Three years after our breakup, I’m now the surgeon saving his pregnant wife.
He thought I was alone and broken. Until he saw the child in my arms and the man beside me holding an umbrella.
“Who are they?” he choked out, his world crumbling in the snow. Three years after our breakup, I ran into Nathaniel Woods in the ER.
He was holding his very pregnant wife, his eyes bloodshot with panic, practically losing it.
“Doctor! Save her! She and the baby have to be okay!”
I pulled on a pair of latex gloves, my face expressionless, and motioned for the nurse to wheel the gurney into the operating room.
“Family stays here.”
But he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it hurt. His voice was hoarse.
“Lily, what happened to your mom and grandma back then had nothing to do with her! Are you really going to use this to get your revenge?”
I slowly pulled my hand away. A sigh escaped through my mask, just loud enough for him to hear.
“If you don't trust me, Mr. Woods, you still have time to transfer to another hospital.”
He stared hard at me, but in the end, he signed his name on the surgical consent form.
The surgical light flickered on, then off.
I walked to the scrub sink. The water running over my fingertips was bone-chillingly cold.
The man who once had the power to shatter my heart…
Now, he couldn't even make me feel a thing.
…
The surgery was a success. The baby was saved, but the mother needed to be hospitalized for a few days of observation.
When I got off work, Nathaniel was waiting for me at the hospital entrance.
“It’s late. I’ll give you a ride,” he said, his voice low.
“I have a party to get to. It's not on your way.” I looked down, adjusting my scarf to avoid his intense gaze.
Just as I reached the door, my phone buzzed. A notification popped up: the party was canceled.
At that moment, his black sedan was already blocking the only access lane. Behind him, an ambulance with flashing lights couldn't get through.
Its siren was blaring.
I took a deep breath, pulled open the car door, and got in.
The heat was cranked up inside the car. He put on a playlist—the same old songs I'd had on repeat for years.
“These past few years,” he started, his voice mingling with the music, “how have you been?”
“I’ve been okay,” I said, watching the streaks of light fly by outside the window.
His eyes flickered over my stomach, then quickly landed on my bare ring finger. He seemed to let out a breath of relief, a faint smile touching his lips.
“So… why haven't you found someone else?”
I closed my eyes. “Whether I have or not, what does it have to do with you?”
His hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Are you still mad at me?”
“We were both so young back then. I made some mistakes… but Lily, you were just so stubborn. If it hadn't been for your grandmother, maybe we—”
He cut himself off, glancing at me.
“Don't you dare talk about my grandmother!”
My voice shot up, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.
The cold wind rushing in through the window was exactly the same as the chilling draft I felt three years ago when I got the call about my grandmother's death.
That same wind, cutting right through me.
“Turn at the next corner. I'm getting out.”
Nathaniel was silent for a moment. “It's almost midnight, and you have to be at work at six tomorrow morning. This is close to your old… place. Why don't you…”
“No. I'm getting out now.”
But it was like he didn't hear me. He locked the doors, and the car finally stopped next to a familiar house.
I had just pushed the door open a crack when a voice—both familiar and strange—rang out with perfectly feigned surprise:
“Nathaniel? Is Layla okay? You're back so soon?”
Her voice trailed off as her eyes fell on my face. A flawless smile spread across her well-maintained features.
“Oh, it's you, Lily! I haven't seen you in three years. Your father… he misses you very much.”
“Too bad. I don't miss him at all.”
With that, I turned to leave.
Nathaniel caught up, grabbing my hand. “It's so late. You don't have a home or friends. Where else are you gonna go?”
“I have a home.”
Nathaniel froze for a second, then gave a bitter smile.
“You ran out on your own wedding three years ago. You burned all your bridges. The only ‘friends’ you have are your coworkers at the hospital.”
His words were like needles, piercing an old wound.
“Just come back,” he said, his tone softening. “We're all family.”
“Wouldn't it be nice if we could just be one big, happy family?”
I looked up, my gaze sweeping past him to the woman with the prim smile behind him, and then up to the blurry but familiar figure of my father in the window upstairs.
My heart clenched painfully.
I remembered the night before my wedding, when Layla tried on my wedding dress.
I slapped her.
Nathaniel had pulled her behind him, looking at me like I was a stranger.
Devastated, I'd run out of the house.
The wind that night was just like this one—chilling me to the bone.
I pulled my thin coat tighter, hoarding the last scrap of warmth deep inside me.
“I have a new home now.”
And with that, I turned and walked into the thick darkness of the night, and I never looked back.I knew Nathaniel wouldn't follow me.
A guy like him is too proud. He only ever swallows his pride for Layla, always ready to soothe her.
It was just like all those years ago when the new transfer student came to our class.
She was so timid, like a startled fawn.
When I saw her getting bullied, I stepped in to protect her.
“She's my cousin,” I announced. “Leave her alone.”
Back then, Nathaniel was the school's resident bad boy, and I was always worried he'd pick on her.
Until one day after school, I saw him kneeling down, carefully tying Layla's untied shoelace.
After our classmates saw me and Layla walking into my family's mansion together, they all believed she was my cousin.
But what they didn't know was that she was just my housekeeper's daughter.
I gave her protection, a social standing, and brought her into my world.
But when my mother got seriously ill, she and her mother started appearing around my father more and more.
Then, on a rainy night during our senior year of high school, my mother let go of my hand and jumped from the rooftop, taking all the warmth in the world with her.
After that, I started to distance myself from Layla.
But Nathaniel took it upon himself to be her knight in shining armor.
If someone so much as said a bad word about Layla, he’d get into a fight on the basketball court until his knuckles were bleeding.
If her eyes reddened, he'd jump the school wall to buy her favorite dessert and patiently coax her until she was smiling through her tears.
He never did any of that for me.
I grew quiet, like a silent shadow in the corner of the classroom.
Until my birthday.
The house was cold and empty; I was all alone.
Then Nathaniel showed up, holding a cake with flickering candles.
He softly sang “Happy Birthday.” I looked at him, my eyes stinging, and all the bottled-up resentment was about to burst.
But just then, Layla appeared timidly behind him.
She started singing along softly, her eyes wide and innocent.
In that instant, it felt like being doused with ice water. I grabbed the cake and smashed it right in her face.
Frosting covered her entirely.
Nathaniel immediately pulled her behind him and yelled at me, “Lily! Haven't you made enough of a scene?!”
Tears instantly welled up. I pointed at Layla, my voice trembling. “Nathaniel, choose! You have to choose one of us, right now!”
He looked at me, then at a sobbing Layla.
Finally, he let go of her hand.
But I remember the light snow falling that night, dusting his shoulders.
The look he gave me was so complicated.
Back then, I thought I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes, my last resort.
It took me years to realize there was no sympathy in that look—only the bitter reluctance of being forced into a corner.
The clock read 1 AM. I turned off the light and fell into a deep sleep.
The next morning, when I opened my door, Nathaniel's car was parked downstairs.
He rolled down the window, a knowing smirk on his face.
“Talking all tough about your ‘new place,’ but you still ended up in this dump?”
The only reason I was staying here was because I knew Nathaniel would follow me, and I didn't want him to find out where I really lived.
I glanced at my watch. I really was running late, so I reluctantly pulled open the car door and got in.
“I thought you'd be at the hospital with Layla.”
His hands tightened on the steering wheel for a second, but his voice was casual.
“I was. I only came out because she said she was craving a breakfast burrito from that old spot downtown. Figured I'd swing by and check on you since it was on the way.”
I nodded and didn't say anything else.
The car drove right past the burrito stand, but he didn't even slow down.
It was like he didn't even see it.
When we got to the hospital, I pushed open the door to Layla's room. She was already awake, looking pale and fragile.
When she saw me, she gently tugged on Nathaniel's sleeve and whispered,
“Nathaniel, you must be exhausted from staying here all night. It was so good to see you when I woke up.”
“You're fine. You can be discharged after a day of observation.”
I pulled back my stethoscope, my tone strictly professional.
I had just turned to leave when Layla suddenly grabbed my wrist, her voice choked with sobs.
“Lily, about what happened with Grandma back then… I couldn't stop her…”
“But I was drugged! Even if you don't believe me, you have to believe Nathaniel! We didn't tell you because we were afraid of hurting you…”
The room fell silent.
Every gaze felt like a needle in my back.
Grandma…
Ten years ago, I lost my mother. Ten years later, I had to watch my grandmother fall from the very same spot.
That familiar, icy chill seized my heart all over again.
I violently shook her hand off, turned, and walked away, my back ramrod straight.
The acrid smell of antiseptic filled the hallway.
I didn't stop until I turned into an empty fire escape.
My hand was clenched so tightly in my pocket that my nails dug deep into my palm, drawing a warm wetness that stained my fingertips.
But even that was nothing compared to the ache of the old wound in my heart, still bleeding after all these years.A familiar cramp twisted in my stomach, and I instinctively clutched it.
A hand reached out, a box of Tums held between two fingers.
“See? Some things never change.”
Nathaniel's voice was deliberately gentle.
I turned away, refusing to take them.
His tone shifted to concern. “You work yourself to death. What's wrong with taking a few days off?”
I watched his painfully sincere performance and found it laughable.
“My vacation days are for something else.”
He didn't say anything. He reached for my hair, but I flinched away.
“You always do this,” he sighed. “You leave me completely helpless.”
“Remember back in school? You had a 102-degree fever but insisted on finishing your exam.”
“You ended up passing out right there. Scared the hell out of me.”
“You were in so much pain, but you just refused to back down.”
He rambled on, lost in his memories.
He didn't even notice I was looking down at my phone.
The screen was lit up with a new text:
“Hey babe, the meeting ended early. I'll be back tomorrow.”
I cut through his sentimental trip down memory lane with a cold laugh.
“People have a way of romanticizing the past.”
“Back then, you didn't actually do anything.”
“You were too busy comforting *her* while she sobbed about her test scores being lower than mine.”
His smile froze on his face.
For the next few days, I didn't go to the hospital.
When I finally walked into her room, I found Nathaniel helping her to her feet.
“Why are you just now being discharged?” I frowned. This was several days later than expected.
Layla looked at me timidly, her voice soft. “I didn't want to leave... not without seeing you. I was afraid you'd be even more upset.”
She came forward and took my hand, her eyes welling up. “Lily, let's go home together? Dad... he really misses you.”
“Your room... it's exactly how you left it. I've never dared to go inside.”
Her tone was meek, laced with a careful attempt to please me. The nurses shot me looks of silent accusation.
I closed my eyes, forcing down the bitter feeling rising in my throat.
“...Fine.”
I had left in such a hurry that I realized I’d forgotten a few things.
Sinking into the back seat of the car, I leaned my head wearily against the window. As I looked down, my cashmere scarf slipped from my neck.
When I went to pull it back up, my eyes met a pair of suddenly sharp ones in the rearview mirror.
Nathaniel’s gaze was locked on the side of my neck, fixed on the fresh hickey there.
The veins on the back of his hands bulged as he gripped the steering wheel.
He drove fast. By the time we got home, Layla was pale and gagging.
Nathaniel rushed to steady her, his voice full of self-reproach. “Are you feeling sick? It's my fault, I was driving too fast...”
Layla shook her head weakly, but her eyes landed on me. “It's okay. As long as Lily is willing to come home, it's all worth it.”
I ignored them and went straight to my old room on the second floor.
Pushing the door open felt like stepping into a moment frozen in time. I picked up the faded photo of my mother and me from the desk.
In the picture, Mom was holding me gently, her eyes shining.
As my fingertips traced her smiling face, a sharp memory pierced my mind.
It was after my mock exam scores dropped senior year. Mom held my report card, her brow furrowed.
“Lily, you've been getting too close to Nathaniel lately.”
“You need to pull your head out of the clouds and focus on your studies, okay?”
But I was swept up in the sweet haze of first love and shot back:
“What else do you do besides watch my every move?”
“If you're so good at it, why don't you keep a closer eye on your own husband!”
The color drained from Mom's face.
Her lips moved, but in the end, she said nothing.
Later, she jumped from a building.
Looking back now, I realized she had been in unbearable pain for a long time, only holding on for my sake.
And I, with the most vicious words I could find, had twisted the knife in her bleeding wound.
“Bang!”
The door slammed shut.
Nathaniel pinned me against the wall, his eyes dark as his fingers traced the red mark on my neck.
“Did you do this to yourself? Lily, when did you get so twisted?”
I froze for a second. It suddenly occurred to me that the man I’d loved for so many years might actually be an idiot.
I tried to shove him away, but the door suddenly opened again.
