Chapter 2

I immediately clicked on the link.

As expected, someone had posted the incident that happened during the class earlier.

People were arguing in the comments.

[Isn’t Cindy the lead cheerleader? It’s obvious who he’s referring to.]

[I remember that Cindy has a boyfriend. Isn’t this basically asking her to cheat? Who cares if he studied overseas?]

[Wait a minute. Why do I recall someone else getting the exchange program slot instead of Jack? Let me look into it…]

I gripped my phone as I narrowed my eyes.

Something felt off in class earlier.

Since I was applying for the exchange program, I had been talking to many seniors who had participated in it before.

I had never heard of Jack.

So, was he lying?

While my thoughts wandered, the comment section exploded under the post.

Then, there was a new comment.

It was from Jack.

[I just returned to the country, and now, I’m on the campus forum. Looks like I’m just that attractive.

[But everyone, please don’t simply accuse me of things I’ve never done before. It’s not like they’re getting married anyway.]

After pausing for a while, he typed, [Besides, how could Ben compare to me? He’s poor and average, but I’m fit and rich. I’m a huge catch!

[Dating agencies have reached out to me. They’ve arranged ten blind dates for me this Saturday and begged for me to attend!

[So, I’m not competing with Ben. No one can snatch anything from you if you’re actually excellent!]

His ridiculous statements kept appearing in the comment section.

I was furious as I replied to his comments, [Are you crazy?]

[Hey, are you actually mad over this? Do you really think I’m eyeing your girlfriend?]

Jack was obviously taunting me.

[Too bad the person that you love the most is cutting my steak for me!]

Then, he uploaded a photo.

When I enlarged it, I saw Cindy’s face!

My mind immediately went blank.

Cold air seeped through the window cracks, and I felt goosebumps.

I enlarged the photo further with trembling fingers.

There was expensive food and wine on the table. In the middle, there was a ten-inch birthday cake.

[Welcome back, Professor Swift’s favorite student!]

My eyes turned cold as I gritted my teeth.

I was very familiar with that location.

It was Liam’s office desk, and he was even featured in the right corner. He was smiling ear-to-ear and holding a peace sign.

Previously, whenever I helped him to carry his documents to his office, he would always treat me coldly.

He would not offer me a drink or turn on the air-conditioning for me. He even pretended not to see me…

The stark comparison kept popping up in my mind.

After a long while, I smiled bitterly and put my phone away.

Then, I waved the waiter over.

“There’s no need to wait any longer. You can serve the meal now.”

The waiter then served a few bottles of alcohol.

My friends were wishing me a happy birthday over text.

My parents also transferred me some money for my birthday. They asked in concern, [Ben, are you still going abroad with Cindy?

[Before you go, could you pay us a visit? We miss you a lot…]

I paused in the middle of drinking.

Right then, I finally realized I had given up too much for this relationship.

Cindy was the one who wanted to experience a foreign country.

Yet, I had stayed up late to prepare for the submissions. But to Liam, I was the poor guy who pestered his daughter so that I could marry into their “prestigious” family.

I bore with it in the past, but I could no longer take it!

I tore that precious form into pieces.

As if it was fate, fireworks went off outside the window the next second. They seemed to be celebrating my new life.

Midnight rolled around, but Cindy never sent me a text message.

It was not until 3 a.m. that my phone buzzed.

It was a drunken voice message from Cindy.

“I’m sorry, Ben. My dad asked me to attend a dinner event tonight.

“Since we’re about to move overseas, I thought I wanted to spend some time with him…” she mumbled in the quiet night.

I kept replaying the voice messages.

After a long time, I coldly said, “Cindy, let’s break up.

“Since your dad likes Jack so much, you should go abroad with him instead!”