Three years ago, my girlfriend suffered severe post-traumatic stress after saving my life. She later had a speech impairment that kept her from speaking normally.

To cure her, I take on three jobs a day and survive on only bread and water just to come up with the money for her therapy and speech recovery treatment.

I happen to be working part-time as a cocktail party waiter one evening when I see my girlfriend, who supposedly has a speech impairment, standing in a fancy dress and being fawned over by the crowd around her.

Everyone is calling her "Ms. Holden" and "the heiress of the Holden family".

But how can an orphan like her possibly be an heiress?

"I'll do anything as long as it makes you happy, Aaron."

"Did you lie to me just to make him happy, too?"

Felicia Holden went rigid at the sound of my voice. She immediately shoved the man she'd been speaking to aside and whirled to face me. "Julian, what are you doing here? I can explain—"

The ornate, expensive evening gown and the dazzling jewelry she wore were a stark contrast with my waiter uniform. I gazed down at my stained uniform and the rag in my hand. I couldn't help the self-deprecating smile that tugged at my lips.

"What is there for you to explain? That your speech impairment miraculously went away without medical treatment? Or what you're doing at a fancy club like this?"

Panic flickered in Felicia's eyes. Her lips quivered, but no words came out of her mouth.

I suppressed the rage that boiled within me and tossed my rag at her. "Did you enjoy seeing me run around with deliveries, or working myself to the bone as a janitor and security guard?"

Unadulterated anger bubbled up within me at the thought of all the hardship I'd endured in the last three years to come up with the money for Felicia's treatment. I snapped, "You're not an orphan, and you don't have a speech impairment! Why did you lie to me?"

The commotion caught the attention of the surrounding crowd, who began to toss curious looks in our direction. Sensing this, Felicia and the man she'd been speaking to earlier dragged me to the corridor at the side.

"Julian, don't make a scene here, okay? We'll talk about this when we get home."

"Home? What home?" I smacked Felicia's hand away and shoved her aside roughly. "Stay the hell away from me, Felicia! I never want to see you again!"

My roar echoed down the corridor.

Felicia stood in place. Guilt and shame flickered in her eyes, but she did not explain any further. Instead, she said quietly, "I'll pay you back every last dollar and cent, and throw in extra as compensation."

Just like that, she'd reduced the three years of my blood, sweat, and tears into a simple transaction without so much as a sincere apology. My blood boiled with rage, and without hesitation, I grabbed the mop beside me and swung it at Felicia and the man.

There was a splash as filthy water got all over them.

The man finally lost it. He swore loudly, then raised his fist as he lunged at me. "You have some nerve!"

But before he could reach me, Felicia cut him off and warned, "Watch yourself. Nothing good can come from making a scene here."

However, the man was undeterred. "I won't have him raise his voice at you!"

Felicia wrapped her arms around him, and it was only through placating words that she got him to calm down. He sauntered up to me arrogantly, eyeing me with contempt. "What, you still can't remember me even though you've been glowering at me for so long?"

I thought he'd looked familiar when I first saw him, but I couldn't put a finger on it.

He snorted indifferently, then turned to wipe Felicia's face with a tissue as he grumbled, "You don't know when to stop, Felicia. You could've toyed with this guy for a couple of weeks, but you just had to kick things up a notch and string him along for three years! The poor bumpkin's attached to you now!"

Felicia did not stop the man, though I caught her shooting an uneasy look at me.

As it turned out, I'd been nothing more than a plaything for the rich and glamorous pair before me.

Upon seeing the blood drain from my face, the man approached me, his smile snide. "Don't you remember me, Julian? It's me, Aaron Schumer."

My mind imploded. Of course I remembered Aaron! He was the only son of Lewis Schumer, a businessman whose net worth was in the billions!

Three years ago, I watched as the paramedics surrounded Felicia, fussing over her. The scene of the accident was pure chaos. My heart had leaped to my throat as guilt and helplessness seized me, turning my mind blank.

At that moment, Aaron stepped out of his fancy car with a bottle of water in his hand. He'd asked me worriedly, "Hey, buddy, you alright?"

He continued to comfort me until my panic gradually eased.

Felicia and I had been walking along a narrow street when an out-of-control motorcycle hurtled toward us. She'd reacted quickly and shoved me aside, only to be hit by it. She passed out on the spot.

Aaron had stayed and comforted me for a while. He handed me a business card afterward, saying, "I know a really good attorney. Call me if you need any help."

