Luke was a poor student I sponsored back in high school. With his excellent grades, he stood out from the rest. I liked him, but he was so poor that he couldn't even afford a proper meal.

Once, some bullies picked on him just because someone gave him a love letter. They cornered him in the bathroom and purposely soaked his shoes with urine.

That day, the model student ended up in a fight. When he returned to class, his face was bruised and swollen. His bare feet were red from the freezing weather too.

My heart ached for him, so I immediately asked my driver to bring a pair of shoes and socks over.

That was the first time I spoke to him. My throat was tight as I handed him the items and said, "These are for you, Luke."

Luke looked up at me, his eyes more red than before.

…

When the phone's ringtone woke me up, I was still in a trance. Getting something and then losing it was a different kind of pain.

It was Luke's assistant who called. At first, I didn't want to answer, but the relentless calls kept coming.

Exhausted, I sat up and popped a painkiller. Just as I answered the phone, a worried voice came through, "Mr. Chester was stabbed! You need to come over now!"

My head went blank as I felt the room spin. Was Luke going to die?

There was no time to think further. I hurriedly threw on some clothes and rushed to the Chesters' private hospital.

When I arrived, I saw Luke stiffly standing outside the operating room. The sleeve of his suit was stained with blood, but he simply stared blankly ahead, seemingly nervous and worried.

I recalled the time I had surgery for appendicitis. Luke was so worried that he'd nearly broken down in tears. Fearing that I might be in pain, he had stayed up all night. He even slapped himself out of guilt and blamed himself for letting me eat unhealthily.

My steps gradually came to a halt. When Luke finally noticed me, he walked over. He raised his hand, but then, he stopped himself. With reddened eyes, he roared, "Wendy, why did you do this? You sent them, didn't you?"

I stared at him, completely stunned. There was not a single trace of warmth in his eyes—only pure hatred.

My chest felt so tight that I could barely breathe. I lowered my head to hide my emotions, trying not to bawl. "I don't know what you're talking about… It wasn't me."

"Cut the act!" Luke gritted his teeth and glared at me. His chest heaved in rage, and he even had his hands clenched into fists. "They all said it was you."

At that moment, it felt like something had been ripped straight from my heart. I had taken painkillers before coming, so why did it still hurt so much?

Luke's voice was hoarse as he said, "The blood bank's running low. You and Cassie are both Rh-negative. Since this was your doing, you should donate your blood to her!"

I stared at him, refusing to believe what I was hearing.

The Luke I once knew would gently cover my eyes when I had to get my blood drawn during my checkup.

My gaze might have been too intense because Luke avoided my eyes and turned to the doctor. Then, he shouted, "Take her away and draw her blood!"

Who knew one could also laugh when completely heartbroken? I tugged the corner of my lips and said, "Sign the divorce papers, and I'll go."

"Stop messing around, Wendy." Luke looked tired of me. "Malicious assault is a criminal offense. You could go to jail."

"Are you signing or not?" I coldly asked.

Luke turned as pale as a sheet. Then—like someone who had lost a negotiation—he gave in. "How much do you want this time?"

The heartache made it hard to breathe. Nevertheless, I coldly chuckled. "Ten million." It was enough for me to die in peace.

Luke sarcastically jeered, "Your blood must be made of gold."

My liver was covered in tumors—how could my blood not be priceless?

I ended up donating around 17 ounces of blood. My head spun so badly I couldn't even stand.

Luke coldly stared at me. "Cut the act. Is this another trick for more money?" He flung a bank card at me, which hit my chest lightly before falling to the ground.

My eyes welled up. Even at my worst, I had never humiliated him like this. I glared daggers at him as tears slid down my cheeks.

There was a flicker of regret in his expression. Hurriedly, he snapped, "I'll deal with you after I get home!"

I looked down at the card on the floor and realized how stupid I had been to come all the way here. Luke didn't deserve my concern at all.

I wiped my tears, stepped over the card, and walked away.

After that, his assistant picked the card up and handed it back to him.

Behind me, I heard him say, "You're only doing all this to get my attention. Since you donated Cassie your blood, I'll come home for our anniversary."

Just as I stepped out of the hospital, the dizziness hit me again. Fortunately, Someone caught me before I could fall. I was about to thank the person when I heard a familiar voice say, "Wendy, what are you doing here?"

I smiled weakly. "Matt."

Then, the fever hit me hard. My body seemed to be on fire, and my vision became blurry.

…

Everything felt hazy. When I could finally see clearly, I reached up to touch my head. However, it was only to grab a fistful of fallen hair.

I stared at it in my palm as tears streamed down my face. Was I going to die? The fear of dying spread uncontrollably within my heart, as if it were going to devour me.

When Matt walked in, my face was a mess of tears, and the bed was covered with my fallen hair. He sighed and said, "Wendy, don't be stubborn. Stay in the hospital."

