“Oh, finally! I'm glad to see someone I know!"Bryan, who had previously looked bored being stuck at a party with important people he didn't know, immediately seemed very happy when he saw Lucas."Thanks for inviting me to your party. And congratulations on your new position as CEO," Lucas said."I should say thank you. I wouldn't be in this position without your help," Bryan said.Bryan looked genuinely happy to finally find someone on the same frequency as him. But in the middle of his conversation with Lucas, Bryan's attention was distracted by the slight commotion in the luxurious ballroom that had been transformed into a party venue by the presence of Darren and Vivi."Wow, do they think they're celebrities? It's my party, but I'm not even greeted with that much excitement," Bryan said spitefully as he saw Darren getting a warm welcome from the guests while Vivi walked beside him, grabbing Darren's left arm and putting a sweet smile on her face."I'm sorry I didn't roll out the r
"Aaah..." The soft moan made Lucas, who was treating the wound on Vivi's temple, stop immediately. He turned his eyes to Vivi, who was beginning to regain consciousness, and slowly opened her eyes."Here, drink this first," Lucas said as he handed Vivi a glass of water.Vivi, who was still not fully awake, obeyed Lucas' order and drank the water the man gave her. But after drinking the glass and regaining consciousness, Vivi was surprised to find herself on the bed with Lucas sitting beside her."What are you doing here?" Vivi asked frantically."Don't you remember what happened to you?" Lucas asked back, and Vivi, who couldn't remember anything, just shook her head."I don't know when you came. But when I went out this morning, I found you unconscious in front of my door."Lucas' explanation made Vivi frown. But as her memory began to clear and she could recall what had happened to her last night up until now, the confused expression on Vivi's face slowly faded and was replaced by a
"Oh my God, Vivi... What happened to you?"Like Lucas, Bryan's first reaction to seeing Vivi's condition was shock. Bryan had seen her as a goddess the night before at his party, Darren had turned her into this miserable woman in just one night."I'm fine now, so you don't have to worry," Vivi said."What's fine? Look at you!" Bryan looked at Vivi's swollen and scarred face with concern. "Vivi, if Darren did this to you, you should report him to the police–“"No matter where I go for justice, I won't be able to beat someone like Darren. You know that," Vivi said, making Bryan sad because he realized what she said was true."How is Darren now?" asked Vivi."He's still furious, and his emotions are out of control,” Bryan replied. He took out a thick brown envelope and placed it before Vivi. "You can use this money for a while. Tell me what you need, and I'll give you more money–""No, Bryan. I don't want to ask you for money," Vivi refused and pushed the envelope away. "I have my own mo
"Oh, is it done?"Sitting outside Vivi's room, Bryan was quite surprised when the door opened. Darren walked out with a blank stare while Vivi's crying could still be heard from inside the room."What's wrong?" Bryan asked as he held Darren's arm and made him stop walking. "Vivi's still crying. Are you just going to leave her?""It's done," Darren said in a weak voice while his eyes looked at Bryan with a look that still seemed blank."What's done?" Bryan asked, confused because he didn't understand what Darren was saying."Our marriage. I'm getting a divorce." Darren said, which made Bryan's eyes widen. Even though what had happened with Vivi was very bad, Bryan had not expected them to make the decision to divorce so quickly."Hey, why all of a sudden– Darren! Are you just going to leave?"Darren ignored Bryan's words and walked away, leaving Bryan calling out to him to come back and talk about it properly.But Darren felt that there was nothing left to talk about with Vivi. Everyth
"I fell in love with the only person who visited me in that apartment. My contract husband, who paid me to cover his secret relationship, I foolishly fell in love with him from the beginning of our marriage and was heartbroken the whole time." Vivi's explanation certainly surprised Lucas. All this time, he had been completely unaware of it. Whether it was because Vivi was very good at hiding it from him or because he was insensitive, Lucas didn't expect Vivi to have such feelings for him. When he thought about it now–about how often he talked about Freya or how he always praised her to Vivi–Lucas felt that he had become very cruel to Vivi. "I really don't know," Lucas said. He was filled with regret and guilt at the thought of how much pain Vivi had endured during their marriage because he had been completely insensitive to her feelings. "If I had known earlier, I would have–“ "I would have ruined everything." Vivi interrupted Lucas' speech with a faint smile. "I was paid to cover
"Vivi..." Darren called his wife's name in a weak voice full of regret and pain. He missed Vivi as if he hadn't seen her for years.Darren wanted to take a step towards Vivi, to embrace her body and release his longing. But her cold look made his legs seem glued to the ground. He couldn’t move, even though he tried his best to get to Vivi."You promised me all that, and I trusted you. I trusted you with my happiness and future, but look what you have done to me..."Vivi stuck to her words and managed to make Darren's tears flow again when he saw what had happened to the woman.Darren saw his tie, which Darren used to bind Vivi's hands when he punished her, slowly begin to bind Vivi's hands.Wounds, swellings, bruises, tears, and blood all slowly coming out of Vivi's body. From the places where Darren's hands had injured her.The slap marks, the whip marks, the messy hair, the lips bleeding from the bite. Darren sees Vivi crying in pain, but the sound of his crying is even more painful
"Welcome, Mr. Hart. It is truly an honor to receive you here."Darren's arrival at the clinic of one of the best psychiatrists in Europe is warmly welcomed, but Darren still feels a nagging sense of unease as he steps into this place.His ego felt like his pride was being trampled when it came to asking a psychiatrist to help him with his mental problems.But Celine, the middle-aged psychiatrist who would treat Darren, seemed to realize that because she said, "It must have been difficult to decide to come to this place. But now that you're here, you've taken the first step, which is good for you.""I don't know what kind of turmoil to tell you about. I don't know where to begin. Because when I think about where all this guilt comes from, it feels like my birth was a mistake," Darren said."How about you tell me about your childhood first? About the biggest fear you had and how you overcame it. You can tell me anything."Darren was silent, letting his memories take him back in time. To
"Wow, it's all spicy food today," Vivi said after looking at the boxes of food Lucas had brought for their dinner." Can you eat spicy food like this? I see you rarely eat spicy food.""I don't like spicy food, but I can still eat it. This is your favorite food, right? I used to see this box of food in the trash in our apartment," Lucas said."Yes, that is my favorite restaurant. I can order food from this restaurant three or four times a week. The food is delicious," Vivi said as she placed the vegetables she had taken out of the box on Lucas' plate. "This salad is so good."It had been a week since Vivi had moved into her new apartment. And since the first day of moving, she had never had dinner alone. The apartment building was on the street where Lucas used to work, so the man came by every day with food to eat with Vivi."Ah... I'm so full. I can't remember the last time I ate this much," Lucas said as he patted his stomach, which felt very full after he finished his meal."It's g