Chapter 02

I drove straight to my best friend's house.

I moved all my luggage into the guest room of her apartment, and she looked at me bewildered, clearly not understanding what I meant.

It wasn't until I grabbed a bottle of red wine from her cabinet and started gulping it down without a word.

"What's the matter? You guys broke up again?"

"This time, it's for real."

I put down the red wine and stared blankly ahead.

"Gabrielle, I don't feel that Owen really loves me. What he loves is his job, not me."

A slight sourness tinged my eyes, and I tilted my head back, trying to hold back the tears.

From the moment my mom met Owen, she really liked him. Owen was good at making money, handsome, and especially loyal in relationships, having no ex-girlfriends over the years.

In my mom's heart, Owen had already become her chosen son-in-law.

After we started dating, I truly felt Owen's tenderness towards me. For instance, he moved to a larger apartment to make my work easier and even set up a soundproof bedroom to help me sleep better.

Moreover, he gave me a credit card with no spending limit, entrusting me with the small and big matters of our daily life.

Yet, I couldn't feel any real affection from him deep inside.

"He always tells me to decide on my own, but he's my boyfriend. What I want is for him to respond and affirm me, not just my one-sided enthusiasm."

"For our anniversary, I tried so hard to make the day meaningful for us both, but his mind was all on his work."

"If that's the case, he might as well date his job! It's a waste of my emotions, my time, my efforts!"

The more I spoke, the angrier I got, tilting my head back and gulping down more wine.

Gabrielle sat next to me, munching on chips, following my emotional outburst.

"So, have you really decided to let him go?"

As soon as she said this, my angry mood deflated.

I gave Gabrielle a look and then walked into the bedroom, covering myself with a blanket and forcing myself not to think about him anymore.

After breaking up with Owen, life was still as mundane as ever, but the emptiness inside was hard to ignore.

I knew our relationship probably couldn't return to the way it was, especially since he hadn't sought me out since that day.

...

Half a month later, today, that man appeared behind me again.

I mechanically turned around and saw Owen standing there, holding a men's shirt.

His eyes were fixed on the shopping bag in my hands at the counter.

This was our first encounter since the breakup, and I couldn't lose my composure.

I put the card back into my wallet right in front of him.

Then, with my head held high, I boldly said to him,

"Money from an ex-boyfriend is better spent than not."

His lips were tightly pressed, and his eyes narrowed as he watched me, showing a rare suppressed emotion.

Not just suppression, but seemingly...anger as well.

Was he angry because he saw me buying clothes for another man? Could that mean he actually hadn't stopped liking me?

Just as I was about to explain, I heard a soft female voice behind him.

"Owen, have you picked out the birthday gift I gave you?"