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Chapter 4
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The Quiet End of Us Chapter 5
Henley kissed Joanna's forehead gently before sending her off at the medical school gate."Be careful on your way home," he reminded her gently.A few passing students cast envious glances their way."You're the university's famous heartthrob professor." Joanna shyly pushed him back, discreetly ending the kiss. "This kind of public display isn't ideal.""I don't care," Henley said firmly. "I just want the whole world to know you're the one I love most."Though Joanna's demeanor remained as composed as ever, Henley couldn't shake the gnawing unease that crept into his heart. It was this persistent feeling that made him express his affection so frequently, as though doing so could ease the turbulence in his heart.At his insistence, Joanna agreed to have lunch with him.Late-stage pancreatic cancer had nearly stolen her appetite, but she forced herself to eat so Henley wouldn't suspect anything was wrong.During lunch, he brought up her missing wedding ring again.In less than a
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 6
Joanna rolled down the car window, gulping fresh air to combat the suffocating weight on her heart.So, this was it.She finally understood. To Henley, the one who had once saved him had now become the very embodiment of his trauma. People were contradictory and complicated.Memories of their darkest days together flooded back—the blood-stained walls, the violence, the young man clinging to her as if she were his last lifeline.His desperate whisper echoed in her mind. "Joanna, I have nothing left. You're all I have. If you ever leave me, take me with you. Don't let me suffer here alone."No. Someone as selfish and greedy as Henley deserved to be left behind. Let him drown in his past, swallowed by guilt until he fell into the deepest pits of hell.-Back home, Joanna locked herself in her bedroom. She set up the new video recorder and filmed a short message. Then, she saved it to the memory card and scheduled its delivery."Please send this card back here exactly one year from
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 7
The early morning sunlight bathed the streets, washing away the remnants of the torrential rain and thunderstorm from the night before. It was as if none of it had ever happened.When Henley woke up, all he found in his arms was one of Joanna's scarves."Joanna? Joanna, where are you?" he called.Panic-stricken, he stumbled out of the bedroom, shouting her name as he searched every corner of the house. But there was no sign of her.A suffocating fear gripped him.Although the storm had passed, a lingering dread consumed him. He called Joanna's phone repeatedly.Once, twice, three times...Henley called over a hundred times, but not a single call was answered.He wanted to go out and look for her, but the fear left over from the night before paralyzed him. Stepping outside felt like an insurmountable task.This had never happened before.Joanna always stayed by his side during his episodes.She would hold him gently, her soft fingertips brushing against his forehead as she wh
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 8
As soon as Henley left, Joanna emptied her closet of clothes and burned everything in the fireplace. She tossed anything in the house that bore her traces into the fire.The flames roared, as though devouring every piece of beauty that had hidden a bitter truth.Earlier that morning, Henley had snuck out to the balcony to make a phone call.Before that, his phone had been flooded with over a hundred missed calls and messages from Addison.Addison: [Henley, why aren't you answering my calls?]Addison: [Are you tired of me? How could you treat me like this?]Addison: [If you don't call me back, we're done!]And so, Henley caved. The moment the call connected, his voice softened to a "Babe, I'll come see you today, okay?"Joanna stood just a few steps away from the balcony, hearing every word with unsettling calm. Her heart felt nothing but numbness.After clearing out the house, Joanna took one last look around.She could still vividly remember the day they first walked through
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 9
Lying in bed, Henley woke with a start. Cold sweat soaked the sheets beneath him.He glanced at his phone. The emergency calls from the hospital had stopped, but an unshakable sense of dread gnawed at him."What's wrong, honey?" Addison stirred beside him, curling her body like a cat's as she draped herself over him. Her fingers lazily traced patterns on his chest.Henley grabbed her hand abruptly, his expression dark and cold from the remnants of his nightmare."I warned you—no marks on me. Not a single trace!" he snapped. "If Joanna sees, I won't forgive you."In truth, he had strict rules for their time together.Not only was Addison forbidden from leaving marks, but she also couldn't wear any scented perfume that might linger on him. Anything that might tip Joanna off was strictly prohibited.Addison's eyes instantly welled with tears as he gripped her wrist."You're hurting me," she whimpered, her voice a mix of fragility and seduction.With her lace strap slipping off he
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 10
Without signaling, Henley slammed on the accelerator and made an illegal U-turn, speeding back toward the hotel.What had taken him 30 minutes earlier, he now completed in just over ten.Inside the hotel room, Addison was in shambles. Her tear-swollen eyes were bloodshot, and her hands trembled as she clung to him like a lifeline. She wasn't even wearing shoes.Addison had cried so hysterically during the call that she hadn't made anything clear.Henley could only ask patiently, "Tell me what happened."Through her sobs, Addison managed to explain, "This morning, when I was driving here to meet you, I hit someone. But I swear I wasn't going fast! The car barely brushed her!"My license isn't valid yet, and I panicked. So I called my friend to handle it."At first, it seemed fine—they said it was just a matter of compensating for medical bills. B-But just now, they told me the woman died in the hospital!"Henley was suddenly reminded of the emergency calls from the hospital earl
