People saw Dakota as the prestigious CEO, but back in college, she was just an animation-obsessed teen living off cheap bread. Someone like Kyle, who was dazzling and untouchable, would never have given her a second glance.

She pursued him for three years and lost all her pride along the way. Only when she finally looked back did she realize I had been the only one by her side the whole time.

The night Kyle left the country, Dakota got drunk out of her mind just to keep herself from running after him. I was so worried that I couldn't stop crying for her.

What did she say to me back then?

"Felix, you know Kyle is a thorn in my heart. Pulling it out will hurt, but once the pain passes, it'll be gone. You're my future."

For the next five years, she kept that promise. Her life consisted of just work and me.

Everyone said Dakota was a workaholic, that nothing mattered more to her than her career, but that was only because they had never met Kyle. No matter how big the deal, it could never outweigh him.

Now, with just a phone call and some sweet words, she picked up that very thorn and drove it right back into her heart without hesitation.

Dakota didn't wake up until nearly noon the next day. It was obvious she hadn't taken it easy with Kyle the night before.

When she saw me sitting on the couch, lost in thought, she hurried over and wrapped her arms around me. She was clearly feeling guilty.

"Felix, honey, I'm so sorry. Kyle came back this time to recover. His heart isn't in good shape," she explained. "We were classmates, after all. He was desperate and needed help. I couldn't just ignore him, could I?"

Her chin rested lightly on top of my head, and her tone was careful. That angle exposed the hickeys along her collarbone.

At the same time, the comments started flooding in again before my eyes.

"Guys, I looked closely this time. That cadaver looks exactly like Kyle!"

"Too bad, the faculty keeps donor identities strictly confidential. Otherwise, we would've gotten his name."

"What Dakota just said is bone-chilling… That cadaver died from a failed heart transplant…"

The rest of the live comments spiraled into speculation. Reading them felt like falling into a rabbit hole. I couldn't even focus on responding to Dakota.

My silence seemed to unnerve her. She grabbed me, forcing me to look into her eyes.

"You're not mad, right, honey? We didn't go through with the ceremony, but we're technically already married. That's a fact. Trust me, I only love you."

For a moment, I suddenly found the woman I had loved for years a little repulsive. She was truly rotten to the core.

Just then, Dakota's phone in her pocket rang. She had just been waiting desperately for my forgiveness, only to lose focus in an instant. She glanced at the time, and whatever patience she had left vanished.

She let go of me, stood up, and went back into the room. It took a long while before she came out again.

That dress she used to wear when pursuing Kyle, the one she had folded away at the bottom of the closet after he left, had been taken out and ironed smooth again.

It didn't even match her current style at all, but she wore it with obvious excitement.

I didn't reach out to hug her like I used to whenever she left. She didn't seem to notice either. She checked herself in the mirror and applied some makeup. Then, she told me there was something urgent at work, and left in a hurry.

A self-deprecating smile tugged lightly at my lips. Whether that man was truly Kyle or not, I had decided to give them my blessing.

I quickly told my parents about my decision. To my surprise, they supported it without hesitation.

Fortunately, Dakota and I had only held the wedding and hadn't registered our marriage yet. It was all because we were waiting to do it on Valentine's Day. It almost felt like fate had chosen for us.

With Dakota, my heart was devoid of any affection, though a newfound curiosity bloomed.

I checked the time and figured it was about right, so I took a cab over to Kyle's studio. It was on the 14th floor, third unit to the left—still the same, old shared apartment he had before he went abroad.

The door was locked. The floor-to-ceiling curtains were drawn tight as well.

Through the window, faint candlelight leaked through the gap in the curtains. It was broad daylight outside, but inside, the room was dim. I shifted my angle before I could make it out clearly.

Kyle was lying flat on the couch, naked. The candlelight carved out uneven shadows across his body. He was smiling and staring straight at Dakota without blinking.

His gaze pulled her in, and she seemed momentarily dazed. The atmosphere between them was thick, almost sweet in a suffocating way.

In the meantime, the medical student who had raised the suspicion earlier broke down in the comments. "Shit, guys… Seeing him in this pose makes the resemblance even more striking."

Soon, uneven breathing echoed through the studio.

Maybe it was the flickering candlelight, or the way Kyle's movements rose and fell in a restless rhythm, but I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something strange in the way he looked at Dakota.

Naturally, Dakota was oblivious to it all. Her voice was hoarse. It broke between breaths and was laced with a kind of unspeakable pleasure.

"Oh, babe… I can't even imagine… that I'd one day be able to call you that. We can't be out in the open right now, but… I can give you more than before."

Kyle was clearly lost in it too. His face was flushed red. His voice turned soft. "Oh, Kota… It was my fault before. I didn't know how to cherish you, but now, I do."

