Chapter 1

Eight years ago, I fought Joey Kirk for a long time to protect Sylvia Lane. Even though she couldn't speak, I married her against my family's wishes.

Eight years later, when our house caught fire, I risked my life to save Sylvia. Yet she pushed me into the flames to protect a puppet that looked just like Joey.

"Sylvia, just pretend you can't talk. Please, do it for me. Shane will definitely fall for you."

"Okay."

A recording Sylvia had kept in a folder labeled "True Love" shattered everything I knew. My so-called love at first sight had been part of a plan from the very beginning.

I looked at Sylvia. Even now, she refused to speak and still tried to cover for Joey.

My heart ached so badly I could hardly stand it.

On the day I decided to leave Sylvia, I received a strange phone call.

"Shane, please. Don't leave me. You're all I have."

Chapter 1

It was the seventh day of my hospital stay, and my wife, Sylvia Lane, still hadn't come to see me.

I stared blankly at the finely made doll in my hands. Seeing that familiar face, I felt my heart sink.

No one knew that face better than I did. After all, I had fought Joey Kirk for a long time before I finally got Sylvia to stay with me.

Before I could put the doll down, Sylvia rushed into the hospital room. She looked at me in a panic, then frowned at the doll in my hands as if demanding an explanation.

She showed no concern for my condition.

"Shane, why did you take the doll without telling me? Do you know how long I've spent looking for it at home?"

Sylvia signed furiously, breathing hard as she let out anxious, muffled sounds. She reached out for the doll, trying to snatch it from my hands.

So this was all about the doll. Otherwise, she'd probably have taken it to Joey to celebrate his birthday. She never would've bothered to come and see me.

The doctor who rushed in was shocked by what he saw.

I clung to the doll and refused to let go, but Sylvia dragged me right off the bed. I was about to fall to the floor.

"Hey! What are you doing?" a nurse shouted from nearby.

I looked at Sylvia, who was still struggling with me over the doll, and laughed bitterly.

Then I let go.

She finally got the doll, and I fell straight off the bed. It hurt so much, but the pain in my heart seemed lesser now.

Sylvia froze as she stared at the doll in her hands. Then a hint of panic crossed her face.

She glanced at me, seemingly realizing what she had done. She reached out to help me up, but I turned away from her.

Her hand hung in the air for a moment before she awkwardly pulled it back.

The doctor angrily scolded Sylvia for upsetting me, but when he realized she couldn't speak, he let the matter drop.

"Stop making a scene," Sylvia signed. "Let's just put this behind us, okay? I promised I'd make you a new…"

"Get out!"

Before Sylvia could finish signing, I grabbed the cup beside me and hurled it at her.

Hearing that ridiculous promise now made me sick.

"Sylvia, where's the gift you promised me?"

While Sylvia and I faced off in the hospital room, Joey suddenly appeared in the doorway. He gave Sylvia a smug look before turning to me with feigned surprise, as if he'd only just noticed me.

"Well, well. Isn't that Shane? What happened to you? You look like shit. It's been years!"

More and more voices came from the hallway. My former coworkers had all shown up, and they stared in shock at the state I was in.

"You still can't tell? Joey did this on purpose. Poor Shane. He fell for someone who doesn't even appreciate him."

That was when I finally understood everything.

I looked at Sylvia, whose face had gone pale. Her hands shook as she handed the doll to Joey.

The hope in her eyes told me everything I needed to know.

They were all liars.

Joey tossed the doll aside with disgust and went right back to mocking me. He did everything he could to show that he was better than me now.

I was no longer the cheerful young man who used to stand up for others.

Chapter 2

"Get out. All of you!"

I closed my eyes and ignored my former coworkers' attempts to comfort me, whether they meant it or not.

I asked the doctor to call security and have them all thrown out.

[I don't want you to keep being lied to.]

It was when I returned home after recovering from my injuries, still feeling groggy, that I received this text.

It was from Joyce Culver, whom I hadn't spoken to in years. She suddenly sent me the entire recording from back then.

The recording captured Joey's deep, affectionate laughter, along with Sylvia's incoherent murmurs, which I knew better than anyone.

"Sylvia, I'll accept your gift if you stay with Shane. We grew up together, and he likes you so much. Can you do me this favor? It's not like you'll lose anything."

"Okay. I'll do it."

My heart sank as I listened to that gentle, feminine voice. At some point, tears had begun streaming down my face.

For eight years, Sylvia hadn't spoken a single word, all because Joey had asked her to.

As the recording continued, I felt worse and worse. It hurt even more than when Sylvia had left me behind in that fire.

So she had been lying from the very start when she told me she loved me.

I looked at our wedding photo hanging on the wall and remembered the vows we had made.

Then I turned and hurled my phone at the frame, smashing it to pieces.

Sylvia was startled when she walked in and saw what happened. Still, she kept her expression composed, thinking I'd come and comfort her like I always had.

I sat silently on the couch without saying a word.

"What happened today was an accident. I really did want to see you. Is your hand okay now?"

She finally seemed unable to hold back and began signing to me, but I kept my head down and refused to look at her.

Sylvia kept signing, even though I wasn't watching. Even as her arms grew sore, she didn't dare lower them.

Instead, she looked at me with that same pitiful expression she always gave me.

"If you can't speak, then don't make those awful noises either. They're grating on my nerves," I said harshly, leaving Sylvia frozen in place.

She had been about to bandage my wound, but she pulled her hand back in shock.

I had never mocked her for being unable to speak before. This was the first time.

