He threw the torn stockings at me.

“I have a girlfriend now, take your things away so she won’t get jealous.”

I was taken aback. “You have a girlfriend, why did you still call me over?”

He smiled provocatively. “She’s so cute, I can’t bear to touch her.”

01

When I woke up on Justin’s bed, the sun was already shining brightly.

I got up to get dressed, and the soreness all over my body made me stiff.

My clothes were still intact, but the stockings I wore last night were torn beyond recognition and couldn’t be worn anymore.

I was about to leave when Justin picked up the stockings, balled them up, and tossed them back.

“Take your things with you.”

I didn’t pay attention. “Didn’t you leave them here before? Just throw them away with the others.”

He sat up bare-chested, acting nonchalant. “I have a girlfriend now, don’t let her see them, or she’ll get jealous.”

I froze.

A few seconds later, holding the tattered stockings, I opened my mouth, “You have a girlfriend, why did you still call me over?”

Justin laughed, the morning light shining on his profile.

He raised an eyebrow, a hint of playful arrogance in his expression. “She’s too gentle. “I can’t bear to touch her.”

While I was still in a daze, he hugged me from behind, his voice still husky from unsatisfied desire. “Will you come find me again tomorrow?”

02

That same evening, Justin announced to his friends that he had a girlfriend.

During the dinner, he smiled with his eyes crinkling as he held the girl in a white spaghetti-strap dress in his arms and shouted, “From now on, this is your sister-in-law, Olivia!”

The atmosphere in the room was momentarily awkward, and I could feel everyone’s gazes on me.

Over the years, everyone had seen how close Justin and I were.

He had gone through countless women, but I had always been by his side.

Even I thought that sooner or later, when he settled down, he would come back to me. But now he has another girlfriend.

After a moment, everyone started making a commotion.

“Olivia is so pretty, Justin, you’re so lucky!”

“Where did you find such a beautiful girl, Justin? You weren’t fair, hiding her from us all this time.”

“Olivia looks like a gentle person, you better behave and don’t scare her away!”

The girl by Justin’s side blushed, resignedly letting him hold her. In my opinion, she wasn’t very beautiful.

Compared to Justin’s model ex-girlfriends, who were often 175cm tall with a 36D chest, she could at best be considered a delicate beauty, just pretty.

However, she had a purity that his previous girlfriends lacked. Huddled in Justin’s embrace, she looked like a scared rabbit. She was indeed gentle.

A sourness mixed with a fine ache welled up in my heart.

No wonder he said he couldn’t bear to touch her.

Justin seemed genuinely happy.

After a few rounds of drinking, he held a glass in front of me.

“Sophia, shouldn’t you toast your Olivia?”

I had just had an endoscopy and found out I had gastritis; the doctor said I needed to avoid spicy food and alcohol.

I forced a smile and picked up the teacup on the table.

“Sorry, Olivia, I’ve had gastritis these past few days, I’ll toast you with tea instead.”

“Hey, hey, hey”

Justin took the teacup from my hand, frowning.

“You’re looking down on Olivia, what’s with the tea?”

Olivia tugged gently on his sleeve and whispered, “it’s okay if she’s not feeling well, tea is the same thing.”

“You don’t know,” Justin poured a glass of white wine into my cup, smiling as he held her hand, “she’s pretending, she once got our whole table drunk when we went out drinking!”

I paused with the wine glass in my hand, wanting to explain, “No, I really—”

Lately, my stomach would ache so much at night that I couldn’t sleep, so I hadn’t touched alcohol for half a year.

Justin looked down at me, his handsome eyebrows slightly raised, a mocking teasing in his gaze.

“Sophia, could it be that you’re jealous?”

I fell silent. My stomach was aching even though I hadn’t drunk anything yet.

Those intimate moments and unspoken intimacies, when spoken in jest, really did seem like a joke.

My smile almost faltered as I lifted the glass.

“What does Sister-in-law want to drink, white wine is fine, right?”

Justin chuckled. “Drink your nonsense, she can’t handle alcohol, just drink some water.”

Olivia snatched the white wine from his hand and pouted. “I’m not a child, I can drink. You don’t have to keep doing this…”

I didn’t want to hear her talk anymore, almost clumsily pouring the white wine into my mouth.

The transparent liquid flowed down my esophagus like molten lava, and my already aching stomach suddenly throbbed sharply.

I inhaled cold air to endure the pain.

Olivia took a small sip of the wine and then started coughing, her face flushed and tears welling up in her eyes.

Justin patted her back hastily, his complaints tinged with concern. “I told you, you can’t drink. Why did you insist? Are you comfortable now?!”

The little girl lowered her head without saying anything, looking pitiful.

I flipped the wine glass over to show Justin, leaving almost as if I was escaping. “I’ll go to the restroom.”

03

I rushed to the bathroom, my stomach convulsing and aching.

I vomited for a while, but it hurt even more.

After swallowing a stomach pill, I waited a moment before stepping out.

Upon exiting, I saw Justin leaning against the corridor, holding a carton of milk.

Seeing me clutch my stomach, he raised an eyebrow. “You really have gastritis? I thought you were making an excuse.”

I instinctively assumed the milk was for me and reached out.

