After school, the classroom was completely empty, which made Zachary's voice sound unusually loud to me.

"Natalie, I truly like Viv," he said.

Zachary held Vivian's hand and gently guided her to stand behind him.

I came back to my senses and looked at the two of them. Their faces were still youthful, and for a moment, I felt disoriented.

My throat tightened. I said nothing and simply lowered my head to pick up my backpack from the floor. My hands trembled slightly, and I failed to zip it closed despite several attempts.

Zachary looked at me. His tone remained cold and unyielding. "If you want to cry, then cry. I'm not going to give in."

Vivian suddenly dropped to her knees with a thud, her voice shaking with sobs. "I'm sorry, Natalie. This is my fault. I shouldn't have appeared in Zach's life. If you want to hit me or yell at me, I'll accept it all."

I didn't look at her and kept my eyes fixed on Zachary.

Seeing her on the floor, Zachary immediately helped her to her feet and held her protectively.

"It was my fault for not understanding my own feelings," he said. "I only ever saw you as a younger sister, Natalie."

Even though I had lived through all of this before, I still couldn't accept his words.

Every morning, he would bring a warm cinnamon roll—my favorite—on our way to school.

On rainy days, when my beloved shoes got dirty, he would crouch down without caring about appearances and wipe them clean. Then he would carry me on his back as he walked.

Even after years of people teasing us by calling me his fiancee, he never once denied it.

Yet in the end, he said I was only like a sister to him.

I nodded and forced a smile. "Alright, let's call off our engagement. Be good to her. I'll explain everything to my parents."

Zachary froze for a moment. He clearly hadn't expected me to agree so readily.

His voice softened slightly. "Don't worry. I'll still treat you the same way I always have."

He reached out to wipe my tears, but I gently dodged his hand.

"There's no need for that," I said.

I wiped my face on my own. "I'm not feeling well today, so I'll head home first."

I practically ran out of the school building. It was only after I rushed into the car waiting to take me home that my racing heart gradually calmed down.

My phone started buzzing in my pocket. It was a call from my sister, Judith Hooper.

Judith's bright, eager voice rang through the phone. "Natty! How's it going? Have you considered what I told you last time?

"Your grades are so good. It'd be such a waste to stay in the country and study that lousy finance major. Come to Norell and study media instead. Just think of it as keeping me company. What do you say?"

As I held my phone, the image of Mom's old box came to mind. It was neatly filled with records of the brave work she had done as a journalist.

When I was little, I loved flipping through those notebooks and believed that Mom was the bravest person in the world.

Influenced by her, I fell in love with journalism and resolved to study media. But because Zachary wanted to study finance at Prestwick University, I changed my own academic plans just to stay by his side.

I interrupted her relentless persuasion. "Judy."

My voice was still hoarse, but it rang unusually clear. "I've made my decision. I'm going to Norell."

The other end of the line fell silent. After several seconds, Judith asked in disbelief, "Really? Are you sure? What about Zachary? Can you really leave him?"

Zachary?

I lowered my gaze to the empty water bottle in my hand and suddenly recalled what had happened earlier that morning during recess.

My throat had felt unbearably dry, but the water dispenser at school was broken, so I couldn't get any water.

Yet I saw Zachary carefully pass his water bottle to Vivian and say softly, "Drink slowly. It's hot."

At the time, I had been preoccupied with reviewing the mistakes I had made in my exercises and hadn't given Zachary and Vivian a second thought.

Now, that image overlapped with the memory of the young man who had always noticed my needs first and immediately stood up to get me water. The care that had once been mine alone was now for someone else.

I spoke into the phone, my voice soft but resolute. "He likes someone, so I won't get in the way."

After saying that, I ended the call and shoved the empty bottle into my backpack.

When I got home, I told Mom and Dad about my plans to study abroad. They were overjoyed at the news and immediately began making arrangements for my departure. They then told me that with my grades, I could start studying abroad as soon as I graduated from high school.

There were three months left until graduation.

I suddenly felt a weight lift off my chest. In just three months, Zachary and I would have nothing to do with each other anymore.

The next day, I woke up early, deliberately avoiding the time Zachary would usually come by to pick me up for school.

By the time he entered the classroom, I had already begun previewing today's lessons.

Vivian followed him in, munching on my favorite cinnamon roll.

As Zachary and I locked eyes, he looked a bit awkward and explained, "I heard from your driver that you came early. I was planning to bring it over for you, but Viv was hungry."

I calmly lowered my head again and flipped through my book. "It's fine."

He walked over quietly. "Don't be upset over this. Do you want me to go and get you another one?"

He still thought that I was the hot-tempered girl from before, but I had already lived an entire lifetime.

I simply shook my head. "I'm not angry."

It was just a cinnamon roll. I could buy plenty for myself. With that thought, I took out the cinnamon roll I had kept untouched in my drawer and ate it right in front of him.

Vivian, who had been standing behind him with a hint of smugness, froze for a moment.

Seeing me do that, Zachary let out a small sigh of relief. "Looks like I won't need to bring you cinnamon rolls anymore."

As he spoke, he pulled out a notebook from his backpack. "You've been struggling in math lately. I stayed up late organizing the key points for you. Here, take a look."

Zachary's notes were far more detailed than before, organized so clearly that even a fool could follow them. He had probably done it out of guilt.

I handed the notebook to Vivian and smiled gently. "I think you could use this more than I do."

Vivian's eyes were red-rimmed. "Natalie, are you trying to provoke me? I know that I'm not as good at math as you are, and I also know that Zach has always made math notes for you. Are you handing me these notes in front of him because you're upset that we have feelings for each other?"

Tears streamed down her face as she spoke. I hadn't expected her to break down so quickly.

Zachary stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Vivian, trying to comfort her.

"I know that you're mad, but please don't make things difficult for Viv. She's physically weak and can't handle this," he said.

I almost laughed. How had I never noticed how blind Zachary could be before?

Vivian tugged at him and shook her head repeatedly. "Don't argue with Natalie because of me. This is indeed my fault. Maybe my own insecurities made me misunderstand her."

Zachary frowned. Before he could speak, I decisively spoke up. "I'm sorry. It's my fault. I didn't realize that it would hurt you."

Zachary was stunned. Even Vivian opened her mouth, only to swallow the rest of her words. She clearly hadn't expected me to say that.

I looked at Zachary and pressed the notebook into his hand. "From now on, don't come looking for me all the time. I don't want Vivian to feel uncomfortable."

After saying that, I returned to my seat and immersed myself in my studies again.

Zachary remained standing there, unable to recover from the shock for a long while.