My husband’s "best female friend" went into premature labor and specifically asked for me to deliver the baby. When she needed a blood transfusion and required a family member’s signature, Logan gripped my shoulders, his nails digging into my skin. He screamed: "You must save my wife and child! Or I’ll tear this hospital apart!" I am his wife. Yet he was calling another woman his wife. "Mr. Rhodes, calm down! Dr. Miller is doing her best!" the midwife yelled. "And... isn't Dr. Miller your wife?" Logan froze for a split second. But only a second. Immediately, he reverted to his frantic state, his grip tightening until I thought my bones would snap. "Lexi means everything to me. If anything happens to her or the kid, I swear I won’t let you off the hook!" he threatened. The midwife tried to defend me. "Mr. Rhodes, how can you treat your actual wife like this for a friend?" Logan’s eyes were bloodshot as he roared, "A wife is worthless to me! I can replace a wife any day, but Lexi is my partner, my soulmate! She is more important than my life!" A sharp, stinging pain spread across my chest. We were married. We had the ceremony, the prenup, and lived together for over a year. But we never signed the official marriage license. He said we’d do it after a two-year "trial period." I waited patiently for over four hundred days, only for it to boil down to "I can replace a wife any day." I took a deep breath and slapped him across the face. Hard. His handsome, cold face swelled instantly. His bodyguards rushed forward, but Logan stopped them, glaring at me with red eyes. "You’re a doctor, Susan. Don’t forget your duty." 1 Logan threatened the hospital’s reputation, so the Chief of Staff forced me back into surgery. In the end, Lexi delivered a baby boy. Logan and Lexi’s actual husband were ecstatic. When I did my rounds wearing a mask, Logan’s younger sister, Lola, was holding the baby, smiling at me. "Thank you for saving Lexi for my brother. You don’t know how much she means to him." Logan never told his family about my job, so Lola didn’t recognize me behind the surgical mask. She innocently told me the story of Logan and Lexi. She talked about how they’d known each other since they were thirteen, how Lexi was his right hand in business. She even mentioned how depressed Logan was when Lexi got married, and how he "gave up" and married some random woman just to fill the slot. That random woman was me. For the first time, I realized that in everyone’s eyes, Lexi was the indispensable light of his life. I was just the consolation prize he settled for. I let out a low, uncontrolled sob, interrupting Lola. As everyone in the ward turned to look, I pulled off my mask. "Susan? Why are you so loud? Don't you know Lexi needs rest?" Logan didn’t explain himself. Instead, he stared at me coldly, his voice dripping with disgust. "With that attitude, how are you even a doctor? Come here and apologize to Lexi!" I didn’t respond. I clenched my trembling fingers and turned around. It wasn't that I was afraid to face him. I just suddenly didn’t want this anymore. Trying to sustain a relationship alone is exhausting. Watching me walk away seemed to anger him further. He turned to his assistant. "Tell the Director to suspend Susan. She can come back to work when she learns how to apologize." Then, his voice softened as he looked at Lexi. "Did she scare you? Don't worry. As long as I'm here, no one can bully you." 2 Luo’s call reached the Director’s office before I did. But I had already printed my resignation letter. The Director frowned, sighing. "Susan, just apologize to Mr. Rhodes. You’re our most promising OB/GYN. A suspension will hurt your record." I placed my resignation letter on his desk. "Director, I’m resigning. I’m going abroad for my fellowship." He paused, then nodded. "You should have gone years ago. Logan held you back." I met Logan at an alumni mixer. He needed a wife to secure a contract; I needed a marriage to give my terminally ill mother peace of mind. We hit it off. I asked to make it legal immediately. He said his company was unstable and didn’t want his potential debts to affect me. I believed him. I signed the agreement and gave him my heart. Later, I found out his company was massive. After he used me to secure that project, he never mentioned our relationship publicly again. To the world, Lexi, who was always by his side, was his partner. I used to fight with him about it. He never comforted me. Instead, he’d grab my face, eyes full of disdain. "You only know how to hold a scalpel. You can’t help me in business. Lexi is different; she has vision. She doesn’t care about titles. While you’re being petty, she’s helping me build an empire. Instead of being jealous, go read a book." I had angrily shown him my acceptance letter for a PhD program at Harvard Medical School. He had hugged me tight, dominantly declaring, "You’re not going. I forbid it." I missed my first chance to go because I thought his possessiveness meant he loved me. But in the end? I was just a disposable object. 