Chapter 2| Don't do it in front of me.

Eve

I stared at Nick, unable to still believe what had just happened. My face stung from the impact of the slap, but it wasn't the pain that made my heart quicken or caused the tears on my face. The reason was the person in front of me—the man I had given my everything to.

Nick was a doctor in one of the best hospitals; he wasn't just any doctor—he was my role model, someone I had looked up to. Even though he was ten years older than me, and even though everyone gossiped that I was a gold-digger intern because his father had once been a professor at the hospital, it didn't matter. All that mattered was that I had him by my side because he was the first person who treated me like I was human. But now, that same person had just slapped me like I was dirt beneath his shoes.

My hand trembled so much, and I bit my lips to stop crying, but it was useless. The pain was too much, too terrifying to try to stop it.

“W-why?” I tried to mutter but my voice got stuck in my throat. I could only look at him, silently begging him to tell me it was all a mistake. That he didn't just slap me, that I could see him as a cheater but not a terrible human being. That I could keep the happy memories we shared together.

"Don’t look at me like that," Nick said, his voice cold, distant—a stranger's voice. "You caused it, you stupid bitch. If you didn't run your mouth like an idiot, I wouldn't have slapped you.”

My stomach churned, and I felt like I was about to vomit. His words struck harder than his hand ever could. I almost didn't recognize the man in front of me anymore. "Nick, H-how could you do this to me." My voice cracked, and I hated myself for it. I sounded weak, like the very woman I didn't want to be.

He stepped closer, and for the first time, I flinched away from him. His gaze darkened, but not with regret. No, this was something uglier, something I didn’t recognize. "You made me show you this side of me, Eve. You fucking caused it. Did you think I didn't try so hard to act like the perfect gentleman you always wanted me to be? I did, Eve. I fucking did. But you are hard to tolerate sometimes. It's as if I'm babysitting a child, and you're just twenty-five years old. You act like a lovesick teenager!”

“Nick?” I opened my mouth to speak, but my throat felt tight. All I could manage was a whisper.

He ran his hand through his hair and groaned. “Fine, if you really want to hear the fucking truth, I’ll tell you. It’s true—I used you. I used you to get ahead. You’re brilliant; if I didn’t use you, someone else would have. So instead of complaining, you should actually be happy because there was nothing good about you except for the fact that you’re intelligent.

The words sliced through me, leaving a hollow ache in their wake. And yet, even in this moment, a small, desperate part of me searched his expression for remorse, for anything that could prove he didn't mean a single word, but his eyes spoke differently, he meant every single word.

"You cheated on me," I whispered instead, each word trembling with the weight of my own disbelief. "And now… now you’re saying all these? You hit me, Nick. You—"

"Don’t be so dramatic," he snapped, cutting me off like I was a whining child. "It was just a slap. Maybe you needed it. Maybe it’s the only way to snap you out of this stupid fantasy that you have.”

“Woah, I didn't know there was more drama than this,” the woman on the bed laughed. I had almost forgotten she was there, watching it all unravel as though it were some entertaining show. “If I knew it was this fun, I would’ve gotten popcorn.”

My hands clenched into fists, gripping the fabric of my dress so tightly my knuckles turned white. I struggled to breathe, each gasp sharp and shallow. Eve, enough. You’ve done enough.

It was time to accept reality.

I straightened up shakily, my knees trembling as I stood. My chest burned, but I forced the words out, my voice low but firm. “Fine. Thank you for telling me how you feel. I’ve finally accepted it.” I looked at Nick, my vision blurred by tears that refused to stop. “I hope one day, you’ll give your heart to someone, and they’ll break it without a second thought. Just like you did to me.”

 Before he could hurt me again, I turned and walked out, slamming the door behind me.

The cold night air hit me like a slap as I staggered to my car. My legs felt like they might give out at any moment, and my body shook uncontrollably with the force of my sobs. My hands fumbled for the car door handle, but I couldn’t open it, couldn’t bring myself to move.

I leaned against the car, clutching my chest. I felt like I was crumbling, breaking into pieces I could never put back together. The man I had loved, the man I trusted, had shattered me. And now… now I had nothing left.

The ringing of my phone jolted me out of my thoughts. I sniffled, wiping my face with trembling hands before pulling my phone from my bag. The caller ID read “Mom.”

I hesitated, staring at the screen, but then swiped to answer. “H-Hello?” My voice cracked, barely audible.

“Eve, where are you?” my mother’s voice came through, brisk and impatient. “You need to come home. Your sister’s birthday is tomorrow, and you’re in charge of cooking and preparing everything. Make sure you’re here early. We also have something to tell you.”

Oh right, my birthday is also tomorrow.

I opened my mouth, desperate to say something, to ask if she could hear the pain in my voice, if she could tell that I was falling apart. But before I could even form a word, she hung up.

The line went dead.

I lowered the phone slowly, staring at the screen in disbelief. She didn’t ask where I was or why I sounded like this. She never did. It was as though I were invisible to her.

And that’s what I’d always been.

 I didn’t even know who my parents were until five years ago. I grew up in an orphanage, always wondering why I was left behind, but I told myself there had to be a reason. A good reason.

Then one day, out of the blue, a man and a woman had shown up with a girl who looked exactly like me. They said they were my family.

I remember how happy I was. I thought I’d finally found the people who loved me, the people I’d been searching for my whole life. I didn’t know the truth then. I didn’t know that the only reason they came for me was because my twin sister, Mia, needed a kidney.

I gave it to her. Of course, I did. She was my sister.

But after that, everything changed. Or maybe, everything stayed the same, and I was just too blind to see it. They didn’t care about me. Their attention was always on Mia—her health, her dreams, her future.

And when I found out the truth, when I discovered that I’d been abandoned in the first place because they were struggling financially and couldn’t afford two children, I realized why they had left me. It wasn’t Mia they left behind. It wasn’t their beautiful, talented daughter. It was me.

I wasn’t wanted. I never was.

My tears came faster now, hot and uncontrollable as I climbed into the car. My heart felt like it had been ripped out of my chest, and I couldn’t take it anymore. Nick’s betrayal, my family’s neglect, my entire existence—it was too much.

I didn’t even realize where I was driving until I found myself at the edge of the bridge.

I stepped out of the car, and walked to the railing. My hands gripped the cold metal as I looked down at the dark waters below.

Nobody would miss me if I were gone.

Nobody had ever loved me. Not really.

I closed my eyes, the wind whipping through my hair, and leaned forward slightly. My heart ached, the pain so unbearable that I just wanted it to stop. I wanted everything to stop.

I took a deep breath and prepared to let go.

But before I could, a strong hand grabbed my wrist, yanking me back with a force that sent me stumbling. I fell backward, landing hard against something solid.

When I opened my eyes, I was in someone’s lap.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” a deep voice growled, low and cold. “If you want to die, find somewhere else, don't do it in front of me.”