Chapter 4

I did not apologize, nor would I ever apologize.

Winnie held her ankle and yelped in pain. Luca finally gave up and carried her downstairs.

I felt like sneering at them as I watched them leave.

I took out my phone and scheduled an appointment with the orthopedic department at a nearby hospital.

I was planning to visit the hospital in a few days. Who would have expected that I would get injured again today?

After the consultation ended, I limped out of the doctor’s office. It was a humiliating sight.

It was at that moment I bumped into Luca.

He was still holding onto Winnie, exchanging silent whispers.

They looked so sweet together.

A nurse who was passing by mused, “She only has a light sprain and can walk on her own.”

Luca smiled dotingly, “I’m just worried she’d be in pain.”

Upon hearing that, Winnie blushed.

In the end, we bumped into each other in front of the elevator.

Their expressions changed the moment they saw me.

Winnie squirmed around to get away from Luca.

“It’s okay Luca, you can put me down. I don’t want to cause any misunderstandings with Hailey.”

Luca glanced at me, but it didn’t seem like he cared.

“Stop moving around or you’ll sprain your ankle again,” he warned her. Then, he turned to face me.

“What’s wrong with your leg?”

“Minor injury,” I replied.

“If it’s just a minor injury, you should have just stayed…”

Luca was halfway through his sentence when he was interrupted by Winnie. She yelped in pain before nestling herself in his arms.

Luca stopped talking.

All of a sudden, I heard a commotion from the corridor.

“There’s a fire.”

I was stunned for the moment.

What I saw was just the flames at the end of the corridor.

Amidst the chaos, I followed the crowd and ran down the stairs.

However, my knee injury forced me to slow down.

Luca looked back at me. “Hailey, follow me,” he said.

He stretched his hand out to me, just like in the past.

I reached out while choking on tears.

Out of nowhere, I heard Winnie’s voice.

“Luca, I can’t breathe, let’s leave this place…”

I froze up for a second. Then, I watched as Luca retracted his hand and escaped with Winnie in his arms.

He never looked back.

With all my strength, I ran down the stairs. By the time I reached the bottom, I could not feel my legs.

I wanted to feel protected in his arms, just like in the past, lovingly doted on by him.

But my imagination was shattered in the end.

My heart gradually froze over.

The moment I finally escaped from the building, I collapsed onto the ground.

I could still feel the fear and struggle in the dark when I got home.

As I lay on the sofa, I felt my racing heart calm down.

After an eternity, Luca finally came back. He handed me a beautifully wrapped gift box.

I opened it and to my surprise, it contained a small slice of cake.

Luca smiled and said, “I remember how much you loved cakes from this shop, and I happened to be passing by.”

I removed the packaging and finished the cake in one go.

All of a sudden, rashes broke out across my skin. I didn’t care. It seems that he had long forgotten that I was allergic to mangoes.

I said, “Tomorrow is our fifth anniversary, let’s have dinner together.”

Stunned, Luca nodded in agreement.

I got up to search for some medicine to treat my allergy.

***

My cooking skills could be described as average. Though, I was quite good at cooking steaks.

Despite that, I didn't know why I failed so many attempts today.

As I hated the idea of wasting food, I forced myself to finish everything.

Looking at the calendar, I remembered that I would be leaving tomorrow.

This might be our last dinner together.

Unfortunately, he didn’t show up in the end.

The candles on the dinner table had just burned out when I received his call.

“Winnie was complaining that her legs were hurting badly, so I had to send her to the hospital.

“I won’t be coming home tonight.”

In the end, a lie is still a lie.

I followed Winnie’s Instagram. Sure enough, she had uploaded a new story.

It looked like an upscale private restaurant. The flickering candlelight added a layer of flirtiness to the atmosphere.

Luca directed a playful smile at Winnie. The affectionate look in his eyes was unmistakable.

I sighed, “It’s fine, you go ahead.”

I reacted to Winnie’s story before throwing the steaks into the garbage bin.

Since there was no longer any love, it was time for me to let go as well.

Dragging the suitcase that had been packed a while ago, I left the house—the place where I used to call home.

In the taxi, I finalized my post before uploading it on my social media. It was all evidence of Luca and Winnie’s affair that I had collected over the past few years.

I had always wanted our relationship to end on good terms. However, in the end, I decided that I wouldn’t let them enjoy their happiness.

Before leaving this city for good, I typed my final text message.

“Goodbye, I wish you all the best.”

Having been together for five years, we didn't seem to have much connection as we weren't married.

The miscarried child didn’t seem to matter as well.

Before switching off my phone, I received a few messages.

“Hailey Jones, what have you been posting online?!”

“Do you know how much of an impact this will have on Winnie?”

“Where are you going? Come back and apologize to Winnie!”