3 I was finishing my handover. As I saw my last patient out, I ran into Logan picking up Lexi. I looked at them indifferently and didn’t say a word. But Lexi dragged Logan over to me, speaking in that soft, sugary voice. "Susan, thank you so much. Without you, my son and I would have been in danger. I heard Logan lost his temper with you. He’s just like that—he loses control whenever it concerns me. Don't be mad at him, I apologize on his behalf." Then, her gaze dropped to my stomach. She adopted the tone of a wise elder. "But really, a woman needs a child to stabilize a family. You should stop working and go home to focus on getting pregnant. Logan, you love kids. Let Susan give you one." Logan pinched her nose affectionately, smiling teasingly. "She doesn't have your good fortune." I knew Lexi baited him into saying that. In the past, I would have fought back. Now, watching their PDA, I just felt tired. I waved my hand dismissively. "I can't afford that kind of fortune. Mr. Rhodes, please save it all for Miss Lexi." I walked into the elevator without looking back. Maybe the cold "Mr. Rhodes" triggered him. As I walked out of the hospital, he grabbed my wrist. He tried to drag me into his car, but I slammed my hand against the door, refusing. "Susan, haven't you made enough of a scene?" "I'm not making a scene." He frowned at my blank expression. "Lexi's husband was there. What you said could cause a misunderstanding." I laughed, disgusted. I pushed him away. "If you were actually afraid of her husband misunderstanding, you wouldn't have acted like the father in the delivery room, and you wouldn't be holding her waist right now." "She's my best friend. Physical contact is normal," Logan insisted, arrogant as always. "Is asking her to have your baby normal too?" I scoffed. Logan lost his patience. "If you want to think that way, I can't stop you." He got into the car. "You're emotional. I won't come home for a few days. We'll talk when you calm down." He rolled up the window and drove off. The black sedan disappeared from my sight, just as he completely disappeared from my heart. 4 My visa was processed quickly. The day I booked my flight, Lola found me. Lola was different from her brother. She was innocent and rarely interacted with me, which is why she had praised Lexi that day in the hospital. Once she found out the truth, she stopped associating with Lexi. When I told her I was leaving, she looked sad. "You were with my brother for so long. Can you really let go?" I nodded. "I can." When you give everything and get nothing but coldness in return, even the strongest heart eventually shatters beyond repair. Seeing I was serious, Lola started crying. She was pregnant by accident. She wanted to tell Logan, but Logan, taking Lexi’s advice, was planning to marry her off to some business partner she hated. She wanted to keep the baby and escape the arranged marriage. She asked if she could come with me. I was surprised. Logan was willing to sacrifice his innocent sister just because Lexi suggested it? It turned out, Lexi really was the only person he wouldn't sacrifice. Lola cried pitifully, and I agreed. I used my connections to get her into a auditing program at Harvard and used my ID to get her prenatal checkups done. Once the baby was cleared, we flew out. As soon as we landed in Boston, we found our bank accounts were frozen. It was Logan’s classic move. Starve us until we crawl back. He underestimated us. Lola sold her designer bags and watches. I had already secured a waitressing gig at a restaurant near campus. The neighborhood wasn't the safest at night. One evening after my shift, I noticed a shadow following me. I gripped the pepper spray in my pocket, walking faster toward the main street taxi stand. Just as I reached the curb, a hand grabbed my shoulder. My heart sank. I spun around, aimed the can, and sprayed. "Hiss—!" A man covered his eyes with one hand. In the other, he held up a wallet with a Kuromi sticker on it. In fluent Mandarin, he gasped, "Student... is this your wallet?" 5 The man was Julian Grey, an actor. He was filming on campus, found my wallet, and followed me to return it. I treated him like a stalker. My pepper spray was the heavy-duty kind. His eyes were swollen shut instantly. He held my hand, looking pitiful. "Sister... is all medical student pepper spray this spicy?" I turned beet red. Out of guilt, I brought him back to the small townhouse I rented. Lola was asleep. As I washed his eyes out, I told him not to hyperventilate. His eyes were like a galaxy—deep and starry—now overflowing with tears and saline. "Sister, if I don't breathe, I'll die." Feeling terrible, I worked faster. When I finished, I noticed his face was flushed, his lips turning blue. I touched his forehead. "Julian? What's wrong? Answer me." Julian gasped for air like a drowning puppy. "Sister... can I breathe now?" Pfft. He had actually held his breath the entire time because I told him not to hyperventilate. I couldn't help but laugh, patting his shoulder. "Are you stupid?" Julian shook his head, looking at me seriously. "Sister, you finally smiled. Do you know you look beautiful when you smile?" I froze. It was the first time anyone cared if I smiled. 6 After my parents divorced, I lived with my mother, who had severe OCD and was a perfectionist. She was rigorous in life and work, and she demanded the same of me. I never dared to laugh freely like other girls. When she got cancer, she forced me to date. I chose the calm, mature Logan to please her. On her deathbed, she held my hand and said maybe Logan was different from her—that I should try to be myself. But in the year I lived with Logan, he was just as strict as my mother. He compared me to Lexi constantly. If I relaxed even a little, he’d scold me: "Susan, you're a married woman and a medical professional. Can you be more mature? If you're going to laugh like a schoolgirl, don't come home!" I didn't want to fight, so I became the person he wanted: serious, cautious, unsmiling.
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