My Loving Family Wants My Heart

After I recovered, I finally left the psychiatric hospital.

My family asked me, tense and cautious, "Are you still going to look for Vivian?" I shook my head, my eyes filled with confusion. "Who’s Vivian?" Relief washed over their faces.

They instantly threw a warm welcomehome party for me and immediately started arranging dates, wrapping me in a blanket of warmth and happiness.

Everyone told me that Vivian didn't exist. They said I had fallen in love with a hallucination. Only by playing along could I leave that mental asylum and regain my freedom.

But I knew the truth. Vivian was not a hallucination. I had to find her. And then, I had to run. "How is Logan’s mental state right now?" "He’s doing great, very stable.

But Doctor, we’re worried he’s just faking it. What if he hasn't actually forgotten that fake person?

Is that possible?" On the other end of the line, the doctor’s voice was absolute. "Impossible. I used the most aggressive psychiatric therapy.

Aside from his memories of his family, I forced him to forget everything else.

A mere hallucination could never leave a trace after that." "But remember, do not let him contact anyone or anything from his past.

Otherwise, it might trigger some of his memories." "Understood. Thank you, Doctor.

The wire transfer we promised will be sent to your offshore account tonight." With that, Audrey hung up the phone.

Through the crack of the door, I heard my sister let out a long sigh of relief. "Finally, it's done." Hearing her footsteps approaching, I quickly slipped away, navigating the dark hallway back to my bedroom to process the shocking news.

One thing was certain: my family had paid off a doctor to erase most of my past.

My empty memory only held information about my family, along with a blurry recollection of me attacking someone on the street two years ago, being diagnosed with mental illness, and locked away.

Everyone was lying to me! But my own mind wouldn't lie to me.

I didn't remember much of my treatment in the asylum, but on the wall hidden behind my desk, I had carved three lines of small text. “A conspiracy!

Logan, your family paid the doctor to torture you...” “I can’t hold on much longer. My memories are fading. But remember this: Vivian is real. Find her in Boston.

Only then will you be free...” “The iPhone 7, the cracked watch—these are gifts from Vivian.

They are the proof of her existence...” There were less than fifty words, stained with dried blood.

From the messy handwriting, I could feel the panic and sheer despair I felt when I carved those words. Knock, knock, knock. A sudden knock on the door startled me.

I realized I had forgotten to turn off the lights. I walked over and opened the door. "Logan, why are you still awake so late?" It was Audrey.

Her eyes were filled with warmth and affection. But knowing what I knew, it felt incredibly fake, sending a cold shiver down my spine.

I didn't know why they were torturing and deceiving me. But after my parents retired, they handed the entire family business over to Audrey.

I had absolutely zero assets under my name. None of this made sense. I couldn't fight them openly.

My only option was to play along, lower their guard, and wait for the right moment to find Vivian. I forced a faint smile. "Tomorrow is Mom’s birthday.

I was just trying to figure out what to get her." "Oh, don't worry about that." Audrey smiled warmly. "You know what Mom and Dad want most, right?

They just want to see you settle down. The girl we set you up with tomorrow is Chloe, the sole heiress of the corporate giant, the Chloe Group.

She’s welleducated, ambitious, and has a spotless reputation. Be nice to her, okay?

Don't push her away." Chloe was the perfect catch—smart, elegant, careeroriented, and free of any bad habits. Over the next few weeks, I pretended to fall for her completely.

In front of my parents, I constantly brought up Chloe and acted highly interested in her. My parents were thrilled.

They immediately started planning a dinner for both families to meet. No one mentioned Vivian anymore, as if she had truly been erased from existence.

Audrey stopped watching me like a hawk, too. At least when I went out on dates with Chloe, there were fewer eyes tracking my every move.

Eventually, our families met for the first time. The atmosphere was warm and harmonious.

Amidst the cheers and a kiss between Chloe and me, our wedding was set for three months later. I smiled with feigned bliss, drinking until I was completely wasted.

Audrey helped me back to my bedroom. Thinking I had passed out, they began celebrating in the living room. "Phew, finally.

Stella has Logan completely wrapped around her finger." "Just three more months, and this whole thing will be over!" So, they wanted to use me as a tool for a business marriage?

Is that why they used such brutal methods to wipe my memory? I pulled out the junk box from under my bed.

Looking at the old iPhone 7 and the cracked watch inside, I narrowed my eyes, my resolve hardening. "Vivian." "I will find you."

I couldn't let anyone know what I was planning, not even Chloe. But I loved going on dates with her. When I was with her, I could escape Audrey's surveillance.

Since Chloe was always busy with her company's emergencies, she would often leave me alone for hours. Those blocks of time were my moments of absolute freedom.

I wasn't sure what would happen to me after the wedding, so I had to execute my escape plan and get to Boston before the big day.

