Alex Ren's POV
The knocking started before my alarm.
Not loud. Not rushed. Rhythmic. Deliberate.
Like she'd choreographed it.
I buried my head into the pillow.
Five seconds later, the door creaked open anyway.
"Good morning, Mr. Grumpypants," came the all-too-familiar chirp. And there she was. Ava Chen—no, Ava Ren—standing in my room with a tray in her hands like some 1950s dream wife and a grin that could end wars.
Pancakes. Again. With tiny whipped cream hearts.
And coffee. With sprinkles. Rainbow sprinkles.
I grunted.
She beamed like I'd just told her she won the lottery.
"I was thinking," she started, placing the tray on my nightstand and then dramatically flopping beside me—thick black hair spilling across my bed, "you should drop me to university today. I've never been dropped off by a husband before. I mean, technically, I've never had a husband before, but that's exactly my point!"
"No."
"Yes."
"Ava."
"Alex."
A pause.
I turned my face. She was doing that thing again—pouting like a kicked puppy and blinking those big hopeful eyes at me like I was her last birthday candle wish.
Silence.
"I'll sit quietly," she tried.
"Lie."
"I'll try to sit quietly."
"…Lie."
"I'll only talk a little bit. Maximum twenty words."
"That's already—"
"I love you, please drop me to university."
I stared. She smiled.
I caved.
Of course I did.
---
It took exactly fifteen seconds after she stepped out of the car for me to understand that I knew nothing about her world.
She waved at the guards. They waved back like she was royalty.
She twirled through the gates like she owned them.
And within moments, people gathered.
Not just friends. Everyone.
Girls hugged her. One of them literally squealed, "Avaaaa, you look so cute today!"
Guys turned. Looked. Looked again. I watched one trip over his own feet trying to make room for her in the walkway.
"Is she dating anyone?" one guy whispered to another.
"Dude, no one's good enough for her," his friend replied.
A professor passed by. "Ava, excellent paper yesterday."
She beamed. "Thank you, Professor Lin!"
Another staff member handed her a box of chocolate. "For your help with the legal aid fundraiser."
She thanked him like he'd gifted her the moon. Hugged a janitor. Complimented someone's shoes. Helped a girl pick up her dropped papers. Laughed with a group of classmates. All in under two minutes.
I sat frozen in the car.
This wasn't Ava, my overly clingy, overly cheerful, tripping-all-over-herself-wife who talked in her sleep and made heart-shaped pancakes.
This was Ava Ren, queen of the campus.
Admired. Beloved. Untouchable.
And none of them knew she was married.
To me.
A part of me stirred with something uncomfortable. Not jealousy.
Just… awe.
She glowed here. In a way I'd never seen before.
I stayed longer than I should've, watching her disappear into a building still laughing at someone's joke. And for the first time, I wasn't sure who was more out of place in her world—me, or the people who thought they had a shot.
Because whether they knew it or not…
She was mine.
And I was beginning to realize—I might not deserve her.