I turned and walked away under Zachary's furious gaze.

Just then, I nearly collided with Tracy, who came hurrying in.

As we brushed past each other, she uttered triumphantly, "Yvonne, no matter how tightly you cling to it, you'll still have to let go of what isn't yours!"

With that, she threw herself into Zachary's arms. He caught her without faltering, then looked up at me and kissed the woman in his embrace passionately.

I thought back to the past. Zachary had disregarded my feelings and brought Tracy along to parties with our friends. Despite being furious at his fickleness, I followed along.

At one gathering, he lost a game and was told to kiss one of the girls. Under everyone's eyes, he walked up and stopped beside me.

But just as my heart began to pound, he mocked me coldly, "Yvonne, you didn't think I was going to kiss you, did you?"

That day, he held Tracy as he kissed her with exaggerated fervor, just as he was doing now.

Seeing it again now, I realized I no longer felt a ripple inside. Soon, I left the York residence and spent the night at a hotel.

The next morning, Zachary woke me up with a call. He barked an order, telling me to bring them breakfast and birth control pills.

I hung up on him at once.

That afternoon, I returned to the York residence to pack my things.

Zachary was eating in a robe at the dining table. His chest was bare, marked all over with scratches. I didn't need to guess how their night had gone.

Without a word, I walked toward the stairs.

Suddenly, a glass shattered at my feet.

Zachary's breath grew heavy as he sneered. "Where are your manners? Don't you think you should greet someone when you see them?"

"Someone with manners wouldn't be hurling glasses for no reason," I shot back in a calm tone. "If you have nothing else to say, I'll be going. I need to pack, and I don't want to waste time."

"Pack? Where are you going?" Zachary shot to his feet, and something dark flickered across his face. "Yvonne, will you never grow up? Are you trying to threaten me by running away from home? Well, too bad! I'm not falling for it!

"I let your little stunt with the drug slide for my parents' sake. All you have to do is go tell them you want the engagement annulled."

Zachary's temper often swung to extremes, and his judgments followed.

In my previous life, I had feared he wouldn't be able to take it if he learned it was his parents who had set him up. So, when he misunderstood me, I stayed silent.

But this time, I would not.

"I don't need you to let it slide. I never drugged you in the first place."

Right then, a scream rang out from upstairs.

Tracy stood in the hallway, wrapped in a towel and holding a bundle of cloth with wide, innocent eyes. "Zach, what should I do? I've ruined Yve's dress."

My gaze fell on the fabric. Recognition struck, and fury consumed me. It was the only dress my mother had left me.

I rushed up and snatched it. "Taking what isn't yours is stealing, Tracy. Do you like being a thief so much?"

Zachary's face darkened, and he shoved me aside. "Yvonne, must you be so mean with your words? It's just an old dress. So what if she wore it? Who said you could throw a tantrum at Trace?"

I barely caught myself on the railing.

As I looked down at the shredded dress in my hands, my eyes ached with unshed tears.

This was no accident. Tracy had ruined the dress on purpose.

"It's not just an old dress… My mom—"

Zachary narrowed his eyes and scoffed. "Again with your mother? Yvonne, your mother is dead. Do you think she'd want to be dragged into your mess from the grave?

"You drugged me because you wanted me to do it with you and because you're jealous of Trace. I'll buy you ten identical dresses. Now, apologize to her."

Tracy's eyes reddened, her voice soft and pitiful. "Don't be mad, Yve. Zach tore my dress last night, so I just grabbed one at random just now."

Zachary held her close and snorted. "You don't have to apologize to someone like her!"

I looked at him, so righteous in his cruelty, and sorrow surged through me.

I met him at a banquet when I was eight.

There, another child snatched away the candy I had treasured, and it was Zachary who appeared out of nowhere and got it back for me. He then called me foolish and taught me that if someone took something from me, I should snatch it back.

Later, when he saw me crying so pitifully, he patted his chest and promised, "Don't worry. From now on, as long as I'm here, no one will dare take your things."

From eight to 18, Zachary had kept that promise.

Now, however, he had become the thief himself, the one who bullied me.

I said nothing more. I folded the ruined dress with steady hands.

Zachary still stood tall and unyielding before me.

I looked him in the eye and uttered calmly, "Tell your parents to come back soon. It's time we talked about ending our engagement."

After that day, I never went back to the York residence. I checked into a hotel and waited for Zachary's parents to return so we could dissolve the engagement.

But instead of them, a phone call came first.

"Yve, how could you throw away such a perfect chance? As soon as you and Zach get into bed together, you'll be my daughter-in-law for sure!" Zachary's mother, Josephine Brown, uttered in a sharp voice that screeched through the speaker and grated on my ears.

Having been reborn, I finally understood that their kindness toward me had never been genuine.

Every time I wanted to give up on Zachary, his parents would go on and on about the sweet memories we shared. They would retell, again and again, how he had risked his life to save me when I was once kidnapped.

And because of that rescue, our engagement had been set.

When the York family was on the brink of collapse, it was my family, the Lawson family, who stepped in and saved them from ruin.

But now, hearing Josephine say such ridiculous words, I only found it laughable.

My parents died in a car accident when I was 15. Zachary's parents then used their friendship with them as an excuse to invite me to live with them.

I had my own room in the York residence, and the dining table was always filled with the dishes I liked. Even my closet was mostly filled with clothes that Josephine had picked out for me.

In my previous life, I basked in that care, thinking Zachary's parents regarded me as one of their own.

But looking back now, I could only see how fake it all was. No decent family would ever send their daughter to another man's bed.

I cut her off and spoke my mind. "Mrs. York, I'm willing to step aside for Zachary and Tracy. When you and Mr. York return, let's discuss dissolving the engagement."

With that, I hung up and began contacting the company representatives.

