At a class reunion, I ended up getting together with my high school crush.

However, one evening, as I was scrolling through a social media platform, I was suddenly bombarded with mentions tagging me in a shocking post. The content left me seeing stars.

"My girlfriend has a car, a house, a great degree, and she's stunning. Yet, somehow, she's into me! Haha!"

"To be honest, she's too exceptional, and it's kind of killing my sense of masculinity. Once I manage to get my hands on her assets, I'll have her give me two kids and then live life on my own terms. She won’t be able to control me then."

"You guys can stay jealous. Not like you know her anyway, so what can you even do to me?"

Opening Nicolas Cleave's profile, I only found a few scattered complaints, but it was enough for me to guess his identity.

"She got her nails done again today. My mom said women like this are impossible to live with. Who knows if those things might affect having kids."

"So, what if she earns a bit of money? Even her boss at the company looks at her weirdly. Who knows what kind of nonsense she’s been doing behind my back."

Scrolling through these posts, I couldn’t help but laugh out of anger.

This was probably a burner account Nicolas had created just to insult me. We had been dating for a year, and the account's earliest post was from ten months ago. I had to give him credit for keeping up the pretense for so long while holding so much resentment toward me.

After comforting the people tagging me for this, I closed the app.

Just then, Nicolas messaged me.

"Baby, New Year's coming up. Do you want to spend it at my place? My parents are looking forward to meeting you."

I casually replied, "No, I’m busy."

Nicolas, completely unaware that I had seen through him, continued putting on his act.

"Aw, what’s keeping you busy, baby? I already told my mom I’d bring you home. What am I supposed to do now?"

I didn’t reply.

Soon, he sent another message: just a question mark.

I tapped my fingers on the back of my phone, thinking it over.

Not long ago, Nicolas had borrowed one hundred thousand dollars from me, claiming he needed startup capital for his business. Because of our relationship, I hadn’t asked for an IOU, but the transfer record and the note saying "loan" were perfectly clear.

Breaking up with him outright would be letting him off too easy. I needed to get my money back, and I wasn’t going to let him have it easy either.

"Fine, I’ll go."

The next morning, I woke up and rubbed my throbbing temples.

Last night, I suddenly dreamt about high school. Back then, Nicolas was actually pretty normal.

His grades weren’t great, but he had a cheerful personality, and he was good at basketball.

Otherwise, why would I have liked him in the first place?

To say I didn’t care at all would be a lie. Even though I didn’t feel much for Nicolas anymore, seeing someone I once liked turn from a cherished memory into something so vile was still a little nauseating.

My phone chimed. I picked it up and saw another message from Nicolas.

"Baby, remember to book our flights. Also, withdraw some cash to prepare two gifts. In my family, when a girlfriend visits for the first time, it’s customary to bring a little something for the parents."

Ha, where in the world did such a tradition exist?

I was honestly impressed. I sent him a single question mark.

Moments later, Nicolas called.

His voice sounded a bit cold, though he was clearly trying to suppress his irritation.

"Baby, what’s wrong? Do you not want to meet my parents?"

"Of course I do," I replied. "But what do you mean by that?"

"It’s just a gesture. You’re going to be my wife one day. Don’t you want to make a good first impression on my parents?"

"Oh, no, I understand."

Feigning innocence, I said, "I just wanted to ask—do you think a gift worth ten thousand dollars will be enough?"

Nicolas immediately softened his tone.

“Ah, a ten-thousand-dollar gift is fine, but let’s make it seventeen thousand—sounds better that way.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. I was certain he not only believed me but would keep pushing for more.

"By the way, baby, I lent some of my money to a friend for their business. I don’t have much left right now, so you’ll need to book the flights first."

"Huh?"

He sounded annoyed.

"Why would you lend money to someone without talking to me first? We’re going to get married eventually. Something this big should be discussed with me, don’t you think?"

"Nicolas, it’s my money. We’re not married yet, and you think you can control what I do with it?"

He paused for a moment, probably realizing my tone had turned sour.

"Baby, are you upset? I’m just thinking about our future here. We’re going to need money for a house, a car, and day-to-day expenses. You know I’m working on my business right now. Besides, who’s this friend? A lot of people borrow money these days and never pay it back. I just don’t want you to get scammed."

Hah. The most shameless scammer I had ever met was him, Nicolas Cleave, and yet he dared to warn me about others.

I ran my nails across the table, thinking about that ridiculous post of his. A mischievous idea struck me, and I casually made something up.

"I lent it to my boss, Aaron Ford. Don’t worry about it."

As expected, the moment Nicolas heard Aaron’s name, he completely lost it and started ranting.

"Aaron Ford? That big-shot CEO needed to borrow money from you? I saw him at that charity gala not long ago looking like he was on top of the world. And now he’s asking you for ten or twenty grand? That sounds fishy."

There was unmistakable jealousy and sarcasm laced in his words.

"I remember you two went to the same university, didn’t you? You must’ve known him back then."

Well, that part was true—we did know each other, but we were never close.

Of course, with Nicolas, I just wanted to rile him up.

"Yeah, we know each other. We get along pretty well. Why else would he ask me for money? Alright, enough already. You’re so annoying. I didn’t even touch your money."

With that, I hung up the phone and couldn’t hold back my laughter any longer.

How did I never realize before just how stupid Nicolas really was?

Back then, when Nicolas occasionally asked for gifts, he still managed to act somewhat reserved. Because of my high school memories of him—and since those things didn’t cost much—I rarely refused his requests.

