"I've been living here for over a year, so the neighbors all know me," I said as we walked.

"Duke, the electrician, is really helpful—he's fixed my leaking roof multiple times."

"Granny Lyn, who sells soy milk, always saves me a bowl in the morning. She says young people shouldn't skip breakfast, or it'll hurt their stomachs."

"Joseph, who runs the grocery store—when my car broke down at the beginning, he rode his tricycle all the way to help me carry my tools back."

Sheena listened silently, her lips pressed tighter with each sentence.

Her eyes roamed over the weathered walls, the narrow alleyways, the ordinary clothes hung out to dry.

Finally, they returned to my gray jacket, faded from countless washes.

Every detail around us told a life completely different from the Charles she once knew.

The old me spent money like water, arrogant and overbearing.

I lived in villas with swimming pools and lawns, never noticing—or even speaking with—these "small people."

Now, here I was, laughing and chatting casually with them.

"Can you really live in a place like this?" Her voice quivered slightly.

I wasn't sure if it was exhaustion or something else.

"It's fine. Quiet, full of human warmth." I pointed to a side street ahead. "Are you tired? There's a small stall over there selling tofu pudding and fried cakes. Pretty good. Want to sit for a bit?"

She didn't protest.

The stall was simple—a cart, a few low tables, and plastic stools under an old locust tree.

The owners, a middle-aged couple, saw me and immediately greeted me warmly.

"Charles! You're back from work!"

"Oh, you brought a friend?"

"Sit, sit! We've got fresh brown sugar glutinous rice cakes today!"

I pulled out a stool for Sheena and wiped it down with a tissue.

"Two bowls of savory tofu pudding, extra pickled vegetables and dried shrimp. Four fried cakes, and two brown sugar glutinous rice cakes."

"Got it!"

The food arrived quickly.

I picked up the disposable spoon and fork, and began eating with care.

One bite of tofu pudding, one bite of fried cake, occasionally inhaling softly from the heat.

My face showed genuine satisfaction from the taste.

Sheena didn't touch her food.

She just watched me, her expression slowly shifting from complex to heartbroken.

The Charles she remembered had been impossibly picky with food—even Michelin three-star dishes could sometimes fail to impress him.

Now, he sat on a greasy little stool by the roadside, eating less than twenty dollar's worth of food, and yet he looked as if he were savoring a feast.

The contrast was more striking than any words could describe.

When I finished my portion and saw she still hadn't eaten, I pointed at the bowl in front of her.

"It'll taste better warm. Not quite what you're used to, but it's good—try it."

It was like a wake-up call. Her eyelashes fluttered as she slowly picked up the spoon, took a small piece of rice cake, and tasted it.

"Charles..."

Sheena set down her spoon and opened her expensive bag again.

This time, she didn't pull out cash, but a bank card.

"There's three million on it. The password is my birthday."

I didn't look at the card.

"Eat. The tofu pudding will get cold."

I finished the last of my own bowl, drinking the final drops of broth.

"This hour's almost up."

I checked my phone, glanced at the time, and turned to her, still wearing that professional smile.

"Do you want me to take you back, or... do you have other plans?"

Sheena lowered her voice as she looked at my expressionless face.

"Stop pretending. I'm not joking. Take this money—buy a decent place to live, get a better car, find an easier job, or start a small business."

"Stop driving for ride-hailing apps. It's too exhausting, and it's not something you should be doing."

I shook my head, my gaze drifting past her, landing on the mottled bark of the old locust tree in the distance.

"Thanks, but no. I like it this way."

"Charles!"

Her voice suddenly rose, making the stall owner nearby glance over before lowering her head again and returning to work.

Sheena seemed to realize she had lost control. She took a deep breath and lowered her voice once more.

"Don't be stubborn. You know exactly what kind of life you're living now."

"This three million means nothing to me."

"Just take it as... take it as a complete end to our past relationship."

"We're even, okay?"

Clear and settled.

Those words were like an extremely thin needle, gently pricking a corner of memory that had long been sealed away.

Five years ago, the final round of a university debate.

The topic was whether technological development necessarily leads to the alienation of human emotions.

As the main speaker for the affirmative side, I was fully prepared and brimming with confidence.

The opposing team's main speaker was a girl with a neat ponytail and a calm, composed expression.

During the free debate session, my teammates and I launched fierce attacks, presenting carefully prepared data and cases one after another.

When it was her turn, she didn't directly refute the statistics.

Instead, she told a story.

An elderly resident in her hometown lived alone. Her children were away, and she suffered from constant melancholy and illness.

