The Melody She Stole for Me

On our wedding anniversary, I received photos of my wife in bed with her first love. She lay in his arms in a sheer nightgown, while he held the music scores I had spent three years writing. Only then did I realize that the lyrics she once wrote about loving me were actually meant for someone else all along. Perfect. She wanted her old flame, and I wanted my freedom. I quietly burned every single manuscript I had ever written for her, leaving behind nothing but a signed divorce agreement. The candlelight on the dining table flickered and died, and the dinner had long gone cold. I checked my phone—it was already three in the morning. I didn’t feel the slightest bit sleepy. Insomnia was just part of living with severe depression. When it was at its worst, I couldn't sleep a wink all night unless Victoria was by my side. After that, no matter how late it got, she always came home. Yet five hours ago, Victoria sent me her last message: "Just wrapped up at work. I'll be home in a bit." That "in a bit" turned into five hours of waiting. I didn’t text to ask why she wasn't back, because just half an hour after that message, I saw her on the news. Location: JFK Airport. The tabloids had put up a sensational headline: "Heiress of the Hastings Family Reunites with Her Ex—Caught in an Emotional Embrace!" The photo of her hugging Julian Vance was plastered front and center. I knew right then that Victoria probably wouldn't be coming home tonight. Still, a faint glimmer of hope lingered in my chest. Maybe she would at least tell me. Even if it was just a random excuse. Yet until the candles burned out and the sky began to pale, I didn't receive a single message. My emotions spiraled, and the physical symptoms of my depression began to tear through me. I got up and took a pill bottle from the drawer, but my hands were shaking so hard that pills scattered all over the floor. I had no choice but to swallow a few sleeping pills just to force myself to rest. When the noise at the front door woke me, I sat up from the couch and saw Victoria walking in. She clearly hadn’t slept all night, but the dark circles under her eyes couldn’t hide the radiant joy on her face. The moment she saw me, that warmth instantly vanished. "Why are you sleeping on the couch?" Her gaze swept over the cold dinner on the table. She paused, then said with annoyance, "It’s completely cold. Just have the housekeeper toss it." I looked at her, unable to hold back the question. "It’s our third anniversary. Did you go see Julian?" I clamped my hand down on my other trembling wrist, trying to keep my voice steady. "You promised me you would never see him again." Victoria frowned. "He finally came back to the States. What's wrong with me picking him up at the airport?" "I just offered him a ride. We're not going to be in touch going forward." "Besides, what's the big deal about an anniversary? Can you stop making a fuss over every little petty thing?" A wave of bitterness washed over me. So our wedding anniversary was just a "petty thing" to her? She claimed she didn't care about dates like this, but I remembered how it was when she was with Julian. She kept a dedicated note on her phone. It was filled with all their silly milestones. One month together, ninety-nine days together, their first road trip... Pages and pages of random dates, tracked meticulously. Yet with me, even mentioning our wedding anniversary annoyed her. Victoria slammed the door shut. With that irritated jerk of her arm, a pale pink invitation slipped out of her purse. I only caught a brief glimpse before she frantically shoved it back inside. Before heading into the bedroom, she threw out a cold remark: "I have some things to take care of the next couple of days. I'm staying over at my parents' place. Don't bother calling." I said nothing. It was always like this. The moment something didn't go her way, she would pack up and run back to her parents. In the past, I would always apologize immediately and beg her to stay. Today, I was just too exhausted to care. That evening, just as I was about to scrounge up whatever was in the fridge, my phone chimed. A friend request from a stranger. The moment I accepted, a digital invitation popped up. Pale pink. The exact same one from Victoria’s purse. "It’s my welcome-home party tonight. Why not come by, freshman?" Seeing that word—freshman—sent a violent jolt through my chest. The shadows of the past closed in around me once more. "Victoria said you were too busy to come, but I figured that was just because I hadn't invited you myself." The message ended with a simple, mocking question: "Coming?" It was pure, silent provocation. The next evening, I got into a cab heading to the venue. Not for any other reason than to see what Victoria was hiding from me so desperately.Traffic was brutal, and by the time I arrived, the party was already in full swing. I squeezed through the crowd, looking around for Victoria. The next second, a melody that was all too familiar echoed through the room. A beautiful, moving voice resonated across the hall, every word dripping with deep affection. That was my song. And that was Victoria's voice. I froze, turning my eyes toward the stage. In the center of the hall, Victoria stood under the spotlight with a mic in hand, looking down at Julian with pure tenderness. As the song came to an end, a faint blush rose to her cheeks. "This song is for Julian. It's everything I've ever wanted to tell you. I hope you love it." Amid the cheers and whistles of the crowd, Julian took Victoria by the hand. To everyone watching, they looked like the perfect match receiving everyone's blessings. Julian spotted me. As if asserting his dominance, he tightened his grip on her hand. "I know Victoria and I had plenty of misunderstandings in the past," he announced, "but none of that matters now. I believe true love can overcome any obstacle." Holding the mic and staring straight at me, he dragged out the word obstacle with malicious emphasis. Victoria finally noticed me too. Panic flashed across her face, and she tried to pull her hand away, but Julian only held on tighter. The guests around us began to notice my presence and started whispering. "Is that the Hastings heiress's husband?" "Yeah! Didn't you know? He and Julian went to college together! He totally played the victim to get between them back then." "Right, I remember he accused Julian of plagiarizing his work, played the depression card, threatened to slit his wrists, and basically forced Julian to leave the country." "Then why did she even marry him?" "Probably just to protect Julian. Look at them today—it's obvious who she actually belongs with." The chatter grew nastier and nastier, and Victoria's face grew darker by the second. She whispered something to Julian, and only then did he let go of her hand. With an icy expression, Victoria stepped off the stage and dragged me toward the corner of the hallway. "What are you doing here?" Her voice was frigid, dripping with absolute disgust. