I head over to my boyfriend, Skylar Reynold's house during the holidays to pay his family a visit.

Skylar's mother, Helen Benett, smiles and says to me in front of everyone, "According to our rules, a future daughter-in-law must give cash gifts to all the children and elderly people in the family in her first year here. You must give every person at least 200 dollars to show how generous you are."

I'm stunned, to say the least.

Skylar nudges me before murmuring, "It's just a few thousand dollars, isn't it? Doesn't the holiday bonus that you've received before the holidays cover everything?"

I look at the living room, where 15 children and 8 elderly people are present. That makes it 4,600 dollars—the same figure that I've received after the taxes are deducted from the bonus.

I let out a soft chuckle at that moment. Then, I turn to look at Helen.

"According to your rules, Mrs. Reynold, I shall be the one giving away the cash gifts. But according to my family's rules, the groom's family has to give the bride's family cash gifts as well. The cash gifts must be doubled so that our marriage will be graced by luck.

"It'll be 9,200 dollars altogether. Would you like to pay me in cash, or are you going to transfer it into my account?"

The noisy living room instantly went silent.

Helen Bennett's face stiffened as she glared at me, utterly at a loss for words. All relatives in the room exchanged tense glances.

I casually peeled a clementine and reminded her again, "Helen, I'm sure you're not the stingy type either."

"Mom, let me have a word with Freya for a second."

Skylar Reynold suddenly grabbed my wrist and urgently said, "Freya Finch, come with me!"

Under everyone's watchful eyes, he dragged me into the room, pale-faced, and slammed the door behind us with a loud thud.

"All my relatives are out there, Freya. How could you say something like that? Think of how embarrassing it is for my mom!

"It's the holidays; can't you at least save me some face?"

"Face?"

I rubbed my reddened wrist and looked up at him. "This is my first time visiting your family for the holidays, and you expect me to fork over thousands of dollars. Why have I never heard of such customs around here in Thassia?"

Skylar's gaze darted around erratically. Then, he put on a helpless expression and sighed. "It's just a traditional custom from my hometown, which I forgot to tell you.

"You received around 4,000 dollars for your year-end bonus, right? Just cover for it now so Mom doesn't look bad."

While I remained silent, he leaned in close and tried to take my hand, but I pulled away.

"I'll transfer the money back to you in a bit, Freya. Just think of it as a loan."

"Transfer it right now, then."

Skylar froze, clearly never expecting that reply.

"I don't have money right now. I locked my year-end bonus in a fixed deposit after getting it, and if I pull it out right now, I'll lose all the accrued interest. I'll give it back to you next year with interest on top, alright?"

I nearly laughed out of pure frustration.

Here he was, pulling the fixed deposit excuse again.

Six months ago, when I had my eyes on a designer bag, he told me his salary was locked in a fixed deposit and promised to buy it for me once it matured.

On my birthday, he claimed he was locking everything away in a fixed deposit to save up for our future house and wedding, so he gave me a discounted custard pie instead.

I had never nickel-and-dimed over those things before.

When he invited me over to his family's place for the holidays, I showed up at his doorstep carrying bags of premium gifts. And yet, he expected me to hand out over 4,000 dollars in holiday cash gifts to his entire family.

Did he think my money grew on trees?

"What a coincidence," I said, eating a slice of the clementine and turning him down flatly. "I don't have any money either."

"How is that even possible?" he anxiously roared.

Then, he started pressing. "Did you spend all the money you received? It's been just a few days since your bonus cleared, so how could you possibly have no money?"

"I lent it to a close friend for an emergency," I lied to his face without blinking.

His expression immediately darkened. "Which close friend? Tell her to pay you back right now, and that you urgently need the cash!"

"She used it for an investment, so she can't give it back right now."

Skylar stared at me in absolute disbelief. His mouth hung open, and he could barely say a single word for a long time.

Just then, someone pushed the door open and walked in.

"Your girlfriend is an absolute cheapskate, Skylar. What do you even see in her?"