Through a simple companion app developed by community volunteers, she learned to make video calls.

Being able to speak to her grandson daily brought smiles to her face and improved her health.

Her delivery was calm, without flowery words—just plain, sincere narration.

Yet the warmth emerging from everyday life instantly captured the audience's attention.

"Technology is a tool," she concluded, her gaze clear.

"The tool itself is neither warm nor cold. What matters is the heart of the person using it."

"When we use technology to bridge gaps and connect people, it doesn't create indifference—it becomes a different form of companionship and care."

At that moment, it felt as if all the lights on the stage focused on her.

I forgot my prepared rebuttal, staring at her in awe.

Not because she was beautiful, but because of the light in her eyes.

In the circles I was used to—full of wealth and superficiality—I rarely saw anything so real.

I was captivated. I pursued her relentlessly, using every method I could imagine.

Expensive gifts, carefully orchestrated "chance encounters," grand declarations that stirred the entire campus...

To me, they were just ordinary tactics.

To Sheena, they were overwhelming, even burdensome.

She saw me as a typical rich heir, amusing myself with a regular girl for fun.

So she rejected me decisively, even avoiding me whenever possible.

But the more she resisted, the stronger my determination became.

Looking back now, it was almost a borderline obsession.

I even used connections to "dissuade" other boys who liked her.

After a year of relentless pursuit, I finally won her over.

To ease her psychological burden, I suggested we start a business together after graduation.

Half the shares each, sharing risks and profits equally.

Sheena thought about it for a long time before finally agreeing.

In the beginning, the company consisted of just the two of us and a part-time assistant.

She handled the core planning and execution, while I took care of external relations and resource connections.

When the company stabilized and began to take shape, I proposed to her.

She cried—then smiled and nodded.

I thought that was the future I wanted.

I even started planning how to gradually pull away from my family, from the endless social obligations and power games I had grown sick of.

I imagined living a simple life with Sheena, running our company together, building something of our own.

Then everything changed—without warning.

Her childhood friend returned from overseas.

His name was Cooper.

He began appearing frequently, inserting himself into our lives again and again.

Sheena believed he meant well, that it was just concern between old friends.

But to me, his intentions were painfully obvious—barely concealed desire.

Arguments followed.

She said I was paranoid, that I had become no different from the arrogant rich heir who once relied on power and intimidation.

I said she couldn't see through Cooper's motives, that she didn't understand the importance of boundaries.

The cracks between us widened.

Until the night of the engagement party.

Cooper got drunk—and kissed Sheena in front of everyone.

Months of suppressed rage shattered my reason in an instant.

I rushed forward and broke his leg—cleanly and brutally.

My family tried to suppress the incident, but they couldn't bury it completely.

Sheena asked me to apologize to Cooper, to find a way to settle things privately, but I refused.

I even swore I would kill him.

My father was so furious that he publicly declared I was disowned from the Ramirez family—cut off permanently.

Before I went to prison, Sheena didn't come to see me.

She only had someone deliver a letter.

She said she would wait for me. She told me to reform myself properly.

Less than a month later, I received another piece of news.

She and Cooper had registered their marriage.

"We're even..."

I repeated the words slowly, the corner of my mouth lifting into a faint curve that could hardly be called a smile.

"Sheena, that line was drawn seven years ago."

She froze.

"Take the money back," I said calmly. "I don't need it. This life is my own choice, and I'll earn my own living."

"It's hard, yes—but it's clean. And it lets me sleep at night."

"As for the past..." I paused briefly. "That's already behind us. You chose your life. I chose mine."

"We've been even for a long time now."

Sheena stared at me, as if searching my face for even the slightest trace of pretense—resentment, regret, bitterness.

She found none. Her fingers slowly loosened around the bank card.

"You've really changed, Charles."

I smiled faintly. "People always do."

She hesitated for a long time, but in the end, she still let me walk her home.

On the way, the rain began to fall again, soft and steady.

As we passed through the narrow, slippery alleys of the old district, she walked slowly.

The air was filled with the damp, earthy scent of rain-soaked walls, mixed with the aroma of stew drifting from some unseen kitchen.

"Charles."

She suddenly stopped, her voice sounding distant through the rain.

"Do you... regret it?"

I answered slowly, my tone steady. "No."

She turned to look at me, her gaze complicated.

"I'm an adult," I continued as I walked on, my voice even. "I'm responsible for the things I've done."

"Responsible?"

"Don't you think the price was too high?"

"All because of one moment of impulse—you broke Cooper's leg!"

"And the result was seven years in prison, and losing your... fiancée."