A surge of betrayed anger choked me, making me feel like throwing up and unable to breathe.

I sat by the bed that night, waiting in vain for Jasper until dawn. It wasn't until the first light of morning touched the sky that he finally rushed into the hospital.

His shirt buttons were done up wrong and his tie was a complete mess. Jasper had always cared deeply about his appearance. He even had severe OCD, so there was no way he'd make mistakes like this.

Unless Yvonne Lake tied this … or perhaps I've just gone numb. I looked at him, feeling an unprecedented calm within.

I would be gone forever soon. I pressed my chest and told myself almost numbly that I would never feel pain again after I left.

Jasper remained completely unaware. He set the imperial-style pastries on the table, his manner relaxed and natural.

"Remember these? They're your favorite pastries from that shop, the one you loved when we were dating. I bought them for you."

I looked at him. We used to have such a good relationship. He was so good that if I wanted these pastries, he'd go buy them for me, no matter how far away the shop was.

But ever since he started his own company, he has become swamped. He dedicated all his time to work and I was his subordinate during office hours.

We could only talk for a few minutes after work. And these pastries? He only ever bought them to apologize when he'd done something wrong to me.

The memory of the boy who once had eyes only for me faded further and further away. I looked at the exquisite pastries on the table, feeling incredibly ironic.

He suddenly hugged me from behind. The strong scent of lilies hit me and I felt a bit nauseous.

Yvonne loved lilies and used this exact perfume. Was he not even trying to hide it anymore?

My heart ached and I felt disgusted. I pushed him away. "Go take a shower first!"

He didn't think much of it. He sniffed himself. "Yeah, I do smell a bit. I'll go wash up."

Jasper pulled off his clothes and headed to the bathroom. That's when I noticed he wasn't wearing his ring and had a clear hickey on his neck.

We'd been together for years and I'd always wanted to marry him. Jasper had refused, saying he had many enemies and didn't want to involve me. He claimed he couldn't marry me to protect me.

Later, seeing that I was really uneasy, he took me to buy a DR ring that I could only buy once in my life.

I still remember how bright the sky was that day. He gave me the ring, then slipped his own onto his left ring finger and smiled. "Happy now?"

Afraid I still wouldn't trust him, he promised me with a firm expression. "This ring is proof of my love for you. I'll never take it off."

He also said he wasn't marrying me because of the dangers surrounding him. He once knelt before me and told me sincerely, "I will marry you when I eliminate the danger around me."

Now, he took off the ring, had another woman by his side and chose to be with Yvonne.

I took off the ring in my hand, suppressed the pain in my heart and put the ring in the box.

Since he had broken his vow and no longer loved me, I wouldn't continue to love him either.

Not long after Jasper came out of the bathroom, he seemed tired and lay down on the sofa.

He looked up at me, his eyes clearly hinting at something. In the past, whenever he came home from work exhausted, I would always dry his hair for him without waiting to be asked.

But this time, I averted my eyes and made no move to help, even turning to leave. Yet Jasper pulled me close, wrapping his arms around my waist in a playful, almost coquettish manner. His chin rested on my shoulder, our bodies pressed together in an intimate embrace, yet I felt no warmth from it.

To avoid raising his suspicions, I forced myself not to move. Then his fingers touched my belly and he murmured in a deep and intimate tone. "Hazel, do you want to have my child?"

A child?

I forced a smile. I could never have children again and he knew that. So why give me false hope?

My vision was blurred momentarily. At this moment, I hated him to the extreme. I desperately wanted to ask him why he was doing this to me.

But in the end, I just pulled his hand away and said calmly, "I'm a little tired."

After that, I lay down on the bed and closed my eyes. Unfortunately, I couldn't sleep. The wound on my abdomen throbbed with pain.

When I opened my eyes again, I quietly sent all the company assets that were built by both of us over the years to my lawyer. So that he could create a separation agreement.

We founded Jasper's company together. At the beginning, he said he would give me all the assets. It had only been a few years, but things had changed.

In the years when I was uneasy, he personally drafted the contract. Even if we separated, he would give me half of the assets.

Now, I want to take what I deserve.

A while later, the mattress dipped slightly. He had finished drying his hair and lay down on the other side.

I pretended to be asleep, but then he suddenly crawled under the covers and hugged me tightly from behind.

His embrace still carried the scent of bath soap and his voice was low, tinged with a hint of grievance.

"Hazel, are you mad that I haven't been with you these past few days? I've just been really busy."

