Category: English

I threw myself in front of a speeding truck to save him. For three years, I was a ghost in my own skin—a “vegetable” in a hospital bed. When I finally woke up, he was already at the altar with someone else. Broken and discarded, I ended my life by jumping from a rooftop. But when I opened my eyes again, I was back. I was standing on that street corner, one second before the truck hit. This time, I didn’t move an inch to save him. Chapter 1 I spent over a year in grueling physical therapy. Alone. Finally, I could eat by myself, dress myself, and walk without a brace. To most people, these are the mundane basics of life. To me, they were as difficult as reaching for the stars. Even my doctors called it a medical miracle. After all, that accident had left me in a deep coma for three long years. Everyone thought I’d never wake up. They thought if I did, I’d be a hollow shell—paralyzed or brain-damaged. But I didn’t just wake up. Through a year of agonizing rehab, I got stronger. Now, if I don’t stand for too long, I look just like anyone else. I endured a level of pain most people can’t imagine. I suffered through countless mental breakdowns. And finally, the day arrived. I couldn’t wait any longer. I packed my bags and headed home, planning to surprise Caleb. He didn’t even know I was awake. But when I dragged my suitcase into our—his—apartment, my heart stopped. The place was covered in white lace and ivory ribbons. “Save the Date” cards were scattered on the counter. The house had been completely renovated. The floor-to-ceiling cat tree I had designed myself was gone. In its place stood a sleek, pink designer cabinet. My old friends were there, blowing up gold balloons. My former classmates were hanging floral garlands. My Aunt Sarah was meticulously arranging personalized party favors on a velvet-covered bed, her face lit with a celebratory glow. And my boyfriend? He was standing there in a perfectly tailored charcoal suit, looking like a high-end department store mannequin. On the wall hung a massive, new wedding portrait. The girl in the photo was smiling. She looked incredibly sweet. Just then, a server carrying hot tea accidentally bumped into my arm. The scalding water splashed onto me, instantly blooming into a painful red welt. The server gasped. In an instant, every head in the room turned toward me. The air sucked out of the room. I saw shock, a flicker of joy, but mostly… intense, suffocating awkwardness. My aunt dropped the favor she was holding. It rolled across the hardwood floor in the dead silence. Caleb’s pupils shrunk. His face went ghostly pale. “Elara?” he whispered, his voice trembling as if he were seeing a ghost. I forced a smile that felt more like a jagged wound. I didn’t know how to answer. My body acted on instinct. I took two steps back, turned, and bolted out the door. It was autumn in the city. The wind was biting, and dead leaves were piled along the sidewalk. As I ran, they crunched under my feet—a brittle, harsh sound. Because of the lingering effects of the coma, I wasn’t fast. That short distance cost me every ounce of my strength. Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around my waist from behind, pulling me into a hard chest. Caleb held me, his entire body shaking. “You’re back,” he choked out. “Elara, God… I missed you so much.” My tears fell onto his expensive suit. I was back. But it felt like everything was gone. Chapter 2 Caleb went to his fiancée’s house to break off the engagement. The wedding was scheduled to happen in eighteen hours. My Aunt Sarah sat on the edge of my bed, stroking my hair, her eyes red from crying. “Don’t be too hard on Caleb, honey. These four years… he suffered so much.” “If it wasn’t for that girl, he might not have made it through.” I felt a lump in my throat. My eyes drifted to the corsage pinned to her dress. A vibrant red rose with a ribbon that read: Matron of Honor. She quickly covered it with her hand, a look of deep shame crossing her face. “Elara, I didn’t mean to betray you. I just…” “I just never thought you’d wake up.” Her voice trailed off until it was barely a whisper. I swallowed the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. Just as the tears threatened to spill over, I forced out a sentence. “I just got back. I’m jet-lagged. I need to sleep.” I pulled my hand away from hers and crawled under the covers. I pulled the duvet over my head and curled into a ball, shaking. This pain… it was a hundred times worse than the physical therapy. I found myself praying it was a nightmare. Just like the dreams I had in the early days of rehab—dreams where I was still a “vegetable,” unable to hold a spoon, drooling, unable to even use the bathroom… Hours passed before the bed dipped. I knew Caleb was back. The silence was deafening. Finally, I sat up to face him. Two buttons were missing from his shirt. His tie was shredded. His face was bruised and bloodied at the corner of his mouth. “Did they hit you?” I asked. “It’s fine. I deserved it.” I understood. The invitations were out. The venue was paid for. To bail the night before the wedding—the bride’s family wasn’t going to let him walk away unscathed. If I hadn’t come back, tomorrow they would have stood before God, exchanged rings, and started a life. The thought made me dig my nails into my palms. I asked the question that had been burning a hole in my heart. “Caleb, did you think I was never coming back, too?” He bit his lip, his eyes downcast. After a long pause, he whispered, “Elara, I’m here now. I’m never leaving you again.” He didn’t answer the question. And that promise—so full of pity—hurt more than the truth. Suddenly, Caleb’s phone buzzed. The lock screen popped up: a photo of him and that girl. The caller ID read—My Princess. He had even set the font to a cute, bubbly script. My Princess… What a sweet name. Once upon a time, that’s what he called me. Noticing my gaze, Caleb quickly hit ‘Ignore.’ But the person on the other end didn’t give up. The phone buzzed again and again. Caleb finally shut the phone off entirely. He looked at me, full of guilt. “I’m sorry. She… she just needs time to process.” He paused, then added, “But don’t worry. I’ll handle it.” “How long were you together?” I asked. The question caught him off guard. He gripped his phone tightly. “A year,” he rasped. I closed my eyes. A year. While I was hiding the news of my recovery because I was afraid my “broken” self would scare him… While I was falling and bleeding as I re-learned how to walk… while I was biting my tongue raw trying to speak… while I was crying in a bathroom because I couldn’t undo my own buttons… While I was pushing through the darkness, thinking only of the day I could be whole for him… He was falling in love with someone else. Chapter 3 Caleb’s promise to stay forever lasted exactly one day. He left in a hurry because Chloe—the girl—had fallen ill. Before he left, he swore he was just going to check on her, make sure she was okay, and then end it for good. One week passed. He didn’t come back. Cold and hollow, I began packing up every gift and trinket he had ever given me. I was going to send it all back. I wasn’t pathetic. I wasn’t going to beg for a man’s love. And I wasn’t stupid. If he had really cared, he would have found out I was awake. Nathan, my foster brother, tried to hide the news at my request, but a year is a long time. If Caleb had looked for me, he would have known. I had spent years making excuses for him. He’s busy. Flights are expensive. The distance is too far. He has his parents to care for… I was tired of making excuses. I was done with him. As I was carrying a box out to the mail, his “fiancée” showed up at my door. Chloe was wearing a loose sundress and holding a folder from a women’s health clinic. She saw me staring at the folder. She gently stroked her stomach and smiled. “Caleb and I were hours away from being husband and wife, Elara. You didn’t think we were just holding hands this whole year, did you?” Her smug look triggered a memory. I recognized her now. She was the “little sister” from our college days who always hung around him—Chloe. No wonder my aunt was the Matron of Honor. She and Chloe’s father had been high school sweethearts. “Are you trying to guilt him into staying with you?” Chloe asked, tilting her head with a look of fake innocence. She reached into my box and pulled out a soda tab. It was the “promise ring” Caleb gave me in college. He told me one day he’d replace it with a real diamond. Ironically, the real diamond was now on her finger. “Don’t be delusional,” she whispered. “He knows he’s going to be a father. He’s thrilled.” She tossed the soda tab onto the ground like trash and leaned into my ear. “Let me tell you a secret. Caleb and I have had a thing for a long time. Four years ago, the day of your accident? He was actually on his way to break up with you.” The blood in my veins turned to ice. I remembered his stuttering that day. I remembered his silence over the last four years. The “heroism” I thought I had displayed… it was all a joke. As I turned to walk away, Chloe intentionally bumped into me. The box in my arms fell, spilling my memories across the pavement. She looked at me with pure triumph. She had won. But as she stepped back, she slipped on a crystal bracelet that had fallen from the box. She lost her balance and tumbled down the porch steps. Blood began to pool under her dress. She screamed, calling me a murderer. Caleb appeared out of nowhere, rushing to her side. He shoved me back so hard I nearly fell. “Elara! How could you be so cruel?” My heart was dead, but I wasn’t a doormat. I stepped forward and slapped Caleb across the face. “I’m not the one who’s disgusting here,” I spat. Chloe’s family called the police. They wanted me in jail. My aunt looked at me as if I were a stranger, desperate to distance herself from me. My old friends whispered that I was a psycho. But then, the evidence came out. Nathan had installed a Ring camera at my front door. It caught everything—Chloe’s smug face, her confession, and her own clumsy fall. She had tripped on her own greed. The day Caleb came to apologize, I was standing on the edge of the apartment building’s roof. The stars I used to love were blocked out by the city smog. “Elara, I was wrong! I should have trusted you. Please, come down. I’m begging you!” My aunt was there, too. “Elara, I’m so sorry! Don’t do anything stupid!” It’s funny. When you decide to leave the world, the world suddenly decides to love you. I stood on the ledge, a leaf ready to drop. Caleb fell to his knees, sobbing, saying he loved me. I was just so tired. Between the rehab and the heartbreak, my mental health had shattered. I needed pills just to close my eyes. I thought Caleb would be my salvation, but he was the one who pushed me into the abyss. I had lost four years of my youth. I had lost my health. I had lost the ability to love. I wasn’t ever going to be okay again. I opened my arms, letting the cold wind whip through my hair. As I tipped backward into the air, I looked at Caleb and whispered: “I curse you to never find a single soul who truly loves you.” Chapter 4 I didn’t expect to wake up. But when I opened my eyes, I was back. Back to the day of the accident, four years ago. A younger Caleb stood before me, looking at his shoes. “Elara, look… I actually…” “You want to break up, right?” The familiar scene played out, and I couldn’t help but finish his sentence for him. He snapped his head up, looking at me in total shock. “You’re seeing Chloe. You’ve been cheating on me for at least three months.” I took a deep breath, feeling a strange sense of relief. “I agree. We’re done.” I said it so casually, as if I were talking about the weather. Caleb panicked. “I wasn’t cheating! I don’t know who told you that, but I’d never betray you! I just…” His voice dropped. “I just don’t think we’re right for each other.” Hilarious. He chased me for a year. We were together for four. And only now did he decide we weren’t “right.” I scoffed. In the distance, the clock tower struck eight. Snow began to fall. The traffic light at the intersection flickered and went out. Everything was exactly like the first time. “Caleb, I was going to give you a chance. If you had just been man enough to admit you liked someone else, I would have respected that.” “But you don’t even have the courage to admit your own mistakes.” I took a step back, looking at him with pity. At twenty, Caleb was handsome and full of life. But inside, he was hollow. It took me two lifetimes to see it. Just then, the screech of tires echoed through the street. Two blinding headlights cut through the snow. A massive truck was careening toward the curb—straight toward me. In my first life, I had lunged forward to push Caleb out of the way. This time, I saw Caleb’s first instinct. He turned and scrambled back, desperate to save himself. But the truck hit a stone pillar, swerved violently, and fishtailed—straight toward Caleb. CRASH. The world went silent. The pristine white snow was suddenly stained a deep, shocking crimson. A single tear escaped my eye. If Caleb had run toward me—like I had run toward him in my first life—the truck would have hit the brick wall behind us. We both would have been fine. But he didn’t. The boy I had loved since I was sixteen didn’t even look back at me. As they loaded Caleb into the ambulance, I picked up his phone from the snow. A notification popped up. Exactly one minute ago, Chloe had posted a photo of them kissing. The caption: Finally, you’re all mine. The comments were full of “congrats” from Caleb’s friends—the same ones who called me “sister-in-law” yesterday. Only one comment stood out. It was from Nathan, my foster brother: In this day and age, do people really have no shame? The comment was deleted seconds later. My parents died when I was young. My aunt took most of the insurance money. Nathan was the one who raised me. He dropped out of college and worked two jobs just to pay for my tuition. In my first life, he was the one who stayed by my hospital bed for four years. I dialed Nathan’s number. The background was noisy—he