Chapter 1

By the time the system declared my mission a failure, Kristen Snowe had already been gone for three days.

"Host, you only have three days left in this world," the system said with a sigh. "If there's anything you want to do, you'd better do it now. Don't leave yourself with any regrets."

I gave a bitter smile and shook my head.

We'd been together for five years and married for three. I'd always believed that Kristen would fall in love with me one day if I just kept trying.

But when the system checked her affection level one last time, it found that it still hadn't reached the minimum threshold.

My mission was officially deemed a failure. In three days, I'd be sent back to the world I came from.

Maybe that was for the best. After all these years, I was exhausted.

Still, I wanted to say goodbye properly. I wanted to spend my final days with her, even if it was only for a little while.

I called her again and again, refusing to give up. Finally, worn down by my persistence, Kristen answered.

The moment she picked up, her voice was edged with impatience. "Peter York, do you not understand what I said? I already told you—unless you apologize to Jake Leigh, don't contact me again!"

Her words hit me like a blow to the chest, leaving behind a dull, lingering ache. Fighting the pain, I forced my words out. "Alright."

Kristen clearly hadn't expected me to agree so quickly. Silence hung on the other end of the line for a moment.

I spoke again. "I made your favorite pasta bolognese. Will you come home for dinner?"

She let out a derisive snort. "If you'd acted like this from the beginning, you wouldn't have been so exhausting to be with.

"We'll see. You upset Jake so badly the other day that his heart's been acting up. I need to stay with him."

With that, she hung up without another word.

…

This all started three days ago, when Jake Leigh had posted a birthday update on social media.

It was a photo of him and Kristen. The caption read, "Having you beside me makes even the end of the world feel a little less frightening."

They were smiling brightly at the camera, their heads nearly touching. They looked every bit the picture-perfect couple.

The comments quickly filled with teasing remarks and knowing jokes. No one said it outright, but everyone was implying the same thing.

I had left one of my own. "You do make a great match."

Within minutes, Jake deleted that post.

Not long after, Kristen called me. The moment I answered, she exploded. "Peter, what the hell is wrong with you? It's Jake's birthday. Did you have to pull something like that today?"

A man's voice came through the speaker, tinged with guilt. "Kristen… Did Peter get the wrong idea? Maybe I should apologize to him. I don't want the two of you arguing because of me."

Kristen didn't even pause to think.

"Peter just thinks everything has to be about him," she said dismissively. "What could possibly be more important than your birthday?"

I tightened my grip on the phone. "What about our wedding anniversary?"

Silence ensued. For a split second, she had nothing to say.

She'd forgotten.

Jake spoke up again before she could. "Wait… Today's your wedding anniversary? Kristen, you should go home. Spend the day with Peter. Don't let this turn into a fight because of me."

Kristen gave a mocking laugh. "Oh, come on. It's just an anniversary. We can celebrate it any year. Everyone's finally here to celebrate your birthday. I'm not leaving just because he's throwing a tantrum."

The line went dead after that.