The moment I pushed open the private room door, the once-lively chatter came to a screeching halt.

Heidi was half-leaning against Dexter, her eyes red and watery, like a scene straight out of a bad melodrama.

“Damn, low-class trash always has their little tricks. And such a stench when she walks in. A woman sneered I’d seen twice before. One of those childhood friends who’d grown up alongside Heidi and Dexter. Every time we met, she made sure to remind me how perfect the two of them were for each other.

I had thought Dexter called me here to comfort me after what happened. I never expected a full audience.

I’d thrown a jacket over my loungewear, expecting something quiet, and now every gaze in the room was dragging over me, head to toe.

“If you don’t want to be here, then leave! Sis-in-law isn’t like that, it has to be a misunderstanding!”

To my surprise, the one who spoke up for me was Jordan.

“Sis-in-law? What makes her sis-in-law? Heidi is—”

She shot to her feet, but Dexter’s voice cracked through the room. “Enough!”

Even now, Dexter was still chasing the illusion of having both.

Still hiding the truth. Still pretending he wasn’t already married to Heidi.

What he didn’t know was that Heidi had already lost patience and flaunted it proudly to me through her alternative account.

“Oh, right. If you say it’s just a misunderstanding, then of course it is. My reputation, my twenty years of hard work in art, none of that matters. As long as sis-in-law’s feelings aren’t hurt. Can’t have me spoiling her mood…”

Heidi choked out a sob, tears flowing again, coating the room in a sickening sweetness.

“What exactly do you want? If there’s nothing, I’m leaving.”

The meds were making me lightheaded. Her performance was exhausting. I just wanted out.

“Were those reporters at the venue your doing? Trying to smear Heidi and destroy her art career?”

Dexter’s tone was cold, and his stare even colder. I instinctively pulled my jacket tighter around me.

Heidi leaned closer to him, just enough to brush against his shoulder.

A smirk tugged at the corner of her lips before she quickly masked it with another sob.

“So now I’m the one who forced her to plagiarize my work? Then hired reporters to expose her?”

“I’d never stoop that low, but now that you mention it, not a bad plan.”

Dizzy, my temper snapped.

“Shameless! You’re the one who copied Heidi and bribed the judges! Switched the paintings and fooled everyone into thinking yours was better!”

Heidi’s face twisted.

I let out a low, cold laugh. “What? Even your friend admits your painting’s worse. That’s rough. Art takes talent, after all.”

Her tears soaked half of Dexter’s shoulder as she sobbed pitifully.

“Sister Blythe, I know you’re afraid I’ll steal Brother Dexter, but ever since my family forced us apart, I’ve already let go. Why are you targeting me like this…”

Forced to break up?

Back then, Dexter had flown overseas just to see her one last time.

He waited outside her apartment in the pouring rain, an entire day and night, until he collapsed with a raging fever.

And Heidi? She never spared him a single glance.

Now, all it took was one word, forced, and Dexter, like a loyal dog, had come crawling back.

I let out a long, quiet breath.

There was no point mocking Dexter anymore.

Wasn’t I the same?

I had known full well he still carried scars from his past. And still, I gave him everything.

Seven years standing by him without question.

“What do you want from me?”

“As long as the misunderstanding is cleared up, that’s enough. Sister Blythe, please don’t use tactics like that again. Brother Dexter already has enough betrayal to deal with in the business world.”

Heidi pulled away from Dexter and filled a glass to the brim with strong liquor.

“Drink this, and the matter is over.”

Dexter’s face was cloaked in shadows. I couldn’t make out his expression.

When I didn’t move, Heidi lifted a smaller glass and downed it in one gulp.

“This is my sincerity.” She collapsed dramatically onto Dexter’s arm, feigning a cough.

“Heidi never drinks Look at her now and you’re still playing innocent? Everyone knows how many times you’ve toasted at business dinners with Dexter! Can’t drink a drop now? What kind of act is this?”

I didn’t flinch.

My gaze stayed locked on Dexter, hidden in the dark.