was likely at the warehouse where he worked. Nathan wasn’t a tech mogul yet. He was just a guy trying to survive. “Nate,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “I miss you.” Chapter 5 Nathan borrowed a beat-up pickup truck and drove halfway across the state through a blizzard to get to me. The first thing he said was: “Don’t cry, Elara. If you still want Caleb, I’ll find a way to make him leave that girl.” His eyes were fierce. He looked ready to throw hands with the world for me. My heart warmed. In my first life, he was the first person I saw when I woke up from the coma. He taught me to eat, to speak, to walk. He never cared if I made a mess. He never judged me. The hospital staff used to whisper that I was a burden, that I’d never get married. Nathan had shouted at them, saying if I never married, he’d take care of me forever. He was my true salvation. Why had I been so obsessed with Caleb? At least in this life, I was healthy. “I don’t want him anymore,” I said, climbing into the truck. “Let’s go to his place. I’m moving out.” I needed a clean break. We went to the apartment Caleb and I shared. An entire wall was filled with my dance trophies. I remembered how excited I was when we moved in. I had picked out the plants, the rugs, the furniture. I thought this was my “forever” home. Slowly, I packed it all into boxes, erasing every trace of myself. I left the keys with the super. When I finished, I felt a weight lift off my shoulders. Cutting my losses early was a lesson that cost me a lifetime to learn. Just then, I got a text from one of Caleb’s friends. Elara, Caleb was in a wreck. They had to amputate his right leg below the knee. He’s at Mercy Hospital… I didn’t even finish reading. I blocked the number. Chapter 6 A month passed. I was back at school, excelling in my classes and winning a major scholarship. The campus was buzzing with two stories. First, that Caleb had cheated on me with Chloe. Second, that Caleb was now an amputee. “There’s a third story,” my roommate Maya whispered as we sat in the dining hall. Maya knew everything. “Chloe went to see him in the hospital. When she found out about the leg, she almost fainted. As soon as he woke up, she dumped him. She told him she was too young to spend her life with a ‘cripple.’” “Talk about karma. They went public and broke up on the same day.” Maya looked at me. “Seriously, Elara, you dodged a bullet. That guy would have dragged you down with him.” I stared at my shoes. Losing a limb, being dumped by the “love of his life,” seeing his future crumble… Now he knew how it felt. A few weeks later, Caleb was discharged. His friends tried to throw a “Welcome Home” party to cheer him up. They actually had the nerve to tag me in the group chat. Elara, Caleb’s been in the hospital for a month and you haven’t visited once. You have to show up for the homecoming! They even sent a location pin. Did they forget how they cheered when Chloe posted that picture? I was about to reply when Maya beat me to it. You guys are tagging the wrong person. Elara is the ex-girlfriend he cheated on. She doesn’t owe him a damn thing. The chat went silent for a minute. Then someone replied: He’s disabled now. Can’t she let the past go? Are you kidding? Maya recorded a voice memo. Caleb only lost a leg. Elara lost her heart! I hugged her. She was the best “internet bodyguard” I could ask for.

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1 On my way home from shopping, a creepy guy blocked my path. As he coldly waited for me to add him on social media, I ran through several potential death scenarios in my head if I refused. So, I forced a smile, clicked “accept,” and turned to walk away. I planned to delete him the moment I got home, but then I stumbled upon a trending post. “Hooked up with a pretty girl on the street today; already got her contact.” “I’m a fast starter, wondering how to get her warmed up quickly?” The comments were a mixed bag, making me frown. Ten seconds prior, the poster had liked a comment. “What’s the big deal? Check her profile, then search her photos across the entire internet!” “Girls love to show off their photos on all platforms. Then you can follow the breadcrumbs, find her other accounts, pinpoint her personal information, and just show up at her door to display your manhood!” Not long after reading that, my phone pinged. “Hey there, beautiful, why’s your profile locked? Unlock it so I can take a look!” … The sender’s profile picture was a blurry, in-your-face selfie, his eyes staring straight ahead, as if trying to pierce through the screen. His name: Mark Jensen. “You’re so gorgeous, I couldn’t get enough of you today. Unlock your profile so I can worship you some more!” My mind exploded! It was this afternoon! I was stopped outside the mall by a man. He wore an ill-fitting T-shirt, his hair greasy and plastered to his scalp, his eyes shifty yet burning with a kind of obsessive fervor. He insisted on getting my contact info. I instinctively refused, but he immediately stepped closer, blocking my way, his voice suddenly rising: “What’s the big deal about giving your number? You look down on me?” In that instant, a news headline flashed wildly in my mind: “Woman Stabbed to Death After Refusing Advances.” A profound sense of alarm shot through me from my feet upwards. I didn’t dare provoke him, so I forced a smile and took out my phone to scan his code. He watched me intently as I clicked “add,” then grinned, revealing a mouth full of crooked yellow teeth, and left, satisfied. At the time, I just felt a wave of bad luck, planning to delete him once I got home. But now, this name, this message, and that chilling post… That poster was him! What did he want to do to me? Follow the breadcrumbs? Pinpoint information? Show up at my door to display his… manhood? My stomach churned instantly. I only felt a slight relief after confirming my profile was private. Suppressing my disgust, my fingers trembled as I typed on the screen. I couldn’t provoke him, but I had to cut ties quickly. “Sorry, my profile isn’t really open.” “And my boyfriend wouldn’t appreciate me adding random strangers. Apologies, but let’s just unmatch each other.” Send. Without waiting for his reply, I immediately clicked his profile picture, then the top right corner: Delete Contact. “Confirm”! Not a second of hesitation! Watching the system notification “You have deleted this contact” on my screen, I exhaled slowly. It was over. But after all that last night, for some inexplicable reason, I reopened that post. The page refreshed. A stark red, angry update abruptly stung my eyes! Poster: “Damn it! That bitch deleted me! Just now, she tried to use some stupid ‘boyfriend’ excuse!” Below was his screenshot. My profile picture, and the two sentences I had just sent, were clear as day, word for word! The comment section instantly erupted. “Hahaha, OP, don’t be so overconfident. She’s politely rejecting you, can’t you tell?” “A toad trying to eat swan meat, she deleted you, serves you right!” “PSA: A girl agreeing to add you doesn’t mean she’s agreed to your marriage proposal. She just didn’t want to embarrass you in person.” Amidst the mockery, Mark Jensen’s replies were particularly twisted, each word reeking of resentment and distortion. “Bullshit! If she wasn’t interested, why would she agree to add me? She clearly has a boyfriend and still added me, isn’t that hinting I can steal her away?!” “She’s testing me! Playing hard to get!” Reading his deranged words, I felt a surge of anger and dread crawl up my spine. This person… he’s a total psychopath, isn’t he? Impossible to reason with. Just as I was about to close the page, a new reply popped up. It was from the ID that had encouraged the poster to “search the internet, stake out her home.” His reply was just a short sentence, but it sent a chill down my spine. “Boyfriend? Buddy, don’t let her fool you.” “I checked for you. All her social media profiles show she’s single.” “That’s a green light, understand? She’s waiting for you to make a move.” The ID immediately posted another reply, filled with malicious instigation. “I’ve seen plenty of women like her; they’re just faking it. They look down on honest guys like you, always putting on airs. Give her a lesson, and she’ll straighten up.” Mark Jensen was predictably ignited. “But she deleted me! I can’t reach her now, damn it!” “Deleted?” The ID scoffed, “Heh, just a little trick. Don’t worry, buddy, I’ve got the skills to dig up her phone number, address, company, all her info for you.” In the thread, Mark Jensen was already ecstatic. “Good buddy! DM me! Quick!” Psycho! A complete and utter psycho! I couldn’t help but curse under my breath, but the image of Mark Jensen’s obsessive, fervent face from this afternoon, and his relentless determination, vividly reappeared before my eyes. What if… he really does show up at my door! 2 Acting on caution, I swiftly took screenshots of all the chat logs and pages. I didn’t even have time to change my jacket. I grabbed my keys and rushed out of the house, heading straight for the nearest police station! “Officer, I want to report something! Someone is doxing me online and threatening my personal safety!” The officer who handled my report was very patient, but after reviewing all my screenshots, he merely frowned. “Madam, this… for now, it’s just online talk. They haven’t caused you any actual harm, so it’s difficult for us to open a case.” “But they want to dig up my information! They want to show up at my door!” I was getting anxious. “How about this,” the officer thought for a moment. “We can contact this Mark Jensen, ask him to come in, and give him a verbal warning, explaining the situation clearly.” Call him in? My whole body stiffened. I couldn’t imagine what a fanatic like Mark Jensen would do after being warned by the police. That would only completely enrage him! “…Then, let’s not bother for now.” I practically gritted my teeth, squeezing out the words. Walking out of the police station, a huge sense of powerlessness swallowed me. Back home, I double-locked all the doors, still feeling uneasy. For some inexplicable reason, I refreshed that post again. The page displayed—”Sorry, this post has been deleted.” Deleted? My heart sank. This was even more terrifying than if it hadn’t been deleted! It meant they had gone underground and started executing their plan! Just then— Thump! Thump! Thump! A knock on the door! The sudden sound scared me out of my wits. My phone clattered to the floor! Who was it?! I even stopped breathing. I tiptoed to the door, my heart pounding as if it would burst from my throat. I didn’t dare make a sound, trembling as I pressed my eye to the peephole. But it was blurry outside. I couldn’t see anything! The peephole seemed to be smeared with something sticky! It hadn’t been like that when I came home! I quickly backed away two steps, rushed to the living room, and opened the home security camera app on my phone. The live feed of the doorway showed the hallway was empty. I immediately brought up the recorded playback. The time: less than five minutes after I got home. A man in a black hoodie, wearing a mask and a cap, appeared on the screen. He stealthily pressed himself against my door, listening for a while, then stepped back, facing my front door, and unzipped his pants. His lower half began to make extremely lewd thrusting motions! A few seconds later, he stopped, and meticulously… used his finger to smear a warm, thick white liquid on my peephole! I clamped my hand over my mouth, barely stopping myself from throwing up. It was him. It was Mark Jensen! Fear, like countless cold hands, instantly gripped my heart. I rushed back to the door, slammed the security chain on, and double-locked every lock I could. After doing all that, my hands still shaking, I dialed 911, and then the building management. “Someone… someone at my door… he…” My voice trembled uncontrollably; I could barely speak a complete sentence. Perhaps my panic was too real; the police and management arrived almost simultaneously. I showed them the security video. The police officer’s face instantly became grave. But the property manager, in her business skirt suit, showed a hint of impatience. “Madam, it’s possible an outsider slipped in. We’ll enhance security. Don’t make too much of it…” “Make too much of it?” I almost exploded. “This is a pervert! This is harassment! He’s threatening my personal safety!” The female manager pursed her lips, muttering in a volume just loud enough for me to hear: “Who knows if you brought this on yourself with some romantic entanglement.” “What did you say?!” “Officer!” The lead police officer sternly reprimanded her. “Watch your words! This is a victim!” The female manager then shut up. The police officer reassured me, stating they would immediately open an investigation, and advised me to be extra careful recently, to contact them anytime if anything happened. After they left, I felt all my strength drained, collapsing onto the sofa. Not long after, the doorbell rang. It was the property management; they said they sent a cleaner to tidy outside my door. I cautiously peered through the peephole. Standing outside was an “auntie” wearing a mask and a cleaning cap. Her figure was quite tall, her broad shoulders almost filling the entire cleaning uniform. But my highly strung nerves were throbbing with a headache, and I didn’t have the energy to think deeper. I just wanted this to be over quickly. I said “thank you” through the door, then retreated to the living room, preparing to lie down in my bedroom. But just then— Beep! Beep! Beep! Alarm! Multiple incorrect password attempts! The electronic lock’s piercing alarm suddenly blared! I shot up from the bed, instinctively pulled open my bedroom door, and peeked out. The front door was actually ajar! The “cleaner” from earlier was standing at the doorway. He slowly, slowly straightened his hunched body. He took off his cap and mask, revealing Mark Jensen’s obsessive and fervent face! He saw me, and instead of running, he grinned, showing his yellow teeth. “Heh heh, I’ve come to… make friends with you.”