Lately, though, he had gotten more and more out of hand.

Even without those eager netizens tagging me with screenshots of Nicolas’ posts, it was only a matter of time before I kicked him to the curb once my patience ran dry.

My phone chimed again. I glanced at it and realized Nicolas had posted something new using his burner account.

"Stupid man, cheap woman. I’m so pissed I could explode."

A bunch of laughing comments followed, mocking him and sarcastically asking if everything in his life was falling apart.

Commendably, everyone honored the unspoken agreement and withheld the fact that I knew about his hidden account.

Nicolas must have been fuming because he kept ranting in the replies.

"Just wait until I get my hands on some money. I’ll teach her a lesson."

"Women need to be put in their place. All of you too."

"Ha, what’s so great about that Ford guy? Without his family’s money, you think he’d still look so high and mighty?"

I locked my phone and let out a cold laugh.

What a dreamer.

Tomorrow was the 29th. Once I was done dealing with him, I could head home for New Year’s Eve dinner right on schedule.

I booked a return flight for the evening of the 30th. At that moment, another message popped up.

I thought it was Nicolas again, but when I opened it, I realized it wasn’t. It was from my boss, Aaron.

"Are you free these days?"

Having just used him as an excuse, I felt a tiny pang of guilt, so I responded more eagerly than usual.

"I’ll be away for the next couple of days, but I’m free starting New Year’s Day. If there’s anything you need, just let me know!"

As I typed, I sighed.

Alas, capitalists.

All they ever did was to exploit workers.

Aaron had been such a sweet and obedient junior back in college.

Money clearly changed people.

Still, when I thought about my handsome salary, working a little over the holidays didn’t seem so bad.

Honestly, even if Aaron asked me to cook him a New Year’s Eve dinner, I’d have to show up with enthusiasm!

But unexpectedly, the "capitalist" decided to show a bit of kindness.

"I don’t need you for work. Where are you going?"

I replied honestly, "Heading home with my boyfriend for a visit."

I hadn’t dealt with Nicolas, so I didn’t want to reveal anything just yet. If word spread at work, it wouldn’t look good for me. Besides, I had a few good friends in the office, and if they found out, they’d probably be furious. I didn’t want their holidays ruined by him.

"..."

Aaron sent a bunch of dots.

I thought that was the end of the conversation, but he sent another message.

"You two... aren’t married yet, right?"

The fact that my boss was prying into my personal life caught me off guard. Still, considering our history, I could technically call myself his senior from our university days. Maybe this wasn’t too inappropriate.

"That’s right."

Even though my thoughts were running wild, I still kept my reply straightforward.

"Then isn’t it a bit inappropriate to spend the holidays at his family’s house?"

Aaron’s concern seemed to go beyond what a boss typically asked a subordinate or even what a junior would ask a senior. I couldn’t quite figure out what he meant.

After thinking it over for a while, I came to a conclusion:

He was probably considering promoting me after the New Year and wanted to evaluate me in advance!

Overjoyed, I thought I should put on my best behavior. I couldn’t let my boss think I was someone who didn’t know where to draw the line.

"Don’t worry, boss. I’m just taking care of some business and will be back before the New Year."

Aaron sent a sticker—a muscular rabbit wearing sunglasses, nodding coolly.

I nearly burst out laughing. For some reason, that rabbit reminded me of Aaron himself.

At the airport, I met up with Nicolas. Not wanting to engage in conversation, I pretended to be drowsy the entire time.

Once on the plane, I went straight to sleep, completely ignoring Nicolas when he subtly hinted about whether I’d prepared the gift. I didn’t budge an inch.

He didn’t say anything else, pretending to stay calm on the surface, though I could only imagine the things he was muttering about me in his head.

Nicolas’ hometown was a moderately wealthy third-tier city, but because it wasn’t close to the city we lived in—and since both of us had been busy with work throughout our year-long relationship—this was my first visit.

As soon as we got off the plane, I booked a hotel while Nicolas wasn’t paying attention.

Today’s visit to his house was bound to be a battlefield, but thankfully, I was well-rested and ready for it.

Still, I had a slight headache. I’d never met Nicolas’ parents before and didn’t know whether they were aware of their son’s intentions. Since they were elders, and it was the holidays, I didn’t want to embarrass them unnecessarily.

The moment I stepped through the door, I saw a middle-aged woman sitting on the couch, watching TV and munching on crackers.

She was slightly overweight with a head of tight curls—she had to be Nicolas’ mother.

When she saw us come in, she just gave us a glance before turning back to the TV.

This was definitely not the look of someone who had been excited to meet me.

Nicolas’ expression darkened as he took off his coat and asked, “Why isn’t dinner ready?”

His mother brushed off a few cracker crumbs and motioned toward the kitchen.

“There’s a little left. If it’s not enough for the two of you, make more yourselves.”

I was someone who had been well taken care of by my parents growing up. Even after a few years of navigating the corporate world, I’d never encountered in-laws as bizarre as this.

At that moment, a little boy burst out of one of the bedrooms, holding a toy in his hand.

“Vroom vroom—Ultraman’s here to fight monsters! Take this!”

He hurled the toy straight at me.

Fortunately, I had quick reflexes and dodged it in time.

“Nicolas!”

I put on my best pale, delicate, and heartbroken expression. “What’s the meaning of this? Maybe I should just leave.”

“Don’t! Just sit down,” Nicolas said anxiously, his expression tense as he shot his mother a pointed look. “Mom, can you come here for a second?”