He Nurtures Roses, While I Grew Wild

During the toughest times of our startup, when it was 38.9°C outside, we couldn't even afford an air conditioner.

The young master of the Jones family, Gavin Jones, humbled himself to share a small iron bed with me, fanning me throughout the night.

Later, when he fell asleep, his phone showed only one unread message.

"Don't sleep. You promised to stay up with me all night."

That's when I realized he had tortured himself to stay awake just so he wouldn't miss any messages.

The delicate rose he carefully nurtured eventually blossomed, and soon after, Gavin began asking me to bear him a child.

"Her health isn't good. You're the one who looks most like her."

It finally dawned on me. The past five years of hardship, and the child in my womb — all of it was misplaced trust.

——

Gavin, fast asleep, still clutched the fan tightly.

He murmured in his sleep, mechanically lifting his arm to fan me a few times.

As I looked at this supposedly devoted man, my lips hadn't even fully curved into a smile before I saw a new message light up on his phone.

"Don't fall asleep. You promised to stay with me all night."

After a two-second silence, I compulsively opened the sender's profile picture.

It was a small cat, the same stray cat Gavin and I often fed.

Her profile photo radiated youthful energy: a high ponytail and an uninhibited, genuine laugh, like the sound of cicadas on a scorching summer day.

In that moment, I realized my boyfriend was entering a second spring of his life.

The girl's name on the chat was simply "Daisy."

I opened Gavin's contact list. There was no label or nickname, but he called her at least three times a day.

Just yesterday, he had told me there was an urgent matter at work, standing downstairs for nearly forty minutes on the phone.

I had no idea what could take so long to discuss.

The screen kept lighting up.

"Are you asleep? Why haven't you replied?"

"Tomorrow's my coming-of-age ceremony. Are you coming? My parents want to pick a suitor for me."

"Sigh, I really don't want to live like this forever."

"Gavin, are you listening?"

I took a deep breath, snapped a photo of the chat, and set it back to unread.

Maybe because I didn't sleep well, my hands were trembling, making it hard to focus the camera.

Rubbing my eyes, the words on the screen seemed to blur.

I recalled a joke I had read a few days ago. If you feel loved, it's because you've forgotten to check their phone.

How damn appropriate.

"Diana."

I reflexively poured him a cup of hot water but stopped short, bringing it to my own lips instead.

"Today is our five-year anniversary. Have you decided how we're going to spend it?"

Seeing I didn't reply, Gavin froze for a moment, then quickly got out of bed and sat by my feet.

"Did I do something wrong to upset you, Diana? You didn't make your usual honey water for me today."

He really was handsome, and with him kneeling in front of me from this angle, his bloodshot eyes looked even more pitiful.

When I first met him, my friends joked that I had struck gold by landing such a catch.

After finding out he was the young master of the Jones family, they all swarmed around me, convinced we would marry, have kids, and live happily ever after.

Even I almost believed it.

A tear began sliding down his prominent nose.

"Diana, please don't ignore me, don't leave me..."

Gavin muttered.

In the past, I always teased him for being a crybaby, knowing full well that his sobbing was just a ploy to get me to feel sorry for him. Yet, each time, I couldn't help but soften.

But now, I felt nothing but disgust.

A wave of nausea hit me. Part of me wanted to scream at him, demand answers, while another, darker part wondered who he would choose in the end — which of us mattered more?

His phone vibrated again, but he acted as if he hadn't heard it.

"Someone's texting you, Gavin."

"Ignore it. That lot at work wouldn't know how to survive without me. Why else would I keep them around?"

It was a boring topic, so I said instead, "I'm thinking about adopting Lucky."

He looked up, surprised, then grabbed his phone in a flurry, regaining his composure.

"Why that thought? Didn't I say I want to marry you?"

"You know the company's not off the ground yet. The old folks at home will definitely object. But if..."

He paused, bringing up the one thing we had argued about before.

"If we have a child, we can marry and no one will stand in our way."

"I even asked a doctor. It's best not to have pets when you're trying to conceive. Imagine if you became allergic, wouldn't that be a hassle?"

"Don't you want to be with me forever?"

His reasoning was sound, every argument perfectly logical if you ignored the fact that his fingers were practically flying over his phone screen.

Our backgrounds were an uncrossable divide, but I never saw myself as inferior.

Love, in my mind, should be a free and equal collision of hearts.

We had been together for so many years. Gavin had been nothing but attentive, and he had worn me down day after day, begging me to have a child with him. I was on the verge of agreeing. So close.

Just yesterday, I had convinced myself that I would tell him the good news today.

He was a good man. He deserved my complete trust.

How ironic.

"Diana."

Gavin furrowed his brow, still staring at his phone.

"Father's making me attend a product launch today. It's a new product from the company. I have to make an appearance."

"I'll be back tonight, for sure. I even have a gift for you."

His Adam's apple bobbed as he leaned down to kiss my cheek, like it physically pained him to leave.

"Sorry, Diana."

Such a perfect excuse.

Within a minute of leaving the house, Gavin sent me screenshots of his conversation with his father — time, location, and a photo of the secretary attending with him.

As expected, he'd continue updating me on every stage of the event throughout the day.

The heat at home was stifling, so I had two popsicles just to cool down.

I started thinking about what I should do next.

