"I'm back. Do you still want me?" I sank into thought, staring at the text message from my first love. Liam grabbed my phone, his brows furrowed. "Why are you looking through my phone?" "I've told you, Chloe is the most important person to me." Seeing my silence, he added, "Of course, I won't divorce you." My heart jumped. He clearly misunderstood. "That's my phone you're holding." Liam's face instantly hardened. "Who is this man?" 1 "I'm back. Do you still want me?" There was no other information, but I instantly knew who it was. The face that came to mind pulled me into a deep memory, and I didn't even notice when Liam walked up behind me. He snatched my phone, his brows tightly furrowed. "Summer, since when did you start checking other people's phones?" I saw a hint of disgust in his eyes. Before, he was mostly indifferent or distant towards me, never this outwardly emotional. "I've told you, Chloe is the most important person to me." I blinked. Did he really tell me that voluntarily? No. I accidentally overheard their phone call, and only when he couldn't hide it anymore did he "confess." And that was after we got married. No, it wasn't a confession. It was a notice. Seeing my continued silence, he added, "Of course, I won't divorce you." My heart jumped. His misunderstanding was complete. I couldn't help but correct him. "That's my phone you're holding." Liam scrolled up. There was only that one message. It really wasn't his phone. Liam's expression instantly became dark. "Who is this man?" 2 I knew that the more I hedged, the more Liam would suspect me. So I explained honestly. "It should be my ex." Liam's grip tightened on the phone. I had to remind him again before he handed it back. I didn't blame him for the confusion; both our phones looked identical. Even the message was exactly the same. His "Chloe" had sent him the exact line: "I'm back. Do you still want me?" The timing was uncanny. The only difference was the date, a small detail that was easy to miss. Liam, who had been in a rush to leave, now lingered. He sat on the sofa, seemingly casually pressing me. "He's your ex?" Though I'd already answered, I nodded again. "He's my ex." He was also my first love, childhood sweetheart, and my fiancé by family agreement. "How long did you date?" "A little over a year." If dating only counted from our first kiss, then yes, it was only a little over a year. "When did you break up?" "2019." The year before Liam and I got married. Time truly flew. Liam and I had been married for almost five years now. Liam's body language relaxed, as if the man on the other side of the text wasn't much of a threat. "Since our fifth anniversary is coming up, why don't we go to..." "Does your proposal about us having an open relationship still stand?" Liam and I spoke at the same time, both pausing awkwardly. He stared at his shoes, lost in thought. I decided to take the lead. "What were you just saying about going somewhere?" "To the family estate." I breathed a sigh of relief. Good thing I hadn't let myself get my hopes up. Any other time, I might have thought he meant celebrating our anniversary. Liam fell silent again. I looked at his half-shadowed face; his expression was neutral, giving away nothing. I gathered my courage and asked again. "Does your proposal about us having an open relationship still stand?" 3 He had said those words two months ago. He was likely annoyed by my constant questioning and snapped: "Can you stop staring at me all the time? Fine, we'll have an open relationship. You go find someone else, too." Back then, the pain made it hard to breathe. But now, I was almost grateful he had said it. Time, the best director, never lets anyone off the hook. But if you learn to roll with it, it brings unexpected surprises. Liam gave a smirk that didn't reach his eyes. "Yes. Of course, it stands." He stood up and walked swiftly. Just as his hand reached the doorknob, he paused. He didn't turn around, but his voice was clear. "Even though I said we can have an open relationship." "You are still my wife. Don't be too flashy." I responded meekly, "Understood." I would simply follow his standard. I definitely wouldn't cause a scene by setting off fireworks across the city or starting a brawl at a dinner party, like he did. Liam finally turned and looked at me. "You'd better tell him you're married first." "If a scandal breaks out, it will reflect badly on both our families." I nodded. His reminder was valid. I would tell him. I looked at Liam. He still showed no sign of leaving. "Anything else you need to lecture me about?" He unconsciously tapped his fingers against his trouser leg. "What's his name?" "I don't mean anything by it. I'm just concerned you might get scammed..." I cut him off. "Ethan Han." "Ethan Han? The CEO of FlameTech? Harrison Han's son?" "I believe so." I didn't know if he was the CEO of FlameTech, but his dad was definitely Mr. Harrison Han. This time, Liam didn't hesitate. He turned and walked out without looking back. 4 Liam sat in his car, feeling irritated. He wasn't sure what was bothering him. He thought of Ethan Han and felt slightly reassured. He knew the man, having dealt with him once or twice. Ethan was successful, handsome, and rich—nothing less than Liam himself. More importantly, he was a man of principle and pride. It was likely he sent the message without knowing I was married. A man like that wouldn't stoop to stealing another man's wife. Besides, I didn't have that kind of irresistible charm. His phone rang. It was Chloe. He had promised to take her to a new restaurant today. He answered after three rings. "Something came up. I'll take you next time." Chloe sounded slightly disappointed but gracefully told him to take care of his business first. See? This was the kind of woman he liked—considerate, sweet, and simple. Not sharp and aggressive, constantly demanding answers, like I was. 5 After much thought, I decided to text Ethan back. [Ethan, is that you?] [It's me.] His reply took so long I almost thought he wouldn't answer. Our breakup had been brutal, a betrayal in his eyes. He left the country immediately and hadn't returned in years. I genuinely thought we'd be estranged forever. I slowly moved on a year after he left. Then I married Liam. At first, I enjoyed the feeling of being with Liam. His charisma focused all my attention on him, helping me forget my troubles. I thought I might truly fall in love with him. But in the fourth year of our marriage, his "moonlight" returned. The girl named Chloe. She was back. It was a clichéd, dramatic story. His family had forced her to leave years ago. When she returned, crying and telling Liam everything, all his principles vanished. When I discovered the affair, he told me resolutely that Chloe was the most important person in his life. He said that if she hadn't left, I would never have married him. But we both tacitly avoided divorce. Five years of marriage meant six years of cooperation between the Song and Chen families. The financial entanglement was too deep to easily untangle. But having an open relationship was fine. In this circle, such things were common, and they certainly wouldn't jeopardize money. I was nervous. I had changed so much over the years. I wondered what Ethan was like now. [I'm married.] I struggled to type those few words. The anxiety stretched time. After what felt like an eternity, he replied with a single question mark. I bit my lip, agonizing over what to type. Finally, I screenshotted the image I received earlier and sent it to him. [What does this mean?] The tension was agonizing. I typed and deleted, trying to find the right words. [Although I'm married, our relationship isn't what you think.] Before I could finish the sentence, he sent an image. His image was blank. The text "I'm back. Do you still want me?" was missing. I realized there must be some mistake. I desperately tried to delete the partial message I'd typed, but my eyes were too blurry with tears. In my panic, I sent the unfinished message. I quickly wiped my tears and retracted the text. After a few seconds, he sent a new message. [We were playing Truth or Dare this afternoon. My friend grabbed my phone and sent that. He deleted it immediately, and I didn't know. I apologize if it caused you any distress.]
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