Chapter 2

I lay awake in the dark for a long time, silent, before finally breaking the quiet. "Chloe, why did you suddenly decide to get a tattoo?"

She didn't answer, but I knew she wasn't asleep. Just a moment ago, a faint light had flickered from under her blanket.

The next morning, when I woke up, the spot beside me was cold. She was already gone.

My back was still throbbing from hitting the sink last night. After much tossing and turning, I decided to take the day off work and call a cab to the hospital.

But I never expected such a coincidence. Chloe was already there, bright and early.

When she saw me at the registration desk, a flash of panic crossed her face, immediately morphing into fury.

"Liam! Are you actually stalking me, you jerk?!"

Her voice involuntarily rose several octaves, causing quite a stir in the quiet hospital.

Curious eyes from all around turned to me, and my face felt like it was on fire, burning with embarrassment.

I forgot all about registering. I grabbed her arm, intending to drag her out, but she wasn't about to let me.

She sneered, stepping back a few paces, her sarcastic voice drilling into my ears. "I never knew you were so clingy! When did *that* happen?"

"Or are you just hoping to catch me cheating?"

The crowd, ever sensitive to the scent of gossip, had already pulled out their phones, ready to record the explosive drama unfolding in the hospital.

I could practically hear them, in their SnapChat groups, vividly recounting the juicy spectacle to their friends and family.

"Chloe! What are you talking about? Who's stalking you? I should be asking *you*! What are you doing at the hospital this early?"

My heart dropped. A wild, absurd thought suddenly shot through my mind, and I struggled to suppress my excitement as I asked her.

"Are you... pregnant?"

She'd always said she didn't want kids, and we always used protection. Did we... hit the jackpot this time?

She froze, then became even more infuriated. "What are you talking about, you idiot?! Who the hell is pregnant?!"

Her reaction was extreme, far more than I'd anticipated.

In my memory, she had always been sweet-tempered. Even when we had disagreements, she was willing to sit down and calmly resolve them.

What was going on with her now?

She put her hands on her hips, taking a few deep, forced breaths before her voice finally, barely, steadied. "A friend of mine is sick. I just came to the hospital to check on him."

"But you, weren't you supposed to be at work today? Why are *you* at the hospital?"

I lowered my eyes, contemplating. What kind of friend, I wondered, could possibly make *her*, a notorious night owl who practically lives for late mornings, drag herself out of bed at this hour?

Before I could piece anything together, she answered a phone call and then dashed off without a backward glance.

By the time I processed what was happening, she was already fifteen or twenty feet away.

She didn't even stop to hear why I was at the hospital.

I had no choice but to pull out my phone and message her.

**[Chloe, I accidentally hit my back on the sink last night in the shower. I wasn't trying to follow you to the hospital.]**

**[Which friend is sick? Are their family members not around? You seemed so rushed.]**

Chloe was on my 'close friends' list, so I'd get a notification the second she messaged me.

But I didn't get a single reply, not until I had taken my number and seen the doctor.

I tried calling her, but it just rang and rang.

Left with no other option, I texted her again. **[Are you coming home for dinner tonight?

I'll pick up some of your favorite dishes?]**

**[Or is there anything specific you'd like to eat?]**

But all my messages vanished into the void. So, I just cooked a huge meal based on her preferences.

It wasn't until six in the evening that she came home, humming a carefree tune, silhouetted against the setting sun, the whole meal long since gone cold.

I sat at the dining table, staring at the untouched, cold food, my expression unreadable.

She walked in, flipped on the lights, acting as if nothing was amiss.

"Why is it so dark in here? Why didn't you turn on a light?"

The sudden brightness made my eyes sting.

Then she seemed to notice the food on the table, and she complained, "Why would you make so much food for just one person, Liam?"

"Money doesn't just grow on trees, Liam! And didn't we agree we were saving up to get *me* a new car?"

I slowly raised my gaze to meet hers. Unlike what I'd seen at the hospital earlier, she was wearing a completely different outfit now.

She had time to visit a friend in the hospital. She had time to go shopping at the mall for new clothes. But she couldn't spare two minutes to reply to my messages.