I hesitated for a moment before walking into Nathan’s office.

Not because I was uncertain, but because I hadn’t figured out how to get him to sign the papers without any fuss.

After the company implemented stricter HR policies, even I had to sign an updated contract.

Considering the sensitivity of my role as the design director—and the fact that my family’s business was loosely tied to this industry—I needed to ensure my resignation paperwork was complete before returning to Eastbrook. Otherwise, it could cause unnecessary trouble later.

I pushed the door open, ready to speak, but stopped short when I saw Nina sitting across from Nathan.

No wonder her desk outside was empty. She had clearly moved her workspace in here.

Nina noticed me first. She playfully tapped Nathan on the head and said in a sweet, teasing voice, “Nathan!”

Nathan’s tone was indulgent. “Alright, stop messing around. I need to finish this agreement.”

“I’m not messing around…” Nina glanced at me provocatively before putting on a well-behaved smile. “Hannah’s here.”

Nathan immediately leaned back in his chair, putting distance between them, and looked up at me, flustered. Our eyes met.

Ignoring the ache in my heart, I spoke calmly. “Nathan, I need you to sign a document.”

I handed him the folder.

Relieved that I didn’t address the obvious tension between him and Nina, he nodded. “Alright.”

“Nathan, I’ll let you two work. I’ll head out,” Nina said, standing up to leave.

As Nathan opened the folder, I was just about to explain the document when Nina suddenly cried out, “Ah—my ankle! It hurts!”

“Nina!” Nathan jumped to his feet, abandoning the folder as he rushed toward her.

I stepped in his way. “Sign this first. It’ll only take a few seconds.”

He frowned. “Hannah Jefferson, when did you become so cold-hearted? Is this document really that important?”

“Nathan…” Nina whimpered from the floor, clutching her ankle and tearing up.

Nathan’s focus was entirely on her. Without even glancing at the papers, he hastily scribbled his signature where I pointed.

That suited me just fine.

I only wanted to get this resignation done and leave this city—to return to the life I was meant to have.

Nathan lifted Nina onto the couch and gently examined her foot. “It’s not swollen, but if it really hurts, I’ll take you to the hospital.”

“It’s not that bad…” Nina pulled her foot back shyly, sneaking a glance in my direction.

Expressionless, I turned and left.

Before I could get into my car, Nathan ran after me, stopping me by the door. “Hannah, don’t misunderstand. There’s nothing between me and Nina. I’m just looking out for her because we grew up together.”

“Hmm.” I nodded faintly, gesturing for him to release the door. “I have things to do.”

He hesitated, looking unsure. “You’re not upset?”

I smiled faintly. “Should I be?”

“In the past, you would’ve been furious if I did something like this…”

“But you still did it anyway.” I met his eyes, seeing the panic he was trying to hide. “Relax, I’m just joking. Come home for dinner tonight?”

“I…” He averted his gaze, squeezing my hand lightly. “I have a business dinner, but I’ll definitely come home after.”

I wanted to laugh but couldn’t. How did it come to this, where even getting him to come home felt like begging for a favor?

After grabbing dinner outside, I returned home and resumed packing.

That's when I realized - when disappointment runs deep enough, you don't want to keep any memories at all.

I methodically erased every trace of my existence from our apartment.

I went through Nathan's room too.

But only removed the things I'd bought for us as a couple.

Toothbrush, coffee mugs, slippers, matching pajamas...

During a break, before I could finish, I received a text from Nina.

[Hannah, isn't it sweet? After all these years, Nathan still remembers pink roses are my favorite. He's even more thoughtful than before.]

[Thanks for training such a perfect man for me.]

[All those years of training him paid off... for me.]

She attached a photo.

The white luxury car I'd helped him choose, its trunk filled with roses, decorated with twinkling lights.

In that moment, everything became crystal clear.

All the genuine love I thought I'd had these past years had belonged to someone else all along.

Nathan broke his promise.

He didn’t come home.

For several days in a row, he stayed away. I only found out through a casual phone call with Linda that he was on another business trip—this time with Nina again.

But his absence gave me more time to finish packing.

The calendar showed only seven days left.

That day, I was sorting the luggage I planned to take to Eastbrook when Linda suddenly called.

