When I was young, my husband died in an accident. I became a high-rise window cleaner, risking my neck daily, dangling hundreds of feet in the air, sacrificing everything to put my son through school. After thirty years of relentless work, I finally made it to the day before my son’s wedding. I’d planned for this to be my last job, a final hurrah before retirement. But as I was cleaning the hotel’s exterior, I glanced inside and saw a wedding taking place. It was my son, Justin, and his fiancée, Chloe. And standing beside the happy couple, acting as parents? My long-dead husband, Ben Carter, and my best friend of many years, Stella Vance! I rubbed my eyes hard, then looked again, straining to confirm. The man standing next to my son was undeniably my deadbeat husband, Ben Carter! His face wasn’t as young as I remembered, but I’d know that face anywhere, even from the grave! Yet, here he was, my supposedly dead husband, resurrected and standing on stage at my son’s wedding. He and Stella Vance were holding hands, gazing at each other with sickening sweetness. A whirlwind of confusion and raw emotion churned inside me. My hands trembling, I fumbled with the safety harness, unclipped myself, and practically clawed my way into the grand hall. The MC announced it was time for the groom’s speech. My son, Justin Carter, started with a heartfelt declaration of love for his fiancée, Chloe Thompson. Then, taking her hand, he turned to Ben Carter and Stella Vance. He dropped to one knee, declaring with deep emotion: “I, Justin Carter, wouldn’t be where I am today without the meticulous upbringing and guidance of my parents. Especially my mom, Stella, you worked so incredibly hard raising me. You truly deserve all our gratitude, and Chloe and I promise to take good care of you from now on!” Stella’s eyes welled up with tears, visibly moved. Ben took the microphone. “Justin Carter is the pride of our family, the embodiment of our love. Now that our son is married, we hope you two will cherish each other and stay devoted, just like Stella and I have.” Through the crowded hall, I watched this absurd scene, dumbfounded, my mind reeling, threatening to shatter into a million pieces. Who raised Justin Carter? Who was whose true love? For a moment, I wondered if these past years had all been nothing more than a nightmare. The guests below were visibly touched, infected by the father and son’s emotional speeches. Everyone envied Stella, who had such a wonderful husband and son. No one noticed me as I stumbled, then started walking, towards the stage. Chloe was the first to see me. Her eyes wide with shock, she whispered, “What’s Maya doing here?” The other three heard her and turned their heads to face me. I walked straight towards them. Stella’s face went pale, and she instinctively took a step back. Ben reflexively shielded her. I stared at Ben. “Someone tell me, what the hell is going on?” Justin nervously glanced at the audience below, then stepped forward, grabbing my sleeve. “Mom, I’ll explain everything later, but please, just leave for now…” He started to pull me off the stage. I violently shook him off, my voice sharp with fury. “Mom? Which one of you is my mom?” The audience gasped, their faces a mixture of surprise and confusion. Justin clapped a hand over my mouth, motioned for security to drag me off stage, then turned to the audience and apologized. “Folks, I apologize, but it seems some crazy woman is spouting nonsense!” With that, he had them escort me out. Once backstage, I furiously confronted Justin and Ben, demanding an explanation. Justin just ignored me. “Enough! I’m telling you today, in my heart, Stella Vance is the only mother I acknowledge!” “Just look at yourself, you’re a disgrace! Do you really think you belong with us?” “No wonder Ben preferred to fake his death rather than stay married to you!” The words hit me like a physical blow, stealing my breath. “That’s right, Stella is the only woman I’ve ever truly loved. We’ve been together for ages. My marriage to you? It was just because I pitied Stella, didn’t want her to suffer through childbirth.” Ben put an arm around Stella and stepped forward. “Since you know the truth now, let’s be frank. From now on, it’s Stella, Justin, and me. You have no part in our lives anymore.” “Ben…” Stella leaned against Ben, feigning fragility, but a smug, victorious smirk twisted her lips.
