Fade Away With the Wind
Nathaniel Hayes had never once raised his voice at me.
I tossed the envelope aside, convinced this was just some cruel prank.
But then a few photos slipped out, along with a keycard.
Several of the photos showed Nathaniel holding a child.
I double-checked, and yes, the man in the photos was definitely Nathaniel.
But the child... I had no idea who he was.
Nathaniel didn't have any relatives. Both of his parents had passed away when he was young.
My heart sank as I stared silently at Nathaniel's gentle smile in the photos.
I pulled out my phone and called him.
Hey, babe, what's up?
I pouted playfully like I always did. "When are you coming home?"
He chuckled on the other end of the line, "Babe, I'm having dinner with my boss tonight.
Probably pretty late."
I believed him, but a nagging doubt lingered in the back of my mind.
After graduation, Nathaniel took a job at a company near my place.
Thanks to my dad's connections, he'd been promoted to a junior leadership role over the years, but he'd been busier than usual lately.
Thinking about the photos, I asked, "Would you ever lie to me?"
There was a brief pause on the other end, and then he chuckled, "How could I lie to you?"
Suddenly, I heard a small voice calling out, "Daddy."
Before I could say anything, Nathaniel's tone turned urgent. "Babe, I need to work now."
It hit me... Nathaniel had lied to me.
The entire night, Nathaniel didn't come home. It wasn't until dawn that he finally opened the door.
I had been waiting for him on the couch all night.
He looked at me with a mix of concern and exhaustion. "Why didn't you go to bed?"
He gently lifted me and took me to the bedroom, tucking me under the covers like he always did.
Then, he went to the bathroom to shower.
I felt his phone in his jacket pocket and quietly pulled it out.
Just then, the screen lit up with a message: [What time are you coming?]
I'd never checked his phone before. We trusted each other.
But now, without hesitation, I unlocked the phone and typed in the digits.
It was still my birthday, but I couldn't bring myself to feel happy.
The interface was much cleaner than I expected, only one contact pinned at the top.
I backed out and realized it was a hidden screen I'd never seen before.
My hands trembled as I opened the conversation.
On the screen, there was only a single message: [What time are you coming?]
The previous messages had been deleted, and my heart began to race with panic.
The door opened, and Nathaniel walked out of the bathroom. His voice was cold.
"Did you find something?"
I tried to act casual. "Just checking which female coworker sent you a message."
He responded as always, "I only have you."
He took the phone from my hands and smiled faintly, "I had to work late. My coworker was pushing me to finish something."
He quickly changed into his clothes and got ready to leave.
He leaned in, about to kiss me, but I pulled away, squeezing my fingers into my palm and turning over.
"I'm so tired. Please come home early tonight," I said.
He laughed softly and agreed.
After he left, I picked up the envelope from yesterday with the address attached.
I left the house and caught a cab straight there.
The address led me to an upscale neighborhood, one Nathaniel had shown me a few years ago when we were looking at houses.
Back then, he couldn't afford the down payment.
He'd promised me he'd work hard, that one day we'd have a house of our own.
I pulled the keycard from my pocket and entered the complex.
It didn't take long before I found the building.
I rang the doorbell, and a young woman answered. She looked a little younger than me.
"Grace, who is it?" I heard Nathaniel's voice from inside.
I froze, unsure of what to do.
The girl in front of me pretended not to know me and shook her head, quietly saying, "I don't know her."
I struggled to stay composed and stepped inside.
"Weren't you supposed to be at work?" I asked.
Inside, I found Nathaniel carefully feeding a three-year-old child.
He didn't seem to expect me.
I asked, my voice trembling, "Who is this child?"
The little boy shrank into Nathaniel's arms. "Daddy, I'm scared."
Nathaniel patted his back gently. "Don't be scared."
He turned to me, his voice sharp. "Stop yelling."
Tears filled my eyes as I looked at him. "You didn't even explain any of this to me."
Nathaniel opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Grace, who suddenly burst into tears.
"I'm sorry. It's my fault.
Don't blame Nate," she pleaded.
I was confused. I hadn't done anything.
But Nathaniel, clearly irritated, snapped, "Isabelle Stone, that's enough. We'll talk later."
I had never seen him this angry with me before.
A sharp pain spread through my chest as I asked, "Last night, did you stay here? And is the woman on your phone her?"
Nathaniel cut me off impatiently. "Do you ever think before you speak? Enough."
With that, he half-pulled Grace into the room, leaving me standing alone in the living room.
After I left, I returned home in a daze, my mind racing.
The man who had so gently proposed to me just the day before seemed like a completely different person now.
I replayed the years we'd spent together, and I realized I had never even known Nathaniel had a child.
Before long, the doorbell rang. I glanced at the familiar envelope on the floor.