“Hannah, did you put the wrong address on your delivery?”

“What delivery?”

“Your wedding dress! It was delivered to the office. The package says it’s for you. Nathan really went all out—an AD custom gown! That’s at least seven figures. Is he planning to drain his savings and not live after the wedding?”

I rushed to the office and opened the box, only to be stunned.

The measurements matched mine, but… this didn’t seem like something Nathan would do.

The company had been doing well in recent years, but not well enough to splurge on such an extravagant wedding dress. Besides, he likely hadn’t even considered marrying me.

As I stood there puzzled, my mom called.

“Sweetheart, did you get the wedding dress? The Henderson family is so serious about the wedding between you and Davis! I told them you’d be back in half a month, and they’ve already started preparing for the ceremony.”

“They even insisted on sending the dress ahead of time so you could see if you liked it or if it fit well.”

Her cheerful tone left no doubt about how pleased she was with the Henderson family’s enthusiasm.

I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Mom, did you give them this address?”

“Of course! Did you change offices or something?”

“No…” I sighed. “I’ll send you a new address. From now on, have them send everything there.”

“Alright, alright!” She agreed quickly, still overjoyed. “By the way, Mrs. Henderson asked if you have any specific requests for the wedding. She said she’ll take care of everything.”

“I don’t have any requests.” I pressed my lips together. “You and Mrs. Henderson can handle the details.”

“Wedding?”

Nathan's voice suddenly came from behind. "What wedding?"

My heart skipped a beat as I ended the call. “You’re back from your trip?”

“Yeah.” He avoided my gaze, but his eyes landed on the wedding dress lying on the sofa. His brow furrowed. “Hannah, I told you—I can’t think about marriage right now. Can you stop pressuring me?”

I stared at him steadily. "Did I say you were the groom?"

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing.” I shrugged, walked over, and began packing the dress back into its box.

Nathan grabbed my arm, softening his tone. "Are you angry? I'm sorry, I'm just exhausted from the trip. Forgive me?"

I nodded without hesitation. “Sure.”

He still seemed unsure. “Really?”

“Really.”

“Then how about leaving the wedding dress here for now?” Nathan hesitated, adding nervously, “Hannah, just give me a little more time. I promise I’ll marry you.”

He looked as if he were dreading being forced into something.

I couldn’t help but laugh lightly. “What are you thinking? Didn’t you hear me on the phone? This dress belongs to my college roommate. She accidentally put the wrong address.”

Relief flooded his face, and he even pinched my cheek playfully. “Trying to scare me, huh?”

“Sure, think what you want.”

Nathan had met all three of my college roommates. If he still cared about me even a little, he’d have remembered they were all already married. He’d even attended their weddings with me. Back then, he couldn’t stop talking about our future whenever we went to someone else’s wedding.

We’d agreed to get married as soon as the company stabilized.

But three years had passed, and he still hadn’t brought it up.

For a while, I thought he might have a fear of marriage.

Now I understood. He wasn’t afraid of marriage—he just didn’t want to marry me.

Linda knocked and entered, looking a little sheepish. “Sorry to interrupt, but Nathan, you need to be present for the design director interviews later.”

“Design director?” Nathan looked confused and turned to me. “Are you overwhelmed? Do you need someone to help you?”

“No,” I replied calmly. “Nathan, I’ve resigned.”

His expression darkened. “You resigned? Why didn’t you discuss it with me first? Hannah, the company is at a critical stage of funding. The design department is the heart of our business. Do you have any idea how much impact changing directors will have on investors?”

For a moment, it felt like I didn’t know him at all.

I raised my eyes. “So, what do you want to do about it?”

“Without my signature, your resignation isn’t final.” Nathan sighed, his tone softening like he was reasoning with a child. “You’re not a little girl anymore. Don’t act so impulsively. Come back to work tomorrow.”

I smiled faintly. “Nathan, you already signed it.”

“If you don’t believe me, Linda has a copy. You can check.”

With that, I picked up the wedding dress and walked away.

"Hannah, no matter how desperate you are to get married, you can’t resort to forcing it."

"Do you think buying a wedding dress will make Nathan marry you?"

"He promised long ago that he’d only ever marry me. Stop dreaming."

