Chapter 3

Kyle’s face instantly darkened.

"Watch your mouth, Chloe! An escort? Are you calling me a freeloader? Trying to humiliate me?"

"Did you forget how you used to cry and beg me not to leave you? Who gave you the audacity to talk to me like this today?"

"Post on Ins? Introduce you to my friends? Lady, you’re in your thirties! You’re not twenty anymore! Can you stop blabbering about romance and validation every day? It’s exhausting!"

I kept my eyes fixed on him, my gaze turning icy cold.

"So you're deflecting because you're guilty?"

He stood up abruptly.

"You're out of your mind! Starting a fight over a random stranger on the internet! You’ve completely lost it!"

"Just spit it out—you resent that I don’t work, right? You resent giving me an allowance? Why beat around the bush?"

"Chloe, don't forget: you offered to give me that money! I never reached into your wallet!"

"If you're so stingy about it, why act like a saint?"

"If you're going to keep throwing tantrums, let's just break up! It's not like you're my only option!"

With that, he stormed out, leaving without a second thought.

I quietly watched his back disappear. This time, I didn't chase after him.

The next day, I met up with Nina. She really was stunning.

Dressed in a cute pink sundress, her hair tied in a playful high ponytail.

Bright, bubbly, and effortlessly charming.

She was exactly Kyle's type.

He always complained that I was too stiff, too serious, too draining to be around.

The young woman linked her arm through mine, her eyes filled with genuine pity.

"Chloe... what did you even see in him?"

I paused, letting out a self-deprecating laugh.

Yeah. What did I even see in him?

"Maybe I loved how cold and dismissive he was."

She let out a soft sigh.

"First, I want to apologize. I hurt you without knowing. That was never my intention. I genuinely had no idea he was in a relationship."

"I’ve known him for two years. He pursued me for a year and a half, and we've been officially dating for six months."

Two years? He really had the patience of a saint for her, didn't he?

I curled my lips into a bitter smirk.

"Don't apologize. You're a victim too. If it wasn't you, it would've been someone else."

"I wouldn't even call myself his girlfriend. He never publicly acknowledged me anyway."

"At best... I was just the older sugar mommy paying his bills..."

Nina was silent for a moment before speaking.

"Kyle pretended to be single. He posed as a wealthy heir."

"With me, he was generous, attentive, sweet—completely flawless."

"Whenever we argued, he apologized first. He spoiled me rotten."

"He bought me designer bags, clothes, high-end makeup. In six months, he sent me over thirty-five thousand dollars through bank transfers, and every single transfer had 'gift' written in the memo."

"If I hadn't stumbled on your video, I might never have found out. His facade was seamless. Not a single crack."

I sat frozen, a heavy stone crushing my chest.