Layla stood in the doorway, her hand flying to her mouth as tears instantly welled in her eyes.
“What... what are you two doing?”
I sneered, my gaze sweeping over her pitiful expression and her baby bump.
“At least we're not naked in bed together.”My gaze drifted to the window, my voice turning colder.
“Or, you could just jump.”
“This is the second floor. Don't worry, you won't die. I'll be right there to save you.”
“You little monster!” my father’s roar came from outside the door.
“You’re just like your mother—completely unreasonable! You brought all of this on yourselves!”
I closed my eyes and turned to leave.
Nathaniel lunged forward, grabbing my wrist. “Lily!”
I shook him off and walked down the stairs without looking back.
Behind me, I could hear Layla's muffled sobs and the frantic murmurs of our family as they rushed to comfort her.
As I stepped out the main door, the winter wind bit at my collar, and I carefully wrapped my scarf tighter.
Then I pulled out my phone and sent a voice message:
“I got Mom's things. Come pick me up.”
I wandered aimlessly down the empty street, but my thoughts spiraled uncontrollably into a deeper darkness.
Shortly after I’d run out on my wedding, I had pieced together the truth behind my grandmother’s suicide.
I had gone to visit her that day and left my phone behind. She called the house several times, but the line went dead every time I answered.
Later, she brought the phone to me herself and begged me not to marry Nathaniel.
And how did I respond?
I told her, “Grandma, just because Mom had an unhappy marriage doesn't mean I will. Nathaniel and I are childhood sweethearts, we grew up together, we know each other inside and out…”
That shattered her last sliver of hope. Her daughter, and now her granddaughter, were just the same.
There was nothing left for her in this world.
Hate burned through my reason.
I used the most disgusting footage I could find and deepfaked Nathaniel's and Layla's faces onto it.
Then I blasted it to our entire social circle, determined to ruin their reputations.
But Nathaniel called the cops faster than I could have imagined.
At the station, I filed my own report, calmly stating the cause of my grandmother's death.
But their one question stopped me dead: “Do you have any direct evidence?”
Across from me, Nathaniel and Layla sat with innocent, resolute expressions, denying everything in unison.
In the end, I was the one who was detained.
Fifteen days later, I walked out.
The first notification on my phone was the announcement of their lavish wedding.
In the photo, Nathaniel’s arm was wrapped around Layla’s waist, his smile jarringly bright.
And the diamond on Layla’s ring finger was the very same pink diamond Nathaniel had spent ages picking out for me.
He’d said that shade of pink was the perfect match for the color of my cheeks when I blushed.
It turned out he’d intentionally ordered the ring a size smaller because, deep down, he had already been picturing it on someone else.
I refused to accept it.
I crashed the wedding and threw rubbing alcohol on the hem of Layla’s dress.
Flames shot up. Screams erupted.
Nathaniel shoved her out of the way without a second thought, but a collapsing decorative arch came down and crushed his legs.
Later, Layla begged every renowned doctor she could find and managed to pull him back from the brink of permanent disability.
And I was thrown in jail for arson and assault.
My lawyer sighed from the other side of the visitor’s glass, saying that a letter of forgiveness from the victims might reduce my sentence.
He accompanied me to the hospital.
Nathaniel, sitting in a wheelchair, slapped me hard across the face.
“You’re so selfish! So damn spoiled! You don’t have an ounce of Layla’s kindness!”
Layla stood beside him, tears streaming down her face as she gently pulled on his arm.
“Nathaniel, don’t… My sister was just confused. Let’s sign the letter of forgiveness…”
He snatched the document and, right in front of me, ripped it to shreds.
The pieces drifted down like a flurry of desperate snow.
“Get out,” he snarled, his eyes locked on me.
“Don’t ever let me see you again.”
“Or else I’ll find ways to make you suffer a thousand times more than you are right now.”
I managed a small smile and forced my tears back.
Who would have thought that after three years, the first time I’d see them again, I would be saving the two people I hated most in the world—and their child.
Suddenly, an umbrella opened over my head, shielding me from the falling snow.
At the same time, a soft little hand tugged at my pant leg.
“Mommy, hold me…”
From behind me, a gentle, steady voice spoke, full of concern.
“Didn't I tell you to wait in the coffee shop? It's too cold out here. Let's get in the car.”
He reached up and gently brushed the snowflakes from the ends of my hair.
Just then, I heard frantic footsteps approaching from behind.
Nathaniel ran out. “Lily, you…”
His words died in his throat.
His gaze was locked on the child in my arms and the man holding the umbrella beside me.
The color drained from his face. His lips moved for a long moment before he managed to choke out the words:
“Who… are they?”The upcoming chapters are even more exciting! Click the download button below to read the entire book!👇👇👇 {"title":"No More Heartbreak for Him","cover":"https://static-v1.mydramawave.com/novel/landing-page/image-crawl/3aba4cabf0071f6adb35b9c69014deb9.jpg?image_process=quality,85/resize,w_600/format,webp","chapter_title":"","chapter_text":"Three years after our breakup, I ran into Nathaniel Woods in the ER.\n\nHe was holding his very pregnant wife, his eyes bloodshot with panic, practically losing it.\n\n“Doctor! Save her! She and the baby have to be okay!”\n\nI pulled on a pair of latex gloves, my face expressionless, and motioned for the nurse to wheel the gurney into the operating room.\n\n“Family stays here.”\n\nBut he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it hurt. His voice was hoarse.\n\n“Lily, what happened to your mom and grandma back then had nothing to do with her! Are you really going to use this to get your revenge?”\n\nI slowly pulled my hand away. A sigh escaped through my mask, just loud enough for him to hear.\n\n“If you don't trust me, Mr. Woods, you still have time to transfer to another hospital.”\n\nHe stared hard at me, but in the end, he signed his name on the surgical consent form.\n\nThe surgical light flickered on, then off.\n\nI walked to the scrub sink. The water running over my fingertips was bone-chillingly cold.\n\nThe man who once had the power to shatter my heart…\n\nNow, he couldn't even make me feel a thing.\n\n…\n\nThe surgery was a success. The baby was saved, but the mother needed to be hospitalized for a few days of observation.\n\nWhen I got off work, Nathaniel was waiting for me at the hospital entrance.\n\n“It’s late. I’ll give you a ride,” he said, his voice low.\n\n“I have a party to get to. It's not on your way.” I looked down, adjusting my scarf to avoid his intense gaze.\n\nJust as I reached the door, my phone buzzed. A notification popped up: the party was canceled.\n\nAt that moment, his black sedan was already blocking the only access lane. Behind him, an ambulance with flashing lights couldn't get through.\n\nIts siren was blaring.\n\nI took a deep breath, pulled open the car door, and got in.\n\nThe heat was cranked up inside the car. He put on a playlist—the same old songs I'd had on repeat for years.\n\n“These past few years,” he started, his voice mingling with the music, “how have you been?”\n\n“I’ve been okay,” I said, watching the streaks of light fly by outside the window.\n\nHis eyes flickered over my stomach, then quickly landed on my bare ring finger. He seemed to let out a breath of relief, a faint smile touching his lips.\n\n“So… why haven't you found someone else?”\n\nI closed my eyes. “Whether I have or not, what does it have to do with you?”\n\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Are you still mad at me?”\n\n“We were both so young back then. I made some mistakes… but Lily, you were just so stubborn. If it hadn't been for your grandmother, maybe we—”\n\nHe cut himself off, glancing at me.\n\n“Don't you dare talk about my grandmother!”\n\nMy voice shot up, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.\n\nThe cold wind rushing in through the window was exactly the same as the chilling draft I felt three years ago when I got the call about my grandmother's death.\n\nThat same wind, cutting right through me.\n\n“Turn at the next corner. I'm getting out.”\n\nNathaniel was silent for a moment. “It's almost midnight, and you have to be at work at six tomorrow morning. This is close to your old… place. Why don't you…”\n\n“No. I'm getting out now.”\n\nBut it was like he didn't hear me. He locked the doors, and the car finally stopped next to a familiar house.\n\nI had just pushed the door open a crack when a voice—both familiar and strange—rang out with perfectly feigned surprise:\n\n“Nathaniel? Is Layla okay? You're back so soon?”\n\nHer voice trailed off as her eyes fell on my face. A flawless smile spread across her well-maintained features.\n\n“Oh, it's you, Lily! I haven't seen you in three years. Your father… he misses you very much.”\n\n“Too bad. I don't miss him at all.”\n\nWith that, I turned to leave.\n\nNathaniel caught up, grabbing my hand. “It's so late. You don't have a home or friends. Where else are you gonna go?”\n\n“I have a home.”\n\nNathaniel froze for a second, then gave a bitter smile.\n\n“You ran out on your own wedding three years ago. You burned all your bridges. The only ‘friends’ you have are your coworkers at the hospital.”\n\nHis words were like needles, piercing an old wound.\n\n“Just come back,” he said, his tone softening. “We're all family.”\n\n“Wouldn't it be nice if we could just be one big, happy family?”\n\nI looked up, my gaze sweeping past him to the woman with the prim smile behind him, and then up to the blurry but familiar figure of my father in the window upstairs.\n\nMy heart clenched painfully.\n\nI remembered the night before my wedding, when Layla tried on my wedding dress.\n\nI slapped her.\n\nNathaniel had pulled her behind him, looking at me like I was a stranger.\n\nDevastated, I'd run out of the house.\n\nThe wind that night was just like this one—chilling me to the bone.\n\nI pulled my thin coat tighter, hoarding the last scrap of warmth deep inside me.\n\n“I have a new home now.”\n\nAnd with that, I turned and walked into the thick darkness of the night, and I never looked back.","chapter_content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","chapters":[{"chapter_key":"s1IgnTxQni","title":"","serial_number":1,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","word_count":914,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"Three years after our breakup, I ran into Nathaniel Woods in the ER.\n\nHe was holding his very pregnant wife, his eyes bloodshot with panic, practically losing it.\n\n“Doctor! Save her! She and the baby have to be okay!”\n\nI pulled on a pair of latex gloves, my face expressionless, and motioned for the nurse to wheel the gurney into the operating room.\n\n“Family stays here.”\n\nBut he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it hurt. His voice was hoarse.\n\n“Lily, what happened to your mom and grandma back then had nothing to do with her! Are you really going to use this to get your revenge?”\n\nI slowly pulled my hand away. A sigh escaped through my mask, just loud enough for him to hear.\n\n“If you don't trust me, Mr. Woods, you still have time to transfer to another hospital.”\n\nHe stared hard at me, but in the end, he signed his name on the surgical consent form.\n\nThe surgical light flickered on, then off.\n\nI walked to the scrub sink. The water running over my fingertips was bone-chillingly cold.\n\nThe man who once had the power to shatter my heart…\n\nNow, he couldn't even make me feel a thing.\n\n…\n\nThe surgery was a success. The baby was saved, but the mother needed to be hospitalized for a few days of observation.\n\nWhen I got off work, Nathaniel was waiting for me at the hospital entrance.\n\n“It’s late. I’ll give you a ride,” he said, his voice low.\n\n“I have a party to get to. It's not on your way.” I looked down, adjusting my scarf to avoid his intense gaze.\n\nJust as I reached the door, my phone buzzed. A notification popped up: the party was canceled.\n\nAt that moment, his black sedan was already blocking the only access lane. Behind him, an ambulance with flashing lights couldn't get through.\n\nIts siren was blaring.\n\nI took a deep breath, pulled open the car door, and got in.\n\nThe heat was cranked up inside the car. He put on a playlist—the same old songs I'd had on repeat for years.\n\n“These past few years,” he started, his voice mingling with the music, “how have you been?”\n\n“I’ve been okay,” I said, watching the streaks of light fly by outside the window.\n\nHis eyes flickered over my stomach, then quickly landed on my bare ring finger. He seemed to let out a breath of relief, a faint smile touching his lips.\n\n“So… why haven't you found someone else?”\n\nI closed my eyes. “Whether I have or not, what does it have to do with you?”\n\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Are you still mad at me?”\n\n“We were both so young back then. I made some mistakes… but Lily, you were just so stubborn. If it hadn't been for your grandmother, maybe we—”\n\nHe cut himself off, glancing at me.\n\n“Don't you dare talk about my grandmother!”\n\nMy voice shot up, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.\n\nThe cold wind rushing in through the window was exactly the same as the chilling draft I felt three years ago when I got the call about my grandmother's death.\n\nThat same wind, cutting right through me.\n\n“Turn at the next corner. I'm getting out.”