Chapter 1

On the eve of our new song's release, I vanished, taking the lyrics with me.

Julian called me 999 times.

"We said we'd get married after this song dropped. What is this, then?"

"Someone saw the lyrics online. Are you trying to dump me?"

He didn't know. I was in prison, accused of accidentally killing a thug while intervening to help someone. Both my ears had been pierced, leaving me deaf. I couldn't hear a sound.

I signed to a guard, pleading for them to send a message on my behalf.

【I don't want to be a burden to you anymore. I'm going solo.】

When I saw Julian again, he was the owner of a major record label.

After the holidays, the sanctuary was bustling with visitors. Important clients were coming to seek blessings for a new venture, so I quickly pulled on my yellow vest to help.

I'd only been out of prison for two months. No one would hire an ex-con like me.

Luckily, Father Michael took me in as a volunteer, providing food and lodging, plus a modest stipend of a few hundred dollars a month.

I was saving diligently, hoping to afford a better cochlear implant.

I looked up and saw Julian.

He hadn't changed. He was still the man I deeply loved in my memories, instantly overlapping with the present.

"This place is so stuffy, let's just donate and go!"

The girl beside him looked impatient, fanning her hand in front of her nose.

"Didn't you say you wanted the new album to be a smash hit?" Julian playfully tapped her nose. "I told you about the traditions and superstitions of this industry. Don't blame fate if things go south!"

His voice was patient and gentle.

His eyes were practically glued to her.

"Fine, I'll just get my blessings and leave."

"You need three incense sticks… I'm talking to you, are you deaf?"

It wasn't until the girl raised her voice that I noticed the anger in her brows. I hurried to take out the incense, lit it, and handed it over.

Julian didn't even glance my way.

Was it my current appearance that kept him from recognizing me, or was he simply unwilling to have anything to do with a betrayer like me?

"Ah!"

A scream shattered the air, and before I could even react, a slap sent me sprawling to the ground.

"Are you trying to burn me alive?"

The girl clutched her red hand.

I fumbled to pick up my old, broken cochlear implant and put it on, bowing repeatedly in apology.

"It hurts so much." The girl leaned into Julian's embrace. "I have a photoshoot tomorrow for promotions. What if it leaves a scar?"

Julian's eyes were filled with tenderness as he gently blew on her hand.

"It's okay, baby. When we get home, I'll apply my special scar-fading cream. If it does scar, we'll just get a tattoo to cover it. I'll get one with you."

He rolled up his sleeve and patted his arm.

The tattoo of my name, "Cassie," was gone.

Once, I'd cut my arm badly on glass, and the doctors warned it might scar. Julian knew how much I loved wearing sleeveless tops, so he researched old remedies and made a special scar cream.

Even with nightly applications, a faint scar remained. He, worried I'd be upset, suggested I get his name, "Julian," tattooed on my arm, and he'd get "Cassie" on his.

Now, my last trace had been erased.

His exclusive affection, once mine, now belonged to someone else.

I tugged at my burned sleeve, desperate to hide my embarrassment.

My cochlear implant seemed to be damaged again. I watched their lips move, but I couldn't quite hear their voices. I just kept tapping it.

"I'm talking to you!" The girl shoved me hard. "Is 'sorry' all you've got? A volunteer, listening to music with headphones on duty?"

Julian glanced at me, his expression distant and cold.

Father Michael rushed over to intervene, but I stopped him.

"I'm sorry." I bowed deeply again. "If you want to get even, you can burn me back."

I exposed my un-tattooed arm and straightened my back.

"Forget it."

Julian wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulder. "No need to waste time on insignificant people. It wouldn't look good if the media caught us."

He leaned in and whispered something to her, and she immediately blushed, her tears turning into a smile.

"Okay, I'll wait for you in the car."

Even her glare at me softened a little.

Julian pulled out a check and waved it. "Father Michael knows, Starlight Records donates the most to this sanctuary every year."

"I hope you'll be more discerning when hiring volunteers. Don't let people who slack off and mooch off you work here, understand?"

Father Michael looked at me with a pained expression, then nodded.

It was then I understood the emotion in Julian's eyes.

It wasn't love, not even hatred. It was a profound disgust that he could never forgive.

He was the kind of gentle person who'd just brush himself off and say he was fine, even if he got knocked over…

His hatred for me—wasn't that exactly what I'd hoped for five years ago when I made my decision?

Cassie, you're just a deaf ex-con. What more are you hoping for?