Chapter 4

I looked straight at Chloe.

"I don’t want severance pay. Just give me my latest design bible back."

That master document held everything I had learned throughout my career. It was my vision of the perfect game.

Chloe frowned deeply.

"I’ll give it back to you on one condition. Apologize to Julian, and it’s yours."

Apologize?

He stole my work and took my spot on the stage I spent years working toward, and now she wanted me to apologize to him?

I stepped up to Julian and slapped him across the face with everything I had.

"Smack!"

"There’s your apology. Did you like it?"

I ignored their shrill screams behind me. No one had their phone out to film that.

I hailed an Uber straight to LAX and caught the next flight back home once the storm cleared.

First thing in the morning, I went to the studio, packed all my personal belongings, and retrieved my original design files.

That was my intellectual property.

Once my desk was empty, I stood in the quiet office holding the ring box I never got to present. Memories from years ago washed over me.

Right after college, I couldn't find a job anywhere.

Not a single game studio was willing to hire me, and I burned through my last dollar.

Having grown up in an orphanage, I had fought this world alone my entire life.

Until that one night, when I simply couldn't fight anymore.

I stood alone on a pedestrian bridge above the highway, watching the relentless flow of headlights below, ready to let go.

The world was vast, and so many people had a home to return to, a shoulder to lean on. I had neither.

I stood there frozen until well past midnight.

The heavy traffic below had cleared out, leaving behind only the cold, unyielding black asphalt.

I didn't want my final act to smash someone's windshield and ruin an innocent driver's night.

Just as I prepared to look at the city skyline one last time, the brightest spark entered my life.

Chloe stood there, holding two bottles of beer with a radiant smile.

"Don't do anything stupid. Have a drink with me instead!"

I would never forget the taste of that beer. Bitter, sharp, yet carrying a trace of warmth.

It made me feel like maybe there was still someone in this world meant for me.

We talked about everything under the stars that night. Before she left, she pressed two thousand dollars in cash into my hand.

"Hang in there," she told me. "Don't you dare give up!"

Two thousand bucks wasn't a fortune, but it was enough to keep me fed and sheltered.

More importantly, it gave me a reason to keep living.

Soon after, I landed a junior role at a gaming studio and rapidly built up my skills. Just as I was on the brink of a major promotion, Chloe texted me.

She said she wanted to start her own indie studio and asked if I would join her.

Without a second thought, I handed in my resignation. I poured every cent of savings I had built up into the seed capital for her new company.

Back then, she told me her dream was to build a masterpiece, to stand on the world stage and deliver an acceptance speech she could be proud of.

I thought I had found my soulmate. I didn't realize until later that she already had a boyfriend—Julian Lee.

I forced myself to bury my feelings deep down, burying myself in my work and dedicating every waking hour to our games.

When Julian found out Chloe had sunk her entire family inheritance into an uncertain indie startup, he walked out on her without looking back.

I knew Julian had only dated Chloe for her trust fund. Chloe was too blind to see it.

She completely lost interest in game development, spending every day begging him to take her back.

Julian grew disgusted with her clinginess. He sold the luxury condo she had bought him and left the country, cutting off all contact.

With Julian gone, Chloe turned to me. Eventually, we became a real couple.

We later got married at city hall. We were dead broke at the time, and she smiled as she promised, "Once our game wins a major award, you can give me a real proposal."

Back then, I thought I was the luckiest man alive. I had the woman I loved, the career I was obsessed with, and a studio on the rise.

Now, the harsh truth stared me in the face.

Chloe had never gotten over Julian. He was the only one she truly loved, no matter how much I sacrificed for her.

The moment Julian returned to town, Chloe immediately latched onto his side again.

It didn't matter that we had a marriage certificate. It didn't matter that we were legally husband and wife.

Looking down at the ring in my palm, I let out a self-deprecating laugh.

Turns out I was the only one who still remembered that promise.

I tossed the velvet box straight into the office trash can.

That was it. We were done.