\n\nNathaniel was silent for a moment. “It's almost midnight, and you have to be at work at six tomorrow morning. This is close to your old… place. Why don't you…”\n\n“No. I'm getting out now.”\n\nBut it was like he didn't hear me. He locked the doors, and the car finally stopped next to a familiar house.\n\nI had just pushed the door open a crack when a voice—both familiar and strange—rang out with perfectly feigned surprise:\n\n“Nathaniel? Is Layla okay? You're back so soon?”\n\nHer voice trailed off as her eyes fell on my face. A flawless smile spread across her well-maintained features.\n\n“Oh, it's you, Lily! I haven't seen you in three years. Your father… he misses you very much.”\n\n“Too bad. I don't miss him at all.”\n\nWith that, I turned to leave.\n\nNathaniel caught up, grabbing my hand. “It's so late. You don't have a home or friends. Where else are you gonna go?”\n\n“I have a home.”\n\nNathaniel froze for a second, then gave a bitter smile.\n\n“You ran out on your own wedding three years ago. You burned all your bridges. The only ‘friends’ you have are your coworkers at the hospital.”\n\nHis words were like needles, piercing an old wound.\n\n“Just come back,” he said, his tone softening. “We're all family.”\n\n“Wouldn't it be nice if we could just be one big, happy family?”\n\nI looked up, my gaze sweeping past him to the woman with the prim smile behind him, and then up to the blurry but familiar figure of my father in the window upstairs.\n\nMy heart clenched painfully.\n\nI remembered the night before my wedding, when Layla tried on my wedding dress.\n\nI slapped her.\n\nNathaniel had pulled her behind him, looking at me like I was a stranger.\n\nDevastated, I'd run out of the house.\n\nThe wind that night was just like this one—chilling me to the bone.\n\nI pulled my thin coat tighter, hoarding the last scrap of warmth deep inside me.\n\n“I have a new home now.”\n\nAnd with that, I turned and walked into the thick darkness of the night, and I never looked back."},{"chapter_key":"AXAX9F2szA","title":"","serial_number":2,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/2/en_db49a654-33ce-4add-a1e0-357d92ab65a8.txt","word_count":945,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"I knew Nathaniel wouldn't follow me.\nA guy like him is too proud. He only ever swallows his pride for Layla, always ready to soothe her.\nIt was just like all those years ago when the new transfer student came to our class.\nShe was so timid, like a startled fawn.\nWhen I saw her getting bullied, I stepped in to protect her.\n“She's my cousin,” I announced. “Leave her alone.”\nBack then, Nathaniel was the school's resident bad boy, and I was always worried he'd pick on her.\nUntil one day after school, I saw him kneeling down, carefully tying Layla's untied shoelace.\nAfter our classmates saw me and Layla walking into my family's mansion together, they all believed she was my cousin.\nBut what they didn't know was that she was just my housekeeper's daughter.\nI gave her protection, a social standing, and brought her into my world.\nBut when my mother got seriously ill, she and her mother started appearing around my father more and more.\nThen, on a rainy night during our senior year of high school, my mother let go of my hand and jumped from the rooftop, taking all the warmth in the world with her.\nAfter that, I started to distance myself from Layla.\nBut Nathaniel took it upon himself to be her knight in shining armor.\nIf someone so much as said a bad word about Layla, he’d get into a fight on the basketball court until his knuckles were bleeding.\nIf her eyes reddened, he'd jump the school wall to buy her favorite dessert and patiently coax her until she was smiling through her tears.\nHe never did any of that for me.\nI grew quiet, like a silent shadow in the corner of the classroom.\nUntil my birthday.\nThe house was cold and empty; I was all alone.\nThen Nathaniel showed up, holding a cake with flickering candles.\nHe softly sang “Happy Birthday.” I looked at him, my eyes stinging, and all the bottled-up resentment was about to burst.\nBut just then, Layla appeared timidly behind him.\nShe started singing along softly, her eyes wide and innocent.\nIn that instant, it felt like being doused with ice water. I grabbed the cake and smashed it right in her face.\nFrosting covered her entirely.\nNathaniel immediately pulled her behind him and yelled at me, “Lily! Haven't you made enough of a scene?!”\nTears instantly welled up. I pointed at Layla, my voice trembling. “Nathaniel, choose! You have to choose one of us, right now!”\nHe looked at me, then at a sobbing Layla.\nFinally, he let go of her hand.\nBut I remember the light snow falling that night, dusting his shoulders.\nThe look he gave me was so complicated.\nBack then, I thought I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes, my last resort.\nIt took me years to realize there was no sympathy in that look—only the bitter reluctance of being forced into a corner.\n\nThe clock read 1 AM. I turned off the light and fell into a deep sleep.\nThe next morning, when I opened my door, Nathaniel's car was parked downstairs.\nHe rolled down the window, a knowing smirk on his face.\n“Talking all tough about your ‘new place,’ but you still ended up in this dump?”\nThe only reason I was staying here was because I knew Nathaniel would follow me, and I didn't want him to find out where I really lived.\nI glanced at my watch. I really was running late, so I reluctantly pulled open the car door and got in.\n“I thought you'd be at the hospital with Layla.”\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel for a second, but his voice was casual.\n“I was. I only came out because she said she was craving a breakfast burrito from that old spot downtown. Figured I'd swing by and check on you since it was on the way.”\nI nodded and didn't say anything else.\nThe car drove right past the burrito stand, but he didn't even slow down.\nIt was like he didn't even see it.\nWhen we got to the hospital, I pushed open the door to Layla's room. She was already awake, looking pale and fragile.\nWhen she saw me, she gently tugged on Nathaniel's sleeve and whispered,\n“Nathaniel, you must be exhausted from staying here all night. It was so good to see you when I woke up.”\n“You're fine. You can be discharged after a day of observation.”\nI pulled back my stethoscope, my tone strictly professional.\nI had just turned to leave when Layla suddenly grabbed my wrist, her voice choked with sobs.\n“Lily, about what happened with Grandma back then… I couldn't stop her…”\n“But I was drugged! Even if you don't believe me, you have to believe Nathaniel! We didn't tell you because we were afraid of hurting you…”\nThe room fell silent.\nEvery gaze felt like a needle in my back.\nGrandma…\nTen years ago, I lost my mother. Ten years later, I had to watch my grandmother fall from the very same spot.\nThat familiar, icy chill seized my heart all over again.\nI violently shook her hand off, turned, and walked away, my back ramrod straight.\nThe acrid smell of antiseptic filled the hallway.\nI didn't stop until I turned into an empty fire escape.\nMy hand was clenched so tightly in my pocket that my nails dug deep into my palm, drawing a warm wetness that stained my fingertips.\nBut even that was nothing compared to the ache of the old wound in my heart, still bleeding after all these years."},{"chapter_key":"ayG7X2Gtn1","title":"","serial_number":3,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/3/en_520c161e-ae87-4646-8a1f-029b43b97293.txt","word_count":853,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"A familiar cramp twisted in my stomach, and I instinctively clutched it.\nA hand reached out, a box of Tums held between two fingers.\n“See? Some things never change.”\nNathaniel's voice was deliberately gentle.\nI turned away, refusing to take them.\nHis tone shifted to concern. “You work yourself to death. What's wrong with taking a few days off?”\nI watched his painfully sincere performance and found it laughable.\n“My vacation days are for something else.”\nHe didn't say anything. He reached for my hair, but I flinched away.\n“You always do this,” he sighed. “You leave me completely helpless.”\n“Remember back in school? You had a 102-degree fever but insisted on finishing your exam.”\n“You ended up passing out right there. Scared the hell out of me.”\n“You were in so much pain, but you just refused to back down.”\nHe rambled on, lost in his memories.\nHe didn't even notice I was looking down at my phone.\nThe screen was lit up with a new text:\n“Hey babe, the meeting ended early. I'll be back tomorrow.”\nI cut through his sentimental trip down memory lane with a cold laugh.\n“People have a way of romanticizing the past.”\n“Back then, you didn't actually do anything.”\n“You were too busy comforting *her* while she sobbed about her test scores being lower than mine.”\nHis smile froze on his face.\nFor the next few days, I didn't go to the hospital.\nWhen I finally walked into her room, I found Nathaniel helping her to her feet.\n“Why are you just now being discharged?” I frowned. This was several days later than expected.\nLayla looked at me timidly, her voice soft. “I didn't want to leave... not without seeing you. I was afraid you'd be even more upset.”\nShe came forward and took my hand, her eyes welling up. “Lily, let's go home together? Dad... he really misses you.”\n“Your room... it's exactly how you left it. I've never dared to go inside.”\nHer tone was meek, laced with a careful attempt to please me. The nurses shot me looks of silent accusation.\nI closed my eyes, forcing down the bitter feeling rising in my throat.\n“...Fine.”\nI had left in such a hurry that I realized I’d forgotten a few things.\nSinking into the back seat of the car, I leaned my head wearily against the window. As I looked down, my cashmere scarf slipped from my neck.\nWhen I went to pull it back up, my eyes met a pair of suddenly sharp ones in the rearview mirror.\nNathaniel’s gaze was locked on the side of my neck, fixed on the fresh hickey there.\nThe veins on the back of his hands bulged as he gripped the steering wheel.\nHe drove fast. By the time we got home, Layla was pale and gagging.\nNathaniel rushed to steady her, his voice full of self-reproach. “Are you feeling sick? It's my fault, I was driving too fast...”\nLayla shook her head weakly, but her eyes landed on me. “It's okay. As long as Lily is willing to come home, it's all worth it.”\nI ignored them and went straight to my old room on the second floor.\nPushing the door open felt like stepping into a moment frozen in time. I picked up the faded photo of my mother and me from the desk.\nIn the picture, Mom was holding me gently, her eyes shining.\nAs my fingertips traced her smiling face, a sharp memory pierced my mind.\nIt was after my mock exam scores dropped senior year. Mom held my report card, her brow furrowed.\n“Lily, you've been getting too close to Nathaniel lately.”\n“You need to pull your head out of the clouds and focus on your studies, okay?”\nBut I was swept up in the sweet haze of first love and shot back:\n“What else do you do besides watch my every move?”\n“If you're so good at it, why don't you keep a closer eye on your own husband!”\nThe color drained from Mom's face.\nHer lips moved, but in the end, she said nothing.\nLater, she jumped from a building.\nLooking back now, I realized she had been in unbearable pain for a long time, only holding on for my sake.\nAnd I, with the most vicious words I could find, had twisted the knife in her bleeding wound.\n“Bang!”\nThe door slammed shut.\nNathaniel pinned me against the wall, his eyes dark as his fingers traced the red mark on my neck.\n“Did you do this to yourself? Lily, when did you get so twisted?”\nI froze for a second. It suddenly occurred to me that the man I’d loved for so many years might actually be an idiot.\nI tried to shove him away, but the door suddenly opened again.\nLayla stood in the doorway, her hand flying to her mouth as tears instantly welled in her eyes.\n“What... what are you two doing?”\nI sneered, my gaze sweeping over her pitiful expression and her baby bump.\n“At least we're not naked in bed together.”"},{"chapter_key":"1kIz95G2Y0","title":"","serial_number":4,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/4/en_bcbfa717-0fda-4445-a521-ed3b120022d5.txt","word_count":897,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"My gaze drifted to the window, my voice turning colder.\n“Or, you could just jump.”\n“This is the second floor. Don't worry, you won't die. I'll be right there to save you.”\n“You little monster!” my father’s roar came from outside the door.\n“You’re just like your mother—completely unreasonable! You brought all of this on yourselves!”\nI closed my eyes and turned to leave.\nNathaniel lunged forward, grabbing my wrist. “Lily!”\nI shook him off and walked down the stairs without looking back.\nBehind me, I could hear Layla's muffled sobs and the frantic murmurs of our family as they rushed to comfort her.\nAs I stepped out the main door, the winter wind bit at my collar, and I carefully wrapped my scarf tighter.\nThen I pulled out my phone and sent a voice message:\n“I got Mom's things. Come pick me up.”\nI wandered aimlessly down the empty street, but my thoughts spiraled uncontrollably into a deeper darkness.\nShortly after I’d run out on my wedding, I had pieced together the truth behind my grandmother’s suicide.\nI had gone to visit her that day and left my phone behind. She called the house several times, but the line went dead every time I answered.\nLater, she brought the phone to me herself and begged me not to marry Nathaniel.\nAnd how did I respond?