Worried that I would accidentally tip them off about my presence, I climbed the stairs to the 6th floor, huffing and panting all the way.

At last, I arrived on the 6th floor. My eyes instantly went to the end of the corridor, where Hayden had Melissa pinned against a room door as he kissed her. His hand slipped under her blouse, drawing a soft moan from her.

"Hays… Don't… Selina will be furious if she finds out… The room key card is in my pocket… Hays, hurry up…"

Hayden's hands fumbled across her body in search of the key card. With his entire body pressed against hers, he failed to see me standing on the other end of the corridor.

I was frozen to the spot, feeling like all the strength had been sapped from me. My heart pounded like a drum, beating so hard that it felt like my entire chest was throbbing with pain.

This was his so-called "just a friend".

And this was the so-called "home" he was taking her to.

Hayden finally managed to find the key card and swiped at the door. The moment it opened, he tumbled into the room, his hands never once leaving Melissa's body.

Right before the door shut completely, Melissa suddenly turned and looked right in my direction, a victorious smile curving her lips.

[Do you see? Hayden has always been mine. Every time he says he's working overtime, he's actually with me.]

Her thoughts blared through my mind, the words cutting deep into my heart.

My mind went blank at the realization that she knew I was there and had deliberately put on this whole show for me.

I stared at the tightly shut door in a daze, not even knowing when I turned and left.

One hour later, I was already back home when I received a call from Hayden.

However, it was Melissa's voice that came over the line.

"Selina, could you come pick up Hays? He drank too much and keeps calling out for you."

I didn't speak, and after a second of silence, Melissa continued, "Oh, don't misunderstand, Selina. It's just… Hays threw up, and I can't move him by myself… Should I send you the location of the hotel?"

Instead of answering, I hung up on her.

I sat in the darkness for a long time, not bothering to turn on the lights or even move.

As it turned out, there really was no sound when someone died of heartbreak.

Eventually, I got up and began packing all of Hayden's belongings into boxes.

At four in the morning, I received yet another call from Hayden's number.

My heart skipped a beat, but after a moment of hesitation, I still answered the phone.

"Lina…" His voice sounded slurred, as though he really were drunk. "Mel told me that you're angry… Don't be angry… I really did drink a bit too much… You know that she's just a good friend to me…"

"Hayden Potter."

He stopped speaking when I cut him off.

"I've already packed up all your belongings. Find the time to come and take them away."

There was a brief moment of silence before he spoke, sounding a lot more sober than before. "What do you mean by that?"

"It's over between us. Take your things and go."

"Seriously? Just because I drove Mel home? I've been looking out for her all these years and think of her as just one of the boys. Could you stop letting your imagination run wild?"

"One of the boys?" I laughed softly, though I couldn't stop the tears from welling in my eyes. "Hayden, be honest with yourself and answer this—do you truly think of her as just 'one of the boys', or is she a backup? Or do you just enjoy this sort of ambiguous relationship?"

"What nonsense are you spouting?" he abruptly roared.

Melissa's voice drifted over the line as she urged with fake sincerity. "Hays, don't speak to her so harshly."

"Fine! Selina Grant, you'd better not regret this!"

After hanging up, I lifted my head and gazed at myself in the mirror, noting the lack of expression on my face. Only my red-rimmed eyes gave away how I truly felt.

As I expected, Hayden didn't come home that night.

After that, I blocked him across all social media platforms and even his number.

Noticing that, Hayden asked his friends to pass messages to me, saying I was being unreasonable, selfish, and had disappointed him and betrayed his trust.

Over time, the atmosphere at the company changed inexplicably. The way my colleagues looked at me became sharper, more critical, while soft undercurrents of gossip flowed among the clacking of keyboards.

"She even wants to control normal interactions between people of the opposite sex? Isn't that being too petty and insecure?"

"Forcing Hayden to choose between her and Melissa? How could she do that? They've been friends for so many years!"

"I know, right? Mel is such a nice person. As if she could ever have any bad intentions!"

I merely buried myself in my work, not responding to their words.

It wasn't until I checked my phone later that day that I noticed the department group chat was in an uproar.

Some people claimed I was using my seniority to throw my weight around and force Hayden to cut off all contact with other women, while others berated me for letting my personal life affect the project's progress and the team's work.

One of my colleagues even secretly sent me a screenshot of a trending post on the company forum, which accused me of being emotionally unstable, a control freak, and abusing my authority to try to force a marriage, only to fail.

I recognized the original poster as Melissa, though it was her subsidiary account. My hands shook with rage at the realization, and I immediately posted the photos I had taken of her and Hayden kissing in the hotel corridor the other night.

My intention was to clarify that he was the one who cheated on me first, yet all that got me in return was even more mockery, especially since both of them denied it.

Hayden even went as far as to say, "That's just how it looks with that camera angle. I was simply helping her walk to her room."

Melissa took it one step further, crying pitifully as she bemoaned how tragic her situation was to anyone who would listen. A small crowd surrounded her, attempting to comfort her.

"I really don't know how I offended her. Why would she spread such horrible lies about me?"

When she raised her gaze and spotted me in the doorway, something flashed in her eyes, and she put on an even more aggrieved act.

[See? Who do you think everyone believes in more, you or me? So what if you slept with Hays? Do you seriously think you're his real partner?]

Standing there, I felt as though I had plunged into icy water.

The only thing Hayden did was send a casual message in the group chat. "Everyone, focus on your work and stop spreading rumors."

Not once did he step forward to protect me or even clarify the situation.

In the end, I was suspended, seemingly for no reason.

Two days later, the HR department suddenly summoned me back to the company for a meeting.

When I walked into the building, even the receptionists and security guards were glaring at me.

It was just my luck that I happened to run into Melissa and Hayden, who were chatting happily with smiles on their faces.

Upon seeing me, Melissa was momentarily surprised, but then she put on a worried look.

"Are you okay? I heard that you were temporarily suspended…"

Hayden frowned as he asked me impatiently, "What are you doing here?"

I opened my mouth, but I couldn't seem to find the words to speak.

At that moment, Melissa's thoughts reached me once more.

[How stupid. Do you seriously think that a few rumors are enough to get you suspended? From the very beginning, it was Hays pulling the strings behind the scenes. He secretly replaced the report you stayed up all night working on with fake data. Otherwise, at most, you would've just received an official warning.]

Before I could process that, Hayden shot me a chilly stare.

"Just how long do you plan on causing a fuss? The entire company thinks that you're nothing but a joke now! You might not be embarrassed, but I certainly am!"

However, instead of answering, I demanded, "Why did you change the data for my report?"

Hayden froze in surprise, but then he frowned and feigned confusion. "What data? What are you talking about?"

By this point, I was so enraged that even my voice was shaking.

"Hayden Potter, just how much more are you hiding from me? Don't think that I'm in the dark about you and Melissa purposely setting me up! You secretly switched the data for my report so that I'd be suspended!"

Just then, a man's voice called out calmly, "Selina?"