Mentioning the surprise, Savannah’s tone was filled with sarcasm. "Tobias, I don’t need your surprises."

Facing her coldness, Tobias wasn’t angry at all. Instead, he placed a photo in front of her.

"Don’t rush to refuse. Take a look first. The surprise I want to give you is this. It’s an auction item from this afternoon. I asked around a lot. I’ll buy it for you."

With just one glance, Savannah froze.

The ring in the photo was her mother’s relic.

After she went bankrupt and fell into debt, her mother sold almost everything of value to help her.

Later, when the scandalous video of her and Tobias was exposed, her mother spent her days in constant worry until an accident took her life, leaving behind only a few treasured belongings.

Now, after so many twists and turns, Savannah never expected to see her mother’s relic again.

Even knowing Tobias’s sudden kindness must have hidden motives, Savannah didn’t hesitate.

She agreed to follow him to the auction.

But the moment she entered the venue, a bucket of cold water splashed down, drenching her from head to toe.

Her soaked clothes clung tightly to her skin, the icy fabric stabbing at her like thousands of needles.

Savannah gasped at the cold, brushed aside her dripping hair and saw a crowd gathered near the entrance, all wearing malicious smiles.

"Isn’t that Tobias’s ex-girlfriend? Still shamelessly pestering him."

"Yeah. I heard she dumped Tobias when he was broke and now she’s crawling back for money. Disgusting."

"Luckily, Tessa saved him. Their love is strong now. Tobias confessed to her ninety-nine times! That’s true devotion!"

"Look at her now, miserable and pitiful. So satisfying!"

Each mocking word stabbed into Savannah’s heart.

She felt like a rat surrounded by scorn and curses. She wanted to defend herself, but just then, she saw Tobias.

He walked right past her without a glance. Straight to Tessa.

In front of the crowd, he draped an arm around Tessa’s shoulders and kissed her softly, silently confirming every cruel rumor.

The words in Savannah’s throat turned to ashes.

She smiled self-deprecatingly, crushed the pain swelling inside her and quietly went to find a seat.

Because the first auction item displayed on stage was her mother’s relic.

Tobias hadn’t lied. And because of that, she couldn’t bring herself to leave.

The auction began. Without hesitation, Tobias raised the price to the maximum, offering no one else a chance to compete. His determination left the room silent.

When he won the bid, Savannah’s lips curved into a rare, fleeting smile.

As he retrieved the ring, she instinctively stepped forward, expecting it to be handed to her. But then, Tobias turned toward Tessa and knelt on one knee.

He looked up at her, eyes brimming with emotion.

"Tessa, without you, I wouldn’t be who I am today. Meeting you was the greatest blessing of my life."

"Will you marry me?"

Savannah felt as if lightning had struck her, the coldness spreading from her scalp down to her very bones.

That ring was her mother’s relic. If Tobias hadn’t released that sex video, her mother would still be alive.

And now, he was using that very relic to propose to Tessa.

She thought the worst part of the day had been the humiliation of being drenched in water. But she had been wrong; Tobias never intended to return the ring at all.

Grief surged through her like a tidal wave, threatening to consume her whole. Anger twisted with heartbreak and Savannah trembled uncontrollably.

Behind her, Tobias’s friends chuckled without mercy.

"This is the 97th time. That move never fails!"

"Did Savannah really think Tobias bought it for her? How naïve. The moment he saw that ring, he decided to propose to Tessa with it. I heard it’s her mother’s relic. How perfect for a proposal!"

"Look at her shaking. Is she about to cry?"

Her nails dug deep into her palms, drawing blood, yet she felt nothing.

Her eyes locked on the ring in Tobias’s hand, unable to look away.

In the next breath, her composure shattered. With tears brimming in her eyes, she lunged forward, trying to snatch it.

"Tobias, give me back the ring!"

But he was faster. Just as her fingers nearly grazed it, he jerked his hand away, clutching the ring even tighter.

The momentum sent Savannah crashing to the floor. Gasps and laughter echoed around her.

"Look at her, just like a drowned rat!"

"So filthy!”

Seeing this, Tessa leaned sweetly into Tobias’s arms, her voice laced with grievance.

"Tobias, why is she trying to steal my engagement ring? Is she planning to sell it for money? If she’s really that desperate, maybe we should just let her have it. You’ve already given me so many rings..."

The moment the word sell reached his ears, Tobias’s expression turned cold.

"That would be far too easy for her."

With a flick of his wrist, he hurled the ring straight out the window.

It traced a perfect arc through the winter air before vanishing into a blanket of snow, swallowed whole by the cold.

"Savannah, since you want it that badly? Go find it. If you manage to dig it out, it’s yours."

Savannah froze. Her mind blanked for a second, then instinct took over.