\nI told her, “Grandma, just because Mom had an unhappy marriage doesn't mean I will. Nathaniel and I are childhood sweethearts, we grew up together, we know each other inside and out…”\nThat shattered her last sliver of hope. Her daughter, and now her granddaughter, were just the same.\nThere was nothing left for her in this world.\nHate burned through my reason.\nI used the most disgusting footage I could find and deepfaked Nathaniel's and Layla's faces onto it.\nThen I blasted it to our entire social circle, determined to ruin their reputations.\nBut Nathaniel called the cops faster than I could have imagined.\nAt the station, I filed my own report, calmly stating the cause of my grandmother's death.\nBut their one question stopped me dead: “Do you have any direct evidence?”\nAcross from me, Nathaniel and Layla sat with innocent, resolute expressions, denying everything in unison.\nIn the end, I was the one who was detained.\nFifteen days later, I walked out.\nThe first notification on my phone was the announcement of their lavish wedding.\nIn the photo, Nathaniel’s arm was wrapped around Layla’s waist, his smile jarringly bright.\nAnd the diamond on Layla’s ring finger was the very same pink diamond Nathaniel had spent ages picking out for me.\nHe’d said that shade of pink was the perfect match for the color of my cheeks when I blushed.\nIt turned out he’d intentionally ordered the ring a size smaller because, deep down, he had already been picturing it on someone else.\nI refused to accept it.\nI crashed the wedding and threw rubbing alcohol on the hem of Layla’s dress.\nFlames shot up. Screams erupted.\nNathaniel shoved her out of the way without a second thought, but a collapsing decorative arch came down and crushed his legs.\nLater, Layla begged every renowned doctor she could find and managed to pull him back from the brink of permanent disability.\nAnd I was thrown in jail for arson and assault.\nMy lawyer sighed from the other side of the visitor’s glass, saying that a letter of forgiveness from the victims might reduce my sentence.\nHe accompanied me to the hospital.\nNathaniel, sitting in a wheelchair, slapped me hard across the face.\n“You’re so selfish! So damn spoiled! You don’t have an ounce of Layla’s kindness!”\nLayla stood beside him, tears streaming down her face as she gently pulled on his arm.\n“Nathaniel, don’t… My sister was just confused. Let’s sign the letter of forgiveness…”\nHe snatched the document and, right in front of me, ripped it to shreds.\nThe pieces drifted down like a flurry of desperate snow.\n“Get out,” he snarled, his eyes locked on me.\n“Don’t ever let me see you again.”\n“Or else I’ll find ways to make you suffer a thousand times more than you are right now.”\nI managed a small smile and forced my tears back.\nWho would have thought that after three years, the first time I’d see them again, I would be saving the two people I hated most in the world—and their child.\nSuddenly, an umbrella opened over my head, shielding me from the falling snow.\nAt the same time, a soft little hand tugged at my pant leg.\n“Mommy, hold me…”\nFrom behind me, a gentle, steady voice spoke, full of concern.\n“Didn't I tell you to wait in the coffee shop? It's too cold out here. Let's get in the car.”\nHe reached up and gently brushed the snowflakes from the ends of my hair.\nJust then, I heard frantic footsteps approaching from behind.\nNathaniel ran out. “Lily, you…”\nHis words died in his throat.\nHis gaze was locked on the child in my arms and the man holding the umbrella beside me.\nThe color drained from his face. His lips moved for a long moment before he managed to choke out the words:\n“Who… are they?”"}],"chapter_list":[{"chapter_key":"s1IgnTxQni","title":"","serial_number":1,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","word_count":914,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"Three years after our breakup, I ran into Nathaniel Woods in the ER.\n\nHe was holding his very pregnant wife, his eyes bloodshot with panic, practically losing it.\n\n“Doctor! Save her! She and the baby have to be okay!”\n\nI pulled on a pair of latex gloves, my face expressionless, and motioned for the nurse to wheel the gurney into the operating room.\n\n“Family stays here.”\n\nBut he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it hurt. His voice was hoarse.\n\n“Lily, what happened to your mom and grandma back then had nothing to do with her! Are you really going to use this to get your revenge?”\n\nI slowly pulled my hand away. A sigh escaped through my mask, just loud enough for him to hear.\n\n“If you don't trust me, Mr. Woods, you still have time to transfer to another hospital.”\n\nHe stared hard at me, but in the end, he signed his name on the surgical consent form.\n\nThe surgical light flickered on, then off.\n\nI walked to the scrub sink. The water running over my fingertips was bone-chillingly cold.\n\nThe man who once had the power to shatter my heart…\n\nNow, he couldn't even make me feel a thing.\n\n…\n\nThe surgery was a success. The baby was saved, but the mother needed to be hospitalized for a few days of observation.\n\nWhen I got off work, Nathaniel was waiting for me at the hospital entrance.\n\n“It’s late. I’ll give you a ride,” he said, his voice low.\n\n“I have a party to get to. It's not on your way.” I looked down, adjusting my scarf to avoid his intense gaze.\n\nJust as I reached the door, my phone buzzed. A notification popped up: the party was canceled.\n\nAt that moment, his black sedan was already blocking the only access lane. Behind him, an ambulance with flashing lights couldn't get through.\n\nIts siren was blaring.\n\nI took a deep breath, pulled open the car door, and got in.\n\nThe heat was cranked up inside the car. He put on a playlist—the same old songs I'd had on repeat for years.\n\n“These past few years,” he started, his voice mingling with the music, “how have you been?”\n\n“I’ve been okay,” I said, watching the streaks of light fly by outside the window.\n\nHis eyes flickered over my stomach, then quickly landed on my bare ring finger. He seemed to let out a breath of relief, a faint smile touching his lips.\n\n“So… why haven't you found someone else?”\n\nI closed my eyes. “Whether I have or not, what does it have to do with you?”\n\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Are you still mad at me?”\n\n“We were both so young back then. I made some mistakes… but Lily, you were just so stubborn. If it hadn't been for your grandmother, maybe we—”\n\nHe cut himself off, glancing at me.\n\n“Don't you dare talk about my grandmother!”\n\nMy voice shot up, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.\n\nThe cold wind rushing in through the window was exactly the same as the chilling draft I felt three years ago when I got the call about my grandmother's death.\n\nThat same wind, cutting right through me.\n\n“Turn at the next corner. I'm getting out.”\n\nNathaniel was silent for a moment. “It's almost midnight, and you have to be at work at six tomorrow morning. This is close to your old… place. Why don't you…”\n\n“No. I'm getting out now.”\n\nBut it was like he didn't hear me. He locked the doors, and the car finally stopped next to a familiar house.\n\nI had just pushed the door open a crack when a voice—both familiar and strange—rang out with perfectly feigned surprise:\n\n“Nathaniel? Is Layla okay? You're back so soon?”\n\nHer voice trailed off as her eyes fell on my face. A flawless smile spread across her well-maintained features.\n\n“Oh, it's you, Lily! I haven't seen you in three years. Your father… he misses you very much.”\n\n“Too bad. I don't miss him at all.”\n\nWith that, I turned to leave.\n\nNathaniel caught up, grabbing my hand. “It's so late. You don't have a home or friends. Where else are you gonna go?”\n\n“I have a home.”\n\nNathaniel froze for a second, then gave a bitter smile.\n\n“You ran out on your own wedding three years ago. You burned all your bridges. The only ‘friends’ you have are your coworkers at the hospital.”\n\nHis words were like needles, piercing an old wound.\n\n“Just come back,” he said, his tone softening. “We're all family.”\n\n“Wouldn't it be nice if we could just be one big, happy family?”\n\nI looked up, my gaze sweeping past him to the woman with the prim smile behind him, and then up to the blurry but familiar figure of my father in the window upstairs.\n\nMy heart clenched painfully.\n\nI remembered the night before my wedding, when Layla tried on my wedding dress.\n\nI slapped her.\n\nNathaniel had pulled her behind him, looking at me like I was a stranger.\n\nDevastated, I'd run out of the house.\n\nThe wind that night was just like this one—chilling me to the bone.\n\nI pulled my thin coat tighter, hoarding the last scrap of warmth deep inside me.\n\n“I have a new home now.”\n\nAnd with that, I turned and walked into the thick darkness of the night, and I never looked back."},{"chapter_key":"AXAX9F2szA","title":"","serial_number":2,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/2/en_db49a654-33ce-4add-a1e0-357d92ab65a8.txt","word_count":945,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"I knew Nathaniel wouldn't follow me.\nA guy like him is too proud. He only ever swallows his pride for Layla, always ready to soothe her.\nIt was just like all those years ago when the new transfer student came to our class.\nShe was so timid, like a startled fawn.\nWhen I saw her getting bullied, I stepped in to protect her.\n“She's my cousin,” I announced. “Leave her alone.”\nBack then, Nathaniel was the school's resident bad boy, and I was always worried he'd pick on her.\nUntil one day after school, I saw him kneeling down, carefully tying Layla's untied shoelace.\nAfter our classmates saw me and Layla walking into my family's mansion together, they all believed she was my cousin.\nBut what they didn't know was that she was just my housekeeper's daughter.\nI gave her protection, a social standing, and brought her into my world.\nBut when my mother got seriously ill, she and her mother started appearing around my father more and more.\nThen, on a rainy night during our senior year of high school, my mother let go of my hand and jumped from the rooftop, taking all the warmth in the world with her.\nAfter that, I started to distance myself from Layla.\nBut Nathaniel took it upon himself to be her knight in shining armor.\nIf someone so much as said a bad word about Layla, he’d get into a fight on the basketball court until his knuckles were bleeding.\nIf her eyes reddened, he'd jump the school wall to buy her favorite dessert and patiently coax her until she was smiling through her tears.\nHe never did any of that for me.\nI grew quiet, like a silent shadow in the corner of the classroom.\nUntil my birthday.\nThe house was cold and empty; I was all alone.\nThen Nathaniel showed up, holding a cake with flickering candles.\nHe softly sang “Happy Birthday.” I looked at him, my eyes stinging, and all the bottled-up resentment was about to burst.\nBut just then, Layla appeared timidly behind him.\nShe started singing along softly, her eyes wide and innocent.\nIn that instant, it felt like being doused with ice water. I grabbed the cake and smashed it right in her face.\nFrosting covered her entirely.\nNathaniel immediately pulled her behind him and yelled at me, “Lily! Haven't you made enough of a scene?!”\nTears instantly welled up. I pointed at Layla, my voice trembling. “Nathaniel, choose! You have to choose one of us, right now!”\nHe looked at me, then at a sobbing Layla.\nFinally, he let go of her hand.\nBut I remember the light snow falling that night, dusting his shoulders.\nThe look he gave me was so complicated.\nBack then, I thought I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes, my last resort.\nIt took me years to realize there was no sympathy in that look—only the bitter reluctance of being forced into a corner.\n\nThe clock read 1 AM. I turned off the light and fell into a deep sleep.\nThe next morning, when I opened my door, Nathaniel's car was parked downstairs.\nHe rolled down the window, a knowing smirk on his face.\n“Talking all tough about your ‘new place,’ but you still ended up in this dump?”\nThe only reason I was staying here was because I knew Nathaniel would follow me, and I didn't want him to find out where I really lived.\nI glanced at my watch. I really was running late, so I reluctantly pulled open the car door and got in.\n“I thought you'd be at the hospital with Layla.”\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel for a second, but his voice was casual.\n“I was. I only came out because she said she was craving a breakfast burrito from that old spot downtown. Figured I'd swing by and check on you since it was on the way.”\nI nodded and didn't say anything else.\nThe car drove right past the burrito stand, but he didn't even slow down.\nIt was like he didn't even see it.\nWhen we got to the hospital, I pushed open the door to Layla's room. She was already awake, looking pale and fragile.\nWhen she saw me, she gently tugged on Nathaniel's sleeve and whispered,\n“Nathaniel, you must be exhausted from staying here all night. It was so good to see you when I woke up.”\n“You're fine. You can be discharged after a day of observation.”\nI pulled back my stethoscope, my tone strictly professional.\nI had just turned to leave when Layla suddenly grabbed my wrist, her voice choked with sobs.\n“Lily, about what happened with Grandma back then… I couldn't stop her…”\n“But I was drugged! Even if you don't believe me, you have to believe Nathaniel! We didn't tell you because we were afraid of hurting you…”\nThe room fell silent.\nEvery gaze felt like a needle in my back.\nGrandma…\nTen years ago, I lost my mother. Ten years later, I had to watch my grandmother fall from the very same spot.\nThat familiar, icy chill seized my heart all over again.