6.
After Bạch Tiểu Dụ left, Noah Walker’s life fell into disarray.
Noah Walker was never good at saving money. Without Bạch Tiểu Dụ managing his finances, he spent without restraint. A couple of flattering words, and he’d spend like a newly rich man.
His wallet emptied quickly, and he still hadn’t realized it.
When Noah Walker went to buy medicine for his parents, WeChat showed that his balance was insufficient. He panicked. He’d just gotten paid, and there was still a month’s salary in his account—how could he not have enough?
Noah Walker checked his transactions. They were all purchases he’d made over the past two days, and he’d already spent two-thirds of his salary.
Noah Walker’s heart was bleeding. He couldn’t even come up with a few USD 14, and it ate at him.
With no other choice, he had to use the money in another account.
That account held the down-payment savings he and Bạch Tiểu Dụ had been building for a home. They had both deposited money into it every month. When Bạch Tiểu Dụ left, she’d handed him the card and taken only her half.
Noah Walker really had been spoiled by Bạch Tiểu Dụ.
Over those four years, Bạch Tiểu Dụ had taken such good care of him that he’d become completely helpless on his own.
Without Bạch Tiểu Dụ, he didn’t know how to do anything.
His chaotic life was affecting his work, too.
With no one diligently guiding and prodding him, his productivity plummeted.
Temptations were everywhere, and no one was there to remind him.
He was lazy and unfocused, and nearly forgot to write a report.
He barely managed to finish it, only for the figures to be wrong. He nearly caused a major disaster. His boss was furious, demanding to know why he wasn’t taking his work seriously.
Noah Walker fell silent.
With both his job and love life in shambles, Noah Walker was irritable and uneasy.
He was like an overinflated hot-air balloon with nowhere to let out the air, ready to burst at any moment.
Noah Walker kept scrolling through his contacts, trying to find someone who could talk to Bạch Tiểu Dụ, but no matter how long he searched, he came up empty.
There wasn’t a single person in his contacts who was Bạch Tiểu Dụ’s friend. They were all connected to him.
All this time, Bạch Tiểu Dụ had been the one trying to fit into his life, making friends with his friends.
He didn’t know her coworkers or classmates, and even her best friend had blocked him.
Their mutual friends were really all Noah Walker’s friends.
He knew where Bạch Tiểu Dụ worked, but she was an elementary school teacher and was on winter break. Noah Walker couldn’t even wait outside her workplace for her to show up.
On the sixth day after Bạch Tiểu Dụ left, Noah Walker was so distracted that he didn’t watch where he was going that evening and stepped awkwardly off a curb.
7.
Noah Walker broke his leg and had to be hospitalized.
His body hurt like hell, but his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.
If he didn’t reach out to Bạch Tiểu Dụ now, when would he?
He borrowed the phone of the person in the next bed and texted Bạch Tiểu Dụ, emphasizing that his leg was wrapped up like a pig’s trotter and describing his miserable condition in nearly a thousand words.
He told Bạch Tiểu Dụ he hadn’t ordered food from the hospital, and that if she didn’t come, he’d go hungry.
He took a gamble—he bet Bạch Tiểu Dụ would soften.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ didn’t reply, but she didn’t block this number either. That gave him hope again.
Noah Walker closed his eyes sleepily, hoping that when he woke up, he’d see that familiar figure.
Unfortunately, he was getting ahead of himself.
The person who came wasn’t Bạch Tiểu Dụ, but his friend, Jordan Cooper.
Noah Walker looked past him expectantly. There was no one there.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ didn’t come.
Jordan Cooper arrived and immediately started making a fuss. “Noah, are you okay? I heard you got hurt.”
Noah Walker hadn’t even had a chance to react. “Jordan, what are you doing here?”
“Bạch Tiểu Dụ told me to come. She said you were hurt and had no one to look after you, so she asked me to check on you.”
Jordan Cooper casually tossed his things onto the bed. “Hey, I was just about to ask you—what’s going on with you and your sister-in-law? Did you have a fight?”
Noah Walker nodded, forcing a bitter smile.
Jordan Cooper nodded in understanding. A true friend didn’t ask too many questions.
Jordan Cooper really was a good friend. He even bought Noah food and stayed to keep an eye on him.
But he was such a careless guy. How could he possibly know how to look after someone?
Noah Walker had been so well cared for that life held nothing more to long for, and he missed Bạch Tiểu Dụ’s kindness more and more.
Back when Bạch Tiểu Dụ was still with him, Noah Walker broke his arm once. She took such good care of him, making a different nourishing soup every day. By comparison, Jordan Cooper might as well have been raising a pig.
He wasn’t expecting anything. Jordan Cooper had come to help, and he was grateful for that.
Jordan Cooper was already asleep, snoring so loudly it shook the room. Noah Walker couldn’t sleep; the pain in his body only made his longing for Bạch Tiểu Dụ reach its peak.
He held his phone, which had a new SIM card that Jordan Cooper had just gotten for him.
Carefully choosing his words, he sent Bạch Tiểu Dụ a message asking to meet.
Afraid she wouldn’t come, he made a point of stressing that this would be the last time. If they couldn’t work things out after they met, he wouldn’t bother her again.
