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.

I used to have a child with Joseph. Back then, I hadn't fallen ill yet, and I thought I could carry our child. I had asked the doctor to keep it a secret from Joseph, telling him to wait until the pregnancy was stable.

However, Joseph accidentally found my prenatal check-up slip at home, and he was overjoyed.

"Anna, let's make up. I'll learn to be a good father and take care of you and the baby," he said. "Whatever you've done in the past, I forgive you. Let's start fresh."

Yet, he didn't know that day was the day my illness truly began.

The baby was already three months old, and the doctor told me the chances of survival were slim. Even if the child lived, there would be severe congenital defects.

When Joseph found me, I had just come out of surgery.

Yarra looked at me with a pained expression. "Anna, even if you hate Joseph and want nothing to do with him, the baby is innocent. How could you just kill it?"

I wanted to explain, but then I saw Joseph's expression.

"Annabelle, was it so disgusting to carry my child? Was it so disgusting that you'd rather kill it just to cut ties with me?"

Why was it that when Yarra said a single sentence, he believed her completely?

That was my child, too. Did he think it hurt me any less?

In the end, as if possessed, I coldly said, "Yeah. The moment I realized it was your child, I'd rather it die."

After that, our relationship was almost completely torn apart.

The noise on my phone died down, and the number of people in the live stream kept increasing. Some viewers asked when they were getting married.

Yarra removed the mosaic, flashing a mysterious smile as she took a ring out and gently placed it on both her and Joseph's hands.

Joseph had always worn a ring, but it wasn't nearly as extravagant as the one Yarra now wore.

That ring was a family heirloom. When Joseph and I confirmed our relationship, my mom gave it to him. At that time, he was overjoyed and said he would always treat me well.

"Your family has accepted me as their son-in-law. You can't run away now," he said.

For years, he had worn that ring, never once taking it off. However, it now lay discarded to the side as if it were nothing.

That ring was the only thing my mother had left me. I couldn't just watch them trample over it.

When I arrived at the hospital room, they were still wrapped in each other's embrace.

"Where's the ring? You can return it to me now, can't you?"

Yarra chuckled. "So that ugly thing was from you? No wonder I always wondered why Joseph kept wearing it. Anna, did you think he wasn't worthy of something better?"

She lifted Joseph's hand, proudly displaying a pair of dazzling couple's rings.

"I personally picked these out. You won't believe how expensive they are. They cost enough to buy several homes in the city."

I ignored her and turned to Joseph. "You know what that ring means to me. Where is it?"

Joseph scoffed. "What meaning? Wasn't it just some worthless trinket your family used to deceive me? Trash belongs in the garbage where it should be. I was such a fool back then. I should've realized sooner. Your mother was just as conniving, trying to win me over with a cheap piece of junk."

A surge of fury overtook me, and I slapped him across the face.

"Insult me all you want, but insult my mother, and you're asking for death!"

Yarra quickly stepped aside, sneering. "Are you insane? You two are disgusting, and we're just saying it out loud. With a mother like that, no wonder she raised a daughter like you."

Even in her last moments, my mother had been thinking of Joseph and me. And now, they dared to slander her like this.

Before I even realized it, I lunged at them, landing slap after slap.

"If you insult my mother again, I'll kill you!"

Joseph shielded Yarra behind him and turned to me indifferently. "Annabelle, so you do have feelings after all. Yet, you're just like your mother. You both deserve to die. Let's get a divorce. I don't want to see you ever again."

I looked at him, laughing and crying at the same time. This was how it all ended.

They had their happiness, while I had nothing.

"Fine."

They claimed to have thrown the ring in the trash, but after searching the hospital from top to bottom, I never found it.

The stench of antiseptic and the foul odors of the hospital made me retch over and over.

I was coughing up blood more frequently now. It felt like I really was about to die.

I wondered if Joseph would feel even a hint of regret if he ever found out I was telling the truth.