Sarah kept her eyes lowered, the hand on her stomach clenched tightly. She gripped so hard that her fingers turned slightly white.

"After all these years, you still remember even this?" Lucy asked with feigned embarrassment. From the corner of her eye, she glanced at the downcast Sarah with a hint of triumph.

Perhaps realizing his reaction had been excessive, Nelson picked up his glass and said to his friends, "I'll drink with you all."

With that, he downed the drink from Lucy's glass in one go. The group immediately started teasing them. Though no names were mentioned, their suggestive glances bounced between Nelson and Lucy, their meaning crystal clear.

Sarah wasn't a fool, nor was she blind.

Finding it hard to breathe, she got up and went to the restroom.

Standing at the sink, she looked at her pale face in the mirror and couldn't help but laugh bitterly at herself. She really knew how to make herself suffer.

Lucy's reflection appeared in the mirror as she approached and stood beside Sarah. She unhurriedly turned on the faucet and smiled. "I've been gone for three years. I thought Nelson would have forgotten me, but he's still so attentive—he even noticed when I was on my period."

Sarah had no patience for her nonsense.

As she turned to leave, Lucy blocked her path. After looking Sarah up and down, Lucy sneered, "I thought you were my replacement, but now I see you're just a tool for his physical needs."

Sarah looked up at her, her expression cold. Suddenly she let out a short laugh, then her face darkened as she raised her hand and slapped Lucy hard across the face.

"Smack!"

Lucy was stunned. After a moment, her face contorted with rage as she lunged at Sarah. "How dare you hit me? I'll finish you!"

Though Sarah had been well-protected by her family, her father had enrolled her in martial arts classes from a young age—partly for fitness, partly for self-defense.

Almost effortlessly, she gained the upper hand, and Lucy received several more slaps to her face.

But Sarah didn't escape unscathed—Lucy had pulled out chunks of her hair, leaving her looking disheveled.

The commotion in the restroom grew too loud. Just as Sarah had Lucy pinned down and was raising her hand to strike again, someone stopped her.

Sarah turned her head to see Nelson standing there, his face cold.

Before she could speak, Nelson yanked her away and helped Lucy up from the floor.

Almost instantly, Lucy's tears fell as she collapsed into his arms, sobbing quietly.

"Nelson, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have appeared in front of you again. Then Miss Paterson wouldn't have attacked me just because you remembered my cycle. I should stay far away from you..."

Despite saying she should stay far away, her arms held him tighter than anyone's could.

Looking at Lucy crying uncontrollably in his arms, Nelson's face darkened terribly as he glared angrily at Sarah.

Before he could speak, his friends started accusing Sarah.

"Miss Paterson, no matter what, you shouldn't resort to violence. Lucy is our friend too. You're being completely unreasonable."

"Exactly. What happened between Lucy and Nelson is long over. You're being too petty holding onto it like this."

"..."

Listening to the chorus of hostile remarks, Nelson glared at Sarah and said coldly, "Sarah, apologize to Lucy."

Sarah laughed bitterly. He hadn't even asked what happened before believing Lucy's version and deciding it was her fault.

Taking a breath, Sarah gave a cold smile. "If you want me to apologize, keep dreaming."

As she tried to leave, Nelson blocked her path. His face dark, brows furrowed, he said, "Sarah, what's happened to you? I wanted to bring you to meet my friends, and this is how you act? First you make a scene about not drinking, now you're jealous of Lucy and attacking her. You're being so childish."

"I'm being childish?" Sarah laughed in disbelief. "Why don't you ask me why I hit Lucy? She was the one who first—"

"Ouch, my hand..." Lucy winced, tears welling in her eyes as she looked at Nelson. "Nelson, I think my hand is injured. It hurts so much."

Learning she was hurt, Nelson's expression turned anxious. Ignoring Sarah completely, he carried Lucy out, rushing to the hospital.

Watching them hurry away, Sarah felt a sharp pain in her chest. It took a long time for her to recover from the mixture of hurt and humiliation.

Pushing back her tears, she left the club and took out her phone to call a taxi.

Only then did she realize how far they were from the city center. None of the ride-sharing apps were finding drivers willing to take her request.

Nelson had already driven off with Lucy.

As for the others, when they passed Sarah, they all seemed to have agreed to ignore her completely.

Sarah thought about asking one of them for a ride, but no one acknowledged her.

She knew it was because of Lucy—they were getting back at Sarah for her.

Unable to get a taxi, she began walking home on foot. All around was silence except for the howling of the bitter wind.

Sarah had underestimated both her physical condition and the night's cold. After walking for who knows how long, she began to feel a dull pain in her lower abdomen. At first, she could just barely endure it, but gradually it became so intense she could hardly take another step.

