Walking Away From His Golden Cage

I was dating my handsome landlord, Eugene. For our sixth anniversary, he rented out an entire rooftop restaurant just for the two of us. That night, right as things were heating up in bed, I accidentally caught a glimpse of a text popping up on his phone: [Don't forget we're meeting tomorrow in the private dining room to discuss wedding plans!] The sender called Eugene "hubby." Her profile picture showed a stunning, glamorous woman. I shoved Eugene away. He stumbled on the mattress, breathing heavily. This time, I was truly, completely exhausted. Eugene's breath still lingered against my skin. "Babe, what's wrong?" Pushed away so abruptly, his mood deflated, a hint of annoyance creeping into his voice. "I'm not in the mood." I threw my clothes back on, walked straight into the living room, and took deep, frantic gulps of fresh air. All I wanted was to escape this suffocating place. To get away from this hypocrite. After freezing for a few seconds, I packed up my purse and headed toward the door. "Babe, why are you suddenly picking a fight?" Of course he didn't know. He probably thought he had covered his tracks perfectly. He never expected a slip-up like this. "I'm just tired of playing along." That stopped him in his tracks. Eugene frowned, irritation flashing in his eyes. I added coldly, "You're literally getting married. Why are you still messing with me?" Instantly, the color drained from Eugene's face. A flicker of guilt washed over his eyes. Eugene and I came from completely different worlds. I grew up poor in a small rural town, while his family owned half a dozen prime rental properties in the city. Eugene's friends had always said we were a terrible match, that there was no way we'd ever tie the knot. Deep down, I knew we probably had no future. Yet, time after time, Eugene turned down the blind dates his parents set up. Time after time, he went out of his way to pamper me. He made me believe I could defy convention. He made me believe we would grow old together. For him, I learned how to bake pastries. For him, I gave up spicy food and switched to a bland diet. I adjusted my entire schedule around his and encouraged him to launch his own startup. In return, he spent less and less time with me, always using the same sweet excuse: "I'm doing this so we can have a better future." In the end, I was the only clown in this circus. "Serena, let me explain." Eugene grabbed my wrist, refusing to let go. "Did you see that text on my phone? My parents are forcing me into this. If I don't marry her, they'll cut me off completely. You know I'm nothing without my family's money. I have to pretend to play along." "Trust me, my heart is only with you. I can give you anything else you want—just not a marriage certificate." Eugene sounded so earnest. To my ears, it sounded sickeningly absurd. Dating someone with zero intention of building a real future was nothing short of a scam. Wanting all the fun without taking any responsibility—wasn't that the literal definition of a player? I wrenched my hand out of his grip and looked right at him. "And how much is your love actually worth?" "Keep your twisted love. I don't want it anymore." I stared dead into his eyes. It was the first time Eugene had ever seen me look so cold and resolute. For a second, he seemed lost. But his stubborn pride kicked in, and he stopped pleading. "Fine, walk out that door! Just don't come crying back to me! If you come begging later, don't expect me to take you back." Eugene lifted his chin, his tone turning frosty. Looking at the man I had loved for six years, all I felt was pure revulsion.Earlier today, Eugene had been buzzing around, planning our sixth anniversary. He booked an entire high-end Italian restaurant, hired a violinist to play my favorite songs, and draped a diamond necklace around my neck. Standing before the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the river, we kissed like nothing else mattered. Tonight, we were supposed to lose ourselves in each other. Instead, while he was rummaging through the nightstand drawer for protection, I happened to glance over at his phone screen: [Hubby, don't forget we're meeting tomorrow in the private dining room to discuss wedding plans! See you tomorrow, love you tons!] The avatar belonged to a drop-dead gorgeous woman. A woman I actually knew. Her name was Felicia. She grew up next door to Eugene, another kid born with a silver spoon. Her parents were wealthy business moguls, and her family was loaded. Ever since Felicia returned from living abroad, Eugene's parents had been trying to set them up. Eugene had rejected dozens of women his parents pushed on him, but Felicia was the lone exception. "We grew up together," Eugene had once explained to me. "If I flat-out reject her, it'll make things awkward for our families. We're bound to run into each other." I believed him. Then Felicia moved into one of Eugene's apartment complexes. Eugene helped her buy furniture, over and over again. Felicia invited Eugene on trips, and the two of them flew off together to Iceland, then to the Maldives. Their lives looked effortless, romantic, and deeply intertwined. To any outsider, they looked like the perfect couple. Honestly, I should have connected the dots long ago. The night of our anniversary, I walked out of Eugene's place. Before I shut the door, I took off the diamond necklace and left it on the entryway console. In the cab on the way home, I pulled up Felicia's Ins. Her feed was packed with snapshots of a glamorous socialite lifestyle. I scrolled down with a sinking feeling. One photo showed her bungee jumping, wearing oversized sunglasses in a selfie. Reflected in the lenses was a painfully familiar silhouette. You'd miss it if you weren't paying close attention. With trembling fingers, I zoomed in. Without a doubt, it was Eugene. That was the exact day I had fallen off my bike and badly sprained my ankle. "Eugene, it hurts so bad. I'm sitting