Chapter 3

I packed my luggage and left the love nest where we had lived together for three years.

Today happened to be my father’s birthday.

I didn’t want him to worry, so I forced down my sadness and acted as if nothing had happened.

Most of the guests had already arrived.

Before the banquet began, Ethan actually showed up with a gift.

When he saw my father, he kept calling him “Dad” with a sweet tongue.

I didn’t want to fall out with him in front of everyone, so I could only suppress my disgust and act along with him.

Halfway through, he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and showed off our affection in front of relatives and friends.

He leaned close to my ear and said in a voice only the two of us could hear, “Ava, don’t be mad.”

“I promise this is the last time. I’ve already made that lunatic Chloe leave our house.”

He was seriously making promises to me, completely unaware that the lunatic he was talking about had actually found her way here.

Chloe’s eyes were red, and her whole body looked like it might collapse at any moment.

When she called Ethan’s name, her throat was so hoarse it sounded like she was holding a blade in it.

Ethan froze.

His body stiffened, and his helplessness was mixed with collapse.

“Why are you here? Chloe Bennett, are you trying to ruin me?”

“You and I broke up a long time ago. If you keep pestering me, I’m calling the police!”

“Get out right now!”

He pulled me behind him and warned Chloe with a cold face.

Chloe cried until she was convulsing, already in a hysterical state.

She grabbed Ethan’s sleeve tightly. “No! I’m going to keep pestering you. You won’t be able to get rid of me for the rest of your life!”

“I’ve already figured it out. I still love you. I can’t live without you. The thought of you marrying another woman makes my heart hurt so badly I could die.”

“You can call me cheap, or shameless, or whatever you want, but I won’t let go!”

Ethan’s face turned red, then white.

As for me, I wanted nothing more than to find a crack in the floor and crawl inside.

All around us were friends and relatives who had come to attend my father’s birthday party.

Noisy whispers poured into my ears.

In that instant, I only felt dizzy and unsteady, as if my head were heavy and my feet were light.

Using my last shred of reason, I said to Ethan, “If you two want to make a scene, go outside. Ethan Parker, take this crazy woman and get out of my house.”

Chloe gave two cold laughs.

“Ava Mitchell, don’t act like you’re above all this. Who do you think drove me crazy?”

“Ethan and I were together for ten years. If it weren’t for you, we’d already be married by now!”

“Do you really think he loves you? He only took a fancy to your family background!”

“If you were like me and lived in the mud, would he even give you a second look?”

“Chloe Bennett! Shut the hell up!”

Ethan panicked so badly his hands trembled, and he clamped down hard on Chloe’s arm before dragging her out of my house.

Looking at the backs of the two of them as they left, I could no longer hold it in and turned to run into the bathroom.

I threw up until the world spun.

The feelings of these three years were like a rotten piece of flesh growing on my body.

If I wanted to cut it out, it was bound to hurt.

Only after I had thrown up everything in my stomach did I stagger out of the bathroom.

That was when I discovered that all the relatives and friends attending the birthday party had already left.

Only my parents were waiting at the door.

I could no longer hold it in and cried until my heart felt torn apart.

“Dad, Mom, I don’t want to marry him anymore.”

Mom held me in her arms and gently squeezed the back of my neck to comfort me, just like she did when I was little.

“Okay. Then don’t marry him.”

“Sweetheart, your father and I only want you to be happy.”

I cried so hard I could barely breathe, my head throbbed dully, and even breathing felt exhausting.

The next second, I actually fainted.

My fever reached 104 degrees.

When I was sent to the hospital, my whole body was burning like a ball of fire.

It felt as if I had a long, endless dream.

When I woke again, it was already nighttime.

My parents had gone out to buy me food.

I was the only one left in the hospital room.

Finally, I could properly catch my breath.

But the door was suddenly pushed open.