Because my boyfriend had a very high sex drive, we always had to try new things every time we made love. To make up for this, he coaxed me more than once, saying: "Once you graduate, we'll get married." I believed him. So, I worked my fingers to the bone, piling on credits to graduate early. At the same time, I secretly watched all kinds of adult content at night, studying new techniques, just to keep him physically satisfied. Until one day, I missed my dorm curfew because I was studying too late, so I ran to a bar to find him. By chance, I overheard him chatting with his friends. "Leo, is your girlfriend really that wild in bed?" "Of course she is. I trained her myself." "What about Mia then?" Leo blew out a puff of smoke, his eyes turning soft and tender. "She's different. She's pure." In that moment, the seed of hatred was planted. Returning to campus, I immediately called my professor. "That classified project you mentioned... I want to apply." From this day forward, my life would be dedicated solely to my country. "Professor, that Project Spark you mentioned before... I'd like to join." The professor paused, clearly surprised: "Are you sure? Once you join Project Spark, it will be at least five years before you can contact anyone on the outside." "Didn't you just turn me down last time, saying you were going to marry your boyfriend after graduation?" I stood in front of the mirror, trailing my fingers over the dense constellation of hickeys and bite marks covering my body. I smiled, a bleak and desolate expression. "I'm not getting married anymore. From now on, I only want to serve my country." Seeing my firm resolve, the professor didn't try to dissuade me. He simply reminded me: "The transport to the base leaves in three days. Take this time to say a proper goodbye to your boyfriend." "After all, you two are engaged." I hummed a soft agreement, looking down at the ring on my finger, my eyes slightly red. Yes, we were engaged. As I spaced out, my phone buzzed. It was a message from Leo. [Why haven't you replied? Come out and keep me company.] The address he sent was the exact same bar from earlier. Without rushing to reply, I opened my laptop and reviewed my application form one last time. After confirming everything was perfect, I headed out to meet him. "What took you so long?" Leo was leaning lazily against the sofa, clearly displeased by my tardiness. "I couldn't get a cab right away. Had to wait a bit." I threw out a random excuse and moved to sit beside him, but his hand suddenly gripped my waist. His voice was teasing: "Get up. That's not your seat." Leo's words acted like a switch, causing everyone in the room to burst into laughter. "Yeah, Sister-in-law, that's not your seat," Leo's childhood friend chimed in, a playful smirk on his face. "How could you just sit on the sofa? Obviously, you're supposed to sit on Leo's lap." The others joined in, their teasing laced with innuendo: "Yeah, exactly. Look, Sister-in-law, all our dates are sitting on our laps." I looked around, and it was true. Almost all the men present had a scantily clad woman perched on their laps. Noticing my gaze, the men's actions grew even bolder. The sound of heavy, uneven breathing filled the room. Leo's childhood friend, while fondling the warm body in his arms, shot me a suggestive look: "Don't just stand there watching, Sister-in-law. Take good care of our guy Leo." I didn't say a word, but my heart sank to the absolute bottom. I recognized those women. They were famous escorts at this bar, and I... I was Leo's fiancée. Or at least, in name. I touched the engagement ring on my finger and turned my gaze to Leo, who hadn't said a word. I was waiting for him to speak up. Leo didn't look at me. He stared intently at his glass, acting as if he completely missed the mockery in their words. It wasn't until the private room grew completely quiet that he reluctantly reached out a hand, offering a half-hearted comfort: "They're just joking around. Don't take it seriously." Seeing that I still remained silent, he finally put on a show of caring, tossing a few weak reprimands at the others before pulling me down to sit. "Alright, don't be mad. I'll warn them next time." The atmosphere in the room began to heat up again. I leaned against Leo's chest, my mind racing with thoughts on how to break up with him. Suddenly, the door to the private room was pushed open. Mia walked in, dressed in a pristine white dress. "Leo?" Almost instantly, all the men shoved the women off their laps and scrambled to adjust their clothes. Including Leo. He pushed me aside, stood up, and walked over to Mia. He covered her