Chapter 8- Heated Argument

A sleek black SUV pulled up in front of Cooper Mansion, its tires crunching softly against the gravel driveway. The grand estate stood tall under the dim glow of the mansion lights, its towering pillars and ornate windows giving it an air of cold sophistication.

The car door swung open as Noah stepped out first, his sharp eyes scanning the area before he extended a hand toward Silver.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Abraham asked from the driver's seat, his deep voice laced with concern.

Silver offered them both a small, tired smile.

"I'll be fine," she assured them.

Noah didn't look convinced, but he nodded. "Call us if anything happens."

Silver gave a slight nod before turning away and stepping onto the familiar front porch of the Cooper Mansion.

As soon as she walked in, the scent of expensive cologne, perfume, and burning wood from the fireplace filled her nose.

The air inside was thick with tension, but she had expected that.

Sitting in the living room were Lilly and Vicky, who had suddenly grown fond of her ever since she reclaimed her place as Queen SM.

Beside them sat Cici looking as smug as ever.

And then there was Ryder—the man she had once called her husband.

He sat comfortably on the couch, one arm lazily resting on the armrest while he swirled a glass of whiskey in his hand.

Silver didn't spare them a second glance. She was exhausted. She had spent the entire day at Silver's Fashion, handling endless meetings, press releases, and contract signings.

All she wanted was to take a long, hot shower and sleep.

But as she turned to walk upstairs, Ryder's voice sliced through the air like ice.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Silver stopped mid-step.

Her grip on her purse tightened, but she didn't turn around.

"I'm going to my room," she said evenly.

Ryder scoffed, placing his glass on the coffee table with a soft clink.

"Your room?" he repeated, mock amusement in his voice.

Cici smirked, flipping her long hair over her shoulder. "That's funny," she mused. "I thought you lived somewhere else now."

Silver ignored her, not in the mood for childish games.

Lilly and Vicky, however, shifted uncomfortably. They had grown to admire Silver, and while they still loved their brother, they knew he had wronged her.

Ryder, however, had no intention of letting her go without a fight.

He stood up, his tall figure casting a shadow over the room.

"You've been gone for two days," he said coldly. "Ignoring my calls, running around like your marriage means nothing to you—"

Silver whipped around sharply, her tiredness instantly replaced by fury.

"My marriage?" she spat, laughing bitterly. "That's what you want to talk about?"

Ryder's jaw clenched, but she didn't stop.

"You had no problem forgetting about our marriage when you were busy sleeping with her"—she threw a pointed glare at Cici—"in our bed. You had no problem humiliating me in front of the world. But now that I've finally had enough, suddenly I'm the one ruining the marriage?"

Cici's smug expression faltered, and Lilly and Vicky exchanged glances, both looking uneasy.

Ryder took a step closer, his voice dropping into a dangerous tone.

"As long as you're my wife, Silver, you will not—"

"I will not what?" Silver cut in, stepping forward to meet his glare head-on.

"I will not leave? I will not move on? I will not take back control of my own life?"

Her voice was sharp, unwavering, filled with all the anger she had bottled up for years.

Ryder's face darkened.

"You belong to me, Silver," he growled.

Silver laughed, shaking her head.

"Belong to you?" she repeated mockingly. "You don't even know what that means, Ryder."

Ryder's hands clenched into fists, but before he could speak, Lilly finally intervened.

"Brother, stop," she said softly.

Ryder's eyes flickered to his younger sister. "Lilly—"

"You hurt her," Lilly said firmly. "You broke her trust. You don't get to act like the victim now."

Vicky nodded beside her. "She's right, Ryder. You were never a good husband to her."

Ryder's face twisted in frustration, but Silver only smiled bitterly.

"See?" she said, crossing her arms. "Even they can see the truth now."

She turned to Cici, who had been silently fuming the entire time.

"You wanted him so badly," Silver said, tilting her head. "Congratulations. He's all yours now."

Cici's face turned red with anger, but Silver didn't care anymore.

She looked back at Ryder one last time.

"I wasted four years of my life on you," she said, her voice steady. "I won't waste another second."

And with that, she turned around and headed upstairs.

She reached her bedroom, quickly locking the door behind her.

Her heart pounded in her chest, but she felt lighter than she had in years.

She wasn't afraid anymore.

Silver sat on the edge of the bed, gripping the sheets tightly.

Memories flooded her mind—memories that were not entirely hers but still felt real.

She remembered how she had chased after Ryder, how she had loved him first and yet had fallen the hardest.

But Ryder?

Ryder had never loved her.

In the past, if he had chosen Cici over her, she would have screamed, cried, and even threatened to take her own life. She had begged, had pleaded, had done everything to make him see her.

And what had she gotten in return?

Nothing.

Even after marriage, he had left her on their wedding night, just because Cici had called him, complaining that she wasn't happy about the wedding.

What kind of sick joke was that?

Silver let out a harsh laugh, but it sounded more like a choked sob.

Tears blurred her vision, burning her eyes, but she didn't wipe them away.

She wasn't crying for Ryder.

She was crying for the girl who had once loved him so foolishly.

She was crying for the real Silver—the one who had been blind, naïve, and desperate for love.

She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms.

She remembered everything.

Ryder had locked her in a dark room—time and time again—just because Cici had accused her of something she didn't do.

He had told her to "reflect on her sins."

Sins?

Her only sin had been loving the wrong man.

Her only sin had been giving her heart to someone who had never deserved it.

And he never would.

Tears streamed down her face, falling onto her hands, onto the sheets, onto the floor.

She didn't even bother wiping them away.

She let them fall.

Because this was the last time she would ever cry for Ryder.

The last time she would ever waste another second on him.

She wasn't the same Silver anymore.

She had transmigrated into this body for a reason.

To change everything.

To fix the stupid decisions the real Silver had made.

She had read it all in the comic before she had woken up in this body.

And now, she wasn't going to repeat the same mistakes.

Suddenly, she let out a sharp scream, her hands clutching her head as if she could shake off the memories.

She wasn't that girl anymore.

She wasn't pathetic anymore.

She wasn't Ryder's fool anymore.

She stood up suddenly, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

And then—she started yelling at the real Silver.

"Why the hell did you love him so much?!" she shouted at the empty room, her voice shaking with fury.

"Why did you let him treat you like trash?! Why did you let him break you over and over again?!"

She grabbed a vase from the nightstand and threw it across the room, watching as it shattered into tiny pieces.

"You let him lock you in a dark room! You let him abandon you on your wedding night! You let him cheat on you in your own home! What were you thinking?!"

Her chest burned with emotions she couldn't contain.

She felt anger, pain, betrayal—but most of all, she felt disgust.

Not at Ryder.

At herself.

At the past Silver.

At the girl who had wasted years chasing after a man who had never even glanced at her properly.

She took a deep breath, wiping her tears away aggressively.

"No more," she whispered.

No more pain.

No more tears.

No more Ryder.

She grabbed her suitcase and began throwing clothes inside.

She wasn't going to spend another second in this house.

She was leaving.

And this time—

She was never coming back.