6

Chapter 6

"Who's leaving?"

Ethan suddenly stopped and looked at me.

I angled my phone away slightly, smiling faintly: "A friend of mine. She's going away for a while."

He nodded, didn't ask further, seemingly relieved.

The next evening, he brought home a stack of photo frames.

Holding his phone in one hand, video chatting with Judy, he held up the frames in front of me with the other, his expression full of tenderness and pride.

"Look, the photographer sent over the edited photos. The staff all said we photographed especially well."

I happened to be getting water, and glanced down at the finished photos. The lighting and composition were indeed impeccable.

I commented seriously: "They look great."

I'd run around to several cities, looked through dozens of sample albums, and finally paid top dollar to book the best photographer and time slot for this studio.

I thought the lens would capture Ethan and me at our most loving.

Now the bride was Judy, and I felt not a ripple of emotion.

Ethan paused, seemingly stung by my calmness.

He put down the frames, his voice softening: "Sarah, on the wedding day, I'll give you the most magnificent ceremony. I promise."

I looked up at him and nodded: "Okay."

His expression grew more confused, as if confirming whether I was truly "pacified." A moment later, he received a message from Judy and hurried out.

The day before I left, I went to the hospital for some backup medication.

Turning down the corridor, I ran right into Ethan accompanying Judy out from a prenatal checkup.

Ethan was clearly startled, about to speak, but Judy grabbed my hand first, her eyes misty: "Sarah, I know you haven't agreed yet... but I really can't wait much longer. I want to see the baby born with my own eyes. I swear, as soon as the baby's born, I'll leave and won't affect you two."

I calmly withdrew my hand: "Do whatever you want."

Judy froze for a moment, then leaned in close, lowering her voice to a shrill pitch: "You can't keep him. Ethan will be with me."

I had no intention of responding and turned to walk away. But she suddenly leaned back, her whole body tilting toward the edge of the stairs.

I instinctively grabbed her arm to steady her—before I could let go, Ethan had already rushed over, his voice sharp:

"What are you doing!"

Judy immediately clutched her stomach, eyes reddening: "I just wanted to thank Sarah. She might have gotten angry for a moment..."

I looked at him nervously holding Judy, and said calmly: "Check the surveillance cameras."

His brow tightened, but Judy's "my stomach hurts" interrupted him, and he could only hurry off holding her.

The corridor returned to silence. I stood there for a moment with my medicine bag, then turned to go home.

Back home, I folded the last few pieces of clothing into my suitcase.

I pulled up my flight information—Departure: Tonight.

As I closed the suitcase, the lock clicked. Ethan pushed open the door, still carrying unresolved anger on his face.

"Judy's still in the hospital, and the baby isn't stable. Even if you didn't do it on purpose, can't you be more generous? She already has cancer—why are you arguing with her?"

I said nothing.

He glanced at the calendar on the desk, mistaking the red text for a wedding reminder, his tone softening: "Enough, stop this. Get the wedding done properly tomorrow, and we'll talk about the honeymoon after. I'll handle everything."

Before I could respond, his phone rang again.

He waved at me: "I'm leaving. Not coming back tonight. See you at the hotel tomorrow morning."

The door closed, and the room returned to silence.

I walked to the desk and opened the calendar full of itineraries.

I drew a huge X over the words "Wedding."

Then I capped the pen and placed the calendar in the most visible spot.

I pulled up the handle of my suitcase and looked back at this place I'd lived for four years.

Light stretched a thin line across the wall. I said softly to the empty air:

"Goodbye, Ethan."

I left the calendar in plain view, dragged my suitcase out the door, and took a taxi to the airport.