Chapter 3
He froze, his face falling into that sorrowful expression he always wore when he wanted to manipulate the situation.
“It’s just a piece of paper,” he said, his voice softening. “True love isn’t bound by something so trivial, right?”
This time, I stood firm, the weight of the situation pressing down on me.
If the external forces destroying our relationship couldn’t be resolved, then it was time to face the truth; it was better to let it go.
“Enough!” Elsie suddenly rose to her feet, her frail voice cutting through the tension.
“Charles, let’s get divorced tomorrow. It’s my fault. If only I weren‘ there…”
She stumbled toward the door, glancing back, almost seeking confirmation that Charles would follow.
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“Elsie!” Charles jumped up, his fury palpable. In a moment of blind rage, he hurled the cup in his hand at my head. The impact caught me off guard and I could do nothing but watch as the warm liquid spilled down my face, dripping onto the floor.
“If anything happens to Elsie, I won’t forgive you!” His voice was thick with
accusation.
“She’s already in this state and you‘ re
still so cold?”
“You‘ re only losing a relationship, but she could lose her life!”
With that, he stormed out, chasing after
Elsie.
I stood there, silently tending to my wound and cleaning up the mess in the room.
Later, as I made my way downstairs to take out the trash, I caught sight of Charles and Elsie under the streetlamp. There they were, locked in each other’s arms, kissing
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passionately, as if the world around them
had ceased to exist.
When the kiss broke, Elsie nestled against. Charles‘ s chest, her voice barely a whisper in the night air.
“Did Cecile really break up with you?” she asked, her eyes full of uncertainty.
Charles, panting slightly, dismissed her
concern with a wave of his hand.
“Her? She’s said she wanted to break up countless times before. Which time was
real?”
He chuckled softly, the arrogance in his voice undeniable.
“She loves me too much. Give it a few days. When I say a few sweet words, she’ll be begging me to take her back.”
I threw the trash into the bin with a loud clatter, my frustration boiling over. Turning on my heel, I headed back upstairs.
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Sure enough, in the days that followed, Charles began sending me the same messages, pleading for forgiveness, trying the same old tricks.
This time, I didn’t hesitate. I blocked him outright, with no room for his manipulations.
I thought that would be the end of it. I was wrong.
Charles showed up at my workplace, causing a scene I never saw coming.
