Chapter 2

2

I fought back my tears and opened Quinton's so-called "gift."

Multicolor candies spilled out onto the hospital bed.

They seemed to mock the ridiculous love I had held onto for all these years.

My ill-fated connection with Quinton began in high school.

I was the pathetic kid being bullied, and he was the only one who stood up for me.

From that day on, my secret crush began.

It wasn't until we met again in college that I gathered the courage to confess, and to my surprise, he agreed to be with me.

After we got together, his attitude was always hot and cold, leaving me feeling insecure.

I told myself he was just a "cool guy" and that this was normal.

I truly believed that my fiery passion could melt his icy heart.

I helped him build his company from the ground up.

Even though I'm allergic to alcohol, I would drink for him at business dinners just because he said, "Sera, I trust you."

He liked mature women, so I changed my style to the sexy outfits he preferred.

He said women should be independent, so even when I had a hundred-degree fever, I forced myself to go to the hospital alone.

I changed everything about myself to fit his ideal, hoping to finally earn his love.

It wasn't until Lydia Vance appeared that I realized Quinton actually knew how to be attentive.

I told myself she was his aunt and it was normal for him to look after her.

One day, I accidentally got a photo of him and Lydia wet.

He, who usually kept his emotions in check, screamed at me for the first time.

I should have known then that this "aunt" was just a sick role-play between them.

I couldn't accept that he would move on so easily, so I played deaf and blind.

I lied to myself over and over, believing he still loved me.

But when that official photo appeared, I finally understood how a joke my love had become.

I had stayed in a position that didn't belong to me for far too long.

It was time to give it back to its rightful owner.