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Bella has been acting strange lately — close one moment, distant the next. It felt like she wanted me to admit that I loved her.
How could I just give her that? Let her win?
On the day she looked the most heartbroken, I left her and went to Lily's birthday party.
But the whole time, I was distracted — my mind kept drifting back to her.
She finally came home at nine that night.
Nothing seemed different… and yet, everything had changed...
She was still so good to me, so good that I had an illusion that she was a good woman.
I forced myself not to think about it. I couldn’t afford to fall any deeper.
For days, she kept doing odd things late at night.
She even said she didn’t have much time left — but never told me what she meant. Heh, playing mysterious again. . Why should I bother asking ?
That day, Bella asked me to come home early for dinner.
But Lily was sick, and she needed me more.
It was just a meal. We could have it any time.
I chose to stay with Lily and missed that dinner.
When I got home late at night, Bella was gone . The table was filled with untouched dishes , all my favorites.
Even the soup I loved was still warming in the rice cooker.
A wave of unease washed over me.
I walked through the house. Everything was in perfect order. Sticky notes were neatly placed beside every item I used. All the gifts I’d given Bella — jewelry, bags, little things — were all neatly tucked away in the cabinet.
Only the mistress of the house was missing.
I called Bella's phone, but the ringtone came from inside the drawer.
I opened the drawer and inside were two medical reports .
Bella was pregnant! And she had Alzheimer’s!My mind went blank. My hands shook as I opened her phone.
It was filled with memos, pages and pages of them. Most were about me. There were also two recordings… and several videos.
[Sister, you don't understand men at all! By then, you’ll be disgusting—sloppy, pitiful, maybe even incontinent, wetting yourself, or burning the house down... ]
So Lily had known all along. Not only did she hide it from me, she even used those cruel words to break Bella down. The second recording was Bella’s voice. She recorded it just for me.
[Ethan, I really want to keep loving you like this, but I can't do it anymore. I also really want to hear you admit that you love me, but I can't wait anymore.
Forgive me for keeping the baby without asking you first. I just wanted to leave behind a piece of our love — I named him Ethan Jr., ‘Jr.’ for memory.
I'm sorry. I’m leaving. From now on, I may forget that there's a you in this world. So please take good care of yourself for me.]
So maybe everything I thought I saw… wasn’t real. Maybe she really didn’t do any of it. She just couldn’t prove her innocence — and I clung to my assumptions like a fool.
Those few videos were all secretly taken of me. Each one was accompanied by warm music and full of love.
I had never even wanted to take a single photo with her.
I reopened the computer and indeed found an article she had written, published on a social platform, about the story between her and me.
I really wronged her, and she loved me so much.
I drove around like a madman, looking for Bella all over the world. I called everyone I knew and searched every familiar corner, but Bella just disappeared without a trace!
