I Stopped Loving My Benefactor

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A New York tycoon named Holden Lancaster sponsored two poor students.

One was the pure and innocent Charlotte Shaw.

The other was mebeautiful on the outside, but supposedly brainless.

The difference was that the former was someone he begged on his knees to sponsor.

The latter was me, who shamelessly begged him for help.

Years later, I became Holden Lancaster's secret lover.

And Charlotte returned from studying abroad.

At nine PM, while Holden and I were having sex and he was about to change positions.

I caught a faint whiff of gardenia perfume on the back of his neck.

At that moment, my scalp tingled.

I realized almost instantly

Charlotte was back.

She had once stepped on my finger bones with her dance shoes in the studio.

Cheerfully cut up my practice clothes with scissors in the changing room.

And cursed me out as a shameless seductress in front of everyone.

The scent drifting from her body was this same disgusting fragrance.

Holden bit my ear, his eyes full of desire.

I instantly lost all interest.

I pushed him away.

"I don't want to do this anymore."

Holden indulged me, lighting a post-sex cigarette and laughing.

"Tsk, which one of us is supposed to be the sugar daddy here?"

That scent still lingered on him. I opened my mouth, about to ask about it.

His phone rang.

A weak female voice came through the receiver.

"Holden, I drank too much and my stomach hurts. Can you come pick me up?"

"If it's not convenient, never mind..."

Holden's expression changed instantly. He hung up the phone and brushed me off without leaving a trace.

"Something urgent came up at the company. Go to sleep early."

Watching his panicked, retreating figure, I lay in the darkness with my eyes open.

Suddenly I remembered a few things.

When I first received his sponsorship, rumors that I was being kept spread throughout the entire school.

I anxiously explained to everyone, but Holden took a phone call and told me: Forget it.

The year I graduated, I received a spot to study abroad.

Charlotte wanted to go too. Holden looked at me affectionately and said: Eve, stay by my side.

In my third year with Holden, I got pregnant.

An overseas call came in. Holden said with difficulty: Get rid of it. Now isn't the right time.

And now, I'd slept in the same bed with him for over a thousand nights.

But I still couldn't compete with one phone call from Charlotte.

Half an hour later, Holden's close friend posted on social media.

A photo with a location tag.

Caption: [True love conquers all! Congratulations to Holden for finally winning over his one true love!]

In the picture, Charlotte nestled in Holden's arms as he kissed her forehead.

The usually wild and reckless man's eyes held no trace of frivolity, only tenderness.

Just a kiss.

I clenched my fists, letting my nails dig into my flesh.

Telling myself not to care.

In all of New York, seven whole years of supportwhat was one kiss?

Just as I was about to put down my phone.

A notification popped up on Instagram: Charlotte followed you.

She wanted me to search for clues on her Instagram.

So I obliged.

I discovered

On Christmas Eve, my birthday, he didn't come home not because he couldn't, but because he was abroad making apple pie with Charlotte.

When I had a fever of 104 degrees and a concerned neighbor called an ambulance, he boarded a red-eye flight because Charlotte had a nightmare.

Six months ago, when I passed out on set from period cramps, he was making chocolate in Charlotte's apartment.

I scrolled down bit by bit.

My finger swiped rapidly across the screen.

Calm, as if I were an outsider to whom this had nothing to do.

Until I saw one particular photo.

My heart suddenly plummeted with pain.

Japan, in a snowstorm.

They were in snowy Hokkaido, soaking in hot springs and sipping fine wine.

Holden reached under Charlotte's arms, lifted her up, and carefully tossed her into the thick snow.

He was laughing so happily.

I had never seen such an unrestrained smile on Holden's face.

Charlotte's caption: [Even this rigid iceberg melts for me.]

The date in the bottom right corner of the picture was glaring.

That day, I lay alone in a cold operating room, having my child removed.

After the abortion, I felt completely hollow inside.

I asked him when he'd be back from his business trip.

He only replied with one word: Busy.

A rumble of thunder.

Raindrops violently struck the window, pulling me from my memories.

The rain was pouring down. He wouldn't be coming back tonight.

I turned off my phone to go to sleep.

Charlotte's message popped up at just the right moment:

"Eve, Holden's drunk. Can you come pick him up?"

In the end, I still went.

When I arrived at the private room, they were playing Truth or Dare.

Holden's buddies chimed in one after another.

"Holden, you waited for Charlotte for so long, and finally got what you wanted."

"What about Eve... how do you plan to handle that?"

Holden's expression darkened.

"What? You got your eye on her?"

"I wouldn't dare!" The man sneered. "Holden's womanwho would dare touch her?"

"Seven years ago you got with her to practice your bedroom skills. Our Charlotte is really blessed now."

"But after sleeping with her for so many years, you must have learned some techniques, right?"

