Love at Sunset

On the eve of our wedding, my fianc took his young assistant on a trip.

That night, he posted a photo on Instagram.

The two of them were kissing in the desert under the glow of the twilight.

The caption read: Love at Sunset.

I silently liked the post and left a comment with my blessings.

Soon after, my phone rang. Silas's voice was full of accusation.

"We're about to get married, Aria. What are you throwing a tantrum for now? Do you have any idea how much your comment is hurting Valerie?!"

Through the receiver, I could hear the assistant sobbing pitifully.

Before I could even open my mouth, he hung up.

Moments later, he posted again. This time, it was a photo of their fingers tightly intertwined.

I knew he was doing it just to spite me.

But the truth was, I didn't care anymore.

...

Late at night, Silas arrived home right after I did.

"Aria, open the door!"

His knocking was urgent, laced with a hint of impatience.

We had been together for five years, and he always addressed me by my full name.

I used to pick fights with him over that.

But he never changed.

He claimed those cheesy nicknames were too childish.

Yet, I had clearly heard him calling his assistant, Valerie, "baby."

He didn't find nicknames childish; he just didn't love me.

I opened the door, and his annoyed face immediately pushed into view.

"Still sulking?"

Silas pulled a gift box from his pocket and tossed it into my arms.

"After I went through the trouble of getting you a gift, you're still acting like this..."

Even though he muttered the last part, I heard it clearly.

He thought I was being ungrateful.

I opened the box. Inside was a gold necklace that was already looking a bit tarnished.

Comparing it to the expensive emerald pendant he had bought for Valerie earlier, the difference was laughable.

He really did dote on that little assistant.

"I bought that specifically for you at the tourist park," Silas said.

He looked proud, as if buying a fake gold chain at a tourist trap was something worth praising.

When we first started dating, he promised that once he made money, he'd buy me a full set of real gold jewelry.

Back then, his business was just starting out. I didn't want him to be under too much pressure, so I politely declined.

I never expected that years later, he would try to brush me off with something so obviously fake.

Since he didn't get the reaction he wanted, Silas grew irritated.

"Are you done yet? Why are you being so petty toward a young girl?!"

"I haven't even settled the score with you. Do you know how much trouble your comment caused Valerie yesterday?"

"What is everyone at the office going to think of her?!"

"Go apologize to her later, and we'll call it even."

I kept a blank face, acting as if I hadn't heard a word.

Silas took my silence as agreement and nodded with satisfaction.

"That's more like it. Be a good girl. I'm exhausted after being out so long. Go draw a bath for me."

He walked into the room, kicked off his shoes, and sat on the sofa.

The water pitcher was right in front of him, yet he naturally ordered, "Get me a glass of water first."

"By the way, I heard the watermelon is pretty good lately. Go downstairs and grab some in a bit, and also..."

I cut him off immediately.

"I have plans with a friend. I'm heading out now. Go buy it yourself."

I grabbed my coat and turned to leave.

Silas frowned, his eyes filled with disbelief.

In his memory, I used to jump to do whatever he asked, no matter what it was.

Hearing a rejection from me for the first time made him extremely uncomfortable.

Before he could react, I had already put on my shoes and opened the door.

"Where are you going? Didn't I tell you not to go out at night?!"

I didn't look back. I just shut the door.

2.

The night in Chicago was a blur of neon lights and heavy traffic.

The city felt more alive now than it did during the day.

It was my first time realizing how vibrant the nightlife here actually was.

In the past, Silas told me he wanted to be the breadwinner while I stayed home.

So, I gave up my career to handle every little detail of our household.

Looking back, that was such a stupid decision.

For the sake of love, I threw away my freedom and lost myself.

When my best friend, Chloe, heard I was out past ten, her jaw nearly hit the floor.

"No way. You're asking me to go for drinks?"

"Aria, do you have a fever or something?"

My voice was flat. "I'm breaking up with him."

