Chapter 2
Later, Hugo helped me expose the bullies and made sure they got punished, then showed me how to stand up for myself.
With the money I made from my part-time job, I took him out for some street food. Fueled by liquid courage, I reached out and grabbed his hand.
"I believe you'll become the most amazing lawyer someday," I said.
Hugo paused, his eyes reddening with emotion, then knocked back another drink.
I followed him around for four years, but I never dared to tell him how I really felt.
After graduation, my family kept pushing me to go back home for blind dates and get married.
At the train station, Hugo suddenly hugged me tight.
"Nancy, stay here with me, okay? Be my girlfriend," he said.
In that moment, the station's final boarding call echoed through the air, my heart thundering in my chest.
From then on, I left behind the safe, comfortable life back home and crammed into a tiny hundred-square-feet apartment with him.
When we were at our poorest, all we could afford was discounted canned food.
Every single time, he'd put the best portion on my plate.
"Nancy, you're still growing. You need to eat more. I'm not hungry," he'd say.
To make more money, he worked three jobs a day, even drank himself into a hospital with a bleeding ulcer.
I rushed to the hospital, crying and yelling at him.
"Hugo, you're such a fool!" I shouted. "I don't need you to buy me a big house. I only want you to be healthy and safe.
"If you ask me to marry you, I'll say yes right away. Even if we spend our whole lives in a tiny rental, I'd still be happy, as long as we're together."
But Hugo said, "Nancy, I don't want you to settle for less or struggle because of me. I can't let you go through all this with me. Once I've made it, I promise I'll give you the wedding you truly deserve."
Hugo followed through on his promises.
By our third year in Rosenfield, he'd made partner at one of the top law firms and his career was really taking off.
We finally left that tiny hundred-square-feet basement and moved into a big, open-plan apartment.
When the law firm opened, he got down on one knee and proposed to me in front of the whole crowd.
"Nancy, will you marry me?" he asked.
Yet now, the man who swore I'd always come first with him seemed to be in love with someone else.
The anesthesia had worn off.
A persistent, almost overwhelming pain filled my lower abdomen.
It kept reminding me that a tiny life was growing inside me.
It was the embodiment of our love.
I hesitated for ages, hands shaking, before finally pulling up Hugo's chat window.
I told myself I'd give him, and the two of us, one last chance.
I kept typing and deleting in the text box.
In the end, I deleted all the doubts and complaints.
Only one line was left.
It read: [Where are you?]
The next second, a special notification sound went off.
Hugo had set it up especially for me.
He made sure he'd never miss a message from me.
Hugo picked up his phone.
He glanced at the screen, then brought it to his ear.
He said, "Honey, I'm still tied up with a case. I'll be back in a couple of days.
"Be good and eat well. I'll go with you to your prenatal checkup when I get back."
His voice was as gentle as ever.
Hugo had such a soothing voice, the kind one could listen to for hours.
Back when I had trouble sleeping, I loved how he'd talk me to sleep.
But now, he was using that same gentle voice to lie to me, all because of Paige.
I was stunned, frozen in place.
I stared at my phone, never replying, even as the screen faded to black.
If it were the old days, Hugo would've already video called me.
He'd keep asking over and over if I was mad or hurt, and wouldn't stop until I was happy again.
But now, Hugo casually put down his phone and passed a bowl of oatmeal to Paige.
Paige took it, gave it a few tentative sips, then set it aside.
She hesitated, her voice gentle but tinged with uncertainty, "Are you guys having a baby?"
Hugo stayed silent.
He simply pressed the spoon back into her hand.
"Eat your oatmeal and then lie down to rest," he told her. "Paige, you're not a kid anymore. Don't throw a tantrum."
Paige lifted her chin stubbornly, tears shimmering in her eyes. She looked both wronged and defiant.
"If being here with me is such a burden, why don't you go back to her?" she shot back.
Hugo's face was grim, his jaw clenched tight.
In the struggle, the oatmeal spilled across the table.
Hugo immediately reached out, shielding her with his body.
It was so smooth and natural, like he'd done it a thousand times before.
Paige took his scalded hand and anxiously blew on it.
"I'm sorry," she said.
Her eyes reddened, and tears dropped onto the back of his hand.
Hugo instantly pulled his hand back, as if he'd been burned again.
"Why are you crying? I'm the one who got burned, not you," he said. "Don't think a few tears will make me forget everything that happened before.
"Paige, I'm not someone who simply forgets the pain once the wounds have healed.
"I told you back when we broke up that if you walked out, don't ever come back. I'm never going to let you trample on my heart a second time."
When I saw Hugo lose control, he felt like a total stranger to me.
After all, whenever he was with me, he was always the picture of maturity and composure.
Even when he was up against the toughest cases, he always handled them with calm confidence.
Paige was still crying.
But her sobs grew softer and softer.
Hugo picked up his coat and got up in silence.
I remembered how we used to fight and give each other the silent treatment.
He always insisted on debating everything logically, had to prove he was right every time, but never bothered to make me feel better.