Chapter 2
I booked my ticket for the next day. When Declan returned the following day, I was preparing to send the cat away for transport. Declan frowned slightly, “Didn’t you love that cat? Why are you sending it away?” This cat was originally a gift from Declan, and he had adored it at first, too. But one time, Tessa came over, stepped on the cat’s tail, and got startled. After that, the cat became a thorn in Declan’s side. To prevent the cat from ending up in a pot, I had knelt outside in the snow one night, apologizing over and over. Inside the room, the sounds of their panting occasionally escaped while I held the cat, going from screaming apologies to passing out from hypothermia. I also got sick and missed an important competition I had been preparing for for half a year. The memory made my throat tighten. I cleared my throat several times before my voice sounded normal again. But before I could answer, Declan changed the subject. “Good riddance, anyway. Tessa’s heating is broken, so she’s moving in with us. Better to get this beast out of the way before it hurts someone.” My hand grooming the cat faltered at this, and the little cat let out a pitiful meow. I stroked the cat’s head, steadying my emotions, and said, “We should probably throw away those photos of us together, too, so Tessa doesn’t get upset seeing them.” Since I was leaving anyway, these things needed to be dealt with. I acted understanding, but Declan’s expression darkened. He stared intently at me, unable to read my thoughts, so he changed the subject again. “These junk trophies of yours might not even be worth selling for scrap!” I looked up and saw Declan pointing at my trophies. I had learned violin since the first grade, all for these honors. This display cabinet was even designed by someone Declan hired, and he had assembled it himself. He once said having such a talented wife was his pride. After Tessa appeared, everything changed. My heart felt brutally crushed. Seeing Declan reach for the trophies, I immediately stood in front of the cabinet. Declan shoved me aside irritably. “What if these scratch Tessa? “Your family already took a life. You won’t even spare an unborn baby?” I explained to Declan, for what felt like the hundredth time, that June’s death was purely an accident. Declan completely ignored my explanations, only accusing me and my family of being lowly and guilty, insisting I should toil to atone. During the argument, I was hit on the head by a trophy. Declan cursed that I deserved it, but his hands stopped moving. He had just reached out to wipe the blood from my forehead when he saw me squat down to check if the trophy was damaged. Declan irritably pulled his hand back and turned away, planning aloud as if nothing happened. “We need to put more flowers here. Tessa likes them.” Declan forgot I was allergic to pollen. I wiped the dust off the trophy without a word. The next second, Declan remembered himself but snapped back viciously, “Don’t you know you’re allergic to pollen? Why didn’t you say anything? Gonna wait until everything’s set up just to cause a scene?” I had become immune to Declan’s volatile moods. Wiping away the blood, blurring my vision, I said coldly, “It doesn’t matter. Do whatever you want. I won’t be living here anymore.”