Marriage Certificate

Chapter 1 At our daughter’s seventh birthday party, she was just about to call for her dad to cut the cake. Instead, my husband shoved her away, hard, right in front of everyone. “Don’t call me that! I’m not your dad!” He slammed a DNA paternity test down onto the table. I was completely blindsided, unable to defend myself, and my own parents slapped me across the face right then and there. The newly found “true daughter” of the family shrank into my husband’s arms, her eyes red, playing the innocent victim. “I’m so sorry, Sarah… I just made an offhand comment about how Lily didn’t really look like Julian… I had no idea he would actually go and get a test…” From that moment on, I was branded a whore, and my daughter became the bastard child everyone spat on. Later, when Julian demanded a divorce, I begged him—for Lily’s sake—to take just one more paternity test. But then, I accidentally overheard a conversation between him and his friend. “You framed your own wife as a cheater and reduced Lily to a bastard just to help Chloe vent her anger… Aren’t you worried your wife and kid are actually going to leave you over this?” Julian’s tone was entirely careless. “What’s there to be afraid of? My in-laws know the paternity test is fake too.” “It’s her own fault for being the fake daughter and stealing Chloe’s life for all those years. Once Chloe feels like the score is settled, I’ll just remarry her.” “Sarah can’t live without me. Even if we divorce, she’ll just sit around waiting for me.” Thinking of Lily crying and asking me if her daddy really didn’t want her anymore… I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms. The next day, without shedding a single tear or causing a scene, I calmly went to the courthouse and finalized our divorce. But what he didn’t know was that the moment I walked out of that building, I turned right around and signed a different marriage certificate. Standing outside the door, listening to Julian’s careless, arrogant words, I could barely stay on my feet. His friend tried to say something else, but Julian interrupted with a light laugh. “That’s enough. When the time comes, I’ll just pretend I didn’t know.” “I’ll just say the hospital mixed up the samples. I guarantee she’ll come running right back to me.” I leaned heavily against the wall, my heart violently seizing in my chest. Just a few hours ago, Lily had come home from school crying. Her usually pristine uniform was covered in mud, and her knees were scraped raw and bleeding. I called her teacher, only for her to coldly demand that we transfer schools. “Lily’s mom, are you really going to make me spell this out for you?” “Your own private life is a scandalous mess, and everyone in town knows about it. What kid in this school doesn’t know she’s an illegitimate child with no father?” “The other parents are extremely upset about this. It’s putting the school in a very difficult position.” When she hung up, I held my trembling daughter, my heart feeling like it was being sliced into ribbons. She looked up at me, her little face covered in tear tracks, and asked: “Mommy… if I really am Daddy’s baby, will he… will he like me again?” It was because of those words that I swallowed every last drop of my pride and came to find Julian again. To beg him to take another paternity test. But I never, ever expected to stand outside this door and hear something so utterly malicious. To him, publicly forging a paternity test to destroy my reputation was just a trivial matter. And the humiliation and abuse that Lily and I had suffered were nothing more than a staged play he directed to appease another woman. Even my adoptive parents—the people who always claimed to love me the most—were accomplices in this twisted game. I closed my eyes in profound agony. Inside the room, their laughter continued. His friend sounded slightly hesitant: “But Lily… I saw her running out of school earlier today crying while a bunch of kids called her a bastard. Can you really stand to see her suffer like that?” “If she finds out the truth, what if she refuses to acknowledge you as her father?” Julian’s voice dripped with the arrogance of a man who believed he controlled everything. “Kids have short memories. So what if she suffers a little right now?” “Besides, she’s my biological daughter. Blood is thicker than water. Do you really think she’s ever going to actually disown her own father?” I clenched my hands, my nails digging so deep into my flesh I should have bled, but I couldn’t feel the pain. In the past, I would have kicked the door open and screamed at him. But this time, I just turned around in eerie silence. This divorce was happening. I packed a few changes of clothes, took Lily by the hand, and went back to the Sterling family home. In the past, whenever I came to visit, my parents