in urgent care getting an IV. Are you done with your meeting yet? Can you please come pick me up?" "Babe, I'm meeting with an extremely important client today. I really can't get away." "It's okay. Go ahead and take care of your work." Like any normal girlfriend, the first person I thought of when I got hurt was my partner. And like any considerate partner, I gave him space, never throwing a tantrum or questioning him. Little did I know, Eugene wasn't pitching to a client at all. He was playing around with his childhood flame. Scrolling further down, Felicia had posted pictures of a gold cuff and a crystal pendant, captioned: [Great minds really do think alike. The thing I wanted most happened to be the exact gift he brought me.] I stared closely at the designer box in the picture. It was the exact luxury jewelry brand I had once mentioned to Eugene. Eugene had given me a piece from the same brand too. Only mine wasn't a gold cuff. It was just a thin silver bracelet. When I received it back then, I was moved to tears, feeling totally cherished by my boyfriend. Now I realized my gift was just an afterthought—a little freebie he picked up on the side. I locked my phone screen. I couldn't stomach humiliating myself any further. I rolled down the cab window, letting the cold night breeze hit my face, hoping it would blow away the suffocating dark clouds in my chest."I mailed the apartment keys to your place. From now on, let's just stay out of each other's lives." Staying out of each other's lives was the final shred of dignity I could offer him. Once I made up my mind to leave Eugene, I packed everything I owned and hired movers to clear out the apartment entirely. "Fine." Eugene was a man of few words, replying with just a single text. I stared at the screen, an unexpected sting behind my eyes. In the past, no matter how furious Eugene got, he always opened with "babe." But this time, his pride was on the line too. He didn't bother offering another word. Maybe deep down, he had been waiting for this day all along. Perhaps things between Eugene and me were a mistake from the very start. Shortly after graduating college, I settled down in the city to work as a yoga instructor. His apartment building was quiet, with clean, minimalist modern designs that perfectly matched what I wanted. I signed the lease through an agent that very day and moved in. Whenever I ran into plumbing or electrical issues, Eugene was the contact the agent gave me. At first, I thought Eugene was just a professional handyman. Only later did I find out his family owned the entire high-rise. His parents wanted to build his character, so they put him in charge of maintenance and collecting rent for the property. "You're amazing! You look about my age—how do you know how to fix all these things?" I genuinely admired his hands-on skills, and I admired his work ethic even more given that he was born into crazy wealth. "It's nothing. You get used to it once you do it enough. None of this is that complicated." Eugene's bangs were soaked with sweat, droplets running down the bridge of his straight nose. His fair skin practically glowed, radiating raw, effortless masculine charm. Back then, we were just a regular landlord and tenant. What really brought us close was a terrifying incident late one night. I had wrapped up my last private yoga session of the day and didn't head back to the apartment until around eleven o'clock. After getting off the bus, I noticed a figure trailing behind me, keeping a steady distance. My chest tightened. My head told me not to panic. I picked up my pace until I reached the apartment lobby and frantically hammered the elevator button. The man, wearing a baseball cap and a face mask, closed in fast. My heart pounded against my ribs, pure terror catching in my throat. The elevator doors slid open. I scrambled inside, slammed the door-close button, and pressed every single floor from the middle up. When the elevator hit the fourth floor, I bolted out into the hallway. Rounding the corner, I ran straight into Eugene, who happened to be carrying a step ladder. "Help me, please! Someone's following me!" I gasped, clutching his arm in complete panic, clinging to him like a lifeline. Eugene gave me a steady, reassuring look. Before he even answered, he dashed past me down the corridor. He tackled the masked creep, landing a flurry of punches and kicks while snarling, "You sick freak! Follow her again and I'll break your damn legs!" At six feet tall, Eugene looked towering, fiercely protective, and undeniably handsome. In that heartbeat, the world stopped spinning. Something shifted in me. A spark ignited. Standing by the entryway now, I looked back at the empty apartment, down the hallway filled with memories, and let out a long, heavy breath."All those years of your youth, a guy with that kind of background—you're really walking away just like that? You don't regret it?" When my coworker Hailey found out I had broken up with him, she couldn't help but sigh. "I don't regret it. Dragging it out wouldn't change the ending anyway." I stirred my instant coffee, answering evenly. "Even without Felicia, we still would've ended up apart. He's always been brutally pragmatic. If there's a better option on the table, why would he choose me? I can't even blame him, honestly." Facing reality head-on, I let my head drop slightly. "Look at Felicia's Ins right now! She's bragging again." Hailey's voice spiked with excitement, like she had just stumbled onto the juiciest gossip of the year. Though I pretended not to care, my fingers acted on their own and clicked open Felicia's latest post. It was a selfie of Eugene and Felicia pressing their cheeks together, alongside photos of a grand opening for a floral boutique. The caption read: [Hubby finally agreed to show his face in a photo.] Down in the comments, friends teased and showered her with congratulations. [Calling him hubby already? The big day must be right around the corner!] [So