Liam's face went stone-cold the moment Maeve's frantic and tearful voice reached him. He floored the gas, jerked the wheel, and spun the car around in a sharp U-turn.

Stephanie lost her balance and slammed into the car door. A flying ornament cut across her forehead, opening a two-inch bleeding gash.

Wincing, she pressed her hand to the cut and gave Liam a puzzled look. He was so caught up in his conversation with Maeve that he didn't notice her injury.

His eyes burned with anger, but he held it back, forcing himself to sound calm and reassuring. "Don't be scared. Where are you now? Stay on the line. I'll be there in five minutes."

Stephanie held back her questions after hearing what he said. She fished some tissues out of her bag and tried to stop the bleeding.

Despite the constant warnings from the navigation system about speeding, Liam plowed through seven or eight red lights.

Stephanie adjusted her seatbelt when she saw the needle on the speedometer creeping toward the limit.

Five minutes later, the car pulled up outside a bar. Liam didn't even seem to remember Stephanie was still in the car. He yanked the seatbelt free and bolted out.

After watching him disappear in a flash, Stephanie hesitated briefly before deciding to follow.

The moment she walked in, she saw the lobby was a disaster, with tables broken and scattered everywhere. It was clear something had gone down.

She heard shouting coming from the private room on the second floor. She went upstairs and found two groups going at it, shoving and pushing each other.

By the door stood Liam, who had just shown up, and four or five of his friends.

Stephanie spotted the guy she knew on the other side—Logan Newman, the infamous rival who'd always been at odds with Liam.

Liam was charming and easygoing, always excelling at everything since he was young. His love life was a bit of a mess, but that was pretty typical for a spoiled heir in a rich family.

Still, it didn't stop him from being the golden boy everyone in the elite circles envied.

Logan, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. He was a total playboy—reckless and a bad influence on their social circle.

Logan couldn't stand how perfect Liam was and was always looking for ways to bring him down. But Liam didn't even care about it, which only fueled Logan's hatred.

Today, Maeve—the one person who truly mattered to Liam—had smashed a wine bottle over Logan, and that gave him the perfect chance to make his move.

A dozen or so of Logan's men stood in a tight circle around the private room. His right hand, wrapped in bandages, was still bleeding, and his eyes were full of menace.

"Liam, the security footage clearly shows your beloved came at me first! So what now? Are you going to twist things around and back her up?"

Liam sneered, wrapping Maeve in his arms. "What kind of compensation are you looking for? Name it."

Seeing how seriously Liam was taking his demand, Logan flashed a smug grin, his eyes burning with defiance. "Compensation? She nearly took my hand off! Of course, I'm calling the cops! If it goes to court, fine. And if she ends up in jail, then so be it!"

Liam and his friends' faces fell the moment they heard that.

Liam's forehead throbbed with anger. He forced it down and spat out through gritted teeth, "Is it really worth all this? What's so fun about picking on a woman? If you've got a problem, come at me instead!"

Logan had been waiting for this exact moment. He glanced around, then told one of his men to grab the paring knife from the table.

His tone oozed with spite. "Fine, I won't make this difficult. Since she ruined my hand, you can pay me back with one of yours, and we'll call it even!"

The second he said it, he hurled the sharp paring knife, and it sank right into the door.

Liam's friends rushed to protect him, their faces twisted in anger as they glared at Logan. "Hey, we're all in the same circle here! You'd better not push it too far!"

Even so, Liam knew better than anyone how serious things had gotten today.

Logan had been injured, and even if Liam could smooth things over for now, Logan's grudge against him would definitely drive him to get revenge eventually.

If Logan couldn't go after Liam, he'd go for the one person who meant the most to him—Maeve. While Liam could protect her, there were always going to be places he couldn't reach.

Liam didn't want Maeve to face any danger down the road, so the best move was to end it all today.

After thinking it over, he didn't hesitate and shoved past the people around him. His friends were shocked, grabbing his arms and urging him not to do something foolish.