eyes, his voice incredibly gentle: "Be a good girl, Mia. Give us a second to clean up." Then he glared at the others, his eyes flashing with a warning: "Hurry up and get these women out of here! Don't dirty Mia's eyes." The men scrambled—opening windows, shooing the escorts out. Someone even thoughtfully switched on the bright white overhead lights, illuminating the entire room. But it couldn't illuminate the gloom settling over my heart. So, this is what it looks like when Leo genuinely cares about someone. This is what it looks like. I suddenly lost all desire to stay. I stood up and started walking toward the door. My movement startled the others, and someone quickly reminded Leo. "Leo, Sister-in-law is still here." Leo frowned, blurting out instinctively: "So what if she is? It's not like..." He seemed to catch himself, silently removing his hand from Mia's eyes. He offered a flimsy excuse: "Mia is still young. She hasn't been exposed to this kind of stuff. She's not like you." I smiled, though a trace of profound sorrow flashed through my eyes. He forgot that Mia was actually a year older than me. But because I had no place in his heart, he didn't care about my feelings. I walked past them, ready to leave. But Mia suddenly blocked my path, her voice timid and delicate: "Sister-in-law, please don't be mad. I actually came here to return something." As she spoke, she opened a ring box, revealing the massive diamond inside. "Last time I saw the ring on your finger, I was so envious. I just casually mentioned I wanted one too." "I never expected..." Mia cast a shy glance at Leo, her voice rising slightly, like a hook pulling at his attention. "I never expected Leo to actually remember. Just to make me happy, he gave me such an expensive diamond ring." "I heard it's the kind where you can only custom-order one in a lifetime. I felt too guilty to accept it, so I specifically came to give it back to you, Sister-in-law." She said she was giving it back, but her grip on the box never loosened for a second. Looking down at the plain silver band on my own finger, I suddenly felt incredibly foolish. Two years of a relationship. Seven hundred and thirty days of companionship. Leo dismissed me with a plain silver ring that cost less than thirty bucks. Whether in bed or out of it, I had completely undervalued myself. I took two steps back. For the first time, I didn't try to save face for Leo. I simply pushed the door open and left. The private room erupted in gasps. Someone scoffed, speaking loudly: "Who the hell does she think she is, throwing an attitude at Leo?" "Shut up!" Leo glared at the guy, his face dark as a storm cloud. It was already 3 AM by the time I left the bar. The streets were practically deserted. Only the occasional, restless cold wind blew past, sweeping me into memories. I met Leo two years ago during a part-time job. He said he had never met anyone as pure as me and wanted to have a relationship that would never end. I thought it was a joke and rejected him time and time again. Until New Year's Eve that year, when my stepfather secretly picked the lock on my bedroom door. Terrified, I dialed Leo's number. On that snowy night, he pulled me out of hell and promised to give me a home. I desperately wanted a home. During our two years together, he coaxed me into exploring every sexual boundary and promised me countless times that we would get married. But we had been engaged for six months, and only now did I realize the truth. Aside from this incredibly basic silver ring on my finger, I had never even met Leo's family. Screw the engagement. Screw love. Screw... me. Tears blurred my vision. I pulled the engagement ring off and threw it into a trash can. Leo, I don't want to marry you anymore. Two days left before I joined the classified project. The next morning, I woke up early to pack my bags. Leo, who hadn't come home all night, walked in. He looked stunned for a moment, then immediately grabbed my hand. "Where are you going?" I didn't look up, offering a simple explanation. "Finals are coming up. I'm moving back to the dorms." Leo's expression softened. He expertly wrapped his arms around my waist from behind, his tone suggestive: "For how many days? You know I can't survive without you." I used to enjoy this kind of sweet talk between lovers. Now, for some reason, it made me nauseous enough to throw up. I pulled out of his embrace and continued packing. With a casual glance, Leo noticed my bare finger. His eyes instantly turned cold. "Where's your ring? Where did it go? Why aren't you wearing it?" The rapid-fire questions caught me off guard. "It got dirty, so