Chapter 3

Arnold staggered out of the suite, the door slamming shut behind him like a final judgment. He was utterly shocked, replaying Ethan's cold, sneering voice.

“He looked like a dejected dog, didn't he?”

Arnold froze in his tracks, his heart twisting painfully in his chest. They hadn’t even waited for him to leave before mocking him. A cruel laugh followed Ethan’s words, one that had once been sweet and comforting. The one he had loved for years…

“Pathetic. He is like the perfect example of ‘The toad wants to eat the swan.’ I am really fed up with his ignorance.”

Arnold felt like the ground was falling away beneath him. He’d expected her to be distant, maybe even cruel, but this? She was laughing at him, tearing him down like he meant nothing.

‘How did it come to this?’ His mind raced, struggling to comprehend the depth of her betrayal. ‘How could she turn so cold, so heartless?’

As his thoughts churned, his gaze fell to the ring lying cold on the polished marble floor—a bitter reminder of the life he thought he had. With trembling hands, he bent down to pick it up, his fingers brushing the cool metal.

This ring, once a symbol of their love, was now nothing more than a reminder of a past he no longer recognized. It was the only thing he had when the orphanage found him, and now it was the last piece of his life that had just crumbled before his eyes.

The recent blow to his head sent waves of nausea rolling through him, making it hard to stand upright. His vision blurred as he stumbled towards the elevator, his body heavy with the weight of rejection. Every step felt like moving a mountain, his legs barely supporting him as he leaned against the wall for balance.

The elevator doors opened, and he practically fell inside, gripping the railing as his knees buckled. His reflection in the polished metal mocked him—bloodied, tear-streaked, and utterly broken. He looked like a man who had lost everything. Because he really had…

As the elevator started to descend, Arnold wiped the mixture of blood and tears from his face, but the act did nothing to clear the haze of pain clouding his mind.

“I need to go to the hospital…” Arnold hissed in pain from his head.

However, in that moment, the cruel words of Ethan and Diana echoed in his head, each one a dagger twisting deeper into his heart.

“Was I really that blind?” Arnold whispered to himself, his voice thick with despair. “Did I mean so little to her? Was it all just... nothing?”

“It would be better if I died… Why bother with treatment?”

His thoughts were a whirlwind of sorrow and disbelief. How could he have been so utterly deceived? He had loved her… truly, deeply… and yet, she had thrown him aside without a second thought. The man he had become over the years felt like a stranger, someone naive and foolish, clinging to a dream that had never been real.

When the elevator doors opened on the ground floor, Arnold forced himself to step out, though his body screamed in protest. 

The lobby was a blur of colors and sounds, none of it making any sense to him. He felt like he was moving underwater, every motion sluggish and disorienting. He stumbled towards the exit, each step more difficult than the last as if the very air around him had turned against him.

Once outside, the cold night air hit him like a slap in the face, but it did nothing to clear his mind. His vision was darkening at the edges, and he could barely make out the road ahead. The lights of the city were blinding, their harshness making him scream in pain, but he kept moving, desperate to escape the memories chasing him.

Just as he reached the street, headlights suddenly flooded his vision, blinding him completely. He froze, the harsh glare burning into his eyes, but his body refused to move. 

The sound of screeching tires filled the air, followed by the angry curses of a driver trying to avoid him. But Arnold didn’t hear them. All he felt was the force of the impact as the car knocked him to the ground, sending his world spinning into darkness.

When Arnold next opened his eyes, he was assaulted by the bright, white light of a hospital room. The machines beeped rhythmically around him, a constant reminder of where he was. His throat was dry, and every breath felt like sandpaper scraping against his lungs. He tried to speak, but it seemed too much in his condition.

A nurse appeared above him, shining a light into his eyes. “Can you hear me?” she asked, her voice gentle but firm.

Arnold nodded weakly, the movement making his head pound even more.

“You’re in the hospital,” the nurse explained. “A driver brought you in. You’ve lost a lot of blood and need a transfusion.”

Arnold blinked, trying to make sense of her words. The memories of the night came flooding back—Diana, Ethan, the betrayal, and the cruel laughter. He tried to sit up, but his body refused to cooperate, the pain too much to bear.

“I don’t... have any money,” he murmured, panic creeping into his voice. “I can’t... pay for this.”

The nurse placed a hand on his shoulder, gently pushing him back down onto the bed. “You need to rest. Your blood type is rare, but we managed to find a match nearby. Don’t worry about the money right now.”

“I can’t... stay here,” Arnold protested weakly, trying to rise once more. But his strength had left him, and he collapsed back onto the bed, his vision fading once again.

When he awoke the next time, the bright lights and harsh noises were gone, replaced by a quiet, more subdued atmosphere. The room he was in felt luxurious, like a private cabin…

A group of people stood around his bed, all dressed in black uniforms, their faces serious and unreadable.

‘Who are these people? I don’t think I owe money to any loan sharks,’ Arnold thought as he looked at all these organized people who looked like guards.

Before he could think more, an elderly man opened the cabin’s door hurriedly and practically rushed inside. He took Arnold’s hand with care, his eyes brimming with tears as he looked at Arnold with love.

“Arnold,” the old man whispered, his voice trembling with emotion. “I finally found you.”