Zara turned over to the other side of the bed. As Soren watched her curl up with her back. facing him under the moonlight, a strange feeling arose in his chest.
For the first time, Zara wasn’t clinging to him like she usually did. He had always thought he disliked her. Now that she wasn’t latching onto him, he should have felt relieved. But instead, he felt a hollow emptiness deep inside.
He comforted himself that he’d merely grown accustomed to her leaning in and seemingly clinging to him like her life depended on it.
The next morning, Zara woke up late. After freshening up and heading downstairs, she was surprised to find Soren still at home.
Before she could stop herself, she blurted the first thing that came to her mind. “Don’t you need to go to the hospital to look after Ms. Sinclair today?”
Soren might have been annoyed to hear such a question in the past. But now, he secretly felt relieved. It turned out that she had been jealous of Winry after all.
“Winry is just a friend. She got into an accident right after returning to the country, so I took care of her for a bit. She’s already been discharged from the hospital,” he explained patiently for once.
After a brief pause, he added, “Didn’t you want me to take you to watch the sunset? I haven’t spent time with you lately. Let me make it up to you today,”
“Oh, that’s not necessary,” Zara replied.
Having realized she had mistaken him for someone else, she was now planning to divorce him. So, she saw no reason to continue engaging in meaningless activities with him. Therefore, she rejected him immediately.
However, Soren thought his plan was reasonable and insisted on sticking to it. When evening came, he ordered for a car to be brought around. When Zara found herself ushered into the vehicle, she decided not to argue further and sat quietly for the ride.
Soren drove all the way to the city’s outskirts, reaching their destination quickly. But as soon as they arrived at the mountaintop, his phone rang.
He picked it up, and Zara caught a glimpse of the screen. The name “Winry” flashed across her eyes briefly.
She said something over the phone, and Soren hesitated for only a moment before he climbed back into the car.
Before leaving, he simply said, “I’ll come back to pick you up in a while.”
Contrary to what he said, Zara waited for a long time. The sun dipped lower, and even when there was no trace of the sunset left, he still didn‘) return.
There were no cars available on the mountain. She didn’t call him to ask if he was coming back either. Instead, she began walking down the mountain on her own.
The mountain was high, and the road was steep. Even though it wasn’t exactly a muddy path, by the time she reached the bottom, her feet were covered in blisters. Just as she took out her phone to call for a ride back to the villa, she received a message from one of Soren’s close
friends.
It read: “There’s been an emergency. Come to Eclipse Club,”
Most of Soren’s friends looked down on her for pursuing him so persistently and marrying him after two years of effort. They rarely contacted her directly.
Zara didn’t hesitate after reading the message. She hailed a cab and headed straight to the private club mentioned in the message.
It wasn’t out of concern for Soren. She didn’t want anything to happen that might delay the
divorce.
Following the room number they provided, she found the private room. As she pushed the door open and stepped in, her foot caught on a rope. She tripped and fell. Her head hit a nearby stool with a heavy thud.
Pain shot through her, making her feel dizzy. When she touched her forehead, she felt the warm trail of blood that had slid down.
The group of people in the private room took in her disheveled appearance but showed no signs of letting her off. In the next moment, someone shut the door, and a bucket of ice–cold water was dumped over her head.
As the icy water drenched her completely, laughter erupted around her.
“Look at her! She looks just like a mutt caught in the rain.”
“Why, you’re right, Eddie. That’s a perfect comparison.”
Raucous laughter erupted across the room. Every word they spoke was nothing but cruel mockery.
The air conditioning in the room was on full blast. As the wet clothes clung to her body, a cold. breeze sent shivers down her spine. Water dripped from the tips of her hair, blurring her vision.
When Zara finally understood that it was all a wicked prank, her expression remained unchanged. She wiped her face casually while ignoring their jeers.
Some found her lack of reaction dull and lost interest, while others decided the prank hadn’t
Changer d
gone far enough. Someone pulled out their phone and played a surveillance video for her.
“Hey, Simp. We called you here to tell you something important–Soren’s first love is back.”
She looked up. Her gaze landed on the phone screen just as the video began playing.
In another room, Soren was on his knees and massaging Winry’s ankle. His expression was gentle and affectionate.
“See that? Soren left you behind today to throw a welcome party for Winry. She just sprained her ankle, and he immediately carried her away. Have you ever been treated like that?
“Stop embarrassing yourself and make way for his true love. Otherwise, things will be worse if you get chased out of the house.”
The group continued their taunts. Zara struggled to get up. She ignored the pain in her feet.
When she looked at them, her gaze was calm. Her voice was steady as she muttered, “Don’t worry. I’ll step aside because I don’t love him either.”
