She Had Seven Days with Him, and I Had Seven Days Left Chapter 02

When Vivian looked at me again, her face was filled with panic as she said cautiously, “Daniel, I’m so sorry. I didn’t think he’d just run over like that. Nathan’s completely spoiled. I’ll talk to him when I get back, I promise. Please don’t be mad.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine.”

I’d seen far worse than this. The sting had worn off a long time ago.

Vivian studied my face, relaxing only when she was sure I wasn’t upset.

Her eyes drifted instinctively toward her car, and she said softly, “Daniel, don’t worry. I won’t let Nathan cross your path again. It’s just… we should probably speed up the move…”

Her voice was faint and heavy with guilt.

A minute ago, she was saying there was no rush and that she wanted to spend the day with me. Now, one look at Nathan, and she was ushering me out the door.

I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat and nodded.

As expected, I didn’t see Nathan again on the way back. Vivian and I returned to the villa together.

I started packing right away. All I had was a compact suitcase and a corrugated cardboard box filled with keepsakes of my happy times with Vivian.

There were handwritten love notes from her, matching handmade ceramic mugs we’d made together, key rings, and more.

As I was debating what to do with them, Vivian walked in. Impatience flickered across her face as she said, “Daniel, just toss the old stuff. We can always buy new replacements later.”

She was right. Old things should be replaced. People were no different.

I let out a quiet smile, carried the box outside, and dumped it into the garbage truck.

When I grabbed my suitcase to leave, Vivian looked at me with a flicker of concern. “Daniel, give me a hug.”

She opened her arms, but I stepped back.

Before she could say anything, I forced a smile. “It’s only seven days. Don’t go giving Nathan a reason to be jealous.”

I knew he was already waiting right outside, ready to take my place.

Vivian froze for a second, then gave a nod with a smile. “Right. You’ll be back in seven days anyway. Thank you, Daniel.”

I nodded, got in my car, and hit the gas.

As I pulled away from the villa, a mechanical voice rang out in my head. “Daniel, the system has detected that you’ve divorced Vivian Hartwell and are living apart from her. You’ve failed the mission. Seven days from now, a fatal car crash will end your stay in this world.”

…

About ten years ago, I was in a car accident in my home world.

To survive, I linked myself to the Companion Bond System and was sent here to Vivian’s side.

My mission was to stay by her side and stay married to her for ten years. If I succeeded, I’d get to stay in this world and spend the rest of my life with her.

But with only seven days left, Vivian had asked for a divorce.

I had failed the mission.

Now, I had to return to my home world and face whatever fate was waiting for me there.

I checked into a hotel to lay low for the remaining week.

On the drive over, I noticed that every roadside billboard featured the same young man.

Beneath the picture, the words were written in stylized lettering. “Happy 19th, my boy! Love, Viv.”

It was Nathan. I recognized him instantly.

And Viv was Vivian’s nickname.

It all made sense now.

No wonder Vivian was in such a hurry to divorce me. She wanted to surprise her boy toy.

My mind drifted back to when I first arrived here. I pursued her first, but she was the one who fell harder.

Back then, she always went out of her way to surprise me, not just on birthdays and anniversaries, but on ordinary days, too.

She learned how to cook for me, hand-knit sweaters for me, and rented out massive roadside billboards just to tell the world she loved me.

When her family opposed our relationship, she knelt for three straight days just to get their blessing.

“Daniel, I’ll love you forever, in this life and the next.”

That was her promise to me.

But later, she forgot.

Shortly after I settled into the hotel room, my phone rang. It was the hospital, asking me to pick up my in-laws’ latest routine checkup results.

Vivian was always too busy with work, so taking care of her parents had fallen on me all these years.