Love Isn't Split Bills

My boyfriend always said he liked independent women. So, whether it was paying for dates, hotel rooms, or even birth control, he insisted we split every expense. He always said, "I hate women who think men should pay for everything. They expect guys to buy them gifts on special occasions and even feed them while they eat. They're adults. Do they really think they're princesses? You're so much better." I told him I only agreed to split the bills because I knew he loved me. Then one day, I saw a message on his computer after he forgot to lock the screen. A female coworker had thanked him. "Thanks for treating me to dinner and even slicing the steak for me. Next time, I'll buy the movie tickets." My boyfriend replied almost instantly. "How could I let a lady pay?" I kept scrolling through their chat history. On a rainy night, he had driven across half the city just to take her home. Whenever she had a nightmare, he would stand outside her apartment building and stay on the phone with her until she fell asleep. That was when I realized the truth. He didn't love independent women. He only loved the convenience that came with an independent woman. Just then, he walked in carrying my cat. "Your cat can't be a freeloader. The expenses should be split three ways between the three of us. Since the cat can't pay, you'll cover his share too. That means you pay two-thirds, and I'll pay one-third. Transfer me 800 dollars." Chapter 1 Clara's POV "PayPal or Venmo?" Jason Chadwick held Buddy in one arm while pulling up his payment QR code with the other. Buddy started struggling because Jason was holding him too tightly. "Put Buddy down! You're hurting him!" I reached out to take Buddy, but Jason stepped back. "Pay first." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. His chat history showed that he sent money to Sophia Johnston almost every day. When she complained about getting caught in the rain, he immediately sent her 500 dollars. When she said she couldn't get a table at the restaurant she wanted, he sent her another 900 dollars. There were even more transfers for clothes and travel expenses. The payment records between them were longer than all the messages we had exchanged during our five years together. Buddy was a stray cat that Jason and I had rescued together in college. We paid for his treatment and raised him for four years. Now Buddy was old, yet Jason insisted he was my cat. He held Buddy tightly and demanded that I pay him. Buddy's cries became louder and sharper. Panicked, I quickly pulled out my phone. Before I could scan the code and pay, someone knocked on the door. Sophia stood outside and handed Jason a fancy gift box. "Mr. Chadwick, thank you for helping me out with those drinks last night. This is just a little thank-you gift." Inside was a box of cute cartoon-shaped cookies. Jason smiled with surprise and thanked her gently. Sophia looked at Buddy. "So this is Buddy? He's so adorable..." The moment she praised him, Jason placed Buddy into her arms. But Buddy had always been shy around strangers. He hated being held by people he didn't know, and Sophia clearly didn't know how to hold a cat. Within seconds, Buddy scratched her twice. She cried out in pain and let go of him. Her eyes instantly filled with tears. Jason grabbed her arm right away. "Are you okay? Does it hurt?" The scratches were so light that they didn't even bleed. Still, he grabbed his car keys. "I'll take you to the hospital." As he rushed to the door, he turned back and said coldly, "This cat actually hurts people. If he's this impossible to control, then just give him away." Buddy trembled in my arms as I held him close and tried to comfort him. I listened to Jason's heartless words. Looking at their tightly linked hands, I remembered all those payment records. "Don't you know Buddy is shy around strangers? I'm never giving him away. Just leave. We're done." Jason froze in shock. He quickly softened his voice and gently brushed my hair back. "I was too angry just now. We're getting married next month. Don't say things like that." After a short pause, he continued, "But we don't need to keep a pet that hurts people. You need to apologize to Sophia for today. Then you need to find Buddy a new home. Since she got hurt, send her 800 dollars for medical bills and emotional distress." After saying that, he slammed the door shut. I slid down the wall and sat on the floor, holding Buddy as I cried. I didn't know how long I cried before I finally stopped. Then I stood up, saved copies of Jason's chat records from my computer, packed all of his things, left every box outside the door, and drove straight to the wedding planning company. "Ms. Vernon, are you sure you want to cancel next month's wedding?" Chapter 