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Chapter 3

Penulis: Existence
The next half month passed in a blur. I buried myself in work, taking on the full project for the “Fragments” series. Day and night blurred together as I worked nonstop, trying to numb everything with exhaustion.

Until one day, Peter Sullivan tossed an invitation onto my desk. Peter was my childhood friend. After Ethan disappeared, he had been the one staying by my side all along.

“Go get some air,” he said, looking at me with quiet concern. “It’s a charity gala. Plenty of collectors will be there. It could help with your designs.”

I rubbed my aching temples. “No. I’m not in the mood.”

“I heard one of Ethan’s paintings will be auctioned tonight,” Peter added casually, like he was dropping bait. “It’s called ‘Years in the Mountains.’ Starting bid is five hundred thousand dollars.”

My hand paused mid-motion.

“Five hundred thousand dollars?” I sneered. “Back then, his paintings couldn’t even sell for five thousand dollars.”

“That was before. Now he’s the genius painter who came back from the dead, with that whole tragic mountain love story attached. Of course, his value’s gone up.”

I stared at the invitation, lost in thought for a long moment. In the end, I decided to go.

The night of the charity gala, I wore a black backless gown and walked in on Peter’s arm. Not far away, Ethan and Jane stood surrounded by a crowd. Ethan was dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, while Jane clung to his arm, timid and innocent.

I froze. The dress Jane was wearing was mine. It was a custom-made gown I had commissioned three years ago for my engagement party. Because it was bespoke, there was a small, hidden lily embroidered along the neckline. Now, that same lily rested against Jane’s collarbone, slightly warped under the weight of her necklace. To think Ethan had given it to her to wear!

I turned sharply toward Timothy. He avoided my gaze, guilt written all over his face. Back then, he had taken the dress from my house, saying he was afraid I’d only hurt myself more by keeping it.

When Ethan noticed Peter and me, his eyes lingered for a few seconds on our linked arms. Something dark flickered in his gaze.

“Who is that?” he asked Timothy.

Timothy glanced at me, then replied awkwardly in a low voice, “That’s Peter. He’s the son of the Sullivan family… and Lexie’s childhood friend.”

Ethan pressed his lips together but said nothing.

At that moment, Jane spotted me. Her eyes lit up, and she immediately pulled Ethan over.

“Ms. William!”

Her bright voice drew attention from everyone nearby.

“You’re here too? Timothy said this was an old dress you didn’t want anymore, so Ethan let me wear it. He said it looks really good on me. Don’t you think so, too?”

I looked at Ethan, who looked away. Instinctively, he tried to pull Jane behind him, but she shook him off.

Then, she stepped closer to me and whispered right into my ear, “The fabric’s nice. It’s a shame it used to belong to you—bad luck, you know? But Ethan insisted I wear it. He said I look great in it.”

There was a sweet smile on her face, but every word she spoke was vicious. Gone was the innocent, timid girl she usually pretended to be.

Jane blinked, her expression turning harmless again, and said loudly, “Ms. William, honestly, after seeing you at the gallery that day, I think I understand your past with Ethan. But you were both young back then. It’s easy to confuse gratitude with love. Now I’m the person Etham. Ms. William, could you just let us be?”

Whispers spread through the crowd.

“What kind of complicated love triangle is this?”

“They weren’t even married. Trying to break them up now would be pretty shameless, wouldn’t it?”

Ethan’s expression darkened as he grabbed Jane’s arm. “Jane, that’s enough.”

“Why can’t I say it?” Jane pouted, looking wronged. “Ethan, are you afraid it’ll upset Ms. William? But if you don’t love her anymore, shouldn’t you make it clear?”

Then, she turned to me, her gaze openly provocative.

“Ms. William, did you know Ethan has this really cute little habit? Every time we’re in an elevator or taking a walk at night, he taps the back of my hand three times for no reason. He says it’s his secret way of telling me he loves me. Ms. William, did he ever do that with you, too?”

In that instant, the blood in my body turned ice-cold.
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  • The Man Lost In the Snow   Chapter 10

    Six months later, my “Fragment” collection became a massive success and won the design of the year.At the award ceremony, the host smiled at me and asked, “Ms. William, many people have commented that your work carries a sense of rebirth, like rising from the ashes. Where does that strength come from?” I held the microphone and let my gaze drift across the audience. In a corner of the hall, I saw a familiar figure—Ethan. I heard that he and Jane had not been doing well. After realizing there was no way to win me back, Ethan eventually returned to her. However, his paintings stopped selling, money became tight, and the two of them began arguing constantly. What was even more ironic was that Jane’s miscarriage had nothing to do with him. The child was from her previous relationship with a gambling ex-boyfriend.Ethan lost it after that. In a moment of rage, he sent her to the intensive care unit. Jane, crying and furious, wanted to press charges, but Ethan insisted it was just a “

