Early the next morning, Vincent still hadn't come back.

He hadn't texted me once.

I casually shoved my phone into my bag, called a cab, and headed to my dad's place. I was planning to take back the things Madison had given me before.

Maybe my dad had already heard something because the moment I got out of the car, I saw him standing there.

When he saw me alone with a suitcase in hand, his brows furrowed, his face full of anger.

He was looking around, trying to see if Vincent had come with me.

But why would Vincent come with me when he didn't even like this place?

Vincent looked down on men like my dad, but really, he was no different himself.

"You still haven't apologized to Vincent?"

"I won't apologize, and I'm not marrying him."

The moment I said that, my dad kicked me.

With a loud crash, I hit the ground, my arm slamming hard against the curb.

Just like he used to beat my mom, he started kicking me over and over again, drawing a crowd of onlookers.

Then, he grabbed the suitcase next to him and slammed it down on me.

"You're a woman, so act like one! No matter what, you should know how to obey your man! Vincent even liking you is pure dumb luck. You're just like your dead mother, always walking around with that pathetic face of yours!

"You have no value. Anyway, you're getting married soon, so go back and apologize to Vincent. Make things right. If not, don't bother calling yourself my daughter anymore!"

A gust of wind blew by, and I mentally traveled back in time.

My dad finally stopped hitting me. But he still stood at the door, blocking me from going inside.

"I threw all your stuff away a long time ago! Go back. Don't come back here until you're married!"

What he threw out wasn't just a few things. It was everything good that had ever belonged to me.

My tears hit the ground one by one.

All I wanted was to take back the only things that were truly mine.

I crouched on the ground, burying my face in my blood-streaked hands.

A black luxury car pulled up in front of the house.

Vincent stepped out and walked over to me.

He reached out and yanked my arm hard, pulling me to my feet.

"It hurts, doesn't it? You should've realized this a long time ago. Besides being with me, you can go nowhere. Even your own dad doesn't want you. You have no choice but to come back with me. Take care of Emily like you should, and our wedding will still go on."

He shoved me into the car and slammed the door shut.

The car was filled with traces of Emily everywhere.

I looked back toward the house. The front door had long been shut.

I once believed Vincent was my destined one, the person who would help me forget the hurt from my family.

But I forgot that if someone pulled me out of the abyss, I would only find myself staring into another one.

He was never my salvation.

I should take back my love for him.

If I left him, I'd live a better, brand-new life.

While I sat in silence, Vincent's phone kept chiming nonstop.

"Vince, where did you go? Didn't you say you'd be back soon? They're asking me when we'll get married. Hurry back and explain to them! I don't know what to say."

Vincent cleared his throat awkwardly and quickly turned off his phone, as if to cover it up.

He looked as though he wanted to say something as he hesitated for a moment before finally opening his mouth.

"Charlene, there's a company annual party today. You should come."

In the past few years, Vincent would never invite me to events like this.

He barely even let me set foot in his company.

If he got busy, I had to go through his assistant just to reach him.

So, it was rare for him to ask me to attend the company's annual party with him.

"Alright," I slowly responded after a while as I ran my fingers through my hair.

My clothes were still stained and couldn't be cleaned, but I followed Vincent anyway to meet his colleagues.

Vincent walked in silence ahead of me the whole way.

We didn't exchange another word.

It was clear he didn't want anyone to know our relationship.

The moment Emily saw me, her face turned pale with anger.

I walked over and saw Vincent holding her gently in his arms, comforting her in a low voice, "I don't like her. I just want her to see how pathetic she is. After today, she'll understand her place. She'll only be worse off without me."

Even as I felt those blatant, judgmental stares falling on me, my heart stayed strangely calm.

Maybe I'd been neglected and mocked so many times that I just didn't care anymore.

I asked the hotel staff for a glass of hot water before sitting down and sipping on it.

Just then, a flight reminder came through. It was the ticket Madison bought me.

It said my boarding time was 1:00 pm tomorrow. The system reminded me to arrive at the airport early.

I hadn't even finished reading the message when Vincent's voice sounded behind me.

I hadn't even noticed when he walked over.

"That's a boarding reminder. Where are you going?"