She knew if she kept walking, something serious would happen.

Fighting through the pain, she clung to her last shred of hope and called Nelson.

Having spent years in this city focused solely on him, she had no other friends to turn to.

He was her only option.

The phone rang several times but kept getting disconnected.

Blood had begun to appear where she sat huddled on the ground. Sarah panicked and, hands trembling, dialed his number again.

Just as she was about to give up hope, the call connected.

"What is it?" Nelson's impatient voice came through.

"Nelson, help me. I'm pregnant, and I think I'm bleeding..." Her voice was hoarse as she tried to control her panic.

But before she could finish, the man's cold voice cut her off.

"Pregnant? Is this your way of apologizing?" His tone grew icier. "Sarah, that's a terrible excuse. Come up with something new next time."

Apologizing? An excuse?

Sarah's heart sank. He actually thought this was her way of apologizing?

"Nelson, I've finished washing. Can you blow-dry my hair?" Lucy's flirtatious voice came through the phone.

Sarah felt as if she'd been struck by lightning. All the words she wanted to say deflated like a punctured balloon.

"Beep, beep..." The call disconnected. Sarah clutched her phone tightly as pain and despair washed over her.

In the end, it was a passerby who took Sarah to the hospital.

At the hospital.

The doctor cautioned her to be careful with the pregnancy, explaining that the first trimester was the most critical time.

After thanking the doctor, Sarah lay in the hospital bed, reflecting on everything that had happened the previous night.

She had thought Nelson taking her shopping, buying her gifts, and introducing her to his friends meant he truly cared for her and wanted a future together.

But now it all seemed laughable. No matter how sincere he pretended to be, when Lucy appeared, he could abandon her without a second thought.

She shouldn't have had expectations, and she certainly shouldn't have pitied him or wanted to give birth to what would be his only child.

After resting in the hospital for a few hours, her father called.

"My precious daughter, what are you up to? Why haven't you responded to my messages? By the way, what's your ring size? Your mother and I saw a beautiful ring we want to buy for you."

Sarah checked her messages and indeed, her father had sent her many texts, mostly about the arranged marriage. The last one asked for her ring finger size.

After reading the messages, she felt a headache coming on. With the pregnancy and her feelings for Nelson now dead, she had no interest in thinking about an arranged marriage.

Sighing, Sarah replied reluctantly, "Dad, forget about the arranged marriage. If I ever agree to it, I'll call you right away. Stop trying to show me wedding rings. I—"

"Wedding rings? What wedding rings?" Nelson suddenly appeared.

Almost instinctively, Sarah said into the phone, "Dad, something's come up. I'll talk to you tonight."

With that, she hung up.

Nelson frowned at her. "Sarah, you didn't tell your father about us, trying to force me to marry you, did you?"

As he continued, his expression grew increasingly annoyed. "Haven't I told you that what happened between Lucy and me is in the past? Why are you always so suspicious and unreasonable? About going public, I've told you we'll do it when the time is right. You—"

"I didn't tell my father anything," Sarah interrupted, looking at him coldly. "The ring is a golden anniversary gift he's buying for my mom. He asked for my opinion."

Nelson was taken aback, then visibly relieved. Seeing Sarah's unhappy expression, he softened his tone. "I didn't mean anything by it. I just don't want our original plans disrupted. Don't overthink it. About last night, Lucy isn't holding a grudge, but you did hit her..."

"Are you finished?" Sarah cut him off, her patience exhausted. She didn't want to exchange another word with him and just wanted him gone.

All she needed to do now was schedule the procedure, pack her things, and go home.

Seeing her cold demeanor, which even revealed hints of disgust, Nelson furrowed his brow, assuming she was still upset with him.

Knowing he couldn't comfort her right away, he decided to wait until her mood improved.

But before he could leave the room, a nurse called from outside, "Family of Miss Sarah Paterson, please come collect the patient's pregnancy test results."

By the time Sarah tried to stop the nurse, it was too late.

Nelson froze, his body stiff for several seconds before he turned to look at her.

Before he could ask, the impatient nurse placed a series of report forms in his hands and left.

Seven weeks pregnant, with a fetal heartbeat.

Looking at the pregnancy report, Nelson finally raised his eyes to Sarah, his voice somewhat hoarse. "Last night, when you said you were pregnant and bleeding... that was true?"

Sarah remained silent, not answering.

Nelson felt his heart drop. After looking at her for a while, he finally asked, "Is the baby... okay?"

"It's fine."

Silence hung in the air for several moments. Nelson stared at the report in his hands, not knowing what to say.

