The next day, right on time, I stood at the entrance of the villa as Damien stepped out, carefully supporting Vivian as though she were something fragile.

A flicker of guilt flashed across his face when he saw me.

“Estelle, Vivian has never worn a wedding dress in her life. She just wants to tag along and take a look. Don’t worry, she won’t get in the way.”

I nodded without saying a word.

Damien kept one hand protectively behind her back like she was made of glass.

“Watch your step.”

“The sun’s strong. Put your hat on.”

“Walk slowly, don’t tire yourself out.”

Each word of concern felt like a dull knife, slicing me over and over again.

Even after we got in the car, Damien would not stop fussing over her the entire ride.

“Don’t wander off. You need to do exactly as I say, even at the bridal boutique.”

When we arrived at the store, he told the staff to bring out the wedding dresses for me to choose from. However, he hovered anxiously by Vivian’s side.

“These dresses are heavy. Just look. Don’t actually try them on. It’ll exhaust you.”

“No! I want to wear one. I didn’t even get to wear a wedding dress when we got our marriage license. Can’t I at least try one now?”

She pointed to the gown I had just picked out and asked in a sweet tone,

“That one in Estelle’s hand looks so pretty. Can I try it on?”

Damien put on a helpless look and turned to me.

“Estelle, let her try it on, okay? Just this once. Please, let her go first.”

I handed the gown to Vivian without a word. There was no protest and no reaction.

‘Damien, I wanted to spend our final moments alone, to show you the wedding dress I had chosen.

‘Now, you even took that chance away from me.

‘Since you did not know how to treasure it, I could only hope that you would not regret the choice you made today when I was gone.’

He even asked me to go with Vivian to the fitting room and still was not done giving instructions.

“Don’t let her bend over. Her body’s too heavy now. Be careful with the train of the dress. Don’t let her trip...”

I listened in silence, swallowing the bitterness in my chest.

Vivian was right. Damien would make a good father.

I helped her into the wedding dress with great effort. She gave me a smug look. Suddenly, she grabbed the front row of mannequins, each over six feet tall, and yanked them down.

She staggered back just enough to dodge the first falling mannequin, then screamed as they crashed down.

“Help! My baby…”

Damien flew across the boutique and swept her into his arms, diving to shield her.

Nevertheless, I was hit squarely in the leg by the first mannequin and watched, wide-eyed, as the rest came toppling toward me.

“Damien! Help me!”

My voice was drowned out by the chaos of crashing figures.

I saw him carrying Vivian, running for the door without even turning back.

Half my body was pinned under the heavy mannequins. Pain throbbed through my ribs and arm.

Still, it was nothing compared to the pain of my heart shattering into pieces.

I curled up on the floor, slowly closed my eyes, and let the tears fall freely down my face.

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a hospital room.

The room was silent—not a single soul in sight.

I could faintly hear Damien’s voice from the next room.

Clutching my wound, I staggered to the doorway and stopped outside the slightly open door.

On the bed inside, Vivian’s face was pale. Her wrist was thickly bandaged.

The room was crowded with doctors Damien had called in. They circled around her, checking her vitals and murmuring instructions.

Damien sat at her bedside, holding her hand tightly. His voice was gentle as he comforted her.

“Don’t be afraid. It’s all over now. The baby is fine too.”

Their hands were so intimately intertwined that it felt like there was no space for a third person.

A sharp pain bloomed in my chest. I couldn’t bear to watch another second.

So this is what it feels like when a heart shatters so completely—it actually hurts to breathe.

I pushed through the pain, ignoring the nurses who tried to stop me, and went straight to the desk to sign my discharge papers.

When I got home, I resumed packing. I tossed out everything I no longer needed, keeping only my passport, a few important documents, and a handful of clothes.

I left everything else behind. The expensive gifts Damien had given me over the years—I didn’t touch a single one.

On the nightstand, there was still a photo of us together. I stared at it for a long moment before removing it from the frame. I tore away my half of the picture carefully, crumpled what remained, and threw it into the trash.

Once everything was done, I dragged my suitcase to the door and walked out of the villa without looking back.

That day happened to be the day my visa was ready. Finally, I could take my passport and leave this place that had brought me nothing but heartbreak.

The clerk handed me my documents with a warm smile.

“Miss Davies, congratulations. Have a pleasant journey!”

“Thank you.”

As I looked down at the freshly issued visa, a strange calm settled over me.

Before I left, I deleted every trace of myself. I canceled all my accounts and bought a one-way ticket.

I remembered how Damien had held my hand so tightly eight years ago and said, “Estelle, you’re mine. You’ll be by my side for the rest of your life.”

‘Damien, you were wrong.

‘There would be no place for you in my world for the rest of my life.’

Back at the hospital, after coaxing Vivian into taking her medicine and falling asleep, Damien finally remembered me.

He walked to the next room, only to find a nurse tidying up an empty bed. The bed where I had been lying was now stripped bare—cold and vacant.

A flicker of unease swept through him. He stopped the nurse and asked sharply,

“Where’s the patient who was in this room?”

The nurse gave him a strange look.

“Are you her family? She was discharged early this morning.”

“What?”

The unease in Damien’s chest flared into panic. He pulled out his phone and tried calling me, but the screen flashed that the user was busy.

When he tried to send me a message, it became painfully clear that I had blocked his number.

He shot to his feet, his expression dark and terrifying.

It was only then that he thought to call the villa’s butler.

“Where’s Madam? Is she at home? Get her on the line. Now!”

There was a pause as the butler moved away. When he returned, his voice was frantic.

“Mr. Jones, Madam is gone. The maids said they saw her leave with a suitcase. She took a cab and left the villa!”