I looked at them coldly, my heart colder than being thrown into an ice cellar.

Holden's words were like a dull knife, viciously cutting into my heart.

"Want to know? You could try her yourself."

Amid the laughter, Charlotte's face flushed with embarrassment.

"Oh my... don't you people have any shame? Eve isn't that kind of person!"

"If she hadn't given me her study abroad spot, maybe right now she'd be returning home with both academic and career success."

"How is she not?" Someone picked up the thread. "Holden, what do you say?"

The private room fell silent.

Holden smirked.

"She came to my door herself. I did have a pretty good time."

Holden wasn't wrong.

Between us, I really did deliver myself to his door.

During my sophomore year, the entire Arts Academy was buzzing that New York's Mr. Lancaster was pursuing Charlotte.

Tens of thousands of fireworks, declarations of love at lavish parties, luxury handbags arriving until her hands went soft.

His methods of courtship were always spectacular.

No woman could refuse.

Except for Charlotte, the proud poor student.

She threw the card on the ground and stomped on it hard, her face full of shame and anger.

"I may be poor, but I have my pride."

"I'd rather you kill me than accept your dirty money!"

After she left, Holden wasn't annoyed. He just raised an eyebrow slightly, the expression on his face obvious.

Woman, you've successfully caught my attention.

That day, I received news of my parents' death in a car accident.

After returning to my hometown for the funeral, working three part-time jobs in rotation, starving and famished

I picked up that card that had been crushed under dance shoes.

"Mr. Lancaster, isn't sponsoring anyone the same?"

"Why don't you sponsor me instead?"

Holden's eyes swept over my face, my chest, my slender waist.

He quickly had someone draft a sponsorship agreement.

He would support my continued education, and I needed to obey all his commands.

From that day on, Charlotte always looked at me with subtle contempt.

She coldly watched me get into Holden's luxury car, watched as Holden transferred to me all the treatment he'd given her.

The next day, rumors that I was being kept spread throughout the school.

She made a big show of telling the entire Arts Academy that I was a shameless slut with no parents to teach me manners.

I kept my head down and said nothing.

Counting down the days until I could leave.

Even Holden had probably forgotten.

The seven-year agreementtoday was only seven days from the deadline.

When the party broke up, it had just passed 2 AM.

Holden opened the private room door, saw me, and a smile spread across his lips.

His tall body drunkenly lunged at me, pulling me into his embrace.

"So obedient today? You knew to come pick me up."

Those lips that had kissed Charlotte moved close to my ear, about to kiss me.

I subtly dodged.

"The rain was too heavy. I was afraid you couldn't find your way home."

In the car, he watched Charlotte's retreating figure and said casually.

"Charlotte's back in the country. She doesn't want to see anyone else around me."

"Eve, you should find yourself a boyfriend when you have time."

I nodded.

"Okay."

His smile froze slightly. He turned sharply to look at me.

"With me as your standard, don't find some worthless man and embarrass me."

"How about I introduce you to someone?"

Holden's face showed several shades of anger.

"My buddy, the second young master of the Brown familya ladies' man who loves women with flexible waists in bed."

"Or the third young master Smitha bit mediocre, and he has a fiance in name only, but for a man, that's normal."

"If you're with them, at least I can rest easy..."

I calmly interrupted him.

"Holden, my parents named me Eve."

"They hoped I would always be happy and joyful, not that I should use my body to please men."

I looked out the window, my voice not loud but very clear.

"So"

"From now on, I only want to please myself."

That night, Holden was startled by the look in my eyes.

He could only pretend not to care and change the subject.

He lay beside me and quickly fell asleep, breathing evenly.

I tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

I found that card from the inner compartment of my wallet.

In all my years as a dance performer, I had never slacked off for a single day.

Dancing during my period, doing wire work, rock climbingwhatever was dirty or exhausting, I took it.

Because I understood.

Only money was my greatest source of confidence.

Seven years, seventy million dollars.

I wanted to return it to him with interest.

Currently only one final payment remained.

The next day when I arrived on set, I saw Charlotte.

She wore high heels, a screenwriter's work badge around her neck, and intimately grabbed my wrist.

Feigning surprise.

"Eve? I never expected to see you here."

I pulled my hand back, smiling without warmth.

"What bad luckwe just saw each other last night."

"Thanks to you, my old friend, keeping him entertained. Holden slept very well last night."

At those words, Charlotte's smile froze on her face, jealousy rapidly spreading from her eyes.

Sure enough, Charlotte added a kissing scene before filming started.

The director looked troubled. "Miss Shaw, Mr. Lancaster specifically instructed that Eve has three no's."

"No kissing scenes, no bed scenes, no intimate scenes."

"This... we can't really go against his wishes."

Charlotte smiled slightly.

