After Rebirth, I Rejected My Family to Let the Fake Heiress Have Her Way, But My Boyfriend Panicked

: Let's End It

I followed him into the apartment.

The decor was familiar—a minimalist design in cool tones, just like him: refined and distant.

Only this time, I no longer felt even a flicker of the affection I once had.

He took a bottle of water from the fridge and tossed it to me, then walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window and lit a cigarette.

Pale white smoke swirled around him, creating a hazy barrier that separated us.

"Clara, I know you're upset."

His voice, muffled by the smoke, drifted over to me.

"About your parentage, I admit I handled it badly. But Stella's health is poor right now, and she… she can't handle any agitation."

'Stella Ashwood again.'

I lowered my gaze, twisted open the bottle cap, and silently took a sip of water.

The cool liquid slid down my throat, but it couldn't quell the bitterness churning within me.

He had said the same thing in my past life.

He told me Stella had been frail since childhood and had a tendency toward depression, asking me to be more yielding to her after I was reunited with my family.

And I listened.

I let her have all of Julian Rhodes's favoritism. I even chose to back down and remain silent in the face of her repeated, unreasonable provocations.

But in the end, her suicide handed my marriage to Julian Rhodes a ten-year life sentence.

Seeing my silence, Julian Rhodes assumed I was still sulking about not being able to reunite with my family and crushed out his cigarette in frustration.

He turned, walked over, and knelt before me, looking up with a hint of pleading in his eyes.

"Don't be angry with me anymore, okay?"

His voice was gentle as his large hand enveloped mine, which was still holding the water bottle.

"I admit, I didn't have the facts straight today. I let you get your hopes up for nothing."

"Tell me what you want as compensation. As long as it's something I can give, I'll grant it."

He paused, his tone growing earnest. "But for now, let's not think about the Ashwood Family, okay?"

He had humbled himself completely, and the love in his eyes was practically overflowing.

I could see it clearly. He was genuinely afraid I'd get angry, afraid I'd leave him.

But this love was predicated on the sacrifice of my identity.

I lifted my head to meet his gaze and suddenly felt the urge to laugh.

"There's nothing I want."

I calmly pulled my hand away, an action that made the light in his eyes dim for a moment.

"Don't worry. Even if the Ashwood Family came begging me to return with their immense fortune, I wouldn't give them a second glance."

"And you don't need to apologize. You don't owe me anything. Let's just end things between us."

Julian Rhodes's brows furrowed tightly. He shot to his feet, his expression instantly turning cold.

"End things? Clara Sutton, are you just saying that to spite me? Are you playing hard to get because I wouldn't let you go back to the Ashwood Family?"

He leaned in close, bracing his hands on the sofa on either side of me and trapping me in his presence.

"I only told you not to go back to the Ashwood Family, I never said I wanted to break up with you! We can be just like we were before. No, I'll treat you even better than before!"

I looked at him and suddenly felt so tired.

He thought that as long as he stripped me of my identity as the "true daughter of the Ashwood Family," we could go back to how things were and love each other without any trouble.

But he didn't understand. The root of the tragedy was never about whether I returned to the Ashwood Family or not.

"Julian Rhodes," I said, pushing him away. I stood up, putting distance between us.

"I'm tired. I want to go home."

After saying that, I didn't look at him again and walked straight to the door.

This time, he didn't try to stop me.