Chapter 3

The next day, Sarah assumed I was the one who had woken up early, and didn't suspect anything.

Because of my artificial kidney, I could only eat soft, mushy food.

Sarah would prepare nutritious porridge for me every day, constantly coming up with new variations.

In the past, I was always touched by this, but now I had no appetite at all.

"Chris, why aren't you eating? Don't you like it? Let me make you another batch," Sarah said with concern, seeing that I hadn't taken a single bite.

I touched the divorce papers in my pocket and spoke flatly:

"Sarah, we..."

Before I could finish, her phone rang.

Sarah only glanced at it once, but her eyes immediately filled with tenderness. She quickly answered:

"Hello? Mm-hmm... How could I forget? Everything's already arranged. See you soon."

She looked at me apologetically and said:

"Chris, there's an urgent matter at the company. I need to rush over there. I'll probably be busy until very late. If there's anything you want to say, let's talk when I get back."

With that, she grabbed her coat and left.

As evening approached, I suddenly received a text from an unknown number:

"Chris, it's Vivienne. My phone's dead. Come quickly to the Crown Hotel. I've prepared a surprise for you."

Looking at the date, I suddenly realized - today was my birthday.Just as I had planned, I was about to go find her anyway. After all, our conversation from this morning wasn't finished.

As soon as I reached the hotel entrance, I overheard two staff members chatting, their voices brimming with envy:

"Man, Ms. Winters really spoils her husband, doesn't she? She filled the entire penthouse with roses. I heard they're some rare variety from overseas, flown in on over a dozen private jets, just because roses are his favorite flower."

"That's nothing. Did you see that watch Ms. Winters just gave her husband? You could buy a small country with it! I heard it was a special welcome home gift she got for him. I'm so jealous!"

Suddenly, it all made sense to me. This was why Sarah never gave me roses, not even for the proposal – she used sunflowers instead.

All those times I mentioned wanting a rose, she'd say they were too flamboyant, not suited for me.

In reality, it was because Kellan liked them, and she thought I wasn't worthy.

When I walked into the grand ballroom, I caught sight of Sarah helping Kellan put on his watch, planting a soft kiss on his cheek.

The two of them stood amidst a sea of red roses, looking like a perfect pair.Kellan spotted me on the stage but pretended not to know me, frowning as he said:

"What's wrong with this hotel's security? How did they let a beggar in here? Get out immediately, don't dirty the welcome party Vivienne prepared for me!"

Everyone's eyes turned to me, either mocking or disgusted, as if looking at trash.

Someone recognized me and said in a snarky tone:

"Isn't this Ms. Winters' good-for-nothing husband? I heard he lost both his kidneys and just leeches off Ms. Winters, waiting to die. If you ask me, he might as well end it all now. Why burden others?"

"Look at how pathetic he is, not even half as noble as Kellan. Who knows what underhanded tricks he used to force Ms. Winters to marry him. Looking like that, he should just hide at home instead of coming out to embarrass Ms. Winters."

Because I lost both kidneys, my complexion was always sickly.

"I heard kidneys are for filtering waste from the body. If he's lost both, isn't his stomach full of shit? No wonder he reeks of feces, ugh..."

Laughter erupted all around.Sarah finally spotted me and hurried over, looking embarrassed:

"Chris, what are you doing here? Don't get the wrong idea, Kellan's just coming back to the country today, I only wanted to welcome him home..."

Kellan put his arm around her shoulders and greeted me with a smile:

"Oh, it's you, Chris? Blame Vivienne for this, she insisted on putting up those fancy crystal chandeliers, said it would highlight how handsome I am. It's dazzling in here - I thought some beggar had wandered in. Don't be mad, alright?"

I ignored his sarcastic tone and looked at Sarah: "Sarah, do you remember it's my birthday today?"