I hesitated for a moment, but I still picked up the call.

Before I could say anything, I heard Lucy’s cheerful voice on the other end. “Graham, I’ve got a contract here. Look it over for me and send it back as soon as you can. I need it urgently.”

Before I even replied, the document landed in my inbox.

I glanced at it and immediately recognized it as a project Zack had been handling. I couldn’t help but laugh. Lucy did this all the time. Whatever Zack couldn’t finish, she dumped on me. If it turned out well, the credit went to Zack. If it didn’t, then it was my incapacity.

I had resisted before. Whenever that happened, she’d comfort me afterward, calling it “training,” as if she were doing me a favor. This time, though, I didn’t swallow it just to avoid making her angry like I used to.

“I’m sorry,” I said calmly. “I can’t do it.”

Maybe she was too used to me taking everything silently. Hence, when I actually refused, she froze for a second and then grew impatient.

“It’s just reviewing a contract. It won’t take that long. What exactly can’t you do?”

Then, I heard Zack’s soft, obedient voice in the background. “It’s fine, Lucy. I’ll do it. You gave Graham time off anyway.”

That only irritated her more. “I’ve given him such a long break. What’s wrong with asking him to handle one small task? No wonder he keeps getting worse. Honestly, if it weren’t him, I would’ve fired them long ago.”

Clearly, she still didn’t know that I had resigned.

Back then, if there were even the slightest issue with Zack’s work, she’d know immediately, even while traveling for business.

“You handle it, Zack. Thank you. I’ll let accounting know later to give you a raise.”

Then, she deliberately raised her voice, speaking directly to me with a slow, lecturing tone, “Graham, what’s happened to you? You’re getting less and less ambitious. If you stay this selfish, not only will no colleagues want to work with you, but even if you leave, you won’t get anywhere.”

Normally, once I sensed her comparing me to Zack, I would cave in and take the work. However, this time, I hung up.

The plane lifted off steadily. Below me stretched a vast, open new world.

As soon as I got off the plane, I spotted my friend, Hugh Nicholson, waiting in the arrivals hall. The moment he saw me, he rushed over, grabbed my luggage, and started fussing over me.

A little embarrassed, I laughed. “We’re friends. You don’t have to treat me like a guest.”

He grinned. “It’s because we’re good friends that I want to take proper care of you.”

I didn’t answer. Instead, my mind drifted back to years ago, when Lucy told me to quit my high-paying job and start a business with her. All she sent was an address, so I dragged my luggage through winding streets, sweating under the sun.

When I finally reached the shabby apartment she’d rented, she opened the door in her pajamas and was in the middle of playing an online game. She didn’t say anything, but from her expression, I could tell she wasn’t thrilled I’d arrived at the wrong time.

After her match finally ended, I joked, asking why she didn’t come pick me up. Wasn’t she worried I’d get lost or something could happen?

She snorted. “If you get lost, can’t you ask someone for directions? You’re a grown man. What’s going to happen to you? Besides, we’re basically an old married couple. You can get here on your own. Why would I pick you up?”

Looking back now, being good friends was just an excuse. The truth was simple—she never valued me.

That afternoon, Hugh took me to the apartment he’d rented for me ahead of time. After I settled in, he gathered a few other friends and treated me to a fancy dinner at a hotel.

Later, when I got back, slightly tipsy, I checked my phone and saw a new post from Zack’s Instagram feed. It was a close-up selfie of him and Lucy, their faces pressed together. They were standing by the ocean, his arm wrapped around her waist. They looked like a perfect couple.

The caption read, “On the road, with my love.”

The comments were full of congratulations, people envying that true love finally won. I snorted and was about to scroll past. However, my finger slipped, and I accidentally liked it.

I was just about to remove it when the post suddenly disappeared. Immediately afterward, Lucy called me, to which I declined. She then sent a string of messages.

[Zack’s just young and playful. Young people like posting pictures. I’ve talked to him about it. But you shouldn’t be such a stalker. It makes everyone uncomfortable. Oh, by the way, I saw something nice while we were traveling. I plan to give it to you as a gift. Guess what it is?]

She added a playful emoji, then a picture of a beautifully wrapped gift box. I knew exactly what she was doing. She was hoping I wouldn’t brood over the photo.

I let out a dry laugh, ignored her, and closed the chat.

Two minutes later, a video from Zack came in. In the clip, shattered pieces covered the floor. He looked pitiful as he apologized to Lucy, saying he accidentally broke the gift she was planning to give someone.

The gift box beside them made it obvious that it was the one she said she’d bought for me.

“It’s okay. Gifts don’t matter. If it’s broken, I’ll just buy another. Are you hurt?”

She rushed to him anxiously, checking him all over for injuries. When I got hurt, she had never reacted like that.

Then, I received a message from him.

[Graham, you should be smart about this and step aside. Lucy loves me. These days, we’ve basically turned fake into real.]

I smiled and replied, [Screenshot taken.]

As soon as the message was sent, the system notified me that he had deleted the messages. So, their relationship wasn’t as solid as he claimed.

I ignored his frantic backtracking, washed up a bit, and was just about to rest when two sharp taps came from my door.

I glanced toward the monitor by the door, curious who was knocking, and realized it was a girl who had joined us for dinner earlier tonight. She wore a floral maxi skirt with a white blouse, looking young, fresh, and full of energy.

Hugh had introduced her during the meal. Her name was Rylee Snow—a recent graduate with no real work experience yet, but apparently sharp and quick to learn. For now, she would be working as my temporary assistant, but why was she here?

I opened the door and asked her that question.