"Liam! Are you fucking out of your mind? You're a captain! If you ruin your hand, your career's done!"

"Is she really worth throwing it all away for?"

Liam wore a look he'd never had before and gave Logan a cold stare. "Are you going to keep your word?"

"You bet!"

After hearing Logan, Liam yanked the knife out of the door.

Stephanie's heart nearly stopped when she saw what Liam was doing. She barely had time to stop him.

Liam cradled Maeve in his arms. She was crying so hard from fear and about to faint. He blocked her view with his jacket and whispered, "Don't worry. It'll be over soon."

With everyone watching in shock, Liam took the knife and stabbed it into his right palm. Blood burst from his palm, splattering everywhere and turning the whole scene into a gruesome mess.

His face drained of color, but he gritted his teeth and stifled a groan, trying not to freak Maeve out. Not once did he look at Stephanie, who was standing nearby, looking as pale as a sheet.

Liam was immediately taken to the operating room. His parents, Victor Lowry and Jean Miller, wasted no time getting to the hospital when they heard the news.

When Jean heard what happened from Liam's friends, she was so mad she flung her bracelet off her wrist. "He's been obsessed with her for ten years, and now he's ruined his right hand for her. He's out of his mind!"

Liam's friends rushed over to comfort Victor and Jean, saying all the right things until they finally calmed down.

A few hours later, the light outside the operating room flicked off.

A doctor wheeled Liam out, his voice sounding relief. "He was brought in right on time and the surgery went smoothly. He just needs to rest up for a few months and will be fine."

Everyone there breathed a sigh of relief.

Once Victor and Jean knew there was no serious harm, they left for a conference overseas that night, not in the mood to face Liam.

Before leaving, they took a moment to thank the caregivers, inviting them to visit their place next time. But when they came to Stephanie, it was like she wasn't even there—they simply moved on to thank the medical staff nearby.

Stephanie figured it all out the moment she saw them leave. Apparently, Liam had never told his family about his girlfriend of six years.

But maybe it was for the best since he'd eventually break things off with her anyway. So why bother introducing someone like her to his family?

During Liam's hospital stay, Stephanie was right there with him, running around taking care of everything with just four or five hours of sleep a day.

Liam felt sorry when he saw how drained she looked. "I'm fine now. You should get some rest."

He pulled her down to sit, poured a glass of water, and passed it to her. He didn't talk about what happened that day, seeming not to know how to explain it.

After a brief moment, Liam asked nonchalantly, "Who's come by the hospital to visit me? I've been sleeping a lot. Did I miss anyone? Has… Maeve been here?"

Stephanie paused, her hand still holding the glass as she stared at him. She could tell that the last few words he spoke were all that really mattered to him.

So, she kept it short. "Everyone's been here. Maeve probably got too freaked out and couldn't bring herself to come."

Liam furrowed his brows, clearly losing interest in the conversation. He grabbed his phone and tried hard to type something on it.

Stephanie could hear WhatsApp notifications constantly buzzing on his phone, knowing he was checking in on Maeve again. She quietly got up to handle the discharge paperwork.

The car pulled up to their place. Before they even made it upstairs, Liam got a call from Maeve and turned to walk away.

Stephanie bit her tongue when she saw the bandages on his hand and the way he was rushing away. She turned away and walked toward the apartment.

Liam didn't return for the next three days.

Stephanie began to feel a sense of peace as her departure date got closer. Once she returned to her hometown, she planned to rest up and look for a job, so recently, she'd been checking out the local job listings.

The day before she was supposed to leave, her high school classmates brought up a reunion. With some time to spare, she figured she'd join in.

Everyone had changed so much after all these years. They spent hours catching up and marveling at how different they all looked.

When Stephanie walked in, no one could believe the stunning woman before them was the same quiet, bookish girl from ten years ago who'd always been so shy.

Despite their shock, she stayed calm and graceful. She exchanged a few friendly hellos before joining some close friends.

