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After the Rain, We Found Our Own Dawn
Novelix
Completed
"After I joined my boyfriend Ethan’s company, he treated everyone with warmth and consideration. Everyone except me. With me, he went out of his way to keep his distance. When the team dinner moved to a new restaurant, he deliberately left me out of the group chat. “You don’t even read the messages. I don’t have time to babysit you.” On a company hike, he kept my map and left me lost in the rain. “If you can’t keep up, whose fault is that?” Then there was the project I’d spent half a month working late to win. Ethan crossed out my name himself and gave Sophie all the credit. I thought he was hiding our relationship to protect his chances at a promotion. Until the celebration dinner, when Sophie clutched my award and grabbed Ethan by the collar. “The project’s mine. And now you’re mine, too.” Our coworkers cheered. “Ethan and Sophie made a bet! If she landed the project, he’d be her boyfriend!” Ethan looked at me. He hesitated for a moment, then lowered his head and kissed her. Amid the cheers, I finally understood. He wasn’t afraid of people finding out about us. He was ashamed to be seen with me. I dropped my ring on the table and quit on the spot. The next second, the private room door flew open. Ryan, our new boss, crossed the room and stopped in front of me."
Chapters (3)
第1章
After I joined my boyfriend Ethan’s company, he treated everyone with warmth and consideration.
Everyone except me. With me, he went out of his way to keep his distance.
When the team dinner moved to a new restaurant, he deliberately left me out of the group chat. “You don’t even read the messages. I don’t have time to babysit you.”
On a company hike, he kept my map and left me lost in the rain. “If you can’t keep up, whose fault is that?”
Then there was the project I’d spent half a month working late to win. Ethan crossed out my name himself and gave Sophie all the credit.
I thought he was hiding our relationship to protect his chances at a promotion.
Until the celebration dinner, when Sophie clutched my award and grabbed Ethan by the collar.
“The project’s mine. And now you’re mine, too.”
Our coworkers cheered.
“Ethan and Sophie made a bet! If she landed the project, he’d be her boyfriend!”
Ethan looked at me. He hesitated for a moment, then lowered his head and kissed her.
Amid the cheers, I finally understood.
He wasn’t afraid of people finding out about us. He was ashamed to be seen with me.
I dropped my ring on the table and quit on the spot.
The next second, the private room door flew open. Ryan, our new boss, crossed the room and stopped in front of me.
“You begged me to transfer you here. Now you want to leave?”
He glanced at Ethan.
“Break up with him, and I’ll fire him today.”
The room fell silent.
The coworkers who’d been cheering a moment ago lowered their heads. Even Sophie’s hands stiffened around my award.
I looked at Ethan. My voice was so calm it surprised even me.
“Ethan, we’re done.”
His expression barely changed. He gave me a cool glance.
“Emma, you’re really going to listen to him?”
“Because I didn’t make our relationship public tonight?”
I’d asked him countless times to acknowledge our relationship.
When I first joined the company, coworkers often tried to set Ethan up with someone. Some even asked me what kind of woman he liked.
I got jealous and asked when he’d tell people about us.
“Making it public now could hurt my chances at a promotion,” he’d said. “Don’t start.”
Then Sophie began pursuing him openly.
They ate together, left work together, and even their work conversations carried a flirtatious edge. To everyone at the office, they were practically a couple.
I once spoke to Sophie in private.
“Ethan and I have been together for five years. I don’t mind you working with him, but stop telling people you’re going after him.”
She glanced at me and gave a quiet laugh.
“You should take that up with Ethan. He hasn’t turned me down. Why should I be the one to back off?”
“Five years together, and no one at work knows. Emma, don’t you think you should ask yourself why?”
Her words were cruel, but Ethan had never rejected her.
I stopped arguing with Sophie and asked Ethan to keep some distance between them.
He brushed me off coldly. “We’re on the same team. How am I supposed to avoid her?”
“Land this project, and I’ll keep my distance.”
For that promise, I worked late for more than two weeks and lived on quick meals.
The day our proposal was approved, I asked if he’d have dinner with me after work so we could celebrate.
He still said no.
“What if a coworker sees us?”
He ate with Sophie all the time, but wouldn’t let anyone see him celebrating with me.
I swallowed my disappointment. Then he reminded me, “The proposal being approved doesn’t mean we’ve won the project. Don’t get ahead of yourself.”
So I kept preparing for the presentation.
The day before it was due, Ethan announced in front of the whole team that he was giving the project to Sophie.
“She’s always been great at presentations. She’ll take over from here.”
He didn’t look at me. He didn’t mention who’d spent all those nights putting the proposal together.
He’d promised to keep his distance from Sophie if I won the project. But once I’d done all the work, he handed it to her.
Tonight, their celebration dinner had become the stage for announcing their bet.
Only then did I understand. The condition he’d given me had become Sophie’s bargaining chip.
I looked at Ethan standing protectively in front of her and realized there was nothing left to ask.
“You don’t have to make our relationship public anymore.”
I turned to Sophie.
“You won the project. You can have him as your boyfriend now.”
“Honestly, I should’ve broken up with you a long time ago.”
“Five years with you was a waste of my life.”
第2章
The room went quiet. Everyone watched Ethan carefully.
But I felt lighter than I had in years. It was as if the weight I’d been carrying had finally lifted.
Ending a five-year relationship wasn’t as hard as I’d thought. Leaving someone who didn’t value my love wasn’t much of a loss.
Still, I knew Ethan. I’d put up with his behavior for so long that he’d never expect me to leave first.
Sure enough, he stared at me and strode closer.
“Emma, are you serious?”
Before I could answer, Ryan pulled me behind him.
“Of course she is. Do you need me to say it slower?”
Ryan was even taller than Ethan. He didn’t have to raise his voice to overpower him.