This time, Bạch Tiểu Dụ replied readily.
[Okay. When you’re discharged, we’ll meet. One last time.]
Noah Walker stared at the message, so excited he couldn’t sleep.
Meanwhile, Bạch Tiểu Dụ couldn’t sleep either.
The pain kept her awake.
8.
On the day they met, Noah Walker got up early to make himself look as handsome as possible, hoping Bạch Tiểu Dụ would be a little more likely to soften.
After rehearsing the words he’d prepared countless times and making sure he could say everything in one go, he finally set out.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ was already there waiting.
Noah Walker almost didn’t recognize her. He remembered Bạch Tiểu Dụ as having a gentle, unassuming face—the picture of a classic, good-natured wife. But the woman standing before him now was refined and elegant.
Today, she wore makeup and a velvet coat, looking both gentle and beautiful.
Noah Walker was certain he’d never seen this outfit before.
After they got together, Bạch Tiểu Dụ had been very frugal, always buying end-of-season clearance clothes, living even more simply than Noah Walker himself.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford it—her situation was actually better than Noah Walker’s.
Even though Noah Walker’s salary was higher, his job was less stable than hers, and he had an uncle with a gambling problem who could drag the whole family down at any moment.
Her parents were ordinary factory workers, but they had social security, life insurance, and good health. They had some savings—not wealthy, but they wouldn’t hold her back. She herself was capable, with a stable job and a formal position. She could have lived well, but saving was her own choice.
She always felt she’d be the one to buy a home. Noah Walker’s family wasn’t well-off, and hers was just an average working-class family. Neither set of parents could help them buy a house—they had to rely on themselves. That’s why she saved, wanting to buy a place in the city with Noah Walker.
She really had thought about their future together.
Only now did Noah Walker finally understand.
He silently gazed at Bạch Tiểu Dụ—she really was beautiful.
It was as if he was seeing the Bạch Tiểu Dụ who once made his heart flutter, his feelings overflowing inside.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ saw him too.
The two of them faced each other in silence, neither saying a word.
One was full of emotion, the other completely indifferent.
Noah Walker looked at Bạch Tiểu Dụ with deep affection. "Have you been doing okay lately?"
Bạch Tiểu Dụ replied coolly, "Didn’t you see for yourself? I’m doing just fine."
Noah Walker rarely felt as nervous as he did now. He gripped the hem of his shirt, a little anxious. "I really miss you."
Bạch Tiểu Dụ didn’t react at all.
"If you came here just to say these pointless things, then I’m sorry, I have to go."
"Wait, wait, please, just hear me out."
Noah Walker took a deep breath, afraid Bạch Tiểu Dụ would leave. He quickly got to the point, going on and on about how miserable he’d been without her, promising her that from now on he’d keep his distance from other women, that he’d live well with her, that they’d build a family together.
"Tiểu Dụ, come home with me, will you?"
He was so earnest—so earnest it made Bạch Tiểu Dụ feel sick.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ set her glass down. The clink as it hit the table sounded like thunder to Noah Walker.
This Bạch Tiểu Dụ felt like a complete stranger.
She carried a coldness and detachment, as if she were listening to some random salesman pitch his product.
In the past eight years, every time they argued, Bạch Tiểu Dụ would always explode in anger, while he was always the calm one. He had never seen her this indifferent before.
"I know you’d never actually cheat."
Noah Walker was at a loss for words, awkwardly asking, "Then if everything’s fine, why do you want to break up?"
"You've made all the decisions for so long—it's my turn now." Bạch Tiểu Dụ looked at the dazed Noah Walker in front of her, unwilling to spare him even a shred of emotion.
"Do you remember that bag of brown sugar?"
Noah Walker was confused. "Brown sugar?"
"What about the brown sugar?" Not sure what she was getting at, Noah Walker paused, disbelief in his voice. "You're breaking up with me over a bag of brown sugar?"
"Yes."
Noah Walker was stunned.
He thought Bạch Tiểu Dụ wanted to break up because of his ambiguous relationship with the Female Coworker, or because their eight-year relationship seemed to be going nowhere. He never imagined it would be over a bag of brown sugar.
This had to be a joke!
He hurried to defend himself.
"I was in a rush for a business trip, that's why I didn't buy you the brown sugar. Besides, I did pour you some hot water!" Realizing his tone was getting sharp, Noah Walker quickly softened his voice, trying to coax her: "Look, I promise I'll always buy you brown sugar from now on. If you say go east, I won't dare go west. I'll listen to you, I swear. Bạch Tiểu Dụ, we've been together for eight years—we're almost at the point of getting married. Please, don't make a scene. Let's go home, okay?"
"Noah Walker." Bạch Tiểu Dụ called his name calmly, cutting off his rambling. "Your bus was at noon. When I asked you to buy the brown sugar, it was nine in the morning."
Noah Walker fell silent.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ's voice was icy, completely devoid of emotion. For some reason, it made him panic.
Usually, whenever he brought up marriage, Bạch Tiểu Dụ would give in. Just seeing him would make her soften.
But not this time.
Bạch Tiểu Dụ let out a mocking laugh. In her story, that bag of brown sugar was where everything started to fall apart.