Chapter 2

Regina's eyelashes fluttered slightly at Asher's words, while Cody, standing nearby, made no effort to hide his delight.

Just as she was about to speak, Asher turned and walked toward Oliver's and Matilda's bodies, sinking to his knees one more time without a moment's hesitation as he said his last goodbye to them.

"Mom, Dad, I'll continue with my life, and I'll also live for both of you, too."

His resolute eyes were now devoid of all life without a glimmer of light to be found within them. He'd seemingly gone numb to both physical pain and the sounds around him, simply watching his parents' bodies being placed onto stretchers, then mechanically signing the consent forms for cremation, like he was nothing but a zombie.

As he stood before the incinerator, he peered through the small glass pane, watching the flames grow ever more intense until all that remained of Oliver and Matilda was a handful of light, airy ashes.

He took the small urn from a staff member, his eyes dried out so much that he couldn't even cry another tear anymore.

When Asher finally emerged, Regina, who had been waiting by the exit, murmured to him, "My condolences."

She then drove him to a cemetery on the outskirts of the city.

"I've secured the best possible plot for your parents. I personally vetted everything from the location to the quality of the site to ensure it's absolutely perfect."

She was always like this, thoughtful and considerate to an almost meticulous degree.

In the past, Asher had cherished this attentiveness, trusting her completely with every aspect of his life. Now, however, he realized that such gentle consideration could actually turn out to be as sharp and wounding as a blade at times.

He would have preferred the most vicious insults or a brutal, messy severance—anything but her treating him so kindly like this while she drove her knife deeper into his flesh, causing him all the agony while still making it impossible to pull away from her.

Asher grabbed a heavy shovel and began to bury his parents' urn beneath the earth. By the time the grave was completely filled, his knuckles were covered in blisters, each one stinging at the slightest touch.

It was as if he and Regina no longer owed each other anything, yet the underlying pain remained, sharp and piercing to the very bone, just like he was poking at a blister.

All his strength seemed to vanish in an instant, and he fell backward, unable to steady himself. As his consciousness drifted, he felt himself being cradled in a gentle embrace.

When Asher awoke, the first thing he saw was the focused profile of Regina's face.

She was carefully applying ointment to his palm with a cotton swab, occasionally blowing a soft, cool breath over the skin to soothe the stinging pain.

Once the ointment was applied, she turned toward him and said, "I had a friend get this special ointment for you. The pain will be gone by tomorrow, and it won't leave any scars behind either.

"There's chicken soup simmering downstairs. I'll bring you some once it's cooled a bit."

With that, she stood up, ready to leave.

Asher called out to her, his voice raspy and strained. "Regina, let's get a divorce. You can have all the marital assets. I don't want anything anymore."

What he truly meant to say was that he couldn't bear her cold detachment, nor this hollow, "respectful" distance between them. It might seem as if they were even and no longer owe each other anything, but the chasm created by four lost lives could never be bridged.

Asher and Regina's first 20 years had been a smooth, idyllic journey, growing up side by side. But now, it felt as though they had reached the final chapter of their story, when their departure was ultimately inevitable.

A heavy silence filled the room.

Regina didn't turn around, but the sudden hitch in her breathing betrayed her inner turmoil.

She loved him, but she was also tormented by the death of her parents. However, the thought of separating from Asher had never occurred to her. It never even crossed her mind to bring up divorce with him.

So, she fled the room without another word like a coward, desperate to escape.

Asher's thoughts drifted back to the past as he watched Regina leave.

Regina had made a wish on her 18th birthday. She'd said, "I, Regina Gleason, want to guard and protect Asher for the rest of my life. Even if he were rotten to the core and the worst person on earth, I promise that I would still love him and never, ever leave his side!"

Looking at her now, it was clear that she had truly kept her promise by never leaving his side. Even though she loathed him and no longer loved him, she still refused to divorce him.

At this point, Asher didn't know whether to feel relieved that he hadn't been cast aside or if he was simply struck by the irony of it all.

The next day, he arrived to see Regina with a drafted divorce agreement in hand. He said, "I've laid out all the terms. If there's anything you'd like to change, I'm happy to accommodate."

He uncapped his fountain pen and placed it beside her.

Regina, who'd always been kind and gentle with him, suddenly darkened her expression and tore the divorce agreement to shreds.

The corners of her eyes turned red as she seethed, enunciating every word, "This marriage will not end just because you say it should, Asher Pearce. You owe me a debt that can never be repaid. So, don't you even dare to dream about a divorce unless I personally say that it's over!"

Asher was absolutely confused as he watched her drive away.

He couldn't tell if she was just keeping him bound to her out of pure hatred, wanting him to spend his entire life atoning for his sins or if, perhaps, she still had a shred of love for him and was unable to let him go.

But out of the two possibilities, he thought that the first one was a little more likely.

As he stood there, pondering how to get Regina to agree to a divorce, a voice rang out from behind him. But before he could even turn around or make out who it was, a heavy blow was delivered to the right side of his face.

"Didn't you swear that you were going to get a divorce no matter what, Asher?" Cody growled. "Why didn't Regina sign it? Were you just playing hard-to-get and using it as a tactic to keep her all to yourself? I'm right, aren't I?"

Cody then glared at Asher, his eyes burning with undisguised jealousy.

Ever since the day he was adopted into the Gleason family, he had been irrevocably in love with Regina. For years, he had kept his feelings hidden, longing for the day he could claim her entirely for himself.

Finally, the divorce he'd been waiting for was just within reach, and yet, everything just fell apart at the last moment.

He gripped Asher by the throat, his fingers tightening as he seethed, "I won't let you continue keeping Regina to yourself! She belongs to me—and only me! Everyone who stands in the way of us being together deserves to die!"