Chapter 3

Ernest immediately caught an unfamiliar scent invading his nose. It was a musky, masculine smell that was certainly not Milana’s natural scent.

Such a strong scent lingering on her body could only be the result of a long night spent together with a lot of physical touch with another.

Then, he felt Milana’s arms wrapped gently around his waist.

In the past, he would have been overjoyed for such a display of intimacy.

But now, all he felt was nothing but repulsion that bordered on disgust.

To be precise, it was a bone-deep loathing.

With that, he shoved her hands away before getting out of bed and walked right out.

Milana immediately scrambled to her feet and threw her arms around him from behind to stop him. In one swift, accompanying gesture, she reached for her phone and sent him a text she had composed ahead of time.

[Ernest, I know you’re upset about me not celebrating your birthday with you. Here, I bought you a birthday cake.]

Then, she presented him with a mango cake.

It was actually a leftover, half-eaten mango cake.

Ernest smiled faintly, then shook his head, "It’s fine, I had something to eat yesterday."

He felt his heart drop to the bottom of his stomach upon seeing the half-eaten cake.

Three years ago, he ate a mango cake Milana made herself so as not to hurt her feelings. It did not end well because it resulted in a severe allergic reaction that would have killed him if he had not been rushed to the hospital in time for emergency treatment.

Ever since then, Milana had taken care to make sure not to give him any more mangoes to eat.

Therefore, the mango cake felt like a silent act of provocation, suggesting Milana no longer cared about him and no longer loved him.

He tossed on his coat and went to the dining table while feeling a violent, churning feeling in the pits of his stomach. He started to feel an agonizing wave of pain washing over him.

He had developed a chronic stomach condition while taking care of Milana for five years.

When he was helping her through her rehabilitation, he would often go through extended stretches without any proper meals. It was a nasty habit that eventually took its toll on his health.

Cold sweat began to trickle down his forehead from intense pangs of pain, which caused him to double over with his hand over his stomach.

When he tried to get up to head back to the bedroom to take the medicine from a drawer, he felt a pain so intense that his legs went weak.

Large beads of sweat the size of peas started to trickle down his forehead. His fingers started to curl uncontrollably.

Milana turned and headed toward the bedroom upon seeing this.

At the same time, Miles suddenly shouted from the front door, “Milana, are you home?”

Milana was elated the moment she heard his voice. She instantly turned around and hurried toward the front door without a moment’s hesitation.

Ernest felt as if the intensity of the pain in his stomach was nothing compared to the piercing agony he was now feeling.

He forced himself to endure the pain and ambled toward the bedroom while keeled over nearly the entire time.

As soon as he took the medicine, he swallowed it without any water, allowing its bitter taste to fill his mouth.

More waves of pain assaulted him as he curled up in bed. In the meantime, Milana and Miles were laughing and chattering away near the entrance.

“Milana, you left so early this morning! I have been missing you so much. I would have had my way with you if it weren’t for our baby.”

“Miles, keep it down when Ernest comes out later. Try to be discreet about it at least. I don’t want him to suspect us. I’m sure you know…”

Through the gap of the door ajar, Ernest witnessed Miles pinning Milana to the couch and sharing a passionate, inseparable kiss.

In between kisses, Miles would declare in an arrogant voice, “What is there to be afraid of? He can't hear us since he’s deaf anyway.”

At one point, a gust of wind caused the door to creak, prompting Milana to turn around abruptly. She felt as if she caught a glimpse of a sorrowful look in Ernest’s eyes.

She quickly pushed Miles off her, then headed toward the bedroom.

Upon noticing the stomach medicine set on the nightstand, she finally understood what happened. She became very concerned and reached for Ernest so she could massage his stomach.

When Ernest opened his eyes and saw Milana kneeling by the bedside, he felt as if he had been transported to three years ago.

Back then, whenever his stomach condition flared up, Milana would always take the time to gently massage his stomach.

A trace of warmth softened his gaze when he recalled the memory.

It only lasted a split second until Miles’s voice cut off his thought. “Honey, I can’t stand to see you treating him so well.”

Milana suddenly pulled away from Ernest as if her hand had been burned by touching him.

With that, she hurried toward the doorway and called out to Miles, who was hastily marching toward the front door.

“Hubby, are you jealous? I promise I won’t massage him again!”

Hearing her address Miles as “Hubby” had snapped Ernest out of his fantastical dreams of the past, which were no longer attainable.

Meanwhile, Milana had followed Miles out of the house and slammed the door shut behind her.

A breeze of wind caused the calendar mounted on the wall to flutter.

There were only four days left until Ernest could leave this place for good.

Again, he was assaulted by a sharp pain tearing through his stomach.

Eventually, he fell asleep amidst the tormenting pain.