I ignored her.

I only replied to my parents.

“Mom, Dad, Claire and I are over. I’ll listen to you and go back to Maple Creek for the blind dates.”

My parents had never thought Claire and I were a good match. But back then, I had been willing to leave my hometown behind just to be with her.

Now it seemed they had been right all along.

“Good. Your mother and I will arrange it for you right away!”

After hanging up, I bought a bus ticket for the next day. Then I called a cab and went home to pack.

As soon as I reached the door, I heard laughter inside.

I pushed the door open and saw three pairs of shoes in the entryway.

They were matching family shoes.

I recognized one pair as Claire’s. They had been Ryan’s birthday gift to her, some cheap street stall shoes that cost 8.80.

The workmanship was rough, and the material was cheap.

Yet Claire treasured them like they were priceless.

Meanwhile, the custom designer shoes I had bought her for tens of thousands of dollars sat untouched, gathering dust. She had even said my taste was embarrassing and that wearing them out would humiliate her.

For a while, I had genuinely thought there was something wrong with my taste. I had even humbled myself and asked Ryan how to improve it.

Looking back now, Claire had simply looked down on anything I gave her.

I kicked the three pairs of shoes aside and walked into the apartment.

The moment I looked up, I saw Ryan lounging on the couch in my pajamas, watching television like he owned the place.

His son, Noah Chase, was running barefoot over the spotless white rug.

My mother had stayed up with bloodshot eyes to knit that rug for me herself. Now Noah had trampled it with black footprints.

What made my blood pressure spike even higher was the sight of my carefully collected figurines scattered all over the floor. Several had their arms and legs snapped off.

Furious, I snatched one of the figurines out of Noah’s hand and demanded, “What are you doing in my home?”

Noah lifted his chin stubbornly.

“Mom said it was okay!”

The next second, Claire came out of the kitchen after hearing the noise.

She never cooked, but now she was holding a spatula and making dinner for Ryan and his son.

“Noah, why did you call Mom?”

Claire was about to pick Noah up and comfort him, but when she saw me, she froze.

“Claire, when did you become his mother? Funny how I never heard about that.”

Faced with my question, Claire only paused for a moment before brushing it off.

“Noah grew up without a mother’s love. Letting him call me that a couple of times won’t kill anyone. Besides, why are you suddenly back?”

I almost laughed.

“This is my home. Am I not allowed to come back?

“And you, who gave you permission to bring them here?”

Claire looked perfectly justified.

“Ryan’s place is too far from the school Noah will be attending. The commute is inconvenient, and over time, it will affect Noah’s studies.

“Our home happens to be close to Noah’s school, so I brought them here. The place is big enough anyway. Until Ryan finds a suitable apartment, there’s plenty of room for him and Noah.”

“And what if Ryan never finds a suitable apartment?”

Claire looked fondly at Ryan and Noah.

“Then they can stay. It’s just two extra sets of dishes.”

But before, when I wanted to have my parents stay with us for a while, Claire had refused.

She said she was not used to having other people in the house. She said she was a light sleeper and would be disturbed.

Now, she had taken the initiative to let Ryan and his son live here.

So in the end, only my parents counted as outsiders.

At that thought, my voice darkened.

“I don’t agree to them living here.”

Claire’s face instantly went cold.

“Nathan, do you have no compassion at all?”

I laughed coldly and shot back, “You’re right. I’m nowhere near as kind as you. You’re so kind that not only did you get married to your assistant, you even brought him and his son home to live with you.”

Just then, Ryan, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke.

His eyes were red as he took off the pajamas he was wearing, looking fragile and wounded.

“Nathan, Claire, please stop fighting because of me.

“If Nathan doesn’t want us to stay, I’ll take Noah and leave right now. It’ll just be harder for Noah to get to school from now on, that’s all. Claire, I’m already grateful that you helped Noah with his school registration. I wouldn’t dare ask for anything more...”

As he spoke, he exchanged a look with Noah.

The next second, Noah rushed forward and sank his teeth hard into my calf.

Blood welled from the bite mark.

But Noah still was not satisfied. He clenched his fists and started hitting me.

“You’re a bad man! Why do you get to kick Dad and me out? This is my home. If anyone should leave, it’s you!”

Only after Noah had beaten red marks into me did Ryan finally step in and carry him away.

“Nathan, he’s just a kid. He doesn’t know any better. Please don’t take it personally.”

Before I could speak, Claire cut in.

“Ryan, you and Noah can stay here in peace.

“Nathan, Ryan felt guilty about taking your turn at City Hall, so he bought you a gift to apologize. And you’re still being this petty? If you ask me, the one who doesn’t know any better is you.”

I looked over and saw half a soufflé that had already been eaten.

My voice turned cold.

“I’m allergic to eggs. I can’t eat that. And I’m not a trash can. I don’t have the habit of taking other people’s leftovers.”

Ryan’s tears immediately began to fall.

“Claire, I know Nathan thinks my gift is cheap, but this is already the best I can afford. If he doesn’t like it, he can just say so. Why does he have to be so passive-aggressive?”

