I was born naturally dazed, living every day as if I were tipsy.

So when Adrian Blake forced his way into my life, I thought he was only playing with me.

Every time I failed to run away and he caught me again, I gave him a thumbs-up.

"Your hide-and-seek skills are improving fast. I only hid for half an hour and you already found me."

And just like that, I muddled through three years of a game where I ran and he chased.

Until today. I found out I was pregnant after nausea and vomiting, and I took the report home, wanting to tell Adrian Blake, whom doctors had diagnosed as infertile.

But then he got into a car accident and lost his memory. His childhood sweetheart cried as she blamed me. "If he had not rushed back to celebrate your birthday, none of this would have happened."

"He has forgotten you completely. I am begging you. Stop clinging to him, okay?"

I slowly walked away for a while, my lower belly aching faintly.

I had the feeling I had forgotten something.

Forget it. I would think of it when I remembered.

I stood under the streetlight for a while and scratched my head.

Then I remembered.

I turned around, went back, and pushed the door open.

I poked my head inside and held out my wrist, revealing the silver-gray tracker on it.

"I left in too much of a hurry and forgot this. Can you help me take it off?"

Vanessa Hale raised an eyebrow and hesitated. "What is that?"

I explained calmly, "A tracker. It is paired with the one on Adrian Blake's wrist.

"If you want me to stop showing up in front of him, help me unlock this bracelet first."

He was the one who had insisted I wear this tracker. I had thought it was harmless. It was not as if I had ever planned to run somewhere he could not find me.

But things were different now. He had forgotten me.

Mr. and Mrs. Blake's expressions changed slightly. They exchanged a look.

Vanessa clenched her fingertips, then looked at the assistant. "Did you know about this?"

Adrian's assistant looked troubled and stammered.

"Mr. Blake ordered that this bracelet could never be taken off for the rest of her life, so no one ever considered a removal plan. If it is removed by force, it will break."

Mr. Blake slammed his hand onto the table, his voice sinking. "This is absurd. A grown man doing something like this? If word gets out, what will people think?"

He turned to the assistant. "Call someone to remove it. Now."

A specialist arrived quickly and simply cut it open with pliers.

Vanessa took the two bracelets and tossed them into the trash. "There. You can go."

I had just reached the door when a hoarse murmur came from behind me.

"No... Do not go..."

My steps paused, and I looked back.

On the hospital bed, Adrian's eyes were closed, his brows tightly furrowed.

Vanessa stepped forward and grabbed his hand. "Adrian, I am here. Do not be afraid."

As she spoke, she turned and shot me a look.

"Leave. Now."

Mr. and Mrs. Blake stood on either side of me and escorted me out of the room.

Once we were outside, Mr. Blake handed me a check.

"The Blake family will not shortchange you on what you are owed. But Adrian and you do not belong in the same world. His wife can only be Vanessa.

"We will choose a child from an adoption agency and have Adrian and Vanessa raise him together.

"Every trace of your existence will be erased. From now on, this has nothing to do with you."

Only when I reached the airport did the sadness come slowly, belatedly, rushing up inside me.

Adrian used to always say I was silly.

Actually, I was not silly. I was just a beat slower than other people.

But now he was the truly silly one. His brain had been damaged in the crash.

I crouched in front of the boarding gate and dry-heaved for a long time.

When I straightened and wiped the corner of my mouth, I finally remembered.

Oh no. I forgot to tell them I was pregnant.

The doctor had misdiagnosed him. Adrian could have children after all. They did not need to adopt an heir.

I pulled out my phone and tried to call them, but no matter what I did, the call would not go through.

It seemed they really wanted nothing to do with me anymore.

Still, they had given me so much money. I could raise the child alone.

I soon settled down in a new city.

My belly grew day by day. When it was time to give birth, I called an ambulance by myself.

I raised my child well, but he looked too much like Adrian.

His eyes, his nose bridge, even the curve of his lips when he pressed them together. It was like they had been cut from the same mold.

His personality was similar too.

When he fell, he did not cry. He climbed up by himself and patted his knees, looking solemn and precocious, exactly like that father of his.

Soon it was open day at his preschool.

Other children had their fathers and mothers sitting beside them. Only the seat next to me was empty.

A little kid ran over and asked him, "Owen, why did your dad not come?"

I opened my mouth, but my mind went blank for a beat. Slow and clumsy, I did not know how to answer.

He lifted his face and said very seriously, "It is enough that Mom came. I can take care of Mom by myself. I do not need a dad."

Several parents nearby laughed when they heard him. "This child is so sensible."

One parent looked at him a few more times, then suddenly made a sound of surprise.

"Why does this kid look more and more familiar?"

He tilted his head and studied Owen for a while before slapping his thigh.

"I remember now. He is practically a smaller version of my boss.

