After three days of observation in the hospital, I rushed back to the office.

I had a project I was negotiating, one that was crucial for me to shed the "Associate" from my Associate Director title.

I'd heard other companies were vying for this project, making the competition fierce.

I was busy when I heard muffled voices near the main entrance.

He said, "I'm looking for Eleanor Vance, where is she?"

A few seconds later, my office door swung open. Julian stood there, a gentle smile on his face.

I froze, file in hand, a surge of irritation mixed with surprise.

Why was he here? He'd always said he hated mixing work with personal life.

He said he was looking for me, and a strange flicker of hope rose inside me.

A moment later, I sadly realized that my initial happiness at his arrival didn't last long.

A head suddenly popped out from behind him, grinning as she waved at me.

It was Brooke Davis.

"Associate Director Vance, could you give her a tour, please?"

So, he'd only come to see me because of her.

Julian's gaze swept over me, almost without a pause.

Besides me, there were two other junior assistants in the office.

They became timid and stammered greetings upon seeing Julian.

I didn't understand. Could he not see I was busy?

Was he not only blind in his heart, but blind in his eyes too?

Brooke bypassed Julian and walked towards me, greeting me warmly: "Ellie, long time no see!"

"I had some business nearby, and I thought I'd come see Julian, but he was a bit busy. So he insisted you take me around. It's his company, it’s not like I don't know my way around, why would I need to bother you?"

Brooke curled her lips at me, a defiant glint in her eyes.

Julian watched her from behind, a doting smile on his face.

I remembered when we first started dating, Julian told me we needed to be discreet at work.

For seven full years since I joined this company, outside of official business, we never spoke privately.

Occasionally, in meetings, when discussing work, he'd stare at documents, not even sparing me a glance.

Let alone ever offering to show me around.

I chuckled derisively to myself.

I was truly thick-skinned to have thought he'd simply come to see me.

After I'd refused him, citing being too busy, Julian took Brooke for a leisurely stroll through the open-plan office area.

As I organized project documents in my office, watching them from the corner of my eye, the idea of divorce suddenly solidified in my mind.

I'd pursued Julian for two years. Five years ago, we got our marriage license, and I finally became Mrs. Thorne.

Right after we tied the knot, I'd look at our marriage certificate several times a day.

Sometimes I'd just laugh to myself, showing off to Julian that he was finally mine.

The me back then probably wouldn't have imagined that five years later, I'd be actively contemplating leaving.

After all, everyone knew that in my relationship with Julian, I was the one who stubbornly clung on.