, I felt calm. Julia could do whatever she wanted. It no longer affected me anymore.

But Julia, who'd always distanced herself from me, suddenly got up and shot me a cold look. "Austin, there's a limit to how far your anger can go. Tobias is worried about you. What's with your attitude?"

I didn't even look her way. "His worry for me is overwhelming."

Tobias saw the tension between us and acted all concerned. "Lia, don't let Austin get to you! He just loves you too much, or he wouldn't have set me up. We don't get to see each other often. How about we grab a drink and put the past behind us?"

He fetched a bottle of red wine that Julia had kept for ages.

I remained calm as I stared at the bottle. I'd saved up to buy it for our last anniversary, and I never thought Julia would still have it.

What really surprised me, though, was how easily she brought it out just to keep Tobias happy.

"I don't drink, and I'm not interested," I said flatly.

Tobias seemed awkward, his eyes searching Julia's for help. As expected, Julia stepped in to fix things.

She grabbed the bottle of wine and shoved it toward my lips. "Austin, drink up! Or don't expect me to drive you to the hospital!"