Chapter 4

As expected, Ethan’s parents went ballistic when they found out about the affair. They ordered them to break it off immediately.

Ethan, who had been the perfect, obedient son his whole life, rebelled for the first time.

"You've always treated me like Harry's ghost! I've never had a single second to breathe!"

"All these years, I've lived like a robot! Do I even have my own mind?"

"I just love her. It’s not a crime!"

That day, with a bright red handprint on his cheek, he stubbornly packed a single suitcase and walked out.

With a smug smile, I passed him at the gate.

But my smile froze when I saw his face. I asked him, "Where are you going?"

His mother chased him to the door, screaming hysterically.

"Ethan! If you take one more step, we are disowning you!"

Such harsh words didn't make him turn back. It only made him more resolved.

"Harry is dead! You projected all your obsession onto me! I am Ethan! Open your eyes! I will never be Harry!"

"You drove my brother to his grave. Now is it my turn?"

This wasn't the first time I had heard that name. I had heard Mrs. Vance gossip about it before.

"If Harry were still alive, Ethan wouldn't have to carry such a heavy burden."

Mrs. Sinclair stood at the door, speechless.

She covered her face and sobbed.

That name was a taboo, a permanent thorn in her heart.

The boy's silhouette was so determined, and between him and me, there was a clear, uncrossable line.

I ran after him, crying, grabbing his sleeve.

"Ethan, are you leaving?"

"Who will protect me when they bully me?"

"Please don't go..."

My begging didn't make him hesitate for even a second. He gently but firmly pulled his arm away.

"Elena, I can't protect you anymore."

"You have to learn to stand on your own."

Those words felt like a dagger to my heart.

My perfect plan had failed.

He didn't have me in his eyes. He wouldn't stay for me.

It shouldn't be like this.

I stared at him, forcing a small smile, my hands trembling as I stuffed all my cash into his palm.

"Okay. I will."

"Take care of yourself out there."

I didn't care about the bullying.

One more day, one less day, it made no difference to me.

But I couldn't let Ethan leave my sight.

And more importantly, I couldn't let him find out what I had done.

And the twisted, dark obsession I had for him.

I thought a pampered rich boy like Ethan would crawl back within a week. But he held out for two months.

The Sinclair family cut off all his credit cards. He went to work at construction sites, washed dishes at restaurants, and served drinks at nightclubs.

He threw away all his pride and never looked back.

With Ethan gone from our neighborhood, the bullies came back.

When they beat me, I didn't even cover my face.

One night, covered in bruises, I dragged myself to Ethan’s tiny, cramped apartment. Through the foggy window, I saw them holding each other tightly.

Vivian saw me and rushed to pull me inside.

"Oh my god, Elena... what happened to you?"

Her eyes were filled with genuine worry. She grabbed a first-aid kit and gently applied medicine to my cuts.

I stared at her beautiful, kind face, saying nothing.

If she hadn't stolen Ethan, maybe I would have liked her.

"Elena, take your money back. I'm doing fine," Ethan said, pushing the crumpled bills back to me. "I'm not as miserable as you think."

"Just take care of yourself."

I clutched the crumpled bills, my nails digging into the paper.

But I want you to be miserable. I want you to be so broken that you have to give up this useless romance.

Taking the money back meant I was losing my only connection to him. I was being pushed back into the shadows.

I had no excuse to see him. I couldn't accept that.

Tears spilled over, stinging the cuts on my face.

"So I'm the only miserable one here."

For a split second, a flash of hatred toward Ethan flared up in my chest.

If you couldn't be the savior of my world, why did you give me hope just to drag me into the abyss?

Ethan and Vivian panicked, trying to wipe my tears.

"Elena, we didn't mean it like that..."

I shoved Vivian's hand away, my voice dripping with venom.

"Don't touch me. We are not the same."