Chapter 2

Dante and I had rented this forty-square-meter apartment right after we started dating.

After graduation, I wanted a better-paying job, but on my tight budget, I could only afford a tiny, suffocating room deep in the industrial slums. Dante hated it.

He complained the neighborhood was a dump and the commute was too long. He flat out said the awful environment ruined his mood whenever he wanted to have sex, so he insisted we move in together.

To pay my half of the rent in this expensive city, I worked a brutal second job, sacrificing all my sleep and free time. Now, he was turning our five years together into a cheap scam, acting like I was the one ripping him off.

"Dante... after five years, what did you actually take me for?"

My tears fell out of pure self-pity. Five years of my youth, completely wasted on a monster.

Seeing my tears, the hand holding the phone in my face twitched, and he slowly pulled it back. "I was just joking. At worst, we can just..."

Before he could finish, Nadia chimed in with a theatrical sigh of disdain.

"And she still claims she isn't a gold-digger. Dante, if it weren't for you, could a girl like her ever live here? You should definitely end the lease next month. Or at least make her sign a promissory note. That’s only fair."

If it weren't for the law, I would have slapped them both raw. But I knew if I did, they would probably extort me for damages.

Five years. I was done playing their twisted games.

"I’m not signing anything. If you want money, sue me. Let’s see if a judge actually rules in your favor," I said coldly. "And I’m leaving tonight. Miss Nadia, since you want to crash here so badly, make sure you pay Dante your share. Otherwise, you’re the parasite."

The moment I turned to leave, Dante lunged forward and locked his grip around my wrist. His arrogant smirk vanished, replaced by a dark, controlling anger.

"Elena, cut the crap. Nadia and I were just messing around," he growled. "Think carefully. If you walk out that door, you will lose me forever."

I realized then how horribly wrong I had been.

I shouldn't have let his sweet talk sway me when I first discovered he was a billionaire mafia heir. And I shouldn't have bought into his garbage philosophy about a 'pure relationship' every time he implicitly accused me of being after his money.

I had foolishly clung to the memories of him staying up all night to take care of me when I had a high fever, gently holding me to soothe my pain. We had genuinely loved each other once. But our love could never survive being treated like a criminal investigation.

"Dante, let’s break up."

The moment the words left my mouth, his anger dissolved into a flash of genuine panic.

"Stop messing around," he stammered. "Are you really throwing away our relationship over this? You’re about to marry me and finally get my family's approval."

He had been on his pedestal for so long that he genuinely believed loving me was an act of charity.

I looked at him, my expression completely dead. "I’m not throwing a tantrum. Since you spent every waking hour convinced I was a parasite scheming for your blood money, go find a woman who actually qualifies to enter your precious family."

I ripped my wrist from his grip, turned on my heel, and went into the bedroom to pack.

A minute later, a furious roar echoed through the apartment. "Elena! You will regret this!"

I ignored him, unfazed by the sound of the front door slamming as he stormed out with Nadia.

I had endured five years of a love where I was treated like a thief. When I was at my absolute lowest, begging for just a grand to save the child in my womb, he chose to look away, all just to run his ridiculous test. That was our first child, but he didn't even know, let alone care.

At that exact moment, my love for him, and the family I thought we were building, died completely.