"Jamie, I've decided. I'm ready to join you at Hillridge as your exclusive screenwriter. I'll be there by the end of this month!"

Melanie huddled in a quiet corner on the set as she made the call, a pregnancy test report clutched in her hand.

She tried to shake off the chill from the freezing weather, but her hands and feet still felt painfully cold.

Jamie's voice at the end of the line was a deep and pleasant baritone. "Your talent has long deserved a bigger stage. For eight years, you've turned me down nearly a hundred times for Ken's sake. Are you ready to leave him this time?"

"Yes. I'm leaving him for good!"

She clenched the pregnancy test report, her lips a bitter smile.

After finishing her call, Melanie Roland returned to the set and joined the crew to observe the filming. At the moment, the camera focused on her boyfriend Ken Lambert in a kissing scene with actress Jennifer Knowles.

Ken's burning passion was evident as he locked lips with Jennifer. His tender, intimate expression was something Melanie had never seen before.

Before Jennifer appeared, Ken had always avoided intimate scenes for fear of upsetting Melanie. He would never film such scenes in front of her.

As Melanie recalled the past, a heavy weight settled on her heart. She suddenly found it difficult to breathe.

"Cut! That's it for today. Great work, everyone!"

The director called it a wrap, and cheers filled the set.

Ken's assistants immediately rushed over to drape a coat over him and hand him a thermos.

Melanie watched as he walked over, laughing and chatting with Jennifer. She numbly stepped aside to let them pass.

In the past, Ken claimed he was worried about damaging his career if he got into a relationship. With that in mind, Melanie agreed to be his secret girlfriend. This relationship lasted eight years. To this day, only his manager and a few of their friends knew.

Yet, while Ken went to great lengths to keep Melanie hidden and avoid any association with her, he was openly affectionate and sweet with Jennifer.

Too often, Melanie would argue with him over Jennifer. He would always brush it off, saying it was just part of the job and that she was being unreasonable.

The producer, Jeremy, came over to gossip with Melanie. "Ken and Jennifer's kissing scene looks so natural. It's like they're a real couple! So many people in the industry are saying they're actually dating. What do you think, Melanie? Could it be true?"

"I don't know…" Melanie mumbled.

"You're so indifferent! Anyway, you should focus on being a top-tier screenwriter and steer clear of Ken. There are so many shippers online accusing you of trying to steal someone's boyfriend. Doesn't that bother you?"

How could it not?

The online hate had nearly driven Melanie to depression. She had spent countless nights crying under her blanket. She had even asked Ken to make their relationship public, but he refused.

He got annoyed and pointed angrily at her, snarling, "What's your problem? Keeping it private is for your protection! You're plain, full of flaws, overly sensitive, and dramatic. If fans knew you were really my girlfriend, they'd scrutinize you every day! Could you handle that?"

Was keeping their relationship a secret really to protect her? Was she truly as terrible as he said?

Melanie began to wonder if Ken simply didn't love her enough to acknowledge her publicly.

Yet after rebuking her so harshly, Ken would embrace her tenderly, shower her with gifts, and appear so affectionate. In the end, she felt guilty for doubting his feelings. Caught between pain and self-loathing, Melanie found herself trapped in this toxic relationship.

That was until a few days ago when Ken, drunk, accidentally revealed the truth.

All these years, he had treated Melanie as Jennifer's substitute.

Bzzz!

Melanie's phone vibrated, pulling her out of her thoughts. Ken had sent a message.

[Baby, I miss you. Come over!]

Melanie bit her lip; she hesitated for a moment, but she ultimately decided to go to him.

When she was 17, her father lost his job and her mother was diagnosed with cancer. Their family was on the verge of falling apart. Ken had stepped in, paying a million for her mother's treatment and finding a job for her father.

Before her SATs, a drunk man nearly broke her right hand, but Ken saved her life and her future.

He had always been her hero.

Unfortunately, he was never a good boyfriend.

Melanie took a deep breath, put her phone away, and headed to his trailer. As soon as she entered, Ken leaned in to kiss her.

Melanie recognized the pattern. Jennifer must have thrown a tantrum again.

Every time Jennifer gave Ken the cold shoulder, he would shower Melanie with extra affection. After all, her face and eyes bore a striking resemblance to Jennifer's.

At the thought, Melanie was overwhelmed by a wave of nausea in her stomach. She instinctively pushed him away.

"I don't want this!"

