“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.

[Claire took Noah and me on the Ferris wheel. Everyone said we looked like a family of three!]

[Claire even bought out the amusement park and had our names put up. You never got that kind of treatment, did you?]

I ignored him.

That night, Claire did not come home.

I did not care. I slept beautifully.

The next day, after signing the contract with the buyer, I took my luggage and headed for the bus station.

On the way, I happened to run into Claire and Ryan, who had just finished handling Noah’s school enrollment and were coming out of the kindergarten.

Ryan was holding Noah in his arms. Claire had her arm looped happily through Ryan’s, looking exactly like a family of three. Even passersby could not help sighing.

“What a happy family.”

“The parents look so loving and well-matched. That little boy is lucky.”

Claire smiled without saying a word, clearly enjoying it.

When she saw me, she froze. Then she immediately let go of Ryan’s arm, a trace of guilt flashing across her face.

“Nathan, what are you doing here? It’s work hours. This counts as skipping work. According to company policy, your pay has to be docked.”

I almost laughed.

I had resigned a full day ago, and Claire still did not know?

“Claire, I’ve already resigned.”

Claire did not believe me. Her brows drew together.

“Resigned? What now? Yesterday, you were making a scene about breaking up, and today, you’re making a scene about resigning?

“Nathan, enough is enough. Keep going, and this will cross the line.”

Ryan’s eyes darted around before he put on his fake sincerity again.

“Claire, don’t be angry. Nathan must know he was wrong. He probably followed us here to ask for forgiveness.”

Claire’s mood visibly improved. The corners of her eyes lifted slightly.

“If you want me to forgive you, fine. But you have to apologize to Ryan. Also, Ryan doesn’t sleep well, so you need to give him and Noah the master bedroom. You can sleep in the study. Besides that, from now on, you’ll be responsible for cooking all three meals a day for Ryan and Noah as your apology. Not one condition can be missing.”

I found it funny.

Did she think I was their live-in servant?

I had originally planned to tell her about selling the house later, but since we had run into each other, I might as well say it now.

“Claire, I can’t agree to any of that, because I’ve already sold the house.”

Claire’s pupils shrank.

“You sold the house? How could you not tell me about something this important?”

I said coldly, “It’s my house. I can sell it whenever I want. I don’t need your permission.”

Ryan immediately fanned the flames.

“Nathan, I didn’t expect you to sell the house just to force Noah and me out. Since you hate us so much, I’ll go with Claire to get divorced right now. We’ll move out soon, so we won’t be an eyesore anymore.”

Claire looked worried.

“But didn’t you just give up your apartment and use the refunded rent to pay Noah’s tuition? If you move out, where will you stay?”

Ryan wiped at tears that did not exist.

“What choice do I have if Nathan can’t stand us? Worst case, Noah and I can sleep under a bridge. It’ll be a little cold, but at least we won’t have to live under someone else’s glare.”

Noah spat at me.

“You big bully! You’re mean to Dad! Mom, teach him a lesson!”

Claire lost her temper, too, her voice turning cold.

“Nathan, there has to be a limit to how unreasonable you can be. If you keep acting like this, you can forget about ever getting married to me in this lifetime!”

Faced with Claire’s one hundred and first threat, I laughed out loud right there.

“Claire, did you forget? We already broke up. We will never get married.”