All Chapters of You Chose Your First Love, I Chose Goodbye: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Asher's hand was still resting on the cold door handle.He didn't push it open right away, fighting the urge to tear the door off its hinges. In the end, he cracked it open just a sliver.The scene inside the private room was even more suggestive than what he'd seen in the video. A crowd had gathered, cheering on a game that was both childish and provocative: a blindfolded game of tag.Lucas had a black silk scarf tied around his eyes, groping blindly through the crowd and calling out in a deliberately obnoxious tone. "Where are you, Katherine? I'm gonna catch you soon."And the woman, who was supposed to be trapped in a corporate video conference, was now standing right behind Lucas, less than three feet away.She was covering her mouth with her hand, her usually cool, striking eyes curved into crescent moons, bright with unmistakable delight.It was a youthful, mischievous joy that Asher had never once seen on her face. His heart went cold, inch by inch, until it felt frozen.

At eight in the morning, inside a penthouse in downtown Grimildale.The warm light spilled through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, gilding the plush wool carpet with a golden trim.Harper stood barefoot on the rug, wearing a burgundy slip dress. She was tall, boasting a figure that was far from scrawny. She was curvaceous in all the right places with a breathtaking silhouette.Long, wavy hair cascaded over her shoulders. She was radiating a lazy, wild allure.In her industry, she was the notorious Legal Queen, a sharp-tongued powerhouse in the courtroom who tore opposing counsel apart in court.Yet right now, as she stared at the minute-and-a-half call log on her phone screen, a slow grin spread across her striking face until it nearly overflowed, making her look like a cat that got the cream."Filing for divorce, huh? Asher, you've finally woken up," she chuckled, her thumb gently tracing the name on the phone screen.Her eyes gleamed with electric excitement, as if sayin

Katherine fixed her disheveled hair, took a deep breath, and yanked open the front door. Standing outside was Lucas, dressed in casual clothing and holding a paper bag in his hand."Morning, Katherine." He flashed her the polished smile of a pop idol, waving the bag in his hand."I heard you say yesterday that Asher walked out, and I figured you'd be starving when you woke up. So, I walked three blocks to get these burritos for you. Have some before they get cold."The morning temper Katherine was about to blow was swallowed back down. But as the hot steam wafted from the bag, the greasy smell of fried meat and cheap cooking oil hit her face and churned her stomach.Before, the breakfasts Asher prepared were always beautifully plated, low-fat meals, with even the fruit juice temperature chilled down to the right degree.She had quit eating greasy takeout food like this years ago. But looking at Lucas's puppy-dog eyes, she suppressed her nausea and took the bag. "Thanks, Lucas. Tha

At five in the morning, before the sky had fully brightened, Asher was awakened by sheer, agonizing pain.It wasn't a dull ache, but felt as though a red-hot iron had been shoved straight into the marrow of his calf.Drenched in cold sweat as if he had just been dragged out of the water, he gritted his teeth and pulled back the thin, worn sheet with trembling hands.A nauseating, fetid stench instantly exploded through the cramped room. It was the sickening smell of rotting flesh. Where he had wrapped the bandage yesterday, his calf was now swollen like an engorged purple eggplant.The wound, which had originally been nothing more than torn flesh, had deteriorated badly overnight. The edges had turned black, and beneath the pressure of the bandage, thick greenish-yellow pus oozed out, dripping onto the dusty concrete floor.Even without any medical knowledge, he knew this was far more than a minor inflammation. He tried to get out of bed, but the moment his toes touched the floor,

In the heart of downtown, at Spears Group Tower.The AC in the top-floor executive office was cranked up so high that the room felt almost eerie, matching Katherine's icy expression.Clad in a white designer suit, she leaned back into her leather swivel chair, slowly swirling a cup of coffee in her hand."Madam..." Jessica pushed open the door and stepped inside with a hesitant look on her face.She had been by Katherine's side since she first joined the company, making her one of the people who knew their history best.In short, Asher was head-over-heels, desperately in love with Katherine. It was the kind of devotion that bordered on self-destruction. The two had always seemed to have a good relationship, making this sudden fallout baffling."I tracked him down. Your husband went to a local clinic this morning, but he left without checking in. Afterward, he bought supplies at a budget pharmacy down the street.""What did he buy?" Katherine blew casually on the steam of her cof