Alisa Lark sauntered into the room with a handful of potato chips. She tossed them into her mouth before rolling her eyes at me.

She was wearing a Chanel jacket, which was the birthday present Skylar had supposedly "scraped and saved up" to buy for her last month.

I knew Alisa's jacket was Chanel because the second I walked in, she had run over to me to brag about it.

Back then, Skylar quickly dragged her aside and explained to me that he had gotten a discount through a mutual connection and that it barely cost him anything.

Before I could ask more questions, Helen started pressuring me with their so-called hometown customs.

"Seriously, if you're this stingy on your first visit to Skylar's house, won't you drain him of everything he has the moment you marry him?

"It's embarrassing that you can't even fork over 4,000 dollars. How does someone like you think you deserve him?"

Alisa spat onto my shoes with a look of disdain.

I looked up to meet her arrogant gaze.

"Shut up, Alisa," Skylar barked, then turned around to soothe me. "Don't be upset, Freya. Alisa just meant well.

"What will our family think of you if you don't hand out the cash gifts today? What will they think of me?"

Unbelievable.

I looked back and forth between the two of them, one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop. They were trying to guilt-trip me.

"Fine. I can hand out the cash gifts."

The moment the words left my mouth, Skylar's eyes lit up.

I stood up straight and added, "But have your mom transfer that 9,200 dollars to me first. Once I have the cash, I'll immediately hand out the gifts to your relatives.

"That way, your family keeps their pride, and my family's traditions are respected. It's a win-win."

"What?"

Before Skylar could even respond, Alisa's eyes widened. "Do you have any shame at all, Freya? It's your first visit, yet you dare to demand money. Are you for sale or something?

"Ah! What are you doing?"

I stomped hard on her slipper.

She screamed out in pain and stumbled backward until Skylar caught her.

Crossing my arms, I looked at her and said, "Watch your mouth. Who exactly is the shameless one here?

"Your aunt demanded thousands of dollars from me the second I walked in. How is that any different from daylight robbery?"

"How dare you!"

Enraged, she lunged forward and reached out to grab my hair.

"Enough!"

Skylar checked her foot before turning back to me with a dark expression. "Why are you being so petty with a kid, Freya? You've gone too far."

A kid? A giant infant in her twenties?

I couldn't even be bothered to argue anymore. I pushed past him, walked into the living room to grab my bag, and headed for the door without looking back.

"Freya! What are you doing?"

The relatives' glances darted between us.

Helen's face flushed between a pale white and a furious red. When she saw me walking out, she let out a sharp, sarcastic snort.

"Uneducated and uncultured! Don't you dare chase after her, Skylar. A daughter-in-law like that needs to be taught some discipline!"

Behind me, I heard Skylar's hesitant footsteps stop at the door.

…

The snow fell heavily.

By the time I finally made it home, I was shivering violently from the freezing cold.

Mom and Dad already had dinner ready. When they noticed the distressed look on my face, they anxiously asked what had happened.

After I explained the ordeal, Dad sat in silence and downed a glass of beer. "You need to reconsider this marriage carefully, Freya."

"He's right," Mom said with a sigh. "I don't care if the man you marry is wealthy or not; I just want him to truly love you.

"It's completely fine if he's a little poor. What matters most is that he doesn't play psychological games with you or make you suffer."

That night, I lay in bed and stared at the photos of us in my album. A bitter, heavy feeling settled in my chest.

Two years ago, I was hospitalized for sudden acute appendicitis. Skylar had stayed by my bedside for days on end, with dark circles under his eyes and stubble under his chin as he gently fed me soup.

He used to remember all anniversaries in our relationship and constantly planned secret surprises for me.

We had joined the company at the same time. During our initial prohibition period, his monthly pay was only 2,000 dollars, yet he had willingly spent 1,800 dollars buying me a necklace.

When I felt bad about him spending so much money, he solemnly told me, "You deserve the very best, Freya."

When had he started to change?"

Had Skylar started to change the moment we were officially locked into a relationship?