She seemingly casually made a phone call, and after chatting for just a few sentences, the director received instructions.

"Let's start filming. Everything follows Miss Shaw's wishes."

Meeting my gaze, her smile carried provocation.

"This is what makes a good actress professional, Eve. Don't you agree?"

I spoke: "I have no objections."

My co-star was still young, his face flushing red with embarrassment.

Before filming, I said expressionlessly to comfort him: "Excuse me."

The next second, under the photography lights, I stood on my tiptoes, wrapped my arms around the young man's neck.

And kissed him, light as a dragonfly touching water.

The scene was beautiful.

Holden witnessed this with his own eyes.

"Bang!"

The photography equipment was kicked over.

He forgot he'd come to pick Charlotte up from work, forgot what he'd said last night, and strode forward amid everyone's terrified gazes.

He forcefully dragged me to the car.

The sound of the car locks clicking was accompanied by the sound of my sundress being torn open.

"What? Already found your next meal ticket?"

"You kissed him? What's your next step together?"

"Did he touch you? Does he know where you're most sensitive? Has he been... here?"

"Slap"

Unable to bear it any longer, I slapped him across the face.

Holden was stunned by the blow.

I pulled up my zipper and looked calmly into his eyes.

"The kissing scene was Charlotte's idea. The director got your approval too."

"And yesterday, you told me to find someone else."

"You knew, you acquiesced, you allowed it, and now you're having a fit with me?"

His lips moved, wanting to explain something.

But I laughed.

"Holden, I have no obligation to remain chaste for you."

The cold war began.

For an entire week, I didn't appear before Holden.

Instead, his romantic affairs with Charlotte made entertainment headlines multiple times.

[First Love Returns, Mr. Lancaster Furious for His Beauty!]

He allowed her to use the Lancaster Group's reputation to establish herself in the screenwriting industry.

He indulged her bidding wars at auctions, sent her roses throughout the city, cooked for her with his own hands.

Holden showed his affection openly, afraid no one would know.

I watched coldly, packing up all my belongings in the apartment.

Then I called a courier service and had the card, along with the sponsorship agreement I'd signed seven years ago, delivered by a delivery driver.

Dragging my suitcase, I found myself somewhat laughable.

After all these busy, rushing years in New York, I had nothing left behind.

Seventy million dollars, my seven years of youth.

I returned it all to him.

Before leaving, I walked into a shopping mall in a daze and stopped at a jewelry shop.

A pink diamond sparkled with a hazy glow under the display lights, like a rose wrapped in moonlight.

The string of zeros on the price tag killed my impulse.

Just as I was about to leave, I ran into Holden and Charlotte.

Charlotte also had her eye on it at first glance.

The sales clerk immediately fawned over them.

"Mr. Lancaster has such good taste! This pink diamond is the only one in all of New York, extremely rare!"

Holden's hand wrapped around Charlotte's waist, his lips curving upward.

But his eyes looked straight at me.

"What worthless trinket? My fiance likes itthat's its honor."

Fiance?

My heart trembled. I stopped in my tracks.

In the past, when things got intense, I'd curl up in Holden's arms crying like a walnut over Korean dramas.

Back then I felt a bit giddy.

"If someone proposed to me with a unique ring in the world, I'd definitely say yes."

The man had kissed my fingertips carelessly and laughed.

"That's all it takes?"

In the end, that pink diamond was placed on Charlotte's slender finger.

She held Holden's arm, smiling graciously.

"Eve, I've always considered you a friend all these years."

"Now that Holden and I have found happiness, you need to work hard too!"

I smiled woodenly.

"Congratulations on your wedding. I wish you and Mr. Lancaster a happy marriage."

Just a few steps out of the shop, someone grabbed my wrist and pressed me against the mall's fire escape.

He leaned in abruptly, his burning kiss falling on my collarbone.

"What did you mean by that just now?"

I tried to pull my hand away but couldn't.

The anger I'd suppressed for so long ignited in my heart. I kicked hard at his groin.

"Exactly what I said."

"Can't Mr. Lancaster understand plain English?"

His expression instantly turned cold, his teeth clenched.

"Eve, think carefully."

"Take this step, and we're completely done."

I made a sound of acknowledgment, walked steadily, and never looked back.

The moment I boarded the plane.

I blocked all of Holden's contact information.

Then I snapped my SIM card in half and threw it in the trash.

At the same time, at a wild party in some high-end venue, Holden sat alone in a corner.

He poured drink after drink into his stomach, his eyes quickly turning bloodshot.

Charlotte stood up amid everyone's encouragement, her face flushed.

"Holden, I have something I want to say to you."

Just then, a security guard knocked on the door and respectfully presented a package.

"Mr. Lancaster, this is something Miss Eve sent you."