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I was the Maddox family’s living good luck charm. If I so much as sneezed, the Maddox Corporation’s giant signboard would fall that very day. If a bracelet dug into my skin while I slept, the Maddox estate’s backyard would mysteriously catch fire that night. So, until I turned eighteen and discovered I was the unknowingly swapped fake heiress, I was cherished by the entire Maddox family, held as if I might melt in their hands, or disappear from their pockets. The Maddox family’s true bloodline was a pair of fraternal twins. On the first day the real heiress and heir returned home, the entire household was in a frenzy. Meanwhile, I was comfortably curled up in a garden swing chair, a premium coffee in my left hand, an ice cream cone in my right, and waved amiably towards their entrance. Helen Maddox caught sight of me, her face instantly darkening. Jane Maddox, seeing this, rushed over and knocked the ice cream from my hand. “A usurper and a fake, you dare to eat our family’s food?” “Now, we are the masters! You should be kneeling to welcome us, then licking that filth off the floor!” I blinked, a little confused. “But Mom and Dad said I never have to do things like that.” Helen viciously pinched my arm. “If you don’t know how, learn! From now on, we make the rules in this house!” As they shoved me towards the cleaning rags, my mother, miles away at the company, felt a sudden pang in her chest, a flicker of inexplicable unease, and turned to my father. “Honey, do you feel… like our company’s stock just shifted?” … “A fake is a fake. Mom and Dad kept you only for the Maddox family’s reputation.” “You stole eighteen years of our lives; making you do some chores is an honor.” Helen sneered in my ear as they shoved me towards the cleaning rags. My steps faltered, but I said nothing. Mom and Dad had specifically warned me before going to the company not to cause any big commotion if I got upset. I was always obedient. Mrs. Higgins, the housekeeper, looked on with a pained expression. “Miss Anna, Miss Helen, Master Jane, Miss Anna is…” “Is what? Do you want to keep your job here?” Jane’s face turned cold. Mrs. Higgins sighed, looking at me. I quietly shook my head at her. Jane’s face only softened when he watched me bend down and meticulously wipe away the ice cream he’d knocked to the floor. He gathered all the servants and announced, “Listen up, now that Helen and I are home, we’re in charge. If anyone dares to speak up for this imposter, Anna, pack your bags and leave immediately!” So, for the entire day, Jane and Helen watched as I poured tea and water, knelt to polish their shoes, and even made me jump into the pool to retrieve a bracelet Helen had deliberately thrown in. “Haven’t you lived in the Maddox house for eighteen years? Can’t you even do this little thing?” I said nothing, merely trembling as I wrapped myself in the towel Mrs. Higgins handed me. Mom and Dad told me that as long as I stayed happy, the “shadow” wouldn’t emerge. By evening, when Mom and Dad returned home, I was still damp, kneeling on the floor, scrubbing. “What’s going on here?” Mom’s voice cut through the silence, and the living room immediately hushed. Dad’s gaze quickly landed on me, his brows slightly furrowed. “Anna, what happened to you?” Before I could speak, Helen rushed forward, hugging Mom and whimpering, “Mommy, does Sister not want us back? Why has she been sulking all day? She even threw a gift I kindly gave her into the pool.” Jane chimed in, “I just asked her to retrieve Helen’s gift, and she acted all high and mighty.” I expected Mom to at least question me, but instead, she pushed Helen’s hands away and quickly walked towards me. “Anna, my sweet girl, you…” Her words trailed off as she spotted the blood seeping from my sleeve. Her face instantly changed. I instinctively tried to hide my hand, but she grasped it firmly, then summoned a servant to bring ointment and bandages, meticulously cleaning my wound. “How did you hurt your hand? Did they bully you?” Helen froze, instinctively retorting, “Mom, it was clearly her!” “Silence!” Dad’s voice was cold. “Before we brought you back, did I not tell you?” “Anna is our lucky star. As long as she’s happy, the Maddox family thrives.” “Anyone who makes Anna unhappy is jeopardizing the Maddox family’s fortune.” Helen’s face went completely white. Jane clenched his fists, emotions churning in his eyes, but he forcibly suppressed them, and was the first to speak to me. “Sister Anna, I’m sorry. Helen and I were wrong.” Helen, seeing Jane speak, quickly apologized to me, her eyes reddening. “I’m sorry…” I nodded, then curled my lips slightly. “It’s alright, I don’t blame you.” After dinner, just as I was about to go to my room to rest, Jane called out to me. “Mom and Dad said to tell you to go up to the attic. It seems they want to give you something special.” I didn’t think much of it and followed him to the attic. I didn’t see Mom or Dad, but he suddenly pushed me inside and locked the door. Jane’s voice, like a spectator, came from outside the door. “Since you’re so important.” “Then I’ll see if the Maddox family can survive without you.” “Jane…” My whole body stiffened, even making a sound was incredibly difficult. The attic was pitch dark, with only a thin sliver of dim light seeping through a narrow crack. The wooden door almost completely blocked out outside sounds, and the air seemed to thin instantly. “You, please open the door, alright?” I tapped lightly on the door, my voice trembling uncontrollably. Jane’s unhurried voice came from outside. “What, scared?” I swallowed hard, trying to calm myself. “I, I have claustrophobia. I was kidnapped as a child, and the doctor said I can’t be in confined spaces.” “Please let me out, alright? I promise I won’t say anything.” Silence fell for a few seconds outside the door. Just as I thought Jane might at least hesitate, he scoffed disdainfully. “Claustrophobia?” “Anna Maddox, you really know how to make things up.” His tone was filled with undisguised annoyance. “Stop with these pathetic tricks to manipulate people.” “I’d like to see if you can really scare yourself to death.” The footsteps gradually receded. I frantically banged on the door, but my throat felt as if it were being choked, my mouth open, yet no sound escaped. My breathing grew increasingly erratic, and my vision began to blacken. I slid to the floor, hugging myself tightly, then completely lost consciousness. When I woke up again, my body felt completely weak. As soon as I opened my eyes, an excited voice reached my ears. “Anna, is that Anna?” Before I could react, a pair of warm hands clasped mine tightly. “Mommy’s here.” Mom’s voice was clearly trembling, her eyes red, as if she was trying hard to suppress some emotion. Dad stood by the bed, his face also grim, but he let out a sigh of relief when he saw me wake up. The doctor beside him said gravely, “Fortunately, we found her in time, otherwise…” “Miss Anna cannot endure any more stress.” I slowly came back to my senses. My gaze shifted, and I saw Helen and Jane kneeling not far away. Mom helped me sit up, then glared at Jane. “Anna, did Jane lock you in? Mommy will make sure he pays.” Helen pouted, her voice very low. “Is it really that big a deal? It was just being locked in the attic for a bit.” “So delicate, it’s just too dramatic.” Jane said nothing, but his expression clearly echoed Helen’s sentiment. Slap! A crisp sound exploded in the room. Helen’s head snapped to the side from the force of the slap; she was completely stunned. Mom’s hand still hung in the air, her gaze coldly fixed on Helen. “Say that again?” Helen clutched her face, looking at her in disbelief. “Mom, I just…” Dad’s voice was heavy with suppressed anger. “Do you two have any idea that Anna almost died?” “If something serious had happened, how would you compensate us?” Jane’s face changed. He couldn’t help but argue. “Dad, isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?” “Anna is perfectly fine, isn’t she? We’re your biological children! Why are you treating me like this for an outsider?” “Besides, all this talk about ‘lucky stars’ is just…” “Enough!” Dad abruptly cut him off, his eyes colder than I had ever seen them. “I haven’t even settled the score with you for locking Anna in the attic.” “Now, kneel properly. Don’t force me to use the family disciplinary rod.” Jane bit his lip, then suddenly scoffed, his tone clearly defiant. “Dad, Mom, don’t you think this is too superstitious?” “She fainted once, and you’re so anxious.” “But the Maddox family is still doing fine, isn’t it? Has anything specific changed?” Dad didn’t speak again. His phone rang. He looked down at the screen, and then his face visibly darkened, inch by inch. “Maddox Corporation’s stock just dropped three points.” At Dad’s words, Jane’s face also changed. “Dad, that’s just a coincidence. How could it be related to Anna?” He instinctively retorted, but his tone lacked its initial certainty. Dad didn’t answer him, merely looking at the butler. “Bring the family rod.” When the butler returned with the wooden rod, Helen burst into tears. “Dad! You’re biased! Anna is perfectly fine, why are you still bringing out the family rod!” She pointed at me, her voice sharp and vicious. “What right does she have!” “Silence! If you insult Anna again, I’ll beat you too!” Helen’s body trembled, and she finally quieted down, merely sobbing into her hands. Just as I was about to get out of bed and say something, Mom pulled me out of the room. “Our Anna can’t bear to see such bloody things.” I sighed, tugging at Mom’s sleeve. “Mom, I’m safe now, and the ‘shadow’ won’t come out. You don’t have to be so…” “That won’t do!” Mom tapped my nose, leading me downstairs. “Mommy got you the new season’s handbags, and your favorite chocolate cake.” I leaned into Mom, rubbing against her. “I knew Mommy was the best to me.” Sounds of the rod hitting flesh, along with Jane’s muffled groans, came from upstairs. Before I could react, Mom quickly placed noise-canceling headphones over my ears. When I saw Jane again, he had already endured the family discipline, being supported by Helen, walking step by agonizing step towards his room. His face was ashen, and his gaze towards me was like poison. From that day on, they indeed quieted down. But I always had a faint feeling that things weren’t that simple. Jane and Helen no longer openly ordered me around or verbally abused me. They even managed to flash me a strained, almost friendly smile when Mom and Dad were present. But this only made me feel more uneasy. Mrs. Higgins secretly took my hand, her face filled with concern. “Miss Anna, be careful. I always feel like the way those two look at you isn’t right.” I nodded, giving her a reassuring smile. “Mrs. Higgins, you know, I’ll be fine.” This uncomfortable feeling lingered for several days. Until I went to the conservatory alone for some fresh air. Drifting in and out of sleep, I overheard Jane and Helen’s deliberately hushed conversation. Helen’s voice even had a whimper to it. “Jane, this can’t go on.” “Mom and Dad only have eyes for her now; there’s no place for us in the Maddox family.” After a brief silence, Jane’s low, cold voice replied. “I know.” “As long as Anna Maddox is still here, Mom and Dad will always focus on her. Everything in the Maddox family will revolve around her.” He paused, his tone unwavering. “So.” “Anna Maddox must die.”