\nI violently shook her hand off, turned, and walked away, my back ramrod straight.\nThe acrid smell of antiseptic filled the hallway.\nI didn't stop until I turned into an empty fire escape.\nMy hand was clenched so tightly in my pocket that my nails dug deep into my palm, drawing a warm wetness that stained my fingertips.\nBut even that was nothing compared to the ache of the old wound in my heart, still bleeding after all these years."},{"chapter_key":"ayG7X2Gtn1","title":"","serial_number":3,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/3/en_520c161e-ae87-4646-8a1f-029b43b97293.txt","word_count":853,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"A familiar cramp twisted in my stomach, and I instinctively clutched it.\nA hand reached out, a box of Tums held between two fingers.\n“See? Some things never change.”\nNathaniel's voice was deliberately gentle.\nI turned away, refusing to take them.\nHis tone shifted to concern. “You work yourself to death. What's wrong with taking a few days off?”\nI watched his painfully sincere performance and found it laughable.\n“My vacation days are for something else.”\nHe didn't say anything. He reached for my hair, but I flinched away.\n“You always do this,” he sighed. “You leave me completely helpless.”\n“Remember back in school? You had a 102-degree fever but insisted on finishing your exam.”\n“You ended up passing out right there. Scared the hell out of me.”\n“You were in so much pain, but you just refused to back down.”\nHe rambled on, lost in his memories.\nHe didn't even notice I was looking down at my phone.\nThe screen was lit up with a new text:\n“Hey babe, the meeting ended early. I'll be back tomorrow.”\nI cut through his sentimental trip down memory lane with a cold laugh.\n“People have a way of romanticizing the past.”\n“Back then, you didn't actually do anything.”\n“You were too busy comforting *her* while she sobbed about her test scores being lower than mine.”\nHis smile froze on his face.\nFor the next few days, I didn't go to the hospital.\nWhen I finally walked into her room, I found Nathaniel helping her to her feet.\n“Why are you just now being discharged?” I frowned. This was several days later than expected.\nLayla looked at me timidly, her voice soft. “I didn't want to leave... not without seeing you. I was afraid you'd be even more upset.”\nShe came forward and took my hand, her eyes welling up. “Lily, let's go home together? Dad... he really misses you.”\n“Your room... it's exactly how you left it. I've never dared to go inside.”\nHer tone was meek, laced with a careful attempt to please me. The nurses shot me looks of silent accusation.\nI closed my eyes, forcing down the bitter feeling rising in my throat.\n“...Fine.”\nI had left in such a hurry that I realized I’d forgotten a few things.\nSinking into the back seat of the car, I leaned my head wearily against the window. As I looked down, my cashmere scarf slipped from my neck.\nWhen I went to pull it back up, my eyes met a pair of suddenly sharp ones in the rearview mirror.\nNathaniel’s gaze was locked on the side of my neck, fixed on the fresh hickey there.\nThe veins on the back of his hands bulged as he gripped the steering wheel.\nHe drove fast. By the time we got home, Layla was pale and gagging.\nNathaniel rushed to steady her, his voice full of self-reproach. “Are you feeling sick? It's my fault, I was driving too fast...”\nLayla shook her head weakly, but her eyes landed on me. “It's okay. As long as Lily is willing to come home, it's all worth it.”\nI ignored them and went straight to my old room on the second floor.\nPushing the door open felt like stepping into a moment frozen in time. I picked up the faded photo of my mother and me from the desk.\nIn the picture, Mom was holding me gently, her eyes shining.\nAs my fingertips traced her smiling face, a sharp memory pierced my mind.\nIt was after my mock exam scores dropped senior year. Mom held my report card, her brow furrowed.\n“Lily, you've been getting too close to Nathaniel lately.”\n“You need to pull your head out of the clouds and focus on your studies, okay?”\nBut I was swept up in the sweet haze of first love and shot back:\n“What else do you do besides watch my every move?”\n“If you're so good at it, why don't you keep a closer eye on your own husband!”\nThe color drained from Mom's face.\nHer lips moved, but in the end, she said nothing.\nLater, she jumped from a building.\nLooking back now, I realized she had been in unbearable pain for a long time, only holding on for my sake.\nAnd I, with the most vicious words I could find, had twisted the knife in her bleeding wound.\n“Bang!”\nThe door slammed shut.\nNathaniel pinned me against the wall, his eyes dark as his fingers traced the red mark on my neck.\n“Did you do this to yourself? Lily, when did you get so twisted?”\nI froze for a second. It suddenly occurred to me that the man I’d loved for so many years might actually be an idiot.\nI tried to shove him away, but the door suddenly opened again.\nLayla stood in the doorway, her hand flying to her mouth as tears instantly welled in her eyes.\n“What... what are you two doing?”\nI sneered, my gaze sweeping over her pitiful expression and her baby bump.\n“At least we're not naked in bed together.”"},{"chapter_key":"1kIz95G2Y0","title":"","serial_number":4,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/4/en_bcbfa717-0fda-4445-a521-ed3b120022d5.txt","word_count":897,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"My gaze drifted to the window, my voice turning colder.\n“Or, you could just jump.”\n“This is the second floor. Don't worry, you won't die. I'll be right there to save you.”\n“You little monster!” my father’s roar came from outside the door.\n“You’re just like your mother—completely unreasonable! You brought all of this on yourselves!”\nI closed my eyes and turned to leave.\nNathaniel lunged forward, grabbing my wrist. “Lily!”\nI shook him off and walked down the stairs without looking back.\nBehind me, I could hear Layla's muffled sobs and the frantic murmurs of our family as they rushed to comfort her.\nAs I stepped out the main door, the winter wind bit at my collar, and I carefully wrapped my scarf tighter.\nThen I pulled out my phone and sent a voice message:\n“I got Mom's things. Come pick me up.”\nI wandered aimlessly down the empty street, but my thoughts spiraled uncontrollably into a deeper darkness.\nShortly after I’d run out on my wedding, I had pieced together the truth behind my grandmother’s suicide.\nI had gone to visit her that day and left my phone behind. She called the house several times, but the line went dead every time I answered.\nLater, she brought the phone to me herself and begged me not to marry Nathaniel.\nAnd how did I respond?\nI told her, “Grandma, just because Mom had an unhappy marriage doesn't mean I will. Nathaniel and I are childhood sweethearts, we grew up together, we know each other inside and out…”\nThat shattered her last sliver of hope. Her daughter, and now her granddaughter, were just the same.\nThere was nothing left for her in this world.\nHate burned through my reason.\nI used the most disgusting footage I could find and deepfaked Nathaniel's and Layla's faces onto it.\nThen I blasted it to our entire social circle, determined to ruin their reputations.\nBut Nathaniel called the cops faster than I could have imagined.\nAt the station, I filed my own report, calmly stating the cause of my grandmother's death.\nBut their one question stopped me dead: “Do you have any direct evidence?”\nAcross from me, Nathaniel and Layla sat with innocent, resolute expressions, denying everything in unison.\nIn the end, I was the one who was detained.\nFifteen days later, I walked out.\nThe first notification on my phone was the announcement of their lavish wedding.\nIn the photo, Nathaniel’s arm was wrapped around Layla’s waist, his smile jarringly bright.\nAnd the diamond on Layla’s ring finger was the very same pink diamond Nathaniel had spent ages picking out for me.\nHe’d said that shade of pink was the perfect match for the color of my cheeks when I blushed.\nIt turned out he’d intentionally ordered the ring a size smaller because, deep down, he had already been picturing it on someone else.\nI refused to accept it.\nI crashed the wedding and threw rubbing alcohol on the hem of Layla’s dress.\nFlames shot up. Screams erupted.\nNathaniel shoved her out of the way without a second thought, but a collapsing decorative arch came down and crushed his legs.\nLater, Layla begged every renowned doctor she could find and managed to pull him back from the brink of permanent disability.\nAnd I was thrown in jail for arson and assault.\nMy lawyer sighed from the other side of the visitor’s glass, saying that a letter of forgiveness from the victims might reduce my sentence.\nHe accompanied me to the hospital.\nNathaniel, sitting in a wheelchair, slapped me hard across the face.\n“You’re so selfish! So damn spoiled! You don’t have an ounce of Layla’s kindness!”\nLayla stood beside him, tears streaming down her face as she gently pulled on his arm.\n“Nathaniel, don’t… My sister was just confused. Let’s sign the letter of forgiveness…”\nHe snatched the document and, right in front of me, ripped it to shreds.\nThe pieces drifted down like a flurry of desperate snow.\n“Get out,” he snarled, his eyes locked on me.\n“Don’t ever let me see you again.”\n“Or else I’ll find ways to make you suffer a thousand times more than you are right now.”\nI managed a small smile and forced my tears back.\nWho would have thought that after three years, the first time I’d see them again, I would be saving the two people I hated most in the world—and their child.\nSuddenly, an umbrella opened over my head, shielding me from the falling snow.\nAt the same time, a soft little hand tugged at my pant leg.\n“Mommy, hold me…”\nFrom behind me, a gentle, steady voice spoke, full of concern.\n“Didn't I tell you to wait in the coffee shop? It's too cold out here. Let's get in the car.”\nHe reached up and gently brushed the snowflakes from the ends of my hair.\nJust then, I heard frantic footsteps approaching from behind.\nNathaniel ran out. “Lily, you…”\nHis words died in his throat.\nHis gaze was locked on the child in my arms and the man holding the umbrella beside me.\nThe color drained from his face. His lips moved for a long moment before he managed to choke out the words:\n“Who… are they?”"}],"recommend_text":"Three years after our breakup, I’m now the surgeon saving his pregnant wife. \nHe thought I was alone and broken. Until he saw the child in my arms and the man beside me holding an umbrella. \n“Who are they?” he choked out, his world crumbling in the snow.","button_text":"","bottom_text":""} "2600:1f28:365:80b0:a9fc:cf4c:966:931d" {"clickToRead":"🔥🔥Click to read the next chapter for free 👇","continueReading":"CONTINUE READING","more":"More","open":"Open","bottomText":"The upcoming chapters are even more exciting! Click the download button below to read the entire book!👇👇👇"} {"id":1000509,"name":"No More Heartbreak for Him","start_time":1765539584,"end_time":1797075584,"status":1,"version_config":[{"name":"base","traffic_interval":0},{"name":"exp1","traffic_interval":100,"landing_page_id":817,"novel":{"novel_id":6700,"novel_key":"p0x4Rty625","title":"No More Heartbreak for Him","cover":"https://static-v1.mydramawave.com/novel/landing-page/image-crawl/3aba4cabf0071f6adb35b9c69014deb9.jpg?image_process=quality,85/resize,w_600/format,webp","intro":"Three years after our breakup, I meet Nathaniel in the ER. He holds his pregnant wife, panicked: \"Save her first!\" I signal the nurse. He grabs me, accusing me of settling scores. I stay calm: \"Transfer her if you don't trust me.\" He signs. The man who tore my heart apart can't move me anymore.","use_default_button_text":true,"lang":"en-US","style":200003,"chapter_count":8,"word_count":6712,"use_novel_desc":true,"chapter":{"chapter_key":"s1IgnTxQni","title":"","serial_number":1,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","word_count":914,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false},"recommend_text":"Three years after our breakup, I’m now the surgeon saving his pregnant wife. \nHe thought I was alone and broken. Until he saw the child in my arms and the man beside me holding an umbrella. \n“Who are they?” he choked out, his world crumbling in the snow.","use_default_bottom_text":true,"chapter_list":[{"chapter_key":"s1IgnTxQni","title":"","serial_number":1,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","word_count":914,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"Three years after our breakup, I ran into Nathaniel Woods in the ER.\n\nHe was holding his very pregnant wife, his eyes bloodshot with panic, practically losing it.\n\n“Doctor! Save her! She and the baby have to be okay!”\n\nI pulled on a pair of latex gloves, my face expressionless, and motioned for the nurse to wheel the gurney into the operating room.\n\n“Family stays here.”\n\nBut he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it hurt. His voice was hoarse.\n\n“Lily, what happened to your mom and grandma back then had nothing to do with her! Are you really going to use this to get your revenge?”\n\nI slowly pulled my hand away. A sigh escaped through my mask, just loud enough for him to hear.\n\n“If you don't trust me, Mr. Woods, you still have time to transfer to another hospital.”\n\nHe stared hard at me, but in the end, he signed his name on the surgical consent form.\n\nThe surgical light flickered on, then off.\n\nI walked to the scrub sink. The water running over my fingertips was bone-chillingly cold.\n\nThe man who once had the power to shatter my heart…\n\nNow, he couldn't even make me feel a thing.\n\n…\n\nThe surgery was a success. The baby was saved, but the mother needed to be hospitalized for a few days of observation.