After failing the SAT, my parents had kicked me out and sent me overseas to work, forcing me to earn money to support my younger sister's college education.

I had worked abroad for ten years, sending almost everything I earned back home. When the first song I wrote was released, it gained a bit of attention. Around that time, my childhood friend, Ian Swain, flew in from overseas just to find me.

"Lexi, I didn't know your family sent you here to suffer like this. From now on, you won't have to face it alone."

He had registered our marriage with me abroad and stayed by my side while we worked. I had been deeply moved—I shared every song I wrote with him and even let him manage my accounts.

That was, until I overheard a conversation between Ian and my family.

"Ian, isn't it a bit wrong for you to keep giving me the songs she wrote? What if Lexi finds out?"

"Relax. Back then, when your family handed me her college admission letter, she didn't suspect a thing. Compared to that, this is nothing."

Love Built on Lies

"Ian, are we really doing the right thing?"

Ian sat across from Evie, his expression unusually gentle as he gazed at her with full attention.

We had grown up together. I had liked that quiet, gentle side of him ever since elementary school—but when it came to me, he had always been cold and distant.

That was why, seven years ago, when he came to find me, I had been so overwhelmed that I could hear my own heartbeat pounding in my ears.

"Evie, you're always so kind. Why don't you think about how your sister treated you when you were little?"

My parents sat nearby, nodding again and again in agreement. "Evie, someone as soft-hearted as you would never survive out there on your own. You're our precious baby. How could we bear to see you suffer?"

Evie pouted, looking slightly dissatisfied. "I just feel bad for Lexi. She could've gone to college too, but now she's working three part-time jobs a week just to support me. She's a girl too. I heard she waits tables in the morning, fries food in the afternoon, and works the night shift at a convenience store. She's practically a machine."

Ian waved his hand dismissively. "What's so bad about that? Your sister's always been calculating. She stole your things growing up and bullied you whenever she felt like it. So what if we took her admission letter and her songs? We're only giving her a taste of her own medicine. Besides, I'm already by her side now. Shouldn't that be enough for her?"

I braced myself against the table, barely able to stand. I had drunk too much earlier, and my head was splitting apart. For a moment, I couldn't even tell whether what I was hearing was real.

Part of me refused to believe they could treat me like this, but the other part kept replaying those words over and over, rooting me to the spot.

I couldn't walk away. I had to hear what they would say next.

"Alright then… Ian, thank you. Everything I have today is because of you. With you by her side, Lexi must be very happy. Sometimes I even envy her."

Ian nodded proudly. "Don't worry. With me backing you, just focus on becoming a big star back home."

"Ian, that outfit doesn't look cheap. It's probably some luxury foreign brand, right? It must cost at least ten thousand. Lexi really spends a lot on you."

Ian glanced down at himself, completely unconcerned. "She should. I'm here with her, aren't I? I haven't gone back home in forever, and I'm playing the part of her husband for free. If anything, I'm the one getting the short end of the deal."

"Wow… Lexi really treats you well."

Yes, I did. For the sake of the clothes Ian wore, all I had for myself were a few plain white shirts—and my work uniforms.

The three of us had grown up together. I had never called Ian as sweetly as Evie did—not because I couldn't, but because I liked him too much to dare.

Evie, on the other hand, had always done whatever she pleased. Acting cute and playing spoiled had always been her best weapon, and it never failed. Our parents adored her for it.

They had always disliked me.

A few days ago, my parents brought Evie all the way from home to visit me. I was so happy.

I thought that maybe now that I could earn money, they would finally see me differently. During dinner, when my parents placed a piece of meatball onto my plate, I had been happy about it for half the day—completely oblivious to the fact that Evie's had already been piled high.

I worked three part-time jobs every week, all for one tiny hope that maybe my family would look at me a little differently.

A Family That Was Never Mine

My parents sat off to the side, watching the two of them with warm, indulgent smiles. Standing in the doorway, I felt like an intruder—someone peeking in on a happiness that had never belonged to me.

"Ian, at the end of the day, this was our fault. Back then, we thought letting you use Lexi's admission letter to enroll wouldn't cause any problems. Who could've known…" My parents exchanged a glance, their faces full of regret. "We really didn't think it through."

My admission letter?

But back then, they had sworn over and over that, after all my hard work, not even a vocational school in our town would accept me. They had called me useless. Said I had wasted their money for nothing.

My hands trembled as a memory slammed into me. The day the admission letter came, the Swains had brought gifts and sat chatting with my parents. When I asked about Ian, he had even smiled and told me his parents had always liked me—said they wanted me as their daughter-in-law.

So that was the truth. It had never been real.

Ian waved it off casually, telling my parents not to worry. "Forget it, Mr. and Mrs. Collins. No one expected things to turn out like that. Back then, we all thought you could just enroll with the admission letter. Who knew they'd actually investigate? But it worked out anyway. Honestly, I thought the letter alone would be enough. And now, with the royalties from the songs Lexi writes, I'm making a pretty good profit."

During that time, it wasn't unheard of for someone to use another person's admission letter to enroll. But I had never imagined my own parents would hand mine over to Ian.

I fumbled for my phone, disbelief clawing at my chest, only to realize I couldn't even log into my account anymore.

Between shifts, I would sometimes write songs. And every time I finished one, the first person I sent it to was the one I trusted most—Ian.

He would praise me, tell me it was good, and encourage me to keep writing. I had always thought he was running some kind of e-commerce business back home, which was why he didn't need to work.

I shoved the door open and stormed inside, staring straight at the people in the room with burning eyes.