Sarah watched him, trying to read his confused and complicated expression, wondering what his feelings were about this child.

The hospital room remained quiet for a long time. Nelson held the pregnancy report, his emotions in turmoil. Eventually, he looked at Sarah and asked, "This baby—what do you plan to do with it?"

Sarah looked at him and countered, "What do you think I should do?"

As she asked this, her hand unconsciously gripped the blanket tightly. Her bright dark eyes remained fixed on him, waiting for his answer.

Nelson's gaze lowered slightly. After hesitating for a few seconds, he said, "Since it's already here, let's keep it."

Sarah's tense body froze for a moment.

"Okay," she replied.

Perhaps because he had learned about Sarah's pregnancy, Nelson didn't bring up the club fight again. Though he had been in a hurry to leave earlier, he now stayed at the hospital with Sarah.

He even began discussing marriage plans with her, asking what kind of proposal she wanted and what style of ring she preferred.

Sarah listened calmly to his fantasies. If she hadn't seen his messages ordering gifts for Lucy, she might have wavered in her resolve for a few seconds.

Unfortunately, she had seen his affectionate messages to Lucy and the special apology gift he had prepared for her.

He only managed to stay with her at the hospital for two hours before growing restless. He excused himself to use the bathroom, but really went to call Lucy.

"Mmm... as long as you like it... I'll bring her later... she is my girlfriend after all..."

Sarah couldn't hear everything clearly from the bathroom, but she gathered enough to know he was talking to Lucy.

Half an hour later, Nelson returned, though Sarah had no idea what he and Lucy had discussed.

Nelson asked Sarah to attend his good friend George's wedding with him that evening.

Sarah didn't want to go, but Nelson had endless reasons why she should, and she agreed just to stop his pestering.

At the venue, Sarah discovered that Lucy was a bridesmaid. Since they had already had their confrontation, when they saw each other, Sarah showed no expression.

Lucy glanced at Nelson and just smiled understandingly.

After the bride and groom had completed the ceremony, just as things seemed to be wrapping up, the emcee suddenly invited the groom's friends to come on stage for the bouquet toss.

Naturally, Nelson was called up to the stage as well.

As the bride threw her bouquet, amid the cheers of the crowd, Sarah watched as Nelson easily jumped up, first among everyone, and caught the bouquet.

The emcee spoke up, "The bouquet has been caught by the groom's handsome friend. Tell me, sir, seeing how desperately you fought for these flowers, are you planning to give them to a special lady?"

All eyes turned to Nelson. Sarah sat among the guests, watching him calmly.

After just a few seconds of hesitation, Nelson looked toward Lucy and smiled softly. "Yes, I want to give these flowers to her. I wish her happiness, fulfillment, and joy."

With that, he handed the bouquet to Lucy, who pretended to be surprised, covering her mouth. "Nelson, you..."

During this exchange, her triumphant gaze met Sarah's from across the room, full of mockery.

The emcee, assuming the two were a couple, encouraged Nelson to get down on one knee and propose. Immediately, the guests and Nelson's friends began wildly cheering them on.

"Propose! Propose!"

The chants echoed throughout the room. Watching this scene, Sarah couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

Her presence now seemed completely unnecessary. Without her there, Nelson would probably be gazing lovingly at Lucy and asking, "Will you marry me?"

Seeming to remember that Sarah was watching from below, Nelson turned to look into the crowd, accidentally meeting Sarah's scornful eyes.

Nelson panicked for a moment, then awkwardly handed the flowers to Lucy.

Leaving the banquet hall, Nelson looked at Sarah's calm, detached expression and tried to explain, "About what just happened, don't overthink it. Everyone was just having fun, so..."

"I understand," Sarah replied simply, without saying more, and walked toward the car.

"Nelson, Miss Paterson, wait!" Lucy came running from a distance, still clutching the bouquet.

Reaching them, Lucy looked at Nelson and said, "Nelson, it's hard to get a taxi here. Could I ride with you two?"

Then she glanced at Sarah, asking timidly, "Would that be okay, Miss Paterson?"

Sarah was too disgusted to respond and simply got into the car without a word.

Of course, Lucy got in with Nelson's unilateral permission.

On the way back, Lucy seemed very happy, holding the bouquet and chatting endlessly with Nelson.

Sarah sat in the back seat with her eyes closed, silent, trying to block out everything and rest for a moment.

Suddenly, the car dramatically accelerated. She opened her eyes, about to ask what was happening, when she heard a loud crash.

The car flipped onto its side and tumbled into a field by the roadside, landing upside down with its wheels pointing toward the sky.