Chapter 3

"You misunderstood. I'm not…"

But she waved her hand, cutting off my explanation:

"I have something to do, so I'm leaving. I advise you to stop with these stunts that just chip away at my feelings for you."

The front door slammed shut, plunging the entire room into a deathly silence.

I stood there for a long time, then gave a self-deprecating smile.

Elara, how much affection do you have left for me, to even speak of "chipping away"?

In the past, her misunderstanding would have left me sleepless and miserable. Now, I quickly composed myself.

I continued to review the wedding arrangements Mom had sent.

Before exiting SnapChat, I casually clicked on the red dot in her stories and saw that Elara, who rarely posted, had updated her status.

[You're so wonderful, of course, I'd marry you and keep you close, then I can finally relax.]

The post included a solo picture of Milo and their wedding invitation.

Less than a minute later, a mutual friend commented:

[Did the groom really change just like that?]

Immediately, Elara's new post disappeared, but it quickly reappeared on Milo Jensen's Ins profile.

Then Elara's call came in.

In the past, I would have already taken a screenshot and called her immediately to demand answers. There would have been no way to avoid a huge fight.

But this time, I let the phone ring until it stopped without answering.

It was strange. Seeing that post, I wasn't even very upset. Perhaps I was numb.

My first thought was, how ironic, their wedding date is the same as mine.

When Elara arrived home, I was already asleep.

She quietly opened the door and walked to my bedside.

"Asher, are you asleep? Why didn't you answer my calls?"

I lay with my back to her and mumbled, "I fell asleep accidentally. Didn't hear it."

Elara sighed with relief, leaned closer, and reached out to check my forehead for fever. "Still have a fever?"

As she got close, the scent of men's cologne on her made me feel a wave of nausea, almost making me gag.

I instinctively shifted away, avoiding her touch.

Her hand hung in mid-air, filled with shock.

She tentatively asked, "Asher, did you see something?"

I buried myself completely under the covers, my voice muffled. "No, I just feel sick from the cold. I want to sleep."

I slept until the next day, finally feeling a bit lighter.

I gathered my energy and started packing, slowly erasing every trace of myself from this house.

It was then I realized I had bought many matching couple's items. At first, Elara used them with me.

But at some point, she had thrown them all into a corner.

I packed all these useless things and tossed them into the trash.

There was also an album filled with photos of Elara and me traveling, postcards we collected together, old train tickets from when we were long-distance, and letters she wrote to me.

This album was brimming with all the memories Elara and I had made over the years.

But ever since Milo appeared, no new photos had been added to the album.

When Elara returned, I was throwing this album into the fire. She rushed over like a madwoman, snatching the damaged album from the flames.

Ignoring the pain of her burned hands, she demanded angrily, "Are you crazy?! Don't you know how important this album is to us? Why would you burn it?!"

Elara rarely got angry with me; this was the first time she had ever raised her voice so much.

The concern in her eyes didn't seem fake, but it was also true that she was hiding her impending marriage to someone else from me.

Not wanting to argue with her, I casually said, "The album got moldy and buggy. I've backed up everything inside; I'll just make a new one later."

Hearing this, her anger subsided.

While I applied burn cream to her hand, Elara stared at me and suddenly spoke. "Asher, you seem a bit off lately. Is work stress getting to you? I booked a custom trip for you. Go out and relax."