My grandmother, who had tirelessly raised me, fell critically ill. Yancy promised to rush back and take us to the hospital.

However, I stood in the heavy rain for three hours, scanning the entrance of the village, but his car was nowhere in sight.

Left with no alternative, I hoisted my grandmother onto my back and trudged through the rain towards the hospital. Yet, as I crossed the path, a sudden mountain torrent struck me, causing my head to collide with the rocks, and I lost consciousness.

1

When I awoke, I found myself in the hospital.

My grandmother, risking her own life, managed to push me to safety, but in doing so, she succumbed to the river's depths.

Kneeling before my grandmother's body, I bowed deeply, tears streaming down my face. Then, a call interrupted my grief.

"I won't be able to make it back tonight. Tara's got a stomachache, and I need to stay with her," Yancy's voice came through.

Before I could respond, the call ended abruptly.

"Is this why you disappeared?"

I typed through tear-blurred eyes, feeling as though my love had vanished along with him.

However, his reply didn't come until after my grandmother's cremation.

"She's in such bad shape already. Please, stop acting up," his message finally arrived.

"As we were heading back, passing by the river, we heard cries for help," the man who helped us recounted, his eyes welling up. "Turning, we spotted you drifting in the river, your grandmother clinging to you desperately, shouting for aid."

"When we took you over, we found you were pretty heavy for a slim person. I really don't know how your grandmother managed to hold you up."

Hearing this, I looked at my grandmother who was covered with a white cloth in front of me, and my tears dropped onto the back of my hand, forming a line in the air and then shattered on the floor.

"Rescuing you was no easy task. Unfortunately, your grandmother likely lost her footing and was swept away by the flood."

He continued solemnly. "We wasted no time. One of us took you to the hospital while the other searched along the riverbank. Eventually, we found her downstream..."

He paused, his hand landing gently on my shoulder, a heavy sigh escaping him.

"When your grandmother saw us, she smiled. Saving you meant everything to her," he added softly.

I couldn't contain my grief, throwing myself onto my grandmother and sobbing uncontrollably.

She hadn't slipped, it was because she had a heart condition. Yet she held on to me in that icy flood. Every ounce of strength she possessed went into saving me.

The man told me that by the time they found us, it was late into the night.

More than six hours had passed since I carried her across the path.

The thought of what she endured during those hours was unbearable.

Then, Yancy's call came through.

I hesitated to answer, my eyes fixed on the screen.

But Yancy didn't seem to give up and called again and again.

Reluctantly, I picked up, eager to hear what he had to say.

"I won't be returning tonight. Tara's got a stomachache, and I need to stay with her," his voice came through.

Those words stirred a storm of emotions within me.

Glancing at my grandmother covered with a white sheet, I recall the despair of dying in the flood.

Before I could respond, he hung up.

I was left with a sense of emptiness I couldn't put into words.

Tara White was Yancy's first love.

"Did you disappear because of this?"

I typed through tears, wishing I could confront him in person and give him a good slapping.

But as I waited, the nurse gently reminded me to handle the necessary procedures for the body, and only then did his response arrive, delayed.

"She's already feeling terrible, please stop it," his message read.

Anger surged in my brain, making me dizzy. And a wave of pain nearly overwhelmed me, making it difficult to draw breath.

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, I slowly typed on the phone.

"Yancy, we're done."

I typed, hands trembling, before blocking him and sitting numbly in the morgue.

Just because his first love had a minor stomachache, he forgot his promises, even as someone lay dying.

On that rainy day, I called him repeatedly until my phone was nearly dead, only to hear the system voice, "Sorry, the number you dialed is currently unavailable."

At the sight of his call just now, I briefly entertained the fantasy of an apology.

But it was Tara who occupied his thoughts.

With an impassive expression, I completed the formalities and accepted the weighty death certificate.

Standing at the hospital entrance, I waited silently for the hearse, only to see Yancy, visibly agitated.

Finally, the car I'd awaited screeched to a halt before me.

But Yancy, exiting the car, ignored me entirely, rushing to assist Tara, who was in pain.

As they passed, Tara glanced up.

"Molly, why are you here? Are you seeing me off too?"

Yancy froze, his shock evident as he glanced my way. His brows furrowed in impatience as he yelled at me.

"Molly, is this really necessary? It's just one night away. Do you have to follow me here?"

He glanced at Tara in his arms as he spoke. "Alright, feeling better now? Look."

"I'm tired of your constant complaints," I retorted, my tone icy.

Silent, I regarded them both with a cool stare.

It seemed Yancy didn't get the response he desired; he erupted like a lit firecracker.

"Molly Jenkins, your stubbornness has its limits. If you dare to pull a stunt like this again—"

I interrupted him without hesitation, pushing him aside.

At that moment, a hospital nurse emerged, pushing my grandmother's stretcher, with Yancy and Tara inadvertently blocking her path.

In the chaos, I accidentally tripped Tara, sending her crashing to the ground.

"Ouch, my stomach hurts so bad," Tara cried out, clutching her abdomen.

Tara sat on the ground, holding his stomach and howling in pain.

Yancy's anger flared even more.

"You heartless woman! Tara's already in pain, and you dare to push her?"

"I've been too lenient with you, it seems," he continued, his voice dripping with disdain.

"A country bumpkin like you lacks manners!"

Yancy's harsh words were interrupted as the nurse pushed past him.

"Out of the way!"

She hurried to Tara's side, asking about her pain.

But Tara's responses seemed uncertain, leaving the nurse visibly frustrated.

"If you're alright, please stand. Blocking the hospital entrance like this could lead to misunderstandings," the nurse admonished before leaving.

Yancy grabbed her, outraged.

"What kind of nurse are you? She's clearly in pain. I'll file a complaint if you keep this up!"

The nurse, equally irritated, shot back.

"You two are the ones causing the obstruction."

"And complaints aren't a weapon of justice. If there's a genuine issue, seek medical help."

Yancy was about to argue further when Tara weakly pulled him back.

"Yancy, I think the pain's easing up."

Embarrassed, Yancy spoke, "You're fortunate to have Tara looking out for you."

I couldn't bear to see his expression any longer. Silently, I pushed past him, advancing to take hold of my grandmother's stretcher.

Yancy said with a look of disdain.

"Molly, what are you doing? Helping them carry the dead, that's bad luck!"

I raised my head and stared at him with tears in my eyes.

The nurse standing by couldn't stand it anymore. "Hey, why are you everywhere?"

"Can you and your girlfriend please get out of here? Can't you see we're leaving?"

Yancy pointed at me embarrassedly. "She is my girlfriend..."

The nurse was even more shocked when she heard this, and looked at me with her jaw dropped.

I shook my head calmly. "To be precise, I'm his ex-girlfriend."

Yancy became anxious when he heard this. "Molly, how dare you say this?"

I turned my head and looked at him coldly. "It seems you didn't read my message."

He was stunned, and hurriedly took out his mobile phone and opened the chat interface.

I immediately noticed the chat box of Tara that he had pinned, tagged as "Tara Baby".

He searched for a long time before he found my chat box.

I could see he had muted my messages.

He clicked on it and looked at me in disbelief. "Are you going to break up with me just because I didn't come home one night?"

"Molly, are you crazy?"

Looking at this extremely stupid and hypocritical man, I could no longer suppress my anger.

"Snap!"

I raised my hand and slapped him hard on the face.