On the last day of the deadline for the loan repayment, I went to Liam Sommer's stepsister, Christine Sommer, to ask for the 300,000 dollars I had lent her. The next day, Liam threw a ledger I had never seen before in front of me.

Liam said, "On your birthday last year, I transferred 8,100 dollars to you. On our tenth anniversary, I transferred 108,000 dollars to you. Also, at the beginning of every month, I transfer 20,000 dollars to you for your living expenses. You must pay me back by the end of today."

I froze, but Liam smiled without a hint of warmth. "What’s wrong? You can't afford to repay me? Evelyn Lancaster, you shouldn't have given Christy trouble. This is my lesson to you. If you don't pay me back today, let's not meet for the next three years, and don't come looking for me."

Over the next three years, I never saw Liam again, nor did I go looking for him. While he and Christine traveled around the world and wore couple rings, I married my childhood friend in front of our family and friends.

While he and Christine walked along the beach and kissed, I moved into a new house with my husband, our cat, and our dog.

Everything was moving along smoothly, but why was Liam standing under the window of my house in the middle of the night, crying and saying that he was unhappy?

A thick ledger was thrown in front of me. Each page recorded the money Liam Sommer had transferred to me over the past ten years. Even the time of each transaction was recorded.

Liam said, "On your birthday last year, I transferred 8,100 dollars to you. On our tenth anniversary, I transferred 108,000 dollars to you, and at the beginning of every month, I transferred 20,000 dollars to you for your living expenses. You must pay me back by the end of today. Each transfer has been recorded with the transaction time, so you can compare and check for yourself."

...

"What's wrong? You can't afford to repay me? Evelyn Lancaster, you shouldn't have given Christy trouble. This is my lesson to you. If you don't pay me back today, let's not meet for the next three years, and don't come looking for me." Liam's cold and resolute words echoed in my ears. He said that to get justice for his precious stepsister, Christine Sommer. This was because, yesterday, I had recovered the 300,000 dollars I had lent her.

Liam knew I had no money. My mother passed away when I was young, and my father had been bedridden for years. Any spare money I had was used to pay for my father's medical bills over the years. I was also jobless. My health deteriorated after a miscarriage in my early years. Coupled with anemia, I was constantly weak. No matter what I did, I would easily faint and break into cold sweat.

After letting out a sigh, I stood up, grabbed my bank card, and headed out. The hot weather only intensified my discomfort. I had to squat down to rest every time I walked a distance. Slowly, I made my way to the bank and withdrew cash.

I had not expected Liam to record every transaction in detail. After all, he had let me keep his salary card all these years. Fortunately, I had never touched the money in his salary card in the past ten years, nor had I misused any of the money he sent me. Otherwise, I would not be able to pay him back now.

After some calculations, the amount was about right. I added an extra 50,000 dollars from the 300,000 dollars I recovered.

My father was in a critical situation and urgently needed money for treatment yesterday. I had told Liam that the 300,000 dollars I recovered was to save my father's life.

After withdrawing the money, I felt lost. I did not know where to find Liam. I made a few phone calls, but they were all hung up on. Perhaps annoyed, Liam eventually blocked me.

Countless waves of sadness surged through my heart, and I sniffled. Things were not like this between Liam and me in the past. Even if I called him many times in one day, he would always answer with patience.

With that in mind, I logged into an application I had not used in a while. It was a location-tracking application we had both downloaded when we were head over heels in love with each other. Following the location, I found myself standing at the door of the private room he was in.

Inside, Christine's laughter was especially loud. "Evelyn is so stingy. Wasn't it just 300,000 dollars? Liam, the bag you bought me is worth way more than that. Liam, what if Evelyn doesn't pay you back?"

I heard Liam reply nonchalantly, "I just won't see her for the next three years then. I can move in with you and make it up to you during this period. What do you think?"

Christine squealed and smiled more broadly. "But what if Evelyn breaks up with you?"

The atmosphere froze for a moment, and Liam's words hit me. "She won't break up with me. She's looking forward to marrying me! She's been with me for ten years and miscarried once. Who else is she going to go to if she leaves me? Besides, she can't work, and her father has cancer. If I hadn't supported her, would she have been able to survive on the savings she has?"

My hand trembled slightly as I carried the bag, and my legs were too weak to feel. I was afraid that my crying would alert them, so I pressed the elevator button in a panic.

As I slid down against the elevator wall, my tears dripped onto my hand.

A month ago, Liam's long-lost stepsister, Christine, showed up at our door.

In the private room, Christine wore a white slip dress. She bit her lip while her eyes were red. "Liam, I'm sorry. I won't pester you anymore, but I desperately need that 300,000 dollars for an emergency. Just one month, I'll pay you back after one month! I can even write an IOU. I beg you…"

No matter how much Christine pleaded, Liam remained expressionless. However, I could sense something was unusual about him. Due to his restraint, his grip on my right hand tightened unconsciously.

The sharp pain in my wrist made me scream, "Ouch!"

Liam did not seem to hear me.

It was eventually Christine who lunged forward to grab Liam's other hand, making him loosen his grip slowly. However, he also angrily pushed Christine away. "Who allowed you to touch me?"

Startled, Christine stammered an apology.

Liam eventually blamed it on me. "You want to borrow money? Ask Evelyn if she agrees first! All of my money is with Evelyn."

