The night before our wedding, my fiancée came into the bridal room with eight young men. She said they were staying the night.

I stepped forward and charged, raising my fist to hit each one of them to the last man.

Suddenly, my fiancée stood in between us and said with a serious tone. “You can hit the others, but not him!”

“Why not?” I said, before kicking the last man down the stairs.

With that, my fiancée personally had me arrested. I was sentenced to three years in jail.

On the day I was released, she came to pick me up. At that time, she was pushing a wheelchair. In the chair sat a familiar face—the same man that I kicked before going in to prison.

“I was wrong back then,” the man said with tears. “You pushed me down the stairs and I broke my leg. Steph simply felt sorry for me and cared in the last three years. We are engaged now. And, we will leave soon—I have our plane tickets.”

Then, I noticed, my ex's small pregnant belly. I said coldly, “Fine.”

Those I failed to kill three years ago—I'd make them all pay.

——

The moment Timothy heard my words, his eyes turned red.

He gently touched Stephanie’s belly. “Baby, don’t blame Daddy for not being staying with you. It’s all my fault. Daddy did something wrong. Maybe this will be the last time you and your mom ever see me.”

He spoke with such pity, sobbing so hard that he could hardly breathe. Anyone who didn’t know the truth might think he was about to die.

Meanwhile, Stephanie completely fell for it.

With deep sadness in her eyes, she wiped away Timothy’s tears, then turned to me.

“John, what happened back then was my fault. Don’t worry. Since I promised to give you a wedding, I’ll never break my word,” she said softly.

“But Tim is still the father of my baby. No matter what, the child is innocent. Why not let him stay here until the baby is born? Then Timothy can meet his child once before he leave,” she concluded.

I looked into Stephanie’s eyes. It was the same serious look she had before sending me to prison for Timothy’s sake.

“That’s fine,” I said. “I have no objection.”

“John, it seems these three years in prison really made you gentler and more understanding." Stephanie smiled with relief, then carefully helped Timothy into the passenger seat—the one that used to belong only to me.

I also smiled.

It was good to keep him close. That way, I won’t have to waste time finding him when it's finally time to settle the score.

***

Back at the house that once belonged to only Stephanie and I, everything had changed.

The decoration was now in the Southern style I hated. From the clothes in the closet to the ornaments on the table, there was no trace of me left. And by the window stood a wooden baby crib.

At one glance, I could tell Stephanie made it herself. Everything was arranged perfectly. It was clear, she had never really planned to send Timothy away.

Seeing me narrow my eyes slightly, Timothy suddenly shivered.

“Johnny, please don’t be angry. Steph just didn’t want me to stay alone, so she brought me here. I didn’t know this was your room. I’ll move to the guest room right away. Please, don’t hit me…” he said, trembling.

Timothy looked terrified and tried to stand, but his bad leg made him fall to the floor.

Stephanie quickly lifted him up and comforted him gently, “Tim, you don't need to feel that way. I chose this room for you on purpose. John wasn’t here anyway, so why leave it empty?”

Then she turned to me and explained, “John, you see how Tim’s leg is injured and he can’t actually move like he wishes to. Besides, he’s in poor health and this room gets lots of sunlight. It’s good for him. Why not let him stay here for a few months?”

In the past, even when Stephanie fooled around with other men, she never let them show up in front of me. No one had ever stolen things that’s used to be mine.

She said the other men were just playing around. She liked to watch me get jealous and personally deal with those little seducers myself.

Timothy was the real exception to her and it happened more than once. Out of the eight young men back then, only he was treated with genuine kindness.

I said nothing to Stephanie and left for the guest room.

***

That night I woke from a bad dream and felt suddenly thirsty. I went to the kitchen to get water and happened to see Stephanie on the balcony, talking on the phone.

Her voice had a sharp laugh in it. “Had no choice. The boy was kicked down the stairs and cried badly. I was tired and simply need to vent. After thinking it over, prison was perfect for John—he needed to soften his strong temper after all.”

“And if I didn’t send him away for three years, there's no way I can fully enjoy Tim? Now I’ve had enough fun. Johnny’s out and when Tim has the baby, I’ll send him away and I'll live happily with Johnny.”

“But John really changed a lot. It was worth bribing those old men from the prison to fix his temper…”

Her hand held the phone so tight it made a little clicking sound.

Before Stephanie turned away, I was already back in the guest room, standing blankly by the door.

After a long time, I lit a cigarette. In the mirror I saw my red eyes through the smoke. It looked just like my first year in the prison.

My hair was torn, my skin cut by belts, hot cigarette butts pressed out on my skin—the cold iron rod, the smell of blood that seemed never to fade.

So those old men who targeted and tortured me back in prison—Stephanie had made deals with all of them. Every moment I felt worse than dead, meanwhile she was busy falling for another man.

Suddenly, a call came from one of my subordinates. “Johnny, preparations are almost done. Shall we go now…?”