I secretly sold the expensive gifts my family gave me. I also hoarded the cash they gave me for our dates.

Once I saved enough to buy a cheap, unregistered used car, I could disappear without a trace. A month later, my chance came.

While I was accompanying Chloe to try on wedding dresses, her phone rang. Her face paled instantly. "Another issue? The moment I’m not there, everything goes to hell!

We're losing more money than we're making from the Logan family deal! Wait for me, I’m coming right now..." She rushed out and drove off.

Usually, when her company had an emergency, she would be gone for at least one to two hours. I didn't waste a second.

I quickly changed my clothes, took a cab to a sketchy used car dealership I had scouted earlier, and bought a beatup sedan for a high price in cash. I had no choice.

My time was limited, and I couldn't leave any paper trail for my family to track. Once I got the keys, I threw my phone into a trash can and drove straight to Boston.

I didn't know how to find Vivian. To survive in Boston, I found a job at an exclusive, underground gentlemen's club in a secluded part of the city. Strangely enough.

I seemed highly adapted to this job—one that didn't require an ID check but demanded I swallow my pride to please wealthy female clients.

I served clients at night, quietly asking around for any news of Vivian, and slept in the staff dorms during the day. I had already ditched the car.

I was confident my family couldn't track me down here. But two weeks later, I got a strange customer.

She claimed to be one of Chloe’s assistants, on vacation in her hometown for a wedding, and decided to stop by the club to relax.

But I had met all of Chloe’s assistants, and I had absolutely no memory of this woman. I tried to fish for information. "I heard Chloe’s fiancé went missing.

Is her team looking for him?" The assistant looked baffled. "What are you talking about? Chloe’s fiancé is the heir of the Brandon family.

They were spotted drinking at a club together just last night. Who said he went missing?" She pulled out a photo of Chloe and the Brandon heir at their engagement party.

The venue was packed with guests. My sister, Audrey, and my parents were clearly visible in the crowd. But the Chloe in that photo was not the Chloe I had been dating!

My scalp went numb, and a cold sweat broke out across my back. If even Chloe was a lie, then my family’s story about erasing my memory just for a business merger made no sense.

Then what was the truth? What were they trying to do to me? Suddenly, the door to the VIP room was kicked open with a loud bang. Audrey stepped inside, her face dark with fury.

She rushed over and slapped me hard across the face. "I knew you were hiding in a place like this! Logan, you are a son of the family!

Do you really love doing this cheap, disgusting work that much?" Before my chaotic brain could process what was happening, Audrey’s bodyguards grabbed me and dragged me brutally into a waiting car.

My parents were waiting inside the vehicle.

The warmth and affection they used to show me were completely replaced by deep disappointment. "Logan, what do we have to do to make you believe that Vivian doesn't exist?

She’s a fake!" I shook my head in panic, unable to speak. I kept telling myself in my head: They are liars. I cannot believe a single word they say.

Finally, Audrey lost her patience and snapped. "Logan, you’ve only had one girlfriend in your entire life." "You want to see her, right?" "Fine. I’ll take you to her right now!"

The car sped through the streets and pulled up at a rundown, sketchy apartment complex in Boston. My sister led me up the stairs and knocked on a door.

A disheveled, crippled woman who looked completely out of her mind opened it.

Seeing us, she began to tremble violently, shrinking back in fear. "I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Logan!" "I was wrong!

I shouldn't have treated you like that!" "You guys already punished me!

Please, let me go, stop torturing me!" I backed away in horror, shaking my head frantically. "I don't know her! She’s not Vivian!

She’s definitely not Vivian!" Audrey let out a cold, mocking laugh. "Then tell me, who is Vivian? What does she look like?" I didn't know. I couldn't say.

But I knew that this crazed, broken woman in front of me was definitely not the person I was desperately clinging to when I was locked in the asylum. "Enough, Logan!

Wake up!" "There is no Vivian! The words you carved in the asylum wall were fake—they were just false memories created by your damaged brain before you recovered!

This trash of a woman is your only exgirlfriend.

After she broke you, you had a mental breakdown and hallucinated a perfect savior named Vivian!" "Do you know why we looked for you at that club?" "Because she forced you to work in a place like that for six months..." I couldn't hear the rest of her words.

A sharp, tearing pain suddenly ripped through my brain. A flood of memories was forcefully shoved into my mind, causing unbearable agony.

Slowly, the memories became coherent and clear— I remembered. I remembered everything. The crazy woman in front of me was Scarlett. She was a con artist.

She had faked her identity, scammed me of all my money, played with my feelings, and dragged me to Boston.

She had hooked up with local thugs and forced me to work at a shady host club to support her. The club owner was her relative.