He emphasized my name with such weight that I could see the pain and struggle in Christine's eyes. The moment Christine called out my name, Liam kicked over a chair and left.

That day, I took out 300,000 dollars from my savings to lend to Christine. Though I disliked her, she did seem to be desperately in need of money. I made sure she wrote an IOU before I gave her the money.

Liam knew I disliked Christine. She was brought into his family by Liam's stepmother and was the same age as both Liam and me. When we were 19, Liam and I finally confessed our feelings for each other and started dating. No one objected to our relationship, except Christine. It was because Christine was also in love with Liam, who was only her stepbrother in name. She even confessed her feelings to Liam in front of me, saying that she wanted to elope with him and ignore societal norms. However, Liam cruelly rejected her every time.

Liam had told me countless times how much he disliked Christine and how much he despised the hypocritical mother and daughter pair. After he took over the Sommer family, he immediately kicked Christine and her mother out.

After that, I never saw Christine again. The three of us were all 24 years old that year.

Liam never told me he kept Christine somewhere else. All I knew was that Liam had been busy since Christine borrowed the money. He often worked overtime and even stayed out all night. He also grew indifferent to me. Liam and I had not even been intimate this past month. Even when he was at home, he deliberately kept a distance from me. When I asked him why, he only said he was too busy and tired. It turned out...

It was a hot day, but I had chills. Feeling nauseous, I started retching on the roadside while holding on to the telephone pole. I had no idea how I got home. The chills only faded when I soaked in the bathtub filled with warm water.

Liam called, "Evelyn, your time is up, and you didn't transfer the money to me."

I smiled wryly. It had only been four hours since Liam asked me to pay him back, and he was already eager to move in with Christine. I was silent.

Liam impatiently announced the result. "I'll come back later to get my luggage. We won't see each other for three years. Evelyn, remember this lesson. If you still want to marry me, spend the next three years in the apartment and reflect on yourself. If you realize your mistake after three years, I may consider marrying you."

I forced a smile. "Okay, got it."

Liam probably forgot what I said to him on our tenth anniversary.

I hung up the phone and sank into the water, thinking, 'Liam, you didn't keep your word.'

When I woke up in the morning, Liam had already moved out with his stuff.

Half the house was suddenly empty, and I could not get used to it.

After finishing breakfast, I planned to visit my father at the hospital.

After a full day and night of persistence, my father was finally admitted to the intensive care unit. All I could do was look at his frail face through the glass.

A man said, "When his condition stabilizes, he can be transferred to a regular ward. After that, he can continue chemotherapy."

Not knowing how to respond, I only replied, "Thank you."

A warm hand landed gently on the top of my head. Before I could react, I found myself looking into a pair of deep, familiar eyes.

The man comforted me, saying, "Don't worry. Mr. Lancaster will be fine. Even though it's terminal stomach cancer, there's still a 30% to 50% chance of recovery. You need to have faith in him and in the doctors."

Strangely, I felt a sense of security.

I took the elevator downstairs and ran into Christine at the payment counter. She greeted me with a sweet smile. "What a coincidence. I didn't expect to see you here."

I did not want to talk to her, so I nodded and said nothing. I did not think there was anything worth saying between us. However, she seemed to feel otherwise. She grabbed me after I finished paying, and that was when I noticed the injury on her foot.

Following my gaze, Christine gradually blushed. "Oh, it's Liam's fault for pushing too hard. I lost my footing and almost fell down, so I sprained my foot. Evelyn, was Liam that hard with you?"

Her words made me feel uncomfortable. I knew she deliberately said that to anger me.

When I did not answer, Christine tilted her head and scanned my face. "Sorry, Evelyn. I forgot that Liam hasn't been intimate with you in a long time. Evelyn, don't blame Liam. He just took my joke to heart."

At that moment, I just felt extremely embarrassed.

At night, Liam returned after being told not to see him. Without saying a word, he pulled me over to the stairs on the second floor with a grim face, and then...

"Evelyn, I told you not to give Christy trouble. Don't you understand English?"

Liam pushed me down the stairs!

I lost my footing and fell down the stairs. The wrenching pain in my ankles made me cry.

Liam walked right in front of me without even looking at me. "Does it hurt? It's good if it hurts! Christy sprained her ankle, and you threw her off. Did you know that your actions caused Christy to sprain herself a second time? I told you not to give Christy trouble, yet you insisted on messing with me."

I was trembling with pain, but I laughed out of anger. "I shook her hand off this afternoon, but nothing happened to her! There were not only doctors, but also so many other people at the payment counter. Ask anyone there and you'll find out whether what I said is true!"

Liam frowned, his eyes filled with anger. "You know that it's a corner where other people can't see, so you're shamelessly lying, aren't you? Did you know that Christy came up the corner stairs on a stretcher after you left?"

I was shocked, but then felt amused and sad. "So based on Christine's words, you assumed that I hurt her? She didn't fall down the stairs when I shook her off. It's up to you to believe it or not!"

My face was slapped, and it burned with pain. "I witnessed Christy being brought up! And the doctor said that Christy suffered a second sprain. Are the doctor and Christy both lying and falsely accusing you? Even if she offended you, there's got to be a reason, right? She treats you like her own sister-in-law. How could you do this to her? I knew her when I was 19. It's been ten years now! She has never been a liar in these ten years!"

"What about me? Am I a liar? Liam Sommer, we've known each other since we were 16, haven't we?" I retorted.