Chapter 5

My gaze must have been too intense, because Elara Vance saw me first. She instinctively recoiled behind Liam, her fingers clutching at the hem of his coat. It was then that Liam turned to look at me, his brow instantly furrowing, his tone laced with impatience:

“Chloe Miller, Elara’s emotional state is fragile. If you have something to say, take it home. Don’t make a scene here in the hospital, you’ll upset her.”

Elara peeked out shyly, her voice barely a whisper. “Chloe, Liam and I are really nothing more than patient and doctor... please don’t misunderstand.”

I gripped the maternity scan report in my hand, my knuckles turning white, yet I managed a weak smile. “You’re overthinking it. I’m just here to check out.”

With that, I ignored them, turning to pay my bill.

Liam’s gaze became strange for a moment; he seemed surprised by my calmness, and a strange hollowness echoed in his chest. He reached out to take my hand, but I instinctively turned my head, and my eyes immediately caught sight of an unidentified medicinal stain on his white coat. His gaze followed mine. He saw me take off my jacket, and he started to take off his own to put over my shoulders, but I moved away. He froze, then stepped forward, again trying to take the coat.

“Give it to me. You like this coat so much, I’ll take it back and have it cleaned.”

I shook my head, simply dropped the coat into a nearby trash bin, my voice flat.

“Just toss it. I don’t like things that are stained, you know I’m a bit of a clean freak.”

Watching my cold expression, the smile froze on Liam’s face. He knew I wasn’t just talking about the coat; I was talking about our relationship. By the time he wanted to speak again, I had already paid and turned to leave.

Not long after I left the hospital, my phone buzzed. It was a text from Liam:

【Please don't be mad at me. I bought you that strawberry cake from your favorite place, the one you mentioned. Hope you get it.】

When the delivery arrived at my apartment, I looked at the familiar blue box and suddenly laughed. He used to buy me this strawberry cake to appease me whenever he angered me.

I mechanically took a bite. It used to taste so sweet, but now it was just bitter and hard to swallow.

That night, Liam didn't come home.

Tearing away six years of a relationship was more painful than I'd ever imagined. Sleepless until dawn, I finally just got up and started packing.

Matching sweaters in the closet, books lined up on the shelf, sticky notes on the fridge... every single item was a thorn of memory.

I remembered that graduation year, when Liam had just become a doctor, working tirelessly, day and night. But he would still come find me on his days off, his eyes bright like stars:

“Chloe Miller, as soon as I get promoted, I’m going to marry you.”

Two years later, he stood before me, holding a ring, his voice trembling, “I did it. Marry me. A promise is a promise.”

The sun was exceptionally bright that day. I hugged him and cried for a long time, feeling like I was the happiest person in the world.

We decorated our apartment together, chose furniture together, and filled the windowsill with my favorite succulents. He said he wanted warmth to always embrace our home.

But now, this home, it had no room for me anymore.

By the time I closed the last suitcase, the sky was turning a pale, fish-belly white. When I called a moving company to take my things, both sets of parents showed up. I hadn’t told them about Liam, so they still didn’t understand why people who were about to get married two days ago were suddenly breaking up.

My parents sighed, not trying to persuade me much, just saying, "Come home whenever you want."

Mrs. Davis, however, clung to my hand, refusing to let go. “Chloe, honey, please give Liam another chance, won’t you? What happened at the wedding, he just... he just got confused in the moment...”

I said nothing, only told the movers to continue loading the boxes.

Just as Mrs. Davis was practically pleading herself hoarse, the door opened. Liam was back.

And he brought Elara Vance with him.