And just like that, she left.

She didn't even wait for me to throw the water in my hand.

So I threw it at Jeffrey instead, and slapped him across the face for good measure.

He pressed his lips together impatiently. "It was from that game of Truth or Dare last time. Laura lost and asked me to help her out."

"You know how she is—always causing a scene. She's your friend too. What's there to be upset about?"

Right. Before I met Jeffrey, I thought Laura would be my best friend for life.

We'd shared the same pair of jeans, sipped from the same cup of bubble tea with one straw, whispered our deepest secrets to each other in the quiet of the night.

But I eventually realized we had very different definitions of what we meant to each other.

She was bold and outgoing, surrounded by countless friends besides me.

I was quiet and reserved. Besides her, everyone else was just an acquaintance.

We were destined to drift apart.

Until Jeffrey came along.

During that time, the two of us grew closer than we'd ever been.

Until I became the third wheel among the three of us.

She made a scene; he laughed it off. And I spiraled until I nearly lost my mind.

Just like that day.

I didn't care anymore. I smashed everything in that private room, then collapsed in tears, demanding answers from him.

"Jeffrey, do you even have a conscience? I cut ties with my own parents to marry you!"

His voice was flat, but I'll never forget what he said.

"If you had a conscience, would you have cut ties with your parents?"

That sentence was like a knife straight through my heart. It sobered me up completely.

Thinking of this, I looked calmly at the woman's face.

"He's bought plenty of nightgowns like this. If you like them, take them all."

"I don't want them anymore anyway."

The moment I finished speaking, the man let out a cold laugh.

"Jill, one-tenth of the cooling-off period has already passed. I thought it might help you grow up a little."

"Turns out you've just switched to a new game—playing hard to get."

"All this drama, day after day. Aren't you exhausted?"

The divorce was my idea.

On our wedding anniversary, Laura showed up unannounced with all our friends to "celebrate together."

She called it sharing in our happiness.

So what was supposed to be a day for just the two of us turned into a party for everyone else.

In the middle of that party, Laura—emboldened by alcohol—confessed in front of everyone that she had fallen in love with a friend's husband.

Everyone exchanged knowing glances at Jeffrey.

He just smiled and said helplessly, "Stop messing around."

And I flipped the table.

After Jeffrey had smoothly sent everyone away, I screamed at him that I wanted a divorce.

He just looked at me coldly for a long time. Then he agreed.

I moved out of the Farley house. He didn't stop me. He only sneered, "Thirty days. That should be enough time for you to cool off."

My phone chimed—my rideshare was almost here.

"Whatever you say."

I kept my eyes on my phone, not wanting to argue with him.

His expression darkened, then darkened again. Finally, he spoke.

"Get in the car."

"It's our teacher's birthday banquet today. If she sees me show up without you, she'll read into it."

"No need. My ride is already here."

The car had pulled up beside us. I walked straight over, opened the door, and got in.

The moment I shut the door, Jeffrey's car shot past—so close it grazed the spot where I'd just been standing. The driver jolted in his seat and cursed out loud.

"Driving some fancy car like he owns the damn road."

"Miss, you okay?"

I shook my head calmly and said nothing. I just rolled down the window and let the breeze wash over my face.

It suddenly occurred to me—even back when he was too poor to afford an electric scooter, Jeffrey had always been like this.

Even with no parents to speak of, his blue school uniform washed so many times it had faded to near-white, and a face that seemed to resent the world itself—

None of it could stop him from being the most dazzling presence in any crowd.

Because before he became the city's most outstanding young businessman, he had been a painting prodigy who'd stunned countless people with his talent.

One year, he nearly missed an important competition because he couldn't afford the entry fee. I gritted my teeth and paid it with my living expenses, then stretched what remained to feed us both.

Until my mother found out.

She humiliated him in front of everyone on the crowded school grounds, tearing him apart until there was nothing left of his dignity.

While I was still dreaming of the trophy he'd bring home—

He turned in a blank exam paper.

And never picked up a brush again.

He started skipping class, staying out overnight, launching a business with people I'd never met.

When I asked why, he only said he wanted to give me a better life.

He was still gentle. Still attentive. But sometimes it felt like I was living through a long, silent punishment.

Later, I learned the full truth and had a massive fight with my family.

Out of guilt, I threw myself into supporting every plan he had for the future.

So when Laura first promised she'd look after Jeffrey for me outside of school, I felt nothing but gratitude.

They started having more and more in common.

At first, I stood between them, arms linked with both, laughing as I brought them closer together.

Later, they were the ones with their arms around each other, joking like old buddies, while I stood off to the side with a smile.

Unable to get a word in.

Then came that New Year's Eve. Jeffrey was in low spirits—his business had hit a rough patch.

