Chapter 1

From elementary school onward, I spent sixteen years chasing after Julian Vance.

I went from being an unnoticed little shadow trailing behind him, to his personal assistant, and finally, his secret girlfriend.

At last, I had earned his attention.

But the moment Maya came back, she became the only person he could see.

"Julian, you're so afraid her future will be ruined... but aren't you afraid of ruining mine?"

During an emergency surgery, Maya made a fatal mistake that caused the patient to suffer massive hemorrhaging.

And Julian actually expected me to take the blame for her.

With obvious impatience, he said,

"As compensation, we'll get married next week. Isn't that what you've wanted all these years?"

I spent more than a decade loving and following him, only for him to use marriage as a bargaining chip—to convince me to shoulder a crime that would destroy my entire future for another woman.

I let out a bitter laugh.

"Let's break up."

Chloe's POV

I chased Julian Vance for over ten years.

I went from being his quiet little shadow to his first surgical assistant, and finally, to his girlfriend.

But just three months after we officially became a couple, I decided to let go.

"Mom, I want to come home. I'm going to resign from my job here in Boston."

On the other end of the line, my mother sounded incredibly shocked.

"Aren't you and Julian dating now? Did you guys have a fight? Does he know about this?"

"It took you so long to finally be with him. Don't do anything impulsive, sweetheart."

I blinked back the tears that threatened to spill over and kept my voice steady.

"I'm not being impulsive, Mom. We didn't fight either. I've just thought it through."

"I have to go, Mom. Let's talk another day."

Before she could say anything else, I hung up.

I had to. If I stayed on the line any longer, I wouldn't be able to choke back my sobs.

Since we were kids, everyone around me knew I loved Julian.

My parents, teachers, classmates, colleagues. It was obvious to everyone.

After high school, I abandoned my dream of studying literature and applied to medical school just to follow him.

At the hospital, I gave up opportunities to lead my own surgical team and perform solo surgeries. Instead, I willingly worked as Julian's assistant. I did that for five whole years.

I didn't just assist him at work. I took care of every single detail of his personal life.

After every late shift or overnight surgery, no matter how late it was, a hot bowl of homemade soup was always waiting on his desk.

Before work every morning, his clothes were ironed, perfectly matched, and hung in front of the mirror.

In the operating room, our chemistry was flawless. Our colleagues called me Julian's perfect match on the table.

To our co-workers, I was already someone special to him.

Julian, a medical prodigy with an extreme neat-freak personality, never allowed anyone inside his private lounge. Except for me.

Julian, who was always cold and distant to everyone, would occasionally smile just for me.

But what was the reality?

Every time I entered his lounge, it was only to clean and disinfect it. The moment I finished, I left.

I never even dared to sit on his bed.

And those rare smiles? They were just polite gestures. He was well-mannered, and he smiled out of basic courtesy for my endless efforts.

Not to mention, absolutely nobody knew we had actually become a couple three months ago.

And this hidden relationship wasn't because Julian had suddenly fallen for me. It was something I bought with half my life.

Three months ago, our department admitted a critical patient in the middle of the night.

By the time the patient arrived, they had missed the optimal surgical window. Julian operated for over ten hours, but the patient died on the table.

The patient's son refused to accept the outcome. Drunk and furious, he rushed into Julian's office wielding a knife.

Exhausted after the surgery, Julian couldn't even react. I threw myself in front of him and took the blade.

The stab wound was less than half an inch from my spleen. I spent three days in the ICU.

When I finally opened my eyes, Julian, who was always meticulously neat, had messy hair and a wrinkled shirt.

He held my hand, his voice raspy. "Be my girlfriend."

Having known him for twenty years, I could read his eyes. I saw fear, and I saw guilt. But there was not a single spark of love.

He didn't want to date me. He just felt like he owed me his life, and he wanted to pay me back.

But I nodded anyway.

Back then, I thought that even if he didn't love me, I would be satisfied just staying by his side forever.

Too bad my romantic bubble burst after only a month.

Because Maya Mitchell appeared.

Just before clocking out today, the big screen in our department was broadcasting a live stream of the International Medical Forum that Julian was attending.

This forum was an annual event. In the past, I had asked Julian if I could go with him.

His answer back then was, "You aren't a lead surgeon. You don't have the credentials."

But Maya wasn't a lead surgeon either.

Right now, Maya was sitting next to him on the screen. She leaned in to whisper something, and Julian tilted his head closer, offering her a warm, gentle smile.

My colleagues were gossiping excitedly.

"Maya is so lucky. Her dad is the Chief of Medicine, and she has Julian mentoring her. She gets to attend this kind of international forum during her residency!"

"That's nothing. Look at Julian's face. He's never even looked that close to Chloe. If you ask me, there's definitely something going on between them."

Someone noticed me, cleared their throat, and cut the conversation short. The looks they threw me were filled with pity.

Everyone knew I liked Julian, but nobody knew I was his actual girlfriend.

I looked at the screen, a bitter taste in my mouth.

I couldn't blame them for thinking they were together. Even I thought so.

Usually, Julian smiled at me too. But that smile was always polite, reserved, and distant.

But his smile toward Maya was natural, effortless, and warm.

I used to think Julian was just a naturally cold person.

But the moment Maya showed up, his coldness melted away.

Maya was the Chief's daughter. After graduation, she was placed directly into Julian's surgical team.

She was bubbly, outgoing, and completely ignored social boundaries.

She didn't care about Julian's personal space or his neat-freak habits. She dared to grab food directly from his plate, and she even napped in his private lounge.

Julian would, at most, scowl a little. He never said a harsh word to her.

But he was never like that with me.

Once, when we were walking, I stepped slightly too close and brushed against his sleeve. His face immediately darkened, and he stopped talking to me for the rest of the day.

The contrast was brutal. I had to face the truth: he really didn't love me. Not even a little.

I pulled my thoughts back, stood up, and started packing my things.

Actually, I didn't have much to pack. This was Julian's apartment. I had moved in after we made things official.

I just wanted to make it easier to take care of his daily life.

But Julian's apartment was so aggressively minimalist that buying even a decorative mug felt like a crime.

Even so, I had managed to add two potted plants, two throw pillows, a small rug, and a few colorful plates over the months.

I had hoped to slowly blend into his life. I just didn't expect it to end so quickly.

I had just packed these things into a cardboard box, intending to throw them out, when the front door opened.