“She usually comes across as rather stuck-up, acting all high and mighty just because she's been with Mr. Hudson for seven years, but she's more obsequious when demanding money than my dog is when begging for food. Serves her right!”

I ignored the mockery and walked into the HR office, my expression the same.

The HR manager smirked and said, “Your application has been submitted. Once Mr. Hudson approves it, you can pack up and leave. In your situation, the company won’t be giving you any compensation.”

I nodded, said nothing, and turned to leave the company.

The sun was setting, and the streets were full of couples or families of three. I, on the other hand, was alone. Loneliness weighed on my chest. The only family I had left, the career I had fought for all these years, and the man I loved… all of them were gone.

As I walked along the road I had taken for seven years, the road between my home and the company, memories began to flood my mind. My parents died in a car accident when I was seven years old. The compensation money was divided up by cruel relatives, leaving only my grandma and me to rely on each other.

Later, by sheer coincidence, my grandma saved Hudson, who had fallen off a cliff while traveling in a mountain village, and cared for him as if he were her own grandson. That was how I first crossed paths with him.

At the time, I was just a university student, working several part-time jobs every day just to survive. As such, Hudson volunteered to visit my grandma for me and would often send me updates about her. Whenever I felt like I couldn’t go on anymore, he would hold me while I broke down and softly comfort me, promising that he would always stay by my side and never abandon me.

Back then, he really loved me, so much so that he wanted to be with me every day. Even though I dressed simply, he would lace his fingers through mine and proudly introduce me to everyone.

“This is my girlfriend. Isn’t she beautiful? She’s the best girlfriend in the world!”

Gradually, however, he started looking at me with suspicion, afraid I was after his family’s wealth. That was when he demanded that I hand over all of my salary so he could manage it. After that, his need for control only grew stronger. Even when I asked for five dollars to buy a cup of coffee, he would become suspicious and question me endlessly.

Then, three months ago, on the very day Lara returned to the country, he happily bought her a priceless gemstone ring. He even spent a fortune to display a message on giant screens across the city. It read, “Welcome home, Lara!”

That night was the first time he didn’t come home.

When I brought the police to look for him, he was drunk, his eyes red as he grabbed Lara’s arm and demanded hoarsely, “When we were five years old, you said you were the princess and I was the prince. You said you would marry me. So why did you leave without a word?”

A chill ran down my spine.

After he sobered up, we had a huge fight. I asked him who exactly had his heart, but he said I was overthinking things. He told me I knew the answer, that if Lara had never left back then, I would never have had the chance to cross paths with him at all.

It wasn’t until the day Lara posted on social media saying she wanted to get married that Hudson finally ended our fight by going down on one knee and asking if I would marry him. Ridiculously, I was overjoyed. I thought that in the end, he had chosen me. So, with tears in my eyes, I said yes, and now, this absurd relationship was finally coming to an end.

When I came back to my senses, I realized I had walked much farther than I intended. Suddenly, loud voices reached my ears.

“Hudson! You can’t back out of Truth or Dare! Lara is getting impatient!”

At the entrance of a nearby karaoke bar, Hudson was surrounded by a group of people. He was gripping Lara’s hand tightly as he shouted at the top of his lungs, “Lara is the only person I love!”

He shouted it three times, each time louder than the last and more certain than before. Soon, passersby all along the street had stopped to watch.

The tip of the ears of that usually arrogant man suddenly turned red. Lara naturally slipped her arm through his and smiled sweetly.

The crowd immediately began to cheer.

“Come on, the mood is perfect now! Why don’t you two kiss?”

Hudson froze for a moment, and Lara quickly tried to smooth things over.

“Let’s not take things too far. Hudson here is a little shy–”

Before she could finish speaking, Hudson suddenly cupped her face and lowered his head, giving her a deep, affectionate kiss. It was brief—just a touch before they parted.

Hudson hadn’t even closed his eyes. He stared at Lara the entire time, trying to carve that moment into his memories. He looked so happy and content, as if that one kiss alone was enough for him.

The next second, worried that Lara might misunderstand, his ears flushed red. He forced himself to sound calm.

“I… I lost my balance.” Before Lara could say anything, he hurriedly added, “It’s late. We should head home. If I’m any later, my dad will start talking about family rules again.”

In this world, there was nothing rarer than the small bit of sincerity from a former playboy. Love was a touch and yet not a touch.

He and I were only a dozen meters apart. The cold wind whipped against my body, grinding the heart that had shattered into pieces into even finer dust. Hudson was walking with his head down when he suddenly bumped straight into me. The moment he looked up and saw my face, his eyes widened.

“Sorry, I–”

I cut him off. “It’s fine.”

Then, I turned and walked away, pulling out my phone to open a ride-hailing app.

Behind me, I heard confused voices from the crowd.

“Hey, she looks familiar. Hudson, isn’t that the gold digger who begged you for money during your engagement party?”

“Did she just try to steal something from you? You should check your wallet!”

Hudson said nothing to refute their slander.

By the time I got home, I pulled out my phone and paid for the ride. Just then, a notification popped up.

“Your booking for the international flight from Ocean City to Hosten has been confirmed. The departure time will be 3:00 p.m. tomorrow.”

I took a screenshot and sent it to the HR representative from the overseas company who had been coordinating with me.