With most of the group already there, the class president was about to get up and make a toast when the door suddenly flew open.

Liam strolled in with a smile and greeted everyone, but he froze as soon as he saw Stephanie. "Steph? What brings you here?"

Everyone's eyes went wide with shock.

"She has to be here. We were classmates in high school. Come on, Liam the Heartthrob, you're not that forgetful, are you?"

Classmates in high school?

Those few words hit Liam like a ton of bricks.

He stared at Stephanie, shocked, his lips moving as a storm of emotions crossed his face—maybe he felt bad for forgetting Stephanie, or maybe he was confused as to why she never brought it up.

A few young women in the group noticed something was up and started looking back and forth between the two.

"Steph? You're calling her that, huh? Liam the Heartthrob, what's going on between you two?"

Before Stephanie could answer with "just classmates," Liam jumped in. "Steph's my girlfriend. We've been together for six years."

The room exploded with excitement. Everyone started grilling them about their love story.

Liam never expected Stephanie to be his classmate, and she was just as surprised that he'd be so open about their relationship.

The group gathered around Liam and Stephanie and bombarded them with questions, making the duo uncomfortable.

Liam kept sipping his drink, trying to change the subject, while Stephanie slipped away to the restroom.

After knocking back three drinks, the class president, who wasn't much of a drinker, grabbed Liam's hand and started rambling endlessly.

"It makes me so happy seeing you two together. Stephanie finally got what she'd been after. Bet you didn't know she'd been into you for so long, huh?

"There was this one time in gym class—you were asleep in the classroom, and I went back to grab something. I saw her blocking the light so it wouldn't wake you up—that's when I figured out she had a thing for you.

"There were tons of girls into you back then, but Stephanie was the one who really made an impression. Remember when you hurt your ankle playing basketball? She took care of your class duties.

"When you got into a fight with some troublemakers and ended up stuck in an alley, she skipped class to get help for you. When people outside school gossiped behind your back, she jumped in to defend you and got into it with them even though she's such a shy person.

"Young love is so pure and real. I'm so happy for you two. She's a keeper, so you better treat her right, or you'll definitely regret it."

Liam went stiff. This was the first time he had heard all of this.

He always thought they were just in the same college, never realizing Stephanie had been his high school classmate, let alone that she'd secretly loved him for ten years.

Liam recalled how he'd ended up dating her for six years, all because of a promise, while she had no idea about the truth. Suddenly, an emotion he couldn't name hit him, leaving a bitter and unsettling feeling.

He lost the nerve to face her. All he could do was drown his feelings with one drink after another.

Once the reunion was over, Stephanie helped Liam, who was drunk, to get home. She brought a warm towel to clean his face, but he grabbed her hand and wouldn't let go.

Liam gave her a sympathetic look. "Are you stupid? Why didn't you tell me?"

Stephanie knew he probably heard something at the reunion, but she didn't care anymore. She pulled her hand back and said quietly, "Loving you is my choice. It's got nothing to do with you."

Liam was still somewhat clear-headed when he caught her words, and a flood of uneasiness washed over him. He tried to find the right words, but nothing came to him. Eventually, he went quiet.

The room fell silent.

He lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the harsh light, unknowingly showing the tattoo on his waist. It was two simple letters—MS.

On those nights when things felt intense between them, Stephanie would lie in Liam's arms, and every time she saw the tattoo, she'd ask him what it meant.

Liam would pause and look down as tenderness and longing filled his eyes. "A faith, one that's greater than my life itself."

Stephanie had no clue the letters meant Maeve Stewart back then. She took him at his word, without any doubt.

She took on his dreams and faith as her own, even getting the same tattoo. Looking back on everything that happened, she didn't feel heartbroken anymore. It just felt kind of absurd.

But then again, who never dreamed of finding "the one" and living happily ever after when they were younger?

It wasn't until Stephanie went through her fair share of highs and lows that she realized that some relationships just weren't meant to last.

She and Liam had come to a fork in the road, and it was time to go their separate ways.