I Broke up with My Boyfriend Before I Died

I chased after Jake Burton for eight years, only to break up with him when I saw he had saved his ex-girlfriend's contact as "Baby." Her name was Janet Flynn.

"Just because I forgot to change the contact name?"

I stared at Jake's mocking smile and nodded.

His friends said I was narrow-minded and overreacted, but I just kept my gaze on Jake without saying a word.

Jake's dark eyes seemed to be covered with frost. After a moment, he simply sneered, "Fine. Let's break up. Just don't come back to me and cry to plead with me to get back together."

Everyone in the room erupted in laughter.

I pushed open the door, clutched the pathology report in my coat pocket, and walked into the night.

I had wanted to weave a beautiful dream for the last moments of my life.

But I shouldn't force love. It was even more bitter than the medicine I took.

So I decided to end the relationship between Jake and me.

1.

"Jake, why don't you call Janet and tell her you miss her?"

At Jake's company celebration party, a young employee called his ex-girlfriend and wanted to get back together with her after he was emboldened by alcohol.

Mack shouted for Jake to call Janet at that moment. He seemed to have drunk a lot as well.

Jake opened his slightly drunken eyes and laughed and let them get lost.

It didn't have much impact. The crowd egged him on even more. One daring person teased, "Make the call and say we all miss your girlfriend."

The other company employees looked at me, puzzled.

Jake's girlfriend was publicly me now, so who was the girlfriend they were talking about?

They were confused but hesitant to ask. I raised my glass, took a big gulp, and swallowed the bitter liquid down my throat.

I had a crush on Jake for six years, dated him for two, but I still couldn't get his friends' recognition.

Mack glanced at me with bad intentions and said, "I dare not call Janet because someone is here, Jake?"

Jake chuckled and said, "What dare I not do?"

He took out his phone, dialed the number saved under "Baby."

Mack jeered again. "Oh, it's still Baby. Jake, you're quite shameless!"

Seeing the contact name, I was a little sad.

I had dated Jake for two years, but he always saved my number as the cold and distant name, Jenna Reed.

I thought he wasn't the type for romantic surprises.

Now he seemed only be tender to another woman.

The room fell into a silence, leaving only the anxious beeping of the phone, echoing with a suspenseful pause.

Watching Jake's tense expression and slightly curved lips, I suddenly lost my interest.

The call was answered as expected. The voice on the other end was sweet and playful with a slight anger. "It's early morning here. Why are you calling me? I was still sleeping."

Jake's voice was hoarse, "Who are you sleeping with?"

"Why do you care? Who are you to me, anyway?"

Jake tossed the phone onto the table, lit a cigarette, and let others see the contact name and hear the voice.

Indeed, Jake had never hidden his affection.

The smoke from his lips drifted slowly upwards, and his voice was soaked in alcohol. He said with a smile, "It's the concern from your ex-boyfriend."

Mack shouted into the phone with a mischievous tone, "Janet, Jake misses you, hahh!"

"Hmph, then keep missing me. Bye."

Even after the call ended, Jake's friends continued to tease him.

I downed another glass of liquor, and the burning feeling reached my stomach. White liquor was bitter, but not as bitter as a forced relationship.

I stood up and said, "Jake, let's break up."

The once lively room fell silent as the grave, and three seconds later, it exploded into chaos.

Almost everyone was criticizing me.

"Jenna, don't be so narrow-minded. It was just a phone call. Why do you overreact like this?"

"Don't embarrass yourself. Jake doesn't like women who causes trouble. You've been chasing him for years. Don't provoke him."

Mack laughed mockingly. "You are just a stand-in. Are you thinking you could turn the tables?"

I kept my gaze fixed on Jake without speaking. Jake looked at me for a short moment, but I didn't change my mind. His dark eyes were filled with frost briefly. But he just sneered, "Fine. Let's break up. Just don't come back to me and cry to ask to get back together."

The room erupted in laughter.

"Jake, you are so confident, huh?"

Jake swirled his glass and said coldly, "She can't go through without me."

The crowd egged him on even more. I clutched the diagnosis report inside my pocket and walked into the night.

Fate had taught me how to live alone after my parents passed away.

Now, fate would use my death to show Jake that I could go through without him.

I took a taxi to Jake's place.

I hadn't been living with Jake for long, so I didn't have many of my belongings there.

The servant Jake hired, Paula, followed me closely as I packed my things. After she learned that I was moving out after breaking up with Jake, she was obviously joyful. She threw my clothes out and said, "Jake is too kind-hearted to bring you into the house. It's always felt like a mess in here after you moved in. Now that your stuff is gone, the place is much cleaner. Hey, don't touch those perfumes. They were left by Janet. Jake can't bear to throw them away."

I knew those perfumes belonged to Janet, and there were many of her dolls and clothes in Jake's home.

Even though she had left him and gone abroad, Jake still kept her things.

When I first moved in, I wasn't officially his girlfriend.

Seeing so many of Janet's belongings in his place, I was very sad, but I didn't have the right to say anything.

As our relationship grew closer and we started living together, he still kept Janet's items.

Even now, after we broke up, they were still there.

Looking at the perfumes and dolls, I felt more ridiculous about our relationship.

Meanwhile, Paula continued her sarcastic chatter. Suddenly, I felt nauseous and rushed to the bathroom to vomit.

Paula reluctantly came over. She covered her nose and said with disdain, "Ugh, that is very unlucky. You are not well-educated without your mother. So you can't even learn proper etiquette. You leave such a mess on the floor before moving out. Are you doing so to disgust me on purpose? Clean the mess yourself."

