Joseph hurried over, his eyes filled with concern as he gently cupped Yarra's injured hand.

"Joseph, don't be mad," Yarra said softly, her eyes brimming with tears. "Anna didn't mean to. She just can't stand how well you treat me. She's jealous."

Once, Joseph had gone out of his way to make me jealous, but now that I was truly angry, he didn't care.

"Annabelle, what are you doing? Take your anger out on me, not Yarra. She's nothing like you. She's not malicious."

I suddenly found it a bit funny.

"Are you telling me not to touch her? Fine, give me 500 thousand dollars, and I won't cause any more trouble for her."

Yarra's eyes filled with tears as she cried. "I just want to be with Joseph. What's wrong with that? You're the one who hurt him. Let me love him. Annabelle, does his love mean so little to you? I'll give you a million dollars. Please, just never hurt him again."

Youth was a wonderful thing. Yarra could express her love openly. Even when her words sounded naive, no one would mock her.

Joseph's expression softened as he gently wiped away her tears.

If none of this had happened, would we have been like this, too?

"You haven't changed at all. You still love money more than anything," he said coldly. "Tell me, Annabelle. In your entire life, have you ever truly loved anyone?"

My heart tightened at the question. I used to love him more than anyone, but the one who knew the truth is long gone.

I avoided his gaze, answering casually, "Don't change the subject. Just tell me, are you going to give me the money?"

Joseph sneered coldly. "You want money from me? After you upset my precious Yarra, you expect me to help you?"

Joseph used to be poor, but he would spend everything on me, even when he barely had enough for himself.

I looked at his face, struggling to hold back the tears in my eyes and the pain in my chest. "What do you want from me?"

"Don't you think you owe someone an apology? Is this how your mother raised you?"

I clenched my teeth, forcing myself to keep my emotions in check. "Sorry. Is that enough for you?"

"What kind of attitude is that?"

Yarra gently pulled on Joseph's arm and whispered, "It's okay, Joseph. She didn't mean it. Besides, maybe her mother never taught her how to apologize."

Joseph stroked her head and affectionately said, "No, today she has to apologize to you. As long as I'm here, no one will bully you."

Then, he tossed a card in front of me. "Kneel and apologize. When my darling is satisfied, you can take the card and leave."

Yarra nestled into his arms, looking at me smugly.

I clenched my fists so hard that my nails dug into my palm, and warm blood began trickling down my fingers.

I didn't need the money anymore.

If death was the only way out, then so be it.

The pain in my heart and body blended, and I said nothing more as I turned and left.

Behind me, I heard Yarra's sultry voice. She claimed Joseph truly loved her, and she would never treat him the way I had.

The sound of clothes tearing echoed again, and their heavy breathing seemed to press against my ear.

I stood at the door for what felt like forever until the sounds stopped, and my heart sank into a suffocating silence.

During our years apart, I had hand-made a gift for him every year on his birthday.

However, looking at those things now, I suddenly felt disgusted.

I searched through the room, trying to find everything that once belonged to me, only to realize how little there really was.

Back when we first started dating, I jokingly asked Joseph to buy me a huge mansion with a hot spring. Yet, he built exactly that for Yarra and named it Springville Manor.

He once looked at me with eyes full of passion, telling me he would give me the most beautiful jewelry in the world. Later, he bought Yarra countless pieces instead.

Half of the villa belonged to her, filled with the gifts Joseph had given her. Every dream we once had had become reality, only with a different person.

The heart-wrenching pain spread through my limbs, as though every blood vessel in my body was being gnawed at by ants. I curled up on the floor, and my mind slowly drifted back to the past.

There was a day when I was incredibly unlucky. I was scolded by my boss at work, and it started to pour heavily on my way home. By the time I finally made it back, I was drenched, and that's when I realized my period had started.

I cursed my boss while continuing to work overtime. Eventually, I began to lose consciousness.

When I woke up, I saw Joseph sitting in front of me, holding a bowl of oatmeal.

He said he had sent me a message, but I hadn't responded. Worried that something might have happened to me, he rushed over.

We were so poor back then, and it was hard to find a cab. He ran in the rain for hours to get to me.

I stared at that bowl of oatmeal, crying uncontrollably.

He ended up with a fever for three days after that.

I asked him why he was so foolish, and he looked at me seriously and said, "Anna, you are my reason for living. As long as you're okay, I can keep going."

That was just an ordinary bowl of oatmeal, but I've never eaten anything as delicious since.

