He Let Her Move Into His Dorm, I Moved Out of the Country Chapter 01
After I found out that my fiancé, Adrian Grant, had let a female student move into his faculty apartment, I did not break down and demand an explanation the way I used to.
I simply deleted every way I had to contact him, accepted the transfer my company had arranged for me, and left the country.
The next time we met was five years later, at an industry conference.
I attended as an investor in one of the research labs.
People who knew me came over one after another to say hello.
“Lauren, Professor Grant has been losing sleep over you for years.”
I frowned slightly. When I looked up, I saw Adrian walking in, surrounded by a crowd.
Five years later, Adrian’s standing in the field was clearly much higher than it had been back then, but he looked worn down. There was a drained, defeated look about him now, and a few more lines had settled between his brows.
Everyone knew about my history with Adrian. They also knew he had supposedly never stopped missing me over the past five years, so they thought they were being helpful and arranged for us to sit together.
I treated Adrian like a stranger, but his gaze was full of turbulent, complicated emotions.
After a long silence, he finally said my name.
“Lauren, have you been doing okay all these years?”
“I’ve been fine.”
…
My tone was detached, as if I were answering someone I had only just met.
But inside, no matter how hard I tried, I could not stay calm.
Adrian and I had grown up together as childhood sweethearts. We had always been close, and once we became adults, getting together, introducing each other to our families, and getting engaged all felt like the natural next steps.
After the engagement, we were both busy with our careers and spent more time apart than together.
I never thought much of it, until I started hearing him mention the name of his female student, Mia Carter, again and again.
Adrian had never brought up our relationship at the university, and he never allowed me to bring it up either. Yet he let Mia link her arm through his and act all coy with him in front of everyone.
At first, I did not think too much of it. I only assumed he was looking after a student.
Then, on our anniversary, he left me behind and went to campus to take care of Mia.
I was furious and told him I wanted to break up.
Adrian, who had always been cool and restrained, the kind of man who never let joy or anger show on his face, dropped to his knees in front of me, crying as he apologized and begged me not to leave him.
“Lauren, I swear I don’t have any inappropriate feelings for her.”
“I only look after her because she has no family. I feel sorry for her.”
“Please believe me. Please don’t break up with me.”
Images of everything we had been through together since childhood flashed through my mind, and in the end, I gave in and accepted his apology.
After that, again and again, Adrian left me alone because of Mia. And again and again, I stupidly convinced myself with the same excuse: he only pitied her.
Then one time, I came back early from a business trip and wanted to surprise Adrian at his faculty apartment.
I had not even had time to go home. Exhausted from travel, I went straight to the university and pushed open the door to Adrian’s faculty apartment, only to find Mia there too.
In my memory, that apartment had always been cold and stark, all black, white, and gray. Now it had been turned into something warm and cozy.
And Adrian, who had never allowed me to touch his things, was holding a stuffed animal and gently asking Mia where she wanted to put it.
In that instant, I forgot how to breathe.
Several seconds later, when I finally came back to my senses, I stepped back outside the door.
“Why is that student of yours in your faculty apartment?”
Adrian answered casually, as if he saw nothing wrong with what he had done.
“Mia is an orphan, and staying in school is a financial strain for her. I barely use the apartment anyway, so what’s wrong with letting her stay there?”
Tuition and living expenses were hard on her?
From the moment I first learned about Mia, Adrian and I had been covering her school expenses.
And as for him barely using the apartment, that was only when I was around.
The moment I went on a business trip, Adrian stayed at his faculty apartment every time.
A male professor and a female student were staying alone together in his campus apartment.
I wanted to ask him if he had any idea what that looked like to other people. But when I opened my mouth, all I managed was a few words.
“…It’s nothing.”
