Chapter 1Left Outside Her Car and Her Heart

I'm waiting for my wife, Sophia Young, to pick me up. My colleague, Tony Shaw, who habitually hitches a ride with us, stays with me.

He complains incessantly, "Why isn't your wife here yet? It's freezing cold! I'd prefer to be home by today!"

He lives in the western part of the city. Every time we drive him home, Sophia has to make a large detour.

However, my stomach is killing me that day, so I politely break things to him while cradling my stomach.

"Tony, I'm not feeling well today and would like to get home early to rest. You should take a taxi home yourself. I'll let you hitch a ride next time."

Tony snorts coldly and walks away.

I wait downstairs for another 30 minutes, only to receive a call from Sophia.

She informs me, "Traffic along the street outside your office is unusually congested. I've stopped the car at the intersection up ahead, so come find me there."

I venture into the rain to find her car while struggling to keep the umbrella up and open.

When I open the car door, I realize it's already filled with her colleagues and there's no space for me.

Sophia rolls the window halfway down and points at the blond-haired man drying his hair with a towel in the front passenger seat.

She explains, "Ian saw his friend at the intersection just now. The handsome young man looked rather pitiful soaking in the rain, so I gave him a lift. Your company's close by anyway, so why don't you head back in there first? I'll come back to pick you up once I've sent them home."

The storm ruins my umbrella, and rain gets in my eyes, making them sting painfully.

As I gaze at Sophia's packed car, I find that my marriage to her suddenly feels incredibly meaningless.

* * *

A slightly older male colleague spoke up. "Hey, Jonathan, I'm going to close the door first, okay? It's getting pretty cold with the rain blowing in."

I recognized him as Leonard Jefferson, whom Sophia called Leo. Ever since I bought Sophia this car, he'd ask to hitch a ride with her practically every day.

I stopped him from closing the door and replied, "Leonard, please take a taxi home today. My umbrella's ruined, and I'm not feeling well, so I'd like to get home quickly."

Instead of moving, Leonard cast Sophia a troubled look and said, "Sophie, about that… You once said that you could drive me home every day, so why am I suddenly being kicked out of the car? It's still raining cats and dogs out there."

Sophia frowned, got out of the car, and handed me a new umbrella.

"The traffic around here is usually terrible, and it's even harder than usual to hail a taxi on rainy days. You know this. Listen to me and wait at the company for a bit. I'll be back to pick you up soon."

I swallowed my anger and explained, "Sophia, I was already suffering from a stomachache, and then I got caught in the rain as well. I'm feeling really unwell right now, so I want you to take me home at once."

Sophia looked like she'd swallowed a lemon, and she tried to shove the umbrella into my hands.

"Can't you put up with it for a while longer? My colleagues are all in the car, so it'd reflect badly on me if I ask them all to get out right now."

I shook off her hands and said bluntly, "Well, that's on you for always being a people pleaser and letting so many colleagues hitch a ride with us. If you like playing chauffeur so much, why don't you go register as an Uber driver?"

I leaned in close to the back seats and told the men sitting in the car, "Sorry, but if you live further away, please get home by yourself today. I'm really not feeling well today. I'll tell Sophia to give you a lift some other day."

As soon as Leonard heard this, he yelled toward the young man in the front passenger seat, "Ian, why don't you and your friend go ahead on your own? There's a subway station just a short walk ahead. Since you're headed for Galactic Studios, Metro Line 1 is a convenient option."

The young man named Ian rolled his eyes at that before dragging his friend out of the car.

He commented snidely, "I can’t even. First insisted on offering us a ride, but now it's just one thing after another. So what if you own some crappy car? It doesn't mean you get to act all high-and-mighty, picking and choosing who you give a ride to!"

He shouted at his friend, "Let's go, Bruce! We'll just take the subway!"

Now that the front passenger seat was free, I got into the car, still cradling my stomach.

The spare towel in Sophia's car was wet from Bruce using it just now, so I had no choice but to curl up uncomfortably on the seat with my wet clothes and hair.

Sophia also got into the car wearing a stony expression.

Another familiar-looking male colleague of Sophia's said meekly from the back seat, "Sophia, I live quite far away as well. How about you drop me off at the subway station up ahead? I'll take the subway home."

Sophia floored the accelerator and said, "There's no need. I promised to send you home, and I'm not going back on my word."

I tightened my grip on my stomach, holding in my temper.

Forget it. I had a seat and wasn't getting soaked in the rain. If I got home slightly late, so be it.

Sophia glanced at me and said in displeasure, "Jonathan Graham, I'm really disappointed in your behavior today. What's wrong with me giving a few colleagues a lift along the way when it's raining this hard? Was it worth throwing such a huge tantrum and kicking people out of the car?"

I gritted my teeth in silence.

Sophia's colleagues were still in the car, so I didn't want to argue with her right now.

However, Sophia showed no signs of relenting and continued even more emphatically, "You clearly weren't like this when we first met. You were so kind and helpful back then. Why have you become so selfish?"

I frowned and cut off her rant. "Shut up! Turn right at the intersection ahead and drop me off before sending these two home."

But Sophia ignored me and continued going straight.

I frowned at her, but she kept her gaze fixed ahead.

"I'm sending Leo home first. He has a kid waiting at home for him," she declared.