"Joseph, it hurts so much. Can you make me some oatmeal?"

The scene in front of me grew increasingly blurry, and a sharp pain surged through my body. It felt as though my muscles were being twisted into a knot. Soon, I broke into a cold sweat and couldn't help but cry out in agony.

Before my consciousness faded completely, I faintly heard Joseph's voice beside me.

I thought I must have caught a fever from the rain and was just having a nightmare.

Joseph loved me so much, and I kept telling myself he could never be with someone else.

When I woke up, everything would be fine again.

Before long, a familiar fragrance reached my nose.

I opened my eyes to see a bowl of oatmeal at the bedside, with Joseph sitting quietly beside me. His expression was soft, and his eyes were filled with a hint of concern.

"You're awake?"

For a moment, I almost believed we were still in those days from years ago. However, I noticed the fresh scratch marks on his neck that struck me like a slap across the face.

Back then, Joseph would try to make me different kinds of food, though our circumstances were poor, and his cooking skills left much to be desired.

After being with Yarra, he took a cooking class.

I often saw them together in the kitchen. Joseph prepared the ingredients while Yarra happily chatted away about her latest stories.

He scooped a spoonful of oatmeal and slowly offered it to me.

"I didn't know when you'd wake up, so I kept it ready. You don't look well. What happened?" he asked.

The scene before me overlapped with the past. He looked just like the young man who once loved me deeply, but we could never go back.

I knocked his hand aside, and the bowl crashed to the ground, causing the oatmeal to splatter across the floor—just like our shattered love.

"Joseph, don't disgust me."

He stared at me, gritting his teeth in fury.

"Annabelle, what is wrong with you? You were the one crying and begging me to make you oatmeal. What's this?"

It seemed that everything I had seen before wasn't just my imagination.

Yet, it didn't change the fact that he no longer cared about me. Was this pity or a mere act of charity?

The world had never been kind to me, but the one who hurt me the most was him.

I didn't need his money, nor did I need him.

I forced a smile and met his gaze. "I was just messing with you. Can't you tell? Look at you, running over the moment I so much as crook a finger. You're no different from that dog Yarra keeps."

His face darkened with rage. With a curse, he swung his fist at the wall.

"Yeah, I'm pathetic," he spat. "Even after you threw me away like trash and slept with someone else, I was still the one begging to marry you. I just can't let you go—I love you!

"All these years, you've played me like a fool, but do you even know how happy I was when you cried in my arms that day? Is your heart really made of stone, Annabelle?"

Pain flashed through my eyes, but before I could speak, he suddenly lowered his head and kissed me. His kiss was rough, desperate, and full of suppressed emotions.

His hands roamed over my body, and my clothes were quickly torn to shreds.

Panic gripped me. No matter how hard I pushed, I couldn't budge him. I bit down on his lips with all my strength, but instead of stopping, his movements only became more frenzied.

Just then, Yarra's ringtone blared. He shot me a hateful look before answering the call.

Yarra's voice trembled with panic. "Joseph, I've been kidnapped. They're forcing me to make this call. I know you and Anna have made up, and I shouldn't be disturbing you, but I'm really scared. I just wanted to hear your voice one last time. I hope Anna can stay by your side and love you in my place."

Joseph looked at me and coldly said, "I don't have to go. Annabelle, if you say the word, I'll cut all these women off. We can go back to how things used to be."

I couldn't help but laugh at his words.

Back then, I had begged him more than once.

"Joseph, can you stop tormenting me? Let's talk this through and start over, okay? Can you at least acknowledge me? Just say one word—just one," I had begged.

The very next day, he had shown up with another woman, kissing her passionately in front of me.

"Annabelle, what right do you have to say this to me? You're disgusting."

After that, I stopped caring.

Now, I looked at him and let out a cold chuckle. "Joseph, don't make me sick."

He stared at me for a moment before throwing me onto the bed.

"You chose this. Don't regret it."

The next day, the city was abuzz about how Joseph had spent a hundred million dollars to ransom Yarra.

People were talking about our relationship.

"That bitchy Annabelle dumped Joseph for money, and now that he's successful, she's crawling back to seduce him. Who knows what kind of tricks she pulled to make him marry her? Thank heaven he finally found his true love."

"Joseph and Yarra are the perfect match. When is that disgusting woman going to leave? Just seeing her makes me sick!"

I shut off my phone. I had an appointment with the doctor today anyway.