would come out to greet me with huge smiles before I even reached the front door. But this time, the disgust in my mother’s voice was completely undisguised. “What are you doing here?” “Mom… I have nowhere else to go. I just wanted to bring Lily here for one night.” My mother sneered. “The Sterling estate isn’t a homeless shelter. Don’t bring your bad luck into this house.” My chest tightened painfully. Lily peeked out from behind my legs, her voice timid and soft. “Grandpa! Grandma!” She waited expectantly, just like she always did, for them to pick her up and hug her. But their faces remained freezing cold. “Don’t call us that. We don’t have trashy relatives like you.” It felt like someone had taken a baseball bat to my head. I stood frozen in place. Just a few days ago, we were a family. How had we devolved to the point where we weren’t even considered relatives? In my memories, my dad used to lift me over his head and declare that Sarah was the crown jewel of the Sterling family. My mom used to burst with pride, bragging to anyone who would listen about how accomplished her daughter was. But ever since Chloe came back, all their love and affection seemed to vanish overnight. The projects I was managing were stripped from me, one by one. The business connections and resources I had painstakingly built over years were slowly transferred to Chloe’s name. At the time, I comforted myself by saying Chloe was their biological daughter, their true blood. It was only natural they wanted to compensate her. But now, I finally understood. They hated me. They hated me for taking up space, for effortlessly living the life that was supposed to belong to Chloe. Julian’s cruel words echoed in my ears. To help Chloe vent her anger… they had actually greenlit this entire slanderous charade, mercilessly grinding me and Lily into the dirt. Thinking of this, I forced down the churning emotions in my chest and cautiously tested the waters: “What if… what if there was something wrong with that paternity test? What if the results were fake?” My mother paused for a fraction of a second. “The evidence is irrefutable, and you’re still trying to lie your way out of it?” My father glared at me coldly. “Everyone saw it. You’ve dragged the Sterling family’s reputation through the mud.” “If a paternity test isn’t enough proof for you, what is? Do we have to catch you in bed with another man before you admit it?” A bone-chilling cold swept through my heart. They knew perfectly well it was all fake. Yet, in this very moment, they were still using the most venomous language to curse me, aggressively nailing me to the cross as a cheating whore. My father furrowed his brow, speaking like he was offering me a grand act of charity. “Fine. If you really want to stay here, you have to issue a public statement tomorrow.” “You will publicly confess to your infidelity, and admit that Lily is not Julian’s child.” “Then, you will step down from all core positions in the Sterling Corporation and unconditionally transfer all your shares to Chloe.” I could hardly believe my ears. My voice shook. “You want me to admit to what?!” “Lily is not a bastard!” My mother didn’t even blink. “A bastard born from a fake daughter. If that’s not trash, what is it?” A loud ringing exploded in my ears. Something deep inside me completely shattered. Just then, the sound of footsteps came from the stairs. Chloe walked down, her eyes slightly red, looking like a startled deer. “Dad, Mom, please don’t be like this…” She looked at me, her voice dripping with sickly sweetness. “Sister, I know you’re hurting. But Mom and Dad are getting older, and the Sterling family has a reputation to uphold.” “You can’t just drag everyone down with you because of your messy private life.” “Just admit you were wrong. Once this whole thing blows over, we’ll still be a family.” She lowered her gaze to look at Lily, her eyes filled with fake, manufactured pity. “As for whether or not the kid is actually Julian’s flesh and blood…” “Julian is such a good man, I’m sure he won’t hold it against you.” I opened my mouth to respond, but my parents had already lost their patience. They ordered the maids to throw my bags out the door. “We raised you for twenty years, and we wanted to let you leave with some dignity.” “But since you refuse to admit your mistakes, don’t you ever step foot in the Sterling house again.” By the time we left the Sterling estate, it was late into the night. Lily huddled in my arms, her eyes red and swollen, completely silent. I stroked her hair, assuming she had cried herself to exhaustion, and quickly started looking for a place to stay. Standing in the hotel lobby, I looked like an absolute wreck. “Hi, I need to book a suite, please.” I handed over my corporate credit card. The receptionist swiped it, then looked up at me. “I apologize, ma’am. This card has been frozen.” My heart dropped. I dug out my personal debit card. Only to find out that the life savings in my own account had been completely drained. My fingertips turned to ice. A wave of pure nausea washed over me. Julian had actually gone this far. He didn’t just want to force me to submit; he wanted to cut off every single path of escape I had. The receptionist’s tone flattened. “Miss, are you going to book a room or not?” My throat tightened. I quickly called my best friend for help. “Can you lend me some money? Or… can you just book a room for me? I need a place for Lily and me to stay tonight.” The line went dead silent for two agonizing seconds. