Chapter 3

When I woke up again, I was in a hospital. The pungent smell of disinfectant filled my nose.

My messy hair was splayed across my face. The ward was crowded, with four beds crammed together.

Every other patient had family members accompanying them.

I was the only one left alone, looking like a beggar.

I never could have imagined that I, a graduate from an Ivy League university, would end up this pathetic.

For David, I had rejected prestigious job offers arranged by my mentor.

I had thrown everything away just to run to him.

Even when I heard he had died in a crash, my first instinct had been to follow him to the grave.

Because I loved him.

Looking at my pale reflection in the small mirror on the wall, tears streamed down my face.

A kind nurse, pitied my state, brought me a cup of warm water.

"Ma'am, your fetal heart rate is highly unstable. You are in serious danger of miscarrying. Should I call your family for you?"

Family?

Other than David, whose name was on our marriage certificate, I had no one else.

Suddenly, my phone screen lit up.

The video of David and Vivian's engagement was going viral on YouTube.

The news headlines were everywhere: “Heir to the Jonathan Group Survived the Crash, Returning to Marry His True Love.”

In the video, David had his arm around Vivian, smiling as he accepted congratulations from the media.

I gripped the bedsheets so hard my knuckles turned white.

The nurse took my phone, intending to call my pinned contact.

In a panic, I snatched it back, my voice trembling.

"No... no need. I want to be discharged."

I fled the hospital, dragging my frail, broken body out into the street.

I was terrified of anyone seeing how pathetic I had become.

I ran aimlessly until I bumped into a solid chest. A familiar, cold scent of expensive cologne filled my senses.

I snapped my head up.

David was holding a little boy with his left hand and Vivian with his right. My ears began to ring.

He patted Vivian’s head and murmured something to her.

The woman gave me a disdainful glare before leading the child over to a nearby bench.

Like a marionette, I was dragged by David into an empty hallway.

"I assume you know everything by now. I won't beat around the bush."

He looked at my sickly, pale face, a flash of something dark and unreadable crossing his eyes.

"I have already announced to the public that Vivian is my wife," he said, suddenly pulling me into his arms with what looked like genuine pain.

"Just stay quietly by my side. Whatever you want, I will give it to you."

His hand was gently stroking my back, and the tenderness in his eyes didn't look fake.

But the words coming out of his mouth were ice-cold.

In that instant, an overwhelming exhaustion washed over me.

I looked up to meet his gaze and laughed.

"So that was your excuse? Faking your death on a business trip?"

"David, what have I been to you for the past ten years?"

"Just a clown you could discard and play with whenever you wanted?"

I tried to choke back my sobs, but the tears spilled over anyway.

My cold tears fell onto David’s palm, making him freeze for a second.

"No," he said, suddenly gripping the back of my neck, showering my face with frantic, desperate kisses.

"I just couldn't let Vivian go. I lied to you because I didn't want to hurt you."

Feeling my body trembling, he frowned and grabbed my cold hands.

"Why are you so cold? Are you sick?"

"I’ll take you to see a doctor."

He tried to pull me along.

Just then, Vivian’s whimpering voice echoed from behind us.

"David! Danny’s fever is getting worse! Why are you still over there?"

David’s footsteps halted abruptly. A look of guilt crossed his face as he called his secretary over.

"I'm sorry, Alice. I'll have John take you."

I watched his retreating back, suddenly realizing that I didn't even know when it had started—but David left me with the view of his back far more often than his face.

I thought of every lonely midnight, of the nights I couldn't sleep because of severe morning sickness.

At this moment, all my sanity crumbled.

I covered my ears, crouched down, and screamed at the top of my lungs.

"David! What am I to you?! A substitute for Vivian? Your plaything?!"

"Do I look like an idiot to you?!"

My tears flowed freely, but no matter how hard I cried, David did not stop.

He merely turned around, pinching the bridge of his nose with an impatient sigh.

"Stop throwing a tantrum, Alice. You know I prefer you when you're quiet and obedient."

"I’ll come see you after I'm done."

His hurried footsteps faded away.

The secretary gave me a sympathetic look, trying to help me up to go to a ward.

I brushed her hand away and walked out of the hospital on my own.

Along the way, people pointed at me and whispered.

"That's the mistress. She tried to seduce Mr. Jonathan. Poor Mrs. Jonathan was crying so hard earlier..."

"How shameless."

I felt like a criminal paraded through the streets. Accusations and slander rained down on me, triggering dark memories I had buried long ago.