“Let them enjoy things for a few more days. When they have nothing left to hold on, they will fall harder and hurt more.”

Stephanie had never once visited me in the past three years. So she wasn't aware that since my second year in prison, the people she bribed— both inside and outside the prison—died for strange reasons.

Stephanie thought she had trained a good, obedient man. But what actually came out of prison was a demon.

One night someone climbed into my bed—and the smell of their perfume was familiar.

“John, you’ve lost so much weight. These three years were hard on you. I really missed you…”

I pressed down the hand Stephanie tried to use to touch me and said calmly, “If you missed me, why did you send me away? And why never come to see me?”

Stephanie lowered her eyes and sighed. “We grew up together in the orphanage and fought to get where we are. Why would I give you up? But your stubbornness is too much. It got to the point where you did hurt someone. Maybe some time in the prison can calm you down for good.”

“I was afraid I would soften if I did visit you, you know. Tim’s got crippled because of you; he needs care. And I must brace my heart to atone for you… It’s all past. From now on I will treat you well.”

Three years of living without daylight and intentional tortures, she spoke of my pain so lightly.

As Stephanie kissed my face, one of the house housekeepers knocked at the door. “Director Bloom, Mr. White says his stomach hurts. Please come see him…”

“I’ll be right there, John. I’ll come back and stay with you later,” she said.

The warmth from a moment before vanished. She rushed away and did not return.

I went to the bathroom and washed the places she had touched more than ten times, until my skin stung. Only then did my disgust lessen a little.

The next day, Stephanie told me to dress up nicely.

“Tim is really thoughtful. He tried to celebrate your return and prepared a welcome dinner just for you. John, don’t let Tim’s kindness go to waste,” Stephanie said.

I also wanted to see what Timothy was really up to, so I agreed.

The dinner was quite large. Besides people from the company, there were also Stephanie’s business partners.

During these three years, her career had flourished. She met powerful elites from many industries and many of them had secretly received her help.

They repaid her in kind—when they became successful, they provided her with funding and support. It helped her company to grow even more.

As soon as I entered the celebration venue, two buckets of black pig's blood were dropped square at me.

“What are you doing?!” Stephanie shouted angrily at the waiters.

Timothy quickly stepped forward and explained timidly, “Steph, please don’t be mad. Johnny just got out yesterday and I heard that black pig’s blood can wash away bad luck. The prison isn't exactly a lucky place, right? My stomach hurt last night and I was worried it might affect the baby…”

“I was only thinking for Johnny’s sake. Even if no one says it out loud, people might still wishes bad things for him. So, throwing the blood at him is aimed to remove any bad energy and calm everyone down. But don’t worry—I’ve already prepared clean clothes for him. It’s a gift I bought specially.”

After hearing that, Stephanie’s anger eased a little. “Then I’ll take John to change first.”

But Timothy gently grabbed her hand. “Steph, your business partners are here today. If you don’t greet them first, they’ll think we’re being rude.”

“Tim, you’re so considerate.” Stephanie thought for a moment and nodded. “John, you go change yourself. I’ll wait downstairs.”

When I arrived, I was wearing a formal suit — long sleeves and long pants. But the clothes Timothy had prepared for me were a sleeveless vest and shorts.

When I came out wearing them, I finally understood his real plan.

Everyone’s eyes fell on the scars covering my body. Gasps spread through the room.

“Oh my God, is he really wearing that outfit for this event? Ugh, so disgusting — I think I’m going to lose my appetite.”

“Johnny just got out of prison. I heard he didn’t behave inside and got punished badly. Honestly, he deserved it, after what he did to Mr. White.”

“Honestly, how could someone like that deserve Director Bloom's hand in marriage? Mr. White and Director Bloom look much better together. Even though his leg is bad, he’s got that angelic face—unlike a certain unlawful guy over there. Director Bloom must've been wanting to get away from him.”

“Please don’t say that. My brother already knows his mistakes. Everyone deserves a second chance.” Timothy blushed shyly, but his voice remained gentle and understanding.

He added, “And really, you can't compare me with Johnny? Stephanie even bought him a beautiful diamond watch. I’m nothing compared to him.”

He truly knew how to make himself look innocent and pitiful.

One of Stephanie’s business partners, who had never met me before, looked me up and down.

First his gaze stopped on Timothy, then turned toward me, full of disgust.

“Director Bloom, did I hear that right? That ugly criminal is actually his fiancé?”

Stephanie and I looked at each other quietly. A few seconds later, she turned her eyes away. “No, we were just a childhood friend.”

Those words were no different from announcing our breakup in public.

The whole room immediately burst into cheers for Stephanie and Timothy. “What a perfect couple! Just get together already!”

The other audiences nodded in agreement.

“I knew it! A beautiful woman like you, with that gorgeous diamond watch, could only be matched with a handsome man like Mr. White.”