Chapter 17: First Heartbreak

Chapter 17: First Heartbreak

Hoang Anh's new girlfriend clung to his arm like a fragile little bunny.

Kieu Ly's eyes darkened. Her throat went dry. She wanted to scream, to curse—but no words came out. It took all her strength just to hold back the tears. She refused to appear weak in front of this person. Taking a deep breath, she forced a voice out of her constricted throat:

"So we broke up just yesterday, and today you already have a new girlfriend? How long have you been cheating on me?"

Hoang Anh replied coldly:

"Just about half a year. I couldn't stand having a girlfriend who was so obsessed with 'saving herself.' She—she's different. She can call me 'babe' in the sweetest voice, and moan seductively too. Don't blame anyone. Blame yourself."

Kieu Ly couldn't believe what she was hearing. The person she once loved had just said something so vile, so disgusting. She had never wronged him—she just hadn't given him what he wanted. But he was cruel, too cruel.

Without thinking, she stepped forward and slapped him hard across his beautiful, smug face.

"I didn't give myself to you," she said, "because you were never worthy."

Then she turned and walked away.

But the moment she left his house, the tears finally came.

That day, Kieu Ly locked herself in her room and cried like a storm. She didn't understand what she had done wrong. Was she really too cold, too rigid, too traditional? Had that been the reason he got bored and left?

Her mother, worried sick after Kieu Ly stopped eating and drinking, stood outside her locked door calling her name again and again—but got no answer. Finally, she messaged Huong Tra and asked her to come over and comfort her daughter.

Huong Tra had once admired their love—such a perfect couple, smart and good-looking. Even though Hoang Anh had "stolen" her best friend, she had willingly supported their relationship. In her eyes, he had all the qualities to make Kieu Ly happy.

Now, she saw what he truly was: a worthless, heartless jerk.

Huong Tra pulled Kieu Ly into a hug and whispered:

"Cry it out. I'm here. Only women can truly bring each other happiness anyway."

Even though she knew that crying over someone like that wasn't worth it, Kieu Ly still spent the whole Lunar New Year hiding at home. Sometimes she'd lock herself in her room just to cry.

She dug through all the things he'd given her and threw them away. She opened her phone and deleted every single photo of him. She unfriended him on Facebook, removed their "in a relationship" status, and deleted every shared memory. She even took off the keychain he had clipped onto her backpack.

And she cried the entire time—slowly, carefully doing each thing, like burying her first love with her own bare hands.