Busy? Busy sleeping with Yvonne? Feeling incredibly ironic, I clenched my fists and told myself there were still four days. After four days, we would never meet again.

He seemed to think I was truly asleep and he fell asleep shortly after.

I lay there with my eyes open the entire night. The next day, Jasper got up very early. While we were eating, I was surprised when Yvonne suddenly showed up.

She gave me a sweet, crescent-eyed smile. "Hazel, I heard Jasper isn't working today, so I came to ask for his advice. You don't mind, right?"

Hearing this, Jasper, who was in the bathroom, strode out. When he saw her, his face changed slightly and quickly returned to normal. "Of course not."

He led Yvonne to the living room and the two of them talked as if no one was around. I didn't know what Jasper said to make Yvonne laugh.

I watched them, but I felt like they were strangers. Jasper had always been a man of few words. My father used to say he was sincere and honest, but he was just not very good at talking.

But now, Jasper was making Yvonne laugh nonstop. So this was how he loved someone; it felt both familiar and incredibly strange.

I walked over and the atmosphere froze for a moment. Yvonne looked up at me. "Hazel, my boyfriend is going to buy me a car. You should come help me pick one out."

I walked over, not wanting them to get suspicious and my breath caught. On the screen was an Audi A4L, the woman's car, which Jasper had bought at an auction.

At the time, I had been so excited, thinking he would give it to me. I waited a long time, but Jasper never said anything about it. I thought he was shy, so I went to the garage myself.

Before I could even touch it, Jasper saw me and reprimanded me, saying someone had asked him to buy it. He wiped the spot I had touched repeatedly with a handkerchief.

I didn't think much of it then, but now I knew this car wasn't for me, nor was it bought for someone else. It was for Yvonne.

My heart felt like ice. I kept telling myself that I'd be leaving soon and that it was just a car, so it wasn't worth getting upset over.

But the more I thought about it, the colder I felt. I'd been with Jasper for over twenty years, yet I couldn't compare to Yvonne, who had only been in his life for three months.

Seemingly noticing my gaze, Jasper seemed to remember something and explained, "Hazel, I told you about this car. Yvonne's boyfriend asked me to buy it."

His lie was so clumsy that I didn't even want to expose it.

I excused myself to the bathroom, splashing my face with cold water. I kept reminding myself that I'd be free of this place in just three days.

My phone buzzed suddenly. The lawyer had sent over the finalized agreement. I forwarded my resignation letter along with it to Jasper.

When I returned to the living room, Jasper saw the documents and immediately swiped the notification away. Then he looked up at me and asked.

"Is the document you sent urgent? I'll sign it after I help Evie pick out her car."

"Evie," that affectionate nickname from across the way. It's a shame I didn't realize what it meant back then.

I scoffed inwardly, composed myself and said calmly, "It's very urgent. I need you to sign it now."

Jasper frowned, seemingly annoyed. "Can't it wait a bit?"

"That's my resigna … " Before I could finish, Yvonne's voice cut me off. She looked sweet and considerate.

"Jasper, please sign the document first! The car can wait."

Only then did Jasper reopen the file. He barely glanced at it, quickly skimmed through a few lines, signed at the bottom and promptly sent it back to me.

Then, he went back to helping Yvonne look at cars. If Yvonne wasn't satisfied with something, he immediately agreed to have it customized.

At that moment, the man who always claimed to be too busy for me suddenly wasn't busy at all.

I looked at the document on my phone, a pang of bitterness in my chest. Was this Jasper's trust in me? Or was it just complete indifference?

Yvonne suddenly hugged my arm. "Hazel, could you lend me Jasper for a day? I want to customize the car, please?"

Before I could answer, Jasper spoke up. "Hazel's not the petty type. I'll go with you."

He picked up the car keys and left with Yvonne. As they walked out, he kept glancing back at her like he couldn't take his eyes off her.

I stood on the balcony, watching as they drove away. The car sped off and all the strength drained from my body.

Back in my room, I picked up the violet necklace Jasper had given me. It was a gift for my eighteenth birthday.

Back then, he was poor. He spent all his part-time earnings to buy me that necklace. He put it around my neck, his eyes tender and full of affection.

"Hazel, the violet symbolizes eternal love. I can't give you the best right now, but will you wait for me? I promise I'll make you the happiest woman in the world."

I believed it, but over the years, as his status grew, my wounds increased.

The happiest woman? Now, he was a big shot, capable of making any woman in the world happy, but that woman was no longer me.