Alger had lost count of how many times he had sighed while staring at Lily's bedroom door. He didn't know what to do anymore. It turned out that the grudge he had been holding onto all this time was nothing more than a misunderstanding.
He kept tapping his chin, his gaze fixed on Lily's tightly shut door.
"If Dad told you to stay away from me, why did you end up with another man, Ly? And now, how are you suddenly close to my parents? What really happened? What have I missed all this time?"
While Alger was lost in his thoughts, Lily was also lost in her own world, daydreaming on her bedroom balcony. Her gaze remained unchanged—empty yet filled with pain.
"If Dad were still here, maybe my life wouldn't be like this. I miss you, Dad. When will you visit me in my dreams and hold me again?"
Once again, Lily let out a deep sigh, resting her head on the balcony railing.
"Why does my life have to be this complicated? Why does God give me trials this heavy without a shoulder to lean on? Will I really be strong enough? Can I truly accept it if Alger keeps sneaking around with Jennie? No matter how tough I am, if this keeps happening, how could I possibly endure it?"
What kind of heart could accept a husband being with another woman, while Lily had to keep her distance from men out of respect for Alger's parents, who had always been kind to her?
Suddenly, from the balcony next to hers—Alger's room—he stepped out, holding a tablet in his hand. His sudden presence made Lily stop mumbling to herself, her gaze shifting straight ahead.
"Not hungry?"
Lily, who had been staring at the stars, glanced briefly at Alger and shook her head.
"Too bad. I already bought food. Come downstairs and eat."
Without waiting for her response, Alger went back inside and closed his balcony door.
"What the hell? If he doesn't like me, why is he acting like he cares? He was all lovey-dovey at the office earlier, and now he's trying to get my attention at home? What does he take me for?"
Despite her grumbling, Lily still made her way back inside her room. Ever since her father passed away, her eating habits had been a mess, and now, her stomach was starting to ache again.
Even from the top of the stairs, Lily could already see that Alger had placed a meal on the table. But strangely, she hadn't seen him leave his room. She smirked and walked toward the dining table.
"Are you that lazy to eat together? If only I knew how my past self treated you, maybe I could explain everything, Al. But unfortunately, I don't remember any of it."
Lily opened the bowl of chicken porridge in front of her, still warm. She wasn't sure if Alger knew or if it was just a coincidence, but at that moment, she really needed something soft to eat since her stomach wasn't feeling well.
Just as she took a spoonful of the porridge into her mouth, Alger walked out of his room, already dressed neatly.
Even though she was curious, Lily remained silent, pretending to focus on her meal.
"I'm going out for a bit."
Lily nodded without looking at Alger.
"Go ahead. Don't forget your keys. There's no way I'm waiting for you all night."
"What else if not a date with Jennie?" she added in her mind.
"Aren't you going to ask where I'm going?"
Lily put down her spoon and shook her head.
"Why would I? Didn't you make it clear in our agreement? We're not supposed to interfere in each other's business, we're not allowed to dig into each other's lives, and I haven't forgotten that you also said our matters are separate. We just live under the same roof, but we don't share the same love or the same goals. Isn't that right?"
Alger didn't respond. Instead, he chose to leave, slamming the apartment door behind him.
"Such a bad temper," she muttered before continuing her meal.
What she said and what she felt were two different things. Lily might seem firm, indifferent, and unconcerned, but deep down, she was slightly curious about why Alger went out at night without eating first.
"Is he meeting Jennie for dinner?"
A second later, Lily shook her head.
"What the hell, Ly? Let him have dinner with whoever he wants. It's none of your business. Remember, you can't fall for your boss and your own husband. This is temporary. You can't let your heart get involved." she reminded herself.
Meanwhile, Alger stood outside the door, clicking his tongue as he stared at the closed apartment door.
"Do you really not care, Ly? Will you truly not get jealous if I'm with another woman?"
"Alright then, let's see how well you can guard your heart. I'm sure you won't be able to."
Whatever cunning plan Alger had in mind, one thing was clear—rather than apologizing for the accusations he had held onto for five years, his pride wouldn't allow him to. Instead, he had come up with a ridiculous scheme to make Lily fall for him.
Maybe it was ridiculous, but this was Alger's plan. After listening to his parents' words earlier, Alger couldn't stop thinking and questioning what had happened to Lily over the past five years. What kind of life had she lived that made her completely lose her memory?
Lily peeked through the window, watching as Alger really left the apartment without even bothering to text her about where he was going.
