My dad, Roger Hiddleston, suddenly fell seriously ill and was admitted to the ICU.

Before going in, he held my hand tightly and asked me to make things right with Daniel Moore.

I smiled and promised him, reassuring him.

Alone, I waited outside the ICU, making call after call to Daniel.

Finally, in the early hours of the morning, someone answered the phone, but it was Barbara Lane.

"Daniel's busy. His phone is with me. If you need anything, you can tell me," Barbara said.

I stayed silent for a moment before replying, "Just a divorce."

Unfortunately, Roger did not pull through.

He was transferred from the hospital to the funeral home, and I notified the relatives, his colleagues, friends, and students.

Arranging the funeral was not as difficult as I had imagined.

Each step had clear procedures and requirements.

I felt like a puppeteer, orchestrating everything alone.

The condolence messages and comforting words left me numb.

Those who knew Daniel all expressed their dissatisfaction with him.

He was my dad's most outstanding student and should have come to help.

Moreover, he was my husband and should have been there to handle the affairs.

But Daniel never showed up.

From the updates on his Instagram, it seemed he was still abroad attending academic conferences.

At the meeting, he appeared confident and, indeed, had every reason to be proud.

He was a young associate professor at a top university, leading several national funding projects.

I had messaged Daniel about Roger's passing and his ICU situation in no time, but there was no response whatsoever.

I consoled myself, thinking maybe Daniel's phone had poor reception overseas or perhaps he couldn't receive messages or texts due to the time difference.

However, I couldn't lie to myself anymore when I saw him liking and commenting on Barbara's Instagram posts.

Looking at Roger's picture hanging on the wall, I realized there would never be another person who would be kind to me without expecting anything in return.

In my youth, I fell for Daniel at first sight, silently admiring him for five years and pursuing him ardently for three years until we finally tied the knot.

Chasing after him became a habit.

When we got married three years ago, I thought that I had finally become the only woman in his heart.

On our wedding day, he said to me, "Thank you for silently being by my side."

I held onto those words.

So after we got married, just like before, I never troubled him. I simply stood by him silently.

Roger was a professor at Hensen University and also the vice dean of the college.

Daniel never wanted people to say he was networking, so I never appeared in front of his colleagues.

He was busy, so I waited for him at home every day, making sure he could come back to a meal and relax.

I knew Barbara had returned to the country, and I knew they were working on the same project.

But I trusted him because he promised to be good to me for a lifetime.

But long-term companionship could be exhausting.

I wasn't sure if I had the strength to continue chasing after him.

"Could you look over my divorce agreement for me?"

I handed the printed divorce agreement to my good friend, Bella Dent.

Bella was a lawyer. She had joked before that if I ever got divorced, she would help. Little did I know how true that would become.

This wasn't the first time I had seen this divorce agreement.

I had seen it in Daniel's study before.

We had argued about it for days.

He explained it was a colleague's divorce agreement that he was reviewing.

I made him promise never to show me a divorce agreement again.

I never thought that this time, it would be my own divorce agreement and that I would be seriously considering divorce.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure he leaves with nothing," Bella said confidently as she took the divorce agreement and left in a hurry.

Indeed, I had already lost his heart; I couldn't afford to lose my money as well.

After all, I couldn't afford to be reckless now that Roger was gone.

I went back to Roger's house to collect his things.

Daily necessities were few, so I quickly tidied up.

However, the sheer volume of documents in his study left me in a dilemma.

Roger fell ill suddenly this time, so many of his horizontal projects had not been handed over.

I realized I hadn't added many of his students on WhatsApp.

It had always been Daniel contacting those students.

Daniel, my father's proud disciple, had stayed at Hensen University after obtaining his Ph.D.

Roger had provided him with many project resources, so despite his young age, Daniel's projects were even better than those of many senior professors.

The academic conference he was currently attending even bore my father's name.

It seemed best to contact him for the project handover.

After much deliberation, I called him.

Still, there was no answer.

After seven or eight attempts, I gave up.

"The number you have dialed is currently busy. Please try again later..."

I knew that voice too well.

The calls not going through didn't anger me as they used to.

I just felt tired now.

I got one of Roger's colleagues to collect his documents.

It was from his colleague that I learned Daniel was attending an overseas conference in collaboration with the neighboring university.

The person in charge there was Barbara, who had also gone abroad for the conference.

It all clicked in my mind instantly.

No wonder it was Barbara who answered my call earlier.

Her voice dripped with arrogance.

"Daniel's busy. His phone is with me. If you need anything, you can tell me."

"My father's in the ICU. Please tell him to hurry back..."

I was cut off before I could finish.

"Understood, he's about to go on stage."

"Do you need anything else?"

Impatience crept into her tone.

"Nothing much, just a divorce. Let him know when he's back."

It was a week later when I saw Daniel again.

Leaving the college principal, Logan Willams' office at the school, I bumped into him.

Logan had called me over specifically.

According to school policy, he said I could work there if I wanted.

Logan warmly advised me to consider it at home and escorted me to the door.

At the entrance, I saw Daniel.

"What are you doing here?"

He bypassed me and greeted Logan directly.

"Hello, Mr. Willams."

"Daniel, if I remember correctly, you two are a couple. When you go back, help your wife consider the job offer."

He nodded and followed Logan into the office.

I bid Logan goodbye politely and slipped away from his gaze.

Unexpectedly, Daniel suddenly called out to me.

