Chapter 1

Up until I turned 15 years old, I felt like a weed. My life was damp, chilly, insignificant, and suffocating. That was until I met Martin Grant and Molly Summers. Molly was the one who made me the first ravioli dish I ever tasted in my life. She bought me the first pretty dress I ever owned. She was the one who spent countless hours decorating the house for my first proper birthday party and would tenderly apply ointment to the cold sores that appeared on my hands. She always made sure everybody knew that I was her best friend. As for Martin, he saved me from the hands of a bunch of mocking, cruel hooligans. When I ran a fever of 104°F, he kicked the door open and rushed me to the hospital. Before my drunken stepfather could lay another finger on me, Martin stepped in and cracked his skull open with one punch. When he confessed to me, his trembling hands and loud heartbeat resonated within me, bringing warm tears to my eyes. "I swear to protect you for the rest of our lives." I always thought about how lucky I was that they had appeared and lit up my hopeless, dim life. That was until my 23rd birthday, when I heard Martin yelling at Molly, "I can't control my feelings! So what if I've fallen for you? You fell for me, too, didn't you?" The gorgeous girl standing in front of him looked into his bitter, red-rimmed gaze and finally threw herself into his waiting arms. "But…what about Willow?" I hid in the corner as I smiled to myself bitterly. What else could I do? I loved them both to death. I couldn't bear to let them suffer. I called my supervisor and asked calmly, "Can I sign up for that 20-year exploration project in Stravia?" … Rain thundered down, drenching me from head to toe. However, I remained motionless. All I could do was stare expressionlessly at the two people behind the glass wall in front of me. They had pulled me out of a pit of despair when I was only 15 years old. I watched as they clung tightly to each other. He was handsome, and she was beautiful. The love between them was palpable, and they looked like a match made in heaven. It would have been almost cruel for anyone to break them apart. Even though I didn't have an umbrella with me, I still stood there for 15 whole minutes. I only strolled lightly into our reserved booth when the clock struck 7:00 pm, which was the time we agreed to meet. "What a day! The car broke down halfway, and I couldn't find another cab, so I had to run all the way here in the rain. I'm freezing!" Molly wrapped her expensive Chanel jacket around my wet hair without an ounce of hesitation. "You silly girl!" she chided. "You could have called us to pick you up! What if you got sick?" Martin, a kind and thoughtful man who used to fret over even the smallest cut on my finger, hesitated before finally approaching me. He didn't pull me into his embrace like he did after I was kicked out of the house by my stepfather at 17 years old. Instead, he stood almost three feet away from me and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Willow. It's your birthday, but I didn't pick you up from school. I should have thought about that, so that you wouldn't have gotten drenched." I was so cold that I was shivering, but I simply chuckled. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it!" Perhaps my simple-minded reaction made him feel guilty, because he finally approached me and held my cold hands tenderly, blowing on them to warm them up. Molly, who was still helping me dry my hair, suddenly stopped. Her gaze darkened for a moment. Martin noticed as well and hurriedly let go of my hands, stepping back once again. He then waved over the waiter standing by the door. "Bring me a hot latte." He smiled at me sheepishly. "You should drink something hot to warm you up." I acted as if I knew nothing and sat down breezily. However, I knew his gaze wasn't directed at me. The hot latte arrived soon enough. Molly made sure it was cool enough to drink before passing it to me. I usually found a latte to be quite sweet, but it tasted bitter and astringent on my tongue. Still, I drank it all up. I placed the empty cup down and rubbed my stomach. "I'm starving. Should we order our food?" My past birthdays were always a boisterous affair. They would always fight over who was the first to smear cream on my cheek, and they would laugh and say it was to bless me with good luck. Either that, or they would fight over who got to take a picture with me first. I usually ended up getting confused over who I should look at first, but the end result was always a picture of the three of us. Martin would hold me tightly in his embrace, and he would gaze at me as if I were the rarest treasure in the world. Molly, on the other hand, would lean against my shoulder with a wide smile. This year felt completely different. The cake was as gorgeous as ever, and they were still sitting on either side of me. However, the atmosphere was stiff and suffocating. It was so tense that you could cut it with a knife. I felt like I couldn't breathe. Molly quietly ate her food while Martin occasionally zoned out, looking distracted. I took a deep breath and did my best to liven up the atmosphere. "Hey, what are you two planning? You haven't even wished me happy birthday yet! Are you planning to smash the whole cake in my face when I'm not paying attention?" Molly finally smiled stiffly. "Of course not! We wanted to let you eat first since we figured you must be hungry after spending the whole afternoon in the library. Let's get the ball rolling!"