Initially, I intended to clean up. But seeing Paula's disgust, I simply stood up and left the bathroom. I walked to the perfume cabinet, glanced at Paula, and then pushed all the perfume bottles onto the floor.

Amidst her frantic screams, I picked up my suitcase from the living room and left the place I had barely moved into.

My phone vibrated. It was a message from my doctor. "Your latest test results show you are pregnant. Your current condition isn't suitable for continuing the pregnancy. It is too risky. Please discuss with your family and consider termination of it."

Each word felt like a dagger, piercing my heart deeply.

After my parents passed away, I spent twelve years living in others' homes. My greatest wish was to build a family with Jake.

Now, I'd finally become pregnant, but it was at that moment.

My fingers instinctively, almost greedily, touched my still-flat abdomen.

My hand hovered over the chat page with the doctor, but I couldn't type a single word. Why did the baby come now?

At night, I dreamt again of the car accident that took my parents' lives.

I screamed for my parents, heartbroken, but they lay on the ground and didn't respond. Then, a kid stood up in the snow and cried and called for me as its mother.

In the dream, I cried for help, hoping someone would save them, but no one showed up.

I woke up sobbing, only to find my phone ringing.

The heavy dream left me feeling unusually suffocated.

The phone kept ringing. I wiped away the tears from the corners of my eyes, walked to the balcony, and answered the call.

On the other end, a low, drunken voice complained. "Why did you take so long to answer my call? Why aren't you home? Are you staying in the dorm tonight?"

I didn't respond.

"Paula said you threw up today. Did you catch a cold?"

I still didn't respond.

Jake continued at the other end of the line, "I'm drunk and have a headache. When you come over tomorrow morning, bring me the special breakfast soup from the cafeteria on campus."

The cold wind on the balcony made me shiver. I said, "We've already broken up."

On the other end, Jake was clearly too drunk to comprehend. He continued to repeat to himself, "She said the special breakfast soup from the cafeteria on our campus was delicious. You have to go early, or it'll be sold out. Then she'll be mad." Only Janet loved the special breakfast soup from the cafeteria on our campus.

I didn't listen any further and hung up the phone directly.

Early the next morning, Jake called again.

He didn't speak, so I had to say, "We've broken up. Let's not keep in touch anymore."

After a brief pause, he said, "Jenna, you know I don't like a woman who causes trouble. I'm really tired right now and don't have the energy to coax you."

I was not good with words. Facing Jake's accusations, I stubbornly insisted, saying, "We've broken up. Don't call me anymore."

Shortly after hanging up, Jake sent me a screenshot.

The name Janet had replaced the affectionate "Baby," along with two messages. "I've changed the contact name. Can you stop being angry now?" "I'm really busy lately. Be understanding and stop causing trouble."

I sighed and blocked Jake's social media accounts and phone number.

I didn't want to cause trouble. In the final moments of my life, I just wanted to have some peaceful time.

I threw myself into the lab and worked until midnight before returning to the dorm.

On the way back, an unfamiliar number kept calling me. I didn't answer.

The number sent me a text message. "Hey there, I'm apologizing to you. Is it enough? I shouldn't have said those things about you that evening. Can you stop being angry with Jake? Our company is just starting, and we're exhausted. You're making Jake lose focus on work..."

There was a long, sarcastic apology that I didn't bother to read. Then I blocked the number.

As I hesitated about changing my number, Jake appeared again.

How ironic it was! We had dated for two years, but the first time he waited for me outside the dorm after our breakup.

The temperature had dropped significantly these days, and his smoking hand was red from the cold. As I approached, he extinguished the cigarette and tried to put his scarf on me.

I stepped back and put on a mask. I never felt uncomfortable before when he smoked. But with my weakened immune system, even a whiff of his secondhand smoke made me feel uncomfortable. I coughed.

He put out the cigarette. "Haven't you still recovered from the cold? You've been looking pale lately. Let me take you to the hospital. Okay?"

With that, he tried to hold my hand. But I stepped back again to distance myself as I asked politely, "What's the matter?"

Jake held the scarf in his hand, looked at me, and chuckled. "Are you really mad this time? It's the first time I've seen you so angry. I thought you were always a gentle, soft pushover."

Hearing this, I really wanted to cry. I suddenly thought of my deceased father.

When I was a little girl, I always fought against other kids, and many little boys couldn't beat me. My parents often took me to apologize to others, but they never criticized me for being tough.

My dad would just smile, pat my head, and say to my mom, "Jenna is a little firecracker. She is never willing to be bullied."

But my father would never know that, after he and my mother died, people started treating me differently-like I was weak, someone they could push around without consequence.

Seeing my eyes turn red, Jake misunderstood me. He smiled and opened his arms. "I know you've been aggrieved. I've already taught Jake a lesson. Don't be angry, okay?"

I shook my head, composed myself, and calmly stepped back. I said, "Jake, I'm serious about the breakup."

Jake's face suddenly turned unsightly. "Jenna, my patience is limited. I don't have time for these games. You used to be so well-behaved and understanding. How did you become like this?"

I didn't have the energy to argue with him, so I forced a smile and said, "Then let's break up."

Jake's dark eyes stared at me. Then he suddenly laughed and said, "Alright. It's rare for you to be so tough. You just want me to coax you, don't you? Your birthday is coming up. I'll take you skiing abroad this year."

Skiing was Jake's favorite sport. Every year, he used to take her skiing abroad. And he only took her there.

After I dated Jake for two years, it was the first time he mentioned going skiing with me.

However, my condition could no longer handle long-distance travel.

"Jake, come to my apartment on my birthday. I have something to tell you."

I wanted Jake to know about the baby. After all, he was the father.

But I didn't expect that I waited for Jake nearly 11 o'clock in the morning, but he never showed up.