Inside, there were several photos of Nathaniel sleeping.
Attached was a note that read, "Every time you fall asleep, he comes over to be with me. Believe it or not, tomorrow, he'll be the one to break up with you."
I remembered waking up several times in the middle of the night, only to find Nathaniel gone.
I'd search the whole apartment, frantic, before calling him.
He always said he had to work late at the office.
All these thoughts flooded my mind, and I felt utterly powerless.
This relationship, these years together... they all seemed like a lie.
I waited up all night, but Nathaniel didn't come home, not a single message from him.
I scrolled through my phone, watching the screen light up again.
After a long, sleepless night, my eyes began to sting with exhaustion.
Finally, the door creaked open. I rubbed my eyes.
"You're back. Don't you have anything to explain?"
A faint hope stirred inside me, and I wondered if Nathaniel would finally give me some sort of explanation.
After all, he had never let me down before.
But Nathaniel didn't even look at me. His face was hard, his voice cold.
"Explain what? If it weren't for you, Jimmy wouldn't have gotten sick."
His words hit me like a slap. We sounded like strangers like we hadn't seen each other in years.
I'd only asked a few simple questions, but everything felt so much more serious now.
I opened my mouth, concern creeping into my voice. "Is he okay?"
Nathaniel ignored my concern and changed the subject.
"I've thought about it, and I don't think we should get married right now."
We were supposed to have our engagement party next week. It was his idea to get married sooner rather than later.
I remembered the words from the note, and my disappointment was clear. "Why? Our engagement party is next week."
"I don't wanna talk about it," he said, irritated.
With that, he turned and left, leaving me standing alone.
I watched his back as he walked away, feeling a wave of emptiness wash over me.
I remembered how, back then, whenever I wanted something, anything, he would drive across the city just to get it for me. But now, he wouldn't even offer an explanation.
I started thinking about our relationship, and with each passing second, my heart felt heavier.
Just then, the phone on the table rang.
I picked it up, quickly changed into something more appropriate, and headed out.
I had majored in art design in college and opened a gallery after graduating. I usually let others run it, but I would drop by every now and then.
These past few days, because of Nathaniel, I hadn't been to the gallery.
When I got there, I saw a familiar woman and a child.
The manager leaned in close and whispered in my ear, "This child tore a piece off one of the paintings in the inner hall."
Those paintings were all expensive pieces I had bought from abroad over the years. Many of them were irreplaceable. Any damage was a huge loss.
I looked over at Nathaniel, who was still holding the child, who had a fever but was now crying loudly.
I felt frustrated. I glanced at the woman holding the child and said coldly, "Half a million dollars."
Grace took a step back, still holding the child, and began crying. "It was an accident."
The manager was clearly unhappy as well. "You should have kept an eye on him."
This was partly his fault. There were clear signs everywhere saying not to touch the paintings.
Soon, Nathaniel rushed over from the crowd.
I watched as Grace, clutching the child, stepped into his arms. "Jimmy didn't mean to."
A strange feeling stirred inside me. He was supposed to be my fiancé, but at that moment, I felt like an outsider.
The gallery staff all knew Nathaniel. He often came by to bring me lunch when we held exhibitions.
After calming the child, Nathaniel finally looked at me. "How much? I'll pay."
"Half a million dollars," I said.
Nathaniel's salary wasn't extraordinary, so for him, that was a lot of money. He frowned, his voice distant. "Isabelle, are you trying to embarrass me? Just because I haven't been around to take care of you these last few days, you're making a scene?"
I used to love acting a little spoiled, and Nathaniel always indulged me.
But now, apparently, it was all just me being difficult.
In front of everyone, he didn't care about how it looked to me. My heart sank.
He didn't seem to notice my mood. Instead, he patted the child's head. "Jimmy, did you do this on purpose?"
The child shook his head, clutching tightly to Nathaniel's leg. "No."
Nathaniel knew how much those paintings meant to me. I had researched each one meticulously. Each piece was the result of an artist's hard work. Half a million dollars might not even cover the full cost of repairing them.
I took a deep breath. "Nathaniel, you know how valuable those paintings are. Didn't you see the signs outside?"
Grace sniffled. "Jimmy wasn't feeling well, so I just wanted to take him out to get some fresh air."
Nathaniel looked at me, confused. "Isabelle, you're really going to argue over a child?"
"Yes. Pay half a million dollars, and they can go."
Nathaniel clenched his teeth. "I'll transfer it to your account in a minute."
Without another word, he led them out.
The manager looked at me, concerned. "Ma'am, do you need a ride home?"
I shook my head. "Just get that painting sent off for repairs."
Later that evening, I went to my parents' house.
When they saw me, they were taken aback. "Why are you home?
Where is Nathaniel?"
I shook my head. "He didn't come. I don't want to marry him anymore."
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