I took it off for now." I don't know if it was just my imagination, but Leo seemed to let out a sigh of relief. He smiled and casually promised: "If it's dirty, just throw it away. It wasn't worth much anyway. I'll buy you a better one tomorrow." Right, it wasn't worth much anyway. Two years ago, when Leo proposed to me, it was in a hotel room. After a passionate session, I asked him with red eyes: "Leo, will you marry me?" Leo froze for two seconds, then pulled a completely unadorned silver ring from his pocket and slid it onto my finger. No flowers, no applause, and definitely no getting down on one knee. But I was foolish enough to believe he would bring me happiness. Thinking back on it now, my naivety is almost laughable. I zipped up my suitcase and went to the bathroom to wash my hands. My phone suddenly buzzed with a tag notification. A proposal video had been uploaded to Mia's social media. In the shaky footage, Leo knelt on one knee amidst the cheers of the crowd, carefully sliding a diamond ring onto her finger. Under the lights, the massive diamond sparkled blindingly. It pierced my eyes. When I backed out and tried to click the video again, it was gone. All that was left was an apology message from Mia. "Sister-in-law, please don't be mad. We were just messing around last night." "I don't know how I accidentally tagged you. We had originally agreed not to tell you." "Sister-in-law, you aren't angry, are you?" Mia's provocative messages came one after another. Outside the bathroom door, Leo was knocking. "Chloe, what kind of ring do you like? I'll take you to pick one out tomorrow, okay?" The massive dissonance felt like an invisible blade, repeatedly stabbing my already shredded heart. I sniffled and replied to Leo in a clear voice. "Okay." That night, I don't know what possessed Leo, but he insisted on dragging me to a corporate cocktail party. In our two years together, this was the first time he was willing to be seen with me at a public event. The party was going smoothly, and Leo was in a great mood. Until Mia barged in like a frightened little bunny and knocked a glass of red wine out of a wealthy businessman's hand. The red wine splashed all over the man, and his face turned dark as a thundercloud. "What's your problem? Watch where you're going!" Mia's eyes instantly welled up with tears. She looked at Leo pitifully, unable to speak a single word. Leo frowned and pulled Mia behind him, his tone stiff: "She's just a young girl. Don't make a big deal out of it, Mr. Chen." His dry, unapologetic words made the businessman's expression even darker. He pointed at Mia cowering behind Leo and sneered: "Fine. Have her pour me a drink and apologize, and I'll let it go." Mia tugged at Leo's clothes like she was begging for her life, still refusing to speak. Leo patted her hand comfortingly, then suddenly turned his gaze to me. "Chloe, you pour Mr. Chen a drink and apologize on Mia's behalf." I froze for a moment, then immediately refused: "Why should I?" Leo frowned, looking at me like I was being completely unreasonable. "Mia is still young. She's never had to deal with this kind of thing." "You're different. You're used to it." The surrounding area instantly fell silent. The guests looked at each other, their eyes gleaming with the anticipation of a good show. It wasn't long before someone couldn't hold back and winked at Leo. "I couldn't tell. She's so young, yet so experienced. Mr. Sterling is a lucky man." "Yeah, absolutely. Mr. Sterling sure knows how to train them. Even the girl by his side is so 'capable'." "We all need to take notes from Mr. Sterling." The malicious, suggestive comments drained the color from my face. Leo's eyes sharpened, and just as he was about to speak, Mia dramatically fainted, as if she had been terrified out of her wits. Leo instantly panicked, scooping Mia up and rushing toward the exit. Leaving me alone to face the increasingly brazen and leering stares of the crowd. In the end, it was that wealthy businessman who stepped forward and escorted me out. When we parted ways, he draped his own jacket over my shoulders and said to me: "Little girl, you're still young." That one sentence shattered all my fabricated pride. When I got home, I stood in front of the closet for a long time. There was a lot of stuff inside, almost all of it gifts from Leo. I took them out one by one and laid them on the bed. A red lace slip dress—his gift for our 100-day anniversary. Black thigh-high garters—his gift for our one-year anniversary. Nude, pointed-toe stilettos—his gift for my 20th birthday. ... Every single gift was custom-tailored by Leo for