The next day, I brought Evan home with me.
There were no extra parking spaces in the neighborhood, so Evan, worried that I might be cold, dropped me off at the building entrance and told me to go home and warm up first.
He planned to park outside the neighborhood and then come find me at home.
"Let me go with you."
"No need," Evan said as he tucked a hot water bottle into my hands. "It's cold outside, you go inside first."
A wave of warmth surged in my chest.
Even though Evan was only pretending to be my boyfriend, he was far more considerate than Cody ever was.
I remembered a time when Cody and I went on a trip together and couldn't find a parking spot. His face was filled with impatience.
After we entered the attraction, he kept a sour expression the entire time.
Back then, I was completely love-blind and didn't think anything was wrong with his behavior.
Cody was usually very busy, so I thought it was already great that he was willing to come out with me.
And because he was such a self-centered person, I thought I should just accept and tolerate him.
Now that I've come to my senses, I really want to slap my past self.
I wasn't his mother, so why should I have gone along with him and put up with his behavior?
Besides, he was the one who invited me to go there in the first place.
What right did he have to give me that sour face, as if I were the one who did something wrong?
Just then, Cody called.
"Not going to answer?" Evan's tone was calm.
Even though Evan was only pretending to be my boyfriend, I felt oddly guilty about answering my ex's call in front of him.
How strange!
I answered the call.
Cody's voice came through the line, "Katie, I'm a bit busy today and can't go meet your parents. How about we do it tomorrow?"
"No need. You've forgotten—we already broke up."
"Katie, stop being difficult, okay?" Cody sounded annoyed. "I remember you saying your aunt loves to compete with your mom. If you don't bring a boyfriend home, your aunt will definitely criticize you and make your mom lose face. Don't let your pride put you in a bad situation just to spite me."
The chat was full of sarcastic comments about Cody.
"That scumbag, acting all affectionate. He knows that if he doesn't go with the female lead to meet her parents today, she'll be mocked, but he still chose to go on a date with Elsa instead."
"Let's highlight this: not only did these two scumbags go on a date, but they also shared the same bowl of salad."
"This wishy-washy scumbag needs to just disappear."
Reading those lines of comments, I couldn't help but feel the irony.
Cody's tone was filled with condescension—am I supposed to be grateful to him?
While he was busy dating Elsa, he still found time to placate me with half-hearted concern.
I smirked slightly. "You don't need to worry about that. I have a new boyfriend now."
On the other end, Cody chuckled lightly. "Katie, don't say things just to get a rise out of me. I know you only have feelings for me, so how could you possibly be with someone else?"
Comments:
"Ugh, what a trashy guy. So ordinary yet so confident."
"Hurry up and exit the scene. The female lead has Evan now, she's not interested in a loser like you anymore."
"This is hilarious. The scumbag doesn't even know the female lead is about to run off with the second male lead. I can't wait to see his reaction when he finds out."
"Me too! It's going to be so satisfying."
I could hear the calm confidence in Cody's voice.
He was certain that he had me completely under his control, which is why he dared to abandon me over and over, without hesitation, to go on dates with Elsa.
I laughed out of sheer anger.
This time, I wasn't going to blindly go along with him anymore.
I said coldly, "Idiot, get out of my life. I'll be better off without you!"
"What did you say? Say that again?"
Cody's tone was full of disbelief.
We had been together for so many years, and I had always unconditionally tolerated him, never once speaking harshly to him.
No wonder he was so shocked.
"Are you deaf? I said you're an idiot!"
Before he could respond, I hung up the phone.
The frustration in my heart dissipated for the most part.
I think a large part of why I got cancer was because of all the stress Cody caused me.
After I finished venting at the scumbag, I suddenly remembered that Evan was still sitting beside me.
I glanced at him instinctively, feeling a bit embarrassed. "Sorry you had to witness that."
Evan's expression remained as composed as ever, but his lips curved into a slight smile. "Well done!"
