Chapter 1

After the Earthquake, My Boyfriend Refused to Save My Mom. He Wanted to Save His Childhood Friend's Dog Instead

After the earthquake, my boyfriend Dax Fairley asked me, Talia Winslet, to help lift a concrete slab to rescue a Pomeranian.

Suddenly, a stream of comments flashed before my eyes.

[Talia doesn't know yet, but her own mom is trapped under the other end of that slab. Once she lifts it, her mom will be crushed to death.]

At the same time, Dax kept urging me, "Hurry up! If anything happens to Maeve's therapy dog, don't even think about marrying me."

[Here it comes. Talia, the love-blinded fool, is about to sacrifice her mom.]

[Dax didn't know someone was under there. Later, out of guilt, he couldn't face the heartbroken Talia and broke off the engagement. Guess that was his way of atoning.]

[Thank God we have Maeve in the end. She and Dax healed each other. I love them together.]

I stared blankly at the scrolling comments.

I thought I was hallucinating.

The collapsed area was Dax's house.

A massive concrete slab had fallen over it, with only one edge barely able to lift.

Dax was clearing rubble on the right side, his engagement ring scratched and dulled.

He was shouting impatiently at me, "Why are you zoning out?! Fluffy's been whining under there for twenty minutes. Hurry up and help!"

I heard it.

A faint whimper of a little dog came from under the debris.

I thought, "But what about my mom?"

I stumbled to the other side and pressed my ear to the ground.

I thought, "God, I hope those comments weren't true.

My mom was supposed to be in the neighboring province. There's no way she'd be here."

But then, I heard a muffled knocking sound from beneath.

It was faint, but it shook me to the core.

"We can't lift it," I said, my voice trembling. My face turned pale as I looked at Dax in despair.

"My mom is under this side!"

[Wait, what? How did Talia know that?]

[No, Maeve's Pomeranian is a certified therapy dog! If it dies, she'll spiral again! Don't do this!]

I thought Dax would immediately rush over to help.

Surely, between saving a person or a dog, he'd know what to do.

But Maeve's face twisted.

She clutched her bleeding arm, cut by the rubble, and said with teary eyes, "Talia, I know you don't like me, and I get that Fluffy accidentally peed on your wedding dress... but that doesn't mean you should make up such a lame excuse just to deliberately kill him, should you?"

My chest tightened. I was so angry and panicked. I could hardly breathe.

Maeve was Dax's childhood friend and neighbor, a real manipulative piece of work.

Last time, when Dax and I went to pick up my custom wedding dress, she saw it and clung to Dax's arm, whining, "I wanna try it on too. Dax, can I? Just one photo?"

My face immediately went cold.

But she acted like she didn't see it, pouting, "You used to say you'd marry me, remember? I just want to wear a matching dress for one photo. Just to fulfill a little dream."

Dax chuckled awkwardly and turned to me for permission.

I bit my tongue and calmly said it was a custom dress. If Maeve wore it, it could get stretched or ruined.

Maeve froze, then turned and ran off, eyes red.

The next day, she came over with Fluffy.

And, of course, the dog peed right on my pure white gown.

Dax remembered that incident.

So now, he assumed I was still holding a grudge that I was deliberately trying to stop him from saving the dog.

He lowered his voice and said, irritated, "How can you be this cruel? Are you really throwing a tantrum at a time like this?"

My head pounded. I couldn't help but grab his wrist, trying to drag him toward the other side.

"I'm not messing with you, okay? I don't care what happened between you two. I just want to save my mom!"

But before I could even take steps, he yanked his arm away and twisted mine so hard it felt like my bones would snap.

"Talia, are you done throwing your little fit?"

He grabbed my jaw and forced me to look at Maeve. "You know she has depression, right? And now you're picking a fight? You want her to lose Fluffy, too?"

Maeve stared at me like she wanted to say something, then bit her lip and said, "If this is about your anger, I promise, once Fluffy's safe, I'll stay far away from both you and Dax."

Then, she couldn't hold back anymore and started crying, "Fluffy didn't do anything wrong. Please, don't hurt him too."

[Maeve, don't cry! Stupid Talia, just save the dog and let your mom die already.]

[She's had that dog for five years. It's the only thing that helps her cope with depression. And it got trapped trying to save her. I'd pick the dog too.]

My mind was spinning. I thought, "What were they even saying?

That's my mom!"

My voice cracked, choked with panic and fear. "Please... I'm begging you. Just believe me for once, okay?"

I fell to my knees, nearly groveling, tears mixing with dust on my face.

"Dax, my dad is gone. My mom raised me all by herself. I can't lose her too!"

My dad was a soldier.

When I was little, he'd lift me up high and spin me around like I could fly.

Later, during a flood, he lifted up so many others until he was too tired to swim and got swept away.

My mom almost cried herself blind. If it wasn't for me, she would have killed herself for my dad.

She raised me alone, giving me double the love.

She always said all she wanted was for me to grow up happy and healthy.

I thought, "If something happened to her now, how could I possibly go on?"

Dax grabbed me by the collar and yanked me to my feet.

His eyes were filled with confusion. "So what, now you're competing with Maeve over who's suffered more?"

My mind went blank. "What?"

He suddenly pulled out his phone and showed me a folder of photos of Maeve growing up over the years.

His voice dropped. "I didn't want to say this, but Maeve saw her parents die in a car crash. That's why she has depression. I promised I'd protect her.

"But I chose you. That's why you owe her... Fluffy's all she has left."

I staggered back, suddenly realizing I didn't recognize this man anymore.

I thought, "So conflicted, so unable to prioritize anything...

Why did he even pursue me?

All his words were soaked in guilt for someone else. Was that why he proposed to me?

So I could spend the rest of my life making up for Maeve, too, letting her walk all over me?"

The comments exploded again.

[Dax finally admitted it. Choosing to marry Talia makes him feel so guilty towards our Maeve.]

[When Talia was trying on her wedding dress, were you thinking about your future life together? Or whether Maeve would be sad?]

[Stupid Dax! Look at Maeve's teary eyes. She clearly still loves you! You can spend your whole life with her!]

The flood of words and literal dust were drowning me.

I shouted, my voice raw and shaking, "So what?! Just because she's had a rough life, I'm supposed to let my mom die for her dog?"

Dax's face twisted in frustration. "God, you're impossible. Even a dog knows how to be considerate. You just can't stand Maeve being happy, can you?"

He didn't believe a word I said. He dragged me to the right side and gave a final order. "We'll save the dog first. We'll talk about your mom later. I'm done with this tantrum."