Grandfather was shocked. He knew how I felt about Ethan.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have let me stay with the Rivers family all these years just for a debt.
"Did he... did he do something to hurt you?"

I felt a wave of confusion.
Strictly speaking, he'd never actually promised to marry me.
It was just those intimate nights, him holding me, whispering with fake tenderness,
"Scarlett, don't leave me. Stay with me forever."
That made me believe he truly loved me.
Vivian's appearance shattered that illusion. He just loved the light, the color. Whoever brought it.

It could be me. It could be anyone else.
Disgusting.
"Nothing important. I'll be home in a week."
I didn't tell him about my injuries. The doctor said the bandages would come off in a week.

Hanging up, I thought back to when I first arrived at the Rivers estate.
He was ten.
I was six.
He had the servants who bullied me thrown out and beaten severely, swearing to me,
"Little Scarlett, I'll protect you forever. This is your home now. I'll always be with you."
Now, I couldn't bear to think how much of those passionate vows were love for me, and how much was just selfish desire for the color I brought to his world.
That evening, fresh bandages on, the door opened again.
"Scarlett," Ethan approached, frowning. "My eyes..."
I stayed silent. He must have noticed something.
Ethan swallowed his questions, clear irritation on his face.
After leaving this morning, he had noticed the color around Vivian in his vision beginning to fade.
Blinking hard, they'd snap back. But the panic lingered.
Sitting on the bed, I sneered inwardly.
He thought Vivian was special. But during the explosion, I remembered something. Six months ago, I'd donated blood at a crash site. The recipient was Vivian.
That's why Ethan could see her color. But it wasn't permanent.
He didn't press further, just shot me an irritated look and changed the subject.
"That explosion... I shielded her, but Viv still got burned around her waist. Badly. She needs skin grafts to heal properly."
My body went rigid.
"So?"
Maybe my stare was too raw. Ethan flinched, looking away.
It took him a moment to speak.
"So... you'll donate skin from your waist for her grafts. Your blood types match. And..."
He swallowed hard. "Your back is already ruined. What's a little more skin, right?"
I actually laughed. It felt absurd. And the last shred of love I had for him vanished.
"Ethan Rivers, are you out of your damn mind?" My voice was ice. "Donate my skin? To her? Who the hell does she think she is!"
Ethan wasn't used to this defiance. "Scarlett Rossi, remember your place! You're just an orphan the Rivers family took in! Viv is the future Mrs. Rivers! It's your duty to provide for her!"
My breath hitched. Ethan didn't know my true background or why I was really there. He thought I had no backing.
Mrs. Rivers...
I whispered the words. In my mind, the boy Ethan surfaced again.
On his eighteenth birthday, he gave me a bracelet.
"This belongs to the future Mrs. Rivers." He looked down, his hair ruffled by the wind, effortlessly stealing my heart. He said,
"I'm giving it to you, Scarlett. You're mine now."
Snapping back to reality, I touched the bracelet I'd worn for years.
I looked deep into his eyes, then slowly slid it off my wrist. Under his shocked gaze, I threw it in his face.
"Ethan Rivers, get the hell out."