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1 The first thing my ex-husband did after his “rebirth” was to bring his illegitimate son home, demanding I send our biological daughter to the countryside. Cradling the drooling, developmentally delayed child, his eyes burned with fervor: “This is the hope of our family! He’s a genius who will win the Nobel Prize someday!” “As for that worthless girl, she’ll only divide the inheritance. Get rid of her!” I watched the illegitimate son, still playing in the mud, and calmly signed the divorce papers. My ex-husband didn’t know that in the last life, this illegitimate child only became a genius because I quit my job, slept only three hours a day, spent all our savings visiting renowned doctors, and painstakingly tutored him for twenty years. And my own daughter, neglected and abandoned, ran away from home early, only to become a financial titan controlling the global economy. In this life, since you treasure the “genius” who needs his diapers changed for two decades, then I’ll take my “worthless” daughter and become the mother of a global billionaire. … I swiftly signed the divorce papers. Noah Stone didn’t even glance at me. He snatched the drooling illegitimate child, Adam, into his arms, his eyes burning with fanaticism. In his mind, he saw the colossal headline from the last life’s newspaper: “Chinese-American Scientist Adam Stone Awarded Nobel Prize in Physics.” That was the supreme glory he had missed. In this life, he would never let me steal that honor again! “This is the hope of our family! He’s a genius who will win the Nobel Prize someday!” he declared, almost shouting at me. “As for that worthless girl, she’ll only divide the inheritance. Get rid of her!” I looked at the illegitimate son, still playing in the mud, and snapped the pen cap shut with a crisp click. “My passport, driver’s license, everything’s in my bag. See you at the courthouse tomorrow at nine.” With that, I turned and walked toward our daughter Aurora’s room. Noah scoffed behind me. “Take that worthless girl, you two can starve for all I care.” I didn’t look back. The door had barely closed when my mother-in-law, Clara Stone, burst in, her voice shrill. “Noah Stone! Are you mad? You’re just letting her leave like that? What about Aurora? Aurora is our Stone grandchild!” She moved to rush toward Aurora’s room. Noah stopped her, his tone impatient. “Mom! What are you yelling about! Didn’t you see Adam is sleeping? It’s just a girl, let her go, it’s less trouble.” Clara paused, but her voice didn’t quiet down. “That’s not the same! How can she, Elizabeth Vance, a divorced woman, raise a child properly? Aurora will suffer with her! Make her leave the child!” I pushed the door open, leading Aurora, who was already wearing her coat, by the hand. Aurora’s small face was calm, unlike a five-year-old’s. She just clutched my hand tightly. I looked at Clara. “The child is mine, and I have full custody. The agreement states it clearly.” Clara’s eyes widened. She pointed a finger at me. “Elizabeth! Don’t you dare act ungrateful! Our Stone family supported you for so many years, and now you think you can just fly off? Take our Stone bloodline away? Dream on!” She reached out to grab Aurora. I stepped sideways to block her, shielding Aurora behind me. “Clara, try to touch her again.” She flinched, intimidated by the coldness in my eyes, and retreated half a step. Noah impatiently pulled a card from his wallet and tossed it onto the console by the door. “Alright! Stop yelling! Elizabeth, this is for you. Fifty thousand. It should be enough for you and that girl for a while. Don’t bother me again.” The card slid a short distance on the polished surface, stopping at my feet. Fifty thousand. A pittance for a beggar. I didn’t even bother to bend down. I took Aurora’s hand and walked straight past the card, opened the door, and left without looking back. Behind me, Adam’s cries suddenly escalated, and Noah frantically tried to soothe him. “Don’t cry, baby, don’t cry, my genius…” The elevator doors slowly closed, cutting off all sound. Aurora looked up at me, asking softly, “Mommy, where are we going?” I knelt down and tidied her collar. “We’re going to our new home.” Aurora nodded, as if understanding, and said no more, just holding my hand tighter. I took Aurora back to the old house to pack our things. The home that once echoed with our mother-daughter laughter was now eerily silent. In the living room, Noah was awkwardly feeding Adam, spilling formula everywhere. He saw me, his brows furrowing into a knot. “Why are you back again? Just get your things and leave. Don’t disturb me with Adam.” I ignored him, walking straight into the bedroom and pulling out two of the largest suitcases. Clara followed me in, hovering like an overseer. “Elizabeth, I’m telling you, this house belongs to my son. You won’t take anything extra from here.” Her eyes scrutinized every item I packed. I folded Aurora’s and my clothes one by one and placed them in the suitcase. “These were all part of my dowry before we married. This jewelry set was left to me by my mother.” I pointed to a box on the dressing table. Clara immediately pounced, pressing down on the box. “What ‘left to you by your mother’! Once it enters my Stone family’s door, it’s our Stone family’s property! You want to take it? No way!” Her hand gripped the box tightly. I stopped what I was doing, stood up, and watched her silently. She got a little spooked by my stare but still refused to let go. “What are you looking at! Am I wrong? You’re a woman who’s being thrown out; do you really think you can take such valuable things?” I didn’t argue with her. I just quietly took out my phone and started recording. “Say that again. Whose property is this?” Clara froze for a moment, then burst into a tirade. “It’s the Stone family’s! What can you do to me!” I put my phone away, no longer looking at her, and continued packing other things. A picture frame fell to the floor, the glass shattering. Inside was a photo of Aurora and me at the beach. Aurora walked over, carefully trying to pick up the photo. “Don’t touch it; you’ll cut your hand.” I pulled her back. Noah, hearing the sound from the living room, shouted impatiently, “Elizabeth! Can’t you hurry up! You’re dawdling, and if you break something, can you afford to replace it?” I pulled out the photo from the frame, untouched by the shattered glass, and slipped it into my pocket. Then I swept the empty frame and scattered glass into the trash. Clara, seeing that I was ignoring her, started yelling again. “Did you hear that? My son wants you to hurry up and leave! Don’t be an eyesore here!” I zipped up my suitcase with a dull thud. With a suitcase in each hand, and holding Aurora’s hand, I walked toward the door. As I passed the living room, I saw Adam throw his baby bottle on the floor and reach for a set of car keys Noah had forgotten on the coffee table, preparing to put them in his mouth. Noah, oblivious, was still engrossed in a “Genius Early Development Guide.” I walked straight out, not looking left or right. The door slammed shut behind me. I didn’t care if that child swallowed the keys, nor if that man could nurture a genius. I rented a small one-bedroom apartment in the city’s old town. Compared to the spacious, bright riverside apartment at the Stone’s, this place felt like a pigeon coop. Aurora, however, was very composed. She put down her small backpack and carefully surveyed her new “home.” “Mommy, where’s my bed?” I pointed to the small bed by the window, covered with a new cartoon bedspread I’d bought. “That will be your bed from now on.” She nodded, climbed onto it, tested it out, then flashed me a smile. “It’s soft.” My heart softened instantly. It was late by the time we settled in. After I told Aurora a bedtime story, she quickly fell asleep. I sat on the creaky sofa in the living room. My phone vibrated. It was a message from my friend, Lena Hayes. “How are things? Found a place to stay? Do you have enough money?” I replied that everything was fine, and then there was nothing more. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to say more; it was that I didn’t know where to begin. I opened my mobile banking app, looking at the paltry savings in my account, then remembered the card Noah had tossed on the floor. A wave of helplessness washed over me. I had to find a job quickly. Just then, my phone rang. It was Noah. I slid to answer, but didn’t speak. His voice, muffled with suppressed anger, came from the other end. “Elizabeth, did you take the washing machine manual?” I paused. “No.” “Then how do I use this new front-loader? My mom can’t figure it out; she’s getting water everywhere trying to do laundry!” “There’s a QR code on the door. Scan it for the digital manual.” “I don’t have time for that! You come back now and show my mom how to use it!” he ordered, as if it were his right. I was silent. In the last life, it was always like this. No matter where I went, he always found a way to drag me back to deal with the messes he and his mother couldn’t handle. And every single time, I softened and went back. “Noah Stone, we’re divorced.” I said, and hung up. My phone immediately began ringing incessantly. Annoyed, I kept hanging up, eventually just turning it off. I walked into the room, looking at Aurora’s peaceful sleeping face. The last vestiges of helplessness in my heart vanished. In this life, I would only live for her.

