"She’s Miss Quinn, Mr. Chambers’ fiancée."

"What? She’s so rude, though."

"He spoils her."

"Why? I’ve never even seen her before, and she’s supposed to be the future lady of the house?"

"It’s just a rumor that I’ve heard. They said he found her a few weeks ago."

"Because she looks exactly like Mr. Chambers’ first love."

"He couldn’t have the real thing, so he settled for the next best option…"

…

When I woke again, the sky outside was awash with fiery red clouds, their glow spilling into the room.

The soft rustle of pages turning wasn’t loud, but the moment I stirred, he heard me.

The back of his hand brushed against my forehead.

"You have a fever. Why didn’t you drink the milk this morning?"

I opened my mouth but found it hard to make a sound.

My throat burned and my whole body was dry and weak.

All I could do was shake my head.

Ethan let out a quiet chuckle before lifting me into his arms.

He had changed into fresh clothes, and there was no trace of smoke on him.

He paid attention to details—almost to an obsessive degree.

He knew I hated the smell of cigarettes, so he never smoked around me.

"I don’t drink milk anymore."

As he placed me in the backseat of the car, I finally forced the words out, despite how much it hurt to speak.

He froze for a second.

Then he let out a sharp laugh, somewhere between amused and exasperated.

"Do you have to go against me on everything?"

I was speechless.

Maybe he was right.

Maybe I just wanted to see him lose his mind and finally throw me away.

But I couldn’t be bothered to say another word.

Instead, I curled back into my seat.

The car started moving, and outside the window, drifting clouds streaked past.

The fiery red glow on the horizon burned like it could set my heart ablaze at any moment.

…

Ethan took me home.

Someone was sitting on the living room sofa.

I tried to recall the first time I had met Lily Shaws, but there was no moment that stood out.

I only knew one thing—we looked alike.

So, I just stood there and watched as, the moment she saw Ethan, the girl on the sofa shot to her feet and threw herself into his arms.

For half a minute, silence stretched between them.

Ethan stood frozen, unmoving.

Her loose strands of hair brushed against his neck as she clung to him, her voice bright and cheerful.

"Ethan, I’m back."

The girl in his arms remained motionless, and it was me who finally broke the silence.

"She said she’s back."

Ethan’s throat bobbed.

After a long pause, his voice came out rough and strained.

"You… came back."

I had never seen him this shaken before.

Confused and… defeated.

The girl moved into the villa.

She was always by Ethan’s side, never straying far from him.

Sometimes, I would think back to the conversation I overheard in his office that day.

They said I was just a substitute for his first love.

And yet, Ethan still hadn’t given up on marrying me.

The only difference was that where there used to be just the two of us at the dinner table, now Lily sat between us.

She even followed him to work.

She was the type who loved to talk, always filling the silence with her voice.

I didn’t understand.

His first love was back.

If I was really just a replacement, then why wouldn’t he let me go?

Or did he plan to keep me by his side, just like before, to continue tormenting me?

…

Ethan had been coming home late these past few days.

Tonight, he seemed a little drunk.

I didn’t see any sign of Lily, but his clothes were slightly disheveled.

His tie hung loose, and he had pushed back his tousled hair with a careless hand.

The dim living room light washed over his skin, making it look pale and cold.

The skin beneath his brows was flushed red, his eyes burning.

The moment he saw me, he let out a soft chuckle.

"Alice, you’re getting harder and harder to control."

He pressed me against the sofa, yet even now, he still placed a hand on my waist to keep me from hitting the armrest.

His gaze was dark, like a raging storm.

"Where’s Lily Shaws?"

I tilted my head up and asked, but he only scoffed lightly.

"She’s gone."

"You left the house with her this morning."

"I got rid of her a long time ago."

A strange, unnameable feeling stirred in my chest.

I looked away, unwilling to meet his eyes.

His forehead lightly rested against mine.

For a fleeting moment, I thought I saw a glimmer of wetness in his dark eyes.

"Alice, you didn’t drink your milk today, did you? Did you throw it away as soon as I left?"

I stayed silent.

Yes, I hadn’t touched milk in days.

Maybe I was just as stubborn as Ethan—once I didn’t want to do something, no one could make me.

But Ethan never cared whether I was willing or not.

A fresh glass of warm milk was soon placed in front of me.

He sat across from me, staring intently.

"Drink it."

I knew the milk itself didn’t matter.

What mattered to him was whether I would listen.

I pressed my lips together, refusing to look at him.

Over the past few weeks, I tried to resist, but the outcome was never in my favor.

Tonight would probably be no different.

I refused to drink, so Ethan grabbed my chin, ready to force it down my throat.

Somehow, I could tell that he was angry again.

I clenched my teeth and resisted until, in the end, he let out a sigh.

Holding my gaze, he tilted his head back and took a sip of the milk himself.

Then, gripping my chin, he kissed me.

My teeth were pried apart, and the liquid slid past my lips, invading my mouth.

The cloying sweetness of milk was mixed with the recklessness of a drunk man who had lost all restraint.

