I just hadn’t expected it to be so soon.
Too soon for me to prepare myself to face him.
As we were locked in a stalemate, Aidan lifted a hand and lit a cigarette.
I frowned instinctively. I hated it when he smoked. In the past, I would have snatched it from him without a word and stamped it
out. And the Aidan back then was always so obedient. When I told him to quit, he never touched another one.
He would never have been like this.
He would never have sat there, shrouded in a pale haze of smoke, studying me so brazenly.
I bit back my words, about to speak.
The comments flooded my vision again:
“What’s she hesitating for? Does she actually think he wants something from her?”
“He’s known she was back for a while. He just didn’t say anything in the car because he didn’t want Sophie to get the wrong idea.”
“The only reason he’s seeing her alone is to warn her not to run her mouth in front of Sophie. He couldn’t care less about her.”
I stood rooted to the spot, the silence heavy around me. It was like a bucket of ice water had been poured over my head. The impu-
Isive flicker of emotion I’d felt a moment ago was extinguished completely.
I had no right to tell him what to do anymore.
The hand resting on the car window, pale and elegant, dropped lazily. Aidan expressionlessly averted his gaze. As if remembering
something, he crushed the cigarette with a flicker of derision.
“You want to buy the apartment, don’t you? Get in. I’ll take you to see it.”
7
The ride was silent.
Aidan showed no intention of speaking. But my mind was a chaotic mess of scrolling text.
“Well, at least she knows her place. She took the back seat, knowing the passenger seat is for the girlfriend.”
“He’s supposed to be warning her, so why is he taking her to their old place?”
“Don’t worry, guys. He doesn’t know her real plan yet. Once she shows her true colors, he’ll be even more disgusted with her.”
When we arrived at the door, I couldn’t help but speak. “Don’t you have anything… to ask me?”
Aidan’s hand, holding the key, paused. He glanced down at me, a brow raised, silently waiting for me to continue.
I mustered my courage. “Like why I came back. How long I’m staying. Or… why I want to buy this apartment.”
“Not, interested.” Aidan looked away, his tone flat. “I don’t care who buys it. I’m erasing everything that has to do with you. As for why
26 45
you’re back.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets and let out what sounded like a humorless chuckle. “You’re not planning to try
and win me over again, are you?
I was silent for a beat. “What if I am?”
Chapter 2
8
You can certainly try.”
Aidan pushed the door open. It creaked loudly.
The inside of the apartment was once again laid bare before me. A single beam of light cut through the gloom, illuminating danci-
ng dust motes
Aidan stood just behind me to my left, the fabric of his coat brushing against my sleeve. He didn’t speak, and neither did I.
In the silence, it felt like we had gone back in time, to a perfectly ordinary afternoon during our marriage. We’d be coming home from the market, his fingers looped through a dozen plastic bags filled with my favorite foods and snacks. We’d be laughing and
teasing each other all the way home. The moment the door closed, I’d leap onto him, wrapping my arms around his neck, giggling
as I sought his lips.
Aidan would lean back, exasperated but helpless, until his back was pressed against the door. He’d hold my waist and, with a sigh
of surrender, kiss me back.
A hand suddenly clamped around my wrist.
Itensed.
Aidan released me just as quickly, his expression returning to its usual cool composure. “Have a look around. It’s better if I sell it to
you. Saves me the trouble of cleaning the place out.”
I nodded and took a quick, perfunctory tour of the apartment. “It’s fine,” I said, returning to him. “I already told Sophie we’d handle
the transfer tomorrow. Just give her the deed. You don’t need to be there.”
“Fine.” Aidan agreed without hesitation. His tone paused for a second before he added, with slow, cutting sarcasm, “And you don’t have to be so guarded. If I had my way, I’d never see you again for the rest of my life.” He arched a brow at me. “The only reason I met you alone was because I was afraid you’d say something to Sophie. I don’t want to make her unhappy. Do you understand?”
I took a slow, deep breath. “I won’t mention our past to Sophie.”
“Good,”
Silence again.
After a conversation like that, I knew I should have the decency to leave.
But for that fifty thousand dollars…
My voice trembled as I spoke. “Aidan, I was wrong. I never should have left you.”
A ripple of something disturbed the dark pools of his eyes. He narrowed his gaze, studying me, a thoughtful look on his face. “Go
on.”
1 came back to make it up to you. And I… I realized I’m still in love with you. Could you….” I looked at him, my heart pounding. “Could
you give me… another chance?”
Chanter 2
20 43
A dead silence fell over the room.
The moment the words left my mouth, my vision was nearly obliterated by a tidal wave of jeering comments. I squeezed my eyes
shut, a hot, shameful blush creeping up my face.
After a long moment, a low chuckle echoed in the room. “What’s this? Did your comatose husband in the real world finally die, so
you remembered your old backup plan?”
My head snapped up, a muscle twitching at the corner of my eye. My lips trembled with a rage I couldn’t voice.
Aidan saw it all, his dark eyes missing nothing.
He raised an eyebrow. “Sorry, did you not get the memo? I have someone I love now, too.”
His tone was light, dismissive. But those dark, intense eyes never left my face.
My own eyes felt dry. I blinked hard. “I know.”
Aidan seemed to smile, but it was devoid of any real emotion. In the end, he simply turned and walked away, leaving me with the
sight of his back as he pushed open the door.
“YES! You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment.”
“Hahaha, the boomerang came back and hit the ex–wife right in the face.”
“She should just quit the System already. Even if she saves him a hundred more times, he’ll never love her again.”
