I explained how I had felt pity for Mike’s wasted efforts, so I reached out to Jessa’s
classmate. After much persuasion, and
with so much time passed, she agreed to let it go and Jessa off the hook.
“I’ve always known you weren’t innocent. You did steal from your classmates,” I said calmly, leaning back in my chair.
“They forced me! Why should they get to be pretty and smart and just ignore me? They deserve to have their things taken!” she exploded.
Her outburst was cut short when she saw Mike standing in the doorway, having heard every word.
I had achieved what I came for. As I got up to leave, the heart monitor behind me started to beep wildly.
This time, she didn’t make it through.
After Jessa’s funeral, Mike approached me, “Lynn, let’s get married. Let’s start over.”
I studied him for a moment before I raised
my hand and slapped him hard across the
face.
“Mike, you can’t possibly think I would still want to be with you, can you?”
He collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.
I looked down at the man I had loved for so many years, now just a shell of his former self, and felt nothing.
I left the city where I had been entangled with Mike for years. Before I left, I made sure to send the video of him forcing me to take medication to his business rivals.
I heard his losses amounted to billions, and his company went bankrupt.
I had helped him rise, and I watched as he fell.
Yet, there was no pleasure in his downfall— between us, it was a mutual devastation.
Extra Story
After graduation, Mike and I searched the
whole city and finally rented a cheap self- built house on the outskirts. It was tiny, with terrible soundproofing. We barely had room to move without bumping into each other. But with only $3,000 to our names, it was the best we could do.
That night, the bath water was still cold. Mike held me close, warming me up, promising, “Lynn, one day, I’ll get you a big house.”
Curled up in his arms, I felt utterly content.
I didn’t care about living in a big house or a small one—I cared about being with Mike.
I couldn’t cook, but takeout was too expensive and unhealthy. So, to eat healthier and save money, I started learning to cook.
It turns out I had no knack for cooking. Chopping and frying seemed easy, but my meals always turned out messy and burnt.
Mike endured six months of my disastrous
cooking without a single complaint. He’d
even humor me by declaring the least burnt piece the “winner.”
Those were hard times, but they were also filled with warmth and love.
In the first year of his startup, Mike’s business hit a snag, and no amount of my gigs could cover the financial hole.
Desperate, I pawned the jade pendant my mother had left me.
My mom was an orphan and had always carried it, and so had I.
She had even appeared on TV and in newspapers, hoping it would help her find her family one day, but she never found them until her last day.
With no other options left, I pawned the pendant.
Unexpectedly, it turned out to be quite valuable, and it saved Mike’s company.
Mike promised to buy it back when we had
the money.
