Harrison's POV

As Charlotte looked over, I quickly turned off my phone's screen.

"Alright. Go on back. I'm leaving first," I said.

After hearing my answer, Charlotte hesitated before speaking. "Harrison, where are you going?"

"Just walking around. It's been a while since I've been back," I replied.

Only then did she finally relax and smile sweetly at me. "Okay. Don't go too far. Once I'm done here, we'll go register our marriage."

I watched her run back into the wedding venue before turning away and wandering aimlessly. Familiar scenery filled my vision, but my thoughts drifted far away.

Jonathan was the orphaned son of the person who had saved my parents' lives. From the moment he took our family name and was brought into our home, he stole all of my parents' affection.

I had heard that parents loved children who did well in school. Desperate for them to notice me too, I pushed myself to study as hard as I could.

The year I took the SAT, I brought home an acceptance letter from a top university, hoping they would praise me the way they praised Jonathan and gently tell me what a great son I was. But they never did.

What I got instead was Jonathan dropping to his knees, convulsing and foaming at the mouth. Mom and Dad personally destroyed my future and sent me to an obscure community college.

"Harrison, this is a matter of life and death. You don't want to see Jonathan die either, do you?" they said.

It turned out that love needed no reason. I could never compete with Jonathan.

Every time I curled up alone to nurse my wounds, Charlotte would stand by my side and chatter endlessly. "They're just blind. You're the absolute best, the most outstanding.

"You're such a kind person. There's no way you'd hurt anyone. It must be your adopted brother stirring up trouble again. Don't worry. One day, I'll help you take back everything you lost."

Charlotte was the only light in my life. She was cheerful, confident, and carefree. She gave me her undivided affection, something she reserved for me alone. Whenever I was with her, even if we said nothing and simply walked side by side down the street, I still felt incredibly happy.

But now, as I stood there looking at the bustling, noisy street, I was utterly alone with nowhere to go.

While wandering around, I found myself back at the house I shared with Charlotte without even realizing it. That place held the happiest memories of my life and was the only reason I had left to keep going.

I stood at the front door and entered my birthday into the keypad, but the screen indicated that the password was incorrect. I froze for a moment. Charlotte had never told me about changing the password.

I tried again and again, entering every meaningful date I could think of, including our anniversary, her birthday, and other special occasions we had shared. None of them worked.

Something suddenly hit me. With trembling hands, I entered Jonathan's birthday.

A beep sounded. As the door swung open, my heart shattered.

The furnishings inside remained the same, yet every trace of me had disappeared.

My shoes were gone from the shoe rack, replaced by Jonathan's limited-edition sneakers. The clothes hanging on the balcony belonged to him as well. Even the framed photo of Charlotte and me on the table had been swapped out for a photo of her and Jonathan.

So during the year I disappeared, even the last role I had left had been taken over.

I sat on the couch, waiting for Charlotte to come back and give me an explanation. I waited until sunset, until the courthouse had closed for the day, yet Charlotte still hadn't returned.

Even my phone stayed unusually silent. Not a single person sent me a message.

Even though I hadn't expected much from getting the marriage certificate, I still couldn't help but feel sad after seeing Charlotte break her promise.

Love had such a short shelf life. I watched something good rot away little by little, yet I still wanted to wait until it was completely spoiled before finally throwing it away.

In the silent darkness of the night, the only glow came from the cigarette between my lips.

It wasn't until the early hours of the morning that Charlotte finally called, sounding drunk. "Harrison, where are you? I'm coming to find you."

Harrison's POV

"I'm home," I replied.

The moment Charlotte heard my words, she sobered up on the other end of the line. Her voice grew hurried. "Which home are you at?"

She knew this was my only home. Now, even this place no longer belonged to me.

Not long after, Charlotte rushed back in a panic with Jonathan.

"Harrison, when did you come back? Why didn't you tell me?" she asked. "The wedding ended late, and the courthouse was already closed. I'll go get the marriage certificate with you next time."

Seeing the uneasiness on her face, I chose not to expose her lie and simply stubbed out the cigarette in my hand.

I had already received a message from Jonathan. He told me that their wedding banquet ended early and that they went to the city hall at 3:00 pm to get their marriage certificate. They had also found time to have a small party with friends.

After eating, drinking, and enjoying themselves, they headed to a karaoke bar and only remembered me after everything was over.

Making up for my sins was probably just an excuse. Charlotte had truly fallen in love with Jonathan.

When I stayed silent, she awkwardly began explaining the changes around the house. "Jonathan is only staying here temporarily."

But I wasn't stupid. The traces of Jonathan living there were everywhere. This was clearly more than a stay for a night or two.

While we stood there in silence, Jonathan yawned and spoke up. "Harrison, there's no room left for you here, and the storage room is packed with stuff as well. I've booked you a luxury hotel."

He clearly thought I was getting in the way.

I nodded. "I'll pack my things."

I pushed open the master bedroom door, but the moment it opened a crack, Charlotte hurriedly slammed it shut. "Harrison, I've already packed all your belongings and put them in the storage room," she said.

Without saying a word, I turned and walked into the storage room, closing the door behind me. Yet I couldn't forget the glimpse of their matching pajamas piled on the bed the moment I opened the bedroom door.

Was this what Charlotte called acting?