Knowing she was just a stand-in, she could no longer endure such intimacy with him.

Ken froze, but didn't push further. Instead, he hugged her and rested his head on her shoulder with a pitiful expression.

"Thank goodness I have you. You're the only one who'll never leave me."

Melanie remained silent. She was leaving in seven days—she wasn't going to stay by his side forever.

Ken didn't pay any attention to her silence. He held her hand and frowned. "Why are your hands so cold? Leo, get Melanie some mango milk to warm her up!"

Melanie was allergic to mangoes. She had told Ken this more times than she could count, but he never remembered. Yet she didn't want to reject his kindness, so she had always taken allergy medicine and drank it anyway.

It was only recently that Melanie realized that he never forgot. Rather, he did it because mango milk was Jennifer's favorite drink.

Melanie lowered her gaze, hiding her disgust. "No, thanks. I don't want it."

Ken ignored her.

Soon, Leo brought the mango milk and relayed a message. "Ken, Ms. Knowles wants to go over the intimate scene with you."

"Great! I'll be right there!"

Ken's eyes lit up. He was so eager to leave that he nearly knocked Melanie over. Her purse fell to the floor, spilling its contents.

He quickly steadied her and bent down to pick up the scattered items. When he picked up a folded pregnancy test report, he froze.

"What's this?"

Melanie's eyelashes fluttered. "This is..."

Before she could finish, Ken grabbed the pregnancy report and shoved it back into her purse. "I put it in your purse. I'm going to find Jen. Make sure you leave without being seen!"

Without giving her a chance to respond, he hurriedly handed her the purse and walked away.

Melanie couldn't hold back any longer and called after him, "Ken, what if I'm pregnant?"

"I was careful. Don't worry, you won't get pregnant! And if you do, get rid of it—it would ruin me otherwise!" Ken interrupted her again before leaving in a rush.

Melanie stood there, feeling as if she had plunged into an icy abyss.

He was just as cruel to her as he would be to their child.

But in a way, that made things easier. At least she wouldn't feel guilty about hiding the existence of their child.

Melanie returned to her hotel, eyes red as she deleted every post about Ken from her social media and left all his fan groups. She even deactivated the fan account she had built up for him, despite how much it hurt. Then, she drew a big cross on the 23rd on her mini calendar.

She gave herself only seven days to end this sad excuse of a relationship with Ken. Seven days later, she would leave for good.

By the time Melanie was done, it was nearly dawn.

At that moment, Ken called her. "I feel like having seafood porridge and some fresh ravioli today!"

"Ask someone else. I don't have time."

Melanie had stayed up all night, and her head was pounding.

In the past, no matter how exhausted or unwell she felt, if Ken said he wanted her cooking, she would push through and go to the market to buy fresh ingredients.

Ken was picky about food. It had to taste good and be freshly made, or he wouldn't eat it. For years, he had almost exclusively eaten meals she prepared.

Once, she scolded him. "You have a bad stomach. You need to eat regularly and stop being so picky. If you only eat my cooking, what will you do if I'm not around someday?"

Ken had dismissed her concerns. "You love me too much to ever leave me."

Thinking back on his words, Melanie felt a complicated mix of emotions. He still didn't know she would be gone in six days.

If his stomach acted up in the future or he skipped meals, it would no longer be her problem.

After hanging up, Melanie tried to catch some sleep. When she woke, she ordered takeout. Just as she set the ravioli on the table, Ken suddenly barged in with Jennifer.

"Melanie!" Ken called angrily, but his expression softened when he saw the steaming ravioli.

He shot her an exasperated look. "No wonder you didn't reply to my messages or answer my calls—you were making ravioli! Next time, even if you're busy cooking, let me know or I'll really get mad!"

Melanie frowned, wanting to tell him not to flatter himself. The ravioli weren't for him. Before she could speak, Ken brushed past her, picked up a ravioli, and fed it to Jennifer.

"Try it," he said dotingly. "Melanie's cooking is amazing. You'll love it!"

Jennifer took a bite directly from his hand, then teasingly licked his finger with her tongue. Ken gazed at her, the desire in his eyes obvious.

The meal was now ruined for Melanie. She no longer had any appetite. Her stomach churned in disgust, and she turned to leave.

However, Jennifer stopped her. "Melanie, your cooking is excellent! From now on, I want to eat it every day. You should feel honored. Many of my fans would kill for this chance, but I wouldn't give it to them!"

This was just takeout. How good could it be? Jennifer was clearly trying to humiliate her.

