Chapter 1

1: 1

Harvey Stephens's savior had staged another suicide.

On the day of our engagement, she left behind a farewell note.

【As long as you're happy, I have no regrets.】

【I hope fate stops tormenting us in the next life. I'm leaving. Forget me.】

Before this she'd jumped into the river ten times, slit her wrists six times, swallowed pills five times...

And every single time she came out of it unharmed.

Still, Harvey dropped me and rushed out like a madman to play along with her.

"Nora Barnes, Minnie saved my life, after all."

"Her feelings for me run too deep. I drove her to this, so I have to take responsibility."

"Once I've talked her down, I'll come back and marry you."

I watched him go without any expression on my face.

Marry me?

The marriage alliance between me and the Simmons family had nothing to do with Harvey Stephens at all.

......

The male lead had suddenly bolted from his own engagement, and my parents' faces had gone stiff.

Herbert Stephens and Eve Stephens forced out a few dry laughs and some words of apology.

"Harvey's such an immature boy. We'll straighten him out the second we get home!"

"Nora, dear, don't hold it against him. He said he'd come back."

I looked at the two of them smoothing everything over.

"So when is he coming back?"

Neither of them said a word. They both lowered their heads.

The mood in the room congealed into something awkward.

Herbert and Eve couldn't take it. They mumbled something about urgent business and made their exit.

The table wasn't just my parents and Harvey's. A few close relatives were seated there too.

The way they just walked out left me humiliated in front of everyone.

Harvey had also made me lose completely to Minnie Henson.

My mother's face was still dark.

"Nora, if you marry a man like this, how am I supposed to feel at ease?"

"Today is your engagement day, and he abandoned you for another woman. Are you still not giving up on him?"

I said nothing, running my thumb over my phone.

Should I give up?

This wasn't the first or second time.

At the beginning, I too was afraid Minnie might actually kill herself.

Even when Harvey went to her, I felt nothing about it.

I just took it as saving a life.

But as it kept happening, all I ever saw was Minnie, perfectly fine after each so-called suicide.

And Harvey, always dropping me in front of everyone to go and sit by her side.

I felt like I was being played every single time.

Even knowing Harvey would come back to me, it still hurt.

Every time before, I'd hoped he would turn back and look at me, just once.

If he had, I would have taken him back again.

But I would never be the one he favored.

Now, I was a little tired.

My parents' words were still circling in my ears.

"If you ask me, call off this engagement. Who do the Stephenses think they are?"

"Nora, think hard about the Simmons alliance again. There's no need to hang yourself on one tree."

"That's right. That boy is very fond of you, and his parents keep bringing it up with us."

"..."

The phone in my hand suddenly buzzed. Harvey.

I opened it, and the first thing I saw was a set of photos.

A selfie angle, taken by Minnie, and the setting was a bed.

The pictures were a little blurry, but I could make out the back of Harvey's head.

He was holding Minnie, comforting her.

Empty pill bottles were scattered across the nightstand.

So this time it was pills.

Some impulse made me tap on the live photo.

The sound came through, clear as anything.

"Minnie, don't hurt yourself. I'm really scared..."

The next live photo.

"As long as you're okay, I'll do anything."

I didn't watch the rest. It was recalled before I could.

The dialogue box showed him typing, then a single line came through.

"Sent that by mistake. Don't take it to heart."

I stared at that line for a long time, not sure what I was thinking.

Finally, I lifted my head and looked at my parents.

"Mom, Dad, let's go to the Simmons family right now."