The other end of the line went silent for a few seconds. Then Chloe spoke again. "Send me your location. I'm coming to get you."

At the bar, after Chloe confirmed several times that I was actually leaving Silas, she looked shocked.

"Why so sudden? I thought you two were doing great."

I took a sip of my drink, the bitterness spreading from my tongue to my heart.

For some reason, I just felt exhausted.

Yeah, why was it so sudden?

I wanted to ask Silas the same thing.

But I couldn't say it. I knew deep down it wasn't a sudden departure.

It was a slow fade. Like a ripple in a pond, he had been drifting away from me for a long time.

Seeing my silence, Chloe didn't push. She just pulled me into a hug.

"It's okay, girl. You've still got me."

"Tonight, we drink until we drop."

We went round after round.

Neither of us mentioned Silas's name again.

We just reminisced about things that happened a long time ago.

By the end, I didn't even remember how we got home.

The next morning, I woke up in Chloe's guest bed.

I checked my phone and saw over a hundred missed calls and texts.

They were all from Silas.

At first, he was just asking where I was. When I didn't reply, his messages became sharper and more impatient.

"Where the hell are you?! I'm telling you, my patience is wearing thin!"

"I already told you Valerie was just joking. Have you had enough yet?!"

"If you're not home by midnight, don't bother coming back!"

That was the last message.

I stared at the word "home," feeling absolutely nothing.

Home?

Could that place even be called a home?

To me, that cold, loveless space was nothing more than a temporary shelter.

It had nothing to do with the word "home."

3.

I stayed at Chloe's until the afternoon. Then I went back to the house I'd lived in for four years to pack my things.

Since I was done, there was no point in dragging this out.

Even though I hadn't worked a corporate job in years, I'd been doing freelance design work online.

I had enough saved up to rent a place of my own.

Silas should have been at the office at this time.

But as soon as I walked in, I saw him sitting on the sofa.

"So you finally decided to show up?!"

Silas let out a cold snort, his face full of resentment and blame.

"We're getting married soon. What are you acting up for?!"

"Valerie and I just went on a trip. Nothing happened. Besides, if you weren't so boring, why would I choose to go with her instead of you?"

He coldly vented his frustrations.

He even shoved all the responsibility onto my shoulders.

But I didn't even have the energy to argue.

"Okay."

I didn't know what else to say.

I just knew that he couldn't give me what I wanted.

"What kind of attitude is that?!"

Silas grew even angrier.

"Who are you giving that face to?! I'm the CEO of a company, and I'm ignoring my work just to sit here and coddle you. Isn't that enough?!"

He took a deep breath and rubbed his temples impatiently.

"I won't make it hard on you. Just apologize to Valerie, and we'll move forward with the wedding as planned."

He beckoned me over. I never noticed it before, but now that gesture looked exactly like someone calling a dog.

I ignored him and walked straight into the bedroom.

He still didn't get it.

But it didn't matter.

I was already done.

Silas shouted from the living room, his voice full of rage.

"Aria! Are you finished?! Are you trying to force me to get angry?!"

I didn't reply. He eventually slammed the door and left.

Silas never had much patience for me.

Once he was gone, I finished packing and called a moving service. I moved into a new apartment that same day.

It was just a small one-bedroom place, but the sense of belonging I felt was far greater than in the house I'd shared with him.

This place was mine. I paid for it with my own money.

That night, I lay on my new bed and slept peacefully for the first time in years.

...

The next day, I started looking for a job.

Even though I hadn't been officially employed, I had handled most of the administrative work for Silas's company.

When we first met, I was a top student at my university. I wasn't just one in a million, but I was definitely elite.

My professors thought I had a brilliant future ahead of me.

They said with a few years of hard work, making six figures would be easy.

Unfortunately, because Silas said he'd worry about me, I turned down a job at a top firm. I chose to work at his startup instead.

Once the company was stable, Silas asked me to become a housewife.

