Abandoned, So Freed

Synopsis

When news spread that the cold-blooded scumbag Victor Brooks had finally returned to the country, his past friend blew up his phone. His friend said, "When you abandoned Aria and chased her sister overseas, do you remember how I tried to change your mind? You said you'd handle it. Well, she ended up being drugged by her own mother, hounded by public opinion into depression and committed suicide. "Her child was born in that shattered world, listening to malicious gossip all day. Your precious sister even threw acid on Aria and destroyed her hand. You're a piece of trash. Aren't you afraid of karma? Starting today, we're ending every collaboration between us and the Brooks Group." When Victor realized his friend wasn't bluffing, his pen froze mid-stroke. He didn't react to losing thirty-billion-dollar partnership. His voice went hoarse as he said, "Did you say she was drugged?" His friend replied, "You didn't know? Back then, Aria's mother leaked the surveillance footage of her being sent to another man's bed, just to force her into submission. Your mom knew everything and stayed quiet, then smeared Aria on top of it. "It's already blown up, trending number one. Congratulations, your family's spotless reputation is finished." The call ended. Victor opened the trending page with trembling fingers. The moment he finished watching the video, his face went white as a ghost. "N-no way." His mind went blank. He swept everything off his desk in a violent crash, but even that wasn't enough. He jumped into his Maybach, slammed the accelerator, and tore straight toward Aria's pet crematorium. But when he caught sight of her through the window, wearing thick gloves, quietly stitching up a departed pet's body with practiced precision, his footsteps faltered. He had seen her hands after the acid attack, the scars lacing across her skin. At that time, she had simply smiled and said, "It's all in the past." Only now did he finally understand. In the five years he'd been gone, the girl he once adored, and whom he pushed away with his own hands, had lost everything: her marriage, her health, her career she once loved, all her pride and brilliance. Her wounds were carved so deep, she would probably never forgive him. Victor, the golden boy who'd always prided himself on being composed, collapsed in the hallway reeking of disinfectant, and cried until his voice broke.