Chapter 3

Audrey helped Damon into the bathroom to take a shower.

"I didn't bring a change of clothes. Find me something I can wear." Damon said.

Steam filled the room, making the intimate atmosphere even more charged.

When Audrey came out, she opened our chat.

"I was a little harsh with you just now, but Damon really is innocent.

"Come out already. Stop playing hide-and-seek with me. I'm really tired today.

"There really isn't anything between Damon and me. Stop jumping to conclusions all the time!"

She sent a stream of voice messages as she walked toward the bedroom.

She knew that whenever I had an episode and lost my temper, I would deliberately hide. Sometimes it took her two hours to find me.

"I brought your favorite little cake. If you don't come out and eat it, the cream is going to melt."

She turned on the bedroom light and instinctively glanced at the bed. Then she sighed. One hand continued holding down the voice-message button while the other reached for the closet door.

I suddenly became nervous. My heart pounded relentlessly.

What would she do if she saw my corpse?

Would she be devastated, or would she feel relieved?

As she opened the door, my heart rose into my throat. I could already see half of my body sticking out.

But Audrey's attention was still on her phone. She continued bombarding me with voice messages without even looking down, casually pulling out one of my shirts.

I wanted to call out to her, but when I opened my mouth, no sound came out.

The closet fell dark again.

I looked at the cream on the table, which had melted in the warm air from the AC.

Suddenly, I felt a pang of regret. She had promised me that every time we ate cake, we'd do it together. I sat at the table, imagining Audrey sitting beside me and telling me to make a wish.

Before long, Damon emerged with his hair still dripping wet. The shirt only covered half his body, and the open collar was soaked through. The outline of his body showed faintly through the fabric.

"Since Preston doesn't want to come out, can I dry my hair in your bedroom?"

Audrey frowned and glanced at her phone, which still had no reply. She still took Damon into the bedroom.

The way she dried his hair was incredibly gentle. I even began to wonder if she'd once treated me the same way.

Was there really any difference between him and me?

"Audrey, I'll be honest. He's not good enough for you."

The hair dryer abruptly fell silent.

Damon raised his head, his eyes filled with aggression. "You two were never from the same world. Are you really going to spend the rest of your life with him just because he saved your life?

"You've already sacrificed enough for him! Forget the fact that he's mentally ill now. Even if he weren't, do you really think your parents would agree to you marrying him?"

Audrey froze, her expression unreadable.

Damon deliberately wrapped his arms around her neck. "Think about how much money you've already lost because of this man. Your parents aren't happy about it. Our two families would make a much stronger alliance."

He was right. I was just an ordinary man.

Audrey had started out at the bottom of her company and worked her way up. Like all the other employees, I used to follow the gossip about her behind her back.

Three years ago, there was an accident at a company event, and I shielded her from a falling chandelier. One thing led to another, and I never expected her to confess her feelings to me.

At first, we really did have happy times together.

But before long, Damon's repeated interference made our arguments more and more frequent.

I still remembered his warning.

"A guy like you? Audrey is only playing around with you. Don't flatter yourself."

Watching the two of them standing so close together, I suddenly felt like they were a perfect match. Damon was the one who could give her a happy life together.

If my death could put Audrey back on the right path, then maybe it would be worth it.

I looked at myself inside the closet.

Good.

At least I would never have another episode and become a burden to anyone again.