Chapter 1

Daisy's POV

I felt my heart break the moment the luxury watch was thrown to the ground. It cost 10,000 dollars, and the receipt was still in my pocket. I had saved three months of my salary to surprise Zachary Guest, my boyfriend, for his birthday.

It lay in pieces on the floor, reduced to worthless scrap metal. I looked at its shattered face and found the whole thing bitterly ironic.

Zachary looked hesitant for a second. He wanted to say something to comfort me, but Wendy Little, his childhood friend, pulled him back, looking completely self-righteous.

"You can't fall for it! Daisy is just putting on a show! If you accept that watch today, she'll definitely hit you up for money later, Zachary!

"I've seen this trick plenty of times! I smashed the watch to teach her a lesson and stop her from always trying to depend on you, Zachary!"

Wendy made her case with absolute conviction, standing tall as she put on the display of an empowered woman. Zachary turned to look at her, unable to hide the sheer admiration filling his eyes.

I merely found the whole thing ridiculous. I stooped to pick up the broken watch, slipped it into my pocket, and headed out without a word.

Zachary chased after me and caught my wrist. "Are you actually upset about the whole thing, Daisy?"

He softened his voice and tried to calm me down. "Wendy might have gone a bit too far today, but she wasn't completely wrong. You need to grow up and learn to be independent. I'll pay you back for the watch, so quit sulking and come back to celebrate my birthday with me, Daisy."

I stopped in my tracks and turned to look at him, realizing that the face I had once fallen for at first sight now seemed bland and unappealing.

"Come on, Daisy! Wendy will get impatient if we take too long!" Zachary urged me when I stayed quiet for a long time, impatience flickering in his eyes.

I took a deep breath and carefully pulled my wrist free. "I'm not going back. I think we should just break up, Zachary…"

Zachary's expression instantly hardened after hearing that. "It's my birthday today. Do you really have to do this now, of all days, Daisy?"

I shook my head and said earnestly, "I'm not throwing a tantrum here. I'm being serious, Zachary."

I had considered breaking up for a long time, but I never found the resolve to end three years of our relationship.

Zachary and I did meet on a blind date, but my feelings for him were real.

I was always the kind of person to pour everything into a relationship. I never believed that loving someone sincerely meant I was lowering myself.

We officially started dating a month after we met. We got along well over the past three years, and our relationship grew stronger over time.

We had even planned to meet each other's families and start making wedding plans, but then Wendy suddenly returned from abroad.

She kept seeking out Zachary, inviting him to dinner and bringing up their past together. She was always talking about how women should be independent and free, while making it clear that she looked down on me.

I advised Zachary to cut down on smoking and drinking for his health, and Wendy called me narrow-minded.

I took care of all the chores to ease his work stress, and Wendy said I lacked independence. I urged him to stop impulse buying and save up for our future, and Wendy accused me of trying to control his finances before marriage.

Zachary eventually began to see my genuine care as nothing but an attempt to get something from him.

If he no longer trusted my sincerity, then there was simply no point in dragging the relationship out any longer.

Seeing how serious I was, Zachary panicked for a split second. He was just about to say something when Wendy's call came through.

"Is Daisy threatening you with a breakup, Zachary? You can't just buy into it! She's obviously bluster and nothing else! You'll be the one getting played if you take her seriously!

"If she really wanted to break up with you, she would've done it long ago! Do you think she'd stay with you for three years if she really meant it, Zachary?"

Zachary's furrowed brow instantly relaxed after hearing what Wendy said. "You should head home and reflect on yourself. Quit threatening to break up with me every time—it's getting really annoying, Daisy."

He said indifferently before turning on his heel and walking away without looking back.

I silently walked in the opposite direction, took out my phone, and called Mom. "You said before that you could set me up with someone back home, right? I'll do it, Mom."