Chapter 3

When we got home, Chloe turned around and blamed me. "Julian, why are you so petty? Austin just came over for dinner. He didn't steal your wife. Did you really have to make such a big deal out of it?"

A bitter ache filled my chest as I looked at her. I hadn't done anything wrong; I had even tried to calm everyone down. How did it end up being my fault?

Austin, trailing behind her, started sniffling. "Chloe, maybe I shouldn't have come today. Nobody likes me."

"I just haven't seen your mom in so long. I only wanted to wish her a happy birthday."

Chloe turned around, her voice softening. "Austin, it's not your fault. It's them. If we're not welcome here, then we'll leave."

With that, she glared at me fiercely, grabbed Austin by the hand, and walked out.

Watching them leave, tears blurred my vision, and my chest seized with unbearable pain.

Back then, I knew I was probably losing her. Now, I knew with absolute certainty that I had lost her completely.

Chloe was remarkably experienced when it came to caring for heart patients. From his diet to his light exercises, she looked after him with meticulous care.

Within two days, Austin was glowing, completely refreshed and full of energy.

That level of devotion was something I had never received from her.

Because I was a physician, Chloe always assumed I was invincible and could never fall ill.

Once, after working several consecutive overnight shifts, I collapsed at home while eating, knocking my plate and food onto the floor.

When Chloe came home and saw the mess, she didn't offer a single word of concern. Instead, she interrogated me furiously: "Julian, what is wrong with your temper? I was gone for a few days, that's it! Is it worth throwing a tantrum like this?"

"Can't you just be gentle for once, like normal people? Don't just lie there playing dead—I know you can hear me!"

When I didn't respond, she finally walked over and realized I was drifting in and out of consciousness.

She drove me to the hospital, dumped me with my colleagues, and rushed off immediately.

Before she left, I heard her answer a phone call.

Austin's needy voice came through the receiver, asking when she was coming back because he was bored at home all by himself.

Right. She had no time to take care of her collapsed husband, but plenty of time to cure another man's boredom.

Ever since Austin returned, things like this happened constantly. Deep down, I knew I would never measure up to the unattainable love of her past.

Every time I remembered those moments, my heart felt like it was being stabbed with needles, each prick landing precisely on my most vulnerable wound.

Even now, as a spirit, watching Chloe carefully spoon-feed Austin chicken broth, the pain still flared in my chest. Only this time, I couldn't cry.

That broth was made by Chloe from scratch—something I had never once tasted.

Just then, a knock sounded at the hospital room door. A courier delivered an envelope. Chloe opened it, letting out a contemptuous laugh.

"Julian, since when did you stoop to cheap tricks like this? Did you really think pulling this would make me come groveling back to you?"

"Disappearing for days, playing dead, and the moment you show up, you send divorce papers? What a joke."

Glancing at the divorce agreement, I saw today's date on it. It truly was ironic. I had died days ago. Who could have sent this paperwork?

Chloe tore the divorce papers to shreds, pulled out her phone, and dialed my number.