Chapter 1

My boyfriend always claimed he was asexual and hated being touched.

In five years together, our relationship never went beyond holding hands and quick hugs.

Even when we shared a bed, he wouldn't come near me.

I thought he was just naturally cold and distant.

Then he told me he was going to have a baby with his mentor's daughter.

He said, "I'm just giving her my sperm. It was my professor's dying wish, and I couldn't say no."

"Besides, Willow only has me as a friend."

I gave a faint smile and replied, "No need to explain. You have my full support."

When you've stopped loving someone, there's no point in arguing about what's right or wrong.

1.

Jared and I had been together for five years.

Before we started dating, he told me upfront that he hated physical contact with women.

"I'm sorry, but if you can't accept that, we can break up right now," he had warned.

I assumed that brilliant, successful men just came with their own eccentricities. So, I accepted his strict boundaries without question.

We lived together like polite roommates for five whole years.

Until one late night, terrible news shattered the quiet.

Jared's mentor was in critical condition.

The moment he got the call, Jared threw on his coat and rushed to the hospital.

He didn't drag his exhausted body back home until early the next morning.

Over breakfast, he suddenly dropped a bomb.

"I'm planning to have a baby with Willow."

I looked up in shock, convinced I had misheard him.

"What did you say?"

His face was completely calm. "The professor doesn't have much time left. His biggest wish is to see his daughter in safe hands before he goes."

"He helped me so much over the years. I have to step up and help."

I felt totally lost. "Can't she find someone else? Willow could get a boyfriend, or look into a donor bank, or―"

Jared rubbed his temples and cut me off.

"Can you really rush into a relationship like that?"

"Besides, it's just having a baby. It's basically donating my sperm. It's not like I'm marrying her."

He spoke so casually, as if he were talking about the weather.

I slammed my fork onto the table and locked eyes with him.

"Jared, do you even hear yourself?"

"We're supposed to get married in a month! And now you're telling me you're having a child with another woman?"

Jared frowned slightly, a flash of annoyance in his eyes.

"Willow is my mentor's kid. She's like a little sister to me. How can you call her an outsider?"

"What kind of sister asks her brother to get her pregnant?!"

I couldn't understand it, and I refused to accept it.

He seemed caught off guard by my explosive reaction. But after a brief pause, his cold mask snapped back into place.

"Nina, stop throwing a tantrum. I―"

Before he could finish, his phone buzzed. He picked it up, and whatever the person said made his expression shift.

"Okay, I'm on my way."

Without sparing me a single glance, he grabbed his jacket and walked out the door.

He had barely taken a single sip of the coffee I lovingly brewed for him.

Hearing the front door click shut, I felt all my strength drain away. I sank heavily into my chair.

When did things become like this?

I couldn't help but think back to how Jared and I first met.

In college, he was the untouchable ice prince on campus.

Anyone who tried to get close to him got frostbite.

There were even rumors going around that he wasn't into women at all.

Yet, I was stubborn enough to believe I could melt him.

I pursued him relentlessly, chasing after him for three long years until he finally gave in.

Even throughout our relationship, he remained distant and detached. But I convinced myself it didn't matter.

After all, no matter how cold he was, he was still my boyfriend.

I never imagined that as our wedding day drew near, he would pull something like this.

He was the one who swore he hated physical intimacy.

And now he was the one claiming he was just lending his seed to someone else.

I sat on the couch, waiting until the dead of night.

Instead of Jared, what arrived was a video sent from Willow.

In the clip, Jared stood by the hospital bed. His mentor gripped his hand, speaking in a frail, raspy voice.

"Jared, I know my time is up. I don't have many regrets in this life, except for Willow. I just want her to have a secure life with someone reliable."

Jared's eyes were slightly red as he bowed his head in silence.

Then, Willow's soft, tearful voice came through the speaker. "Jared, for my dad's final wish... I'll be waiting in my room for you tonight."

My fingers clenched tightly around my phone.

Right as the video ended, I heard Jared answer quietly: "Okay."