Should I confront him directly, or milk the young master for a big payout and disappear?

The latter didn't seem like something I could stomach.

His company was about to go public, with a healthy cash flow. Gavin held ten percent.

I regretted borrowing money from him back then.

Feeling irritated, my thoughts drifted back to the girl's face.

I suddenly realized there was a slight resemblance between us.

Just then, a friend called.

"Diana, have you seen the trending news? Today is the coming-of-age ceremony for the Green family's little princess. Her photos are everywhere."

"Sometimes I think about it, and I really envy them. They're born winners, already ahead at the starting line. And us? We have to rely on ourselves, scrabbling around like slaves just to survive."

The camera shifted to Daisy Green, gracefully accepting interviews from the media.

"Hmm...my favorite gift. This little cat, Seven."

She smiled as she gently teased the cat, which was purring contentedly in her arms.

Lucky in her embrace was uncharacteristically well-behaved.

No wonder it always bared its teeth at me. It turns out it already had an owner.

"Because it was given to me by someone I love. Seven is our child, a rescue we adopted and raised together."

"Who's the lucky person that caught your eye?"

The male host asked, eyes full of admiration as he glanced around at the young elites present.

"My Gavin. Isn't it obvious?"

She smiled sweetly, tilting slightly to the side, and just like that, Gavin appeared on screen.

His eyes were filled with affection, deep in thought, yet brimming with boundless love.

He let out a sigh, reaching out to gently stroke the girl's hair.

"A rose you've raised with your own hands... how could you let someone else pick it?"

A sudden scream came from Nancy, my friend.

"What does that mean? What is Gavin trying to say! Aren't you two..."

Gavin suddenly lifted Daisy into his arms, and Nancy's words were drowned out by Daisy's excited squeals.

He lowered his head slightly as the girl's lips trailed from his forehead down to his chin, carefully tracing his features.

Daisy was visibly nervous.

"Gavin, will my parents approve of our marriage?"

"They will."

"We're perfectly matched, destined to be together."

Gavin didn't hesitate for a second.

I started gathering up the things Gavin had left around the house.

At the same time, I calculated how many years it would take to pay back the money I had borrowed from him after his company went public.

It was no more than three years.

Stretching my back, I began to look forward to that day.

My phone buzzed again. It was Gavin, asking if I missed him while I was at home.

"Honey, what are you doing?"

"Honey, I miss you. The launch event was filled with old men and women, blabbering on about so-called 'experts.' Bah, a bunch of old fossils."

"Honey, I really, really miss you."

...

Then, Gavin called me. A strong sense of foreboding told me this was no ordinary call.

Daisy knew about me.

Amid the sounds of soft, intimate whispers, the girl's voice came, still thick with desire.

"Gavin... I, I love you so much."

Gavin's voice was hoarse, and the sound of clothes being removed was unmistakably clear.

"I didn't touch you before because you were too young."

"Daisy, don't say it hurts. You brought this on yourself."

My entire body went rigid, and I was overwhelmed by a wave of nausea.

As the thought formed, I was already rushing to the bathroom, vomiting until I had nothing left in my stomach, my body convulsing with painful spasms.

"You're not gentle at all, Gavin. I hate you..."

"Gavin."

The girl's gentle reminder brought Gavin back to what little consciousness he had left.

"Sorry, sorry, Daisy."

No one replied after that. Daisy had fallen asleep, exhausted.

Tears streamed down my face. I had thought I could accept all of this calmly, that I would immerse myself in work, let time dull the pain.

But in truth, I couldn't do it.

The combined pain in my stomach and gut left me too weak to even hang up the phone.

The signal on the other end of the line was spotty, and I could tell Gavin had moved to another room.

Bill White had been waiting, and his teasing voice came through.

"So, how was it? Satisfying?"

"It was alright. Not the overwhelmingly sweet experience I had imagined."

Gavin chuckled lightly.

"I've kept this bottled up for a while. You're the only one I can talk to about it."

"Daisy is so close to me. We used to sleep together when she was little, but later on, I stopped letting her."

"You know, back then, she had just turned 18. She didn't know anything! Fresh out of the bath, she would just crawl into my arms."

He sighed heavily.

"It's my fault too. I've always had feelings for her, but I've kept them buried."

"I'm so much older than her. How could I even think of having these feelings for a kid? I'm really not a good person."

A crisp sound rang out. It seemed Gavin had slapped himself.

"I figured I was young and impulsive. I found someone as a stand-in to take care of my needs, but I was terrified of scaring the little girl."

Bill paused for a moment, then asked why he was so adamant about having a child.

"Doesn't it disgust you to be with someone you don't love?"

"Daisy's health isn't good, and she can't have children. Diana Smith looks like her, so the child would probably resemble Daisy too. That way, Daisy wouldn't have to suffer so much. You know the Jones family needs an heir."

"Damn, you really never loved Diana, didn't you?"

Bill was stunned.

"Gavin, you should win an Oscar. It's rare to find a girl like that these days. Back when you swooped in and stole her from me, I was heartbroken. But now? I don't even care anymore. She's been used up anyway."

"Bill, don't speak about her like that."

Gavin hesitated for a moment before brushing past the topic.

"But Diana's so stubborn. She never wanted to have a child with me. In the end, I had to switch her birth control pills with vitamins."

"By now, she should be pregnant."