They all turned toward me, wary. Ian shot to his feet immediately, his tone sharp. "Lexi, what are you doing here in the middle of the night? Go back and sleep. You've got work early tomorrow."

Evie looked flustered and quickly hid behind our parents.

After all these years, she was still the same. The moment something went wrong, she would pin it on me. All she had to do was act a little pitiful, and our parents would believe her without question—then turn around and scold me for upsetting her.

All of them were watching me carefully, trying to judge from my expression whether I had heard what they had just said.

"Lexi, why are you just standing there?" my mother snapped. "You stink of alcohol. Don't you know Evie can't stand that smell?"

Evie immediately gagged on cue. My parents immediately fussed over her, patting her back and soothing her.

"Lexi, why are you still here? It reeks."

Ian moved quickly, trying to push me out the door, but I grabbed the frame, letting out a hollow laugh. "She can't stand the smell of alcohol… What about me? Don't you know I'm allergic to it?"

The redness already spreading up my neck was proof enough. Anyone with eyes could see it. But earlier, they had just left me lying on the ground, not even bothering to help me up.

Evie stepped out from behind our parents, her brows slightly knitted, her voice soft and gentle as she tried to 'comfort' me.

"Lexi, don't be upset. Mom and Dad have always known I can't handle the smell of alcohol, but you've never said anything about being allergic. How were we supposed to know?"

It was like they had all found an excuse. One after another, they joined in.

"Exactly. We're not mind readers. How would we know when you got something like that? If you're sick, go buy some medicine."

I couldn't believe those words had come out of Ian's mouth.

This was Arcalis. It was the middle of the night. I didn't dare go out alone.

There had been a night before when I was almost assaulted on my way home. If not for a stranger stepping in to help, I wouldn't have made it back safely. When Ian found out, he swore he would never let me go out at night again.

"Lexi, I really didn't know. I'll go buy medicine for you now." Evie said it sweetly, but she hadn't even taken a single step before Ian frowned and stopped her. Then he turned to her with a gentle expression.

"You're a young girl. What are you doing going out this late? This isn't home. There are fugitives out there. Lexi, what are you trying to pull? Are you seriously asking your sister to go out and buy medicine for you? You just can't stand seeing Evie doing well, can you?"

Seven Years of Lies

"Me? When did I ever ask her to go out and buy medicine for me? Which part of what I said made it about her? Why don't you just say she offered on her own?"

After living under the same roof for seven years, I finally saw clearly where Ian's heart had always belonged.

"Enough!"

Ian's shout cracked through the room, sharp and furious. I had never seen him lose control like that before, and for a second, I froze.

"I know you're petty, but Evie is your sister. You shouldn't treat her like this. Go back to your room."

He shoved me out the door. My head was already spinning, and I lost my balance, crashing hard to the floor. The pain that shot through me cleared my mind a little—but the four of them just stood there and watched coldly. Not one of them moved to help me up.

"Lexi, you can barely stand. Ian's just being kind. He wants you to get more rest."

Watching the four of them stand together against me like I was some outsider, my face burned with humiliation. My life felt like a complete failure.

And so, I turned and went back to my room.

When I woke up the next day, my head felt even hotter. I struggled to sit up and grabbed a thermometer.

102.2°F.

I didn't even know when the fever had started. If it kept going, I really might burn my brain out.

I let out a bitter laugh just as Ian suddenly pushed the door open and walked in. When he saw the thermometer, his brows knit slightly, as if he were concerned.

"You've got a fever this high, and you didn't take any medicine? What was all that fuss last night about, then? I've already sent your parents and Evie off. There's cold medicine at home. Just take some yourself."

Then he turned and left without another word.

I went to the cabinet and searched for the medicine. After digging around for a while, I finally found a tiny packet of cold medicine. Just as I was about to take it, I noticed it had already expired.

Maybe it was the fever, but my vision blurred as tears welled up in my eyes. I couldn't hold back anymore. I crouched down and started crying.

I didn't know how long had passed before I finally stopped. When I stood up, my head swam, and I braced myself as I prepared to go out and buy medicine.

That was when I heard Ian, who had just come back, talking to Evie on the phone.

"You've got a fever too? You need to take care of yourself. You still have to sing when you get back, right? You can't ruin your voice."

"Ian, you're the only one who really cares about me. Mom and Dad just tell me to take more medicine."

Ian chuckled softly, clearly pleased by her words.

"Ian… about my situation… When are you going to tell Lexi?"

"Don't worry. All her money is with me. When I get back, I'll transfer it to you. There's no need to tell Lexi. Honestly, you're too naive. Why would you trust a classmate enough to take out an online loan for him? Now you're 380 thousand in debt, and you still don't want to report it?"

'Three hundred eighty thousand?'

I had worked nonstop every week, never even daring to go to the hospital when I was sick. After seven years, I had only managed to save 400 thousand. And now she said it so casually—as if just like that, most of it was gone.

And back then, Ian had clearly told me this money was for our future together.

"When we save up a million, we'll go back home, buy a house, and find stable jobs. We'll live a quiet, peaceful life."

He had held my calloused hands back then, looking at me with such tenderness.

Heat surged in my chest, as if mirroring the anger boiling inside me.

"Oh, Ian… they promised they'd pay me back. I just didn't want them to end up with a criminal record. I had no choice but to come to you. You mustn't tell Mom and Dad—they'd definitely call the police and get my classmate arrested. He's still just a kid."

Ian sighed helplessly and started reminding Evie not to be so soft-hearted again, warning her that she'd only get cheated again next time.

At that, I wondered, 'So they're using my money to pay off her debts?'