Either way, I was leaving soon, so I couldn't be bothered to call her out.

Inside the storage room, my belongings were piled in the corner, covered by a thin layer of dust. I brushed the dust away and began flipping through my journal.

I had only meant to look back on old memories, but a forged medical record slipped out from between the pages. That was when I realized Jonathan's cancer diagnosis had been a lie all along.

It made sense. If he had truly been terminally ill, my parents would have let the psychic's words drive them to chase me to the ends of the earth and tear me apart, all to bless their precious son.

Everything they had done was nothing more than a ploy, using Jonathan's illness as an excuse to take Charlotte away from me.

I took the journal with me as I left the room.

Charlotte asked me in an uneasy voice, "How many days are you staying this time?"

She seemed eager to push me away, probably because she found me to be a nuisance.

"Seven days," I answered.

Charlotte suddenly slipped her arm through mine. "Good. Then I'll stay with you this whole week."

Looking at her smile, I couldn't help but think that I would make these seven days my final goodbye.

After hearing her words, Jonathan suddenly started coughing. His face was pale as he pleaded, "Charlotte, I don't have much time left. Can you stay with me? Once these last seven days are over, I'll beg Mom and Dad to transfer Harrison back."

Charlotte only hesitated briefly before letting go of my arm. "Harrison, we still have a long life ahead of us. Once you come back, I'll spend more time with you. I'll be there to see you off in seven days."

I lowered my gaze. "Alright. I've prepared a gift for you. I'll give it to you the day I leave."

Charlotte said excitedly that she was looking forward to it.

I turned and walked out of the house. Jonathan used seeing me off as an excuse to squeeze into the elevator with me. It was only when the cramped space was down to just the two of us that he showed his true colors.

"Harrison, you saw that medical record, didn't you?" he asked. "Everything was fake. Charlotte is with me because Mom and Dad promised her all the wealth she could ever want as long as she agreed to marry me. You didn't actually think she'd be foolish enough to live a hard life with you, did you?"

Harrison's POV

Looking at Jonathan's mocking expression, I couldn't hold back and punched him right then and there.

He pressed a hand to his bleeding lip and smiled even more smugly. "Harrison Arden, remember this. I'm going to take away everything you have."

He succeeded. I had nothing left now.

He continued, "You still don't know that the person who filed that anonymous report against you a year ago was Charlotte, do you? I should really thank her for it. If she hadn't given us your computer password, the plan wouldn't have come together so perfectly."

It turned out that Charlotte had been betraying me far earlier than I thought. No wonder she kept pushing me to confess during the time everything went wrong.

During the year I was transferred away, she was always unusually busy. At first, she would still video-call me, but eventually, she didn't even bother replying to my messages.

The love she once had for me was real, but so was the fact that she no longer loved me.

I paused, then walked away in a daze. If that was how things were, I wished her nothing but happiness.

I stayed at the hotel for seven days. During that time, I didn't reach out to Charlotte, though she would occasionally send me good morning and good night texts, and we'd exchange a few words here and there.

Meanwhile, Jonathan relentlessly sent me videos of the two of them together, trying to provoke me into doing something reckless. I ignored all of it.

…

On the seventh day, I stood outside the hotel.

Charlotte didn't show up as promised to see me off. Instead, she called. "I'm sorry, Harrison. Jonathan's illness flared up again. I won't be able to see you off this time. When you come back next time, I'll definitely be there to pick you up on time."

Unfortunately, that day would never come.

"Charlotte, goodbye," I said.

After hanging up, I had someone deliver the present I had prepared, then got into the car I had arranged and headed for the airport.

At the hospital, Jonathan lay on the hospital bed, gripping Charlotte's hand tightly and refusing to let go.

Mom and Dad stood on either side of the bed, pleading with her. "Charlotte, please do us this one favor and stay with Jonathan a little longer. He's sick and can't handle any stress.

"His feelings for you are genuine. He even got down on his knees and told us that he would marry no one but you in this lifetime."

Charlotte said uncomfortably, "Mr. Arden, Mrs. Arden, no matter how many terrible things Harrison has done, I've already done my part to make amends on his behalf. Let's end our arrangement here."

At that moment, a courier poked his head through the doorway. "Excuse me, is Ms. Charlotte Vaughn here? I have a package from Mr. Harrison Arden."

Charlotte's face lit up. She signed for the package and unwrapped it. When she saw that it was my journal, she froze for a moment.

Jonathan's face instantly turned pale. Just as he reached out to stop her, she pulled out the fake medical record tucked inside the journal.

Charlotte hurled the record straight at Jonathan's face. "Jonathan Arden, is this the cancer you claimed to have? Is this what you meant by not having much time left? I must've been insane to believe someone as full of lies as you are."

She pulled out her phone and called me. The call connected a moment later.

She said angrily, "Harrison, I'm sorry. Jonathan lied to me. He told me he was sick, but none of it was real.

"Wait for me at the airport. I'm coming to find you right now. I don't want anything here anymore. From now on, wherever you go, I'll go too. I never want to be apart from you again."

She headed out the door expectantly, but the voice that came through on the other end of the line belonged to a stranger. "You must be Mr. Arden's partner, right? The cab he was riding in was involved in an accident on the way to the airport. Unfortunately, he didn't make it. Please come to identify his body."