"But our boss and his wife are very loving. He did not want his wife to suffer through pregnancy, so they even adopted their child."

I froze where I stood, my mind slowly processing the meaning of those words.

Several parents exchanged glances, their eyes circling over me.

A little boy suddenly laughed and pointed at Owen. "Then aren't you a bastard?

"Your mom is dirty. She is the other woman that rich boss keeps outside. No wonder your dad did not come. You are an illegitimate child."

An adult beside him tugged him back, but there was a meaningful smile at the corner of his mouth.

Owen's small shoulders trembled. He clenched his fists and lunged forward. "Do not talk about my mom!"

By the time I came back to my senses, he was already sitting on top of the other boy.

The child's father rushed over and lifted Owen up. The little boy seized the chance to scratch him, leaving a long bloody mark across Owen's cheek.

The man glanced at me. Seeing that I was raising a child alone, he decided I was easy to bully.

He held Owen up and sneered. "Since this child has no father to discipline him, I will do it for his dad."

Then he raised his hand and slapped Owen's backside.

Owen's eyes reddened, but he bit his lip hard and refused to let his tears fall.

My head buzzed. I rushed forward like a madwoman, snatched my child back, held him in my arms, and turned to leave.

But in the middle of the night, Owen developed a fever.

His little face burned red, and even the breath coming from him was hot.

I carried him on my back and ran all the way to the emergency room. The hallway was packed with people.

After registering, I held my burning child and curled up on a chair. Helplessness rose over me in waves.

At that moment, a faint murmur came from my arms.

"Daddy... Daddy..."

I held him in silence for a moment, tightened my arms around him, and pressed my cheek against his hair.

"Your dad does not remember us. He went to be someone else's dad."

The intercom called our number just then. I quickly stood up with Owen in my arms and hurried toward the exam room. Just as I reached the door, a woman suddenly squeezed in from the side and rushed ahead of me.

"My child scraped his hand. Let us go first."

The moment our eyes met, both of us froze.

It was Vanessa Hale.

Her eyes fell on the child in my arms.

She frowned, her tone turning uncertain. "Why does this child look so much like..."

"Impossible. The doctor said Adrian cannot have children at all."

I looked sincere and was about to say, "That was a misdiagnosis."

Then steady footsteps came from behind her.

Adrian Blake stepped to Vanessa's side. "What is wrong?"

The moment I looked up, I met Adrian's dark, deep eyes.

For some reason, the back of my neck went cold.

A vicious flicker passed through Vanessa's eyes.

Before I could speak, she softened her voice and turned toward him. "Adrian, you forgot, but she is the one who used to bully me all the time.

"She even threatened me just now. She said she would not let me live peacefully."

She shrank into Adrian's arms, her fingers tugging lightly at the hem of his jacket. "I am scared. Teach her a lesson for me. Have her sent out of the country, okay?"

Adrian let go of Vanessa and lowered his eyes to look at her. His tone gave nothing away. "She bullied you?"

Then he released Vanessa's hand and walked toward me, step by step.

I backed away.

His gaze burned, and his voice carried a faint hoarseness.

"What is your name?"

My heart jumped under his stare. "Lily Parker."

It felt so familiar. Every time he came to catch me, he had that same fanatical look in his eyes.

After a while, he lifted his chin toward the nurse. "Let her see the doctor first. The child has a high fever."

Behind him, Vanessa nearly ground her teeth to pieces, glaring at me with hatred.

Fortunately, Owen was fine. After the IV drip, we could go home.

As I walked, I thought about everything that had happened today. I had to move to another city. I could not stay here anymore.

I was still wondering where I should go when an arm suddenly reached from behind and covered my mouth and nose.

I lost consciousness in an instant.

When I opened my eyes again, I was in a pitch-black little room.

Adrian's clear, cold voice scraped past my ear.

"Lily Parker, be good and become my woman.

"I can give you everything you want. You are not allowed to run."

I moved my hands and feet. In the faint clinking of metal, I looked down at the cuffs and shackles locked around me.

Familiar behavior, familiar lines, familiar Adrian.

People say you cannot step into the same river twice.

But Adrian could.

For a moment, I was in a daze. I almost thought I had gone back in time.

"Why did it take you so long to find me this time?"

I did not know which part of that sentence had struck him.

His pupils shrank violently. He raised a hand and pressed hard against his temple.

His whole body swayed. The next second, he collapsed straight toward me.

At that moment, the door was violently pushed open.

Vanessa stood at the very front. Behind her were Mr. and Mrs. Blake.

Vanessa's gaze passed over everything and landed on my shackled wrists and ankles. Her whole body swayed.

Mrs. Blake clutched the doorframe and almost fainted. "Lily Parker, why is it you again? How did the two of you end up together again?"