He pulled her closer. "But you know I can't be with you forever. My heart—"

Dakota cut him off by kissing him hard. Her reply slipped out between their tangled bodies. "Don't talk nonsense. I have money. Whatever happens, I just want you to be okay."

I pressed myself against the corridor wall, trying to push away the dull ache building in my chest with scattered guesses.

Okay—Kyle wasn't rotting. He had a shadow, a body, and warmth. He breathed. If he was actually sick and seeking treatment, was his end goal Dakota's money?

If so, things were about to get messy…

My temples throbbed. A cold sensation crawled up my skin. I didn't even notice when the studio suddenly went quiet. Then, the live comments exploded with warnings.

"Felix, I think Kyle noticed you!"

"Dude, run! Who cares what he is? Just get the hell out of there!"

"Damn it, it's too late! Kyle's about to open the door! Turn back now, Felix!"

My mind went blank for a second.

I turned toward the door, and Kyle's face slowly came into view. He was smiling, casually pushing his messy hair back. Strangely, he seemed to know me yet didn't at the same time.

"Felix Moore?"

When I didn't respond, a mocking look slipped into his eyes. "Relax. Dakota won't hear us."

From what I could see in the live comments, that part seemed true. They said Dakota was lying on the couch and had apparently fallen asleep all of a sudden.

The corridor was empty now. Every other door was shut tight.

I forced myself to calm down. In any normal situation, I was the one catching them in the act. There was no reason for me to feel guilty.

Just as my expression steadied and I was about to speak, Kyle reached into the pocket of Dakota's coat, the one she had left with him, and pulled out her phone.

He tapped the screen a few times, muttering to himself, "Wow, Kota is seriously devoted. Even after all these years, her password is still my birthday."

Dakota had always refused to tell me her password, saying privacy kept a relationship fresh. I never expected there was another reason behind it.

Whatever Kyle had scrolled to made his grin widen. He turned the screen toward me. It was Dakota's archived Instagram stories, which she had me blocked from seeing for years.

She always said she didn't like posting on social media, that she kept it closed off from everyone. Only now did I understand what "everyone" meant. It was everyone except Kyle.

The stories went all the way back to the day she first met him in college, never missing a single moment. Each entry had a daily photo and a simple caption with painfully obsessive words.

"Loving you is something I do alone, Kyle. Even if you turn me down, I'll keep going."

"Kyle, you left today. I didn't try to stop you because I don't think I deserve you. But no matter what, I'll keep working hard."

"Kyle, my new company, Kytech Enterprise, has your name in it. It's a pity you can't see it yet…"

"Kyle, Kytech Enterprise made it into an international business paper. I checked. It's also published in your region. Will you see it this time?"

There were millions more like it.

If this had been before, I would've been furious. I would've demanded answers from Dakota, maybe even begged her to come back to me like a desperate man.

Now, I felt strangely calm. Love and indifference were really that easy to tell apart.

Kyle, however, seemed to think I was shaken. He retrieved the phone and looked at me sideways with a faint sneer. "Don't get me wrong. I'm not showing off. I'm just giving you a reality check."

He smiled mockingly. "Men and women—always the same predictable stuff."

Then, for no clear reason, he handed me a few sheets of A4 paper. It was a divorce agreement, which was already signed by Dakota. As he lifted his arm, the loose collar of his shirt shifted slightly.

My eyes widened. A long, vertical scar ran down from his collarbone, like a clean surgical cut. The comments, which had just quieted down, went crazy again.

"Holy shit. Hey, med student, take a look at that cut! What exactly is that?"

"Oh, it's nothing much. Just a Y-incision method used on cadavers! Nothing special! That's definitely not a zombie before you!"

"Hey, Felix, focus! You're about to get fooled! Only the top page is a divorce agreement. The ones underneath are organ donation papers!"

Goosebumps exploded across my skin. Almost on instinct, I lowered my head to look more closely.

Sure enough, beneath the top page, the scattered documents read, "Party A expressly declares that, upon his/her death, he/she voluntarily agrees to… In accordance with applicable laws, the donation and retrieval of organs shall be carried out as promptly as possible."

A chill shot through me. A cadaver in the medical school died during a heart transplant surgery, and it was now trying to trick me into signing organ donation paperwork.

Was he trying to take my heart?

However, the divorce agreement had Dakota's signature on it! Did that mean she already knew what Kyle really was? Did the two of them work together to set me up?

The more I pondered, the more scared I felt. My mind raced until Kyle's soft but eerie voice drifted over. "You figured it out."

He tilted his head slightly, looking confused, but his tone had clearly sharpened. A strange madness crept into his eyes. His jaw tightened with a faint grinding sound.

"You figured it out, didn't you?"