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Sarah… it’s not that I don’t want to help you.” “It’s just… my family’s company is right in the middle of negotiating a massive contract with the Sterling Corporation. Your situation is a complete PR disaster right now. If I get involved, my family’s company might be implicated.” She didn’t need to finish the sentence. I understood. I hung up the phone. Staring at my pathetic reflection in the polished marble floor, I suddenly found it all incredibly funny. I had lived over twenty years of my life, and it turned out I had absolutely nothing. The only person in the world who would unconditionally stand by my side was the little girl currently in my arms. But in the very next second, she swayed unsteadily and went completely limp against my chest. I touched her forehead, and my heart nearly stopped. She was burning up. I desperately scrolled through my contacts until I finally landed on the one name I least wanted to bother. After finally managing to borrow some money, I picked Lily up and went back to the front desk. “Please, just get me a room. My daughter has a fever.” The receptionist suddenly rolled her eyes. “No wonder your cards are frozen. You’re that cheating, fake daughter from the Sterling family.” I froze. She looked me up and down, her tone dripping with venomous disdain. “It’s bad enough that you’re cheap trash yourself, but to drag some illegitimate bastard child out here to embarrass yourself?” “This is a respectable establishment. Please take your business elsewhere. Don’t dirty our lobby.” Guests nearby all turned to stare at me. I wanted to explain, but I knew it was useless. I was completely defenseless. I could only carry Lily and retreat from the hotel in utter humiliation. Out on the street in the dead of night, the wind cut like a knife. Lily was delirious from the fever. She buried her face in the crook of my neck and mumbled weakly: “Daddy… please don’t throw me away…” That single sentence ripped my heart into a million pieces. Gritting my teeth, I finally pulled out my phone and dialed Julian’s number. I called ten times. No answer. With trembling fingers, I typed out a message and sent it. [Lily has a high fever. Can you please come?] A long time later, he replied. [That kid isn’t even mine. I don’t have time for your pathetic little dramas.] I stared at that line of icy text. The street around me was bustling with people, but I couldn’t even manage to make a sound as I cried. Ultimately, I had to take Lily to the hospital alone. The emergency room hallway was chaotic. I had just finished registering at the triage desk when I heard a familiar voice. Julian was carefully supporting Chloe as they walked into the ER. A nurse handed a test result slip to Julian, her tone reprimanding. “Early pregnancy bleeding. Signs of a threatened miscarriage.” “The first few months are critical. As her husband, you need to be more careful. Stop stressing out the pregnant mother!” Julian took the slip and instinctively pulled Chloe closer to him. “Does it still hurt?” Chloe shook her head gently, her eyes rimmed with red. Julian frowned deeply. “Don’t go back to your place tonight. Stay at my house.” “I’ll take care of you.” Chloe bit her lip, gave a soft “okay,” and leaned her entire body against his chest. I stood frozen in place, feeling the blood in my veins turn to ice, inch by inch. Many years ago, when I was pregnant with Lily, he had held me exactly like that. My morning sickness had been so severe I couldn’t even keep water down. He had instantly canceled all his work commitments and spent ten full months exclusively by my side while I waited to give birth. He had told me: “Sarah, you and our daughter… you are my entire life!” But now, the man who was branding his “entire life” as a bastard was him. The man who personally pushed me and Lily into the abyss was him. I suddenly felt the urge to laugh. It turns out, when a person loves you, it can be incredibly real. But when they stop loving you, they can be terrifyingly cruel. Lily was still burning up in my arms. My phone vibrated. I looked down. It was a message