’All I cared about is the house I helped pay for, so why the hell am I the one being locked out?!’

I wanted to shout at him, but I stayed quiet. Seeing that, he pulled out his phone again.

“What, this is about money? Fine, I’ll just transfer your damn share right now. Jeez, you paid a little but talk to me like you own the whole house.”

He opened iMessage and scrolled for a while, but couldn’t find my contact.

I couldn’t wait any longer, so I pointed to a profile picture on his screen to help him out.

It was me—but under my old number. No display name. No pinned chat. No special label.

He looked dazed for a second before tapping into our inbox.

The most recent messages were from a few days ago. Dozens of messages from me about the wedding. He hadn’t replied to a single one.

And then I saw it—his only pinned conversation.

It was with Jacqueline.

He probably saw me looking at it ‘cause his face instantly turned pale.

He even tried to explain, “Jacqueline has a heart condition. I need to be able to see her messages right away.”

“Whatever,” I said. “Just transfer the money.”

If I was leaving, I wasn’t walking away empty-handed.

This time, he didn’t argue. He just quietly sent it over.

When I walked inside, I found that the bedroom—our bedroom—was already taken.

Jacqueline was asleep in our bed.

All the wedding decorations were gone, tossed in the trash like something with no sentimental value at all.

“She thought they were tacky,” Clyde explained casually. “I didn’t think they were that great either, so we threw them out. Hey, she has a heart condition. Don’t take it so personally.”

‘That line again. Over and over.’

I didn’t shout or cry. I just went straight to the guest room and locked the door.

In the middle of the night, I heard his footsteps stopping in front of my locked door.

He stood there, not knocking.

Soon enough, I heard him go into Jacqueline’s room instead.

The next morning, he made breakfast.

We’d lived together for eight years. But this was the very first time I’d ever seen him cook.

I reached for a sandwich—but before I could even touch it, he rushed over and slapped my hand away.

“Jacqueline’s anxious about contamination. Don’t touch that. Yours is over there.”

My gaze followed his finger and saw my so-called breakfast.

Scraps. Rejects. Leftovers from what he messed up making hers.

I dropped my hand, said “I’m not hungry,” and went downstairs to eat by myself.

He didn’t follow. He was too busy feeding Jacqueline.

Literally. Like a child. Bite by bite.

After breakfast, I came back upstairs, and he stopped me in the hallway.

“Didn’t you always say you wanted to go out on a date with me? Jacqueline wants to go to the amusement park. Come with us.”

He said it like he was offering me a favor… Like tagging along would make everything okay again.

I was about to say no when he suddenly grabbed me, dragged me downstairs, and shoved me into the car.

As soon as we got to the park, Jacqueline lit up and said she wanted to try the drop tower ride.

“Mallory, let’s ride it together!”

“No,” I said right away.

She looked hurt. “If you don’t want to, that’s okay… I won’t force you.”

But her words lit a fire in Clyde.

“Goddamn it, Mallory, can you not kill the mood? She’s trying to be close to you, and this is how you act? You just have to reject every bit of kindness, don’t you?”

The next thing I knew, he grabbed my wrist hard, dragging me toward the ride.

“If you don’t go, then we’re not getting married!”

That was always his go-to threat. The one thing he knew would hit where it hurt.

But this time, I yanked my hand away with everything I had.

“Clyde, I’m afraid of heights! You know that!”

It was something I’d only ever shared with him—something I’d reminded him of more than once.

In the face of my desperate struggle, all he said was something dismissive…

“So what? It’s not like it’s gonna kill you.”

But women just aren’t as strong as men!

Right after saying that, Clyde didn’t give me a chance to argue. He strapped me into the drop tower ride without a second thought.

The staff, seeing that everyone was safely secured, hit the start button without delay.

No matter how much I struggled, it was useless.

As the ride climbed higher and higher, I felt my face go pale as a sheet, and my legs started shaking.

It was only a few minutes, but it felt like forever.

When the ride finally came to a stop, I staggered off and immediately crouched down, trembling as a wave of dizziness hit me hard.

Across from me, Clyde looked a little guilty. He rubbed the tip of his nose awkwardly.

It looked like he was just about to ask if I was okay—but before he could say anything, Jacqueline tugged at his arm.

“Hey, Clyde, I wanna ride the carousel with you. Come on, let’s go together?”

This time, he hesitated.

But the second Jacqueline pouted, he gave in instantly.

And just like that, he left me there.

As the dizziness worsened, I couldn’t hold myself up anymore. I collapsed to the ground.

Before everything went black, I thought I saw red liquid spread beneath the hem of my white dress.

When I woke up, the doctor was rambling softly beside me, sounding genuinely concerned.

“Young people these days… don’t know how to take care of themselves. See what happens? Played around so hard you lost the baby.”

‘I… I had a miscarriage?’

It took me a moment to process it, but eventually, the truth settled in.

To be honest, I already knew I was pregnant.

But… maybe this was for the best. ‘No baby, no lingering ties to Clyde.’

I quietly thanked the doctor for his kindness like he was my friend, though he was a stranger.

I stayed in the hospital for a few more days after that, and all throughout, Clyde didn’t call. Not once.

When I got discharged, I went back to that so-called home of ours.

Just to pack up everything.

Halfway through, Clyde and Jacqueline came in, laughing and chatting like nothing dangerous happened.

“Oh, look who finally decided to come back.”

His tone was indifferent, bordering on sarcastic.

But my face stayed blank. Emotionless.

For some reason, that made him uneasy.

He stopped mocking, walked over, and said, “Jacqueline’s being really understanding. She said she’s fine with us getting married now. Isn’t that great? We can finally get married. You happy?”

He grinned like a fool, and I couldn’t help but let out a sneer.

He frowned. “What’s with that sneer?”

Right then, my phone buzzed. A flight delay notification.

‘Damn it.’

My flight had been moved to three days later because of the bad weather.

“What are you looking at? So focused.”

“Nothing.”

But he didn't believe it; he snatched my phone and tried to unlock it.

He tried several times but couldn’t get in.

I reminded him calmly. “My birthday.”

Even after that, he tried a few more times and still got it wrong.

Despite the cold weather, sweat was dripping down his forehead.

In the end, he looked so frustrated he tossed my phone back at me.

“Whatever. I don’t care anyway.”

My birthday was just a few days ago. Of course, he didn’t care enough to remember.

I’ve known that for a while now.

Then Jacqueline suddenly piped up with fake curiosity, “Hey, Mallory, are you going somewhere? What’s with all the luggage?”

That’s when it finally hit Clyde. His eyes went wide.

“You’re running away?”

Before I could answer, he reached for my crossbody bag.

“No, I’m not.”

Of course, I was. Just not today.

I’d leave in three days.

Even though I denied it, he still yanked my bag off like a madman, trying to stop me from leaving.

While I was struggling to get my bag from Clyde, it slipped from my shoulder and hit the ground with a thud.

Everything inside spilled out.

And just like that…

My pregnancy report fluttered out into the open!

Clyde froze on the spot.

He bent down, picked it up, and the second his eyes landed on the paper, his whole expression changed.

He looked stunned, and then overwhelmed.

“Mallory… You’re pregnant?”