“You drank quite a bit tonight, and you barely ate anything.” Rylee scratched her head shyly. “I live close by, and I just made something. I thought I’d bring you some too.”

She opened the insulated Tupperware, and the smell drifted out instantly.

“Try it. Don’t worry. I noticed earlier that you don’t handle spicy food well, so I didn’t add too much spice.”

Her words made me pause for a moment.

I had lived with Lucy for years, and I’d told her countless times that I couldn’t eat spicy food. Yet, every meal she ordered had some sort of spice in it. Whenever I asked for something mild, she’d complain. Every time I brought it up, she’d say she forgot. Something that a stranger could pick up on after one meal, she hadn’t managed to remember in more than ten years.

I didn’t turn down Rylee’s kindness. I accepted the food and thanked her. After she left, I tried a small bite and was caught off guard by how perfectly it matched my taste.

At first, I thought she was simply meticulous in her daily life, but I soon realized she was far more capable than I expected. When we first started working together, I intentionally slowed my speech for her, giving her time to process. However, she picked things up fast. Half the time, I wasn’t even done explaining before she already had the answer. The problems that used to take an hour to explain to Lucy, Rylee grasped them in minutes, and she could even expand on them.

A bit stunned, I couldn’t help asking, “You understood all that?”

She looked genuinely puzzled. “Why wouldn’t I? You explained it really clearly. I’ve actually spent tens of thousands on online courses, trying to understand this stuff. Honestly, those instructors weren’t half as good as you.”

Her tone was plain; there wasn’t a hint of flattery in it.

For a moment, I felt something indescribable. Back then, whenever Lucy had questions, I tried every way possible to explain things to her. However, more often than not, she grew impatient, accusing me of making things too complicated. Eventually, she gave up trying to communicate with me and always went to Zack instead.

I used to doubt myself, but thinking about it now, maybe it didn’t matter who explained it. She just wanted to see Zack; she didn’t want to deal with me.

As time went on, Rylee and I grew more familiar with each other. She was incredibly attentive. Sometimes, she’d prepare the things I needed before I even realized I was running out. It had been a long time since I was being taken care of like that, and slowly, I started to feel like I belonged in this city.

Working with her was even more effortless. Eventually, our project launched smoothly, and I landed my first major partnership since joining the company.

That night, Hugh booked a celebration dinner for the two of us. While he went to park the car, I headed up first. However, the moment I stepped through the revolving door, I heard a very familiar voice.

“Oh? Isn’t that Graham?”

Instinctively, I turned my head, and there, at the front desk, stood Lucy, fingers intertwined with Zack as they leaned intimately against each other.

When she saw me, Lucy instinctively pulled her hand back. Beside her, Zack’s expression flickered with annoyance, but it passed quickly, and he recovered his usual calm, smiling as he stepped forward.

“No wonder I heard from HR the other day that you were looking for Lucy. You could’ve just given her a call. Why come all the way here in person?”

Hearing that, Lucy frowned, as if she suddenly realized something.

“Were you following me?” she asked.

“What do you mean? Don’t you trust me?” I countered, finding it funny, but didn’t bother explaining much. “I wasn’t following you. My friends and I are here for dinner.”

She clearly didn’t believe me.

“Cut the cr*p. Do you think I don’t know whether you have friends? If you were following me, just admit it. Why lie?”

I couldn’t help but smirk.

She knew me better than anyone. She knew I had left my hometown and had almost no friends, yet she had chosen to leave me alone in that city to cool off. I remembered last year, she lied about going home for the holidays, when in fact, she went to accompany Zack. Her excuse back then was that he was upset and alone, and she was worried he might do something drastic. Now, with me, she had another set of justifications.

“Lucy, since Graham is here, why don’t you two talk first? Oh, and hand me the keycard to the room.” Zack smiled at her and held out his hand.

Lucy naturally pulled a card from her pocket and handed it to him. “Wait for me upstairs.”

“Got it.”

Before leaving, Zack shot me a smug glance. The meaning was obvious—they had booked a room together.

Lucy seemed to realize that only a moment later, her eyes flickering in panic.

“The front desk said there’s only one room left,” she said. “Don’t overthink it. It’s a suite. He’ll sleep on the sofa.”

However, if she looked in the mirror, she’d notice the hickey on her neck. Even a fool could see that whatever she and Zack were doing wasn’t entirely innocent.

I didn’t bother exposing her. We were about to divorce anyway. I pulled out my phone and brought up the divorce papers I had prepared in advance. I had originally planned to handle it after my new job started, but since we ran into each other here, it was the perfect moment.

“What’s this?” Lucy asked, puzzled, as she reached for it.

Just then, Zack’s scream echoed from upstairs.

“Zack? What’s wrong?” Lucy sounded panicked, but without looking, she hastily signed the papers and prepared to leave.

“Don’t you want to see what you’re signing for?” I asked.

She replied nonchalantly, “Besides taking my money, what else would you do?”

She took a couple of steps, then paused as if she suddenly remembered something. “Oh, wait. Wait for me here. I’ll give you your gift later.”

Before I could respond, she hurried off in her heels.

I chuckled bitterly. I knew I wouldn’t get it.

Her rushed figure reminded me of years ago. That year, I had fallen seriously ill and didn’t have money for surgery. Lucy had told me not to worry, promising she could help. That night, I woke to find her exhausted, making call after call to borrow money on my behalf. From that moment on, I silently promised myself that I would never let her down.

Later, our company grew, and money was never a problem again. However, she and I could never go back to the way things were.

As Lucy’s figure disappeared around the corner, I silently sent the signed divorce papers to my lawyer. In one month, after the divorce cooling-off period ended, Lucy and I would have nothing to do with each other ever again.