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1 After the divorce, I returned to my hometown, a broken man carrying my son’s ashes, and opened a small clinic. It had been ten years since I last saw Seraphina Vance. “Arthur, Leo’s back! I’ve come to take you home!” Her expression was solemn, even more earnest than when she confessed her love to me all those years ago. Leo, clinging to her arm, smirked, a brazen glint in his eyes. “Brother-in-law, I was too reckless back then, running away from home. It made my sister misunderstand you, thinking you forced me to my death.” “But she’s never truly moved on from you all these years. You shouldn’t be holding a grudge, hiding out here.” I stared at Seraphina, my face devoid of emotion. “Now that your beloved foster brother has returned, can I finally have my son back?” … Seraphina frowned, almost imperceptibly. “Arthur, I can apologize for what happened back then.” “You only lost a son and an arm, but Leo nearly had his reputation ruined and suffered out there for a full ten years!” “You need to let it go!” I opened my mouth, but the strength to argue had long left me. “You’re right. I’ve let it go. Please leave, both of you.” Ten years ago, the news that I, a dermatologist, had treated Leo for an STI leaked. In a fit of rage, Seraphina ordered her men to break my arm, destroying my career. “Leo is just a kid! How dare you slander his name, spread rumors that he had a venereal disease?” “Someone as malicious as you doesn’t deserve to be a doctor!” Soon after, she posted a video of me showering online. “Some people are constantly hooking up, can’t even wash off that disgusting stench of depravity!” Her parents, my in-laws, reprimanded her for going too far. Seraphina scoffed, “He slandered Leo and still refuses to admit it! Only by making him experience the pain of being slandered will he realize his mistake!” When it came to Leo, my in-laws remained silent. Overnight, our son was branded “the spawn of a deviant,” tormented at kindergarten, and became severely withdrawn. My reputation was ruined; I was fired from the hospital and vilified online. Frantic, I found the treatment reports, desperate to explain to Seraphina. But she didn’t even bother to glance at them, tossing them casually into the trash. “Still unrepentant, daring to forge evidence and continue to tarnish Leo’s name?” “What did such a pure and kind young man like Leo ever do to you, that you would so meticulously plot against him?” Leo, who had initially tearfully begged me for treatment, claiming he’d been accidentally infected by a promiscuous girlfriend and was filled with regret, now glared at me with venomous eyes. “Brother-in-law, I was only eighteen, still a child! How could you be so cruel to me?” “Do you have any idea how much harm those rumors caused me?” He buried his face in Seraphina’s embrace, sobbing. He claimed that on his way home from school, thugs would harass him, asking how much he charged for a night, and he’d nearly been assaulted by a drunkard… Seraphina’s face darkened instantly. She dragged me to the heart of the city’s bar district. “This trash is free to take!” “Men and women, young and old, no preferences!” “He can’t get pregnant, so no responsibility needed!” Countless drunken patrons, eyes gleaming, leered at me, their faces contorted in lewd smiles. I broke down, desperately clutching Seraphina. “No, you can’t do this to me! I really didn’t…” Her face remained impassive as she kicked my injured arm. The searing pain forced me to release her. “You need to deeply experience the suffering you inflicted on Leo!” “Don’t worry, this is just a small lesson, to make you remember!” “At the critical moment, the bodyguards will intervene!” She gently comforted Leo, walking away step by step. But once her figure disappeared, the drunken crowd surged forward like wild animals, tearing at my clothes. “No, don’t… help me!” I struggled wildly, reaching out to the bodyguards Seraphina had arranged. They merely gave a cold command. “Don’t kill him!” 2 I can’t recall how I ended up in the hospital. I only remember my colleague, tears streaming down her face, as she worked to save me. “How could Seraphina do this to you?” “She used to say you were the person she admired most, back when she was pursuing you.” I wanted to know too. How could the woman who once loved me so deeply inflict such cruelty? Why did she get to treat me this way? Battered and bruised, I was discharged three days later, a shell of my former self. I returned home like a zombie. Only my four-year-old son, seeing me, burrowed into my arms, his voice thick with injustice. “Daddy, all the kids pick on me! They call me the dirty man’s kid, they call my daddy…” I choked back tears, gently comforting him. “Little Ace, they’re lying. Daddy didn’t…” My son looked up, his eyes brimming with tears. “But everyone says you wronged Mommy. Many people saw your pictures from the bar online.” My heart lurched. I stared at Seraphina, disbelief warring with horror. “You… how could you…” I hadn’t been without my doubts. Perhaps, allowing those drunkards to brazenly assault me wasn’t Seraphina’s intention. Maybe Leo had acted on his own, and she was unaware. But now… I could no longer deceive myself. Seraphina frowned, a flicker of irritation crossing her face. “Leo only wanted to vent his anger, so he faked those photos and posted them online.” “Isn’t that what you did to him?” “When it’s your turn to be slandered, you can’t handle it? Then how dare you forge evidence to slander Leo?” I closed my eyes in despair, my heart completely broken. “Forged photos? Do you believe that?” “Do you truly not know what happened to me that night…?” Seraphina roared, cutting me off. “Enough! This matter ends here!” “Leo has decided not to pursue this further with you, so don’t be so petty and cling to it!” Perhaps to placate me, Seraphina sighed, then suddenly embraced me from behind, whispering, “Alright, I know you’re angry, I’ll make it up to you tonight.” “You know, even though Leo isn’t my biological brother, he’s been pampered since childhood and never suffered any hardships.” “As his brother-in-law, you shouldn’t be so petty with a child!” My body stiffened. The nightmare of that night flashed through my mind, making me tremble uncontrollably. I violently pushed Seraphina away, then vomited uncontrollably, retching until I brought up bile. Seraphina’s face turned ashen. “Arthur! What is the meaning of this?” “I haven’t even scorned you, and you dare to sulk and throw a tantrum at me?” “You malicious man, you’re filthy! And to think Leo was even worried you’d be angry, and persuaded me to comfort you…” Another pang of agony shot through my heart. So, her willingness to touch me was merely a task assigned by Leo? No, Leo probably just wanted her to see the scars covering my body, the damage inflicted by those drunkards. I completely lost the will to argue. “Since you detest me so much, let’s get a divorce.” I had married Seraphina with so much hope. Now, I yearned to escape this repulsive marriage with an equal measure of despair. Seraphina’s face grew even darker. “You are utterly irrational!” “All these years, I truly spoiled you rotten!” “Since you remain stubborn and unrepentant, I’ll revoke your privileges and give you time to reflect!” 3 Seraphina canceled my cards. Even though I had never spent a single penny from her black card’s supplementary account. The next morning, Leo beamed at the rows of limited-edition sneakers before him. “Sister, you’re the best!” He excitedly kissed Seraphina’s cheek. Seraphina dotingly ruffled his hair. “You silly child, isn’t it only natural for your sister to be good to you?” “Spending money on you makes me happy. You’re not like some people, who from beginning to end, show no gratitude and don’t know their place!” She curled her lips, her words laced with sarcasm. Then, she cast a cold glance my way. “What, finally admit you were wrong?” I nodded silently. I was indeed wrong, wrong to have loved her. Leo pouted. “Some people don’t admit they’re wrong, they just realize they’re out of money!” I offered no explanation, no rebuttal. Calmly, I produced the divorce papers and the bank card Seraphina had given me. “I have my own salary and savings; I’ve never spent a cent of yours.” “I will leave with nothing, taking not a single thread from the Vance estate.” “My only request is custody of Little Ace.” Seraphina froze instantly. “Arthur, you…” Leo secretly gloated, snatching the divorce papers to glance at them. Then he sighed, “Brother-in-law, why are you doing this? You know sister can’t bear to divorce.” “Even if you revealed your ugly true colors, for the sake of the child, sister would never kick you out.” “What’s the point of this charade?” I shot him a sidelong glance. “Shouldn’t you be happy that Seraphina and I are divorcing?” That way, no one would compete with him for his “good sister.” Leo instantly looked on the verge of tears, appearing utterly helpless. “Brother-in-law, what do you mean by that?” “I merely spoke the truth. How can you be so maliciously suspicious of me?” Seraphina’s face darkened. With a bang, she slammed her hand on the table. “Arthur, apologize to Leo!” I opened my mouth, a thought stirring within me. “Apologize? I can!” “Sign first!” Seraphina grew even angrier, grabbing the divorce papers and tearing them to shreds. “Put away your little tricks!” “Playing hard to get won’t work on me!” “I advise you to give up that fantasy! I will never let you succeed, and I will certainly not entrust my son to a scoundrel like you!” I couldn’t understand why she refused. Because of our son? Yet she herself had labeled Little Ace “the spawn of a deviant.” Because of feelings? Had she ever truly harbored feelings for me? However, since she cared so much for Leo… I took a deep breath, then pulled out a diligently collected file. “This is the evidence of Leo’s illness! And the surveillance video of him crying and begging me for treatment in my office, along with his treatment records…” Seraphina raised an eyebrow. “Are you trying to slander Leo again?” I said calmly, “Whether it’s slander or not, the police and the judge will give me justice in court.” “If you refuse to divorce, I don’t mind going to court to sue for divorce.” “Your breaking my arm and utterly destroying me because of his lies is proof that our relationship has fractured.” “A woman as morally bankrupt and ruthless as you doesn’t deserve to be a mother!” Seraphina scoffed. “Go ahead, if you dare. I’d like to see how you continue to lie in court!” However, at that moment, Leo suddenly snatched a fruit knife from the table and lightly cut his wrist. He cried and screamed, raging loudly. “Brother-in-law, are you not satisfied until you’ve forced me to my death?” Seraphina’s face instantly changed. She snatched the fruit knife away and frantically helped Leo up. “Quick, to the hospital!” I could tell at a glance that Leo was faking it. But Seraphina violently pushed me, her eyes filled with murderous intent. “If anything happens to Leo, you will never be forgiven, even in a hundred deaths!”