My eyes immediately fell on the familiar gold bracelet on Stella’s wrist. It was a gift I’d bought, scraping together every penny from my hard labor and even selling my own jewelry. Justin and I had gone from store to store, picking it out together. He had even promised to get me an even bigger and better one someday. “Why do you have that bracelet?” Justin said, righteous indignation in his voice, “It’s a gift I bought for Stella. Chloe approved of it.” My rage finally erupted. I lunged forward like a madwoman, trying to rip the bracelet off her wrist. “That bracelet is mine! Give it back!” Stella shrieked. Ben and Justin scrambled to surround her. In the ensuing struggle, someone shoved me, sending me tumbling out the window. I had dangled countless times from high altitudes, faced numerous emergencies, but my safety harness had always saved me. This time, there was no safety harness. The chilling reality of plummeting to my death finally hit me. I heard a sickening thud as the back of my head struck the ground. My consciousness faded… In the haze, scenes from the past thirty years flashed before my eyes. Ben had faked his death and had been living with Stella all along. And Ben’s parents, Jack and Sophie? They knew everything. I was the only one kept in the dark! When I opened my eyes again, I found myself thirty years in the past. I was at Ben’s funeral. His parents sat on the floor, wailing. “Oh, why are we so unlucky? Justin is so young; how will he live without his father?” I wiped away my tears and spoke calmly. “Don’t worry. I’ll raise Justin. You two can go back to your old house in the countryside.” The wailing stopped abruptly. Both of them stared at me, stunned. A cold, bitter laugh escaped my lips internally. Let’s see how they keep up their act now. If it weren’t for the memories I’d seen in my dying moments, I never would have known they were in on Ben’s fake death from the very beginning, deceiving me for all those years. In my previous life, I pitied the elderly couple, imagining them helpless and alone. I’d been talked into selling our house, giving them all the money for their retirement. I worked tirelessly, drifting from place to place, with no fixed home. Meanwhile, they turned around and gave that money to Ben, allowing him and Stella to buy another house. This time, they wouldn’t get a single dime from me! Jack, Ben’s father, looked displeased. “You just lost your job. You can barely support yourself. How will you raise a child?” I seized the opportunity to respond. “You’re right, it’s tough right now. Perhaps Justin should stay with you in the countryside for a while. Once I find a stable job, I’ll bring him back. Does that work?” Sophie, Ben’s mother, looked at me with feigned sympathy. “Even if you get a job, you can’t care for a child alone. Why don’t you sell the house first? Your livelihood is more important…” If I didn’t know the truth, I might actually believe she was concerned for me. I feigned surprise, a hurt expression on my face. “This house is the only thing Ben left behind, a keepsake. Besides, it’s meant for Justin someday. How could I sell it? Justin, don’t you agree?” Justin had always been self-serving, even as a child. He was only eight years old now, too young to understand all the hidden agendas. What he was thinking was written all over his face. My words provoked him, and just as I expected, he became agitated. “This is what Dad left for me! You can’t sell it!” He threw a tantrum on the floor, crying loudly. Jack and Sophie, having no choice, had to humor their precious grandson and dropped the subject of selling the house. After the funeral, they took Justin back to the countryside. I quickly took Ben’s death certificate, transferred the house deed into my name, and then went to the government to officially revoke his identity and household registration. In my previous life, consumed by grief for Ben, I’d delayed revoking his documents and eventually forgot about it. The result? I never discovered he was alive, allowing him to live a lavish life for years. He liked to play dead, didn’t he? Well, I’d make him truly dead to society!
A few days later, Stella Vance came to see me. In my previous life, she’d pretended to be my kindhearted best friend, offering comfort to the grieving widow. All the while, she was in cahoots with my husband, conspiring to deceive me. I bet they’d been making a fool out of me the entire time. Just like now, Stella put on a show of sympathy. “It’s been so long, Maya. I can’t believe this happened. It’s such a tragedy.” I replied blandly, “It’s in the past. I’m not one to dwell in sorrow.” Stella feigned delight, grasping my hand. “That’s good. I was worried you wouldn’t be able to move on.” My eyes immediately recognized the familiar ring on her finger. I had seen an identical ring in Ben’s bag shortly before he “died.” At the time, he’d sworn it was a surprise for our wedding anniversary. In my previous life, after his death, the ring had vanished. Later, when I saw a similar ring on Stella’s hand, I’d been overcome with emotion and mourned all over again. Now, everything was clear. I pretended to notice it by accident. “Your ring is beautiful, but it looks… familiar.” Hearing this, Stella’s expression became flustered. “It-it’s a gift from my boyfriend.” “Your boyfriend is very sweet. I hope I can find a good boyfriend who treats me well too.” Stella looked stunned. “What boyfriend?” I smiled. “One has to move forward, you know. I can’t stay single forever, can I?” As expected, Stella became frantic. “You’re thinking of remarrying? What about Justin? How could you do that to Ben’s memory?” Watching her anxious face, I almost burst out laughing. Of course, she’d be anxious. If I remarried, who would be their cash cow, feeding this family of vampires? Seeing that I wasn’t joking, Stella’s face changed drastically, and she hurried away. Soon after, Sophie’s call came through, and she immediately launched into a furious tirade. “Maya, Ben hasn’t even been gone that long, and you’re already thinking of abandoning your husband and child? Do you even have the decency to face your son?” Then I heard Justin’s tearful voice from the other end. “Mommy, I want Mommy! I don’t want Mommy to marry someone else!” I asked Sophie to put Justin on the phone. Sophie, thinking I’d softened, quickly handed the phone to him. I feigned remorse. “Sweetie, Mommy is useless. I can’t even support myself, so I have to marry someone else. What can I do? Your daddy is dead, after all. This won’t be your home anymore, but I’ll still visit you sometimes…” Justin yelled into the phone, “Mommy, don’t marry anyone else! Daddy isn’t dead! He’s alive and well!” Before he could finish, Sophie snatched the phone back. “The child’s babbling nonsense, don’t take him seriously!” She hung up immediately. I didn’t bother with it. I packed my things and went to a party. Thanks to this house, many people seemed interested in me, the “widow.” A few days later, while I was having dinner with a guy a relative had set me up with, a man suddenly stormed in, enraged. “Maya, that’s enough! Stop making a scene and come home with me!” I cast a sidelong glance at Ben Carter, but said nothing. It was Leo Miller, the man across from me, who stood up. “Excuse me, who are you? Is there a problem?” Ben’s rage turned into a sneer. “I’m her husband! She’s my wife! Our marital affairs are none of your business!” Leo was amused. He turned to me. “Didn’t you tell me you were a widow? What, did your ex-husband just rise from the dead?” I replied calmly, “I don’t know him. My husband died years ago, and his identity has been officially revoked.”
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