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My temple throbbed.
I had booked at Ethan's private hospital.Again.
Explaining was pointless.I'd just say I was busy and skip it.
I forced a laugh.
Jake video-called.Thinking it was urgent,I answered,only to see Ethan's face.
His tanned skin flushed faintly under bar lights—how much had he drunk?
"Lily."
"Ethan,you're drunk!Give me my phone!"Jake protested.
Ethan stared at me,the complex emotions in his eyes settling into...grievance.
"Lily,you really won't...pick me up?"
I froze,then calmed suddenly.
"Ethan,you said you had nowhere to stay,so I let you crash at my place for two months."
"You said you don’t want friends to look down on you,I played along."
"What're you doing now?"
His drunken haze faded.Jake snatched the phone from him.
"Sis—Lily,he's drunk,ignore him..."
As the camera shifted,I saw a blonde woman on Ethan's lap.
Her face was near his abdomen,flashing by with the shaky footage.
No telling what she was doing.
Her voice dripped with coyness."Ethan,baby,focus..."
I suddenly recalled that Ethan rarely flushed when drinking.
I smiled at Jake."Got it.Tell him to drink less,and stay safe."
I hung up neatly,extinguishing the cigarette,burning my hand.
Like our rushed eight years,it didn't end as Ethan promised—with us buried together.
During college applications,I fell gravely ill.
Ethan tried to visit me using various excuses,but he was always shut out.
After recovering,I learned he'd switched his major to medicine.
"I'll keep you healthy till the day I die."
Childhood sweethearts,we naturally started dating when all our friends, half-reasingly,urged us to do so.
Graduation day,he used family connections to open a hospital,never setting foot in a clinic.
Panic gripped me.I buried myself in his arms,asking if he remembered his promise to me.
Ethan's finger grazed my eye,his gaze deep as an abyss.
"With professionals looking after the hospital,I can rest easy."
"Plus,I want to be abled to afford all your expenses in the future,so you never need to beg anyone for monehy."
With his gentle words,I got a feeling that he treated me like a priceless treasure.
But I forgot—Ethan came from wealth.Even the priciest treasures were just novelties to him.
As days went by, he would come home later and later,dodging my"marriage"requests.
"Just not now."
Until I found lacy lingerie by his pillow,trembling as I slipped it on.
Only then did I see awe in his eyes again.
It's fine,I told myself as he gently carried me to the guest room.
He didn't sleep with me,but he touched me again.
If only I had a child,then he would have eyes for me again.
I ignored all pain,abandoned my career,obsessing over getting pregnant.
As long as I tried harder,he'd love me again.
I tried so hard...I forgot my own name.
Two months ago,Ethan took me to a party friends.A timid girl called me,"Lily."
I remembered—I was Lily.
Not"that girl"or"sister-in-law."