Zachary's father, David York, had no talent in business. Every project he touched failed. All these years, it was only because of my family's support that the York family managed to stay afloat.

Now, it was time to put a stop to this one-way support.

That night, I got a call from one of Zachary's friends. I picked it up without thinking.

On the other end, Zachary's drunken voice slurred with arrogance, just as always.

"Yvonne, where the hell are you? I called you dozens of times, and you never once picked up. All this, over a tiny matter? I forgive you for drugging me, and Trace doesn't even hold it against you for pushing her. Now get over here to our spot, or I'm going to be drowned in drinks by these idiots!"

I couldn't understand why Zachary spoke as if everything were his due. He had clearly also been reborn, but it seemed as though he had forgotten all the wounds he had once carved into me.

After thinking it over, I found only one explanation—shameless and despicable people were truly invincible.

I didn't respond to him on the phone, simply hanging up and blocking the number.

Even so, news of him continued to reach me. Friends, not knowing we had broken apart, filled my inbox with complaints.

One of them told me Zachary and Tracy had rented out the entire amusement park for a date. He had spent 50 million dollars on fireworks by the river, lighting up the night for Tracy. They even stayed on a mountaintop until sunrise, sharing pictures on Instagram to parade their romance.

I stared in silence at the photos our friends sent me.

Could Zachary have forgotten that I had once done every one of those things in those photos with him? If he wanted to disgust me so much, how could he not feel the same?

I closed all the chat boxes without sending a single reply.

It didn't matter. In just a few days, he and I would be completely done with each other.

Two days later, David and Josephine returned from Halinoa. Right away, they called and asked me to go over.

I didn't refuse. After all, it was the perfect chance to end the engagement formally.

When I arrived at the York residence, the place was unexpectedly lively. In a corner, a silver-lit sign, spelling out "Happy Birthday", reminded me it was Zachary's birthday that day.

He stood side by side with Tracy in the crowd. They looked perfectly matched.

When he saw me, Zachary reached to pull Tracy closer, his gaze on me sharp and guarded.

A friend of ours approached me and asked, "What's Zachary doing? Why would he bring her here? Does he not consider your feelings?"

Unlike before, I didn't show sadness or anger. "I'm no one to him. I don't care if he doesn't consider my feelings."

My friend's eyes widened. "But you're Zachary's fiancee! Aren't you angry?"

Just then, a waitress carrying a tray stopped in front of me.

I picked up a glass of red wine and took a sip. With a faint smile, I replied, "Don't worry. After today, I won't be his fiancee anymore."

No sooner had I spoken than the waitress slipped, and the entire tray of red wine spilled over me.

My friend yelled in shock, "Hey! What's wrong with you? Watch where you're going!"

Before I could react, the waitress got on her knees and apologized.

For a moment, everyone present gave me sharp, strange looks.

Tracy then stepped forward and helped the waitress to her feet. "It was an accident, and perhaps she slipped. Yvonne, don't take it out on her."

I was about to speak when a burning heat spread through me.

Composing myself, I ignored Tracy and looked at the waitress. "Are you hurt from the fall? If you are, you should seek compensation from the York family. Their tiles are too slippery and cheap."

A few laughs rose from the crowd.

Tracy pressed her lips together, looking aggrieved. "Zach, that's not what I meant…"

Zachary held her closer. "Don't worry. With me here, no one will dare to mess with you."

He then looked at me with utter disgust and chided, "Yvonne, didn't you block my number and run away from home? Why have you come running back on my birthday? I've never seen anyone grovel as shamelessly as you."

At some point, it seemed that as long as Tracy was present, Zachary would humiliate me just to prove his loyalty to her.

I simply couldn't believe I didn't realize that simple truth in my previous life.

"Zachary, you're not indispensable. No one needs you to live. And I don't, either."

Zachary froze after hearing those words.

Just then, the burning in my stomach grew fiercer, my vision almost swallowed by the haze.

Josephine, who had not appeared until now, suddenly pulled me back. "Yve, you're covered in wine. Let me take you to your room to change."

She looped her arm through mine and led me upstairs. I felt too weak to struggle.

I was then thrown onto the familiar, soft bed. Dazed, I felt someone start unbuttoning my clothes. Right away, I struggled violently.

"Ouch!" Josephine's sharp voice cut through my ears. "You're strong. Save some energy for the activities in bed later."

She then called out, "Hey, Zach! Come upstairs. I need to tell you something."

I bit my tongue hard, tasting blood. My mind cleared instantly.

As it turned out, the York family was still clinging to that plan, after all.

The moment Josephine left, I struggled to reach the bedside drawer.

Outside, Zachary's voice rang out in disbelief. "Mom, have you guys gone insane? What? What about the company?

"I understand. I'll do as you say. But after it's done, I'll marry Tracy. She's the one I truly love!"

Zachary came in afterward. I smelled his familiar perfume and felt his hot hands. Then, his scorching breath fell on my neck.

I mustered all my strength and stabbed him in the shoulder with the pencil in my hand.

Zachary's eyes widened in shock, pain, disbelief, and guilt. "Yvonne, I—"

I didn't give him a chance to speak. I shoved the pencil in harder, blood spreading across his shirt. "Get your hands off me! I'm not letting you hurt me this time!"

While he froze in pain, I pushed him away with all my might and staggered toward the door.

Downstairs, the party was still in full swing, but my bloodstained clothes sent a jolt of shock through the crowd, none more than David and Josephine.

Josephine rushed forward. "Yve, what have you done to yourself?"

I leaned against my friend and smirked coldly, barely keeping myself standing. "Mrs. York, I should be the one asking questions. What exactly did you put in the wine? Why did Zachary appear in my room, and why did he start taking off my clothes the moment he walked in?"