Chapter 1

Laura Lane and Shayne Jameson were universally acknowledged in school as a match made in heaven. Shayne was the campus heartthrob. He was tall and devastatingly handsome in the most aggressive way. He always wore a black windbreaker, looking effortlessly cool and irresistibly charming. Yet, despite drawing so many girls to him, he only ever had eyes for Laura. They were childhood sweethearts who grew up together. They'd played together since they were one, and when they were seven, their families made a pact for them to be betrothed to one another. At fourteen, they exchanged love letters, and at sixteen, he confessed. At eighteen, they promised to apply to the same university. Everything was perfect until the senior year of high school, when a transfer student named Melinda Sherman joined their class. The homeroom teacher had arranged for Shayne to help Melinda get used to the school, emphasizing repeatedly, "If you refuse, then forget about dating Laura on campus." Despite how cold and indifferent he usually was, Shayne had no choice but to accept. At first, it was nothing more than just ordinary tutoring and helping her get familiar with the school. But gradually, things began going south. When Melinda said she wanted cake from the cake shop in the west of the city that always had endless lines, Shayne would skip his evening study session to buy it for her. When Melinda posted on social media that she was in a bad mood, Shayne stayed on the phone with her all night. Once, when she had cramps during her period, he even climbed over the school wall to buy her some hot tea. Laura got angry and argued with him, saying she wanted to break up. The first time she asked for a breakup was over the phone. Shayne was silent for a long time, and then she heard his hurried breathing. That night, in the pouring rain, he ran to her apartment building. He stood downstairs, soaking wet all night, calling her name over and over to beg for forgiveness. The second time, he skipped school for an entire day to wait outside her classroom. His eyes were bloodshot as he shoved a thick letter into her hands. His handwriting might have been messy, but his feelings were painfully sincere as he begged her to reconcile. But after it happened too many times, he seemed to finally understand her limits. She couldn't leave him. So, he became more dismissive of her, taking longer to comfort her each time she brought it up. It started with him comforting her immediately, then a day later, three days later, a week later… Until the ninety-ninth time. At their post-exam celebration banquet, Melinda said she wanted watermelon. Shayne made it his mission to scoop out the sweetest, juiciest piece from the center and handed it to her without hesitation. It was as if he'd completely forgotten that Laura was right beside him, and that Laura loved the center of the watermelon the most. All the disappointment and heartbreak she had bottled up for so long burst immediately. Laura stared at the bright red watermelon and said with a terrifying calm, "Shayne, let's break up." Shayne paused briefly, then lazily lifted his eyes to look at her, saying with some impatience, "Are you kicking up a fuss again?" Laura said nothing more as she picked up her bag and walked out of the room. This time, Shayne didn't chase after her like before. He thought Laura was just throwing another tantrum. In a few days, she'd naturally return to his side once she cooled down, as she always did. In fact, after Laura left, he was still in the mood to stay behind and drink with Melinda as everyone egged them on. What he didn't know was that Laura meant it this time. Having been pierced in the heart over and over again, Laura's love for him was already riddled with holes. It had finally exhausted its last bit of warmth and hope. … When Laura got home, the first thing she did was turn on her computer. Without any hesitation, she changed her college preference. It was changed from the university she'd agreed to attend with Shayne, Northwell University, to Southerford University, which was thousands of miles away. Then, she began clearing out everything related to Shayne. The limited-edition plush toys he'd given her, the couple of bracelets, handwritten notes full of sweet words, thick stacks of photos… Every item used to carry such a sweet memory, but they were now all so unbearably heavy. She stuffed them all into a huge cardboard box. The next day, she went to Shayne's house with that heavy box. The butler recognized her and led her straight to the living room. In the spacious living room, Shayne and Melina sat side by side on the soft carpet, playing the latest video game console. They were sitting close together, and Melinda let out excited squeals and cute laughter from time to time. "Shayne, you're amazing! I couldn't clear this level no matter how hard I tried!" Laura's gaze was instantly drawn to the oversized black T-shirt Melinda was wearing. It was a limited-edition shirt that Laura had hunted through several malls to buy for Shayne's birthday last year. When he received it, he'd happily spun her around several times, whispering into her ear, "Since it's from you, Laura, I'm going to wear it every day." This must have been what he meant by every day. He'd just casually lent it to another girl. Melinda seemed to sense her gaze and turned her head. When she saw Laura holding the box, she immediately broke into an innocent smile. "Laura, you're here? Shayne invited me to play games with him, and he even made pasta for me himself! But I was clumsy and accidentally spilled some juice, so he lent me his shirt. You don't mind, do you?" Upon hearing this, Shayne lifted his eyes lazily to glance at Laura. He never stopped pressing the controller buttons as he said casually, "What are you doing here? Didn't we already break up?" Looking at how utterly indifferent he was, a huge wave of self-mockery surged up inside Laura. She remembered the first breakup, when he'd been drenched in the storm, desperately begging her. Then, later on, he took longer and longer to comfort her. The last time, he'd only sent a single message. "Stop making a fuss. I'll take you out to eat tonight." Again and again, he tested her limits. And because she always relented and forgave him, he grew increasingly arrogant. What he didn't know was that there was a limit to how much she could forgive him. By the ninety-ninth breakup, she truly didn't want him anymore. Laura took a deep breath, forcing down the lump in her throat. "I came here to return some of your things since we've already broken up." Shayne rubbed his brow, looking irritated. "If you're just here to throw a tantrum, you can throw that stuff away yourself. There's no need to bring it here." "Alright." Laura nodded without the slightest hesitation. Holding the box full of memories, she walked over to a large trash bin and, without looking back, dumped the entire box inside. The box fell into the empty bin with a dull, heavy thud.