Chapter 3

Evan's POV

That night, I didn't sleep a wink.

Traces of the past 23 years of my life were everywhere in my room. There were the limited-edition teddy bears Kaia had given me, the rare vinyl records Isabelle had gifted me, and the miniature sports cars Anna had brought back from abroad.

Every item held a memory. I'd once treasured them so much that I'd lose my temper if even a maid so much as touched them while cleaning.

Now, looking at them filled me with disgust.

They seemed to mock me, reminding me of my own foolishness and how I'd mistaken wishful thinking for love.

I found a huge black trash bag and swept every last one of those worthless things into it.

In the end, I took only a small suitcase with me. Inside were a few changes of clothes, my identification documents, and a photograph of Grandpa and me.

That was everything I had left.

…

At 4:00 am, the Gardner family's private jet was already waiting on the tarmac.

Grandpa stood in the cold wind, tears streaming down his face.

"Evan, are you really not going to tell them?"

I shook my head.

"Grandpa, what's the point of telling them?" I asked, straightening his coat. "So they can laugh at me?"

"But life will be hard over there," Grandpa said. "I've heard the head of the Sullivan family has a terrible temper. They say she's the kind of person who wouldn't think twice about killing someone—"

"Grandpa," I cut him off, my gaze settling on the pale light spreading across the distant horizon. "Can it be any worse than the pain I've already endured? I don't mind someone with a bad temper. As long as she's not a two-faced snake, that's good enough for me."

I hugged Grandpa before turning and boarding the plane.

The moment the cabin door closed, I took out my phone. At the top of my WhatsApp chat list was a group chat called "Team Evan".

The latest message was from Isabelle.

"Tonight was so satisfying! Seth really knows how to make an impression. Even Kaia ended up on her knees for him. Evan's probably sulking right now. Just ignore him. Give him a couple of days to cool off, and he'll be fine."

I left the group chat without changing my expression. Then, I blocked Kaia, Isabelle, and Anna—in fact, everyone connected to that circle.

Just like that, I said goodbye to the first 23 years of my life.

…

Meanwhile, a club in Belford was still bustling with activity.

Kaia was drunk, her hand clutching the silk handkerchief I threw away.

"Come on, Kaia," Isabelle said, patting her on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it. You know what Evan is like. He can't survive without you.

"By tomorrow morning, he'll be showing up with some hangover soup, his head bowed as he apologizes."

Seth swirled the red wine in his glass, a playful smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Don't you think your little tough-love strategy was a bit too harsh? What if he actually leaves?"

Kaia let out a cold laugh.

"Him? Without the Gardner family and without us, he'd have no idea how to survive," she drawled, sounding utterly certain despite the drunken haze in her eyes. "He's nothing but a fragile piece of glass who can't live without me keeping him safe.

"This time, I'm going to cure him of that spoiled attitude of his once and for all!"

Everyone burst into laughter. They clinked glasses and celebrated the victory they were sure was just around the corner.

None of them knew that high above the clouds, a plane was carrying the young man whose heart they'd broken toward a distant foreign land.

Gone was the spoiled Evan Gardner. In his place stood the future head of the Sullivan family.