Chapter 1

Liam's teenage heroism was all about being the good guy.

Back then, I was abused by my father, assaulted by a relative, and diagnosed with severe depression. I tried to end my life several times.

Each time, Liam was the one who saved me and found me a safe place to stay.

He took away my box cutters, threw out my bottles of sleeping pills, and refused to leave me alone for too long.

"I'll always be by your side," he had told me. "From now on, let the tears fall, while you keep moving up."

When we grew up, we got together.

But he remained just as much of a Good Samaritan.

When his female secretary faced workplace bullying, he was the first to stand up and fight for her.

When she was harassed and became too terrified to walk home in the dark, he personally drove her to and from work every day.

When her apartment was broken into and she was too traumatized to sleep alone, he stayed at her place all night, sleeping on her couch to keep her company.

Gradually,

He stopped caring about whether there were sharp objects around me, or whether I spent my nights crying.

He stopped caring if my violent father was tracking me down with a knife, demanding money.

Instead, he threw a single sentence in my face.

"Can't you just be grateful for once? Chloe's life is way worse than yours. I have to take care of her first."

But pain isn't a competition. It shouldn't be compared.

I wasn't ungrateful. I just wanted a heart that chose me first. That was all.

Since he couldn't give me that, it was time for me to pack up and chase what I actually deserved.