For five years, Charles had treated me like an on-call maid, taking my care and service for granted.
Whenever things didn't go his way, he would threaten to break up.
In the past, I had given him my whole heart, tolerating all his bad temper without any boundaries.
But as I touched the stiff fur in my hands, an overwhelming sense of exhaustion washed over me.
I was truly tired.
I wiped Tommy's fur and dialed a number from my contact list.
"Mom, I want to call off the engagement."
My mom was pleasantly surprised by my sudden change of heart.
She had often advised me that Charles wasn't a good man.
But I thought I had found true love and was determined to be with Charles no matter what.
I was even willing to sacrifice my dignity for him.
Now, I had finally come to my senses and stopped tormenting myself over Charles.
Just as I hung up the phone, a message came through.
It was Anna.
[Cora, even Tommy isn't that smart. Charles waved a knife, and it didn't even dodge!]
[Next time, don't raise such a dumb dog. Maybe get a smarter one... who knows, it might taste better!]
A surge of anger shot up within me!
Five years ago, I found Tommy at the corner of a street, barely alive.
He was filthy, locked in a truck bound for a meat market, looking dazed.
I couldn't bear it and was about to pay for him when Charles stepped in ahead of me.
He took Tommy to several pet hospitals, not minding how dirty he was at all.
I thought that anyone who could be so kind to an animal couldn't be a bad person.
Feeling a strange flutter in my heart, I asked Charles for his contact information.
After we became friends, I found out that Charles already had a girlfriend.
Looking at the photos of Charles with a genuine smile, it felt like my heart was being stabbed repeatedly by a dull knife.
Perhaps fate heard my wish because they soon broke up.
Anna left the country with a rich guy for the money.
Seeing photos of Charles drunk in his Facebook posts, I couldn't hold back my secret hopes anymore and went to the bar to find him.
Under the dim lights, the once proud young man broke down in tears before me.
As I gently patted Charles' trembling shoulders, I made a silent vow.
"I'll be good to you."
Under my persistence, we naturally ended up together, and we adopted Tommy, who had barely survived.
I knew Anna was still a thorn in Charles' heart, but I didn't mind.