\n\nWhen I got off work, Nathaniel was waiting for me at the hospital entrance.\n\n“It’s late. I’ll give you a ride,” he said, his voice low.\n\n“I have a party to get to. It's not on your way.” I looked down, adjusting my scarf to avoid his intense gaze.\n\nJust as I reached the door, my phone buzzed. A notification popped up: the party was canceled.\n\nAt that moment, his black sedan was already blocking the only access lane. Behind him, an ambulance with flashing lights couldn't get through.\n\nIts siren was blaring.\n\nI took a deep breath, pulled open the car door, and got in.\n\nThe heat was cranked up inside the car. He put on a playlist—the same old songs I'd had on repeat for years.\n\n“These past few years,” he started, his voice mingling with the music, “how have you been?”\n\n“I’ve been okay,” I said, watching the streaks of light fly by outside the window.\n\nHis eyes flickered over my stomach, then quickly landed on my bare ring finger. He seemed to let out a breath of relief, a faint smile touching his lips.\n\n“So… why haven't you found someone else?”\n\nI closed my eyes. “Whether I have or not, what does it have to do with you?”\n\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Are you still mad at me?”\n\n“We were both so young back then. I made some mistakes… but Lily, you were just so stubborn. If it hadn't been for your grandmother, maybe we—”\n\nHe cut himself off, glancing at me.\n\n“Don't you dare talk about my grandmother!”\n\nMy voice shot up, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.\n\nThe cold wind rushing in through the window was exactly the same as the chilling draft I felt three years ago when I got the call about my grandmother's death.\n\nThat same wind, cutting right through me.\n\n“Turn at the next corner. I'm getting out.”\n\nNathaniel was silent for a moment. “It's almost midnight, and you have to be at work at six tomorrow morning. This is close to your old… place. Why don't you…”\n\n“No. I'm getting out now.”\n\nBut it was like he didn't hear me. He locked the doors, and the car finally stopped next to a familiar house.\n\nI had just pushed the door open a crack when a voice—both familiar and strange—rang out with perfectly feigned surprise:\n\n“Nathaniel? Is Layla okay? You're back so soon?”\n\nHer voice trailed off as her eyes fell on my face. A flawless smile spread across her well-maintained features.\n\n“Oh, it's you, Lily! I haven't seen you in three years. Your father… he misses you very much.”\n\n“Too bad. I don't miss him at all.”\n\nWith that, I turned to leave.\n\nNathaniel caught up, grabbing my hand. “It's so late. You don't have a home or friends. Where else are you gonna go?”\n\n“I have a home.”\n\nNathaniel froze for a second, then gave a bitter smile.\n\n“You ran out on your own wedding three years ago. You burned all your bridges. The only ‘friends’ you have are your coworkers at the hospital.”\n\nHis words were like needles, piercing an old wound.\n\n“Just come back,” he said, his tone softening. “We're all family.”\n\n“Wouldn't it be nice if we could just be one big, happy family?”\n\nI looked up, my gaze sweeping past him to the woman with the prim smile behind him, and then up to the blurry but familiar figure of my father in the window upstairs.\n\nMy heart clenched painfully.\n\nI remembered the night before my wedding, when Layla tried on my wedding dress.\n\nI slapped her.\n\nNathaniel had pulled her behind him, looking at me like I was a stranger.\n\nDevastated, I'd run out of the house.\n\nThe wind that night was just like this one—chilling me to the bone.\n\nI pulled my thin coat tighter, hoarding the last scrap of warmth deep inside me.\n\n“I have a new home now.”\n\nAnd with that, I turned and walked into the thick darkness of the night, and I never looked back."},{"chapter_key":"AXAX9F2szA","title":"","serial_number":2,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/2/en_db49a654-33ce-4add-a1e0-357d92ab65a8.txt","word_count":945,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"I knew Nathaniel wouldn't follow me.\nA guy like him is too proud. He only ever swallows his pride for Layla, always ready to soothe her.\nIt was just like all those years ago when the new transfer student came to our class.\nShe was so timid, like a startled fawn.\nWhen I saw her getting bullied, I stepped in to protect her.\n“She's my cousin,” I announced. “Leave her alone.”\nBack then, Nathaniel was the school's resident bad boy, and I was always worried he'd pick on her.\nUntil one day after school, I saw him kneeling down, carefully tying Layla's untied shoelace.\nAfter our classmates saw me and Layla walking into my family's mansion together, they all believed she was my cousin.\nBut what they didn't know was that she was just my housekeeper's daughter.\nI gave her protection, a social standing, and brought her into my world.\nBut when my mother got seriously ill, she and her mother started appearing around my father more and more.\nThen, on a rainy night during our senior year of high school, my mother let go of my hand and jumped from the rooftop, taking all the warmth in the world with her.\nAfter that, I started to distance myself from Layla.\nBut Nathaniel took it upon himself to be her knight in shining armor.\nIf someone so much as said a bad word about Layla, he’d get into a fight on the basketball court until his knuckles were bleeding.\nIf her eyes reddened, he'd jump the school wall to buy her favorite dessert and patiently coax her until she was smiling through her tears.\nHe never did any of that for me.\nI grew quiet, like a silent shadow in the corner of the classroom.\nUntil my birthday.\nThe house was cold and empty; I was all alone.\nThen Nathaniel showed up, holding a cake with flickering candles.\nHe softly sang “Happy Birthday.” I looked at him, my eyes stinging, and all the bottled-up resentment was about to burst.\nBut just then, Layla appeared timidly behind him.\nShe started singing along softly, her eyes wide and innocent.\nIn that instant, it felt like being doused with ice water. I grabbed the cake and smashed it right in her face.\nFrosting covered her entirely.\nNathaniel immediately pulled her behind him and yelled at me, “Lily! Haven't you made enough of a scene?!”\nTears instantly welled up. I pointed at Layla, my voice trembling. “Nathaniel, choose! You have to choose one of us, right now!”\nHe looked at me, then at a sobbing Layla.\nFinally, he let go of her hand.\nBut I remember the light snow falling that night, dusting his shoulders.\nThe look he gave me was so complicated.\nBack then, I thought I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes, my last resort.\nIt took me years to realize there was no sympathy in that look—only the bitter reluctance of being forced into a corner.\n\nThe clock read 1 AM. I turned off the light and fell into a deep sleep.\nThe next morning, when I opened my door, Nathaniel's car was parked downstairs.\nHe rolled down the window, a knowing smirk on his face.\n“Talking all tough about your ‘new place,’ but you still ended up in this dump?”\nThe only reason I was staying here was because I knew Nathaniel would follow me, and I didn't want him to find out where I really lived.\nI glanced at my watch. I really was running late, so I reluctantly pulled open the car door and got in.\n“I thought you'd be at the hospital with Layla.”\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel for a second, but his voice was casual.\n“I was. I only came out because she said she was craving a breakfast burrito from that old spot downtown. Figured I'd swing by and check on you since it was on the way.”\nI nodded and didn't say anything else.\nThe car drove right past the burrito stand, but he didn't even slow down.\nIt was like he didn't even see it.\nWhen we got to the hospital, I pushed open the door to Layla's room. She was already awake, looking pale and fragile.\nWhen she saw me, she gently tugged on Nathaniel's sleeve and whispered,\n“Nathaniel, you must be exhausted from staying here all night. It was so good to see you when I woke up.”\n“You're fine. You can be discharged after a day of observation.”\nI pulled back my stethoscope, my tone strictly professional.\nI had just turned to leave when Layla suddenly grabbed my wrist, her voice choked with sobs.\n“Lily, about what happened with Grandma back then… I couldn't stop her…”\n“But I was drugged! Even if you don't believe me, you have to believe Nathaniel! We didn't tell you because we were afraid of hurting you…”\nThe room fell silent.\nEvery gaze felt like a needle in my back.\nGrandma…\nTen years ago, I lost my mother. Ten years later, I had to watch my grandmother fall from the very same spot.\nThat familiar, icy chill seized my heart all over again.\nI violently shook her hand off, turned, and walked away, my back ramrod straight.\nThe acrid smell of antiseptic filled the hallway.\nI didn't stop until I turned into an empty fire escape.\nMy hand was clenched so tightly in my pocket that my nails dug deep into my palm, drawing a warm wetness that stained my fingertips.\nBut even that was nothing compared to the ache of the old wound in my heart, still bleeding after all these years."},{"chapter_key":"ayG7X2Gtn1","title":"","serial_number":3,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/3/en_520c161e-ae87-4646-8a1f-029b43b97293.txt","word_count":853,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"A familiar cramp twisted in my stomach, and I instinctively clutched it.\nA hand reached out, a box of Tums held between two fingers.\n“See? Some things never change.”\nNathaniel's voice was deliberately gentle.\nI turned away, refusing to take them.\nHis tone shifted to concern. “You work yourself to death. What's wrong with taking a few days off?”\nI watched his painfully sincere performance and found it laughable.\n“My vacation days are for something else.”\nHe didn't say anything. He reached for my hair, but I flinched away.\n“You always do this,” he sighed. “You leave me completely helpless.”\n“Remember back in school? You had a 102-degree fever but insisted on finishing your exam.”\n“You ended up passing out right there. Scared the hell out of me.”\n“You were in so much pain, but you just refused to back down.”\nHe rambled on, lost in his memories.\nHe didn't even notice I was looking down at my phone.\nThe screen was lit up with a new text:\n“Hey babe, the meeting ended early. I'll be back tomorrow.”\nI cut through his sentimental trip down memory lane with a cold laugh.\n“People have a way of romanticizing the past.”\n“Back then, you didn't actually do anything.”\n“You were too busy comforting *her* while she sobbed about her test scores being lower than mine.”\nHis smile froze on his face.\nFor the next few days, I didn't go to the hospital.\nWhen I finally walked into her room, I found Nathaniel helping her to her feet.\n“Why are you just now being discharged?” I frowned. This was several days later than expected.\nLayla looked at me timidly, her voice soft. “I didn't want to leave... not without seeing you. I was afraid you'd be even more upset.”\nShe came forward and took my hand, her eyes welling up. “Lily, let's go home together? Dad... he really misses you.”\n“Your room... it's exactly how you left it. I've never dared to go inside.”\nHer tone was meek, laced with a careful attempt to please me. The nurses shot me looks of silent accusation.\nI closed my eyes, forcing down the bitter feeling rising in my throat.\n“...Fine.”\nI had left in such a hurry that I realized I’d forgotten a few things.\nSinking into the back seat of the car, I leaned my head wearily against the window. As I looked down, my cashmere scarf slipped from my neck.\nWhen I went to pull it back up, my eyes met a pair of suddenly sharp ones in the rearview mirror.\nNathaniel’s gaze was locked on the side of my neck, fixed on the fresh hickey there.\nThe veins on the back of his hands bulged as he gripped the steering wheel.\nHe drove fast. By the time we got home, Layla was pale and gagging.\nNathaniel rushed to steady her, his voice full of self-reproach. “Are you feeling sick? It's my fault, I was driving too fast...”\nLayla shook her head weakly, but her eyes landed on me. “It's okay. As long as Lily is willing to come home, it's all worth it.”\nI ignored them and went straight to my old room on the second floor.\nPushing the door open felt like stepping into a moment frozen in time. I picked up the faded photo of my mother and me from the desk.\nIn the picture, Mom was holding me gently, her eyes shining.\nAs my fingertips traced her smiling face, a sharp memory pierced my mind.\nIt was after my mock exam scores dropped senior year. Mom held my report card, her brow furrowed.\n“Lily, you've been getting too close to Nathaniel lately.”\n“You need to pull your head out of the clouds and focus on your studies, okay?”\nBut I was swept up in the sweet haze of first love and shot back:\n“What else do you do besides watch my every move?”\n“If you're so good at it, why don't you keep a closer eye on your own husband!”\nThe color drained from Mom's face.\nHer lips moved, but in the end, she said nothing.\nLater, she jumped from a building.\nLooking back now, I realized she had been in unbearable pain for a long time, only holding on for my sake.\nAnd I, with the most vicious words I could find, had twisted the knife in her bleeding wound.\n“Bang!”\nThe door slammed shut.\nNathaniel pinned me against the wall, his eyes dark as his fingers traced the red mark on my neck.\n“Did you do this to yourself? Lily, when did you get so twisted?”\nI froze for a second. It suddenly occurred to me that the man I’d loved for so many years might actually be an idiot.\nI tried to shove him away, but the door suddenly opened again.