Chapter 2

My tears finally broke free, falling torrentially, crashing into the snow and punching holes in it.

So the difference between love and indifference was this obvious.

Zachary personally designed a wedding dress for Melanie and brought her to the shop to try it on during the first snowfall.

He lied to me, saying he was working overtime at the company, when in reality he was proposing to Melanie behind my back.

Even the wedding dress pictures he sent me were just random ones the staff had given him to placate me.

If he'd looked carefully even once, he would have known these three design sketches included patterns and small details I didn't like.

But he chose to brush me off.

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, the moment I received his message, I would have been moved to tears.

Inside the shop, Zachary knelt down, holding Melanie's foot with one hand while gently rubbing her reddened heel with the other.

She sighed. "Zachary, when are you planning to break up with Lydia?"

"If she finds out we're together, we won't be able to stay friends anymore, will we?"

Zachary paused for a moment.

"Soon. Next time we meet, I'll bring up the breakup."

"The main thing is my parents really like her. I'll use her as a shield for a while longer. After all, her family did my family a favor back then."

I couldn't listen anymore. I ran away through the accumulated snow, stumbling and disheveled.

Like a walking corpse, I wandered aimlessly down the street.

But my gaze was drawn to a small coffee shop.

The shop's name was "Melanie & Zachary's Love."

My heart felt like something had struck it hard.

I pushed the door open and went inside. A staff member recommended the shop's signature drink.

"This is a coffee flavor our owner and her fiancé created together. Everyone really loves it."

"Their five-year love story is as romantic as a novel! We even have a display wall in the shop!"

I followed the staff member's pointing finger. The white wall was covered with intimate photos of Zachary and Melanie.

Standing before the photo wall, reading those captions, the blood drained from my face bit by bit.

March 5th—I collapsed at my desk from menstrual cramps.

A coworker rushed me to the hospital. Zachary ordered me plain porridge for delivery.

That same day, claiming he was on a business trip, he took Melanie to a wild concert.

April 17th—our anniversary. I bought a train ticket to visit him.

He said, "Baby, this project is too important. I can't get away. For the sake of our future home together, let's skip the anniversary this time, okay?"

So I canceled my ticket.

In reality, he'd taken Melanie for a beautiful photoshoot that day.

April 29th—I found out I was pregnant.

Panicked, excited, and anxious all at once.

I desperately wanted to see him.

"Zachary, we're going to have a baby. Can you come see me?"

His expression grew somber. "Lydia, we can have a baby later. The timing isn't right now."

"Let's work hard to save more money first, then welcome a baby, okay?"

Seeing his exhausted face, I nodded.

The day of the procedure, I lay trembling in the hospital.

I couldn't reach him no matter how many times I called.

Later he told me he'd been in an emergency meeting.

Now, through the photos, I learned the truth—Melanie's hand had been scratched by a stray cat, leaving barely visible red marks.

In the photo, Zachary carefully applied medicine to her wound.

He said, "I won't let Melanie get hurt ever again."

Melanie's barely noticeable injury had his heart aching.

But he left me alone on the operating table after my miscarriage.

I felt like I'd never really known this version of Zachary.

The one who, in New York, told me on his phone that I'd always been part of his future plans.

The one who, at every moment I needed him most, lied to me and stayed contentedly by Melanie's side.

Seeing my eyes brimming with tears, the staff member mistakenly thought I'd been moved by her boss's love story.

"Our owner came from Los Angeles to open this shop in New York just so she could see the person she loves every day."

"We just opened in January. Mr. Bolton comes to help in the shop every day, afraid Miss Melanie will get tired. He makes sure she eats on time—so gentle and considerate!"