Chapter 4 update
Selina smiled in satisfaction as she watched Vanesa’s back disappear beyond the massive doors of the house.
There was no pity. No remorse. Only the satisfaction of a woman who had finally won—driving away the legal wife and securing the position she had always wanted.
“That’s how it should be,” Selina murmured softly as she fixed her hair. “She knew her place.”
But unlike Selina, Axel stood frozen.
His gaze remained fixed on the tightly closed door, as if something had been left behind—something he could never reach again.
His chest ached.
Not an ordinary ache, but a strange, suffocating pain, as if a part of him had been violently torn away without warning. Axel raised his hand and pressed it against the left side of his chest.
Why does it hurt?
Vanesa is gone. Isn’t that what he wanted?
“Axel,” Selina called gently, stepping closer and touching his arm. “It’s over now. We can finally start our life without any disturbances.”
Axel didn’t respond.
His eyes were empty. Vanesa’s face appeared vividly in his mind—not her tear-streaked face, but the hollow look in her eyes as she hugged the box of their child’s ashes. The look of a woman who had run out of hope.
Axel let out a long breath.
“Axel?” Selina frowned. “Are you listening to me?”
Still no answer.
Unease crept into Selina’s expression. She stepped in front of Axel, staring at him with a demanding look.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked sharply. “Isn’t this what you wanted? Didn’t you just say you loved me?”
Axel blinked, as if waking from his own thoughts. “I… I’m just tired.”
“Tired?” Selina let out a small laugh, forced and brittle. “You divorced your wife today, proposed to me, and now you’re saying you’re tired?”
Axel rubbed his face roughly. “Give me some time.”
Those words were like a spark thrown onto gasoline.
“Time?” Selina’s voice rose. “For what? To think about her?”
Axel turned quickly. “Don’t exaggerate.”
“Exaggerate?” Selina stepped closer, her face flushing with anger. “Axel, I just accepted your proposal. You swore you only loved me. But your attitude right now—cold, distant—it’s like I’m nobody to you!”
Axel fell silent.
He didn’t understand it himself. Something was wrong, gnawing at his mind, and the more he tried to ignore it, the tighter the pressure in his chest became.
“I love you, Selina,” Axel finally said, but his voice lacked its former certainty.
Selina narrowed her eyes. “Then look at me.”
Axel did.
“Don’t look at that door anymore,” Selina insisted. “Vanesa is gone. She’s nobody now.”
Nobody.
Those words should have felt right. Instead, they made Axel’s chest tighten even more.
The night grew late.
Axel sat alone in his study, staring at his laptop screen without truly seeing anything. Company files were open—declining graphs, financial reports demanding immediate decisions.
Problems.
Normally, Axel faced them with a cool head. But this time, his thoughts were in chaos.
The door opened without a knock.
Selina entered, irritation written all over her face. “Are you avoiding me?”
Axel didn’t look up. “I’m working.”
“You’re always working,” Selina snapped. “But you used to always make time for me.”
Axel closed his laptop slowly. “Selina, the company isn’t stable right now. I need to focus.”
Selina crossed her arms. “And Vanesa always understood that, didn’t she?”
Axel looked at her sharply. “What are you implying?”
Selina scoffed. “I just find it strange. You said she never mattered, but ever since she left, you’ve changed.”
Axel stood up. “Enough.”
But Selina didn’t stop. “When you fell back then—when your company was almost bankrupt—who was by your side?”
Axel fell silent.
Vanesa’s image surfaced again. Sitting quietly in this very room, bringing him coffee, staying with him until morning, saying little, asking for nothing.
“Her,” Selina answered quickly, as if reading his mind. “And me? I left because I was hurt too at the time!”
Her tone turned defensive.
Axel exhaled slowly. “This isn’t about comparisons.”
“But you are comparing,” Selina jabbed a finger at his chest. “I can tell.”
Axel closed his eyes briefly. For the first time, he recognized the difference he had long ignored.
Vanesa never scolded him when he was drowning in problems. Vanesa never demanded attention when he was close to breaking. Vanesa stayed—silently, faithfully, without conditions.
And Selina…
“Axel!” Selina’s voice rose. “You promised you’d make me happy! Don’t make me regret coming back to you!”
Axel opened his eyes. His gaze was sharp, but exhausted.
“I’m not making you regret it,” he said flatly. “I just… need space.”
Selina stared at him in disbelief. “Space?” Her voice trembled with anger and shock. “You just destroyed someone’s life for me, and now you’re asking for space?”
Axel didn’t answer.
The silence only fueled Selina’s fury.
“If you keep acting like this,” she said coldly, “don’t blame me if I change too.”
Selina turned and stormed out, her footsteps echoing sharply.
Axel sank back into his chair.
The pain returned to his chest—this time, much stronger.