It made me feel sick—like something was stuck in my chest, suffocating me.

I couldn't hold it in any longer.

Tears welled up and spilled over as I sobbed, and only then did he finally stop.

The night was silent and merciless.

I stared at the vase of dried flowers by the entryway for a long time.

Eventually, his voice broke the stillness.

Low. Hoarse. Fractured.

He pulled me into his arms, his body always unbearably warm, burning against my skin.

Over and over, he murmured apologies in my ear.

"Don’t cry. I was wrong, Alice. It’s my fault..."

"Please, stop crying... okay?"

At that moment, I almost believed that, all along, I had been someone he cherished.

…

A man who was satisfied was always easy to reason with.

I tested his limits by saying I didn’t want to see Lily again.

The next day, I saw her tearfully packing her suitcase.

I couldn't understand Ethan anymore.

He wasn’t the kind of man who obeyed my words so easily.

And besides, wasn’t Lily his first love?

When something didn’t make sense to me, I usually just asked.

But all he did was narrow his eyes and ruffle my hair—his usual way of brushing me off.

"Alice, you were never anyone’s replacement."

See? Men always knew how to spin pretty words.

As long as he didn’t want to, he would never tell me his real intentions.

The only one being played here was me.

…

Maybe it was the stifling summer heat, but even the housekeeper’s best meals hadn’t tempted my appetite these past few days.

Forcing down the last bite of pork chop and pasta, I rushed to the bathroom and threw up, gripping the toilet for support.

At that moment, my heart suddenly skipped a beat—fast and erratic.

I hadn’t had my period in months.

…

With Ethan’s lack of restraint and the fact that he never gave me any birth control, this outcome seemed inevitable.

I was pregnant.

Ethan probably didn’t know yet.

I stared blankly at my flat stomach, lost in thought.

The sad part was, did I even have a say in whether to keep this child or not?

Lately, Ethan had been coming home early.

And the moment he walked through the door, he would pull me into his arms.

Sometimes, I struggled to reconcile this man with the one who used to kick me to the ground the moment he got bored.

At some point, his bottom line had shifted—lowered to an extent I never thought possible.

Sometimes, I overheard his phone calls with his friends.

It was probably one of them inviting him out for a game of cards.

He let out a low chuckle, his gaze dropping to where I was curled up on the couch.

"I’m keeping my wife company."

A burst of exaggerated groans and jeers erupted from the other end, loud enough for me to hear.

"Still spoiling that crazy little thing of yours…?"

Their voices faded, laced with disdain.

Yeah. In Ethan’s circle of friends, that was exactly how they saw me.

A lunatic. A mess. The unhinged girl who refused to be the perfect Mrs. Chambers and instead spent her days kicking up storms.

…

One night, I had a nightmare.

Or maybe it wasn’t a dream at all. Maybe it was just a memory.

Ethan, leading a group of guys, had me cornered in the classroom.

He read my test scores out loud, his voice ringing through the space.

I had been so drained from their constant torment that I never had the energy to focus on school.

My grades were a disaster, utterly humiliating.

But Ethan was always first. He had never been anything but first.

He dangled my test paper above my head, his grin dripping with mockery.

"OMG, how can you be this stupid?"

I jolted awake, the distant hum of cicadas drifting in from outside.

The night stretched endlessly, swallowing everything in its darkness.

Beside me, his breathing was steady and light.

I straddled him, my hands tightening around his throat.

In the dim light, he lay there, silent, watching me with quiet resignation.

"Planning to strangle me?"

"Ethan Chambers, you were the one who dragged me into hell."

I spoke softly, fingers slowly curling, pressing into his skin.

He just looked at me.

I thought—one day, there would come a moment when I wouldn’t hesitate to finally end his life.

Yet, even though he didn’t resist, I still couldn’t go through with it.

…

At noon, someone I least wanted to see showed up at the house.

Even after all these years apart, the sight of her still made me instinctively tremble.

Serena Chambers—Ethan’s younger sister.

Back when Ethan bullied me the worst, Serena had stood up for me.

I foolishly believed she was my one ray of light, my salvation in the chaos.

She told me not to be afraid of her brother.

She swore she would protect me, that no one would dare touch me as long as she was around.

Only later did I realize that she only helped me because she was fighting with Ethan at the time.

And the moment they made up, she turned on me, finding new ways to torment me instead.

She once led a group of girls to corner me in the bathroom, forcing me to take humiliating photos.

In the end, every single picture ended up in Ethan’s hands.

The memory was so unbearable that just seeing Serena again nearly made me rush to the bathroom to throw up.

She hated me just as much.

When Ethan brought me back and forced me into this marriage, she had caused the biggest scene.

She screamed at me to my face, saying I wasn’t worthy, demanding to know why, of all people, her brother chose me.

Now, seeing me again, her expression was just as hostile.

But I was hoping for a fight, so I met her glare head-on.

She had always been the entitled, spoiled type.

Seeing me act this way, she crossed her arms and let out a mocking laugh.