By the Time You Regretted Me, I had stopped loving you

Celine rolled her eyes. “Don’t believe him, Argus! I saw his father taking a walk at the hospital two days ago. How could he have died so suddenly?”

I looked at Argus, desperate, panicked. Did he believe her? Could he even imagine what I’d lost?

Argus’s expression froze for a moment, guilt flickering across his eyes. But then it vanished. Cold replaced it. He turned to the nurses. “Take her away. Put her in the mental hospital. And give her special care. Make sure she learns her lesson.”

I wanted to scream, to fight, to explain, but my body felt empty. My father was gone, Celine had won, and Argus… he didn’t even hesitate.

…

On my first day in the mental hospital, I broke a window trying to run. They caught me fast and beat me until I could barely stand.

Next day, they strapped me to an operating table and took one of my kidneys. No anesthesia. I couldn’t even scream properly.

By the third day, I begged to see Argus, hoping maybe he’d come. Instead, they shoved a pack of vicious dogs at me. Their eyes glinted like they wanted to kill, and they lunged. My face went white. I kicked and thrashed, screamed, but it only made them worse. Their teeth sank into my arms and legs, tearing at my skin.

A voice cut through the chaos. Celine’s voice, dripping with mockery. “Dahlia, are you really so desperate that you won’t even spare a stray dog? Whether you live or die depends entirely on your fate.”

I felt like the ceiling collapsed on me. I wished it was all a dream. I wished I had never loved Argus. We’d been so close once, sharing everything. The bedroom, the study, even her office… those moments of madness now felt like the rope around my neck.

I was about to bite my tongue, to end it, when the door burst open. Argus stormed in with his bodyguards, his eyes blazing. They threw themselves on the dogs, beating them until blood ran everywhere. I couldn’t even look. The screams, the smell of blood… I wanted to disappear.

Years later, it felt like Argus’s warmth hit me again. I shook, vision blacking out, and fainted in his arms.

When I woke again, I was in the villa, lying in bed. A scream came from the living room. I dragged myself up, cracked the door, and froze. Argus sat on the sofa, expressionless, while a pile of bloodied dogs cowered before him. He pointed at the bodyguards, and they cut off the dogs’ paws, then tortured them to death, methodically.

I stared, heart hammering. Was this real? Everything felt like a nightmare I couldn’t wake from. My back screamed as old scars split open. I gasped, leaning on the doorframe.

Argus finally walked over, his steps calm, his face softening just a little. But his words were cruel, sharp. “This was an accident by Celine. You’re safe now, so don’t blame her, Dahlia.”

I blinked, still trembling. Safe? Was I ever really safe around them? My hands shook as I sank to the floor.

Argus tossed a letter at me. “Sign this and swear you won’t use this against Celine in the future. I can make sure you don’t have to pay back the 52 million and I’ll make the doctors do their best for your dad.”

He looked at me like I was supposed to be grateful, like this was charity. Then he added, “Don’t overthink it. The one I love will always be Celine, but considering our five years of friendship, I can guarantee you a life without financial worries.”

Arrogance oozed from every word. Just like when he humiliated me at the bar. Was this how he saw me? A beggar who would cry tears of joy over a little favor?

Maybe I used to be like that. I would have done anything for my dad. But not anymore. Not now.

I didn’t respond. Argus threw the letter down and said, “Sign it and bring it to my company.” Then he left, walking away like he owned the world.

I laughed, bitter and broken, and tore the letter into pieces. Then I called the police and reported Celine by name.

The clock struck midnight. I looked at the calendar and the grandfather clock in the corner. In ten hours I’d be free.

I packed my bag, took a hot shower, and went to the cemetery before leaving. I buried my dad’s urn, knelt in front of his tombstone, and kowtowed three times. All the years of suppressed emotions spilled out and I sobbed openly.

“Dad, I’m going to live for real now. If you could see me, I hope you’d be proud.”

A firefly landed on my finger, its faint light on the photo of him. I imagined his gentle smile and warm eyes. I lay my head against the stone, thinking of all the times he’d comforted me. “Our Dahlia is grown now. Why are you still crying?”

I slept there through the night. When I woke, sunlight was spilling across the ground. My future was waiting.

My phone buzzed. A wedding invitation from Celine. And a message from the Public Security Bureau: My case was being investigated.

I smiled for the first time in years. I deleted the wedding invitation and blocked every way Celine and Argus could contact me.

Half an hour later I was on a plane. Once we broke through the clouds, the tension in my body finally released. I whispered to myself, Never see you again. I made my wish.

Mountains and rivers might separate us, but from now on, I am free.