"Not my business, right?" she muttered before heading back to her room.
***
Alger was already seated at a bar, waiting for someone who had said they would meet him there.
"Why did you ask to meet here?" Alger asked, glancing at Jennie, who had arrived with another girl beside her.
"I wanted to introduce you to someone. Didn't you say you didn't like your secretary? So I brought her for you to meet," Jennie explained.
Alger smirked and stood up.
"I already told you, Jen, don't interfere in my business. I don't need a blind date or to meet your friend."
"And why is that? Because you like Lily?" Jennie challenged. "If you do, go after her. But she's going to be your partner." She gestured toward Yifan.
"What do you mean?"
Jennie leaned in closer, whispering something to Alger while wiggling her eyebrows.
"So? Do you agree with my plan?"
"Not really interested. I'm going home."
"At least have a drink first. That's not the only reason I called you here. I wanted to celebrate our partnership, too."
"Not interested. You two go ahead."
Angel grabbed Alger's wrist, shaking her head. "Why are you in such a hurry? Jennie told me you don't have a girlfriend, right? Just having a drink with us shouldn't be such a big deal, should it?"
Alger sighed and sat back down, taking a sip from his glass. "There. Happy now? I'm leaving."
Without waiting for Jennie's response, Alger walked out of the bar. She had said she wanted to discuss something important, but it turned out she had just set him up on a blind date.
"Still the same, huh? Jennie always loves setting me up with women I have zero interest in," he muttered in annoyance, stumbling slightly as he walked.
It seemed that before Angel and Jennie had arrived, Alger had already finished almost an entire bottle of alcohol. Jennie only realized it when she looked at the empty bottle on the table after Alger had left.
"Alger's drunk, Gel?"
"Probably. Wasn't he the only one sitting here before? Are you sure he can drive like that?"
"You should go after him. We don't want to hear news about Alger getting into an accident because he was drunk."
"Me?" Angel asked again.
"I have something to take care of, so you go after him. Besides, no one will get mad. The Lily I mentioned is just his secretary. And Alger doesn't even know if he likes her or not."
"Alright, I'm heading out now," she said, standing up.
Jennie nodded and waved her hand, a smirk forming on her lips as she relished the plan she had set in motion.
"Who told them to be so prideful? With this, I'm sure Lily will get closer to you, Al. And you'll also have an easier time approaching her," she muttered while raising her phone to make a call.
"Do it now. Don't forget to send me the results."
"Yes, boss."
Jennie smirked, spinning her phone in her hand.
"If you two can't do it yourselves, then Jennie will make sure you end up together."
It didn't take long before she received a photo of Alger being helped into a car by Angel, who also got into the same vehicle. It looked so sweet.
"Angel shouldn't be getting attached to Alger. Didn't I tell her from the beginning that this was just a plan?" she murmured softly.
Without hesitation, Jennie forwarded the photo sent by her informant to Lily's phone number and asked for Alger's address, as Angel would be taking him home.
On the other side, Lily had just closed her eyes when a notification rang from her phone. Still half-asleep, she instinctively opened it, only for her eyes to squint in disbelief at the intimate photo of Alger with another woman.
"So Jennie is just a bridge for Alger to get close to her best friend? He claimed to be cold, claimed not to like women, but why is he getting drunk with another girl? Is this your way of getting revenge on me, Al?" she whispered, wiping away the sudden tears that fell.
"How much longer can I endure living like this? How much longer can I stay married to someone who doesn't even like me and sees me as his enemy?"
Lily immediately got up from her bed. She had to wait for Alger outside—she couldn't let him enter the apartment and find out that they were living in the same place. There was no way she could tell him that she was renting a place with him. Especially since Alger was a powerful CEO who couldn't possibly be short on money like she was.
After about fifteen minutes of waiting, a car pulled into the lobby and stopped right in front of Lily.
"Excuse me, Sis. Can you tell me where unit 124 is? I need to take my boyfriend there."
"So it's true… she really is Alger's girlfriend," Lily thought to herself.
"Coincidentally, I'm his secretary, so I can take him inside. Mr. Alger also asked me to come for work matters."
"At this hour?"
"Don't be jealous. Mr. Alger has no sense of time when it comes to work. Your boyfriend is a total workaholic," she said with a faint smile.
"I'll take him inside."
"But—"
"It's fine. Mr. Alger doesn't like anyone entering his apartment without permission, except for me and Mr. James."