I never thought it would lead to this.

"Aria, there's no need to hunt for jobs everywhere. You can come help me."

Chloe burst into my apartment the moment she heard I was job hunting.

"We don't need those trashy men to survive."

Back when we graduated, she had offered me a spot at her family's company.

But back then, my head was so full of Silas that I rejected her without a second thought.

"If you're failing at love, you might as well win at your career, right? Cheer up, babe."

Chloe quickly arranged a position for me.

"This project is based in your hometown. Think of it as going home for a visit while keeping an eye on things for me. What do you think?"

I agreed without hesitation.

"Sure. No problem."

4.

Before I left, Chloe organized a dinner with some old friends.

It was supposed to be my farewell party.

I didn't expect to run into Silas at the event.

When he saw me, a flash of surprise crossed his eyes. Valerie, standing next to him, seemed to sense a threat immediately.

She grabbed Silas's hand.

They stood there with their fingers locked. Valerie gave me a provocative look, clearly marking her territory.

If this were the old me, I would have been jealous and angry. I might have caused a scene regardless of the setting.

But now, I just gave them a brief glance and went back to laughing with the people around me.

I thought letting go of a five-year relationship would be hard.

But after living on my own for a week, I realized I had changed.

Without having to worry about Silas's feelings, I felt alive again.

In this new air of freedom, it was like I had been reborn.

It was better this wayDstaying out of each other's lives.

But Silas didn't seem to share that sentiment.

"Aria! What are you doing here?!"

Silas marched over, his face twisted with annoyance.

Before I could speak, he grabbed my wrist.

"I'm ordering you to come home with me right now!"

I looked at him calmly. Under his furious gaze, I slowly peeled his fingers off my arm one by one and stepped back.

In truth, I wasn't entirely calm inside.

After all, this was a man I had loved for five years.

Seeing this, the jealousy in Valerie's eyes became almost physical.

She rushed forward and grabbed Silas's arm with a pathetic, wounded expression.

"Silas, is Aria mad at me? Look, I'll apologize, okay? I'll make sure to keep my distance from you from now on. Aria, please don't be mad at him."

Her manipulative "pick-me" act made me want to gag as I studied the woman who stole Silas's heart.

I had to admit, Silas had good taste.

Valerie was young, beautiful, and had that youthful glow.

She had a great bodyDcurves in all the right places. She was the type that most guys would chase after.

Before I could respond, Silas let out a disdainful snort.

"Why are you apologizing to her? You didn't do anything wrong!"

I had zero interest in their conversation.

From the beginning, whenever Valerie and I had a conflict, Silas always chose her without hesitation.

His heart had changed long ago.

And I had long since gotten used to it.

Silas continued to drone on.

"Look at Valerie. Even though she's younger, she's so much more sensible than you."

"Move back in before tonight. I've already forgiven you, and Valerie doesn't hold a grudge. Stop this nonsense."

When he faced me, he was as arrogant as ever.

To him, I was nothing more than a submissive maid.

"I'm not going back."

I refused him flatly.

There was nothing left for me in that house.

Besides, I was leaving the city soon. There was no point in getting tangled up with someone from my past.

Without me in the way, he could finally be with Valerie openly.

That should have been exactly what he wanted.

"Why? Just because I took Valerie on a trip?"

Silas's tone turned sharp.

"I told you, it was a normal business trip. Aria, get it through your head. I'm your fianc, not your pet."

"Aria, please don't be mad," Valerie added, looking victimized.

"I know this is all my fault. If you're going to keep fighting with Silas because of me, I'll quit my job tomorrow."

Silas squeezed her hand tenderly, his voice full of warmth.

"No way. Even if you quit, I won't accept it. This woman just has a massive need for control. You don't need to suffer because of her."

I sighed and turned to walk away.

Silas was like thisDhe never thought he was wrong.

And he would never, ever bow his head to me.

But it didn't matter.

I didn't care.