Thinking about the woman I had loved for over a decade only made me feel more disgusted with her.

Fed up with her, I closed my eyes and refused to look at her again.

-

"Martin, I'm coming back to the studio. As for Sylvia, I'm done with her," I said.

"Shane, you're finally back! You've finally decided to let Sylvia go?"

Martin Lowe hurried over to me. There were dark circles under his eyes, but he looked eager to vent.

When he heard me mention Joey, his expression darkened, too.

I looked at the trophies and design plans in the studio, feeling as if I had stepped into a life I had left behind long ago.

I had spent all these years focused on Sylvia and completely forgotten who I used to be.

Joey and I grew up together, but we had never gotten along. I couldn't stand the way he kept picking on Sylvia because she couldn't speak.

One day, he deliberately sent her out to buy something for him in the pouring rain.

Furious, I rushed over and grabbed her hand.

"Are you stupid or something? Why would you do anything he tells you to? Can't you speak up?"

But when I looked into Sylvia's tearful eyes, my heart suddenly skipped a beat.

I wiped the rain from my face, feeling a little guilty. I had forgotten that she really couldn't speak.

Sylvia just stared at me blankly, never showing the slightest impatience. She simply nodded meekly and gave me a warm, gentle smile.

Even after we got together and had been married for years, I never forgot that moment.

I had given up my own dreams and devoted myself to helping Sylvia achieve hers.

Now, I knew it had been all a lie from the start. Joey had simply used her to get back at me.

At that thought, I sighed and exchanged a smile with Martin. "I'm not leaving again. This time, I'll stand by all of you."

Getting back to work was exhausting, but it also made me feel fulfilled again. I would have been even happier if I hadn't seen Sylvia again.

"Why haven't you come home yet?" Sylvia looked worn out. She seemed genuinely worried about me and signed to me in a hurry.

I ignored her, just as others had deliberately ignored her before. I left her standing there while I chatted with the others at the studio.

Chapter 3

Everyone around us gave Sylvia strange looks, unable to understand what the nonspeaking woman was trying to say. Some even wondered if she was homeless.

Hearing that, I glanced at her clothes, which were torn and scuffed from a fall.

I felt nothing.

I used to feel sorry for her and stand up for her, but I wasn't going to make a fool of myself anymore. It wasn't worth it.

"Shane, how about getting together with some old friends? Sylvia can come too."

Joey had appeared at some point. He looked at me with a mocking smile.

I frowned and glanced at Sylvia. Her eyes widened, and she hurriedly waved her hands, trying to show me that she hadn't asked Joey to come.

"Sure," I said.

I looked at the new message Joyce had just sent me, and my heart grew even colder. Still, I kept my expression composed as I looked at the two people in front of me.

"Joey, your girlfriend will be there too, right?"

-

Quite a few of our classmates and friends had come to the gathering too. They teased Sylvia, Joey, and me about what I had done years ago, saying that true love had finally won.

"But wasn't Sylvia in love with Joey back then?"

The poorly timed question silenced everyone. They watched the three of us, eager to see what would happen next.

What a spectacle. Just how long was this charade going to continue?

I glanced at Sylvia and chuckled. "I don't care who she likes. I'm done with this mute woman. She's just an idiot who plays with wooden dolls."

Everyone fell silent. Back when Sylvia and I were together, many people had mocked me as a do-gooder with a savior complex.

All the while, Sylvia stayed safely on the sidelines while I defended her.

This was a new sight for everyone.

Sylvia stood there awkwardly as everyone laughed at her. She looked at me helplessly.

Why look at me?

I watched Joey turn away from Sylvia with clear annoyance, and I couldn't help but laugh at the sight.

"Wait a minute. I thought Joey had feelings for Sylvia too," I said. "Why don't we let Celine hear the sweet things you two say to each other? Or should we show her the doll Sylvia kept for Joey all these years?"

When I said that, everyone gasped. No one had expected things to get this interesting. They all looked at us with mixed expressions.

Celine Zeller, who had been quiet until then, looked upset.

"What are you talking about? Joey, are you still in touch with Sylvia? What's this about a doll?"

I scoffed when I saw Joey's face darken. Then I deliberately pulled out my phone, intending to play the recording.

"What are you doing? Don't even think about framing us! Everyone knows you're jealous of me! You married a woodworker who can't speak, and you can't compare to me. Now you want to ruin my life?" Joey yelled.

Furious, he shouted as he rushed toward me, as if he had no idea where I had gotten the recording.

The moment he grabbed me by the shirt, Sylvia, who had been sitting there in a daze, suddenly sprang to her feet. Somehow, she found the strength to force us apart.

She anxiously checked the red marks on my neck and signed to ask if I was okay.

I pulled away from her hand with a click of my tongue, then coldly averted my gaze.

Sylvia seemed ready to do something else, but Celine was already furious. Celine kicked Sylvia in the calf from behind, sending her to her knees.

"I knew there was a reason Joey suddenly invited you both! So he was after you all along! You're just a mute. Did you really think you could land someone out of your league?"

The others smiled mockingly at Sylvia.

Back then, even though she couldn't speak, Sylvia was proud, got good grades, and had me to protect her. People had at least treated her with some respect.

Now they no longer bothered to hide their contempt.

"She's still pretending to be so pure and innocent, just like back then." I heard someone in the crowd mock her.

I looked at Sylvia, who had been hit and couldn't even defend herself. The anger I felt over her lies had only eased a little.

"Sorry. Did I come at a bad time?" someone said.

Everyone turned in surprise to look at the person entering through the door.

"It's so lively here."