She bolted outside and dropped to her knees in the snow, clawing desperately at the ground. Flakes clung to her cheeks, mixing with tears that burned hot against her frozen skin.

Her clothes soaked through almost instantly and the wind whipped across her body like cold blades, but she didn’t stop.

In no time, her hands turned bright red, numb from the biting cold, but she never stopped digging. Her mind held onto only one thought, the ring.

By the time Savannah finally found the ring, she didn’t even know how many hours had passed.

The moment her eyes landed on it, the string that had kept her heart wound tight finally snapped. She cradled the ring in her hands and tucked it away, desperate to leave this nightmare behind.

But just as she straightened up, a wave of dizziness crashed over her. Her vision blurred, the world spun and the next moment, everything faded into black as she collapsed backward.

***

When Savannah opened her eyes again, she found herself lying in a hospital bed. A doctor stood by her side, his expression serious.

Seeing her awake, he let out a faint sigh before delivering the blow.

"Miss Rossi, I’m sorry, but you’ve lost the baby."

Her breath caught. For a moment, she thought she misheard him.

"...Baby? What baby?"

The doctor furrowed his brows, surprised. "Miss Rossi, you didn’t know? You were already pregnant when you were brought in. By the time Mr. Duncan brought you here, your body was nearly frozen. We barely saved you, but we couldn’t save the child."

Pregnant? When had that happened?

She had forced Tobias to take precautions every single time.

She didn’t want to believe it, but the discomfort in her body and the doctor’s words left no room for doubt.

Touching her flat belly, Savannah felt as if a knife had pierced straight through her heart, the sharp pain spreading rapidly through her whole body.

She covered her face in despair, letting her tears slip through her trembling fingers.

Her lower lip was bitten so hard that it bled, the taste of blood mixing with her tears, salty and bitter.

After a long while, she finally trembled as she asked, "Doctor, may I ask where the gentleman who brought me here went?"

"He should be in the room next door. A woman came with him and said she felt unwell too. Mr. Duncan went to accompany her first."

Savannah nodded faintly. After the doctor left, she forced her frail body out of bed and staggered toward the neighboring ward.

She needed to find Tobias and get a clear answer.

But just as she approached, an angry voice from inside slammed into her.

"Who told you to tamper with the condoms?!"

Why was Tobias so angry? Savannah couldn’t make sense of it.

But soon, the others provided her with the answer.

"Tobias, we poked holes in the condoms to speed up your plan! Wouldn’t it be dramatic if Savannah got pregnant by accident? We just didn’t expect her to miscarry."

"Yeah, Tobias, this is already the 98th time. A few more and once we hit a hundred, you’ll finally erase those three years of humiliation."

But the explanation didn’t seem to calm Tobias. If anything, it only fueled his rage.

"There were so many other ways to do this. Why use this method?!" His voice trembled with anger, causing everyone to fall silent. After a long pause, someone spoke hesitantly.

"Tobias, haven’t we always done it this way? Why’s it different now? A miscarriage is just a miscarriage; it doesn’t hurt us. Do you really want to back out now? After all, you’ve never forgotten those three years of humiliation when Savannah treated you like a servant… could it be…"

The question hung in the air, unspoken but clear. "Could it be you’ve actually fallen for Savannah?"

At that, whispers erupted around them, spreading like wildfire.

"Come to think of it, Tobias could’ve forced Savannah to drink all the white wine at the table, but he stopped her. Was it because he felt sorry for her?"

"If that’s the case, should we still carry out the plan?"

For a moment, the room fell silent. Every eye instinctively turned to Tobias, waiting for his response.

Standing in the middle of the crowd, Tobias’s face was as dark as a storm cloud.

To say there hadn’t been a trace of affection between them during those three years would have been a lie.

But throughout those years, the constant sneers, the mocking glances and the disdainful looks from others were like daggers piercing his soul, always reminding him that he and Savannah were never meant to be.

To stay by her side, he had lowered himself to the dust, casting aside every ounce of pride.

Then, when she went bankrupt, he found himself once again with nothing, not even enough money to pay for school and he had to endure the cruel laughter of those around him.

It was Tessa who had helped him rise from that darkness.

For countless nights after, Tobias couldn’t shake the memories of those three years. He had used every method to keep Savannah by his side, seeking revenge over and over, desperate to rebuild the pride that had been shattered.

But when he watched Savannah nearly die before his eyes, when he heard that their child was gone, a pain so fierce gripped his chest; it was almost suffocating.

At that moment, he realized the truth: trying to erase those three years of humiliation by continually humiliating Savannah wasn’t what he truly wanted.

Yet, there were only two more steps to go until he reached a hundred.

He had come this far. No matter what, he couldn’t stop now.

A cold sneer curled on his lips as he pressed his lower lip into a thin line.

"Of course, we’ll continue."

"Fall for her? You’re overthinking it. I never loved Savannah."