Chapter 2

My hand, newly restored with sensation, trembled.

Before I knew it, I slipped and fell into a murky puddle in front of me.

Foul-smelling muddy water seeped into my nose and mouth.

The air in my lungs was cut off at my neck.

It was excruciating, agonizing.

Instinctively, I wanted to cry out for Julian.

But the dirt choked my throat, and no sound escaped.

At the last moment, Julian turned and saw me, rigid and lifeless.

"Naomi!"

He frantically hung up the phone and pulled me back from the brink of death.

Then, with shaking hands, he held me close, carefully wiping the grime from my face.

Over the years, similar incidents had happened countless times.

Julian had grown accustomed to it.

And I, too, had long grown numb.

The car accident ten years ago had left me quadriplegic.

Everything below my neck was utterly devoid of sensation.

Every moment, I needed constant care.

Julian had hired caregivers and sought out doctors for me.

But everyone just shook their heads, helpless.

Doctors had given me death notices more than once, declaring I wouldn't live past three years.

Yet Julian refused to give up.

He worked himself to the bone, taking on countless side jobs and tutoring classes to earn money for my medical expenses.

A man with a meticulous nature, day in and day out, he had to turn me and massage my limbs.

He cleaned up after my incontinence, the waste flowing out beyond my control.

A man with a brilliant future, he repeatedly sacrificed opportunities for promotions and raises.

He carried the burden of my care, relentlessly searching for doctors and experimental treatments.

He was only thirty.

Yet, gray hairs already speckled his temples.

A thin layer of calluses covered his hands.

His once tall, upright posture had gradually stooped under the immense weight of his life.

More than once, I saw him sighing over his past glories, or shedding tears at the cutting remarks of his peers.

When I asked him about it, he would just smile and say,

"Naomi, I have no regrets."

"As long as I'm with you, I'll never regret anything I do."

But at this moment, I regretted it.

I regretted living this ugly, undignified existence.

I regretted that my momentary desire had burdened Julian's entire life.

I lowered my head, the only part of me I could move, and spoke softly.

"I heard everything you and Serena said."

"Julian, let's get a divorce. You've done more than enough for me."