Five years married to Julian Thorne, and not a single friend or relative knew we'd tied the knot.

He was passionately kissing his childhood sweetheart at a bar, yet my heart remained utterly calm.

I was having lunch with a younger colleague at the office, and he just stormed off, slamming his plate.

Later, I had a miscarriage unexpectedly while out, crying as I called him for help.

He was busy house-hunting with his sweetheart and hung up on me.

His friends would trash me, saying, "Julian and Brooke should be together, you should just let him go."

He publicly defended me once: "Eleanor Vance is my wife."

After five years of a secret marriage, he finally acknowledged my identity in front of his friends.

But I didn't want it anymore.

...

On our wedding anniversary, I had surgery alone.

Before I entered the operating room, the doctor asked about my family.

Two young nurses walked by, gossiping as they went.

"Did you see the guy who came with Brooke for her check-up? He's so hot!"

"I heard that man and Brooke are childhood sweethearts, grew up together, destined to be! I wonder when Brooke will go public?"

"Looking at them, it must be soon!"

Childhood sweethearts, huh…

I had a pair like that right beside me too.

Thinking of them, a sharp, tiny pain pricked my heart. I lowered my eyes and told the doctor, "I can manage on my own."

The doctor tried to persuade me. "Ms. Vance, although it's not major surgery, you'll need someone to accompany you post-op."

I smiled, telling him I’d already arranged for a nurse.

I couldn't tell him that my husband was with his childhood sweetheart on our wedding anniversary.

He couldn't bother with me, and I didn't want to see him either.

Five years married, and Julian and my marriage felt like it was finally ending.

I was in surgery for over two hours, and the process went smoothly enough.

When I woke up, it was already dark.

I unlocked my phone, and Julian's call appeared on the screen.

The moment I answered, Brooke's voice came through.

"Eleanor, I just found out it's your and Julian's anniversary today! I'm so sorry, but I wasn't feeling well, and Julian insisted on taking me to the clinic."

"He just bought me a bouquet, and he's meeting friends to celebrate my good check-up. Tell you what, I'll have him bring the flowers back for you."

"Don't you dare be offended, it's so late, Julian couldn't find anywhere to buy a gift now."

The next second, Julian took the phone.

"Don't worry about it, I know what I'm doing."

They spoke almost simultaneously.

I could even hear Brooke's coquettish voice: "You big oaf, see if Eleanor gets mad at you."

"You never missed my anniversaries before, what's going on now?"

As Julian's low chuckle filled my ear, I also heard someone egging him on: "Of course not, which of Vannah's anniversaries would Julian ever miss? Seriously, when are you two going to make it official? We're all waiting!"

Suddenly, my incision throbbed, a pain so intense it made me want to cry.

Before I could, I hung up.

Watching Julian's name flash on the screen again, I simply switched off my phone.