Chapter 3

I met Stella during our sophomore year of college.

There was no grand romance, we simply came together because we liked each other.

At our graduation party, an accident occurred.

A fire broke out backstage, engulfing the entire auditorium where Stella was performing.

I'm a stubborn person. At that moment, three firefighters couldn't hold me back as I rushed in without hesitation.

Stella was rescued, but the cost was my left leg, which was beyond saving.

Two years after my leg amputation, Stella said she wanted to marry me.

I knew clearly that she only felt guilty and wanted to make it up to me.

My disability made finding work difficult, and the art studio I opened barely brought in any income. In a state of extreme panic and helplessness, I agreed.

As Stella said, who else would want me if I left her?

Stella couldn't believe it. She grabbed my collar and demanded:

"What debt of gratitude? Kael, how dare you dismiss all these years of my love for you?"

"We've been married for ten years. Isn't that enough to prove my feelings for you?"

Like a child's lie being exposed, Stella was uncharacteristically angry and embarrassed.

She shoved me back into my wheelchair and left without looking back.This is our first fight, and it ended on a sour note.

For the next few days, Stella didn't contact me, and the divorce proceedings fell silent.

With the art exhibition approaching, my business partner took me to discuss venue arrangements with the artist we're collaborating with.

The meeting place was a coffee shop, and to my surprise, it was right next to Stella's hotel.

When the artist arrived, my partner and I were secretly shocked.

She wore a mask and a plain white T-shirt, but where her right arm should have been below the short sleeve, there was nothing.

Like me, she was a disabled artist, named Autumn.

Before coming, I had seen her paintings - gloomy yet full of narrative depth.

That's why she had chosen that obscure exhibition hall.

Perhaps due to our shared circumstances, Autumn and I hit it off immediately.

"Mr. Shaw, even though life is tough, we must keep going."

As we were about to part ways, Autumn made a gesture of encouragement with her intact left hand, which had dried green paint on it that she hadn't noticed.

Green represents hope.

Although we tactfully avoided the topic of disability, paintings don't lie - they reflect the artist's inner world.

I nodded with a smile, intending to personally see her to her car.

But before the car arrived, two familiar faces appeared before us.Stella's face darkened, her tone accusatory: "Who is she?"

At that moment, Autumn hadn't left yet, awkwardly caught between the two of us.

"A friend I'm planning to do an exhibition with."

Stella's expression remained unchanged, then Caelan chimed in with his usual tactlessness:

"Can someone without a right hand really be an artist... Oh, I'm so sorry!"

Caelan had a knack for hitting sore spots. Autumn's face turned ashen at his words, and she hurriedly said goodbye and left.

I gripped the armrests of my wheelchair tightly, looking up at my twin brother.

"Caelan, if you can't say anything nice, just shut your damn mouth!"

I understood all too well how devastating those words could be.

Caelan looked at Stella with a hurt expression, but Stella kept her eyes fixed on me, asking pointedly:

"What were you doing at a hotel with her?"

The coffee shop was newly built and wasn't on the map yet. Autumn had given the hotel address when calling a cab. Earlier, when I saw her off, it was outside the hotel entrance.

"We were just talking business. We didn't go into the hotel."

But Stella didn't believe a word of it. Her eyes flashed with anger, her tone turning icy:

"You're divorcing me for that disabled woman?"I hear the word "divorce," and Caelan's eyes light up, flashing me a disdainful smile.

"Come on, sis, don't be mad at bro. I'm sure they're just confused right now."

Caelan plops his hat directly onto my head.

Caelan affectionately tries to grab Stella's hand, but she just glares at him, putting on her boss-lady attitude, and barks:

"What's it to you that your brother and I are fighting? Get back to work!"

Caelan's face turns pale, and he storms off in anger.

"I just met her today. Divorce isn't something I'm suggesting on a whim, Stella. I hope you'll think this through carefully."

I'm eerily calm, so calm it's almost frightening.

"You want a divorce, just like that? Have you even considered how I feel?"

A tear falls from Stella's eye, landing on the back of my hand. I gently wipe away her tears and calmly ask:

"Did you consider my feelings when you slept with Caelan?"