2 I nodded calmly. "Yes. Cancel it." The wedding planner looked disappointed. "I remember the last time you came here. Your blood sugar dropped, and your fiancé ran all over town in the 95-degree heat looking for medicine. I've worked here for years, and I've never seen a couple as devoted as you two." I had always been in poor health, so Jason made a habit of carrying my medicine and candy in his pocket. It was one of the few things he never let me split the cost of. That day, he had forgotten to bring them, so he ran from one pharmacy to another until he was soaked with sweat. After giving me the medicine, he collapsed from heat exhaustion. I thought he had done it because he was worried about me. But after reading those chat records, I found out he had hand-fed that candy to Sophia. That was when I realized it wasn't concern. It was guilt. Before I left, the planner smiled sadly. "No matter what happens, I hope your future is filled with happiness." I thanked her and went to return my wedding dress. After I finished everything, I went home. The moment I walked inside, I saw Sophia sitting on the couch, feeding Jason a cookie. "Last time you fed me candy. This time, it's my turn to feed you cookies." She froze when she heard the front door open. "Ms. Vernon, I..." Jason acted as if I didn't exist. He leaned over and took a bite of the cookie she was holding. "It's good." Only after he finished eating did he explain, "The rabies vaccine has some side effects. Sophia lives alone, and there's no one to take care of her. So she'll be staying with us for a few days." He had already brought back the luggage I had thrown outside. Then he looked at me. "Stop being stubborn. Send the money, apologize to Sophia, and we'll forget this ever happened." His words made me laugh. I was about to argue when I suddenly realized Buddy was gone. My voice shook as I looked around in panic. "Where's Buddy?" Jason answered bluntly, "I gave him away. Sophia is allergic to cat fur. If she's around him for too long, she'll get sick. Buddy has a bad temper too, and I was worried he'd scratch her again. Besides, he's already old. He probably doesn't have much time left anyway. I'll just buy you a new cat in a few days." Sophia bit her lip and looked at me with a smug smile. "Ms. Vernon, please don't blame Mr. Chadwick. He only did it for my sake. I saw people feeding stray cats outside our apartment building, so I left Buddy down there. He should be fine. Besides, Mr. Chadwick was always the one taking care of Buddy. You can barely take care of yourself, so maybe you shouldn't have a pet." I couldn't believe my ears. Jason knew there had been several cases of people abusing cats around our apartment complex lately. Yet he still put Buddy in danger for Sophia. "Jason, take your girlfriend and get out of my house. If anything happens to Buddy, I'll never forgive either of you." I wiped away my tears and rushed outside. When Jason saw me crying, his face changed, and he stood up to chase after me. But just then, Sophia complained that her hand hurt. He stopped, gently kissed the scratch on her hand, and smiled. "There. All better!" Those childish, intimate words made me sick. I forced myself to swallow the pain and kept searching around the apartment complex. Boom! A heavy storm suddenly poured down from the sky. The rain blurred my vision, but I didn't dare stop looking. I searched through countless bushes but still couldn't find Buddy. Then, after I left the complex, I finally saw him near the road. "Buddy!" I ran toward him. At that moment, a car sped out of control straight at me. I couldn't get out of the way in time. The impact threw me several yards through the air. The loud crash scared Buddy away again. I lay on the ground, unable to move from the pain, while the driver sped off. The pain made my head spin. Without thinking, I called Jason. "Jason... I've been hit by a car..." Before I could finish, he let out a cold laugh. "You actually made up a story like this just to make me admit I was wrong and comfort you? You're an adult. Even if you got hit by a car, you should know how to handle it yourself. You know the emergency number, don't you? Then call it yourself." Chapter 3 Blood slowly spread beneath me. The heavy rain had emptied the streets. There wasn't a single person around. I was in so much pain that even my voice shook. "I really was hit by a car. Jason... I'm right outside our apartment complex..." Just then, I heard the sound of a hair dryer through the phone. Sophia asked, "Have you ever dried Clara's hair for her?" Jason chuckled. "You're the only one who's spoiled enough to make me dry your hair." "So I'm the first person you've ever done that for?" "Yeah. And the only one." The call ended. My heart broke. With