Justin dodged my hand, frowning. “Not for you.”

I was taken aback, watching as Justin passed the warm milk to Olivia behind me.

“You drank it even though you can’t handle it. Now your stomach hurts, right?”

Olivia took the milk, smiling as she looped her arm around Justin’s forearm.

“I knew you’re the best.”

Turns out, he bought it for Olivia.

I thought, I’ve known Justin for years, but I’ve never seen him be this considerate.

Once, when I visited him with a high fever, he didn’t even offer me a glass of water.

Olivia glanced at me and suddenly offered the milk.

“Sophia, are you also having stomach trouble? You can have it.”

Her gesture was natural, but I caught a fleeting hint of hostility and provocation in her eyes.

Justin slid the milk box back into her hands. “You’re worried about others now.”

He shot me a glance.

I hesitated and waved my hand. “Thanks, but no need. You drink it.”

Then, I turned and left. Strange. The stomach medicine seemed to have worn off. Why was the pain worsening?

After the dinner, I left the room. In the corridor, I heard Olivia’s voice.

“What’s your relationship with that Sophia…? Why did everyone look at her when you introduced me?”

I shifted slightly, observing the girl looking up at Justin with furrowed delicate brows.

Justin stroked her head.

“What kind of relationship could I have with her? If I liked her, I’d be with her already. Would I still be looking for you?”

Olivia lowered her head and mumbled, “But I heard you two used to be very close. She was always with you before. Has she been waiting for you all these years?”

Justin drew her into his embrace, patiently comforting her.

“Now that I have you, it’ll be you accompanying me. I don’t know why she isn’t dating. But if it bothers you, I’ll stay away from her in the future.”

Olivia finally smiled, hugging Justin tightly.

Rain had started falling outside without notice.

The intermingling red and green lights blurred in the downpour.

My stomach hurt so much that I had no choice but to head to the hospital.

But since I’d had alcohol, I couldn’t drive, and with the rain, hailing a taxi was difficult.

Cold sweat trickled down my forehead. Olivia had quietly approached me.

“Sophia, where are you going?”

I didn’t want to tangle with the young girl.

Besides, Justin was her boyfriend, so her concern about our relationship was understandable.

I whispered, “I’m going to the hospital.”

Justin was about to speak, but Olivia interrupted, expressing regret. “I wanted to send you, but we have something else to do later. It’s not on the way to the hospital, sorry.”

Justin paused, holding Olivia’s hand that was holding his.

He looked at me with a frown and held an umbrella, shielding Olivia as they walked into the rain.

Olivia turned and waved at me. “Sophia, We’re leaving now first.”

I watched them leave, dazed. Before I could process it, another sharp pain pierced my abdomen.

I couldn’t tell if it was my stomach or my heart; it felt like my organs were churning together, forcing me to crouch down slowly.

Just as I was at a loss, a shadow loomed over me.

I lifted my head to find Tim standing behind me, dressed in a black windbreaker.

His glasses with golden rims glinted slightly in the colorful neon lights.

“Going to the hospital?” he asked. “I’ll take you there.” he said.

04

When the doctor said my stomach was fine, just irritated, he prescribed a few boxes of antacids and sent me on my way.

Exiting, I found Tim standing in the hospital corridor, his black Bentley’s umbrella beside him.

The white light illuminated his tall nose bridge, and his thin eyelids carried a faint pink hue that was inexplicably captivating.

Some passing girls gawked, their faces flushed, and some even sneaked photos while he looked down.

I had to admit, this guy had great looks.

Unlike Justin’s handsomeness, Tim’s appearance exuded a coldness that made him appear somewhat distant, discouraging people from approaching.

I hadn’t expected him to still be there. I blurted, “You didn’t leave?” Tim turned, pulling a drink from his pocket as if by magic.

I hesitated, asking cautiously, “For me?”

Tim nodded, and I relaxed, taking it.

To my surprise, it was a hot beverage that radiated warmth in the chilly night.

He murmured, “Come on. I’ll send you back.”

In Tim’s car, I held the still-warm drink.

The soothing warmth eased the spasm-like pain.

“Thanks,” I said tersely. Tim was Justin’s best friend, and they’d been dorm mates in college.

After graduating, they maintained their close friendship and co-founded a company.

Though I had a good rapport with Justin, I’d never exchanged contact details with Tim.

He had an aloof demeanor, and his distant behavior during our encounters made me believe he didn’t particularly care for me.

Unexpectedly, it was Tim who accompanied me to the hospital today.

Tim held the steering wheel with one hand. “It’s alright.”

There was no conversation along the way, mainly because we were simply not that familiar, and I couldn’t think of any topics to discuss; Tim didn’t seem too keen on chatting either.

When I arrived home, I waved at him.

“Thank you so much today. Let’s have dinner sometime soon, another day.”

I said this out of politeness, knowing that someone like Tim probably wouldn’t lack for invitations to meals and likely wouldn’t bother responding.

To my surprise, he looked at me seriously and asked,

“Another day, which day?”

I was caught off guard, not expecting such a question.

I stammered, “Um… how about tomorrow?”

Tim nodded. “Okay. I’ll pick you up tomorrow then.”