Chapter 2

2.

The house felt cold, just like the eight years of love I wasted on Lyra. It was nothing but a tragedy.

I used to dream of her spending one anniversary with me, but she always called me childish.

Now, on our eighth anniversary, she was busy kissing the man she truly loved.

But starting today, we wouldn't have any more anniversaries.

In the middle of the night, Lyra called me.

Her voice was softer than I had ever heard it. For a moment, I thought she had called the wrong person.

"Babe, I was a bit harsh this afternoon. I'm sorry," she whispered.

"I've thought it over. Let's get our marriage license tomorrow, okay? I know it's what you've always wanted. Meet me at the courthouse at nine."

I stayed silent for a long time, feeling a strange sense of emptiness.

She kept acting sweet over the phone until I finally gave a short answer.

The next morning, my family's driver came to pick me up.

I put my luggage in the car and told him to drive past the courthouse.

Sure enough, I saw her standing there.

She wasn't alone. She was clinging to Zane's arm, looking at her watch with a mocking smile.

I checked Zane's social media and found the truth.

"I was in a bad mood last night, so someone promised to show me her lapdog making a fool of himself. Stay tuned for the joke at 9 AM!"

I laughed at myself. She just wanted to entertain Zane.

Neither in my last life nor this one did Lyra ever intend to marry me.

In my previous life, she only married me because Zane moved abroad and cut her off.

In this life, Zane was right here.

Why would she ever need me?

Even though I had decided to move on, my eyes still felt stinging and my heart heavy.

On the way home, I couldn't stop thinking about our past.

Lyra and I grew up together. We were childhood sweethearts. She used to follow me everywhere.

She would save her allowance to buy me birthday gifts and get autographs from my favorite athletes.

Her grades weren't great, but she studied until she collapsed just to get into the same college as me.

I remember her saying, "Caden, I'm so happy I get to see you every day."

She hinted at her feelings many times, but I was too afraid to mess up our families' business ties.

Then came the diving accident. I got a cramp and almost drowned in the ocean.

She dove in without hesitation and spent thirty minutes dragging me back to shore.

Because of that, she suffered from hearing loss and constant ringing in her ears for a long time.

After that, I finally asked her to be my girlfriend.

I thought we would last forever. I believed her when she cried and promised we would grow old together.

Promises have an expiration date, it seems.

She was sincere then, but two years later, everything changed when Zane appeared.

He slowly moved into our lives and took her heart.

I didn't want to admit that by our sixth year, they were already seeing each other behind my back.

She rejected my proposals because of Zane, and only settled for me when he left.

It took me half a lifetime to accept that she didn't love me anymore.

In this life, I won't let myself drown in her again.