I frowned, pressing both hands against Sebastian's chest in an attempt to push him away, but it was useless. He slid his hand along the wall above my head, then suddenly grabbed my hair and pulled slightly, forcing me to look up and meet his gaze.

He smiled indifferently, his eyes as cold as ice. "But it's too bad a vicious woman like you is no longer worth my time."

With that, he let go of his grip in disgust, and I collapsed to the floor.

There was a time when he used to look at me with deep affection, his eyes shimmering like starlight. He had been just like a loyal little puppy craving my love. However, after I rejected him again and again, he brought back Ian's first love.

"Ian, this is my girlfriend, Eva. You wouldn't mind, right?"

Even though he had been speaking to Ian, his eyes had been glued to me.

That same night, Ian left the house with the excuse that he would be working late. That was when Sebastian broke into my bedroom, took a strand of my hair into his mouth, and asked me with a fake troubled look, "Sienna, the girlfriend I brought home is my brother's first love, the woman he used to care a lot about. They're out on a midnight date now, so I'm alone again. What should I do?"

With a keen gaze, he stared at me like I was prey he was bound to catch. "Sienna, why don't you compensate me for my loss instead?"

That was the first time he revealed his true intentions.

After that, Sebastian repeatedly schemed to lure Ian away with Eva. However, somewhere along the way, he began to care about Eva too.

At this moment, Sebastian let go of my hand as soon as his custom ringtone for Eva started ringing. "Eva, don't be scared. My brother is probably caught in traffic. I'll take the bike and be right there."

Without sparing me a second glance, he turned and left.

As his motorcycle disappeared into the flurry of snow, a wave of sadness and worthlessness washed over me. I had never loved Sebastian, but I had always seen him as a younger brother.

But the two brothers had never trusted me. Whenever Eva cried, they would instinctively blame me for everything.

When I was lying in the hospital bed before, I was clear-headed at last. That was when I decided it was time to cut ties with both of them completely.

I had come back today intending to formally break up with Ian and properly say goodbye to Sebastian. Unfortunately, once again, the two of them had left me behind for Eva. Let it be, then. I had grown used to this.

…

The next morning, I went directly to Ian's office to submit my resignation. Looking at the company I had helped build from the ground up, I felt an overwhelming feeling of reluctance.

When Ian first started his business, he could not close a single deal and spent every day sighing at home.

I could not bear to see him like that, so I started handling the sales myself. When the company was still a startup, I was the one who signed 90% of the orders.

Back then, Sebastian was still a student. On weekends, he would come home and scold Ian, "Is this how you take care of your girlfriend, making her go out, meet clients, and drink until she throws up every day? Did she give up everything just to be your sales representative?"

Ian barely looked at Sebastian when he replied, "What does how I treat my girlfriend have to do with you?"

That night, Sebastian came to me, wanting to elope with me. I turned him down.

He looked at me with eyes full of pain. "Why him and not me?"

I didn't have an answer because I had only ever seen Sebastian as a brother. I never thought that not long after, he would bring Eva home.

When Eva showed up, the company had finally begun to gain stability. Ian replaced me with her in no time at all.

"Sienna, it's not that she's replacing you. I just don't want you to be too tired. I want you to rest at home. Remember the day you said you'd come with me? I promised then that I'd help you live your dream. Wasn't it always your dream to be a pianist?

"Now, I have the money, and you have the time. You can finally pursue that dream."

Thinking Ian was doing this for the sake of helping me achieve my dream, I held him and cried tears of joy.

A month later, I was about to perform on the stage for the first time. As I waited nervously and with anticipation, I received a call from Ian.

I thought Ian had time to watch me perform and excitedly told him that I had reserved a seat for him in the front row. I also told him how much it would mean to me to have him there.

However, it was silent for a long time on the other end of the call before Ian finally spoke.

"I'm sorry, Sienna... Can you come to Purple Inn? Eva is having trouble closing the deal with Mr. Walter."

"But today's my first performance on stage."

The stage lights were just ahead, shimmering with bright colors. It was supposed to be my moment.

However, Ian's voice turned soft, almost pleading. "Sienna, just this once. Help me one more time. Please?"

So, I rushed toward Purple Inn in my performance dress and downed two bottles of wine to get the deal signed. It was just for Ian.

However, once an exception was made, there would always be another and another after that. Before I knew it, I had gone from being a manager to somehow becoming Eva's subordinate.