On the drive, I glanced at the texts from Nina. Her words left me feeling drained. I circled Brookshire for hours, driving aimlessly. By the time I got home, it was past midnight, and the chilly autumn air had seeped into my bones.

To my surprise, the house was brightly lit when I opened the door.

Nathan was sitting on the couch. He stood and walked toward me. “Why are you back so late?”

“I went for a drive.”

I was leaving soon. I wanted one last look at the city where I’d spent so many years of my life.

He nodded, reaching out to pull me into his arms, but I instinctively stepped back.

His brows furrowed slightly. “Still upset?”

“I might’ve been too harsh earlier. If you don’t want to work, you don’t have to, okay?” He softened his tone. “As long as you’re happy, that’s all that matters.”

I caught a hint of irony in his words but chose not to escalate things. “Okay. Your birthday is coming up—what’s the plan?”

It was only earlier today, when I glanced at the calendar, that I realized my planned departure was the day before his birthday. It also happened to be the anniversary of our relationship.

“Of course, I want to spend it at home with you—just the two of us.”

He reached out cautiously again. This time, when I didn’t pull away, he seemed to relax. Hugging me tightly, he mumbled, “Hannah, I feel like… something about you has changed lately.”

“You’re overthinking.” I gently stepped out of his embrace. “It’s a bit cold. I’m going to take a shower.”

In the past, he would’ve noticed immediately that my entire body was ice-cold. I wasn’t sure anymore who had changed—him or me.

“By the way, what happened to my toothbrush and mug?” he asked suddenly from behind me.

I lowered my gaze.

Those weren’t the only things missing from this house. But it was no surprise he hadn’t noticed—his heart hadn’t been here for a long time.

I replied casually, “You’re supposed to replace those things regularly. There are new ones in the bathroom cabinet.”

I headed to my room and took a shower. My phone buzzed non-stop on the bed while I was in the bathroom.

When I came out, I saw more messages from Nina.

Her earlier taunts had been enough to ruin my mood, so I hadn’t replied. But she clearly wasn’t willing to let it go. Now she’d sent screenshot after screenshot of her conversations with Nathan.

The timestamps on the messages weren’t from the past few months—they stretched back years.

Most of the time, it was Nathan pouring his heart out to her.

"Nina, I started dating someone like you suggested. She’s great, and her smile reminds me of yours."

"Nina, whenever I’m with her, it feels like we’re back to the days when we were inseparable."

"Nina, how have you been lately? I dreamed about you last night. I miss you."

"Nina, I might get married soon. I can’t let her down."

"She’s been through so much with me. Everything I’ve achieved—my career, buying a house and a car in Brookshire—I owe it all to her…"

That was when Nina finally started replying. Once she learned he’d bought two properties in the city, including a luxury apartment that was still being renovated, they fell into each other’s arms.

The messages became an endless exchange of daily updates.

The hangover soup I had made for Nathan after a night of heavy drinking? He sent her a photo. "Look, I’m having soup this morning. What about you?"

The lemons from the tree I nurtured finally bore fruit. His first instinct was to share it with Nina. "See this? Amazing, right? Once they’re bigger, I’ll bring the best one to the office for your tea."

My hands shook as I held the phone. Knowing I was just a stand-in for her was one thing. Reading these messages was something else entirely.

Even after a hot shower, the cold seemed to seep into my bones.

I wanted to laugh but couldn’t stop the tears from welling up. I wasn’t crying because I felt betrayed—I was crying because it hit me just how long I’d been living as someone else’s shadow.

Every sweet moment I thought I’d shared with Nathan had been passed along to her.

I forced back my tears and replied, “Find better things to do at this hour.”

She replied instantly, "Hannah, don’t push your luck. Even if you stay, Nathan will only marry me. I know you don’t want to let go now that the company’s about to go public, but for the sake of what you’ve done for him, I’ll make him give you $10,000 as a breakup fee."

"Let’s face it—without Nathan, you’ll never find someone this rich again."

Ten thousand dollars. I wasn’t sure that would even cover the cost of one wedding table at the Henderson family’s banquet.

Just as I finished reading her message, my door burst open.

“Hannah, why did you put the watch I gave you up for sale online?” Nathan asked, his voice sharp.