I held out the clumps of hair to him. "Matt, take me to a salon."

"Okay." Matt's eyes seemed to be filled with tears too.

There were many cheap salons outside the hospital, and they sold plenty of wigs too.

I picked a trendy blonde one and bought a cute hat. Then, I looked in the mirror and asked, "How do I look?"

Matt nodded in approval. "You're the prettiest."

I happily spun around.

Just then, a voice said, "Wendy?"

I turned and saw Cassidy, and instantly, my face fell.

She said, "You dyed your hair blonde? That just makes your skin look worse! You witch! No wonder Lukey dumped you.

"Who's this? Your boy toy? Oh my, he's a doctor too. Are you dressing like a patient to fake your illness again and steal Lukey away from me?"

For the past few years that I had been sick, Matt had always done his best to look after me. I would never let anyone insult him like that.

I stepped in front of him and yelled, "Watch your mouth!"

Unexpectedly, Cassidy staggered back and fell to the ground. Instantly, the color drained from her face. She weakly clutched her chest, seemingly shivering in pain.

Just then, Luke rushed out of a nearby store and hurried to help her up. "Did you tear your wound?"

With her lips pressed into a pitiful pout, Cassidy shook her head.

Luke's eyes darkened as anger filled his face. "Wendy Yaeger, why the hell did you push her? Don't you know how serious her injuries already are?"

Unable to stay silent any longer, Matt stepped in and said, "Wendy didn't push her. She fell on her own!"

"Don't blame Wendy. I shouldn't have asked her about what was going on between her and the doctor. It was me and my big mouth," Cassidy pitifully said.

Luke's expression turned even more sour as he glared daggers at me. Suddenly, he sneered and said, "You're such a bitch, Wendy. Just a few days without me, and you're already out seducing other men?

"I hate people tainting what's mine. Stay away from him, or we're done for good."

His harsh words left my ears numb and ringing.

"Yeah, let's divorce," I said.

Luke choked up slightly. He coldly scrutinized me from head to toe before letting out a chuckle. "Wendy, have you gotten addicted to faking your illness? Was he the one helping you forge your records?

"Quit messing around. I don't have time for your performances. You're not convincing at all. Who would check into the hospital with dyed hair and a pink cat-ear hat?"

He seemed convinced that I was just putting on an act to make Cassidy jealous. His smug smile was full of certainty as he warned, saying, "Don't use something as low as a divorce to get my attention. You're in no position to negotiate with me."

Matt's face flushed. He was about to speak up when I quickly intervened, saying, "Exactly. I'm faking it!"

Luke nodded in satisfaction. Then, he walked off with his arm wrapped around Cassidy. "Enough with the drama and go home. I'll get you a gift for our anniversary."

Baffled, Matt looked at me. "That was Luke? I'm not seeing things, right? Why did he treat you like that?"

Back in university, our relationship had been loud and proud. Naturally, everyone in our faculty knew of our story.

I shook my head and simply said, "Matt, I'm tired. I want to nap."

Before leaving, Matt gently ruffled my hair. "Alright."

…

When I got into the bed, I pulled the blanket over my head and cried my heart out.

I had to admit that Cassidy's words had genuinely hurt my heart.

She said I looked like a witch—she wasn't wrong. After all, people with late-stage liver cancer did get dull, yellowish skin.

I was totally shattered. I just wanted to grab her hair and give her a huge slap.

After I cried myself to sleep, I soon woke up again to go to the toilet. When I got out of bed, my legs were still quite weak. I touched my forehead—the temperature had gone up again.

Dazed and groggy, I wandered out toward the bathroom. As I turned a corner, I bumped into someone and collapsed onto the floor.

I had lost ten pounds after just a week of being hospitalized, and the fall had knocked the wind out of me. Even my wig shifted out of place.

As I adjusted it, I heard a trembling voice in front of me, saying, "Wendy…"

I looked up, and my eyes instantly reddened. "Sasha."

Sasha coldly stared at me. She wanted to ignore me, but she couldn't bring herself to walk away either. In the end, she said, "I didn't expect our reunion to be like this—with you looking like a mess."

I gave her a gentle smile. I didn't blame her—after all, I had said some pretty harsh words before I'd left the country.

"How have you been, Sasha?" I asked.

"Pretty good," she replied. Then, she jeered, "I thought you would live the life after ditching us poor peasants. Turns out… Hah!"

As I observed Sasha's expression, my tears instantly welled up. Aggrieved, I pouted and said, "Sasha, I haven't been doing well at all over these years. I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…" I couldn't stop sobbing as I mumbled my apologies.

Startled, Sasha rushed to my side and helped me up. As she wiped away my tears, her own eyes turned red too. "Don't cry, Wendy. Slowly tell me everything."