I gathered a big group of his friends and organized a party.

As the countdown began, I finally saw a hint of relief break through on his face.

"...Three, two, one—zero!"

The moment the fireworks exploded, my smiling eyes went wide with shock.

Laura had grabbed his tie and planted a loud kiss on his cheek.

The cheering and noise around me went mute. The heart pounding in my chest simply... stopped.

Then came the endless fall.

The woman met my gaze, gave a playful wink, then kissed my cheek too, completely unfazed.

"Jill! Happy New Year!"

My lips moved, but no words came out.

A friend's joke from not long ago surfaced in my mind.

"Jill, I don't know what you're thinking, but honestly? It kind of seems like your boyfriend's fallen in love again."

"I saw them at a bar the other night—they were practically glued together."

...

The rumors had never stopped. And I'd never believed them.

But looking at the smile on his face, I wasn't sure anymore.

I became paranoid. Suspicious.

I started showing up at every gathering, watching their every interaction.

I'd probe his friends for their opinions, studied those relationship advice posts online to figure out whether what they had was really "just friendship."

Until one night, I crept out of bed, grabbed his phone, and went through every app.

The moment I turned off the screen, I saw his eyes—wide open in the darkness.

In my panic, I accidentally called Laura.

The call connected almost instantly. Her voice was thick with a coyness I'd never heard before.

"Jeffrey? Did you actually put a tracker in my brain? I was just lying here thinking about you, and you called. What, don't tell me you were thinking about me too—"

"Laura." My voice cut through. "Have you no shame?"

Silence on the other end. Before I could say another word—

Jeffrey snatched the phone from my hand.

"Jill, that's enough. Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough these past few weeks?"

Looking at the anger on his face, my eyes stung with tears.

"I'm embarrassing?"

"One of you is my boyfriend, the other is my best friend—and you two have been flaunting your little 'bond' in front of everyone behind my back. How is that not embarrassing?"

A vein pulsed at Jeffrey's temple. "So you just believe whatever people say? You can't think for yourself? I've been tolerating your antics because I thought you'd eventually see reason. Clearly, I was wrong—you're still completely impossible!"

Laura's voice came through the phone, thick with tears.

"Jill, I had no idea you thought of me that way. Maybe you don't realize it, but that's just how we talk to each other—it's all jokes."

"I know our dynamic bothers you, but Jeffrey isn't just your boyfriend. He's my friend too. I can't cut him off just because of you. I hope you can understand that."

"If you're really that upset, I can post something to clarify that there's nothing between us."

Jeffrey looked up at me.

"Jill, if you insist on making a scene, then let's just break up."

That was the first time Jeffrey ever mentioned breaking up.

And the last.

That same night, I booked a flight, turned off my phone, and vanished for an entire month.

Until one morning, through the mountain mist, I saw him—eyes bloodshot, looking like he hadn't slept in days.

He'd come for me. But he didn't say a word.

He just pitched a tent beside my rented cabin and stayed.

Before dawn, he'd already split firewood and fetched water.

When I went out to sketch, he followed at a distance, silent.

…

None of it seemed like the proud man I knew.

Eventually, even the other young travelers staying in the village started teasing me, urging me to forgive him.

Forgive him? I wasn't that naive.

But then I saw him—drunk, crying, begging me to take him back.

It was the first time I'd ever seen him cry.

He swore there was nothing between him and Laura beyond friendship, and promised to keep his distance from her.

He apologized over and over, begging me not to leave him.

Rekindling a flame doesn't take long. I forgave him quickly.

And said yes when he proposed.

What I didn't expect was how fiercely my parents would fight it.

They'd already arranged a match for me—someone from a family of equal standing. They refused to let me marry beneath myself.

It ended with my father throwing a severance document at me, threatening to disown me if I didn't call off the wedding.

I cried for a month. Then, out of sheer defiance, I signed it.

We had a small wedding. We couldn't afford much—even my dress was rented.

My parents weren't there. Jeffrey noticed.

That night, he pinned me down and took his time with me, but didn't say a word.

Until the very end, when he bit my ear and whispered, "Jill, stop being foolish for my sake."

I didn't understand then.

Later, I realized what he meant.

He didn't think it was worth it—me turning my back on my family for him.

And he didn't need my devotion that badly.

"Miss, we're here."

The driver's voice pulled me back.

The car had stopped outside the courtyard of a well-known private dining club.

The moment I stepped out, I heard a voice calling from the entrance.

"Is that Jill?"

I composed myself and walked in with a smile. "Mrs. Lambert, I'm sorry I'm late."

Nellie Lambert's hair had gone silver at the temples, but her step was steady—a spirited woman who carried her years well.

"I was just giving Jeffrey a hard time," she said. "Why didn't he bring you along when he drove over?"