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 11
Conducting autopsies wasn't new to Henley. He was often called to assist on forensic cases due to the shortage of medical examiners and the overwhelming number of criminal investigations. It had practically become part of his unofficial duties.Before entering the autopsy room, he pulled out his phone to call Joanna. He wanted to let her know he wouldn't be home tonight.The apology he'd prepared was already on the tip of his tongue.No one answered, though.He checked the time—10:00 p.m. It was late, and Joanna was likely already asleep.Still, the silence gnawed at him. Why hadn't she called or sent a message all day? It was unlike her.Before his unease could settle further, a technician called out, urging him inside.With a sigh, Henley quickly typed a message explaining the situation and hit send. But even after changing into sterile gear and stepping into the morgue, his phone remained silent. No reply.The body had already been retrieved from the freezer.As the zippe
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 12
Henley's phone slipped from his trembling hands and clattered onto the floor.He couldn't hear it. His conversation with Joanna from that morning echoed in his mind."Joanna, wait for me to come home, okay? Tonight, I'll make you your favorite fish stew," he had said.She had smiled and replied, "Alright. I'll be here waiting for you tonight."Joanna wouldn't lie. She wouldn't break her promise, would she?No. This had to be a mistake. It had to be.Henley's chest heaved with labored breaths, like a fish gasping for air.Staggering toward the door, only one thought consumed him—he had to see Joanna right now!He ran straight into an assistant coming in, who was nearly taken aback by Henley's frenzied state and helped steady him."Dr. Zeal, you…" The assistant couldn't finish the sentence.The assistant held the results from the fingerprint analysis, the report rendering him silent.Seeing Henley's pale face, the assistant hesitated, then spoke the truth. "Dr. Zeal, the victi
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The Quiet End of Us Chapter 25
Henley instinctively dodged, but the knife left a cut on his left shoulder.Blood poured from the wound, but his right arm was completely immobile. He could only press against the wall to try to stem the bleeding.Seeing that she had failed to kill him, Sophie raised the knife and charged again.Despite using all her strength, she was elderly and exhausted from two days without food. She had already spent all her energy smashing the window moments earlier.After Henley delivered a hard kick, she fell heavily to the floor, and the knife flew several meters away.Henley seized the opportunity to struggle and try to escape. But after only a few steps, Sophie grabbed his neck from behind."You killed my daughter! Give me back my daughter's life!" she screamed, her arms trembling with rage, her face twisted in fury.Henley fought desperately, finally prying her wrist free just before he lost consciousness from lack of air. But as he tried to move forward, he suddenly felt something t
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 24
The autumn sunlight filtered through the window, but it could not warm Henley—not even a little.He stood there, frozen like a statue of ice, staring blankly at the video. It was as though he were facing a trial from the past.Joanna's video continued.She took a bottle of medicine from her pocket, opened it, and swallowed all the pills with some water. It seemed to ease her physical pain—if only a little.Henley recognized the bottle in her hand: Gemcitabine.She gathered her strength, took a deep breath, and spoke the next words. "If I could, I wish I had never saved you. Maybe you should have died long ago, so that your mother could have escaped the devil's grip and lived a better life."Henley's heart seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand, the voice on the video like a huge net that trapped him, leaving him unable to breathe.So, this was how much Joanna hated him.She wished she had never saved him!His eyes widened as despair flooded his being.Through the video, Jo
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 23
The video continued to play on the screen.Joanna's face remained calm as she gazed into the camera, as though she could peer through time and space to look into Henley's eyes."I know you cheated on me when I was at my weakest," she said."At first, I couldn't understand why you would do that. But eventually, I figured it out."Because you're hypocritical, cowardly, selfish, and cold-hearted, just like your violent, woman-beating father. You're one of the most unforgivable bastards in this world," she spat.Every word seemed to drain Joanna's remaining strength.After speaking, she started coughing violently, her palms soon covered in blood.Henley couldn't stop trembling.Why had he cheated? Maybe it started with Addison's deliberate seduction and provocation, but gradually, he became immersed, unable to extricate himself.It was because he could never fully forget that dark, horrific night—the bloodstained walls and the screams of a woman.Those memories were like curses,
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 22