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I’m blind, but my boyfriend, Ben, doesn’t seem to want me to regain my sight. So, without telling him, I secretly had my eyes treated. The day after I regained my sight, I discovered his secret. Behind Ben, dark purple tentacles stretched out. The sticky tentacles cautiously glided along the floor, invisibly wrapping around my ankles. Then, little by little, they turned pink. 1 “He’s hiding something from me.” I sat in a coffee shop, across from my friend and treating physician, Dr. Sam Riley. The “he” I spoke of was my boyfriend, Ben Hastings. “Why do you say that?” “I just feel… he’s been a little strange lately. His business trips are getting more and more frequent.” “And it seems like he doesn’t want me to regain my sight.” Sam dragged his chair closer, making a scraping sound. “Eliza, I think you’re overthinking it. Ben has invested dozens of state-of-the-art equipment in our hospital just to cure your eyes.” “When he’s not on business trips, he personally picks you up and drops you off for every follow-up appointment.” “And our conversations, besides you, are still about you.” Sam’s praises for Ben were endless. Who would have thought that three years ago, he regarded Ben as a monstrous threat? Saying Ben looked like some kind of “dark, brooding type,” and that he was only with me for “money and looks.” “But oh, if you’re talking about something strange, there actually is one thing…” “What are you two talking about?” A familiar scent of ocean breeze suddenly wafted beside me. It was Ben. I finished my coffee and smiled in his direction. “We were talking about when you’d arrive.” “Have you been waiting long?” Ben adjusted my collar, his cool fingertips brushing against the pulsing vein in my neck as he moved. I shook my head. “I just missed you.” Before Ben could respond, Sam first clicked his tongue, a little sickly sweet. “I feel incredibly radiant right now, so I’m out of here.” “Dr. Riley, take care. I’ve already paid the bill.” “Thanks, thanks.” I knew Sam’s perception of Ben must have become even more favorable. Although my perception of him was also very favorable. On the way back, Ben asked, “How were the results of this follow-up?” “Hmm… not very good.” I was lying. “It’s okay, we’ll take our time.” Having dated Ben for three years, I naturally recognized the sound. As he turned, he quietly let out a sigh of relief. 2 The next day, while Ben was at work, I dialed Sam’s number in the bathroom. —This was the only place in the house without surveillance cameras. “What were you trying to say yesterday?” “I heard from a nurse that Ben was seen talking with the new Dr. Carter recently.” “And both of them didn’t look very happy…” “Dr. Carter?” Sam stammered a little. “Yes, he’s a new urologist at our hospital. “But I don’t know much about him. He’s always kept to himself and doesn’t seem to have many acquaintances.” “So I couldn’t really ask him…” Silence. A moment later, Sam hesitantly spoke again. “Your boyfriend isn’t having it easy either…” I hung up the phone, feeling a bit annoyed and ashamed. After all, I was currently unemployed, stuck at home all day. I rested well during the day, so naturally, I was “energetic” at night. But was Ben entirely blameless? Who asked him to have such big chest muscles and such nice abs? It was practically an invitation. But what did this have to do with my eyes? Just as I was pondering, Ben’s call came through. “Did you have breakfast yet?” Whenever I was home alone, if I spent more than five minutes in the bathroom, he would subtly ask what I was doing. I feigned a yawn. “Yeah, just woke up, I’m about to eat. What about you, what are you doing?” “Just finished a meeting, have another one soon.” “So busy, tonight I…” Remembering my conversation with Sam earlier, I swallowed the words “I’ll treat you well.” “Tonight what?” “Tonight, let’s have a nice dinner.” Before Ben could reply, I faintly heard his assistant’s voice from his end of the phone. “Alright, that’s enough. Go to your meeting.” 3 In the evening, I habitually slipped my hand under Ben’s shirt to “warm up.” Less than two seconds later, I pulled my hand back. “Sweetheart?” Ben’s voice held a touch of confusion. He grabbed my hand and pressed it against his abs again. I squeezed. Felt so good. Then I pulled my hand back again. If I could see right now, I would notice Ben pouting, looking on the verge of tears. Sensing the deep sense of hurt emanating from Ben, I fumbled and pressed a heavy kiss on his face. “I’m a little tired. Let’s talk tomorrow, okay?” “Okay…” Ben didn’t press further, just adjusted his position to make me more comfortable. In my dream, I was in a damp rainforest, entangled by countless giant pythons. My calves twitched uncontrollably. The snake’s tongue glided across my skin, making a soft, sighing sound. Waking up the next day, I carefully touched my limbs and waist. They were clean, without a single mark. But was it really just a dream? “Sweetheart, I need to go on a business trip. I’ll be back in three days.” “Okay.” In just half a month, Ben had already been on four business trips. Noticing that I seemed a little down, Ben rested his head on my lap, his arm circling my waist. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. That project has been really busy lately…” “Once it’s over, how about we go on a trip together?” “Is there anywhere you’d like to go?” I thought of last night’s dream, but a different answer slipped out: “The beach.” “The beach?” Ben’s arm tightened. “Yeah, you know, I used to love diving.” “So I want to smell the sea breeze again sometime.” “Alright, the beach it is.” 4 While Ben was away on his business trip, I went to the hospital again. “You’re looking a bit too refreshed, aren’t you?” Sam clicked his tongue lightly. I answered expressionlessly, “I’m sexually frustrated.” Sam cleared his throat, clearly not wanting to continue that topic. “However, all your indicators in today’s check-up are excellent. Congratulations.” “Thank you.” “Aren’t you excited? You’ll be able to see soon.” “Very excited.” “Boring. But I actually thought you’d want Ben to be with you on such a crucial day.” I couldn’t help but rub the corner of my sweater. “I still feel he doesn’t really want me to regain my sight. So please keep it a secret for now.” The world after regaining my sight was somewhat magical. Countless colors vibrated endlessly, and amidst the chaos, gradually connected with the concepts in my mind. Like a puzzle piece, finally falling into its long-awaited empty spot at a certain moment. “Hey, can you see?” Sam’s face enlarged in my vision. To be honest, it was a bit distracting. Why wasn’t it Ben? “Yes.” “That’s great!” I smiled genuinely. “Thank you for your hard work these past four years.” “Oh, we’re friends. Just treat me to a big meal sometime.” “I want to walk around by myself.” Sam gave an understanding smile. “I get it.” I picked up the white cane beside me, let go, but then gripped it again. I tentatively took a step, experiencing the moment my shoe sole touched the ground with my eyes. One step, two steps. Drip. I turned my head and looked out the window. It was raining. 5 Ben and I first met on a rainy day. That day, I suddenly wanted to walk in the rain, so I only brought my white cane. But after walking a short distance, my path was blocked by an electric scooter parked on the tactile paving. Rain hammered around me, and my white cane felt like an oar floating on water, leaving me disoriented. A vast emptiness enveloped me, leaving me adrift. Strangely, I even felt an urge to throw away my white cane. But suddenly, the rain stopped around me. An umbrella shielded my head, followed by a faint scent of ocean breeze. “Hello, um, do you… need help?” The man’s voice was deep and magnetic, but his hesitant, stumbling speech made him sound awkwardly charming. Judging by his voice, he was probably about ten centimeters taller than me. I turned my head, slightly lifting my face, deliberately tilting my rain-drenched face towards him. The man’s breathing softened even more. “Yes, could you… could you take me home?” If you’re a bad guy, could you take me to your home? Lock me up. Or bury me. But he wasn’t. “Alright, um, forgive my intrusion.” He merely carefully circled my forearm with his cool hand, guiding my way. I could feel the glances that occasionally fell on me. Somewhat warm, yet not intrusive. “Here we are.” I stood at the door, tilting my head. “Would you like to come in for a bit?” “Would it be…?” “I’m alone at home, and I’m a little scared.” Even though I hadn’t eaten pork, I had seen many pigs run. In less than fifteen minutes, I had extracted most of Ben’s personal information. “So we live so close to each other, huh?” “Then, if you have time later, would you mind coming over to keep me company?” I changed into a silk nightgown, curled up on the sofa, and asked him. “Alright, yes.” From seeing each other once every half week, it gradually evolved into twice a day. Ben’s methods for pursuing me weren’t sophisticated, but they were heartfelt. Like a loyal dog, he’d offer me everything he thought was best. 6 “Are you… Eliza Shen?” “Unknowingly,” I had walked to the entrance of the Urology Department. The man opposite me was taller than I was, wearing a white lab coat, and I couldn’t clearly read the name on his badge. He wore rimless glasses, and his long hair was tied back. “Hello?” I still pretended to be blind. “My name is Noah Carter. I’m Ben Hastings’s, uh… friend.” It seemed he was the “Dr. Carter.” Seeing my “confused” look, Noah understood. “I’m a doctor here, just started working at this hospital recently.” “Ben and I were neighbors when we were kids, but we weren’t very close.” “So it’s normal that he hasn’t mentioned me to you.” Neighbor. I chewed on those two words in my mind several times. “Hmm… what was Ben like when he was little?” Noah opened his mouth, seeming to ponder his choice of words. We stopped at the hospital entrance. He finally answered my question. “My personal advice… keep your distance from him.” “What are you doing?” I was suddenly pulled into Ben’s embrace. He was still warm, having just gotten out of his car. Noah shrugged. “I only told Ms. Shen what I needed to tell her.” “And I also advise you to agree to our terms as soon as possible.” “Otherwise, more than just you will suffer.” After Noah left, I asked Ben, “Ben, what are you doing here?” “Came back early. Saw no one at home, thought you must be at the hospital.” “Did Noah say anything strange to you just now?” “No. He just started speaking when you arrived.” Seeing Ben’s furrowed brow because of Noah, I felt a little annoyed. I raised my hand and wrapped it around Ben’s waist. “Did you miss me?” Ben’s previously serious expression immediately softened. He gently rubbed his nose against my forehead. “Very, very much.” 7 When I woke up the next day, Ben had already gone to work. I rolled over, snuggled into his side of the bed, and turned on the surveillance footage. Although Ben hadn’t installed cameras in the bathroom, I had. I dragged the timeline to the moment he entered the bathroom. Ben, freshly awake, had slightly messy hair, his mature features looking a bit boyish. I watched him silently, with my headphones on, as he washed up and spaced out. At 6 minutes and 27 seconds, I saw what I wanted to see. A dark purple tentacle emerged from behind Ben, reaching for the bathroom door. Ben met the tentacle’s “gaze” in the mirror, his eyes filled with warning. The tentacle then timidly retreated, leaving behind a noticeable wet stain. Ben sighed in resignation, and began to wipe away the traces it left behind. I repeatedly dragged the progress bar. Watching it over and over. It wasn’t until my newly restored eyes began to shed physiological tears that I reluctantly turned off my phone. So this was Ben’s secret. So when Ben came home from work, I was already sitting on the sofa waiting. While Ben stood in the entryway, bending down to change his slippers, my eyes greedily traced him from top to bottom. Face. Back. Waist. Hips. Legs. If I ignored the tentacles that were already joyfully rolling around in front of me. Unlike the initial dark purple, the tentacles before me were now pink. Was it because they were happy to see me? How cute. 8 “By the way, Ben, I want to take a medicinal bath today.” “Why the sudden urge for a medicinal bath?” Ben approached, kneeling before me, looking up into my eyes. As he drew closer, the tentacles behind him gradually retracted. I lowered my eyes with a hint of regret. “Sweetheart?” Ben’s tone was filled with concern. After all, I usually took a medicinal bath once a month, but I had just taken one two weeks ago. “I just want to relax a bit, okay?” Ben, his ears turning red, agreed. “Okay.” He walked into the kitchen and brought out a glass of milk. “Drink your milk first. I’ll go run the hot water.” I nodded, taking a small sip of milk in front of him. Then, as he entered the bathroom, I poured the remaining milk into the potted plant beside me. Before long, Ben carried me into the bathtub. He tied a black silk ribbon over my eyes, covering my sight. He said it was to prevent the steaming heat of the medicinal bath from getting into my eyes. “Soak for a while first. I’ll gradually add the medicine.” “Mhm.” After a while, a familiar drowsiness crept in. I pretended to lose my strength, letting my entire weight press against Ben. At the same time, I used the movement to loosen the silk ribbon over my eyes. “Sweetheart? Eliza?” I didn’t respond. In the shadowy darkness, water was already overflowing. But I could no longer see below my waist. Pink tentacles crowded the bathtub, writhing continuously. So this was the “medicinal bath”? I slowly sank lower into the water, but a strong pair of hands supported my waist. A soft kiss and a whisper fell beside my ear. “Eliza, I love you.”

