"What are you doing? Who is this man?"I hadn't expected Luther to appear and pester me again. Any trace of alcohol-induced haze vanished instantly the moment I saw him."There's nothing to talk about between us," I said, pulling Dylan along to leave.However, Luther wasn't ready to let me go. He quickly spoke up. "I've already resolved everything with Sasha, Tabby. Please, give me one last chance."During the time you've been away, it was like there's a hole in my heart. I didn't realize how important you were to me until you were gone, Tabby."He kept repeating himself until I interrupted him. "Luther, all I feel for you now is disgust. Stop showing up in my life.""Do you think he really loves you?" Luther shouted at my back. "You're divorced. How could he not mind that?"Dylan tightened his grip on my hand. He looked into my eyes and said earnestly, "I don't care, Tabby. All these years, I've been waiting for you. "A few years ago, when I heard that you were married, I gav
Sasha kept repeating the things Luther had done for her as if trying to prove that his love for her was real.But Luther shook off Sasha's hand as she tried to link her arm with his. "Enough, Sasha! Stop clinging to me. The only reason I was kind to you or did those things was because you reminded me of the Tabitha I first met."Then he turned to me and said, "Tabitha, you were so innocent and full of life back then. But I got used to being with you, and we lost that sense of excitement over time. That was when Sasha came into my life, and I couldn't hold back."But I can't let go of the years we've shared. Come back with me, and let us start over again. Pretty please, Tabby?"I couldn't believe how shameless he was. To say he had seen his past love for me in someone else and do it so brazenly… It was utterly absurd.Sasha stood frozen, wiping her tears as she slowly processed his words. "Then what about our child? If you don't care about the baby, I'll jump right now!"She ran t
His eyes were slightly red as he spoke in a hoarse voice. "Why did you block me?"My thoughts drifted back to the day I had deleted our chat history and blocked him. I said, "Luther, I already told you that we're divorced. I've also resigned from your company. Why are you here?"Upon hearing those words, he swallowed as if he were trying to suppress his emotions.He then admitted remorsefully, "Our divorce was my fault. I misunderstood you, and I impulsively signed the divorce papers."I've looked into what happened with the project. It was wrong of me to accuse you. I shouldn't have been so rash to assume it was you. I'm sorry. Can you give me another chance?"I looked at him with scorn. From the time we had signed the divorce application to the 30-day cooling-off period, he'd had many chances to reconsider.He didn't realize that the reason I wanted a divorce wasn't because of his baseless accusations about the project. That had merely been the last straw that had broken the se
"Luther, just investigate, and you'll know whether I truly did all these things you're accusing me of. And while you're at it, tell Sasha that if she can dedicate this much time to pulling such petty tricks, she might as well use that time to improve her work capabilities."I then hung up, blocked Luther, and deleted his number.After a moment's hesitation, I pulled up our chat history and deleted all our conversations. Years of messages—from our first meeting to the height of our romance—slowly cleared out as my phone processed the large data load.Watching it all disappear felt bittersweet.I slipped my phone into my pocket. Then, I turned to face Grandma and Uncle David with a lighthearted smile to ease their worries.When we reached home, I discovered that Uncle David had already prepared a clean and cozy room for me."See if you like it, Tabby. I have no idea what a woman your age likes, so I just bought these things randomly," he explained, scratching his head awkwardly.B
Through the plane's window, the city grew smaller and smaller until it finally disappeared from view.For the first time, I truly felt like I was leaving.I wondered what expression Luther would show when he realized I was gone. Would it be one of shock? Or perhaps he would feel relieved that he had finally gotten rid of me.From what I could recall, we had been inseparable lovers and perfectly synchronized work partners. We were the model couple everyone envied.I remembered how, after my parents passed away, he had held me and said, "I'll take good care of you. From now on, I'll be your family."How had that turned into "Tabitha couldn't possibly leave me because her parents are dead"? How did his compassion and sympathy for me become the very reason he believed I couldn't walk away from our relationship?Those thoughts gave me a headache. I didn't want to dwell on them anymore.I had read online that the best way to deal with a relationship that made one unhappy was to end it
The next day marked the last day of the divorce cooling-off period. After that, Luther and I would have nothing to do with each other.I was watering my plants on the balcony when the ring on my finger slipped off and fell over the edge. Instinctively, I leaned forward to try to retrieve it."What are you doing?" Luther grabbed my arm and pulled me back forcefully. His eyes were filled with concern and urgency. "Do you realize how dangerous that was?" It almost seemed like he still cared about me."The ring fell," I replied.That ring was something he had made for me by hand back then. I loved its design, so I had been wearing it all this time. That was why I reacted so impulsively when it fell.He let out a breath he had been holding. "It's just a ring. I can buy you another one. There's no need to do this."Just a ring, huh? I glanced at his hand and noticed how bare his ring finger was. He had already removed his own ring long ago."Tomorrow is our wedding anniversary. I'll