jealous of you! Finding someone who's not only gorgeous, but from the exact same social circle.] [Your fiancé is spoiling you rotten. He knew you loved flowers, so he literally bought you an entire boutique.] [Congrats, girl! Save a seat for me at the wedding!] Heh. A dry, bitter smirk twitched at the corner of my lips. How sweet. What a match made in heaven. So that "startup project" Eugene kept rambling about was just funding Felicia's flower shop. Thinking back to how I used to pull all-nighters drafting business proposals just to keep his spirits up... it was pathetic. Turns out his ambitions were never about business. Any grand venture he talked about shrank into nothing next to pleasing his dream girl. From start to finish, I was merely an oblivious side character. "Serena? Why did you go quiet?" "Don't be sad. Come out for drinks with me tonight—drown your sorrows!" At Hailey's relentless insistence, I let her drag me to a crowded downtown club. Neon lights pulsed in a dizzying haze, bass thumping through the floorboards. I hadn't set foot in a venue like this for years. Every cell in my body felt wildly out of place. "I'm kind of traditional," Eugene had told me once during a late-night heart-to-heart. "I'm really not into girls who hang out at clubs or get covered in tattoos." Yet right now, clubs happened to be one of the top spots Eugene and Felicia frequented together. "Come over here, Serena! You're being way too stiff! Dance!" Hailey grabbed my hand and pulled me right into the center of the dance floor. Watching the sea of bodies swaying under the lights, I let myself move along with the rhythm. For a brief moment, the suffocating weight lifted off my shoulders. "Hey beautiful, let me get your number." I hadn't been dancing long before a guy with bleach-blond hair leaned in close, grabbing my wrist and demanding my contacts. "Sorry, I'm not interested." I shoved him away firmly. Despite our loud voices and obvious struggle, nobody on the packed dance floor batted an eye. The guy refused to back off, stumbling closer again. Just as a string of curses rose to my lips, he suddenly heaved and threw up all over my shirt. Just my luck. Unbelievable."I am so, so sorry. My buddy drank way too much tonight—he just went through a brutal breakup." "Here's my card. If you need anything, reach out to me directly." A man stepped in, handing me a pack of wet wipes, a tailored suit jacket, and a sleek business card. I glanced down at it: [Apex Fitness — Founder & Head Trainer: Ethan Sterling]. Before I could even decline the jacket, he had already slung his drunken friend over his shoulder and rushed out. He had striking hazel-amber eyes, features balanced with crisp, masculine symmetry, and a quiet, magnetic presence that set him apart from the crowd. Having this disaster dropped in my lap completely killed my mood. I cleaned myself up as best I could in the restroom, threw his jacket over my shoulders, and headed out early. "Hailey, I'm not feeling great so I'm heading home first. Don't stay out too late, okay?" The suit jacket carried a faint, crisp cedarwood scent. The handsome stranger clearly took meticulous care of himself. Two days later. Holding the dry-cleaned jacket, I dropped by Ethan Sterling's fitness center. "I want to apologize again on behalf of my friend. How much did your outfit cost? Let me reimburse you." Ethan insisted on getting my contact info so he could send over the money. The gym floor was bustling with people, and plenty of them turned their heads to watch us. Not wanting to cause a scene, I gave in and agreed. After all, making another connection never hurt, especially with a gym owner. Who knew, maybe our paths would cross professionally down the line. I pulled up my phone to let Ethan scan my code when an unwelcome voice shattered the moment. "Serena? It really is you!" I had hoped to ignore her, but Felicia had already snapped a sneaky photo of us and spoken up first. We had crossed paths before, so she knew I was Eugene's ex. She recognized my face immediately. "Is that your new boyfriend?" "You'd better delete that photo right now, or I'll sue you for violating my privacy." I forced a stiff, polite smile onto my face and turned to walk away. Felicia reached out and caught my arm. A moment later, Eugene walked up too. Looks like the engaged couple had planned a workout date together. Felicia raised her voice so everyone could hear: "Eugene, perfect timing! Look who we ran into! It's Serena—looks like she's already found herself a new boyfriend." Give me a break. The fake innocence made me want to gag. "None of your damn business. Let go of me." My smile vanished, replaced by a freezing glare. Eugene's expression shifted subtly. He stepped closer, asking in a flat, hollow tone, "Is that true? A new boyfriend?" I deliberately ignored his question, offering him an icy roll of my eyes instead. "Too scared to admit it? Probably lined him up before you even walked out," Felicia chimed in, gleefully stoking the flames. "Who do you think you are? Do I owe you an explanation of my private life?" I lifted my chin, staring right through Eugene. Ridiculous. The second we crossed paths, they started turning the tables on me. Is this the kind of sick game rich folks play for fun? "No wonder you threw a tantrum and dumped me so suddenly. You had another sucker waiting on the bench the whole time." Eugene sneered sarcastically. As he said that, even Felicia's face hardened, looking slightly uncomfortable. "What if I did? What if I didn't? You're a two-timing cheat—what right do you have to judge me?" I glared at him with everything I had in me. Eugene clenched his fists, his mouth parting slightly before he choked down whatever words were on his tongue. "Get this through your head: we are over." Hearing those words, Eugene's eyes rimmed with red, a visible tremor catching the corner of his mouth. I shoved past him and walked away. Behind me came a muffled, familiar hitch in someone's breath.