Before I could say anything, the HR representative replied excitedly, “Sophie, I’ve been looking forward to this! We’ll be ready to welcome you tomorrow!”

My expression softened. If I couldn’t have love, then I could at least pursue my career.

After that, I picked up the suitcase I had packed and headed for the door. I didn’t want to stay in this house for even a second longer. However, just as I opened the door, I ran straight into Hudson.

He frowned and slammed the door shut with a loud bang. In a low voice, he asked, “Sophie, where are you going?”

Lara, who was following behind him, spoke in a falsely concerned tone. “Sophie, please don’t misunderstand. Hudson and I are just good friends. He only did it so as not to embarrass me tonight. Please don’t fight because of me… and don’t run away.”

I couldn’t be bothered to listen any longer. Calmly, I said, “Hudson, let’s break up.”

Hudson had been about to scold me for being jealous, but my words froze him for a second. Then, his eyes widened in shock.

“Break up? Just because Lara and I put on a little show together, you want to break up with me? Sophie, do you want a wedding or not?” he said, all choked up.

In his mind, he probably still believed I was madly in love with him, and that was why he was using the wedding to threaten me. In the past, I would have lowered myself for him because of that and begged him to stay with me forever. Now, I simply sneered.

“Hudson, you and I have nothing to do with each other anymore. What wedding would we be having?”

“Nothing to do with each other?” A layer of frost spread across Hudson’s face, and he said in a low voice, “That’s not what you said a month ago when you accepted my proposal. You said your dream was to marry me. And the ring you’re wearing–”

As he spoke, he frowned and began rummaging through drawers and cabinets, clearly trying to find the ring so he could throw it in my face.

I said calmly, “You don’t have to look for it. You already took that ring back. You refunded it for ten thousand dollars, then used the money to buy Lara a hair tie as a gift.”

When I said it out loud, the irony suddenly felt unbearable.

We had dated for seven years, yet I had never received anything from him. Meanwhile, the gifts I saved up to buy for him were considered cheap in his eyes, and he had sold them all secondhand.

As for the only diamond ring he ever gave me, it was taken back right after the proposal. He said there was no need to waste money on unnecessary extravagance and that it would be better to save it for the wedding.

Shocked, Hudson looked around the apartment as he stubbornly tried to argue. “Well, even if there’s no ring, what about everything else you bought for me… and everything else I bought for you…”

Before he could finish his sentence, his expression turned awkward and ugly. It was because he suddenly realized that in this entire apartment, there wasn’t a single item that could prove we had ever been a couple.

Lara watched smugly. Then, she deliberately stirred the pot.

“Alright, Sophie, stop making a scene. Everything you eat, wear, and use comes from Hudson. At the very least, you can look past it and help ease his burdens. He’s at a critical stage taking over the company right now, so you shouldn’t kick up a fuss.”

Once she said it, Hudson immediately regained his confidence. Crossing his arms, he sneered coldly.

“Lara is right. Sophie, can you stop being so shortsighted? Once I inherit the company, I can buy you anything you want. Now, put your suitcase down and behave. Otherwise, don’t blame me for cutting off your living expenses.”

I slowly removed my hand from the suitcase. Then, I turned around and carried out a box filled with IOU slips. My voice was calm and distant.

“Hudson, for the past seven years, you gave me two hundred dollars a month for living expenses. For every extra cost, you made me write an IOU. There are five hundred of them here, totaling twenty thousand dollars.” I paused briefly before continuing, “My grandma’s surgeries and medical treatments over the years cost three hundred thousand.

“My bank card with my salary has been kept with you this whole time. Seven years of income—that’s at least a million dollars. Now, please return the remaining six hundred and eighty thousand to me.”

Furious, Hudson flipped the box out of my hands, and countless IOU slips scattered through the air like falling snow.

“Sophie! We’ve been together for seven years, and to you, am I only worth as much as this measly amount of money? How can you be so shallow?”

The disgust and contempt in his voice made my voice catch in my throat. “Hudson, that money is the result of my own hard work.”

However, the moment I said that, he became even angrier. He kicked the coffee table violently, and the loud crash echoed through the room.

“Money, money, money! Sophie, all you think about is money! Why can’t you be more like Lara? She doesn’t care about fame or fortune. She’s straightforward and easygoing. She’s never once asked me for anything! My dad was right. Dating someone poor like you is a waste of time. We’re not even from the same social class.

“Your hard-earned money? Are you kidding me? Without me, you’d still be starving out there! That’s the salary I paid you!”

I let out a quiet, self-mocking laugh. Lara didn’t fight for anything because she already had everything. All she had to do was stand there, and Hudson would willingly hand over the best things in the world, along with his sincere heart.

Seeing that I remained silent, Hudson’s expression turned vicious.

“Fine, Sophie. Take the money back. I’ll never save it for you again!”

The next second, he hurled the bank card straight at my face. The edge of the card scraped across my cheek. When I reached up to wipe it, my fingers came away stained bright red.

Hudson immediately panicked. He reached out toward my face, his voice suddenly soft.

“Soph… are you okay?”

I let out a bitter laugh and raised my hand, knocking his away.

Looking at the panic in his eyes, I spoke in a quiet, exhausted tone. “Hudson… aren’t you tired of playing house in this game of Cinderella and her prince yet?”