Chapter 3

3.

Things turned completely sour between Callie and me.

She stayed out all night. The next morning, she posted cozy selfies with a younger guy on Instagram.

Her caption read: 【There's never a shortage of men lining up to love me.】

Seconds later, she poked me on the chat app.

Then came her follow-up text: 【Oops, my hand slipped.】

【Honestly, we should just block each other. It's getting awkward.】

Without a second thought, I deleted her contact immediately.

Within minutes, a notification popped up with her friend request.

【Silas, you actually had the guts to delete me? Who gave you the nerve?!】

Her reaction didn't surprise me.

In the past, I never dared to remove her. She was always the one blocking me, while I frantically pleaded to be added back.

Looking back now, being that desperate was truly pathetic.

I ignored the notification, turned off my phone, and drove to the hospital.

Today was my follow-up appointment.

A month ago, a routine health check revealed I had advanced stomach cancer.

When Callie first heard the news, she visibly let out a deep breath of relief.

Then she hugged me tightly and said, "Don't worry, baby. I'll stay right by your side."

Back then, I couldn't comprehend why she looked so relieved.

Now I finally understood. She was simply grateful that the dying man was me, not her precious first love.

The memory of reading that comment made my entire body turn cold.

I laughed until the tears blurred my vision.

I laughed at how seven years of devotion had been thrown to the dogs.

I cried because I had spent seven years loving a heartless woman.

While waiting for my test results at the clinic, the elevator doors slid open. Out stepped Callie, accompanied by a man who looked shockingly like me.

He was dressed in a crisp white dress shirt and gold-rimmed glasses, exuding a gentle, cultured aura.

That was my signature look too. But I never needed prescription glasses; Callie was the one who had forced me to wear them.

This had to be Hayden Cross, the legendary first love.

Realizing she had spent seven years dressing me up as him made me want to throw up.

I yanked off my glasses and tossed them straight into the nearby trash can.

"What are you doing here?"

Callie spotted me, her eyes flickering with sudden panic.

How laughable. Was she playing dumb, or had she genuinely forgotten?

Did she not know I was terminally ill and needed regular checkups?

"I came here to grab lunch."

I didn't even want to look at her. After delivering that dry remark, I turned my attention back to my phone.

"Why the hell do you have such an attitude..."

"Callie, who is this?"

Before she could finish snapping at me, the man beside her gently interrupted.

The anger on her face vanished instantly, replaced by a radiant, tender smile.

"Hayden, this is my... male coworker, Silas Mercer."

"Silas, this is my old college classmate, Hayden Cross."

"Nice to meet you. I'm just Callie's male coworker."

I deliberately emphasized those last two words.

Callie's face twisted in embarrassment. She glared at me before turning back to Hayden with soft eyes. "Hayden, let's get you examined first. A fever is nothing to take lightly."

"You just flew back into the country, so you need to take extra care of your health."

A fever?

I almost burst into bitter laughter.

My terminal cancer was treated like an afterthought, yet Hayden's mild fever sent her into a state of utter panic.

"The power of the one who got away really is something else."

I muttered the words under my breath, unable to hold back.

"What did you just say?"

Callie shot me a glance, a flicker of guilt crossing her gaze.

I shook my head slowly. "Nothing. You better hurry up and take care of your precious Hayden before his fever gets worse."

Right then, the nurse called my name with the test results. I grabbed the envelope and stood up to leave.

Callie called after me. "Did you come for your follow-up today?"

"Let me see how your scans look."

She stepped forward, reaching out to snatch the report from my hands.

I stepped aside, dodging her touch completely.

"Don't forget, we broke up. Whatever happens to me is none of your business."

Her face darkened.

"I never agreed to that."

"Callie, your memory is slipping. You seem to have forgotten what happened last night."

Without another word, I turned and walked straight out of the clinic.

The medical report was grim. The doctor gently explained that with a positive mindset, I might have a few months left.

He mentioned that aggressive chemotherapy would severely wreck my remaining quality of life, advising against it if I wanted peace.

I agreed with his assessment. Rather than suffering through endless treatments, I preferred to let nature take its course.

Sitting on the bench outside the hospital entrance, the chilly wind whipped against my neck. A strange sense of relief washed over me.

Maybe dying wasn't the worst outcome.

After all, there was no one left in this world who truly loved me.

Just as the thought crossed my mind, I saw Callie walking out through the glass doors, holding Hayden's arm.

Her face was lit up with pure joy. But the moment her eyes met mine, her smile froze, and she quickly pulled her arm away from him.

I stood up to leave, but Hayden called out to me. "Hey man, since you're Callie's colleague, why don't you join us for dinner? I just got back to the States, and Callie is throwing me a welcome party."