“But I guess he still has a soft spot for her. He left the key to the apartment so she wouldn’t be homeless… wait, what’s that under
the key?”
I blinked, my gaze shifting to the clear plastic cover on the small table. Aidan had indeed left the key behind before he left.
Underneath the tarnished brass key was a small red booklet.
“HOLY SHIT! Am I seeing things? Is that the DEED?!”
“Why would he leave the deed with HER?! Shouldn’t something that important go to Sophie?”
My hand trembled as I opened the booklet.
The comments in my vision suddenly went quiet.
On the deed, there was only one name.
Mine.
10
I suddenly remembered.
When we bought this apartment, Aidan had been the one to handle all the paperwork. Knowing I would eventually have to leave, I had specifically told him to only put his own name on it to avoid any future complications.
I guess he only listened to half of what I said.
He had, indeed, only written one name.
But it was mine.
So this apartment was already mine. I didn’t need to buy it at all.
The comments flared back to life:
70 43
So this apartment was already mine. I didn’t need to buy it at all.
The comments flared back to life:
“I get it now. He did this so she wouldn’t have to meet with Sophie again. Smart move.”
‘Makes sense. He’s a self–made billionaire now. What’s a small apartment to him? It’s probably less than what he spends on a sing-
le piece of jewelry for Sophie.”
OMG, I’m dying. His love for Sophie is so real. They’ve been together for over a year, and he still won’t even hold her hand… he’s so
respectful…
Elet out a self–deprecating laugh. So that was it.
I summoned the System. The mission failed. Can you send me back to my world now?”
A question mark slowly materialized. “Are you even trying? You think one little confession is enough to make him fall for you again?
Where’s that relentless spirit you had when you first tried to win him over?”
I sighed. “I did my best. What do you consider ‘trying‘?”
The System was quiet for a moment. “Kiss him. On the lips.”
“What?” I gasped.
“If he pushes you away, we’ll officially register the mission as a failure. You can exit the world and collect your fifty thousand dollars.
“And if he doesn’t push me away…?”
The System paused. “Then you have to stay in this world and see the mission through until you win him over again.”
11
“Is this damn System crazy?”
“And she actually agreed. What a pathetic excuse for a woman.”
“Noooo, I don’t want Aidan and Sophie to fight! This is all her fault!”
I remained silent. In a world like this, someone had to play the villain. If it wasn’t me, it would be someone else.
I began to bargain. “Since you’re making new demands, I want more. One hundred thousand. Not a penny less.”
To the System, that was pocket change. It agreed, but with a hint of confusion. “Are you really that desperate for money?”
“Of course.”
“Is it worth it?” the System pressed. “Wasting the rest of your life for someone who will never wake up?”
A pale, beloved face flashed through my mind.
“You wouldn’t understand,” I said.
The next day, Sophie invited me to lunch to thank me for taking the apartment off her hands.
“I think, even though he doesn’t say it, he’s still hung up on her,” Sophie complained in a low voice. “A lot of people have tried to buy this place over the years, but he never wanted to sell. He’s been dragging his feet until now.”
I was momentarily stunned, then shook my head. “You’re overthinking it. If he really didn’t want to sell, why would he put up a sign?”
Sophie gave me a meaningful look, leaned in conspiratorially, and sighed. “Let me be honest with you. The truth is…”
Before she could finish, the glass window next to our table exploded.
Winter 2
20 44
The shattering was followed by a deafening roar.
Glass shards flew everywhere. Acting on pure instinct, I yanked Sophie behind me. A man in a massive bulldozer had just crashed into the restaurant.
“HOLY CRAP! The villain’s here! Time for the classic hero–saves–the–damsel scene!”
“Who’s he gonna save first? Ooooh, the suspense is killing me!”
“Can the villain just take out the ex–wife first? I’m so sick of her dramatic act.”
Inside the violently shaking trunk of a car, Sophie was terrified, her eyes red like a frightened rabbit’s. A year ago, when she met Aidan, he had already built a vast commercial empire. On the surface, he was just a tech mogul, but in this lawless, fictional world, his power was absolute. Under his protection, Sophie had barely faced a single hardship.
But I was different.
During the years I was winning Aidan over, he wasn’t yet the powerhouse he was today. He couldn’t always protect me. The busine- ss world was a battlefield of open attacks and hidden ambushes. Being kidnapped… I was used to it.
I struggled to turn my body, touching her forehead gently, trying to calm her down.
Outside, the villain had parked the car in a deserted lot. He grabbed an iron bar from the passenger seat and started walking towa- rd us, his expression grim.
“Whoa, is he really going to hit someone with a pipe that thick?”
“This is terrifying! That would hurt so much! Please don’t let him hurt our sweet Sophie!”
“Is this a bad ending? If Sophie dies, Aidan’s going to lose it again.”
“No kidding. He almost self–destructed when the ex–wife left. If something happens to Sophie…”
Looking at Sophie, who was curled into a ball, trembling with fear, I closed my eyes.
Sophie had redeemed Aidan. She was the one who had saved him, who had given him a reason to live.
If she died now…
The moment the iron bar swung toward Sophie, I threw myself in front of her.
12
The piercing wail of a siren cut through the howling wind.
The pipe froze in mid–air, a hair’s breadth from my face.
Amidst a sea of question marks flooding my vision, I remained in a posture that suggested my head was about to be caved in, my
eyes straining to see into the distance.
Several police cars had surrounded the deserted lot.
A door flew open, and Aidan practically leaped out of the car. The first thing he did was look at me.
