Chapter 4

Every word was sincere, earnest, and deeply felt.

Luna almost believed him.

But the moment she thought of the videos she had seen that morning, she only felt irony.

His love for her wasn't fake, but why, then, could he do something so damaging to her?

She shed tears, burying half her face in the pillow. Her consciousness grew increasingly blurred until, without knowing it, she drifted off to sleep.

When she woke again, it was midnight.

Luna felt around the side of the bed and found it empty. She paused, then picked up a glass and prepared to go downstairs for water.

But the moment she left the bedroom, she heard creaking sounds coming from next door.

The study door was left ajar. She walked over with light footsteps and saw the two of them entangled on the desk.

Sienna’s skin looked as white as snow under the lamplight. She was flushed, panting, her fingers clawing at the tabletop.

"Caleb, isn't... isn't Sister Luna in pain from her period? Why aren't you with her, and instead coming here to toy with me..."

"Shut up!"

Caleb deliberately lowered his voice, but his movements underneath did not stop.

This unexpected scene felt like a heavy weight crashing into her chest, turning every breath into an agonizing, heart-rending pain.

Was he really that unable to control himself, having to be with Sienna... at every single moment?

She looked away, lost all desire for water, and stumbled back to her room.

Half an hour later, the bedroom door was pushed open.

A freshly showered Caleb lay beside her, reaching out to pull her into his arms again.

"Luna, be good, honey is here. You're not in pain anymore."

Luna did not answer him.

She closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep.

But tears traced their way down her cheeks, dampening her temples.

The man behind her, believing her to be asleep, continued to gently rub her stomach.

Feeling the searing heat radiating from his fingertips, it felt as though the strength in her body had been drained, leaving only endless suffering.

She began to count down in her mind, over and over again.

Thirteen days left.

Just endure it, Luna. Only thirteen days, and you will have nothing more to do with this man.

During the days of Luna's period, Caleb turned down all his work, staying home to be with her.

Only when she slowly began to recover did he reluctantly let her go to handle the backlog of work at the company.

As soon as he left, Luna took her documents and went to the police station to register for the cancellation of her household record.

The staff member was surprised. "Miss, only those who have passed away can handle this business."

Luna nodded. "I will be completely departing from this world in ten days. Please, help me process it in advance."

Thinking she had terminal cancer, the staff member looked at her with pity, but ultimately processed the request.

Holding the stamped documents, Luna breathed a sigh of relief, wearing a smile of liberation.

Soon, there would be no one named Luna in this world.

And Caleb would never be able to find Luna again!

She strolled slowly along the road back home until, halfway there, she passed her high school. Seeing the yellowing walls, she stiffened but still walked inside.

Once inside, a wave of memories from her youth flooded back.

The track where he had grabbed her hand and ran eight hundred meters, the library where he had stolen a kiss while she was sleeping, the classroom window where he used to deliver snacks...

Every step she took, Luna recalled countless memories associated with Caleb.

Finally, she stopped beside a large tree in the garden.

Looking at the pine tree, which had once reached only her shoulder but had now grown to be lush and towering, Luna’s eyes gradually grew damp.

On her sixteenth birthday, Caleb had pulled the main power switch in the teaching building just to surprise her, then snuck her out.

He brought her beneath this tree, gave her a birthday gift, presented her with her favorite roses, sang her a birthday song, and finally, with great solemnity, buried a letter beneath the roots.

She had wanted to see the contents of the letter back then, but he had just laughed and rubbed his nose against hers.

"Luna, it's a secret."

"When we’re both eighty, with white hair, I’ll bring you back here to read this letter with me, okay?"

Back then, no one could have guessed.

They would never be able to grow old together in this lifetime.

Luna crouched down and used a stone to dig away the dirt bit by bit.

After digging for over ten minutes, she unearthed a sealed glass bottle.

The ink on the paper had faded, but it was still possible to recognize Caleb’s handwriting.

"To the eighty-year-old Caleb, hello. I am the seventeen-year-old Caleb."

"By the time you read this, you must be with Luna, right? Are there grandchildren around you? I am so glad that from seventeen to eighty, you loved her for so many, many years, and kept to your original vow, guarding her for so long. This is my lifelong wish, and I am so happy you managed it. They say a sincere heart is ever-changing, but Caleb loves Luna, and it will never change."

"Please tell Luna that this life is not the end. In the next life, the life after that, and the one after that... I want to be with Luna. Caleb and Luna—we will love each other for a long, long time."

Luna read the densely written page line by line. Looking at all this overflowing devotion, her eyes grew damp, and her heart ached terribly.

Suddenly, her phone rang in her pocket.

It was a call from Sienna.

She didn't want to answer and pressed "decline," but the other party was persistent, calling again and again.

She already anticipated what was coming, so with trembling fingers, she pressed "answer."

Sure enough, the sound of heavy impact blared through the speaker immediately.

"Mmh... Caleb, didn't you say you didn't love me? Why are you so impatient to pin me down again?"

Caleb did not answer her.

There was only the sound of breathing, suppressed to the absolute limit.

Sienna, unwilling to stop, clung to him, demanding an explanation.

"You just can't bear to lose my body, right?"

"I understand your desires better than Sister Luna, don't I?"

"You can't live without me, can you? You’re obsessed with me, unable to stand even one day without sleeping with me, right?"

Sentence after sentence forced Caleb into a corner from which he could not retreat, until he finally gave her the answer.

"Yes! I am addicted to you!"

Chapter 5

The moment the words fell, the call was cut off.

Looking at the darkening screen, Luna’s hand, clutching the letter, trembled slightly.

Suddenly, through her tear-blurred vision, she felt as though she saw seventeen-year-old Caleb.

The boy, dressed in a blue-and-white school uniform, stood beneath the phoenix tree, looking bright and noble. His eyes were red-rimmed as he looked at her with heartache, repeating something over and over again.

Tears blurred her vision; she couldn't see clearly.

Only by reading his lips, confirming time and time again, did she finally understand the sentence he had wanted to tell her.

"Luna, do not forgive."

"Do not forgive him."

In that moment, every emotion seemed to collapse instantly. A sharp, stinging pain pierced her heart, forcing her to gasp for air as she curled her body in agony.

Finally, unable to hold it in any longer, she clutched the letter and crouched on the ground, weeping.

Fine.

Caleb.

I will not forgive.

I will never forgive.

For several days in a row, Caleb did not return.

Until the day of their fourth wedding anniversary.

As soon as Luna woke up, she saw the evening gown and jewelry Caleb had prepared for her.

The secretary waiting to the side bowed slightly, her tone filled with deference.

"Madam, Mr. Caleb has been preparing for the celebration banquet these past few days. Please, you must attend tonight."

Luna listened quietly, without uttering a word.

Were these three days of disappearance spent preparing a surprise for their anniversary?

Or were they spent entangled in someone else's bed?

She didn't know, and she didn't want to ask.

By nightfall, Luna put on the attire he had prepared and followed the secretary to the banquet venue.

Caleb was already waiting at the entrance. The moment he saw her, he took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

He hurried her toward the main hall, not even pausing to entertain the guests nearby, drawing sighs of envy from his brothers.

"The moment his wife arrives, he has eyes for no one else. Look at this hopeless romantic!"

"He treats every anniversary like it's a wedding. Caleb, you spoil your wife so much, you’re making us look bad!"