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On my sweet wife Alex’s 30th birthday, just before candle lighting, my husband Patrick and my best friend Chloe disappeared. After searching the hotel, captions suddenly appeared before my eyes: “Chloe is sleeping with the male lead to force the wife to find them. Smart.” “Go to the parking lot now! Wait—the car’s air conditioner is on. They might get carbon monoxide poisoning.” “Alex, move! Go save them!” I stood frozen, still processing what I was seeing, when my other friend Vanessa took my hand. “Let’s check the parking lot,” she suggested. The captions sighed in relief. “Good, someone is helping.” “Poisoning isn’t severe unless exposure is long.” I paused at that line—then turned back to the private room. “Let’s not go look for them,” I said. Vanessa’s face changed. “But they’re the most important people in your life. They should be here.” The captions panicked: “Doesn’t Alex adore the male lead? Why won’t she go?” “Without help, prolonged poisoning could kill them…” 1 I watched Vanessa’s expression change repeatedly, then chuckled. “You used to hate Chloe and my husband so much. What’s wrong? Today you’re more concerned about them than I am.” I didn’t know when Vanessa and Chloe had become partners in crime. One was my childhood friend, the other my college classmate, and they had always pretended to dislike each other. However, they were in complete agreement about me marrying right after college and becoming a trophy wife, never working a day in my life; they both thoroughly looked down on it. They also absolutely loathed my second-generation husband, who enjoyed his inherited wealth. Could it be… They wanted to get involved themselves, to save me from this mess? Thinking this, I looked at Vanessa with a grateful expression, silently resolving. I absolutely couldn’t let them fall into this pit of fire with me. I had to stop them, protect them. Vanessa averted her gaze, awkwardly hooked her arm through mine, and spoke softly. “How could I be concerned about them? I’m worried about you. It’s your big day today, and those two are both missing…” She didn’t continue, but her meaning was all too clear. But how could I understand? I just smiled, pulling Vanessa towards the private room. “It’s nothing. They’re adults; what could happen?” “Our friends are still in the room. We shouldn’t keep them waiting.” Vanessa froze for a moment, then forced an awkward laugh. “Well, I… I’ll go to the restroom.” “Remember how we always went to the restroom together in school?” Saying this, I linked arms with Vanessa and walked towards the restroom. As I walked, I calculated in my mind. I had to stick close to Vanessa. What if she tried to contact Chloe, found she couldn’t, and went to the underground parking lot to check the situation? And my other friends, once we returned to the room and cut the cake, the birthday party would be over. If they went to the parking lot and saw Patrick’s car with the engine running, they would definitely approach it. My friends are sacrificing themselves for me; how could I let their reputations be ruined? I absolutely couldn’t let anyone discover them prematurely. I secretly made up my mind, desperately strategizing in my head. My brain isn’t used to this much work. I don’t know if my plan will work, but I have to try. 2 Vanessa emerged from the restroom, her eyes filled with worry, and jumped when she saw me standing by the door. She extinguished her phone screen, pretending to calmly wash her hands. I patiently watched her dry her hands, pick up her phone, and slowly walk out. After just a few steps, she hesitated and spoke. “I suddenly remembered, I prepared a gift for you. I’ll go to the car to get it.” The captions reacted instantly, praising Vanessa frantically. “This is the female lead’s good friend, a master of improvisation! Thankfully, she’s smart and noticed something was wrong.” “What’s wrong with Alex?! Didn’t she reach the point where she was supposed to expose the male and female leads’ affair? Does she know something and is deliberately stalling?” “This woman is truly vicious. Does she want them to die from lack of oxygen?” “Carbon monoxide poisoning for more than an hour or two can cause brain damage, and longer exposure can really be fatal!” “What do I do, what do I do?! I wish I could beat Alex senseless right now.” I grabbed Vanessa’s arm and forcibly dragged her towards the private room. “Are you trying to run away too? Then there really will be no one for my thirtieth birthday candle lighting. A gift is a small matter; staying with me is a big one!” Pushing open the private room door, my friends complained in feigned annoyance. “What’s going on? You left us here, and you both ran off.” “Patrick and Chloe still aren’t back. Oh well, never mind them.” “Quick, quick, birthday girl, everyone’s waiting for you to light the candles!” Saying this, they brought the cake in front of me. I looked at the cake with lit candles, feeling no joy. My friends were beaming, ready to sing, when I spoke softly, my voice dull. “I know everything.” Everyone froze, looking at each other. Only Vanessa’s face flashed with a hint of panic. Everyone asked me, “Know what?” I looked up, my eyes fixed on Vanessa, approaching her step by step. “I know…” “Patrick cheated on me with one of my best friends.” Seeing me approach, Vanessa blinked, her voice rising a few octaves, her tone flustered. “Don’t jump to conclusions just because Patrick and Chloe aren’t here right now. If you’re really suspicious, I’ll go with you to the parking lot to check.” The captions exploded at this point. “What the heck does this dramatic woman mean by saying that? Does she know?” “She definitely doesn’t know. This is clearly a trick to get her friend to confess, but the friend is smart, neither admitting nor denying, and leading Alex to the parking lot. Such a clever friend.” “Is anyone checking on the parking lot? They’ve been unconscious for twenty minutes now.” “It’s okay, the friend has already noticed something is wrong and will definitely go check the situation.” I froze for a moment at the captions. Is that right? She’ll notice something is wrong and go check the situation? That won’t do. I’ll protect my friend’s reputation with my life! 3 I grabbed a glass of red wine from the table and drank it in one gulp. Then, meeting her eyes, I feigned seriousness. “It’s you, isn’t it, Vanessa.” “What?” She looked utterly bewildered by my question. My friends around us gasped, exchanging glances. “I saw the messages Patrick sent. The person on the other end used a burner account, but the messages hinted at being my best friend.” “Who else could it be but you?” Vanessa took a step back, then immediately blurted out. “Chlo…” Slap! Her face snapped to the side instantly. She covered her cheek, looking back at me in disbelief. I frantically apologized in my heart, but no one could hear it. The captions instantly went wild. “This woman is crazy, she actually dared to hit her.” “Oh my god, no wonder the male lead fell for Chloe. Her usual demure wife persona, her gentle and virtuous act, it’s all fake. I can’t stand it.” “What the hell does she want to do, this madwoman.” “Upstairs, you and the friend are both being misled by her! The point isn’t what she wants to do, the point is the male and female leads poisoned and passed out in the car!” “It’s okay, it’s okay. The optimal rescue time is four to six hours. No matter how crazy she gets, she can’t be crazy for six hours, right? The party will eventually end, and once it does, everyone will definitely notice them. There’s still time, there’s still time.” Still time? Ahhh! For my friend’s reputation, I had no other choice. Slap! I slapped Vanessa across the face again. She glared at me, disbelief still in her eyes, but still didn’t retaliate. To be honest, I was still a little confused. Vanessa wasn’t someone who would silently endure being hit. From childhood, she was always the one bullying others. On the contrary, Chloe was the one who suffered bullying in silence. In college, her roommates isolated her because of her poor family background. She remained silent. As class president, I discovered the situation and proactively helped her mediate with her roommates. Later, I also helped her apply for scholarships, find internships, and introduced her to my friends. When her mother forced her to return to her village to marry, I stood up for her and offered financial help. So I was so good to her, and now she and Vanessa were teaming up to rescue me from this pit of fire, which was her way of repaying my kindness. Thinking this, I was even more determined to protect her reputation and safeguard her. Seeing me still, my friends thought I was drunk and came over to mediate. “You’re drunk, Alex. If something’s wrong, talk it out. Don’t resort to violence; it’ll look bad if it gets out of hand…” “Yeah, the situation isn’t clear yet, Alex, wait a minute.” Vanessa, seeing everyone speak up for her, lowered her head, tears welling in her eyes, and hid behind a friend. The next second, a human wall formed in front of me and spoke. “Enough, Alex. You’ve had too much to drink today. Don’t do anything you’ll regret.” I looked up at the person blocking my way, a handsome man. It took me a moment to realize it was Liam, Patrick’s good friend. Million-dollar salary, handsome, wealthy family background. No wonder Vanessa was interested. That’s why she hadn’t fought back this whole time, I realized. Actually, I had originally intended to stop there. After all, if I hit her too hard, what if I got arrested? But now. I decided to play the villain thoroughly and give my good friend a boost. My lips curved slightly, and I spoke calmly. “Get lost! Or I’ll hit you too.” Liam froze for a moment. He couldn’t believe I, who usually spoke in such a cutesy voice, could say something like that. I seized the opportunity to slip past him and slapped her again. Vanessa staggered back two steps. I looked at her. Her eyes were filled with hatred, yet she remained unresponsive. I saw my friend’s fragile appearance, and Liam’s disbelief. I secretly rejoiced. It seemed I needed to be even more aggressive. Slap! Another slap landed on her face. The captions were absolutely furious now. “This woman is sick. She keeps hitting people. Can no one stop her?” “Vanessa, stop pretending to be weak. Liam is being held back by this woman’s friends; fight back!” “I’m so mad, I wish I could jump through the screen and slap her back.” I saw her face was already swollen red and was about to raise my hand. She gritted her teeth and spoke. “Alex Miller! Don’t you go too far!” I smiled domineeringly. “I am pushing you too far, what about it?” She looked at Liam, who was being pushed out of the private room by friends, and completely dropped her act, lunging forward to pull my hair. I casually pushed her. And knocked all the leftover food on the table onto her. Clang, crash… She was instantly covered in grease, and leftover food dripped and clung to her white dress. Vanessa’s screams, the clattering of plates in the private room, and my friends’ shouts of dissuasion became a chaotic mess. It was hard not to draw attention. The waiter, seeing the scene, picked up the phone to call the police. My friends, seeing this, tried to stop him. I yelled and smashed two more plates. “Call the police then! I’m not the homewrecker! I’m not the one who should be ashamed.” I wanted the police to come. If the police came, no one would discover them in the underground parking lot. And my friend’s reputation would be saved. Within a few minutes, the police arrived. Vanessa and I, and everyone in our private room. We all got a complimentary trip to the police station. The captions were almost in tears. “What do we do?! Everyone’s been taken away! Is there no one left to discover our poisoned male and female leads?!” “It’s been over an hour already, my male and female leads…” “The male lead is such an idiot! Afraid of the cold, turns on the AC but doesn’t know to leave a window cracked? How did such a dumb person grow up?” “Don’t blame, don’t blame. Don’t be swayed by Alex. The male lead is a rich second-generation music student. It’s normal for him not to know physics, chemistry, and biology.” “I’m crying… My poor, precious female lead, she’s had such a tough first half of her life, and now she’s about to die just as she was about to have a good life?” “It’s okay, there’s still time. Even at the police station, it’ll be resolved in an hour or two at most.” At the police station, before the police could even ask questions, I burst into tears and lamentations. “Officer, it’s my birthday today, and my husband cheated on me with my best friend…” “I didn’t mean to throw a drunken tantrum, but I… I’m so upset. I’m sorry for causing you trouble.” The officer, hearing me say this and seeing my good attitude, softened his originally stern expression. “Even if you’re angry, you can’t hit people or smash things. Do you know they can get an injury report? If it’s serious, you could go to jail.” I nodded frantically. “Officer, you’re right. I’ll compensate the vendor for the damaged items; just give me the bill. As for hitting someone…” “Officer, one is my best friend, and the other is my husband. How could I not be upset? I was absolutely furious.” “I’m so sorry.” The captions instantly went furious, starting to play judge. “Oh my god, this woman is so good at twisting facts and playing innocent for sympathy.” “The police are being fooled by her. It’s okay, Vanessa is injured, she absolutely won’t accept a settlement! Let her rot in jail for ten years. I can’t stand her.” “Exactly, don’t let her off the hook. Send her to jail. Let’s see how she gets out of this one!”

