Thomas kept whispering in my ear.

　　He didn't care whether I was annoyed.

　　When I went into the bathroom to take a shower, he tried to follow. Seeing the bruises on my body, his eyes showed a hint of guilt and pain.

　　"Baby, I'm sorry."

　　He tried to hug me, but I pushed him away with all my strength.

　　"Get out, get out!"

　　When he tried to come closer again, I grabbed the bottle of shower gel from the shelf and hurled it at his head.

　　Thomas didn't dodge and got hit, a bump forming instantly.

　　He became furious.

　　"Enough is enough! I've been humbling myself to make you happy, what more do you want?"

　　I pointed at him, my hand trembling with anger.

　　"Get lost!"

　　Thomas, clutching his injured head, yelled back at me.

　　"You're being unreasonable!"

　　……

　　Thomas left and didn't come back that night.

　　In fact, I didn't care where he went.

　　But Olivia was eager for me to know.

　　She posted on her Instagram, clearly taunting me.

　　Olivia put. [Since I was five, my parents stopped telling me bedtime stories. But tonight, I heard one again. In his eyes, I'm still just a little girl.]

　　The accompanying picture was of a hand holding a storybook.

　　Others might not recognize it.

　　But I knew at a glance—it was Thomas's hand.

　　He barely bothered to comfort me, yet he had the patience to read Olivia a bedtime story.

　　The comparison was truly painful.

　　Her post quickly garnered numerous comments, almost all from people I knew.

　　Friend A. [Wow, so blatant! Aren't you afraid Ning will see this?]

　　Friend B. [If she dared to post it, she must have blocked Maya from seeing it.]

　　Friend C. [Just a lapdog. Even if Thomas cheated, she wouldn't have the guts to break up with him.]

　　Olivia. [What are you guys talking about? Thomas and I are just friends.]

　　A dull pain struck my chest again.

　　In fact, among the three of us, I seemed to be the extra one.

　　Thomas knew all of Olivia's preferences.

　　He knew what brand of clothes she liked, what flavor of food she liked, and what kind of movies she liked to watch.

　　But he knew nothing about my likes and dislikes.

　　Tears welled up in my eyes again.

　　I liked Olivia's post and left a comment.

　　[Olivia, do you often shop on second-hand websites?]

　　[Since you like taking what others have used, I'll give you Thomas. A useless piece of trash is just taking up space at home anyway.]

　　……

　　Thomas called as I was packing my luggage.

　　"Maya, if you have any grievances, take them out on me, okay? Leave Olivia out of it!"

　　Realizing this relationship was beyond repair.

　　I decided not to hold back.

　　"In the middle of the night, letting someone else's boyfriend stay at your place to tell you stories, then posting about it to show off!"

　　"What's this? Being a whore and wanting to be a saint?"

　　Thomas, probably never having seen this side of me, was stunned for a few seconds before anger surged within him.

　　"Maya, can't you talk more nicely?"

　　"There's nothing sordid between Olivia and me!"

　　"Delete those comments you posted and apologize to Olivia!"

　　I sneered and asked, "What if I refuse?"

　　Thomas said nothing more.

　　He hung up the phone and rushed back overnight.

　　He snatched my phone, logged into my WhatsApp, and deleted all the messages I had posted before stopping.

　　I looked at him quietly.

　　My already shattered heart turned completely cold at that moment.

　　"Thomas, let's break up."

　　Thomas, perhaps thinking I was playing hard to get, didn't take it seriously.

　　"I'll give you a week to think it over. Don't regret it and come crying for a reconciliation later!"

　　……

　　I packed my things and moved out of Thomas's place the next day.

　　Without the distraction of the relationship, I put all my energy into my work.

　　The boss said that if I could secure a particular deal, he would promote me to marketing director at the new company.

　　But because the competition was strong, the chances of success were slim.

　　I glanced at the client information.

　　Marlon, general manager of Bay Real Estate and Thomas's uncle.

　　I then looked at the competitor information.

　　One of the companies was where Olivia worked.

　　When it rained, it poured.

　　At the Field Group's bidding meeting.

　　I did run into Olivia.

　　She followed me to the restroom.

　　Then, she provoked me smugly.

　　"Thomas said this bidding meeting is just a formality. Mr. Marlon has already reserved the spot for our company, Astion Building Materials."

　　I ignored her, but she kept prattling on.

　　"I told him that your company, Gallance, is also bidding and that you're in charge. But he still chose to help me."

　　I turned to leave, wanting to get away from her.

　　Unexpectedly, she suddenly slapped herself.

　　A five-finger mark immediately appeared on her face.

　　Then she took out her phone and called Thomas.

　　"Thomas, I came to apologize to Ning, but she's still angry and wouldn't listen to my explanation."

　　Since it was a video call.

　　Thomas saw the slap mark on Olivia's face immediately.

　　"Did Maya hit you?"

　　"I don't blame her. Thomas, can you come to the Field Group? Bring some ointment for me. My face is very swollen, and I have a meeting later."

　　With that, Thomas rushed over.

　　When he saw Olivia's swollen face, he shot me a cold look.

　　"Apologize to Olivia!"

　　I lifted my chin and stared back at him.

　　"You just believe whatever she says, don't you?"

　　Olivia clung to Thomas's arm, playing the victim.

　　"Thomas, let it go. She's in a bad mood. I won't hold it against her."

　　But Thomas, with a stern face, repeated.

　　"I told you to apologize!"

　　"What if I don't?"

　　"With one word from me, your company will forever lose the chance to cooperate with the Field Group!"

　　This threat was making things difficult for me.

　　After all, it had something to do with the company.

　　"But do I really have to swallow my anger?"

　　I hesitated for only three seconds.

　　Then I stepped forward and slapped Olivia's face.

　　"Smack!"

　　The sound of the slap resounded through the corridor in an instant.

　　"I slapped him. I admit it."

　　"As for who slapped her before, you know very well!"

　　I turned to Olivia.

　　"Hope your acting can always be as brilliant as it is today."

　　……

　　A few days later, the bidding for Hundred City's new project came to an end.

　　As expected, Astion Building Materials, where Olivia worked, won the bid.

　　The boss said that business people only care about profit and that Olivia winning the bid had little to do with her. He told me not to blame myself.

　　In the evening, while accompanying my boss to a social event, I happened to see Olivia being surrounded and beaten by a group.

　　Her clothes were almost torn off.

　　After understanding it, I found out.

　　I learned that Olivia had been flirting with someone and got caught by the other party's girlfriend.

　　"Scratch her face, I want to see how she seduces men in the future!"