Shallow Love

On the last day of the deadline for the loan repayment, I went to Liam Sommer's stepsister, Christine Sommer, to ask for the 300,000 dollars I had lent her. The next day, Liam threw a ledger I had never seen before in front of me.

Liam said, "On your birthday last year, I transferred 8,100 dollars to you. On our tenth anniversary, I transferred 108,000 dollars to you. Also, at the beginning of every month, I transfer 20,000 dollars to you for your living expenses. You must pay me back by the end of today."

I froze, but Liam smiled without a hint of warmth. "What’s wrong? You can't afford to repay me? Evelyn Lancaster, you shouldn't have given Christy trouble. This is my lesson to you. If you don't pay me back today, let's not meet for the next three years, and don't come looking for me."

Over the next three years, I never saw Liam again, nor did I go looking for him. While he and Christine traveled around the world and wore couple rings, I married my childhood friend in front of our family and friends.

While he and Christine walked along the beach and kissed, I moved into a new house with my husband, our cat, and our dog.

Everything was moving along smoothly, but why was Liam standing under the window of my house in the middle of the night, crying and saying that he was unhappy?

A thick ledger was thrown in front of me. Each page recorded the money Liam Sommer had transferred to me over the past ten years. Even the time of each transaction was recorded.

Liam said, "On your birthday last year, I transferred 8,100 dollars to you. On our tenth anniversary, I transferred 108,000 dollars to you, and at the beginning of every month, I transferred 20,000 dollars to you for your living expenses. You must pay me back by the end of today. Each transfer has been recorded with the transaction time, so you can compare and check for yourself."

...

"What's wrong? You can't afford to repay me? Evelyn Lancaster, you shouldn't have given Christy trouble. This is my lesson to you. If you don't pay me back today, let's not meet for the next three years, and don't come looking for me." Liam's cold and resolute words echoed in my ears. He said that to get justice for his precious stepsister, Christine Sommer. This was because, yesterday, I had recovered the 300,000 dollars I had lent her.

Liam knew I had no money. My mother passed away when I was young, and my father had been bedridden for years. Any spare money I had was used to pay for my father's medical bills over the years. I was also jobless. My health deteriorated after a miscarriage in my early years. Coupled with anemia, I was constantly weak. No matter what I did, I would easily faint and break into cold sweat.

After letting out a sigh, I stood up, grabbed my bank card, and headed out. The hot weather only intensified my discomfort. I had to squat down to rest every time I walked a distance. Slowly, I made my way to the bank and withdrew cash.

I had not expected Liam to record every transaction in detail. After all, he had let me keep his salary card all these years. Fortunately, I had never touched the money in his salary card in the past ten years, nor had I misused any of the money he sent me. Otherwise, I would not be able to pay him back now.

After some calculations, the amount was about right. I added an extra 50,000 dollars from the 300,000 dollars I recovered.

My father was in a critical situation and urgently needed money for treatment yesterday. I had told Liam that the 300,000 dollars I recovered was to save my father's life.

After withdrawing the money, I felt lost. I did not know where to find Liam. I made a few phone calls, but they were all hung up on. Perhaps annoyed, Liam eventually blocked me.

Countless waves of sadness surged through my heart, and I sniffled. Things were not like this between Liam and me in the past. Even if I called him many times in one day, he would always answer with patience.

With that in mind, I logged into an application I had not used in a while. It was a location-tracking application we had both downloaded when we were head over heels in love with each other. Following the location, I found myself standing at the door of the private room he was in.

Inside, Christine's laughter was especially loud. "Evelyn is so stingy. Wasn't it just 300,000 dollars? Liam, the bag you bought me is worth way more than that. Liam, what if Evelyn doesn't pay you back?"

I heard Liam reply nonchalantly, "I just won't see her for the next three years then. I can move in with you and make it up to you during this period. What do you think?"

Christine squealed and smiled more broadly. "But what if Evelyn breaks up with you?"

The atmosphere froze for a moment, and Liam's words hit me. "She won't break up with me. She's looking forward to marrying me! She's been with me for ten years and miscarried once. Who else is she going to go to if she leaves me? Besides, she can't work, and her father has cancer. If I hadn't supported her, would she have been able to survive on the savings she has?"

My hand trembled slightly as I carried the bag, and my legs were too weak to feel. I was afraid that my crying would alert them, so I pressed the elevator button in a panic.