Chapter 3

In my haze, I found myself dreaming of long ago.

After freshman military training, Tricia confessed her feelings to me.

I had never considered dating so early. But when the person standing before me was her, I simply couldn't refuse. So we became a couple.

Not long after, whispers began to reach my ears.

"Tricia's real feelings are for Nathan. She's just an orphan who was raised by the Lager family."

"Nathan doesn't look at her that way. He said he was afraid the woman he truly likes might misunderstand their relationship, so Tricia just picked a random boyfriend."

"Otherwise, how could someone like Michael—a country bumpkin—ever catch the eye of the campus beauty?"

I didn't believe Tricia was that kind of person. I confronted her and asked if the rumors were true.

She said they were false, and I believed her.

After we got together, Tricia treated me very well.

From freshman year of high school to junior year of college, our classmates went through several rounds of breakups and new relationships, yet we remained as inseparable as if we were forever in the honeymoon phase.

Even those who had once spread gossip about us changed their tune. They said they envied us, that perhaps Tricia truly did love me after all.

I believed that myself—until senior year, when Nathan returned from studying abroad.

"Nathan is sick."

"Nathan is feeling down."

"Nathan went out without an umbrella."

"Nathan…"

The perfect girlfriend who had once cared for me with such meticulous devotion began abandoning me again and again because of another man.

The name "Nathan" became a thorn lodged in my heart.

So when Nathan sent me a friend request, I accepted it.

Like a thief, I spied on Tricia's social media posts.

On my birthday, she had gone shoe shopping with him.

On our wedding anniversary, she had cooked for him at his home.

And so many other moments…

There were too many to count. Each discovery left my eyes stinging with unshed tears.

…

Pain coursed through my body. When I opened my eyes, I realized I was lying in a hospital ward.

Corey was keeping watch beside me. When he saw me awake, his expression flickered between excitement, embarrassment, and guilt.

"Michael, you're finally awake. I'm sorry. Tricia said you were just jealous and pretending to be miserable. I misunderstood you.

"When you and your mother were swept away, I was terrified. Luckily, you were rescued halfway by someone else. But your mother… I'm sorry. Please accept my condolences."

I didn't respond. The pain was unbearable.

Tilting my head back, I gasped for breath, yet it felt as though I had been dragged back to my previous life—to the moment Tricia broke my limbs and threw me into that bathtub… The agony was so intense I couldn't even scream.

Alarmed, Corey hurried to call for doctors and nurses.

A doctor entered with a stack of test results, his brow deeply furrowed. "The patient has suffered a severe infection from the floodwaters. He needs immediate surgery. Has the family not arrived yet?"

"They're on their way, they're on their way!"

Flustered, Corey quickly dialed Tricia. In his panic, he accidentally hit the speakerphone.

Tricia's furious voice blared from the phone. "Corey, what exactly did Michael give you? Even you're helping him lie now? I thought you were my best friend!"

"Think before you speak, damn it!" Corey snapped. "Do you have any idea how serious this flood disaster is? That two-story house of yours was bound to be submerged! Your mother-in-law is dead!"

On the other end, Nathan murmured that he was thirsty.

Tricia's voice softened with immediate concern. "Nathan is thirsty. I need to get him some water. Stop calling to bother me!"

I had always known how much she cared about Nathan. But even so, at this moment, my heart felt unbearably cold.

This was the woman I had loved with all my sincerity for more than a decade…

The machines suddenly shrieked with piercing alarms. In an instant, the doctors rushed forward.

"The patient's heart rate is plummeting—prepare emergency resuscitation immediately!"