A bitter smile emerged on my face as I lowered my head. Everything had been foreshadowed for a while, yet I was the one who had refused to see it.

When I pushed open the office door, they were all there—Ian, Sebastian, and Eva.

I didn't look at any of them. I walked straight to the desk, put down my resignation letter, and said calmly, "I'm resigning."

"Ms. Xenos, are you upset with Ian because of me?" Eva looked at me, her eyes wide with concern like a frightened little rabbit on the verge of tears. She turned to Ian, her voice trembling. "Ian, I don't want to join the piano competition anymore. Let Ms. Xenos join it instead…"

Ian frowned, his gaze darkening as he turned to me. "Sienna Xenos, how long are you going to drag this on? Eva was chosen for the competition. It's the company's decision, not—"

"Who joins the competition has nothing to do with me. I'll finish the handover within a week," I cut him off coldly.

I paused, then added coldly, "And one more thing—I'm breaking up with you."

I didn't want to argue or explain. I just wanted to get out of that place. However, just as I turned to leave, Eva lunged forward and grabbed my arm. "Ms. Xenos! Please don't go! There's nothing between Ian and me. He's just looking after me… We grew up together. If it bothers you, I-I'll resign instead."

"Let go." I tried to shake her off, and my voice was sharp with frustration. But before I could pull out my arm, Eva suddenly cried out and collapsed to the floor.

"Eva!" Ian rushed to her side to help her up.

Tears were already streaming down Eva's face as she gasped. "Ian, I fell down on my own. Don't blame Ms. Xenos. It wasn't her fault…"

"Sienna Xenos, how dare you lay your hand on Eva?!"

Sebastian struck me hard across the face out of nowhere. He stood over me, his eyes blazing.

Stumbling back, I crashed to the floor as pain exploded on my cheek. My arm hit the corner of the desk, and another bolt of pain shot through me. My vision went dark for a moment.

"It's okay. It's my fault. Please don't blame Ms. Xenos."

I kept hearing Eva's tearful voice.

When my sight returned, I saw them—Ian and Sebastian—standing protectively around her as they both looked concerned. No one noticed that my arm was bleeding even though I was just a short distance away from them. The cold irony hit me harder than the slap.

I bit my lip hard and pushed myself against the desk, trying to stand.

Ian finally looked over when he noticed the movement. He stretched out his arm to me. But instead of helping me, he yanked me up by the arm that was injured.

I cried out, my sleeve immediately turning red with blood. But Ian didn't even see it. He just said coldly, "Apologize to Eva."

I remained silent, refusing to open my mouth.

He let go, shoving me back toward the ground like I was trash. "You've disappointed me, Sienna Xenos."

Just then, Eva whimpered softly.

"Don't worry. I'll take you to the hospital right away." Sebastian scooped her up in his arms, and Ian followed behind them.

I stood there in silence with a bitter smile on my face. My clothes were soaked with blood, yet no one cared. The two brothers were throwing themselves at Eva even when she didn't have a scratch on her.

There was no clearer line between love and indifference.

But it had not always been like this.

Six years ago, I was the beloved daughter of the Xenos family and had dreams of becoming a pianist. But my parents insisted music was just a hobby. I had to study finance and prepare to take over the family business.

Right when I was drowning in frustration, Ian appeared. He was just a driver working for my family at the time. One day, he heard me playing piano in the study when he was bringing over documents for my father.

"That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard. Miss, you're meant for the world's biggest stage."

That one sentence chased away all my sorrows.

Later, when I told my parents I wanted to marry him, Dad flew into a rage and locked me in my room.

But Ian climbed through the window that night and held out his hand to me. "Sienna, come with me. I'll make sure the whole world hears your music."

Even Sebastian, who was still in college at the time, would smile and call me Sienna sweetly, promising that he and his brother would protect me and help me chase my dreams.

Those words still echoed in my mind, but time had changed everything.

Ian no longer paid me any attention.

…

The next morning, I woke up to find my pillow soaked in tears.

I had already made the decision to let go, so why did it still hurt so much?

But I told myself that it was okay and that the pain would soon pass.

Maybe it was to numb the pain or to prove to myself that I was moving on, but I took the ten-carat diamond ring my arranged fiancé had given me, slipped it onto my finger, snapped a photo, and posted it on my social media feed.

"Pleased to meet you. May our union brighten our life."

Less than a minute later, my phone rang. I picked it up and heard Ian's voice on the other end of the line.