Chapter 2

I ignored John, who was struck dumb on the spot. Then, I turned to the car and headed home.

Unexpectedly, I saw Lana on the sofa the moment I stepped into the house. She was wearing my pajamas and drinking coffee.

When she saw me, Lana acted surprised and let go of the cup. I heard a loud crack. She had smashed the clay cup I made with John into pieces.

She pretentiously covered her lips. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

While talking, she raised her leg and ruined all the intimate photos I had with John on the table.

Then, she walked toward me while stepping on those photos indifferently. She even clicked her tongue.

“Are you furious, Grace? But you can’t do anything. John loves me deeply. And I just destroyed these unworthy things. Even if…”

I took some photos, which dialed down her haughtiness.

I looked down at the evidence in my phone and met her shocked, distorted expression. Then, I said sternly, “You deliberately destroyed my belongings. The original price is eight thousand dollars. Would you like to compensate me or watch me file a report? Pick one.”

Coincidentally, John heard that when he hurried home from the hospital.

Lana immediately turned teary. She threw herself into John’s arms and cried. “I wanted to wipe away the dust on it. But I was clumsy and accidentally destroyed your photos.”

Hearing that, relief washed over John. “It doesn’t matter even if it’s destroyed. We can take another photo. I’m sure Grace won’t take such a small thing to heart.”

While talking, he confidently flashed me a smile.

I calmly called 911. My reaction seemed to give John the illusion that I was being jealous. He deepened his smile and walked forward to open a drawer next to him.

Every piece of jewelry inside that drawer was perfectly kept and meticulously labelled with the experiences that John and I had shared.

He grew more confident at the sight of them. “Grace, stop. I know you’re just making a scene.”

He was still smiling lovingly when I violently grabbed all the things in the drawer and put them in his arms.

“I’ll let you have these back. But in return, I want 30% shares of Star Project, that core project of your company. I want them as compensation for my time during this five-year marriage.”

John was struck dumb. Even Lana, who was standing nearby, felt that I had gone crazy. In their impression, I was always a love-struck fool who wanted John instead of the money.

But I had turned into a cold, calculative monster.

John put away his smile and finally looked at me in a different light. He gritted his teeth and stressed his words. “Are you asking for the shares of my company? You must have gone crazy!”

I smiled and showed some emotion for the first time. But I said rationally, “Okay, Mr. Miller. I’ll see you in court.”

Hence, they left in a huff. I was left in the vacant room alone.

I stood in front of the drawer, lost in thought. It was full of envelopes of various sizes.

I casually picked up a card that had turned yellow. Its edges were torn. It was clear that the card had been around for a while.

[The second of July. John told me that the blue gemstone suits me the best. He promised to buy me The Blue Star, but I think this 15-dollar necklace is very pretty.]

[Thirteenth of September. John told me that the shop selling my favorite cake is closed. What a pity! I won’t get to eat it again.]

[Eighteenth of September. That silly John went behind my back and learned to bake cakes for me. How stupid! His hands got burned. I’ll stop eating my favorite cakes!]