My legs hurt whenever it rained, so Steven offered to send me to work. I didn't refuse.

He drove over with a new car, and when he saw my puzzlement, he explained, "Jenny was afraid of breaking her new car because she just got her driver's license, so I gave her mine to drive."

I averted my gaze and nodded, not saying anything in reply.

Now, I knew why Jenny had tagged me in that photo she posted—she wanted to boast that Steven had gifted her his favorite car.

In the past, I had accidentally scuffed some coating off of his car when I just got my driver's license too, and he couldn't help but complain about it, "Typical of a female driver, honestly. From now on, don't drive. You don't want people to complain about you for being a terrible driver, right?"

From then on, I didn't so much as get the chance to touch the steering wheel.

Later on, when Jenny started learning how to drive, he was willing to take the time to train her, and even dragged me into it, too.

Once, he didn't have the time to keep her company, so he told me to do it instead because he'd be worried otherwise.

When I refused, he told me that I was petty and jealous for no reason, and that he only treated Jenny like a little sister from the same hometown.

When he wasn't around, Jenny brought a bunch of her friends to show off her driving skills, ignoring my attempts at stopping her, and then promptly got into an accident.

Steven quickly got out of work and rushed Jenny to the hospital, not even realizing that I'd broken my leg in the accident.

Jenny wept and sobbed, breaking Steven's heart. He blamed me for not properly keeping an eye on her while she practiced, and said that I was the reason she got in an accident.

To make her feel better, Steven put aside his work at the company and brought her travelling, but tricked me and said that he was going on a business trip.

I was left at the hospital all alone, without any clue in the world, and it would have remained that way had I not seen the pictures Jenny shared on social media.

Back in the present, Steven stared at my calm expression, waiting for a chance to speak. I knew from past experience that he was waiting for me to flare up in anger so that he could tell me that I was overreacting.

In the past, that would be what would have happened, but now?

Why would I get mad over something like this when I didn't care about him anymore?

I sat in the passenger's seat and found a pink hair clip there. Steven quickly picked it up, his expression unnatural. "You know how Jenny is, always losing her things. She probably left it here by accident, so…"

I fastened my seatbelt, not giving him any reaction. "I don't mind. It's cute. Suits her."

Steven stared at me as if I was an alien. "You don't… Mind…?"

That was when I started to get impatient. "What's there to mind? Just drive, I'm going to be late."

But Steven took the wrong route—he had forgotten that my office had moved.

He hadn't driven me to work in quite a while, come to think of it.

Steven looked sheepish. "I haven't driven you in a while because I was too busy, so I forgot that your company wasn't here anymore."

I was indifferent. "It's alright."

After that, I told him the new address, and we didn't speak another word.

Just as we were about to arrive, Steven's phone rang. It was a call from Jenny, with the custom ringtone he set just for her.

In the corner of my eye, I saw that Steven's phone wallpaper had been changed to a pink one too, and scoffed. Well, I shouldn't be surprised that he changed my photo, too.

All these changes had been happening right in front of me, but I had deliberately ignored them, convincing myself that everything was still salvageable.

Steven suddenly slammed on the brakes, making my seatbelt dig painfully into my body. I turned to look at him, seeing that he was already turning the car in another direction. "Are you hurt? Don't worry, I'll be right there!"

But my company was just one traffic light away.

Steven probably only remembered I was there after he hung up, and he braked his car again, stopping by the road. "Jenny got into an accident, so I need to go and help her! Can you walk to the company yourself?"

I touched my leg, the one that Jenny had broken, and it was still aching because of the rain outside. Then I placed my hand on my stomach.

For a second, I foolishly dared to have the slightest bit of hope for Steven. "It's still raining outside, and my company is just around the corner."

Steven, clearly, didn't have any patience left to spare. "Melanie, why are you still being so petty and jealous now? Didn't I tell you that Jenny got into an accident? This is a matter of life and death, so put aside your useless grievances with her!"

After that, he got out of the car and went to the door of the passenger's seat, opening it and dragging me out. Then, he drove off, lightning-fast.

He didn't even have the time to look back and see that I'd collapsed on the ground, not standing up for a very long time.

Once Steven got home, he saw me watching television on the sofa. I didn't leave any food for him on the table, and he noticed.

"Why didn't you leave me any food, and why haven't you cleaned up the baby's room? Didn't I message you that Jenny's family was coming over to visit?"

My gaze didn't so much as flicker away from the screen. "I forgot."

Steven came up and wrapped an arm around my shoulder, shaking a pack of food in front of me almost proudly. "You haven't eaten either, huh? Well, Jenny told me to bring you something to eat!

"You're always so mean to Jenny, but she's always been nice to you in return! You embarrassed her in front of her relatives, but she still remembered to bring you food. You'd better apologize to her later when she and her family arrive, and be a good hostess!"

I glanced at the words 'Jemma's Kitchen' printed on the packaging, and moved my body away from Steven.

"It's fine. I've already eaten."

Besides, I didn't eat leftovers.

Just an hour ago, Jenny flaunted how she was eating dinner with Steven on social media. "Woah, I almost died in that accident! Steven and I are having dinner to recover from the shock!"

The location? Jemma's Kitchen, of course.

Steven didn't seem to hear what I said and started to lay out the food in front of me.

You're sulking because I left you by the road today, right? Well, I didn't have a choice!

