Calista arrived at the courthouse alone. Her fiance, Theodore Fenwick, hadn't shown up yet. But unexpectedly, she ran into Noah.

His friends followed close behind, loud and smug, clearly there to cheer him on.

When they saw Calista standing in a wedding dress, their expressions twisted into amused smirks.

The expression was one she knew too well. She had seen it countless times over the years, whenever she showed up where Noah was.

They gave her that same smug look—half amusement, half disdain—already convinced she was there to humiliate herself.

To them, it was obvious. Calista had once again come chasing after Noah.

After all, she had pursued him for 12 relentless years. She had endured more heartbreak than she could count. No matter how many times she had been rejected, she had never truly given up.

Today was her 30th birthday. She had come to get married. And in their eyes, th

Just as Calista was trying to figure out how to break free from the hold of Noah's friends, a sharp voice cut through the chaos.

"Let her go!"

Calista flinched in surprise and turned toward the sound. But it wasn't Theodore, the man she was supposed to marry today. It was Patricia.

Wearing a wedding dress, Patricia walked straight toward Noah. He opened his mouth to explain, "I—"

But before he could finish, she brushed past him without hesitation and walked directly toward Calista. Without a word, she slapped Calista hard across the face.

"I can't believe how shameless you are, Calista," she hissed. "You've been throwing yourself at my fiance like a desperate dog for years. And now you have the nerve to show up here on our wedding day—in a damn wedding dress—trying to steal him from me right at the courthouse? Really?"

Calista was still restrained by Noah's friends. She couldn't mo

When Noah returned to his apartment that night, he paused in thought for a moment. 

Then, he said to Calista, "Your leave ends tomorrow, right? The proposal should be done by now too. If it's ready, send it to the partners when you get to the office. And no matter what happens tomorrow, don't come looking for me. I have something to deal with."

He had already played out how Calista might react, and he had prepared his responses accordingly. But he didn't expect Calista to agree without asking a single question.

That caught Noah off guard. 

"You're not going to ask where I'm going tomorrow?" he asked.

Calista simply smiled and said nothing. In the past, because she loved Noah, she followed him wherever he went. But she no longer loved him, so where he went had nothing to do with her.

"You really don't have anything to ask?" Noah looked at her suspiciously.

She nodded. "I do."

"What is it?"

"I'll be 30 tomorrow, Noah. Do you remember I once said that if you still didn't want to marry me by the time I turned 30, I'd walk away?"

"I remember," he replied, "but wasn't that a joke? Who actually takes a joke seriously? Besides, the company's just getting started. I have no plan to get married."

Calista had loved him so much. There was no way she could just stop loving him once she turned 30. Hence, Noah had always assumed she was just joking.

Given how indifferent he sounded, Calista nodded. "Got it."

…

The next morning, Noah left dressed in a sharp suit.

As Calista watched him go, she thought this was finally the end.

She put on her wedding dress and left behind a wedding invitation before turning and walking out the door.

"Noah, from now on, we'll go our own paths. We have nothing to do with each other. I won't bother you anymore," Calista mused.

After leaving the apartment, Calista got in a cab and headed straight to the courthouse.

There was a long life ahead of her.

She was off to find the happiness that belonged to her.

Calista arrived at the courthouse alone. Her fiance, Theodore Fenwick, hadn't shown up yet. But unexpectedly, she ran into Noah.

His friends followed close behind, loud and smug, clearly there to cheer him on.

When they saw Calista standing in a wedding dress, their expressions twisted into amused smirks.

The expression was one she knew too well. She had seen it countless times over the years, whenever she showed up where Noah was.

They gave her that same smug look—half amusement, half disdain—already convinced she was there to humiliate herself.

To them, it was obvious. Calista had once again come chasing after Noah.

After all, she had pursued him for 12 relentless years. She had endured more heartbreak than she could count. No matter how many times she had been rejected, she had never truly given up.

Today was her 30th birthday. She had come to get married. And in their eyes, this was her last-ditch effort—a desperate bid to force Noah into marrying her.

Noah's expression tur

Chapter 10