\nLayla stood in the doorway, her hand flying to her mouth as tears instantly welled in her eyes.\n“What... what are you two doing?”\nI sneered, my gaze sweeping over her pitiful expression and her baby bump.\n“At least we're not naked in bed together.”"},{"chapter_key":"1kIz95G2Y0","title":"","serial_number":4,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/4/en_bcbfa717-0fda-4445-a521-ed3b120022d5.txt","word_count":897,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"My gaze drifted to the window, my voice turning colder.\n“Or, you could just jump.”\n“This is the second floor. Don't worry, you won't die. I'll be right there to save you.”\n“You little monster!” my father’s roar came from outside the door.\n“You’re just like your mother—completely unreasonable! You brought all of this on yourselves!”\nI closed my eyes and turned to leave.\nNathaniel lunged forward, grabbing my wrist. “Lily!”\nI shook him off and walked down the stairs without looking back.\nBehind me, I could hear Layla's muffled sobs and the frantic murmurs of our family as they rushed to comfort her.\nAs I stepped out the main door, the winter wind bit at my collar, and I carefully wrapped my scarf tighter.\nThen I pulled out my phone and sent a voice message:\n“I got Mom's things. Come pick me up.”\nI wandered aimlessly down the empty street, but my thoughts spiraled uncontrollably into a deeper darkness.\nShortly after I’d run out on my wedding, I had pieced together the truth behind my grandmother’s suicide.\nI had gone to visit her that day and left my phone behind. She called the house several times, but the line went dead every time I answered.\nLater, she brought the phone to me herself and begged me not to marry Nathaniel.\nAnd how did I respond?\nI told her, “Grandma, just because Mom had an unhappy marriage doesn't mean I will. Nathaniel and I are childhood sweethearts, we grew up together, we know each other inside and out…”\nThat shattered her last sliver of hope. Her daughter, and now her granddaughter, were just the same.\nThere was nothing left for her in this world.\nHate burned through my reason.\nI used the most disgusting footage I could find and deepfaked Nathaniel's and Layla's faces onto it.\nThen I blasted it to our entire social circle, determined to ruin their reputations.\nBut Nathaniel called the cops faster than I could have imagined.\nAt the station, I filed my own report, calmly stating the cause of my grandmother's death.\nBut their one question stopped me dead: “Do you have any direct evidence?”\nAcross from me, Nathaniel and Layla sat with innocent, resolute expressions, denying everything in unison.\nIn the end, I was the one who was detained.\nFifteen days later, I walked out.\nThe first notification on my phone was the announcement of their lavish wedding.\nIn the photo, Nathaniel’s arm was wrapped around Layla’s waist, his smile jarringly bright.\nAnd the diamond on Layla’s ring finger was the very same pink diamond Nathaniel had spent ages picking out for me.\nHe’d said that shade of pink was the perfect match for the color of my cheeks when I blushed.\nIt turned out he’d intentionally ordered the ring a size smaller because, deep down, he had already been picturing it on someone else.\nI refused to accept it.\nI crashed the wedding and threw rubbing alcohol on the hem of Layla’s dress.\nFlames shot up. Screams erupted.\nNathaniel shoved her out of the way without a second thought, but a collapsing decorative arch came down and crushed his legs.\nLater, Layla begged every renowned doctor she could find and managed to pull him back from the brink of permanent disability.\nAnd I was thrown in jail for arson and assault.\nMy lawyer sighed from the other side of the visitor’s glass, saying that a letter of forgiveness from the victims might reduce my sentence.\nHe accompanied me to the hospital.\nNathaniel, sitting in a wheelchair, slapped me hard across the face.\n“You’re so selfish! So damn spoiled! You don’t have an ounce of Layla’s kindness!”\nLayla stood beside him, tears streaming down her face as she gently pulled on his arm.\n“Nathaniel, don’t… My sister was just confused. Let’s sign the letter of forgiveness…”\nHe snatched the document and, right in front of me, ripped it to shreds.\nThe pieces drifted down like a flurry of desperate snow.\n“Get out,” he snarled, his eyes locked on me.\n“Don’t ever let me see you again.”\n“Or else I’ll find ways to make you suffer a thousand times more than you are right now.”\nI managed a small smile and forced my tears back.\nWho would have thought that after three years, the first time I’d see them again, I would be saving the two people I hated most in the world—and their child.\nSuddenly, an umbrella opened over my head, shielding me from the falling snow.\nAt the same time, a soft little hand tugged at my pant leg.\n“Mommy, hold me…”\nFrom behind me, a gentle, steady voice spoke, full of concern.\n“Didn't I tell you to wait in the coffee shop? It's too cold out here. Let's get in the car.”\nHe reached up and gently brushed the snowflakes from the ends of my hair.\nJust then, I heard frantic footsteps approaching from behind.\nNathaniel ran out. “Lily, you…”\nHis words died in his throat.\nHis gaze was locked on the child in my arms and the man holding the umbrella beside me.\nThe color drained from his face. His lips moved for a long moment before he managed to choke out the words:\n“Who… are they?”"}]}}]} {"name":"exp1","traffic_interval":100,"landing_page_id":817,"novel":{"novel_id":6700,"novel_key":"p0x4Rty625","title":"No More Heartbreak for Him","cover":"https://static-v1.mydramawave.com/novel/landing-page/image-crawl/3aba4cabf0071f6adb35b9c69014deb9.jpg?image_process=quality,85/resize,w_600/format,webp","intro":"Three years after our breakup, I meet Nathaniel in the ER. He holds his pregnant wife, panicked: \"Save her first!\" I signal the nurse. He grabs me, accusing me of settling scores. I stay calm: \"Transfer her if you don't trust me.\" He signs. The man who tore my heart apart can't move me anymore.","use_default_button_text":true,"lang":"en-US","style":200003,"chapter_count":8,"word_count":6712,"use_novel_desc":true,"chapter":{"chapter_key":"s1IgnTxQni","title":"","serial_number":1,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","word_count":914,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false},"recommend_text":"Three years after our breakup, I’m now the surgeon saving his pregnant wife. \nHe thought I was alone and broken. Until he saw the child in my arms and the man beside me holding an umbrella. \n“Who are they?” he choked out, his world crumbling in the snow.","use_default_bottom_text":true,"chapter_list":[{"chapter_key":"s1IgnTxQni","title":"","serial_number":1,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/1/en_7699b241-7418-4d66-8217-d6a2a6b9c85e.txt","word_count":914,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"Three years after our breakup, I ran into Nathaniel Woods in the ER.\n\nHe was holding his very pregnant wife, his eyes bloodshot with panic, practically losing it.\n\n“Doctor! Save her! She and the baby have to be okay!”\n\nI pulled on a pair of latex gloves, my face expressionless, and motioned for the nurse to wheel the gurney into the operating room.\n\n“Family stays here.”\n\nBut he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it hurt. His voice was hoarse.\n\n“Lily, what happened to your mom and grandma back then had nothing to do with her! Are you really going to use this to get your revenge?”\n\nI slowly pulled my hand away. A sigh escaped through my mask, just loud enough for him to hear.\n\n“If you don't trust me, Mr. Woods, you still have time to transfer to another hospital.”\n\nHe stared hard at me, but in the end, he signed his name on the surgical consent form.\n\nThe surgical light flickered on, then off.\n\nI walked to the scrub sink. The water running over my fingertips was bone-chillingly cold.\n\nThe man who once had the power to shatter my heart…\n\nNow, he couldn't even make me feel a thing.\n\n…\n\nThe surgery was a success. The baby was saved, but the mother needed to be hospitalized for a few days of observation.\n\nWhen I got off work, Nathaniel was waiting for me at the hospital entrance.\n\n“It’s late. I’ll give you a ride,” he said, his voice low.\n\n“I have a party to get to. It's not on your way.” I looked down, adjusting my scarf to avoid his intense gaze.\n\nJust as I reached the door, my phone buzzed. A notification popped up: the party was canceled.\n\nAt that moment, his black sedan was already blocking the only access lane. Behind him, an ambulance with flashing lights couldn't get through.\n\nIts siren was blaring.\n\nI took a deep breath, pulled open the car door, and got in.\n\nThe heat was cranked up inside the car. He put on a playlist—the same old songs I'd had on repeat for years.\n\n“These past few years,” he started, his voice mingling with the music, “how have you been?”\n\n“I’ve been okay,” I said, watching the streaks of light fly by outside the window.\n\nHis eyes flickered over my stomach, then quickly landed on my bare ring finger. He seemed to let out a breath of relief, a faint smile touching his lips.\n\n“So… why haven't you found someone else?”\n\nI closed my eyes. “Whether I have or not, what does it have to do with you?”\n\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Are you still mad at me?”\n\n“We were both so young back then. I made some mistakes… but Lily, you were just so stubborn. If it hadn't been for your grandmother, maybe we—”\n\nHe cut himself off, glancing at me.\n\n“Don't you dare talk about my grandmother!”\n\nMy voice shot up, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.\n\nThe cold wind rushing in through the window was exactly the same as the chilling draft I felt three years ago when I got the call about my grandmother's death.\n\nThat same wind, cutting right through me.\n\n“Turn at the next corner. I'm getting out.”\n\nNathaniel was silent for a moment. “It's almost midnight, and you have to be at work at six tomorrow morning. This is close to your old… place. Why don't you…”\n\n“No. I'm getting out now.”\n\nBut it was like he didn't hear me. He locked the doors, and the car finally stopped next to a familiar house.\n\nI had just pushed the door open a crack when a voice—both familiar and strange—rang out with perfectly feigned surprise:\n\n“Nathaniel? Is Layla okay? You're back so soon?”\n\nHer voice trailed off as her eyes fell on my face. A flawless smile spread across her well-maintained features.\n\n“Oh, it's you, Lily! I haven't seen you in three years. Your father… he misses you very much.”\n\n“Too bad. I don't miss him at all.”\n\nWith that, I turned to leave.\n\nNathaniel caught up, grabbing my hand. “It's so late. You don't have a home or friends. Where else are you gonna go?”\n\n“I have a home.”\n\nNathaniel froze for a second, then gave a bitter smile.\n\n“You ran out on your own wedding three years ago. You burned all your bridges. The only ‘friends’ you have are your coworkers at the hospital.”\n\nHis words were like needles, piercing an old wound.\n\n“Just come back,” he said, his tone softening. “We're all family.”\n\n“Wouldn't it be nice if we could just be one big, happy family?”\n\nI looked up, my gaze sweeping past him to the woman with the prim smile behind him, and then up to the blurry but familiar figure of my father in the window upstairs.\n\nMy heart clenched painfully.\n\nI remembered the night before my wedding, when Layla tried on my wedding dress.\n\nI slapped her.\n\nNathaniel had pulled her behind him, looking at me like I was a stranger.\n\nDevastated, I'd run out of the house.\n\nThe wind that night was just like this one—chilling me to the bone.\n\nI pulled my thin coat tighter, hoarding the last scrap of warmth deep inside me.\n\n“I have a new home now.”\n\nAnd with that, I turned and walked into the thick darkness of the night, and I never looked back."},{"chapter_key":"AXAX9F2szA","title":"","serial_number":2,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/2/en_db49a654-33ce-4add-a1e0-357d92ab65a8.txt","word_count":945,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"I knew Nathaniel wouldn't follow me.\nA guy like him is too proud. He only ever swallows his pride for Layla, always ready to soothe her.\nIt was just like all those years ago when the new transfer student came to our class.\nShe was so timid, like a startled fawn.\nWhen I saw her getting bullied, I stepped in to protect her.\n“She's my cousin,” I announced. “Leave her alone.”\nBack then, Nathaniel was the school's resident bad boy, and I was always worried he'd pick on her.\nUntil one day after school, I saw him kneeling down, carefully tying Layla's untied shoelace.\nAfter our classmates saw me and Layla walking into my family's mansion together, they all believed she was my cousin.\nBut what they didn't know was that she was just my housekeeper's daughter.\nI gave her protection, a social standing, and brought her into my world.\nBut when my mother got seriously ill, she and her mother started appearing around my father more and more.\nThen, on a rainy night during our senior year of high school, my mother let go of my hand and jumped from the rooftop, taking all the warmth in the world with her.\nAfter that, I started to distance myself from Layla.\nBut Nathaniel took it upon himself to be her knight in shining armor.\nIf someone so much as said a bad word about Layla, he’d get into a fight on the basketball court until his knuckles were bleeding.\nIf her eyes reddened, he'd jump the school wall to buy her favorite dessert and patiently coax her until she was smiling through her tears.\nHe never did any of that for me.\nI grew quiet, like a silent shadow in the corner of the classroom.\nUntil my birthday.