Chapter 1

Selena Norman was the heiress of a prestigious family in the city, known for her flirtatious nature and reputation as a playgirl. However, she changed all her ways since dating me. Everyone knew she loved me with all her heart and doted on me endlessly. At least, that was what I thought. Everything changed when I came across her and Zion Cabot's text conversation. "Will you always treat me this nicely, Selena?" "Of course, babe." It felt as if a knife had twisted in my heart at that moment. I didn't realize that the love I thought I had was now a thing of the past. … I arrived in front of the cake and blew the candles. It was 1:00 am, and an hour had gone since our wedding anniversary. For the entire afternoon and night, I held the present and the cake I baked myself before a feast I had prepared, awaiting her return. In the end, I was met with disappointment. Just as I prepared to retire for the night, I heard sounds from outside. Selena had come home. When she entered and saw me, she bolted toward me and wrapped me around her arms, coaxing me with the gentlest tone that resembled the time we first dated. "I'm sorry, Hud. I was held back by my business trip. Why don't you pinch me as a punishment? "I've brought you tons of gifts, Hud. See if you like anything, and we'll call it even, alright?" Then, her assistants carried the presents into our home in a single file. I gazed at her without a word, reminding myself this was the woman I loved for years. Yet, when I recalled the text conversation, I was bitter. Selena and I knew each other from university. She was bright, charming yet carefree and flirtatious; she faced everything with unwavering determination, never giving up until she hit a wall. Most of her relationships never lasted more than three months. Ironically, she fell in love with the lonely ol' me. The closer she got to me, the more I lost my mind and fell madly in love with her. To ensure I was happy, she even broke all her bad habits. So, when did her love and sincerity start fading toward me? One of the assistants unloaded the presents and came to my side, defending Selena. "Mr. Davenport, not once have you left Mrs. Davenport's mind during the entirety of the trip. She got back here as soon as she finished her work. "I know we're still late, but you should go easy on her, Mr. Davenport." The other assistant nodded in agreement. Right, she loved me so much to the point that she would get into another man's bed on my birthday, travel thousands of miles to cheer me up with a gift, and take everything upon herself while I was sick. If that was the case, why did she cheat on me? She called him "babe", a sign of their intimate and ambiguous relationship. I lowered my eyes and had no words to respond. Noticing my silence, Selena pulled me to the dining table. "Hud, did you prepare all of this? They're so delicious; I love them… Hud, stop being mad, will you? I promise I'll spend the whole day on our next anniversary with you." At the sight of her teary eyes, I fell into a daze as the memories from a few years ago resurfaced. Back then, she would always put on a pitiful look like this whenever she made a mistake. Every time, I conceded to her. I finally spoke after a long time. "I'm not mad. I'm just tired." At that, Selena quickly wiped the whipped cream off her lips and pulled me into the bedroom. "Let's rest, then." Before long, she drifted off to sleep while I struggled to fall asleep. Once I heard her steadied breathing, I sat up and took her phone. As expected, Zion's chat sat at the top of her messages. He was an assistant whom Selena had hired recently. According to the other assistants, he was young, capable, and handsome. I tapped into their chat and realized their conversation had been wiped clean, unlike last time. However, his profile was full of photos of him traveling with Selena. The latest post was uploaded a few hours ago. In the photo, Selena held a light stick, screaming while on Zion's back. That familiar face wore a smile I hadn't seen in ages. So, she was busy attending a concert with him and conveniently missed our anniversary. I quickly minimized the photo and looked away. Though it didn't hurt as much as last time, my heart was still filled with jealousy and bitterness. I prepared to set down the phone when a new message came in. "Selena, the movie I've been looking forward to is premiering tomorrow. Let's watch it together. It's a date." My fingers gripped the phone so tightly that they turned pale, finally snapping me back to reality. I set aside the phone and slowly lay down. Selena, sleeping soundly, subconsciously nestled into my arms and muttered, "Hud…" The subconscious trust she had toward me put me in a trance. I simply couldn't understand it. How could someone who had once loved me so much have a change of heart? That question kept me up all night. I woke up early the next morning. After glancing at Selena beside me, I went to prepare breakfast. I fried two eggs, and after some hesitation, I grabbed the heart-shaped mold on the side. Selena bought it last time, saying it would make breakfast more delicious. Amid my distraction, I let the oil splash onto the back of my hand, the pain instantly pulling me back to reality as if reminding me. Once I laid the breakfast on the table, Selena happened to come out of the room, delighted. "Oh, it smells amazing. You prepared breakfast! Life is great with you, Hud. Careful—you might have to cook me breakfast for the rest of my life." I looked down and ignored her, quietly poking at my egg yolk. "I… don't think I can continue this anymore," I thought. After breakfast, Selena stayed in the vanity room for a while and came out looking youthfully beautiful. I casually asked, "You're working on the weekend, too?" She planted a kiss on my lips very naturally. "Yeah. My assistant called and said I have to handle some work. I'll be back soon, though." I didn't reply to her but couldn't help but recall the conversation I saw last night. She was going on the date, wasn't she? As I watched her retreating figure, I no longer felt the bitterness from before. Rather, I had made up my mind. Once Selena left, I called my assistant, Jordan Weasley, and instructed, "Jordan, prepare a copy of the divorce agreement for me." Since I had made up my mind, the first step was to get this out of the way. After ending the call, I removed the wedding ring from my ringer and placed it inside a small box within the drawer. I had worn it since the day of our marriage and never removed it once. I used to think it symbolized our love and happiness, but now… I supposed it should return to its original place. After keeping the ring, I dreaded spending another second here in this familiar yet foreign place. I headed out and got into a cab with no destination in mind. The driver asked where I wanted to go, but I couldn't answer him and eventually told him to drive aimlessly. He repeatedly glanced at me, and I found his action funny. "If you have something to say, go ahead, sir." The driver pursed his lips. "I can tell you're not having a good day, young man. Have you run into trouble? Word of advice—everything happens for a reason, and we should always focus on doing the right thing. Life is short; make it worth it." His words prompted a bitter smile on my face. Even an outsider could see the bigger picture better than me…