from Julian. [Sarah, I’m tired of waiting. I’ll see you at the courthouse in three days.] [Okay.] Forcing down the agonizing pain in my chest, I typed the response with trembling fingers. As soon as Lily’s fever broke and she stabilized, I took her straight back to Julian’s house to get my ID and documents. Before opening the door, I turned on the voice recorder app on my phone and slipped it into my pocket. I thought I was mentally prepared. But when I opened the door and saw Chloe sitting on my sofa, wearing my pajamas… A wave of bitter acidity washed over my heart. She didn’t even try to pretend anymore. She tilted her head and smiled at me with innocent malice. “Sister! You guys are getting divorced soon anyway, so you aren’t the lady of the house anymore. You don’t mind if I borrow your clothes, do you?” I didn’t answer. I just looked around the room. In just two short days, the home I had lived in for eight years was completely saturated with Chloe’s presence. I swallowed my anger and led Lily toward our bedroom. But Chloe suddenly bent down and pulled a cake out of the fridge. “Here you go, Lily. You didn’t get to eat any on your birthday, so Auntie Chloe bought you a make-up cake. I was waiting for you to come back!” She smiled, looking completely harmless, but her words were laced with venom. Her birthday party was Lily’s deepest trauma, yet Chloe was intentionally pouring salt into our wounds over and over again. “Even though you aren’t Julian’s child, kids are innocent, right?” “Come on, have a bite.” Lily’s face went deathly pale. She looked up at me, her eyes brimming with tears, as if she had done something terribly wrong. I suppressed my rage. “We don’t want it.” Chloe paused. “Are you waiting for Julian to come cut it for you?” “I’ll go get him right now, okay?” “Lily, don’t worry. Auntie Chloe already talked to him. Even though your parents are getting divorced, out of respect for me, he’ll still keep paying for your expenses.” Lily’s face turned even whiter. Her tiny fingers gripped the hem of my shirt in a death grip. I stared at that disgusting cake, my stomach violently churning. In the next second, I raised my arm and swatted the cake right off the table. The icing exploded across the floor, splattering in a sticky mess across the rug. Chloe shrieked in shock, tears instantly flooding her eyes. “Sister, I was just trying to be nice to you! How could you do this?!” At that exact moment, Julian walked out of the hallway. A surge of violent fury crossed his face. In the next second, he slapped me so hard my face whipped to the side. “Sarah, is that enough?! You’ve caused this much chaos, and you’re still acting like an embarrassment?!” I started laughing, a low, humorless chuckle. “You forged a paternity test on Lily’s birthday, and you don’t think you’re an embarrassment?” “You took Chloe to the OB-GYN emergency room, and you don’t think you’re an embarrassment?” The muscle between Julian’s eyebrows twitched violently. “What kind of garbage are you spouting?! If you keep trying to throw dirty water on us, don’t blame me for what happens next.” He violently shoved me and my daughter into the bedroom. “Get in there and think about what you’ve done! First thing tomorrow morning, we’re going to the courthouse to get divorced. As the party at fault, don’t even dream about taking a single cent of my money. You are leaving with absolutely nothing!” The door clicked as it was locked from the outside. The strong facade I had been maintaining instantly shattered, and tears poured out like a broken dam. All I could do was hold my daughter tightly, apologizing to her over and over again. “Lily, Mommy is so useless. I couldn’t protect you. I let you take the blame and suffer so much.” But Lily reached up, like a tiny adult, and gently wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes. “Mommy, don’t cry.” “Mommy, if Daddy doesn’t want us, then we don’t want him either.” That night, looking into my daughter’s resolute eyes, I finally made a decision. The next day, inside the courthouse. The moment we finished the paperwork and I held the divorce certificate in my hand, Julian still had that look of arrogant certainty. “Sarah, if you drop to your knees and beg for my forgiveness right now, it’s not too late.” “No thanks. I’m in a rush to get married.” Hearing this, he looked slightly stunned, then laughed in disbelief. “Married? Who exactly are you getting married to?” Right at that moment, a sleek black Maybach pulled up smoothly to the curb outside. Right in front of Julian’s face, without a moment’s hesitation, I took the man’s hand and walked right back into the courthouse. Under Julian’s bewildered, chasing gaze, we handed our IDs to the clerk. “Hello. We’re here to get our marriage license.”

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