“So you want me to drink too? Apologize to your new lover. Oh, wait. I forgot. Old lover.”

Dexter said nothing.

The others might not have known.

But he did.

Back then, to help him seal deals, I gave up painting and followed him to countless dinners, drinking until I ended up with a bleeding ulcer.

The doctor had warned me: if I drank again, I might lose part of my stomach.

And yet that night, clutching a freshly signed contract, Dexter had knelt by my hospital bed, crying, swearing he’d protect me.

That he’d give me all his love.

All his love?

What a joke.

“Alright!” I grabbed the glass and downed it in one shot.

“Is that enough? Have I satisfied your old lover yet? You want to crawl for her? Be my guest. But why drag me down with you? Dexter, I was wrong. My biggest mistake was falling in love with you with blind eyes.”

Heidi covered her mouth as if shocked, but her eyes sparkled with laughter.

A sharp pain twisted through my stomach. A metallic taste filled my mouth.

I reached for the half-finished bottle of liquor and poured it down, gulp after gulp.

“Stop it! That’s enough!” Dexter finally rushed over, yanking the bottle from my hands.

Out of nowhere, Jordan stormed in and landed a punch straight into Dexter’s shoulder.

“Are you even a man? She drank herself into an ulcer for you, did you forget? And now you’re tearing her apart for this bitch? She’s right. Dexter, you’re nothing but a damn lapdog.”

I stood frozen, stunned. I had only met Jordan a handful of times, yet even a near stranger stepped in to defend me.

While the man I had loved for seven years didn’t hesitate to trade my life for the woman he worshipped.

“Oh please, I always knew this trash had her tricks. Seduced Dexter, now she’s working her way through his friends. What is it, Jordan? You want his leftovers? Or have you already had her?” sneered the woman beside Heidi Ambrose.

Jordan’s hand trembled with rage. He pointed at Dexter, then slowly lowered it.

He turned to me. “Dexter, we’re done. Blythe, do you want to go to the hospital? My driver’s waiting.”

I shook my head. My vision swam. My stomach churned.

“Dexter, we’re breaking up.”

I didn’t cry. But the second those words left my lips, I coughed up blood, dark, thick, splattering across the floor.

Dexter lunged forward in panic, trying to catch me.

But Heidi let out a shrill cry behind him. “Brother Dexter! I faint at the sight of blood… I… I feel dizzy…”

Blood surged up from my gut. I pressed a hand to my mouth, trying not to look pitiful.

But it seeped through my fingers, hot and merciless.

I turned and staggered toward the door.

This was good. Dexter, this love, painful and broken, should finally come to an end.

“Brother Dexter, don’t leave me!” I heard Heidi’s desperate voice echo behind me as I turned the corner, clenching my teeth.

Blood dotted the marble floor beneath me as my legs gave out.

Just before consciousness slipped away, I caught the familiar scent of Dexter’s cologne.

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in a sterile hospital bed.

My hand was cradled tightly in Dexter’s trembling palm.

“Blythe! Are you alright? Does it still hurt?”

His bloodshot eyes brimmed with worry as he wiped the sweat from my forehead. His phone buzzed over and over on the table.

“I’m fine. Go handle your work,” I said flatly, pulling my hand away.

He hesitated.

“You’re still mad? I know you only did that because you felt insecure. I already had PR shut it all down!”

So, in his mind, I had really framed Heidi.

I didn’t even bother explaining. “When can I be discharged?”

I needed to make sure this wouldn’t interfere with my trip abroad.

“Don’t worry. The doctor said you’ll be fine in a week! Blythe, it’s my fault. I didn’t give you enough security before. But look, what’s this?”

Dexter cupped my chin and turned my face toward him, holding up a red marriage certificate.

I opened it, and there it was. Our names printed side by side, a photo of us smiling like strangers in a dream.

He really had someone forge a fake marriage certificate for me.

“President Laurence’s influence is impressive. Married me without me even showing up?”

Dexter looked genuinely confused as if expecting me to leap into his arms.