Was it after Helen constantly called him and hammered into his head that women shouldn't be spoiled?

Somewhere along the line, the once-generous Skylar transformed into a cheap, tight-fisted man obsessed with fixed deposits.

I gripped my phone tightly and felt a suffocating weight settle in my chest.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed with a text from Skylar.

"It's snowing so hard outside, Freya. Could you please have pity and see me for just a minute?"

I froze.

After slipping on a coat, I made my way downstairs and saw Skylar standing by the building's entrance, amidst the swirling wind and heavy snow.

He was completely covered in a thick layer of snow and held a bouquet of red roses tightly in his arms. His face was frozen in a bright red.

The moment he saw me, he began walking toward me stiffly. "Please don't be mad at me, Freya."

For a fleeting second, the scene reminded me of the year we watched the first snowfall together. My heart softened a little.

He stuffed the roses into my arms and said in a hoarse voice, "I'm sorry for messing up today. My mom just has that old-school mindset."

What his family did earlier today flashed across my mind again, and I stayed silent.

"You've always wanted to soak in a hot spring, haven't you? My friend just opened a hot spring resort, and it's his treat. Let me take you there."

I hesitated. "It's the holidays. Maybe we should forget it."

"The holidays are exactly why we need to unwind properly," he said, looking all sincere and genuine. "I've arranged everything, so think of it as my way of making things up to you. Will you give me a chance?"

Going to a hot spring resort was indeed something I had been talking about for a very long time. Whenever I brought it up in the past, Skylar always complained it was too expensive or far away.

Seeing how insistent he was, I finally agreed.

The next day, Skylar showed up on time.

The backseat of his car was piled high with my favorite snacks, and he even reached over to proactively buckle my seatbelt for me. His overwhelming enthusiasm made me instinctively shrink back.

"I can do it myself."

The farther we drove, the more remote our surroundings were.

Two hours later, we turned onto a muddy, unpaved road. A solitary hot spring resort bearing the sign "Canopy Cove Hot Springs" stood on a barren, desolate slope.

The moment I stepped out of the car, my heart skipped a beat. The place was isolated, with barely anyone in sight.

"Is it supposed to be this remote? Why isn't there a single guest around?" I asked, looking at Skylar.

Carrying my bag, he grinned. "They just opened and are currently in a soft-launch phase, so they're only hosting friends. I had him clear the entire venue for us today so we could have the ultimate private experience."

I followed him into the main lobby, casually texting my best friend, Sadie Holtmann, on the phone as we walked.

After changing into my swimsuit, I stepped into the hot spring pool. The rising steam immediately drove the winter chill away.

I called Skylar, who still hadn't shown up. He told me he was arranging for someone to bring over a fruit platter, and I didn't think much of it.

The water temperature was perfect, and within minutes, I drifted off into a deep, hazy sleep.

When I jolted awake, the sky had gone completely dark. I reached out toward the edge of the pool to grab my bathrobe, but found nothing there.

A sudden jolt of panic hit me.

When I took a closer look, I realized that not only was my bathrobe missing, but the towel and sandals I had left next to it were gone as well!

Only my phone was left, sitting isolated on the edge.

"Skylar? Anyone?" I yelled, but there was no response.

A cold dread crawled up my spine as I scrambled to dial Skylar's number. He picked up almost instantly.

"Where are you? My clothes are gone, and nobody answers when I call out. What's going on?"

My voice was shaking violently as I demanded answers.

"Freya," he said. His voice sounded panicked through the microphone. "My family just called to tell me that my mom suffered a sudden heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. I left in such a hurry that I completely forgot to tell you.

"Were your clothes blown away by the wind?"

I froze, and a sudden unease rose in my chest.

After taking a deep breath, I said, "Find someone to bring me clothes right now."

He stammered, "I-I can't go back. The staff must have clocked out and gone home at this hour.

"I'm rushing to pay my mom's medical bills, and I need to withdraw cash from the bank."

"What am I supposed to do then?" I asked.

"How about this? Send me money right now, so I can have someone else handle the paperwork."