“And I’ll investigate what happened with the project. Ethan, I’m your boss now. You’d better watch yourself.”
Ethan’s face turned rigid. After a moment, he gave a cold laugh.
“Emma, in five years, when have you ever not come back after one of your little stunts?”
“You found someone to stand up for you, so now you’re really going to leave?”
He looked past Ryan at me.
“You just want me to apologize and sweet-talk you. Don’t make this sound so final. You’ll only have to find a way to take it back later.”
Behind Ryan, I could only stare. Ethan sounded so sure of himself.
When I didn’t answer, he turned and pulled Sophie into his arms. He looked at me with open defiance.
“Fine. I’ll do what you don’t want me to. I’m saying yes to Sophie. I’ll be her boyfriend.”
I tugged on Ryan’s sleeve and sighed.
“You heard him. He’s agreed to break up with me. Let’s not keep them from showing off.”
I took Ryan’s hand and headed for the door. As we passed the table, I heard a couple of coworkers whispering.
“Emma and Ethan were actually together? I thought she was harassing him. I owe her an apology.”
“Remember how Ethan always saved the seat beside him for Sophie at team dinners? I thought they were the couple.”
Someone nudged them, and they finally stopped talking.
Ryan leaned down to me.
“I’m actually taking you with me this time. You’re not going to change your mind halfway out the door, are you?”
Over the past five years, Ethan and I had broken up plenty of times. In the end, I’d always been the one to reach out and make up.
But this time, I was sure.
I blinked at Ryan and shook my head. “Don’t worry. I won’t regret it.”
Behind us, Ethan watched Ryan holding my hand. Anger churned in his eyes.
“Emma, don’t come crying to me and begging to get back together!”
I shrugged and let Ryan lead me out of the restaurant.
As soon as I got into his car, Ethan posted a photo of himself holding Sophie’s hand in the company group chat.
“I wasn’t against making a relationship public. I just hadn’t met someone I wanted to be public about.”
Sophie tagged me right after.
“Emma, you’ll wish us well, right?”
Her friends jumped in.
“Rules are rules. Just because you didn’t win the project doesn’t mean nobody else gets to date.”
“One person does the work, the other gets the boyfriend. Sounds like a fair division of labor.”
Sophie sent a blushing emoji.
“Stop it. Emma’s already upset.”
I wasn’t upset. I was about to take a screenshot when Ryan leaned over to buckle my seat belt.
He saw the screen. His expression darkened, and he turned off my phone.
He didn’t start the car. He just looked at me, his jaw tight enough to make me nervous.
I’d been afraid of Ryan for as long as I could remember.
Our families had been close for years, so people always compared us. He’d been an outstanding student, and after graduation he’d made his family’s company run like clockwork.
My parents had asked him to look out for me. He’d responded by pushing me to be more capable every day.
All I’d ever wanted was to find someone I loved and live happily ever after. After I started dating Ethan, I was the one who cut Ryan out of my life.
I hadn’t expected that chasing Ethan for years wouldn’t get me any closer to the carefree life I’d wanted, either.
Ryan sighed and took a small blanket from the back seat.
“It’s been years. I thought you were doing well.”
I gave him an awkward smile and rubbed the back of my neck.
His voice softened. “I didn’t know you liked men like that.”
第3章
I realized he meant Ethan and thought back to five years ago.
One night, I mentioned in passing that my stomach hurt. Ethan had driven halfway across town to bring me medicine.
He’d crouched by my bed and held my cold hands between his.
“If you don’t feel well, call me. Don’t tough it out alone.”
On another date, I spilled my milk tea on his coat. He wiped my hands first and laughed as he asked if I’d burned myself.
He had once treated me well. That was true.
So when my stomach hurt so badly I could barely stand while I was working late on the proposal, I still called him.
He sounded irritated.
“Emma, you’re an adult. Do you need me to teach you how to buy medicine?”
“I have work tomorrow. Don’t make this my problem.”
The next morning, I saw him bring hot porridge to Sophie’s desk.
“I heard you didn’t have much of an appetite. Try to eat a little.”
Sophie knocked over her coffee as she opened the bag. It splashed onto his sleeve.
He didn’t even frown. He checked her hand first.
The car was quiet.
I picked at my fingers. After a long moment, I said, “He wasn’t always like this.”
The words embarrassed me as soon as I said them.
For years, I’d been using the Ethan from five years ago to make excuses for the Ethan he’d become.
Ryan took a tissue and dabbed away my tears.
“Weren’t you sure you wouldn’t regret it? Why are you crying?”
I blinked and let out a fresh wave of tears.
“I can be sad about losing five years, can’t I? Five years is a lot!”
Ryan sat back and glanced at me.
“I should’ve taken a job here sooner. I could’ve helped.”
I sighed and shook my head. “Better late than never. I’m only really letting go now.”
He started the car, his tone as sharp as ever.
“At least you’re thinking clearly again. You’ve always had better taste in projects than in men.”
The ache in my chest eased a little at his words.
I even managed to tease him. “Ryan, you’re taking one of your employees away from a celebration dinner this late. Aren’t you worried people will talk?”
He stopped at a red light, opened a bottle of warm water, and handed it to me. His smile made him look softer.
“You’re single now. What’s there to worry about?”
The lights outside swept past the window. I was quiet for a few seconds, then laughed.
Ryan’s smile widened.
“Go to work as usual tomorrow. I’ll give you clear assignments. Come straight to me if you need anything.”
I nodded and curled up in the passenger seat, looking around.
Five years had changed Ryan. I started studying him more closely. When he wasn’t talking, he was actually very easy on the eyes.
He noticed me staring and turned his face toward me without a hint of embarrassment.
I panicked and pulled the blanket over my face.
“Look at that peacock showing off. It’s terrifying.”