trembling hands, I called 911. Then everything went black. I had a long dream. I dreamed about our college days. Back then, Jason wouldn't even spend 20 dollars on a meal for himself. But he never hesitated to use all the money from his part-time job to buy me a gift worth about 1,000 dollars. I also dreamed about the day we brought Buddy home. Jason smiled as he took a picture of the three of us together. Then I dreamed about the day he proposed. He smiled and said, "I'll spend the rest of my life with you. Everything I own will be yours." But from now on, I wanted nothing to do with him. When I woke up again, I was lying in a hospital room. The doctor told me that, besides several broken bones, I would recover. But my baby was gone forever. I thanked the doctor weakly. When I turned on my phone, I saw dozens of messages from Jason. "Why aren't you home yet? Stop throwing a tantrum." "Stop making up those stupid lies! Where are you? I'll come get you." "I made your favorite food. Eat it when you get home." "I'm taking Sophia back to the hospital for a follow-up. You don't have to pay this time. Happy now?" I didn't cry or argue. I quietly blocked his number. As soon as I closed our chat, new messages appeared in the apartment community group. "Whose cat is this? Another cat has been abused!" "This is horrible. Someone cut its stomach open... Oh, but I think it's still alive." My mind went blank. The photo showed a cat covered in wounds, lying on the ground with its body twisted. I recognized Buddy instantly. The picture was so graphic that it was quickly removed. I immediately asked for the location. Without even changing out of my hospital gown, I borrowed a wheelchair and rushed toward the address. But before I could leave the hospital, Jason stopped me. "Clara? Why are you here?" He was carrying Sophia's purse in his left hand. His right arm was wrapped around her waist. The moment he saw the casts on my legs, panic filled his face. "What happened to you?" I gritted my teeth. "Move! Buddy was abused! I must save him!" "That's impossible." He looked stunned, but he still reached for his car keys. Just as he was about to take me out of the hospital, Sophia looked me up and down. "Ms. Vernon, there weren't any reports of a car accident last night. Did you really come to the hospital just to make Mr. Chadwick feel guilty? And even if a cat was abused, aren't you an independent woman? Can't you handle it yourself?" After hearing her words, Jason stopped looking worried. Instead, disappointment filled his face. "Clara, I can't believe you'd keep lying over a pet. Since you're still making a scene, we're canceling our honeymoon. Sophia has never been on a plane before, so I'll take her on a trip instead. Consider it your apology to her." At that moment, I thought about my unborn baby, the hit-and-run driver, and Buddy, who always rubbed his head against me. I finally lost all hope. I slapped Jason across the face. "Jason, we were over a long time ago. Get lost." He froze. Then his face twisted with anger. "Remember what you said today!" I rolled my wheelchair away without looking back. By the time I reached the location, Buddy had already stopped breathing. Crying, I held his broken body in my arms. Then I took him to be cremated. After that, I contacted a real estate company and put the house that held all my memories with Jason up for sale. Everything connected to him went into the trash. Finally, I went to the police station and gave my statement. "We can investigate the hit-and-run driver," the officer said. "But finding the person who abused your cat will be much harder. The security cameras in your apartment complex were broken." The officer's words left me silent for a long time. That night, I flew to Riverport with Buddy's ashes. It was home to the largest anti-animal cruelty organization in the country. If I couldn't get justice for Buddy, then I would do everything I could to protect other cats. And I decided to let Jason go forever. ... Third-Person POV A week later, Jason and Sophia returned to Stonebridge after their vacation. Sophia hadn't adjusted well to the trip and was running a fever. After they landed, Jason took her to the hospital for an IV. Once she fell asleep, he stepped into the hallway for a cigarette. Just as he unlocked his phone to contact Clara, he overheard several nurses talking nearby. "Did you see that trending story? That anti-animal cruelty group exposed several people. I heard they all live here in Stonebridge." "I think they live at Sunrise Courts. The cat's owner was treated at our hospital a couple of days ago." "She was hit by a car and lost her baby. Her husband never came to see her, and then her cat died too..." The nurse sighed sadly. "I think her name was Clara."