  • The Man Lost In the Snow   Chapter 9

    After we started dating, Ethan and I rented a tiny underground apartment. In winter, there was no heating, so he would tuck my feet into his arms, warming them slowly with his body heat. In summer, there was no air conditioning, so he would fan me all night long until I had fallen into a deep sleep. Back then, Ethan had eyes only for me.After graduation, I finally became a jewelry designer, just as I had always dreamed. However, Ethan refused to lower himself and work in a company. He had his own pride and principles, but life still had to go on. For a long time, none of his paintings sold, and all our living expenses fell on me. Yet, because there was still hope in my heart, even those hard days made me feel content.The day Ethan sold his first painting, he took me out and bought me a ring. It wasn’t expensive, but it was the thought that counted. On the way back, it started snowing. He held my hand tightly as snow fell all over us, covering his hair. For no reason at all, I felt

  • The Man Lost In the Snow   Chapter 8

    After that day, Ethan never came to see me again. Online, however, the discussion about the exhibition only grew louder. Some people called him a douchebag. Others painted me as the manipulative ex, scheming in the shadows to ruin his future.Jane, meanwhile, posted several times in a row, playing the victim. She shared photos of herself taking care of Ethan in the mountains, captioned:[Only those who’ve faced life and death together understand that some companionship is the salvation of the soul. As for those who only want to enjoy the fruits of others’ labor, I don’t blame you.]The fake innocence practically seeped through the screen.I stared at my phone and chuckled. I was already preparing to release the recording I had. However, Peter reached over and stopped me.“Not yet. If you release it now, they’ll just say it’s edited. Let the story build for a while longer.”“How much longer will that be?” I asked.“Once Ethan realizes that the ‘true love’ he believes in is nothin

  • The Man Lost In the Snow   Chapter 7

    After that night, rumors spread quickly through the circle about Ethan faking his death and pretending to have amnesia to abandon his fiancée. His paintings stopped selling. Several galleries that had signed with him quietly terminated their contracts.The art world may be chaotic, but reputation still mattered. If a man could abandon his own fiancée just to escape responsibility, how much sincerity could there be in his work?A week later, Ethan showed up downstairs at my company and stood in my way. He looked much more worn down than before, with faint stubble shadowing his jaw.“Lexie, we need to talk.”“I don’t have time,” I replied, trying to walk past him.He grabbed my wrist and said, “I just need five minutes! I’ll leave after that!”I glanced at the passersby around us, already pointing and whispering. Keeping my face cold, I nodded. “Fine. Five minutes.”We moved to a nearby park and sat on a bench.“Jane is pregnant.”The first thing he said made me freeze.“So?”

  • The Man Lost In the Snow   Chapter 6

    At that moment, Timothy, who had been silent all along, suddenly rushed forward, his brows tightly furrowed.“Lexie, stop making a scene! There is a lot of media and press here today. Do you really have to ruin Ethan’s career?”His voice was lowered, but the blame in it was unmistakable. “It wasn’t easy for him to start over. He and Jane are happy now. Why do you have to keep clinging to the past? Even if he does remember something, it’s because the past was too painful, and he doesn’t want to remember it! Can’t you be a little more forgiving? Let him go, and let yourself go too.”“Timothy,” I said coldly, meeting his eyes, “if the one who’d been abandoned today was your sister, would you still be so forgiving?”He choked on his words, his face flushing red. “That… That’s different!”“What’s different about it?”Peter stepped out from the crowd and came to stand beside me, his chilling gaze sweeping over the room. He sneered and looked straight at Ethan.“Mr. Ethan, is it really

  • The Man Lost In the Snow   Chapter 5

    Ethan stood among the crowd. The initial shock on his face had faded, leaving behind nothing but indifference. He looked at me quietly, saying nothing, his gaze dark and unreadable. The air between us grew tenser, but neither of us spoke. Suddenly, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.Back when I first met Ethan, he had been just as cold. At the academy, I was a fallen heiress, barely scraping by under the weight of tuition and living expenses. Most nights, I stayed in the studio working part-time until it was almost empty. Ethan, on the other hand, was the most temperamental assistant instructor there. However, he was also the most talented.That night, the power went out in the studio. Everyone else had left, but I stayed behind, stubbornly working on an assignment under the dim glow of a streetlamp outside the window, just to save on electricity. I didn’t even notice when he walked up behind me.“The lighting’s off. The shadows are too harsh.”His voice came out of nowhere, and I

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