Chapter 3

I pushed open the door to the private dining room. Ethan and Sienna were sitting close together at a round table.

Hearing the door, Ethan didn't even look up. He was carefully pouring warm water for Sienna.

"Have a seat. Sienna felt bad about taking your appointment, so she insisted on inviting you."

His tone was casual, like he was throwing a bone to an outsider.

The waiter pushed the cart in.

"We have a full house today. We only have one portion of our signature truffle pasta left."

The steaming plate of pasta was placed right in the middle of the table.

The painkillers were burning my empty stomach. I desperately needed some hot food to coat it.

Just as I picked up my fork, Ethan took the plate of pasta and slid it directly in front of Sienna.

"Didn't you already take your painkillers? Just grab a bagel or something."

"Sienna's body is weak. Don't act like a child and fight a sick person for food."

He completely ignored my fork, which was frozen in mid-air.

Sienna looked at me with a fake, apologetic expression.

"Ethan, this isn't right. Chloe looks so pale, she must be in real pain... Maybe I should just drink some water..."

Ethan gave me a look full of annoyance and blame.

"Don't worry about her. I've just spoiled her too much lately."

"She writes code all day and eats cold leftovers without a single complaint. She’s tough."

"Now she's learned to fake being sick just to get attention because she's jealous."

I pulled my fork back. It clattered weakly against my empty plate.

For three years, to make sure he had a hot meal when he came home, I had reheated dinners over and over again, learning to cook everything he liked.

But now, in his eyes, my sacrifices meant I was "used to cold food," and my damaged stomach was just "tough."

Suddenly, Sienna stood up.

As she moved, she bumped into a freshly poured cup of hot coffee. The boiling liquid spilled across the rotating table, rushing straight toward me.

Ethan immediately pulled Sienna into his arms to shield her. The scalding coffee splashed directly onto the back of my hand.

My fork slipped from my grip. My skin instantly turned a violent, blistered red.

Only then did Ethan look at my hand. He walked over, grabbed my wrist, and dragged me toward the restroom.

Under the sink, cold water rushed over my burned skin. But Ethan’s voice was filled with nothing but irritation.

"You're usually so quick at work. Why were you so slow just now?"

"You saw the cup tip over. Couldn't you have moved out of the way?"

The cold water hit the raw burn. I kept my head down and didn't struggle.

I only remembered how, two years ago, I had gotten a tiny blister from cooking for him. He had been so heartbroken that he banned me from doing chores for a month.

Now, my skin was peeling from a severe burn, and he was blaming me for not dodging.

We had only been rinsing it for ten seconds.

Hearing Sienna cough back in the private room, his movements became hurried and careless.

"Go buy some burn cream at the pharmacy later. Don't let it scar."

I slowly pulled my hand out of his grip.

"No need to rinse anymore."

"I don't feel the pain anyway."

Ethan didn't realize how much he had changed.

He didn't think he was being biased.

Instead, he took our three years of history for granted.

He thought our love was so unshakable that he could freely give his attention and care to another fragile woman.

He believed that no matter how much he hurt me, I would never leave him.

Back in the dining room, I turned around and walked straight toward the exit.

Ethan called out to me, his voice sharp with displeasure.

"Where are you going? The food's barely touched. What kind of tantrum is this?"

I didn't turn back. I just placed my hand on the door handle.

"The office has an emergency system bug to fix. I have to go."

"Enjoy your meal."

The moment the door closed behind me, I pulled out my phone and dialed a number.

"Hi, Mrs. Gable. The old suburban apartment you mentioned last time... Can we sign the lease today?"