Father's Unfulfilled Last Wish

The moment I lashed out, Nora, who had been trying to stay calm, lost her composure entirely.

She stormed over in her high heels, yanking the suitcase from my hand and slamming it to the floor.

Clothes spilled out across the room.

As she approached, her heel crushed the dumplings on the floor. I clenched my teeth, fists tightening.

"Maxwell, my patience is running thin. Don't drag innocent people into our problems!"

I never imagined she would humiliate me like this in front of Ethan.

Ethan's eyes welled up with tears, looking at me with pitiful innocence.

"I'm sorry, Maxwell. I just checked the flight info, hoping to pick your dad up. I never thought..."

He trailed off, a grown man now sniffling, his eyes red, tears brimming.

"I was just worried Nora might get scammed. After all, the Peyer family is quite special, and she hasn't had much experience with relationships, nor does she have many male friends, so I..."

My gaze grew colder, my voice devoid of any warmth.

"Nora, do you think I'm lying to you too?"

She didn't answer, her lips tightly pressed together.

Her expression said it all.

I let out a deep breath, feeling my heart shatter into tiny, jagged pieces.

The medical records were real, from a local hospital.

I had gone with my dad for his check-up six months ago—there was no way to fake that.

So Ethan had focused on my father's ticket.

He hadn't taken a flight.

It was too expensive—how could he justify the cost?

To save money for my wedding dowry, he had endured over thirty hours on a hard seat.

Just to attend a non-existent wedding of his son.

Yet, even with just a single line to say, Nora couldn't bring herself to go through with the act and instead chose to abandon me.

Looking back, she had never truly reciprocated my feelings. From the moment we met, our fate was sealed.

I searched for signs of her love, deceiving myself at every turn.

This deception lasted for five years.

But from the moment Ethan appeared, the fragile balance shattered.

Nora began acting like a typical girl in love.

She'd ask me what medicine to give Ethan when he had a stomachache.

When Ethan had migraines from overworking, Nora would take on his tasks, telling him to rest.

She'd bring him to every company event, introducing him as her perfect work partner.

Compared to them, I felt like a rat in the gutter, reeking of filth.

Even when I sacrificed my dignity, offering it up for her and her lover to trample, I wasn't granted a ticket to this twisted game.

But now, I didn't want what I could never have.

The spot where I had hit Ethan began to swell quickly, but he bit his lip and bore the pain.

Nora was furious, cursing me out.

Yet her hands didn't stop. She expertly pulled out some ointment from her bag, dabbing it on her fingers to apply to Ethan's forehead.

She turned to me, her voice laced with threat.

"Maxwell, don't be ungrateful. Ethan is innocent. His first thought after waking up in the hospital was to rush to the wedding and find you."

"He worked tirelessly for your fake wedding. Look at yourself now—you're acting like a complete lunatic! How can you repay his kindness with this behavior?"

"Maxwell, this is the last time I'm saying this—apologize to him!"

"If you cause trouble again, you can get the hell out of here!"

I acted as if I hadn't heard her, focusing on packing the belongings scattered on the floor.

Minutes ticked by, and Nora's patience finally ran out.

She stomped over in her high heels, grabbing a fistful of my short hair and yanking my head back. Her delicate features twisted into something terrifyingly grotesque.

Pain shot through my scalp, but I gritted my teeth, refusing to cry out. Bloodshot eyes locked onto Nora's.

She snarled, "Didn't you hear me? Or have you forgotten how to apologize? Maxwell, you've really disappointed me this time!"

"You want those dumplings your dad made? Fine, how about you try them right now?"

I bit down hard, trying to control myself as she forced my head down, grinding it against the floor.

All I could see were her high heels, now covered in flour.

I hadn't eaten in too long, not since my father's funeral and the wedding preparations. I didn't even have the strength to stand.

My lips were pressed so hard against the ground they were starting to bleed, tears mixed with flour sticking to my face.

But even this wasn't enough for Nora. She yanked my head up to her face, slapping me hard across the cheek.

I tasted blood, the wound on my forehead blurring my vision.

"You didn't shave this morning? Trying to cut my hand open? Open your mouth! You're such a big shot now, huh? Come on, open up so I can feed you!"

She bent down, picked up a dumpling that was still somewhat intact, and smashed it against my face, grinding it into my stubble, grease sticking to my skin.

"Does it taste good? Are you enjoying yourself? Now apologize to Ethan!"

"Or I'll send your father right back to wherever the hell he came from!"