Melanie refused. "I'm not a chef."

Right after she said that, Ken rebuked her. "Enough! Why are you giving Jen an attitude?"

Jennifer pretended to pull Ken back. "Ken, don't be upset. Melanie's famous and talented. Lots of people would love to poach her. Aren't you afraid she'll leave if you treat her this way?"

Ken gently ruffled Jennifer's hair. "You don't need to worry. Anyone could leave me, but Melanie never would."

He turned to Melanie, his gaze now cold. "Jen wants to eat your cooking from now on. Any problems with that? If you don't want to cook for her, then don't bother cooking for me either. I'm sick of your food anyway!"

"Fine."

Melanie looked at Ken, feeling no desire to argue further.

He was tired of her cooking, just as he had long grown tired of her as a person.

It didn't matter. Six more days, and she would set him free.

Melanie didn't have to cook, anyway. She only needed to buy meals for six more days.

Not wanting to watch Ken and Jennifer fawn over each other any longer, she stepped outside and sent a large cash gift to her colleagues at work. Then, she made a call.

"Can you help me pack up my stuff at the office and throw it all away? I'm planning to replace everything with new stuff."

"Sure, I'll take care of it later."

"Thank you."

Those were things Ken had bought for her. She once cherished them, but now, she didn't want to keep a single thing.

After hanging up, Melanie drew a cross over the 24th on her calendar and immediately got to work. She had a script to revise and had to deal with Ken and Jennifer's demands, leaving her utterly swamped.

When she received a call from Jamie Grant early on the 25th, she was momentarily confused.

"Hello, who's this?"

"It's me!" Jamie said. "Do you remember that you promised to fly to Hillridge in five days?"

She picked up the tension in his voice.

Thinking about Jamie's global reputation, his godlike features, and the intimidating aura he exuded, Melanie found it hard to believe someone of his caliber would be nervous over one of her decisions.

Her mind cleared instantly. "I do!"

"Great! I'll book you a first-class ticket for the evening of the 30th. Does that work for you?"

"Perfect. But no need for first-class—an economy ticket is fine."

Just as Melanie finished speaking, Ken leaned over and stared at her. "A plane ticket? Where are you going?"

"It's been a while since I visited my parents. I thought I'd go see them," she replied, her voice unnatural.

She had never lied to him before.

However, Ken didn't notice at all. Instead, he scowled. "If you leave, what will Jen and I eat? I'll hire the best caretakers and nurses for your parents. There's no need for you to go back."

Upon hearing that, Melanie was rendered speechless. At that moment, an overwhelming sadness for her past self washed over her. Did Ken truly think she was meant to ignore her family and friends just to cater to his every whim?

Ken, oblivious to her silence, continued, "A few companies know your contract is about to expire and are trying to poach you. Have they reached out to you?"

"Yeah," Melanie answered perfunctorily, not even wanting to engage with him.

"I don't know where they got the confidence to think they can steal you from me. Just remember to be polite when you turn them down. Don't embarrass me or make unnecessary enemies."

Melanie lowered her head, hiding the emotions in her eyes. "What if, one day, I decide to leave?"

"Don't joke about that! It's not funny," Ken said with a laugh, as if he'd heard the most ridiculous thing. He kissed the back of her hand. "Why are your hands so cold again? I'll have Leo bring you your favorite mango milk!"

And yet, he snatched the takeout bag from her and hurried off to deliver breakfast to Jennifer.

Watching him leave, Melanie smirked and continued to revise Jennifer's script according to her absurd requirements.

She had been working for hours when Jeremy came looking for her.

"Melanie, everyone's gone to Ms. Knowles' award celebration. Why are you still here? Hurry up! Ken booked the entire hotel. I heard he's going to confess to Ms. Knowles in front of everyone!"

Upon hearing this, Melanie's head, muddled from revising the script, went blank.

She thought that no matter how ridiculous Ken was, he wouldn't go so far as to confess his love to someone else while still being with her. It had to be a misunderstanding.

Despite that, when she arrived at the hotel…

"So many fireworks!"

"He probably bought every last rose in the city!"

"Oh my god! Look at the massive drone display! It's a portrait of Jennifer and Ken, and it even changes!"

"This is even more romantic than a TV drama! He pulled out all the stops!"

Everywhere, people were marveling at Ken's extravagant display of affection for Jennifer.

Only Melanie stood frozen while she gawked at the scene.