Chapter 4

The air in the huge living room seemed to stop and tense up for almost half a minute. Conan was sure that he'd heard me wrong. "What did you just say, Ingrid?" "I said okay. Let's get a divorce." I stood up from the couch, planning to hand him a copy of the property settlement agreement that the divorce lawyer, Samantha Lawson, had prepared. However, Conan suddenly raised his voice at me and gritted his teeth, asking, "Are you sure you want to divorce me for real?" I didn't even blink as I replied, "Can anyone even divorce for fake?" Conan looked deeply into my eyes and scoffed coldly. "I hadn't known that you were the type to play hard-to-get. However, that tactic doesn't work on me." Then, he left in a huff. He never came back for the next half of a month. It wasn't until late one night when Ian called me up. He anxiously explained that Conan was dead drunk and needed someone to look after him. I just replied, "If he's really that drunk, maybe he should spend the night at your place. But if that's too much of a bother, try asking Mindy if she's free." God knew that I only said that out of pure consideration for Conan. However, Conan came back fine and dandy afterward, even giving me an attitude for someone who was supposed to be dead drunk. He just sat down next to me, watching TV. Over the next few days, he kept coming home on time, but with that cold expression on his face. Moreover, he kept sending huge bouquets of 999 roses to my office every day for the whole week. In the past, I would always upload plenty of Instagram stories for every gift Conan gave me, even if it was something as plain and simple as a keychain. But this time, Conan never found any of the roses he gave me posted in my stories, no matter how many times he refreshed the app on his phone. There wasn't even a single rose petal. Conan seemed to have forgotten all about the divorce. Meanwhile, I listened to Samantha's advice and decided to wait until the timing was right. … "Where are you, Iggy? We're in Room No.8… Hurry up!" I'd agreed to meet up with Eva for a karaoke date night at a private club. But before I even had time to start looking for the correct room, someone put their hand on my shoulder from the back. "Ingrid? How did you know I was here?" The corridor was quite dimly lit, and yet, the pure joy in Conan's lit-up face was as plain as day. "Hadn't I told you that I'd be going back really soon? But I guess it's fine that you're here. Come on. I'll bring you along to greet the others." Conan then steered me into another private room, and Mindy was the first person to come up to greet us. However, when she realized that it was me, the smile on her face froze instantly. "Oh? I didn't think Ingrid was the kind of person who'd show up at a place like this." Mindy playfully glared at Conan before giving me the once-over. "Did you know? Coco always told me that you were the fussy and unconfident type who hated coming out in public, but I told him that you weren't as stupid as he described you to be." I immediately recognized the custom-made blazer that Mindy was wearing around her shoulders. It was my birthday gift to Conan last year. Some time ago, I thought of asking him to wear it out to the dinner we were having with his family. However, he'd then told me impatiently that he'd lost it while on a business trip. I had only mumbled, "Oh, that's a pity," but that seemed to have pushed the wrong buttons because Conan then flew into a huge rage at me. He yelled, "It's just a fucking ugly blazer past its fucking season, and here you are, interrogating me like I'm a fucking criminal! I have a good mind to throw you to the fucking neurologist and see if there's anything they can do about that fucking stupid pea-sized brain of yours!" Back in the present, Conan pulled me along and introduced me to his so-called childhood friends to strike up some small talk. Everyone kept teasing him for being the henpecked husband, and Conan just watched me with his upturned, smiling eyes. As the people started loudly cheering and encouraging me to sing a love song with Conan, Mindy suddenly appeared and draped the blazer around my shoulders. She then smiled and said, "Ingrid, you're dressed a little too skimpily. I was just worried that you'd catch a cold." Conan panicked when he saw me wearing the blazer that had supposedly been lost on an overseas business trip. He grabbed me and said in a careful tone, "The weather turned cold so suddenly when I was on the business trip, and Mindy hadn't brought a jacket with her… That's why I had no choice but to lend it to her." I was in the midst of replying to Eva's text message and didn't even spare him a glance as I said, "Oh? It's just a blazer. There's nothing wrong with lending it to her—you can even give it to her if you want." Just then, Eva replied with a photo of the side profile of her "mysterious" friend she'd invited along. I quickly passed the microphone in my hand to Mindy and told Conan, "You both can sing the duet. I've got something else to attend to, so I'm leaving now." Before Conan could say anything, Mindy spread her arms to stop me. She then said in an upset tone, "Ingrid, are you still having the wrong idea about me and Coco? It really isn't what you think it is." Just as Mindy wished, I immediately caught sight of the intricate tattoo on the inside of her arm when she spread her arms out like that. It was a sword surrounded by roses. I'd seen the exact same tattoo on Conan two months ago. I then met Conan's panicked eyes and did something out of everyone's expectations.