On the way there, I ran into Joseph's group of friends. They pointed at me and hurled insults my way.

"Annabelle, I've never seen anyone as vile as you. When Joseph was at his lowest, you turned your back on him and ran off with another man. Do you even realize he nearly took his own life back then?

"And now that he's rich, you have the audacity to crawl back to him? If I were you, I'd throw myself off a cliff and end it already."

Indeed, Joseph loved me, but that was a long time ago.

I lifted my chin and looked at them coldly. "Love is a two-way street. No one owes anyone anything."

Joseph stood nearby, holding Yarra in his arms. His expression was dark, and he didn't even spare me a glance.

The rain poured harder, pounding against my bones. The searing pain hit me again, and I could barely hold on. My body curled up on the cold ground.

Was I about to die?

Joseph cast me a frosty glance. "Do you think putting on this little act will make me forgive you?"

Yarra whispered, "She really doesn't look well. I once saw an actress playing a cancer patient, and she looked just like this. Maybe we should help her?"

Joseph rejected the idea outright. "Her acting skills are as good as an award-winning actress. Besides, I just saw her medical report—she's perfectly healthy. It's just a bit of rain. She won't die from it. If anything, she deserves to learn a lesson."

I watched them walk away. I was in so much pain that I couldn't even utter a word.

My condition was worsening. Perhaps dying like this would be a kind of relief.

In the end, it was a kind passerby who took me to the hospital. The doctor took one look at my miserable state and scolded me angrily.

"With your condition, you're still running around in the rain? Do you have a death wish? Where's your family? Where are they?"

I gave a bitter smile and said that they had died many years ago.

The doctor lectured me, telling me to take better care of my health. Then, he handed me a series of medical forms.

Even a stranger cared about me, yet my own husband had left me to die in the rain without a second thought.

On my way downstairs, I ran into Joseph and Yarra. They had come out of the obstetrics department.

Yarra spotted me and waved her prenatal exam results at me with a bright smile.

"Anna, are you here for a check-up too? If I had known, I would've brought you along! The doctor just confirmed that I'm pregnant! Joseph is going to be a dad!"

I couldn't help but find it ironic. Yarra was sweetly holding my husband's arm, proudly sharing the joy of her pregnancy.

Joseph glanced at me, looking disgusted at my dirty clothes. "You're still my wife. Could you at least try to maintain your image when you go out? Why are you running around like this? Wait…"

Yarra suddenly called out softly, covering her stomach. "Look, it's kicking me."

Joseph turned to her and warmly smiled. "It's only one month. It can't kick yet. What will the child do when it sees its silly mom?"

Yarra giggled. "Anyway, you'll always be by my side. What do I need to be smart for?"

Joseph looked at me as if he wanted to say something, but Yarra tugged at him, saying it was time for their next check-up.

I watched them walk away, then turned to walk toward my death.

The medical report showed my life expectancy was only a month or two.

Perhaps to kill time while waiting, Yarra started a live stream to share her joy.

She lifted the edge of her top slightly to reveal her stomach. Joseph looked at her, his eyes darkening with desire.

The viewers flooded the chat with congratulations and insults toward me.

"Look, they are truly in love. Can that shameless woman just leave already?"

"How are you still clinging onto the title of Mrs. Belfort? Yarra is pregnant! If you had any self-respect, you'd pack your bags and leave!"

I had seen these comments countless times before. Most of them were Yarra's fans, while the rest were likely paid trolls.

Joseph seemed to be enjoying himself, continuously sending gifts in the live stream, filling the screen with presents.

Yarra was beaming, showing off a recent order Joseph had placed for her, which included a set of lingerie.

The followers continued to tease them, saying how great their relationship was. Some even asked about their favorite positions, jokingly claiming they wanted to learn.

Yarra blushed deeply. "How can we discuss such private matters in public? We're fine with anything."

However, the viewers weren't satisfied and kept egging them on.

Joseph reached out and blurred the screen with a mosaic filter. Even so, faint silhouettes of the two standing figures remained visible as their clothes gradually fell to the floor.

The suggestive sounds coming from the stream sent the comments section into a frenzy.

"Be careful with the baby."

Their voices grew louder, and I couldn't hold it in any longer. I gagged and retched.

It had been too long since I had eaten, and nothing came up except a pool of blood.

The doctor looked at me in confusion and asked what I was doing there.

"I heard Mr. Belfort reserved a special room upstairs for his lover to rest. Aren't you his lover?"

His lover was no longer me.