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Love Transferred, Account Closed
Love Transferred, Account Closed
Author: Bill the Bell-Ringer

Chapter 1

Author: Bill the Bell-Ringer
When Declan Fletcher saw the breakup bill, he did not panic. Instead, he only posted a new table in the group chat.

The words next to my name, 'worth considering', had been changed to 'high-risk gold digger'.

The remarks section strikingly read: [Emotionally unstable. Poor spending habits. Prone to asking for things.]

Rachel Black was the first to jump in.

Rachel: [Sonia, Declan is doing this for your own good too. It's not easy for an ordinary family to make ends meet. If you cause a breakup over a cup of latte, how will you handle the daily necessities in the future?]

Declan sent a voice message with a hint of amusement in his tone. "Sonia, you've learned how to keep score now. That's good. At least you won't get scammed in the future."

He paused, his voice lowering as if to coax me. "But don't pull that stuff on me. It's not that I don't want to spend money on you. I'm just worried you'll get used to it and won't be able to make ends meet later."

In the past, my resolve would crumble whenever he softened his voice like that.

A kind gesture from him, and I would forget the pain he just caused me.

This time, I simply turned on my laptop and exported three years' worth of transfer records. It was the difference in rent, utilities, caregiver fees, and nutritional meals. I included the 15 dollars I paid the tailor to mend a tear in his shirt as well as the 2,000-dollar deposit I had secretly topped up when his mother was hospitalized.

There was also the birthday dinner I had cooked myself because he had not wanted to spend money. However, he later complained that the beef was too expensive. That had left yet another ugly record on my performance review.

All those figures, stacked together, looked even grimmer than I had imagined.

I posted the spreadsheet to the group chat.

Rachel stayed silent for a few seconds before sending an aggrieved-looking emoji.

Rachel: [Sonia, keeping such a careful score in a relationship really does feel a little hurtful.]

Declan replied even faster: [Turning a relationship into an accounting exercise—Sonia, you've really let me down.]

I changed the group chat name from 'Love Points' to 'Debt Collection'.

I changed the group icon too.

It used to be a candid snapshot he had taken of us together—one where I was grinning goofily, clutching a bag of discounted vegetables from the supermarket. Now, I replaced it with an image of a blank bill.

Declan finally called. I did not pick up.

He sent a voice message. His tone was not as calm as usual. "Sonia, pick a better time to throw a tantrum. My mom is still expecting you over for dinner during the Independence Day holiday. Isn't looking after elders your specialty?

"Be there at 6:00 pm sharp tomorrow. You feel like you lost out, right? I'm giving you a chance to prove yourself all over again."

Hearing the words 'prove yourself again', a wave of nausea suddenly rose in my stomach.

For three years, I had been trying to prove I was not after his money. In the end, even half a cup of latte was considered incriminating evidence.

…

The next evening, I went to the Fletcher family's residence. It was not to prove anything but to get back my suitcase, which contained a gold bracelet my mother had left me.

Declan was waiting for me in the hallway. He was wearing that shirt that had faded from too many washes, the cuffs worn and fraying. However, the watch on his wrist was one I had seen just yesterday in the appendix of the prenuptial agreement. It cost six figures.

He followed my gaze and pulled his sleeve down. "Stop staring. Your record is bad enough as it is. Don't go looking for trouble."

I nodded and walked past him.

The place was bustling. Everyone at the table looked up at me, as if I were a housekeeper who had arrived late.

Rachel was sitting next to the head of the table, a new handbag resting beside her.

Declan had said her old bag was torn. He could not allow a young woman to go out with a tattered bag during the holidays.

However, when the zipper on my bag broke, he told me to just sew it up and preached the virtue of frugality.

I did not sit down. "Where's my suitcase?"

Declan frowned. "We'll talk about that after dinner. If you behave yourself today, I might move you back to probation."

He still thought I was here for another chance with him.

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  • Love Transferred, Account Closed   Chapter 10

    Later, Declan started to accumulate points. He made a scorebook himself.[Apologizing on time: +1.][Leaving me alone: +1][Blocking the Fletcher family's calls for me: +1][Sending Rachel out of the company: +1]I heard that Rachel made a scene. She cried downstairs at Fletcher Group's building, saying she loved him and that I had no right to keep clinging to him since I did not want him anymore.Declan did not see her.The security guard asked her to leave, and Declan passed a message along through his assistant. "What I owe Sonia has nothing to do with you."He finally learned to draw a clear line, but this realization came too late.I began to live my own life. I ate on time and had my follow-up examinations on time. I bought drinks whenever I wanted and ate cake whenever I wanted. When I saw a dress I liked, I no longer looked at the price tag first. When a friend invited me on a trip, I said yes.When I took my first flight to the seaside, I stood in the sea breeze and