"Come on, I know you haven't eaten. Let me feed you! After we eat, we can clean up the nursery together, since Jenny's brother will be staying there.

I refused to eat, and in the process, I accidentally knocked over the soup.

The hot liquid splashed onto his suit, and he immediately slammed the bowl onto the table, the soup spilling onto the couch and the carpet. Furious, he swept all the food into the trash.

"Throwing a tantrum, huh? Fine! Don't eat then!"

I stood up silently, not betraying any emotion. "We spent so much time setting up the baby's room together. Are you sure you want to do this?"

Still angry, Steven stormed into the nursery. He grabbed the rocking chair we had bought and smashed it to the ground, before throwing the toys into the rubbish bin. Then, he fixed me with a glare so furious it could kill. "Well, what's the point of keeping it? It's not like you can have a baby anyway!"

I wasn't born like this, though.

I still remember the boy who bravely jumped into the water and saved me after I had been bullied and forced to soak in the freezing river for three hours.

I still remember how, when he proposed, he told me that he didn't care about my injuries. That I was the only baby he needed in his life.

When I wanted a baby, he was willing to set up a baby room with me.

Now, I watched as he smashed everything in the nursery to pieces, not doing anything to stop him.

Then, I turned and walked into the guest room.

When Jenny's family arrived, I'd already packed my bags and was ready to return to my hometown.

"Honey! Honey!"

Out of nowhere, her dim-witted brother, Jeremy, excitedly rushed up and hugged me.

"Wow, my brother really likes Melanie!" Jenny giggled, covering her mouth.

My friends, who I'd worked hard together with in the past, also came together with Jenny, but they joined in the laughter too, teasing, "We’ve always heard Jenny say her brother likes beautiful women, and she wasn’t lying! He walked in and went straight for the prettiest one here!"

As it turns out, my so-called old friends had already grown close enough to Jenny to joke around like this.

Jeremy was incredibly strong, and I couldn’t break free.

Seeing as no one was going to help me any time soon, I stomped on his foot hard, and he finally let go with a pained cry.

"You're a bad person, Honey! Bad! Bad!"

Jenny’s mother immediately rushed over to protect her son, looking at me with disapproval as if I really were her daughter-in-law.

A chill ran through me. I grabbed my suitcase and prepared to leave.

Just then, Steven arrived and blocked the doorway. Jenny beamed and ran up to him. "Thank you, for going back to get my bag, Steven! Gosh, I'm so forgetful, always leaving things behind and making you go out of your way…"

Steven handed her the purse with a doting smile. "Keep better track of your stuff, you little scatterbrain."

Then, he looked at me and snatched away my luggage without even asking, before lowering his voice. "This isn't the time or the place for this, Melanie. We have guests! Do you think you're being appropriate?"

I was dragged inside without a choice, and Jeremy was still in there, crying.

Jenny consoled him while glancing at me apologetically. "Sorry, Melanie, my brother has the intelligence of a five-year-old. He hugged you because he likes you! He didn’t mean any harm, so why did you have to step on his foot?"

"Apologize!"

Steven ordered me to apologize without any hesitation.

When my friends saw me staying silent with clenched teeth, they tried to smooth things over.

"Oh, come on, Melanie. He’s just a kid—he doesn’t even know what 'wife' means. Don’t be so serious. Just say sorry and make him feel better!"

"Yeah, you can’t just let him keep crying."

"He's Jenny's family, and they're here as guests! How could you treat your guests like this? You're still as stubborn as ever, aren't you? Haha, Steven's the only one who can stand you!"

"..."

Steven's grip on my wrist became even stronger, his voice growing harsher. "Melanie, apologize."

My eyes were red, but I still didn't say a word.

Jenny, still holding onto Jeremy, suddenly gave me a once-over and giggled. "Jeremy, don’t cry. Let’s play house with your honey bun, okay? You'll be the husband, and she’ll be the wife!"

Steven nudged me toward Jeremy. "Jenny is giving you a way out. Just go make him happy."

Jeremy grabbed my hands excitedly and spun me in circles. "Honey! Honey! Let's sleep together!"

Then he pulled me toward a room.

Steven started to follow, but Jenny stopped him. "Steven, my brother is just a kid. He really likes Melanie, so can’t you just let them play for a bit? He’s never liked anyone this much before!"

As she spoke, she turned on the waterworks.

That was enough for Steven to stop and watch as I was dragged into the room by Jeremy, ignoring my pleading gaze.

Jeremy pushed me onto the bed, pinning me down, his hands fumbling with my clothes. "Make babies! Make babies with my honey!"

He stripped off his clothes, his pale, flabby body pressing down on me. I felt so disgusted that I wanted to throw up, yet no matter how much I hit him, it didn't seem to faze him at all.

On top of everything, my injured leg was in so much pain that I couldn't move it.

Outside, loud music blasted—a tradition when our group of friends gathered.

I screamed and shouted, but no one heard my cries.

As he smeared sticky saliva over my face, all I could do was struggle to grab a lamp from the bedside desk, smashing it over his head.

Then, I made a run for it, stumbling towards the window.

Jeremy was like a monster, relentlessly chasing me after he recovered.

I threw myself over the windowsill, and as I hit the ground, I clearly felt warm blood gushing out between my legs, as if a life was slipping away.

A scream pierced the air. "Someone fell! Call an ambulance, quick!"

Before I lost consciousness, I saw a figure rushing toward me.