"Wait for me; we'll go back together."

I was stunned.

For me, not seeing him for a week felt like ages had passed.

Yet, he remained the same, his tone unchanged.

Though his words sounded caring, they felt chilling.

"Okay," I agreed.

Not wanting to embarrass him in front of Logan and needing to discuss the divorce, I waited for him in the office.

After half an hour, tired of waiting, I told him I'd take a cab back.

Little did I expect a sudden downpour outside.

As I hesitated at the door about going back, Daniel and Logan approached.

"Louisa, are you waiting for Daniel to go home together? They're having a team dinner tonight. Mind if I join for a meal?"

I shook my head. Since I wasn't going, why would I mind?

Daniel escorted Logan to his car and then hurried back to me.

"Louisa, sorry for not replying to your messages earlier. I was busy.

"The gathering later, Logan will be there. It wouldn't be right if you didn't go."

It was because he was concerned about Logan's impression of him that he insisted I attend.

Watching Daniel's anxious demeanor as he looked down, I couldn't bear to refuse.

"Okay, I'll go."

I compromised once more, not for anything else, just to part on good terms.

Daniel cared a lot about his work, and I didn't want to cause him embarrassment.

As we got into the car, I noticed Barbara sitting in the front passenger seat.

Daniel turned to explain, "Bella has helped me a lot with a recent project, so she's here today."

Seeing me waiting by the car, Daniel seemed to be in a quandary.

He said, "Bella, why don't you sit in the back..."

"Louisa, sorry about this. I'm used to sitting here. I'll switch with you," Barbara said, but she made no move to change seats.

Before they could argue further, I just sat in the back directly.

I shook my head, reminding Daniel that if we didn't leave soon, we'd miss Logan's car.

I'd been through this before.

I insisted on sitting in the front passenger seat once, and the result was Daniel scolding me at home.

He said I lacked propriety all for a seat and questioned me if it was necessary.

Now, it seemed it really wasn't necessary.

I sat quietly in the back, watching the heavy rain outside.

I was torn about whether to take the job at Hensen University.

Logan mentioned both administrative and teaching positions were available, but he leaned towards the administrative role, given the higher demands of the teaching position.

I understood Logan's implication.

Anyone could get into an administrative role, but teaching required real talent.

Seeking Daniel's advice about school matters would undoubtedly be better.

However, looking at the two in front of me, I didn't even want to speak.

Barbara was trying hard to start a conversation, but this time, Daniel, unusually, ignored her.

Instead, he kept glancing at me through the rearview mirror, steering the conversation towards me.

Unfortunately, this time, I didn't want to engage with him.

Daniel, objectively speaking, was quite good-looking.

With a small head and broad shoulders, he exuded a refreshing, youthful vibe, looking no different from a college student when dressed casually.

Today, in his casual attire, he was immediately surrounded by students as soon as he stepped out of the car.

I followed behind them, observing their lively conversations.

Somehow, following him had become a habit for me, with Barbara naturally becoming the one standing by his side.

Just like now, they naturally took seats side by side, leaving me as the odd one out due to limited seating arrangements.

As everyone settled down, I stood awkwardly on the side, feeling out of place.

"Mr. Moore, is this your new student? Do we have another fellow student joining our group?" one of Daniel's students asked.

Realizing my predicament, he offered me an extra seat.

Finally, I took a seat.

"This is your teacher's wife. You rascal..."

Logan's words silenced the room.

A girl whispered, "Oh, I thought it was Ms. Lane. There was only one room left at the hotel, and they stayed together."

The room was so quiet that so many people heard her comment, including me.

Daniel, who sat across from me, wore a face of panic and anxiety.

He was probably afraid I would cause a scene right then and there.

In the past, I might have, but not anymore.

I kept my head down, focusing on my food, pretending not to hear.

Daniel explained, looking at me, "There was a mix-up with the hotel rooms, so I helped Ms. Lane settle in first.

"Then I went somewhere else."

I just smiled nonchalantly, continuing to eat as if the conversation didn't involve me.

"Ms. Lane wasn't familiar with the place, so I escorted her to the hotel," he added.

The onlookers watched as Daniel continued to explain, probably feeling embarrassed for him.

"Louisa, did you hear that?

"I know you're upset, but..."

Before he could finish, I interjected, "I'm not upset, I understand. It's all part of being in unfamiliar place."

I even helped explain the situation for him.

"Don't you want to ask something?" Daniel stubbornly inquired, almost as if he needed me to be upset to be satisfied.

I shook my head.

I thought, "What is he thinking, getting hung up on this in such a setting?"

Finally, Logan intervened to diffuse the situation.

"Let's just eat, shall we?"

The conversation swiftly shifted to topics I didn't understand.

So, I sat quietly, eating.

Barbara across from me continued to urge Daniel to eat, but he didn't eat much, appearing to have lost his appetite.

Just when it seemed like things would end there, Logan suddenly brought up Roger.

"Louisa, your father's situation was truly a loss. Don't blame me for saying this, but even though Daniel was abroad at the time, he should have come back."

I nodded in acknowledgment.

Since Roger's passing, I had gradually grown accustomed to his death.

I buried the discomfort deep within my heart.

"Mr. Willams, what happened to Mr. Hiddleston?"

Daniel, fork in hand, froze.

With that question, silence once again filled the room.

"You don't know? Mr. Hiddleston had a sudden stroke. He's no longer with us."