Eyes brimming with tears, I'd memorized the name on the business card, but lost the card in the midst of chaos. Now, as I beheld Aaron's handsome yet contemptuous face, a chilly realization settled over me.

As it turned out, he and Felicia had been toying with me all along.

"If you're done making a scene, Julian, I suggest you leave before you embarrass yourself," Aaron said smugly.

Felicia stood beside him quietly. She did not speak up for me even as she watched Aaron hurl insults in my face.

Aaron patted my face condescendingly and appraised me as if I were a pest. "Felicia saved your life. It's only right that you do everything she asks of you. You were happy to wait on her hand and foot, so why whine about it now?

"Felicia is the heiress of the Holden family, and that makes her extremely popular among men. And yet, she settled for an ordinary guy like you. You had nothing to lose!"

Nothing to lose? I stared at my callused hands and gritted my teeth. I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth, but that didn't give anyone the right to trample on my dignity and feelings!

Aaron's smile was one of cruel satisfaction when he saw me shaking with rage. He walked over to Felicia and pulled her into his arms, then turned to look at me with something close to pity. "Reality is tough, Julian. You're nothing in this world without money or an influential background. Did you think that Felicia truly loved you? Don't kid yourself. She was only toying with you."

The corner of his mouth twitched upward. "Let me guess, Felicia told you that she wouldn't marry anyone in this lifetime except you, huh?"

The sweet memories I'd shared with Felicia surfaced in my mind. They were like a sharp blade that slit my heart open. I couldn't stand the smug look on Aaron's face. I clenched my fists tightly and gritted my teeth.

Felicia noticed my hostility and quickly shielded Aaron, showing the same bravado she had when she shoved me out of the motorcycle's way years ago. Only this time, she was protecting someone else, not me.

I met her gaze, only to see that her brows were drawn, and her face was full of wariness.

Aaron grew even more excited. "I've already looked into you. You grew up in the orphanage and did not know who your family was. You had no parents. Basically, you were an unwanted runt. So, I told Felicia to lie about being an orphan. I was confident you'd empathize with her and take pity on her."

These rich folks had to be bored out of their minds to devise such diabolical plans!

"I was right about you, Julian. A bottom-feeder like you will rise to take the bait and fight tooth and nail just to wait on Felicia! I even made a bet with my friends to see if you'd ever discover that Felicia was lying to you. Trust me when I say that we made big bets.

"But we didn't think you'd be duped for three whole years and still not suspect a thing! It was hilarious! If I hadn't invited Felicia to tag along today, you might have believed her lies forever! You should be thanking me."

An intense roaring filled my head as the cold and hard truth hit me. It was as if my world was crumbling right before my eyes.

I snapped entirely. "You enjoyed playing the role of someone with speech impairment, huh?"

I picked up the mop and swung it at Felicia and Aaron. "You sure are generous, Mr. Schumer. You don't seem to mind tangling with an heiress who happens to be an ordinary bottom-feeder's sloppy seconds!"

Just as the mop was inches away from Aaron, Felicia shielded him. I couldn't draw the mop back in time, and all I heard was a muffled thud as the mop struck her squarely on the arm.

Felicia grunted in pain as her face paled. Beads of sweat trickled down her forehead as she took the hit quietly.

I froze, and Aaron clambered to his feet in time to knock me down with a punch. "You maniac! I'll call the cops and have you arrested!"

He furiously fished out his phone and landed several violent kicks on me.

When Felicia heard that Aaron was planning to call the cops, she quickly clutched the leg of his pants and pleaded, "Don't call the cops! This is all my fault, to begin with."

Aaron cursed angrily, then crouched to inspect Felicia's wound. Blood pulsed in my ears as I watched them huddle close like a couple, the last of my sensibility vanishing.

Aaron growled, "A pissant like you will never reach the top!"

The back of my head hit the ground with a sharp thud, and my vision blackened with the pain.

Felicia looked guilty and apologetic when she saw me groaning in pain and struggling to get up. She broke free from Aaron's embrace and limped over to help me get on my feet. "I'm sorry, Julian…"

I heaved myself upright with newfound resolve and smacked her hand away. "As opposed to a lousy apology, Ms. Holden, I'd rather you make good on your word and pay me back the money now."

At this point, I could not be stupid enough to let my pride be trampled on without any money to show for it. I would make her pay back every penny of the money I'd worked hard to save for her treatment.

Upon hearing this, Felicia gaped at me in bewilderment.