Chapter 6

Seeing his panicked expression, Sylvia took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. “It’s nothing. I was just talking nonsense. I won’t be free that day.”

She turned to leave, and Nathaniel instinctively stepped forward to follow her.

Sylvia stopped him in his tracks.

“You’re here to accompany your friend for her check-up. Leaving her alone wouldn’t be very considerate, would it? I’ll head back on my own. You don’t need to worry about me.”

Nathaniel hesitated but then turned back to watch Sylvia walk away. A pang of pain hit his chest as he watched her retreating figure.

Vivian, noticing his concern for Sylvia, crouched down beside him. “Nathaniel, I’m in so much pain. My whole body hurts. Will you take me home?”

Irritated by Sylvia’s cold demeanor, Nathaniel’s frustration boiled over. He brushed Vivian off sharply. “Know your place. Stop provoking her.”

Back at home, Sylvia resumed packing.

She couldn’t stand staying in this place any longer.

Thankfully, she didn’t have much to take.

Soon, she had filled a single suitcase with her belongings.

When she was done, she carried the suitcase downstairs. As she reached the table, her eyes landed on the roses Nathaniel had given her the day before.

With a cold smile, she grabbed the bouquet and tossed it straight into the trash.

A housekeeper noticed and asked in confusion, “Miss Garner, wasn’t this the bouquet Mr. Sinclair gave you? Don’t you want it anymore?”

Sylvia replied with an expressionless face, “I don’t want things that belonged to others.”

“But these flowers look perfectly fine. How could they have belonged to someone else?” the housekeeper asked, clearly confused.

Sylvia didn’t bother to explain. She went back upstairs and packed all the clothes and bags Nathaniel had gifted her over the years into a large bag.

“Throw these out.”

“Throw them out?” The housekeeper hesitated. “Miss Garner, you used to treasure these things. You wouldn’t even wear them because they were from Mr. Sinclair.”

“Did you not hear me?” Sylvia said coldly, turning to grab her jewelry as well. “Donate them.”

“These are all gifts from Mr. Sinclair, and they’re worth a fortune!”

“I said donate them.”

The housekeeper didn’t dare argue any further and hurried to carry out Sylvia’s instructions.

Once everything was sorted, Sylvia took out her phone and booked a plane ticket.

She was going home. She’d be gone by tomorrow.

After booking her flight, a notification popped up on Sylvia’s phone.

It was a message from an unknown number.

Curious, she opened it, only to be greeted by an explicit photo of Nathaniel and Vivian locked in an intimate embrace.

The message that followed was laced with venom:

“Sylvia Garner, if you’re not a fool, you should already realize that Nathaniel and I are more than just friends. Are you wondering why we ended up at the hospital? It’s because things got a little too heated between us at the bar, and we accidentally hurt ourselves.

“Oh, and by the way, I’m getting married next month on the first. The groom isn’t just anyone—it’s your boyfriend, Nathaniel Sinclair. I’m his first love, the woman he truly cares about. You’ve been nothing more than a placeholder, a stand-in for the five years I wasn’t around.”

Every word was a deliberate provocation.

Staring at the photo and message, Sylvia felt her heart twist with pain.

How could five years of their relationship mean nothing?

Her hands trembled as she gripped the phone, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.

At that moment, the front door opened.

Nathaniel was back.

He slipped his arms around her from behind, his voice low and tender. “Sylvia, why are you crying again? I’m home now. There’s really nothing going on between me and her. I didn’t make it back last night because I drank too much with the guys.

“As for Vivian, she’s just a friend. She just got back from overseas, and I ran into her this morning. Don’t overthink it, okay?”

Sylvia wiped her tears, quietly shutting off her phone.

“I understand.”

She pushed him away and studied his face. It was still as clean-cut and bright as it had been five years ago—handsome, charming, and deceptively pure.

But his heart?

His heart had completely changed.