  • Love Transferred, Account Closed   Chapter 9

    After the public apology dinner, Declan went quiet for a long time. He stopped sending money or gifts, and he stopped showing up at my doorstep. He simply sent one message every day, like clockwork.Declan: [Make sure you eat on time.]Declan: [It's getting colder today; don't drink anything cold.]Declan: [Don't forget your follow-up appointment.]I rarely replied. Occasionally, I would send a simple 'Ok', and that alone would make him happy for ages.A friend remarked, "He looks like a dog that's been caught in the rain."I chuckled. "A dog wouldn't be as petty about keeping score as he is."She laughed too and asked, "So are you going to see him?"I looked at the last message he had sent.Declan: [Sonia, I'm not asking for your forgiveness, but could you give me a chance to finish what I have to say?]I agreed, not because I had gone soft, simply because some things need to be brought to a close personally.I arranged to meet him at Garden Restaurant at 8:00 pm. He had bo

  • Love Transferred, Account Closed   Chapter 8

    I had not planned on going to Declan's public apology dinner, but he said that the items had been delivered to the venue. It was the original box of my mother's bracelet.Hence, I went.The venue was booked at a very expensive hotel. The crystal chandelier was so bright that it was dazzling. There were flowers and desserts on the table.Relatives of the Fletcher family came. His friends came. Even Rachel came, but she was sitting in the far corner, her eyes red, as if she had suffered a great injustice.Declan held this banquet not just to apologize. He wanted to publicly humiliate Rachel and also publicly clear my name. Up to now, he still did not understand that the last thing I wanted was to be gawked at by everyone all over again.As soon as I entered, the big screen lit up. It showed the bills for the past three years: rent, water and electricity, caretaker fees, nutritious meals, every penny I saved, every penny I transferred to him.Even my memo was included: [I don't want

  • Love Transferred, Account Closed   Chapter 7

    On the day I was discharged from the hospital, Declan was waiting at the hospital entrance. He was wearing a brand-new suit, his hair was neatly combed, and he was carrying a jewelry box in his hand.I used to love how he was always so neat and tidy, standing out in the crowd like sunshine. Now, I only found it glaring.I walked past him.He reached out to grab me, but his hand stopped in midair. "Nia."I did not respond.His voice was awfully hoarse. "I transferred the money to you. You didn't accept it. The house, the car, you can have whatever you want. I was a jerk before. I shouldn't have pretended to be poor and tested you."I stopped. "Do you think I didn't accept it because I think it's too little?"His expression froze. "That's not what I meant.""Then what do you mean?"I looked at him and asked slowly. "Declan, do you still think that money can make up for these three years?"His lips moved, but not a sound came out of them.I carried my bag of medicine and walked

  • Love Transferred, Account Closed   Chapter 6

    Declan checked the accounts until the early hours of the morning.At first, he just wanted to prove that I was not being treated as unfairly as I thought. However, the more he went through the records, the paler his face became.Three years ago, he said the rent was 2,400 dollars, so we each paid half.The actual rent was 1,600 dollars. The extra money was transferred to Rachel.He said his mother needed a caretaker after her surgery, so I transferred 800 dollars every month. However, the hospital records showed that Anita never stayed at that hospital.The one who was hospitalized was a distant relative of the Fletcher family. The money was eventually collected by Rachel on their behalf.He said the company could not afford the salaries, so we had to save on food. I ate sandwiches with him for two months.At the same time, he bought Rachel a dress worth over 3,000 dollars.Remark: [Good luck with your interview, Rachel.]Declan sat in the study, staring at the screen, his fin

  • Love Transferred, Account Closed   Chapter 5

    On the day Declan returned to the country, he brought me a silk scarf. He had bought it in the discount section of the duty-free shop.He stood by my rental house door and rang the doorbell three times, but no one answered inside. He frowned and called me.The first call could not get through. The second call also could not be connected.He got annoyed and called the landlord, Ryan Steinman. When Ryan came to open the door, he thought we had been arguing.The door opened, and Declan froze in place.The place was empty. My cup was gone. My slippers were gone. My few clothes in the closet that had worn out were also gone. The refrigerator was wiped clean. Even the instant oatmeal I usually kept on standby was gone.Ryan said, "Ms. Golding moved out very promptly. She didn't even bother with the security deposit and asked me to hand the keys over to you."Declan took the keys, and his expression looked terrifyingly grim. "What does she think she's doing?"Ryan glanced at him. "She

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