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? Why are you here with Julian?" I stared into her eyes, pronouncing every word clearly. "Didn't you tell me yesterday that you wouldn't see him again?" Victoria looked cornered, her lips curling into an irritated sneer. "He's back in town now. We run in the same circles. We're going to cross paths sooner or later, so you'd better get used to it." She didn't give a damn about how I felt. That familiar numbness and overwhelming sense of helplessness washed over me again. My hands began to shake uncontrollably. I closed my eyes and asked the one question that mattered: "Why did you give that song to him?" I wrote that song during the darkest three years of my depression. Every single bar was born from blood, sweat, and sleepless nights. Victoria had seen me forget to eat and sleep; she had seen me clutch those music sheets even as I was hospitalized for stomach ulcers. She knew exactly what that song meant to me. She knew what it meant when I dedicated it to her. Yet tonight, in front of a whole room of people, she claimed it was what she wanted to say to Julian. She gave it to Julian—the very plagiarist who had pushed me to the brink of suicide! What about me, then? Was all my pain and sincerity just something for her to step on? Victoria's expression shifted, looking torn, but she said nothing. In the heavy silence, Julian strolled over from the shadows. He held several sheets of paper in his hand, looking at me with pure malice. "You really are a musical genius, aren't you?" "When I drop the track, I'll be sure to give you a shoutout." Looking at the sheet music in his hands, my blood ran cold. I turned to Victoria. "You gave him the original manuscripts too?" Singing the song could have been written off as a thoughtless gesture. But handing over the master manuscripts meant giving away my life's work on a silver platter. Victoria avoided my eyes and said coldly, "I wrote the lyrics. It wasn't solely your work anyway. What's the big deal if I gave it to him?" The rage suppressed deep in my chest finally erupted. All the pent-up anguish shattered its dam, and a metallic, bloody taste rose in my throat. I opened my mouth to speak, but the world spun violently around me, and I collapsed. Before darkness took me, all I caught was Victoria's panicked face. "Lucas! What's wrong?" "Why is your heart rate so high? Did you skip your meds today?"When I woke up in the hospital, Victoria was sitting beside my bed. Seeing the cold detachment in my eyes, a trace of gloom flickered across her face. I really didn't want to see her right now. I had no idea how we had ended up like this. Back in college, Julian and I were roommates. He was the campus golden boy—rich, handsome, with parents who were heavyweights in the music industry. I was just a nobody on a scholarship. Once he discovered my gift for composition, he threatened and coerced me into becoming his ghostwriter. Every hit song that made him famous had been stolen from me. I tried to fight back, but nobody believed me. Everyone thought I was just a bitter, jealous loser trying to drag him down. Except Victoria. Back then, Victoria was Julian's girlfriend. Coming from similar elite backgrounds, they were the campus's golden couple. She had fallen for his supposed musical genius, but after dating him, she realized he wasn't the brilliant artist he made himself out to be. His complete lack of technical knowledge and shallow understanding of music made her question his real talent. That was when Victoria started noticing me. By that time, the relentless plagiarism had driven me into a deep depression, and I had tried to end my life multiple times. Victoria was the one who found me and rushed me to the hospital. After seeing my private drafts, she finally realized that the talent she had fallen for belonged to me all along. Later, with her help, Julian was forced to leave the country, even though we couldn't completely ruin him with plagiarism charges. "His family has too many connections. Let's just drop it here, okay? Can we just put all this bad blood behind us?" Victoria had pleaded with me so gently back then, urging me to let it go. Seeing the sincerity in her eyes, I agreed and turned the page. Looking back now, she was just trying to protect Julian, wasn't she? Deep down, she had never stopped caring about him. That was why, even after promising never to see him again, she couldn't help running back to him the moment he landed. I looked at Victoria by my bedside and couldn't help asking, "You still have feelings for him, don't you?" Victoria shifted her eyes away, dodging the question. "I already told you, he's back to restart his career." "We're in the same industry. We can't avoid each other. Stop overthinking." "Restart his career?" My voice rose, sharp and bitter. "He's a proven plagiarist! What right does someone like that have to work in this industry?" Victoria looked conflicted, biting her lip. Her expression shifted through several emotions before she finally steeled herself to speak. "That's actually why I'm here. I need a favor from you." My heart sank, a sickening dread spreading through my chest. Sure enough, she said: "Could you, as the other party involved back then, put out a statement to clear Julian's name and apologize to him?" "Clear his name?" I couldn't believe my own ears. Victoria avoided my gaze, mumbling, "Regardless of what happened, he already served his punishment by being away for years." "Besides, he promised that if you clear his name, he'll give you a massive payout..." I stared straight into her eyes, utterly devastated. "A payout? You think the hell I went through can be bought with money?" "You, of all people, know exactly how he bullied and smeared me for years!" "I could hear this from anyone else on the planet, but not you, Victoria! Not you!" My voice grew louder and harsher, startling her. In the tense silence, the door swung open. Julian walked in, wearing an irritated sneer. "Are you done throwing your little tantrum yet? You just want to squeeze more cash out of me, don't you? You think I can't see through you?" "A lowlife like you should be thanking your lucky stars that you got to marry Victoria!" "Take the check and shut your mouth! Don't think for a second that being a Hastings son-in-law makes you untouchable to me." Victoria frowned slightly, but she didn't say a single word to defend me. She turned to me, sighed, and tried to coax me again. "It's just a public apology, Lucas. Just say it was all a misunderstanding..." "Victoria." I cut her off, my voice dropping into dead, flat silence. "Let's get a divorce."