me. Every single item objectified me, reducing me to a tool to satisfy his desires. But I only just realized that this wasn't love. My phone screen suddenly lit up. It was a message from Leo. [Mia is fine now. I'm coming back to pick you up.] [I bought you a new ring. I'll give it to you when I get back.] [About tonight... I'm sorry.] A call suddenly came through. It was Professor Liu. "Chloe, there's a change of plans. We need to leave a day early." "The car to pick you up is already downstairs. Hurry up and pack your bags." "Okay." I wiped away my tears, grabbed my luggage, and left the place that had trapped me. Before boarding the plane, I sent Leo one final message. "Leo, I don't love you anymore." The next second, the long-silent chat log began to vibrate frantically. When Leo received my text, he was still at the hospital taking care of Mia, who was faking her fainting spell. During our time together, we rarely fought. Most of the time, he would be the one angry, and I would be the one groveling—whether with words or with my body. Even when we did argue, we rarely said anything harsh, let alone bring up breaking up. Leo, though shocked, assumed I was just angry that he had abandoned me at the party and left me with that businessman. He figured he just needed to buy me a gift and coax me a little once this was all over. I was always easy to coax; he had always done it this way. But when he realized my phone was completely unreachable, no matter how many times he called... He finally realized this time might be different. Panic set in. After learning that Mia was perfectly fine, Leo prepared to leave. As he was walking out, the woman grabbed his hand, begging him to stay: "Leo, stay with me, please? I'm scared to be alone." Leo used to be completely powerless against her fragile act; as long as she asked, he would always agree. But today, for some unknown reason, he suddenly lost all patience with Mia. Even her delicate, gentle demeanor grated on his nerves. "I have things to do. Rest up." With that, he turned and rushed back to the cocktail party. Mia watched his retreating back, her expression shifting from pitiful to incredibly venomous. She lowered her head, plotting who-knows-what. Leo drove back to the party. After searching the entire venue to no avail, he finally confirmed that I was truly gone. The party was full of all sorts of people. Worried I might be in danger, Leo frantically asked everyone if they had seen where I went. Memories from before we dated suddenly flooded his mind. He remembered my bloodshot eyes as I hid in a corner after being abused by my stepfather. A wave of crushing regret washed over him. Why did I choose another woman when she needed me the most?! Damn it! Leo's frantic search caused a huge scene. Finally, someone who knew what had happened stepped forward to tell him the truth. I had been taken away by the wealthy businessman from earlier. Leo's attitude toward me at the party had been terrible, his words full of cheap, degrading implications. Everyone there viewed me as nothing more than his plaything, and their speculations about my identity only grew more vulgar. After answering Leo, they began whispering amongst themselves, guessing where the businessman had taken me and what he was doing to me. When Leo gave all his gentleness and concern to Mia, he never anticipated the disaster his careless words would bring down upon me. Or perhaps he did anticipate it, but just didn't care. His words: "Mia is still young... You're used to it." Were tantamount to shoving me off a cliff, making everyone believe I was a loose, cheap woman—an object that could be traded for money and lust at any moment. And with every possibility those people whispered, accompanied by sleazy chuckles... Leo finally exploded in rage. He seemed to believe their theories. After all, in his eyes, I was exactly that kind of shameless slut. Mia was the gentle, pure beauty. If I was willing to throw away my dignity to blindly please him, to endure insults from others and humiliation from him... Then I would surely please someone else just as eagerly. I would please that businessman. He pulled out his phone to call me, but I was already on a plane with my phone turned off. Unable to reach me only cemented my "illicit affair" with the businessman in his mind. He started sending me texts, using every degrading, insulting word he could think of: "Where did you go?" "Do you know I'm looking for you?" "Did you run off with someone richer? Or are you in some old man's bed right now?" "Does he know your body as well as I do?" ...
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