Semua Bab The Man Lost In the Snow: Bab 1 - Bab 10

“A past life?”I found it absurd. We had known each other for three years, loved each other for four, and then I had spent another three years dragging myself through despair. Yet, he tried to brush off a decade of my life with just a few casual words.“Lexie…”Timothy stepped in front of me, his eyes avoiding mine. “Why don’t we talk outside? There are too many people here. Let’s… not make a scene.”Not make a scene?I looked at him, the man who had watched me destroy myself for three years like I’d lost my mind, all while pretending to comfort me, telling me to move on.“Timothy,” I said, my voice hoarse, “when did you find out he was still alive?”He froze.“Was it a year ago? Two years ago? Or… did you know from the very beginning?”Timothy clenched his jaw before answering in a low voice, “Ethan was badly injured back then. It was Jane who carried him down the mountain herself. When he woke up, he didn’t remember anyone. The doctors said forcing him to recover his memorie

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 bac

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

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?”

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