“Legal affairs can handle that kind of thing. Aren’t you happy? You’ve always wanted to marry me.”

A WhatsApp notification lit up my screen.

Heidi’s alternative account had finally cracked. [Make him leave. Let’s talk face to face.]

[Okay.]

After replying, I forced a stiff smile. “Of course I’m happy. Go finish your work. I’ll be right here, waiting like a good girl.”

Dexter looked visibly relieved. “I’ve already arranged for Sable Studio to design your wedding dress. She can’t come to the US right now, so once you’re discharged, you’ll fly out. I’ll join you later. We’ll treat it like a honeymoon.”

So, he still planned to send me away. Still afraid I’d ruin their perfect little wedding?

“Hmm, sure. Whatever you say. Now go. Your phone’s been ringing nonstop.”

I kept coaxing him, soft and patient, until he finally left.

A nurse came in soon after to change my IV.

“Your husband really loves you. You didn’t see it. He was covered in blood, holding you and crying, begging the doctors to save you. He stayed up the entire night while you were unconscious…”

I stared blankly at the needle in my hand. But before she could finish, the door opened, and Heidi walked in.

"You’ve seen it, we’re already married. The wedding is next week."

The feigned sweetness on Heidi’s face had completely dissolved.

I turned my gaze toward the window, refusing to meet her eyes.

"I know he wants to ship you off abroad, then bring you back like some caged canary after our ceremony. The Laurence family can afford it, but honestly, I find it disgusting."

When I said nothing, she pulled out a check from her handbag and tossed it onto my lap.

"Twenty million. I want you to disappear from Dexter’s life. Cut all ties. Never show your face to him again!"

I picked up the check. The signature at the bottom was unmistakably from the Ambrose family.

Even for them, twenty million wasn’t a small sum.

"Alright."

Heidi hadn’t expected me to agree so easily, and not only did I agree, I even tucked the check into my pocket without hesitation.

I was already planning to leave, so why not take it?

Consider it a little compensation from Heidi for my hospital bills.

"What? Were you hoping I’d cry and beg? A two-timing man like him suits you to the bone!"

"Just remember your promise. The Ambrose family isn’t someone you want to provoke! If money was all you wanted, why create such a scene?" Heidi scoffed and arrogantly left.

I spent the next week in the hospital.

Dexter came to see me every single day, but as the wedding drew closer, he was clearly swamped. His visits became shorter, his phone rang constantly, and his attention was never truly with me.

It almost felt like he didn’t want me to step outside that hospital room.

I didn’t want to return to the place we once called home either, so I had his assistant pack up my things and bring them over.

The morning I was discharged, Dexter arrived early and personally drove me to the airport.

Several times along the way, I glanced at the billboards outside, but he’d rather run a red light than let me get a clear look.

Of course, I already knew those weren’t just advertisements. They were wedding posters. His wedding with Heidi.

I pretended not to notice and quietly let him drop me off.

My luggage was so light I didn’t even need to check it in.

Dexter walked me all the way to the security checkpoint and pulled me into a tight embrace.

“Very soon, in just a week, no, three days. Blythe, I’ll fly over to join you. I can’t stand being apart from you, not even for a minute.”

I pushed him away and stared at the man, still pretending to be full of affection.

At that moment, I knew I never wanted anything to do with him again.

“Do you remember what I said at the club that day?” I looked at him one last time and finally saw it: when love fades, even the most handsome face becomes dull.

“Which part?” Dexter’s phone wouldn’t stop ringing. He asked the question as he picked up the call.

I turned and stepped through the security gate.

“The part where I said we’re breaking up!”

“What? I didn’t catch that!” he shouted behind the crowd, one hand over the phone.

I raised my hand in a casual wave and vanished into the sea of people.

Tucked away in a quiet corner, I watched until he left the airport.

Only then did I pull out my phone, block all his contacts, remove the SIM card, and toss it aside, along with the flight ticket he had bought me.

I boarded the flight to Sweden arranged by the studio long ago.

Goodbye, Dexter. I would never see you again.