Chapter 2

I remained silent, my eyes fixed on Rachel.

This was the woman I'd loved for three years.

I used to think that even if Rachel didn't love me enough, my love for her would be sufficient.

Or maybe one day she'd be moved by me?

But everything was mocking me for being too naive.

"It didn't turn out well today. I drank it all myself."

I smiled and picked up the lightest bag, quickly heading out of the hospital room.

"Let's pack up and go home."

I didn't want to carry all the luggage like a servant anymore, as I always had.

The atmosphere was cold the whole way home. Rachel was still mad at me.

But I had no intention of coaxing her. I also needed time to process my own emotions.

As soon as we got home, Rachel's other friend Madison came over too.

She was holding a cat in her arms, bursting through the door with a grin.

I've been allergic to cat fur since childhood. I backed away in alarm, covering my nose.

"Rachel, didn't you tell them I'm allergic to cats?!"

I frowned, staring intently at the Ragdoll cat in Madison's arms, not daring to let my guard down for a moment.

When I was little, I accidentally held a neighbor's cat and ended up in the hospital for a whole week.

Before Rachel could speak, Madison rolled her eyes at me.

"This is Connor's Ragdoll. He bought it abroad—super expensive. I begged him forever before he let me bring it over to play with for a few days."

"Adrian, don't be so difficult."

Rachel had long been dissatisfied with my attitude, feeling I'd made her lose face in front of her friends. Now she finally found an opportunity to vent.

Her expression was icy.

"It's just a cat. Is it going to kill you?"

She stopped hiding her disgust for me, even taking the cat from Madison's hands and pushing it toward me.

"I'm going to fix this allergy of yours. What’s the big deal about one cat?"

Rachel knew exactly how severe my allergic reactions were, but at this moment, she still didn't take me seriously.

I dodged while Rachel closed in.

The Ragdoll was being squeezed painfully by the neck and shrieked, lunging at me out of control.

Even though I reacted immediately, the cat's claws still left a mark on my neck, and I got a mouthful of cat fur.

Half a minute later, I started having difficulty breathing. My heart raced and cold sweat poured from my body.

"Quick… call an ambulance."

Rachel sneered:

"Adrian, stop pretending."

It was Madison who noticed my face getting paler and paler and spoke up:

"Rachel, Adrian doesn't look like he's faking. We should call for help!"

In the moment of hesitation, I collapsed heavily to the floor.

Before losing consciousness, I saw Rachel's panicked expression as she and Madison and Vivian fought over who would call the ambulance.

When I woke up, I was alone in the hospital room. The room was pitch dark.

Because of their so-called "fun," I'd nearly gone into shock and been sent to the hospital.

And now not one of them was by my side.

A nurse came in and turned on the light, helping me change the IV drip.

"Your allergic reaction to cat fur is extremely severe. You absolutely cannot come into contact with cats again."

I smiled bitterly and asked:

"Nurse, when did the people who brought me in leave?"

"Those three girls?"

The nurse frowned.

"They left after seeing you weren't in danger."

Her expression was somewhat incredulous:

"Weren't they just passersby?"

I forced a smile:

"One of them is my girlfriend."

"Well, not for much longer."

I opened my phone to find a message from Rachel on social media.

[We went to dinner. If you're okay, just head home yourself.]

Madison had posted something twenty minutes ago.

[Old friends reunited—so happy!]

The photo showed the four of them, with Rachel looking at the man beside her with tender eyes.

She and Connor seemed deeply in love, their gazes filled with barely concealed affection.

Looking at that photo, I finally couldn't hold back my tears. The pain in my heart was suffocating.

At this point, I had no reason to keep deceiving myself.

Rachel's true feelings were for Connor.

To her, if Connor was willing to come back to her side, I would lose all value.