\nThe house was cold and empty; I was all alone.\nThen Nathaniel showed up, holding a cake with flickering candles.\nHe softly sang “Happy Birthday.” I looked at him, my eyes stinging, and all the bottled-up resentment was about to burst.\nBut just then, Layla appeared timidly behind him.\nShe started singing along softly, her eyes wide and innocent.\nIn that instant, it felt like being doused with ice water. I grabbed the cake and smashed it right in her face.\nFrosting covered her entirely.\nNathaniel immediately pulled her behind him and yelled at me, “Lily! Haven't you made enough of a scene?!”\nTears instantly welled up. I pointed at Layla, my voice trembling. “Nathaniel, choose! You have to choose one of us, right now!”\nHe looked at me, then at a sobbing Layla.\nFinally, he let go of her hand.\nBut I remember the light snow falling that night, dusting his shoulders.\nThe look he gave me was so complicated.\nBack then, I thought I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes, my last resort.\nIt took me years to realize there was no sympathy in that look—only the bitter reluctance of being forced into a corner.\n\nThe clock read 1 AM. I turned off the light and fell into a deep sleep.\nThe next morning, when I opened my door, Nathaniel's car was parked downstairs.\nHe rolled down the window, a knowing smirk on his face.\n“Talking all tough about your ‘new place,’ but you still ended up in this dump?”\nThe only reason I was staying here was because I knew Nathaniel would follow me, and I didn't want him to find out where I really lived.\nI glanced at my watch. I really was running late, so I reluctantly pulled open the car door and got in.\n“I thought you'd be at the hospital with Layla.”\nHis hands tightened on the steering wheel for a second, but his voice was casual.\n“I was. I only came out because she said she was craving a breakfast burrito from that old spot downtown. Figured I'd swing by and check on you since it was on the way.”\nI nodded and didn't say anything else.\nThe car drove right past the burrito stand, but he didn't even slow down.\nIt was like he didn't even see it.\nWhen we got to the hospital, I pushed open the door to Layla's room. She was already awake, looking pale and fragile.\nWhen she saw me, she gently tugged on Nathaniel's sleeve and whispered,\n“Nathaniel, you must be exhausted from staying here all night. It was so good to see you when I woke up.”\n“You're fine. You can be discharged after a day of observation.”\nI pulled back my stethoscope, my tone strictly professional.\nI had just turned to leave when Layla suddenly grabbed my wrist, her voice choked with sobs.\n“Lily, about what happened with Grandma back then… I couldn't stop her…”\n“But I was drugged! Even if you don't believe me, you have to believe Nathaniel! We didn't tell you because we were afraid of hurting you…”\nThe room fell silent.\nEvery gaze felt like a needle in my back.\nGrandma…\nTen years ago, I lost my mother. Ten years later, I had to watch my grandmother fall from the very same spot.\nThat familiar, icy chill seized my heart all over again.\nI violently shook her hand off, turned, and walked away, my back ramrod straight.\nThe acrid smell of antiseptic filled the hallway.\nI didn't stop until I turned into an empty fire escape.\nMy hand was clenched so tightly in my pocket that my nails dug deep into my palm, drawing a warm wetness that stained my fingertips.\nBut even that was nothing compared to the ache of the old wound in my heart, still bleeding after all these years."},{"chapter_key":"ayG7X2Gtn1","title":"","serial_number":3,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/3/en_520c161e-ae87-4646-8a1f-029b43b97293.txt","word_count":853,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"A familiar cramp twisted in my stomach, and I instinctively clutched it.\nA hand reached out, a box of Tums held between two fingers.\n“See? Some things never change.”\nNathaniel's voice was deliberately gentle.\nI turned away, refusing to take them.\nHis tone shifted to concern. “You work yourself to death. What's wrong with taking a few days off?”\nI watched his painfully sincere performance and found it laughable.\n“My vacation days are for something else.”\nHe didn't say anything. He reached for my hair, but I flinched away.\n“You always do this,” he sighed. “You leave me completely helpless.”\n“Remember back in school? You had a 102-degree fever but insisted on finishing your exam.”\n“You ended up passing out right there. Scared the hell out of me.”\n“You were in so much pain, but you just refused to back down.”\nHe rambled on, lost in his memories.\nHe didn't even notice I was looking down at my phone.\nThe screen was lit up with a new text:\n“Hey babe, the meeting ended early. I'll be back tomorrow.”\nI cut through his sentimental trip down memory lane with a cold laugh.\n“People have a way of romanticizing the past.”\n“Back then, you didn't actually do anything.”\n“You were too busy comforting *her* while she sobbed about her test scores being lower than mine.”\nHis smile froze on his face.\nFor the next few days, I didn't go to the hospital.\nWhen I finally walked into her room, I found Nathaniel helping her to her feet.\n“Why are you just now being discharged?” I frowned. This was several days later than expected.\nLayla looked at me timidly, her voice soft. “I didn't want to leave... not without seeing you. I was afraid you'd be even more upset.”\nShe came forward and took my hand, her eyes welling up. “Lily, let's go home together? Dad... he really misses you.”\n“Your room... it's exactly how you left it. I've never dared to go inside.”\nHer tone was meek, laced with a careful attempt to please me. The nurses shot me looks of silent accusation.\nI closed my eyes, forcing down the bitter feeling rising in my throat.\n“...Fine.”\nI had left in such a hurry that I realized I’d forgotten a few things.\nSinking into the back seat of the car, I leaned my head wearily against the window. As I looked down, my cashmere scarf slipped from my neck.\nWhen I went to pull it back up, my eyes met a pair of suddenly sharp ones in the rearview mirror.\nNathaniel’s gaze was locked on the side of my neck, fixed on the fresh hickey there.\nThe veins on the back of his hands bulged as he gripped the steering wheel.\nHe drove fast. By the time we got home, Layla was pale and gagging.\nNathaniel rushed to steady her, his voice full of self-reproach. “Are you feeling sick? It's my fault, I was driving too fast...”\nLayla shook her head weakly, but her eyes landed on me. “It's okay. As long as Lily is willing to come home, it's all worth it.”\nI ignored them and went straight to my old room on the second floor.\nPushing the door open felt like stepping into a moment frozen in time. I picked up the faded photo of my mother and me from the desk.\nIn the picture, Mom was holding me gently, her eyes shining.\nAs my fingertips traced her smiling face, a sharp memory pierced my mind.\nIt was after my mock exam scores dropped senior year. Mom held my report card, her brow furrowed.\n“Lily, you've been getting too close to Nathaniel lately.”\n“You need to pull your head out of the clouds and focus on your studies, okay?”\nBut I was swept up in the sweet haze of first love and shot back:\n“What else do you do besides watch my every move?”\n“If you're so good at it, why don't you keep a closer eye on your own husband!”\nThe color drained from Mom's face.\nHer lips moved, but in the end, she said nothing.\nLater, she jumped from a building.\nLooking back now, I realized she had been in unbearable pain for a long time, only holding on for my sake.\nAnd I, with the most vicious words I could find, had twisted the knife in her bleeding wound.\n“Bang!”\nThe door slammed shut.\nNathaniel pinned me against the wall, his eyes dark as his fingers traced the red mark on my neck.\n“Did you do this to yourself? Lily, when did you get so twisted?”\nI froze for a second. It suddenly occurred to me that the man I’d loved for so many years might actually be an idiot.\nI tried to shove him away, but the door suddenly opened again.\nLayla stood in the doorway, her hand flying to her mouth as tears instantly welled in her eyes.\n“What... what are you two doing?”\nI sneered, my gaze sweeping over her pitiful expression and her baby bump.\n“At least we're not naked in bed together.”"},{"chapter_key":"1kIz95G2Y0","title":"","serial_number":4,"start_chapter":0,"content_path":"https://video-v6.mydramawave.com/novel/26770/4/en_bcbfa717-0fda-4445-a521-ed3b120022d5.txt","word_count":897,"unlock":false,"has_set_free_remind":false,"is_free":false,"text":"My gaze drifted to the window, my voice turning colder.\n“Or, you could just jump.”\n“This is the second floor. Don't worry, you won't die. I'll be right there to save you.”\n“You little monster!” my father’s roar came from outside the door.\n“You’re just like your mother—completely unreasonable! You brought all of this on yourselves!”\nI closed my eyes and turned to leave.\nNathaniel lunged forward, grabbing my wrist. “Lily!”\nI shook him off and walked down the stairs without looking back.\nBehind me, I could hear Layla's muffled sobs and the frantic murmurs of our family as they rushed to comfort her.\nAs I stepped out the main door, the winter wind bit at my collar, and I carefully wrapped my scarf tighter.\nThen I pulled out my phone and sent a voice message:\n“I got Mom's things. Come pick me up.”\nI wandered aimlessly down the empty street, but my thoughts spiraled uncontrollably into a deeper darkness.\nShortly after I’d run out on my wedding, I had pieced together the truth behind my grandmother’s suicide.\nI had gone to visit her that day and left my phone behind. She called the house several times, but the line went dead every time I answered.\nLater, she brought the phone to me herself and begged me not to marry Nathaniel.\nAnd how did I respond?\nI told her, “Grandma, just because Mom had an unhappy marriage doesn't mean I will. Nathaniel and I are childhood sweethearts, we grew up together, we know each other inside and out…”\nThat shattered her last sliver of hope. Her daughter, and now her granddaughter, were just the same.\nThere was nothing left for her in this world.\nHate burned through my reason.\nI used the most disgusting footage I could find and deepfaked Nathaniel's and Layla's faces onto it.\nThen I blasted it to our entire social circle, determined to ruin their reputations.\nBut Nathaniel called the cops faster than I could have imagined.\nAt the station, I filed my own report, calmly stating the cause of my grandmother's death.\nBut their one question stopped me dead: “Do you have any direct evidence?”\nAcross from me, Nathaniel and Layla sat with innocent, resolute expressions, denying everything in unison.\nIn the end, I was the one who was detained.\nFifteen days later, I walked out.\nThe first notification on my phone was the announcement of their lavish wedding.\nIn the photo, Nathaniel’s arm was wrapped around Layla’s waist, his smile jarringly bright.\nAnd the diamond on Layla’s ring finger was the very same pink diamond Nathaniel had spent ages picking out for me.\nHe’d said that shade of pink was the perfect match for the color of my cheeks when I blushed.\nIt turned out he’d intentionally ordered the ring a size smaller because, deep down, he had already been picturing it on someone else.\nI refused to accept it.\nI crashed the wedding and threw rubbing alcohol on the hem of Layla’s dress.\nFlames shot up. Screams erupted.\nNathaniel shoved her out of the way without a second thought, but a collapsing decorative arch came down and crushed his legs.\nLater, Layla begged every renowned doctor she could find and managed to pull him back from the brink of permanent disability.\nAnd I was thrown in jail for arson and assault.\nMy lawyer sighed from the other side of the visitor’s glass, saying that a letter of forgiveness from the victims might reduce my sentence.\nHe accompanied me to the hospital.\nNathaniel, sitting in a wheelchair, slapped me hard across the face.\n“You’re so selfish! So damn spoiled! You don’t have an ounce of Layla’s kindness!”\nLayla stood beside him, tears streaming down her face as she gently pulled on his arm.\n“Nathaniel, don’t… My sister was just confused. Let’s sign the letter of forgiveness…”\nHe snatched the document and, right in front of me, ripped it to shreds.\nThe pieces drifted down like a flurry of desperate snow.\n“Get out,” he snarled, his eyes locked on me.\n“Don’t ever let me see you again.”\n“Or else I’ll find ways to make you suffer a thousand times more than you are right now.”\nI managed a small smile and forced my tears back.\nWho would have thought that after three years, the first time I’d see them again, I would be saving the two people I hated most in the world—and their child.\nSuddenly, an umbrella opened over my head, shielding me from the falling snow.\nAt the same time, a soft little hand tugged at my pant leg.\n“Mommy, hold me…”\nFrom behind me, a gentle, steady voice spoke, full of concern.\n“Didn't I tell you to wait in the coffee shop? It's too cold out here. Let's get in the car.”\nHe reached up and gently brushed the snowflakes from the ends of my hair.\nJust then, I heard frantic footsteps approaching from behind.\nNathaniel ran out. “Lily, you…”\nHis words died in his throat.\nHis gaze was locked on the child in my arms and the man holding the umbrella beside me.\nThe color drained from his face. His lips moved for a long moment before he managed to choke out the words:\n“Who… are they?”"}]}} 200003
Three years after our breakup, I’m now the surgeon saving his pregnant wife.
He thought I was alone and broken. Until he saw the child in my arms and the man beside me holding an umbrella.
“Who are they?” he choked out, his world crumbling in the snow.