Chapter 3

Back in my dorm room, there was a birthday cake on the table from my parents.

The card urged me to eat well and take care of myself.

Seeing this, tears inexplicably fell.

Looking at my chubby figure in the mirror, I sniffled and decided to give the cake to others.

I only kept the little chocolate figurine made to look like me.

The next morning, Ethan was waiting at the bottom of my dorm building as usual.

As I walked over, I noticed his hands were empty and his face was gloomy.

"What's wrong? Where's breakfast?"

Since I started dieting, Ethan had been calculating the calories for my two meals a day.

To encourage me, he ate the same meals.

Ethan replied with a hint of sarcasm:

"You ate chocolate last night. That one piece of chocolate is equal to a whole day's calories. You shouldn't eat anything today."

"If you can't commit to losing weight, just tell me straight. I'll return the wedding dress right away!"

With that, he walked off on his own.

Leaving me standing there bewildered.

How did he know?

I chased after him, grabbing his hand to explain.

"Ethan, I did keep a piece of chocolate, but I didn't eat it. I can go up and show you if you don't believe me!"

Seeing my sincere attitude, Ethan didn't say anything more.

He looked me up and down, hand on his chin in thought for a moment, then surveyed me again.

He exclaimed: "I know what you're missing now!"

"What?"

"A goal."

Saying that, he took my phone and fiddled with it for a while.

When he handed it back, the lock screen had changed to a photo of a slim model.

"Mia, look at her every day and imagine your body will be like hers after you lose weight."

"After our engagement party, we'll go to the Maldives for vacation. By then your body in a bikini..."

As Ethan vividly described the scene, I suddenly felt like he was a stranger.

It reminded me of when we went to a water park.

He insisted I wear a skimpy bikini and wanted to show me off to his friends. It was only after my repeated refusals that he finally gave up.

His reluctant expression at the time...

I suddenly felt nauseous and interrupted his fantasy: "Ethan, I just remembered I have something to do. I'm leaving first."