I was abused and held captive there for six months before Audrey finally tracked me down, rescued me, and brutally punished Scarlett. No wonder Audrey knew where to find me.

Once she saw the carved words in the asylum, she knew I was in Boston. Based on my past, she searched the clubs one by one. If this memory was real... Then was Vivian real or fake?

My beliefs began to shatter. I recalled the agonizing pain of being betrayed by Scarlett. It was a living hell. That level of trauma could indeed trigger a severe mental breakdown.

But... My family were liars too! They had bribed the doctor and tortured me to wipe my memory. Even the Chloe I knew was a fake.

My entire life was built on a massive lie! "Logan, did you remember something?" Seeing my breakdown and terror, Audrey grabbed my hand, her eyes filled with pleading. "Now do you believe me?

I didn't lie to you. We’re family. I don't understand why you refuse to trust us." "Come back with us. Go explain things to Chloe." "She genuinely cares about you.

With our help, the wedding can still go on—" My emotions finally boiled over.

I screamed, cutting her off, "Enough!" "I don't know if Vivian is fake, but Chloe definitely is!" "The woman I met is not the real Chloe! You guys are liars!

You’re still trying to deceive me!" "Audrey, please, just tell me the truth. What are you trying to do to me?"

Back in the car, my parents and Audrey showed me countless photos and screenshots of text messages.

The massive amount of information perfectly pieced together my life after meeting Scarlett.

After graduating college, I ignored my family's objections and followed Scarlett to Boston, after which I went completely off the grid.

The three of them had gone frantic searching for me. But by the time they found me and rescued me, I was already completely broken. I had lost my mind.

To block out the trauma of Scarlett, I forgot her and hallucinated a perfect woman named Vivian.

I was so obsessed with finding her that I eventually lost control and hurt someone. "Logan, I admit we bribed the doctor to use aggressive therapy to cure you," Dad said, his eyes red. "But we had no choice!

Normal medicine wasn't working.

Only by wiping your memory completely could we help you escape that dark shadow." "After you were discharged, we wanted to prevent you from relapsing.

We wanted to find a perfect woman who closely matched your fantasy of Vivian. But where does a perfect woman like that exist?

Chloe was the best candidate we could find." "But she was already engaged.

In our desperation, we had to hire someone to play her part..." With tears in their eyes, they laid out the entire truth. Including things I didn't know.

For instance, the woman playing Chloe was actually Stella. She wasn't the heiress of the Chloe Group, but she was an ambitious selfmade businesswoman worth millions.

She knew the truth all along and helped my family keep up the charade in exchange for my family's business resources and connections.

Audrey swore to me that as long as our family stood, Stella would stay by my side.

She would become the Vivian of my dreams. "Logan, for your sake, we haven't slept peacefully in years." "Do we have to rip our hearts out for you to believe we only want what’s best for you?" Their tears didn't seem fake.

And the memory of Scarlett in my mind was absolutely real. With everything perfectly connecting, how could I not believe them?

My eyes grew wet, and I hugged them. "I’m sorry, I’m sorry... I shouldn't have made you worry. But losing my memory and seeing those carved words in the room... I was so scared.

I couldn't stop overthinking." "Please give me some time, okay? I will get through this..." After that, my parents and Audrey treated me even better.

But they also watched me even closer. Whenever I went out on dates with Stella, the bodyguards didn't even bother hiding anymore. They followed me openly.

Sometimes, when I showed discomfort, Stella would squeeze my hand to comfort me. "Logan, your family is just doing this for your own good.

They’re scared you’ll do something reckless again." "We’ve cleared up all the misunderstandings, haven't we?

Promise me you won't overthink anymore." "We didn't stop you these past few days. We even helped you search.

Have you found a single trace of Vivian’s existence?" I nodded quietly, holding her hand back. "You’re right.

If Vivian were real, she would have left some trace." "Anyway, thank you for coming to Boston with me so I could personally teach Scarlett a lesson.

It felt good to get that out of my system." Behind us, Scarlett was kneeling on the floor, begging for mercy.

Stella didn't hear the whisper I threatened Scarlett with when her back was turned. “If you want to live, help me find that old iPhone 7 I sent to the repair shop.” No one knew that I had already found proof of Vivian's existence.

The iPhone 7 and the cracked watch. I was incredibly glad that before leaving the asylum, I had scraped off the third line of text on the wall.

Otherwise, they would have found a perfect excuse for those two items as well. A few days later, I pretended to wake up from a nightmare.

My parents rushed into my room immediately, asking what was wrong. I said, "I dreamed of Scarlett again." "Does Stella have time?

Take me to Boston one more time." I didn't know how they had managed to erase every trace of Vivian.

But I knew that the iPhone 7 must contain messages left by Vivian, or by my past self before the memory wipe...