Sometimes, young women would be drawn to Henley's handsome appearance, sneaking photos of him with their phones.One would scratch her head and say, "This guy looks so familiar... but I can't remember where I've seen him before."The girl taking the picture would laugh and tease, "Maybe you saw him in your dreams?"They both laughed, carefree.It seemed as though everyone had forgotten what had happened last fall.-Back home, Henley made a large meal, setting two plates on the table. One was piled so high with food that it almost overflowed, but he kept adding more."Did I not cook well today? Why aren't you eating?" he asked, speaking to the empty chair. "Do you want ribs tomorrow? Okay, I'll write it down and make sure to cook them for you."His neighbors looked on in disbelief.They still vaguely remembered last year's incident, especially Melinda, who had been one of the loudest voices speaking up for Joanna. She couldn't believe Henley would do something so shameless und
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 21
Henley held the ring tightly to his chest as if still holding onto Joanna.The spring breeze finally warmed his frozen body, and long-suppressed emotions began to resurface.When he finally returned home, he leaned against the wall and broke down in tears. It had been too long—far too long.He had thought he would never find it again, but the universe had shown him mercy, giving him hope once more.The ring was mostly intact, though a small section had corroded, losing its original luster.Following an online tutorial, Henley painstakingly repaired the ring. His right hand, now a lifeless appendage, was useless, so he had to practice using his left.The flame from the alcohol lamp often singed his fingers as he struggled to control the direction. No matter how much it hurt, though, he gripped the ring tightly, refusing to lose it again.-After half a month of work, the ring was restored to its former glory.For the first time in a long while, Henley put on clean clothes and l
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 20
One stormy night, Henley's mother came home five minutes late. That was all it took for his father to explode.He had been drinking heavily, lost a fortune gambling, and had been beaten up by loan sharks. All his frustrations boiled over.As thunder roared and lightning lit up the sky, his father's fury reached its peak. He shoved Henley aside and smashed a beer bottle over his mother's head.Blood splattered everywhere.Dazed from the impact, Henley still managed to shield his mother. This time, however, he could no longer feel her warmth.His mother was dead—beaten to death by his father. She died on a stormy night.Henley ran outside, desperate for help, but no one wanted to get involved with the mess that was his family—except Joanna.Somehow sensing his distress, she rushed back from another state and stayed by his side, comforting him.Though she was two months younger than him, she seemed so much stronger.Together, the two of them carried his mother to the hospital.I
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 19
Recently, a legal case had stirred significant attention—not just within the industry but also across online discussions, which were flooded with words like "affair," "cancer," "car accident," "hit-and-run," and more.Every detail of the case was magnified endlessly.It all began when Henley refused to give in to Addison's father's threats.He declared, "Even if it ruins me, I'll make sure the person who killed Joanna pays the price!"Once the case became public, Henley was dismissed from his teaching position, and the hospital where he worked issued a termination notice.Online, voices condemning him surged in a wave of collective outrage. People labeled him a scumbag, claiming he deserved the "social death" he was facing.Despite this, Henley no longer cared.These days, he lived like a walking corpse.After dealing with legal matters, he would rush to the landfill to sift through trash, searching for the ring he had lost.That ring had become his only lifeline.Finding it
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 18
Addison was on the verge of a breakdown when she received the court summons.Unlicensed driving, hit-and-run, coercion to falsify testimony, and attempted murder—the charges stacked against her meant she could face over 30 years in prison if convicted.Her father was livid, nearly beating her to death—only stopped by her mother's desperate intervention.The Shorrocks used every connection they had, calling in favors and pulling strings, but the answer was always the same: "The only chance is if the plaintiff drops the case."For days, Addison had been frantically searching for Henley. She went to the hospital, the medical school, his home—but he was nowhere to be found.Finally, after exhausting every lead, someone told her he was at the landfill.She didn't want to face him. Not after how he had nearly strangled her to death. But she had no choice. If she didn't go, she'd lose everything.She was only in her 20s. How could she spend the rest of her life in prison when she was i
The Quiet End of Us Chapter 17
Every moment from that day replayed in Henley's mind like a broken record.He remembered coming home to find Joanna on the phone, speaking with Seamus. Was that when her plan for body donation began?He also recalled that her wedding ring disappeared around the same time.When he asked about it, she had claimed it was damaged and needed to be repaired. But after searching every corner of the house, he found no repair receipts from any jewelry store.Perhaps the ring hadn't been sent for repair at all—Joanna might have thrown it away.The thought made Henley's skin crawl.That ring wasn't just any piece of jewelry. He had designed and crafted it himself, pouring countless hours into its creation.He had crafted it because someone once told him that a handcrafted ring, placed on the finger of one's true love, would bind the couple together forever.Even after death, they would meet again, no matter where they were, connected by the ring.He'd shared that idea with Joanna when he
