Chapter 1 Chapter 1

I was sent flying from my electric scooter when a car rammed into me after ignoring a red light. My ears buzzed from the impact. I touched my head and saw that my hand became covered in blood. I vaguely heard passersby screaming and shouting as they circled me. Then, I passed out. Before losing consciousness, I couldn't stop thinking about the video I'd just received. It had been recorded in a dimly lit karaoke room. A group of college students were gathered there, including my boyfriend, Evan Quill. We'd known each other for ten years, and he'd always been gentle and patient with me. In the video, he was drunk. Lauren Shaw, a senior from his major, sat beside him and gently patted his back. She said, "Don't drink too much, Evan. You need to take better care of yourself." Her gaze was fixed on him, and it was filled with heartache. She leaned close to him in the dimness, but he didn't do anything to stop her. I heard someone ask, "Do you want to call your girlfriend to pick you up, Evan?" He waved a hand while holding his liquor up. He slurred, "No way in hell. She'll annoy the hell out of me if she's here. I can finally have some peace after sneaking out. I've never met anyone who annoys me more." Someone had anonymously sent the video to my inbox. I watched it several times, unable to believe that was what Evan thought of me. He and I had gotten together in high school after basically growing up together. Everyone thought we were the perfect couple. We came from similar family backgrounds. Our parents had already started discussing buying us a marital home in Haine City since there was only a year to our graduation. We would have our wedding after graduation. In the video, Lauren subtly fanned the flames. "You have to be joking. You and your girlfriend have been together for years, right? Shouldn't you guys be really in love with each other?" I saw Evan look up and snort self-deprecatingly. "Do I have the right to say anything bad about her? My parents would kill me if I were to ask for a breakup, let alone hers. "Everyone is envious of our relationship, but it feels like a ball and chain to me. Sometimes, I'm jealous of how you guys can date whoever you want in college while I'm tied down to her." My vision became blurry at this point in the video. I rubbed my eyes to find that my face was already covered in tears. I'd always thought we were a loving couple, but it turned out Evan only thought of me as a burden he couldn't be rid of. At the end of the video, a man's icy voice rang out. There was a hint of irritation in it as he said, "Tell him to shut up." I couldn't care less about that, though. I wanted to show the video to Evan and demand to know the truth. I, Giselle Rhode, was not the type to cling to someone who didn't want me. Since Evan thought I was a ball and chain, I would set him free. However, a car ignored a red light and rammed into me when I was crossing a junction. I slowly opened my eyes to be greeted by a spinning room and a splitting headache. I heard a doctor telling someone, "She's lucky that she only has minor injuries despite the car sending her flying. It's good she had a helmet on." A voice that was slightly icy but carried a hint of a tremor asked, "Why was she bleeding so much, then?" "She has a head injury, so blood is inevitable. It's not major. We've already tended to the wound, but the patient needs to be observed after she's woken up." Then, another man's voice rang out. "Thanks, doctor. When will she wake up? I have something important to attend to, so I can't hang around here all day."

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

Just then, the man noticed my eyes were open. He cried, "Doctor, she's awake!" I stared at him, unable to process anything due to my throbbing head. "Who are you?" The man's expression went from agitation to surprise. Then, a hint of something odd flitted in his eyes. "I'm Evan Quill." I thought I saw a trace of concern in his expression, but it was gone in the next second. He smiled awkwardly and backed up, pushing the man beside him toward the bed. I looked at him. His expression was slightly cold, but there was no mistaking the worry in his eyes. Evan said, "This is Nathan Lindt, your boyfriend. I'm his dormmate and your neighbor. I accompanied him here to visit you when I heard about your accident." Silence descended upon the ward. I watched as Nathan turned to look at Evan, seemingly angry about something. Evan merely prodded his arm and gave him a look. Nathan clenched a fist before releasing it again. He ignored Evan and crouched by my bedside, asking softly, "How do you feel? Does your head still hurt?" I nodded, tugging my wound in the process. The pain made me wince and bare my teeth. "Don't move!" he said anxiously. "Watch out for your wound." I blinked and asked hoarsely, "Are you my boyfriend?" A trace of hesitation flashed in Nathan's eyes as he parted his lips to answer. Before he could say anything, Evan cried, "Yes, he is! You should stay here with your girlfriend, Nate. I need to go to Lauren to help her with something urgent, so I'll catch you later." After that, he hurriedly left and shut the door, looking like there was a monster in the room. Once he was gone, Nathan turned back to me and nodded after a brief hesitation. "Yes, I'm your boyfriend.""I want some water, boyfriend," I said. Nathan looked naturally aloof. When his face was devoid of emotion, he looked cold and distant. Even his personality was on the icy side. He was surprisingly good at caring for patients, though. He helped me up and fed me some water. Then, he peeled an apple and cut it into small cubes so it was easier for me to eat. He was so considerate that even the nurse couldn't help teasing us when she made her rounds. "Your boyfriend doesn't look like the considerate type, but he's surprisingly adept at caring for you." Nathan didn't react to her compliment. Instead, he watched as I ate the apple cubes he'd just cut. The doctor mentioned that my memory loss was due to a blood clot in my brain from the accident. It wasn't too serious and would take a month at most for me to regain my memory. So far, all I knew was that Nathan and I studied at the same college and were in the same major. I couldn't help thinking there was something fishy about him being my boyfriend, though. When he and I watched a movie together in the ward, I would habitually reach for his hand or want to cuddle with him. However, the first time I leaned against his shoulder, I found him stiffening as if unused to it. I looked up to see that the tips of his ears were bright red. They almost looked like they'd been scalded. I asked, "How long have we been together, Nathan?" He seemed taken aback for a second before answering, "Three years." That only confused me more. If we'd already been together for three years, why would he still feel shy when I held his hand? A week later, Evan showed up at my ward again. The doctor had pronounced me okay to be discharged; Nathan was packing my things. He'd brought them to me on the first day of my hospitalization. When Evan entered the ward, he saw me clinging to Nathan's arm as Nathan packed. I asked, "Are we living together, Nathan? Or are we still staying at our dorms? "Do you think we should move out? We can rent a place near campus and live there together. Didn't you say a couple of days ago that you found it a little inconvenient to stay in the dorm?" Nathan looked helpless as he tried to pack while I clung to him. He said, "We can talk about that some other time." I wasn't happy about that and decided to play with him. I thought about how his ears would easily turn red, so I wrapped my arms around his neck and pecked him on the cheek. "Can we settle this in the next few days? Pretty please?" Just then, Evan barged into the ward, his expression dark as he roared, "What the hell are you guys doing?"