The So-called Art

"Mrs. Murdock, since you've seen the photo, I think we know there's no misunderstanding.

"You've seen how I treated Zachary all these years. I've never wronged him. I loved him, but that didn't give him any right to hurt me as he wished," I said.

She was still his mother, after all. I couldn't be too harsh. "I'll get ready and be there soon."

After ending the call, I put on some makeup, grabbed my car keys, and headed out.

When I pulled up at the Murdock villa, Zachary's parents were already waiting outside. Zachary stood behind them, hanging his head low.

I got out of the car and had just shut the door when a black sports car sped toward me from the side.

"Lindsey, watch out!" Zachary lunged out and pushed me out of the way. I landed on the floor with a thump and saw how Zachary was sent flying as the car hit him.

The car sped away and disappeared. Zachary was rushed to the hospital.

He pushed me out of the way just in time, only to get his leg run over and end up fracturing his leg. Luckily, it wasn't critical.

I watched him lie there with a calm expression.

If this had happened before yesterday, I would've felt so guilty after seeing how badly injured he was because of me. I would've burst into tears on his shoulders and blamed myself for not being able to suffer in place of him.

But now, I was just grateful that he had shoved me away, allowing me to walk away with just minor scratches.

Zachary was just out of surgery. He looked weak, his face as pale as a sheet. His eyes lit up slightly when he saw me, and he said feebly, "Lindsey, thank god you're okay."

"Zachary Murdock, what day was it yesterday?" I asked sharply.

Zachary sounded annoyed as he replied, "Lindsey, I'm stuck in bed and injured because of you. Can't you see that?

"If it weren't for me, you would be lying on this bed now. But now you're whining about your damn birthday. How could you be so cold-hearted and selfish?"

Susan blamed me, too. "Exactly, Lindsey. Zachary has saved your life and is injured because of you. He's also your fiancé. How could you talk to him like that?"

"Oh, so you knew I was your future daughter-in-law. I thought you already had someone else in mind," I retorted before turning back to Zachary, who was lying on the bed. "Answer me. What day was yesterday?"

Zachary deflated like a balloon. "It was your birthday. Are you happy now?

"Lindsey, all I did was miss out on your birthday. Was that such a big deal? We'll spend your birthday together next year. I promise, alright?"

Amused, I asked him, "So, where were you last year? What about the year before last year and also the year before that? What were you doing on my birthdays for the past three years?"

"Uh…" Zachary hesitated.

Seeing that he had fallen silent, I reminded him, "Last year, Bianca said she wanted to see the sunset. You went hiking with her the whole day and left me alone in the restaurant.

"The year before that, you promised to spend my birthday with me. I had already prepared the yacht, but you had gone to help Bianca move. You had even driven off my car, leaving me at the jetty all by myself."