Claire’s expression darkened. She picked up the half-eaten soufflé and shoved it toward my mouth.

“Ryan gave it to you out of kindness, and now you’re looking down on it?

“You can even come up with something as ridiculous as an egg allergy? Fine. Let’s see if you’re really allergic.”

I could not dodge in time.

The soufflé smeared across my mouth. The smell of egg hit me hard, and nausea surged straight up. It took me a long while before I finally spat everything out.

By the time I recovered, red hives had already spread across my body.

Only then did Claire remember that I really was allergic to eggs. Guilt flashed through her eyes.

“Nate, I...”

I did not bother listening anymore. I turned and went back to my room.

Claire followed me in and softened her voice.

“Nate, I only forgot about your egg allergy because I was angry. I’m sorry.”

I was wondering why Claire had suddenly become so easy to talk to when, the very next second, she revealed what she really wanted.

“But can you let Ryan and Noah stay here for now?

“Once Ryan finds a place, I’ll make them move out. After that, I’ll marry you to make it up to you, okay?”

So in the end, it was still for Ryan.

I pulled my hand away from Claire.

“There’s no need. I’ll move out right now and leave the happy family of three to yourselves.”

With that, I lowered my head and began packing.

When Claire saw that, she finally lost her temper.

“Nathan, I already backed down. What more do you want? Keep this up, and I’ll break up with you.”

I only gave a cold laugh.

“Perfect. I was thinking the same thing. Let’s break up.”

Claire froze.

She had only wanted to use the threat of a breakup to make me give in the way I always had.

She had not expected me to agree.

“Nathan, do you even know what you’re saying?”

I nodded.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to break up? I agreed. What’s the problem?”

Claire was speechless. Her face flushed with anger.

Ryan and Noah heard the commotion from the living room and pushed the door open.

Ryan put on a fake wounded expression.

“Nathan, I didn’t expect you to use a breakup to force us out.

“I’ll take Noah and leave right now. We wouldn’t want to make anyone sick of us.”

Ryan picked Noah up and rushed out the door.

After a moment of hesitation, Claire chased after them too.

Before leaving, she did not forget to throw one last harsh line at me.

“Fine, Nathan. If you want to break up, then break up! And if you want to leave, then leave. I’d like to see how long this tantrum of yours lasts!”

Claire thought my moving out was the same as before, just another angry stunt.

I still remembered the time she made me take the blame for Ryan. We had fought so badly that I left home in a rage.

Claire searched for me for a long time before she found me. Then she held me and cried.

“Nate, I was just worried that if something happened to Ryan, no one would take care of his child. That’s why I asked you to take the blame. I was wrong for not considering your feelings, but I really couldn’t stand by and watch someone suffer. Please forgive me, okay?”

Seeing how sincerely she apologized, I forgave her.

So Claire believed this time was the same.

She thought that as long as she cried a little, I would return to her side.

But she had miscalculated.

This time, I had truly decided to leave.

I did not want her anymore.

After Claire left, I packed my bags.

I tore all 999 photo booth pictures we had once taken off the wall and burned them in one fire.

Then I went to the backyard and stood there in a daze, looking at the grapevine and the swing hanging from it.

Because I liked eating grapes, Claire had planted a grapevine for me in the yard. She had even built a swing so we could sit on it in the summer.

But now, everything had changed.

I brought over an axe and cut down both the grapevine and the swing.

Along with them, I cut off the six years I had spent loving Claire.

After that, I took the property deed and went to a real estate agency to sell the house.

I had paid for the house in full, and it was under my name, so selling it was not difficult.

The agent quickly handled the paperwork and listed the house online.

After leaving the agency, I stopped by Whitmore Group and went to HR to resign.

HR told me that my resignation needed Claire’s approval, so I should call her and let her know.

But after more than a dozen calls, she still did not pick up.

With no other choice, HR called her directly.

This time, she answered immediately.

“Ms. Whitmore, Mr. Reed is...”

“The company seal is in the drawer. Whatever he wants to do, just handle it. I’m busy. Don’t call me over something this minor.”

Before HR could react, Claire had already hung up.

Since Claire had approved it, HR had nothing else to say and processed my resignation.

The next second, I received a private message from Ryan, clearly meant to provoke me.

In the photo, Claire, who had always been terrified of heights, was riding a roller coaster with Ryan and Noah at an amusement park.

The caption read, [Smart people know when to back off.]

No wonder Claire had said she was busy. No wonder she had approved my resignation without even asking what was going on.

She had been busy spending the day with Ryan and his son.

I laughed coldly and replied, [Some people love picking up trash. I’m happy to let them have it.]

Once I finished handing over my work, I left Whitmore Group.

As soon as I walked out of the building, the real estate agent sent me a message.

[Mr. Reed, we’ve found a buyer. You can sign the contract tomorrow.]

[Great. Thank you.]

After that, I took a cab home.

During the ride, Ryan kept sending me updates of Claire’s outings with him and Noah.