Chapter 3

Exhausted, I fell asleep on the couch, only to be jolted awake by faint rustling from the kitchen.

I opened my eyes and saw Chloe standing by the water dispenser, getting a drink.

Maybe sleep had lowered her guard, or maybe she just didn't need to keep up her perfect act when she thought she was alone in the quiet of the night.

Her gaze was slightly unfocused as she stared ahead, unconsciously murmuring:

"Adam..."

I stiffened, feeling like I'd been stabbed with a thousand icy needles.

I stared intently at her, my nails digging deep into my palms.

"Adam."

She repeated it softly again, clearer this time, with a dreamy tenderness and concern.

Instinctively, I responded in the easy, teasing tone I thought Adam might use:

"Chloe?"

Chloe whirled around, the sleepiness in her eyes instantly replaced by a clear flicker of concern and tenderness—an expression that absolutely shouldn't have been there right now.

"Adam... Are you doing okay lately? Please, take care of yourself."

That short sentence felt like a red-hot iron searing into me, clamping down and nailing me back into that cage of deceit.

I could barely breathe, and the room started to warp and spin before my eyes. I couldn't stand to stay any longer. I practically stumbled, fleeing back into the cold shadows of the living room.

The love I'd embraced so wholeheartedly, from start to finish, had been nothing but an absurd joke.