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At six, I was brought home by the Daltons. Twelve years later, they learned the devastating truth about the girl they had so cruelly cast aside—the impostor daughter. Her life after leaving them had been a tapestry of misery. And so, on the day Sophie died by suicide, regret consumed them all. My parents and my brother could no longer bear to look at me. They planned to marry me off, to ship me away like damaged goods. But Caden stopped them. He honored our betrothal and married me, but only so he could torture me himself. “It’s all your fault,” he would hiss, his voice dripping with venom. “The day you came back, why did you have to cry in front of Sophie? She had done nothing wrong. Why did you have to drive her away? Why couldn’t you just let her be?” “…Iris,” he’d whisper in the dark, “you have to atone for what you did to Sophie.” Later, I died in childbirth. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the morning they first came to the orphanage. The little girl in the bed next to mine asked for the heirloom locket I had worn my entire life. I froze for a second. Then I smiled. “Of course. It’s yours.” 1. The words had barely left my lips when the little girl stared, first in disbelief, then with a look of pure, unadulterated joy spreading across her face. “Really?! Iris, you’d really give it to me?” She hesitated, her eyes scanning me up and down. “But… isn’t this your most precious thing? You always said you’d wear it until your family came for you.” Everyone at the orphanage knew that the locket around my neck was more important to me than life itself. The matron told me it was on me when she found me as a baby. “It’s from your mommy and daddy, Iris,” she would say, stroking my hair. “They’ll come back for you one day.” That sliver of hope became my anchor. Other children were jealous; many tried to snatch my locket. Once, when a group of them cornered me, I swallowed it whole rather than let them take it. I nearly had to be rushed to the hospital. After that, they left me alone. But now, I calmly unclasped the locket from my neck and placed it in the girl’s small hand. I smiled at her. “Of course, it’s real. It’s yours now.” “I… I don’t want it anymore,” I added softly. The girl’s fingers instinctively closed around the locket, clutching it to her chest as if she expected me to snatch it back. I didn’t move. In my past life, the Daltons had identified me by that very locket. But this time, I would give up anything to sever all ties with them. In this life, the Daltons would still find their long-lost daughter. But it would not be me. When the Daltons arrived at the orphanage, I feigned a stomachache and hid myself away. Later that day, I heard the news. The prestigious Dalton family from the city had finally found their daughter. It was the girl now wearing my locket, Anna. No, she would be Anna Dalton now. That night, back in the cramped dormitory, I listened to the soft breathing of the other girls. For the first time in my life, a profound peace settled over my heart. In this life, I thought, I finally don’t owe anyone anything. 2. I would later learn that I’d been far too naive. Two days later, the Daltons returned to the orphanage. They said they’d made a mistake. It was then I understood. The Daltons hadn’t just relied on a locket to identify me all those years ago. In my past life, they must have secretly run a DNA test when they took me home. It just happened to confirm I was theirs. This time, Anna was not. The director had all of us girls, aged six and seven, line up in a row. Mr. and Mrs. Dalton followed him, their eyes scanning each of us. Stalking ahead of them, dressed in expensive clothes with an air of profound boredom, was the boy who had been my brother, Elias. I shrank into a corner, keeping my head bowed low. At this age, I was malnourished and frail, a small and unremarkable child. The Daltons passed by me without a second glance. Elias’s gaze swept over me and moved on, completely indifferent. After they left, the matron informed us that all the girls would have to give a blood sample the next day. A chill went down my spine. As I stood there, lost and afraid, I saw the matron escort another woman into the room. She was dressed simply and was alone, a stark contrast to the Daltons’ grand entourage. There was no grand lineup for her. Her eyes, as she looked at us, were gentle, though hesitant. I recognized her. She was a maid at the Dalton estate. I’d seen her there. In my past life, after Sophie’s suicide, the Daltons forbade me from eating dinner. “We heard that after Sophie was cast out, she could barely afford to eat. She developed stomach problems at such a young age, while you were here, living in luxury,” Elias had sneered, his eyes filled with disgust. “The least you can do is feel a fraction of her pain.” Soon, being denied dinner escalated to being allowed only one meal a day—cold leftovers. Back then, she was the only one who showed me any kindness. She would secretly slip a piece of bread or some food through the crack in my door. Remembering this, I made a bold decision. As she walked closer, I lunged forward, wrapped my arms around her legs, and cried out, “Mama!” 3. The next day, while the other girls from the orphanage were being organized by the director to have their blood drawn, I was on a bus with my new mother, heading back to her hometown. The Daltons provided housing for their staff, so logically, I should have moved into the servants’ quarters with her. But I told my mother I was scared and wanted to wait a little longer. Meanwhile, the Daltons, ever suspicious after losing their daughter to a rival’s scheme, grew wary. After discovering the imposter, they feared it was a trap. They didn’t question anyone else at the orphanage, focusing solely on Anna. Anna insisted the locket had been hers since birth. In the end, the Daltons passed her off to a distant branch of the family to be raised, and the trail to their real daughter went cold. By the time I set foot in the Dalton house in this lifetime, two months had passed. The dust had settled. The day my mother and I moved in, a young Sophie was curled up on the living room sofa, crying in Elias’s arms. “Elias, are you sure Mom and Dad won’t send me away? Can I really stay?” Elias looked awkward but patted her back rhythmically. “What are you talking about? Even if she comes back, they won’t kick you out.” He scoffed. “You’ve been spoiled rotten your whole life. How would you survive out there on your own? Mom and Dad would worry themselves to death.” Sophie peeked up at him. “And you, Elias? Wouldn’t you worry about me?” He paused, then a smile broke across his face. “Alright, alright. I’d worry the most, okay?” It was a picture of perfect family harmony. I smiled, too. Then I turned and slipped into the servant’s room. 4. No one at the Dalton estate suspected a thing. My mother explained that I was her daughter and had been living with my grandmother in the countryside. Mrs. Dalton didn’t recognize me. She knelt down to look at me, and for a moment, her eyes grew misty. “…Iris,” she said, her voice soft. “There’s another girl in the house about your age. She’s a very pretty young lady.” “But she’s been very sad lately. Would you be willing to play with her?” Mrs. Dalton wanted me to be Sophie’s companion. I thought for a moment, then nodded. “Okay.” Honestly, aside from being a bit spoiled, Sophie was easy to get along with. You just had to coddle her. Mr. and Mrs. Dalton were kind to me because I was their daughter’s playmate, and my new mother doted on me as if I were her own. The only person who kept his distance was Elias. He looked down on the daughter of a maid and treated me like I was invisible. Sometimes, though, I would catch him looking at me with a frown. I always pretended not to notice. It wasn’t long before I saw Caden at the Dalton house. “Caden!” Sophie cried, throwing herself into his arms like a joyful bird. It was then I learned that the marriage pact between the Dalton and Caden’s families was arranged before their children were even born. Caden and Sophie were childhood sweethearts. No wonder. No wonder he had hated me so much in our past life after her death. He had even married me, sacrificing his own life, just to avenge her. In this life, Sophie was safe and sound, still the beloved princess of the Dalton family. They should have a happy ending this time. Lost in thought, I didn’t realize Caden’s eyes had drifted towards me. When they did, I turned my head as if fascinated by something outside the window, deliberately missing his gaze. 5. Time flew. Before I knew it, Sophie and I were seniors in high school. I still lived with the Daltons. Nurtured by her family and Caden, Sophie had blossomed. The childhood trauma of discovering she wasn’t a true Dalton had faded. In this life, she was beautiful, smart, and proud—the queen of our school. As for me, I kept a polite distance from everyone. Elias still couldn’t stand me, occasionally tossing a snide remark my way. I never understood his animosity, but I didn’t care. And Caden… he was cold to everyone but Sophie, a fortress of indifference. The only thing that puzzled me was that Caden didn’t seem to love Sophie romantically. He treated her more like a little sister. One day, I happened to see Sophie run out of Caden’s room, crying. Noticing me, she instinctively covered her exposed shoulder, her face a mixture of anger and shame. Her eyes landed on my face, and she paused. “…Stop.” She stared at me for a long moment. “I heard you sprained your ankle at the track meet last week. And Caden carried you to the nurse’s office?” I blinked, recalling the incident. Someone had knocked me over, and I’d twisted my ankle. Before I could even react, I was being lifted into the air. The person holding me had a cool, clean scent. I looked up at a sharp jawline and realized it was Caden. I had wanted to tell him to put me down, but he just pursed his lips and carried me to the nurse’s office without a word. Truthfully, Caden and I had barely spoken over the years. Yet, for some reason, I always seemed to run into him. Thinking about it, I gave a soft “Mm-hmm.” Sophie’s expression darkened. “Are you two close? Why would he carry you? He wouldn’t even…” She cut herself off. The air grew thick with tension. Finally, her eyes red, she looked at me and said, “When are you moving out of my house?” “You’re not planning to freeload here forever, are you? Do you really think you’re one of us?” I lowered my eyes. “Don’t worry,” I said. “As soon as I graduate, I’ll move out.” I never wanted to stay at the Dalton’s house anyway. My mother had spent all her savings and sold her house to pay for her late husband’s cancer treatments. Taking me in was already a burden. I couldn’t be selfish. Once I got into college, everything would be different. Without looking at her again, I turned and walked away. I had never intended to overstay my welcome. In this new life, I was going to be free. 6. Sophie didn’t say anything about my plan to apply to S-State University. Elias, however, was acting strangely. One day, he abruptly asked me why I wanted to go so far away. “No reason. Just want to see the world,” I said dismissively. He was silent for a moment, then, looking irritated, he suddenly slammed his fork down and stormed upstairs. “What’s with him? His temper is getting worse and worse…” Mrs. Dalton muttered, bewildered. I just kept my head down and ate. Mr. and Mrs. Dalton were surprised by my choice, but they were supportive. After all, I was just the maid’s daughter. My life was none of their concern. I thought that was the end of it. But the next day, during a break between classes, Caden found me. I was confused. He got straight to the point. “I hear you’re applying to S-State.” I nodded. The air suddenly felt colder. I looked up and saw him staring at me, his eyes like chips of ice. “Why?” he asked. “Didn’t you and Sophie promise to go to A-City University together?” That was just to placate her. Besides, I doubted Sophie still felt that way. But I just said, “That has nothing to do with you.” The fingers of his hand, hanging by his side, curled into a fist. Then, without another word, he turned and left. For the rest of the semester, I threw myself into my studies. I signed up for three tutoring programs, my days and weekends packed. Sophie and I, by some unspoken agreement, stopped hanging out. Although I still lived in the same house, I rarely saw her or her brother, let alone Caden. Part of it was intentional. With my new life so close, I didn’t want any distractions. That weekend was Sophie’s seventeenth birthday. I had a tutoring session and figured she probably didn’t want me there anyway, so I asked Elias to give her my gift. He took it, looking displeased. “Sophie’s just having a small party at home with close friends. Why can’t you come?” I apologized and said I really couldn’t make it. He left in a huff. After my session, I still had a difficult problem I couldn’t solve, so I went to a classmate’s house to study. It was almost eleven when my mother called. My friend offered to let me stay the night, and I agreed. Just as I was about to call my mom back, my phone rang. It was Caden. His voice was calm. “Where are you? Send me the address.” “I’m on my way to pick you up.” Before I could refuse, he added, “Your mother is worried.” I paused. “Okay. Thank you.” I sent him my location. Ten minutes later, I got a text. “Downstairs.” I said goodbye to my friend and took the elevator down. Caden’s car was parked in the darkness. I opened the back door and slid in. The car started smoothly. I put in my earbuds and played some music. Out of the blue, Caden spoke. “Do you hate me?” I was startled. Then I smiled. “No, of course not.” I added, “We don’t know each other well enough for me to hate you.” 7. My mind drifted back to my past life. I had just been welcomed back into the Dalton family, finally reunited with the parents and brother I had longed for. Then, I saw Sophie. I was small and thin, shy and insecure. She, the girl who had taken my place, was beautiful and fair, dressed in an expensive princess gown, raised with all the love in the world. She cried the moment she saw me, her tear-filled eyes looking to her parents, to her brother. So I cried too. We were both terrified of being abandoned. After much deliberation, Mr. and Mrs. Dalton made the difficult decision to send Sophie away. And just like that, the beautiful, delicate girl vanished from my life. Until my eighteenth birthday. Sophie took her own life in a tiny, cramped apartment. Only then did the Daltons discover the truth of her miserable existence. They had given her a large sum of money when they sent her away, but she was just a young, lonely girl. She couldn’t protect it. She was swindled out of everything and fell into massive debt. She worked four jobs, developed depression, and… While the Daltons were throwing a lavish coming-of-age party for me, Sophie was being assaulted by thugs in a dark alley. She saw the news of my party and ended her life in her tiny, squalid room. And so, everyone was filled with regret. The day of her funeral, Elias came home and, without a word, slapped me across the face. The force of it split my lip and made my vision swim. Mr. and Mrs. Dalton just stood by and watched. In that moment, I understood. A deep, unstoppable hatred for me had taken root in their hearts.

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1 When I was eighteen, I was sexually assaulted. But no matter how many times I appealed, the perpetrator, with the help of a mysterious lawyer, always managed to escape justice. My mother, while delivering takeout, consoled me. “Trust me, sweetheart, bad people always get their comeuppance.” Though I was heartbroken, I was grateful for Mom’s presence, so I posted the video of her comforting me online. To my surprise, the video blew up the next day, with comments pouring in. “Isn’t your mom the most famous lawyer in the legal world?” “And you’re saying a lawyer couldn’t help you after being assaulted? Who could ever beat your mom?” Seeing this, I was about to confront Mom when I heard that nightmarish voice from behind her door. “You’re still the best lawyer, never made me set foot in court all these years.” Mom scoffed. “Cut the nonsense. If it weren’t to maintain my undefeated record, why would I be your defense attorney and harm my own daughter?” At the sound, my phone. It clattered to the floor with a bang. … Mom heard the noise and walked towards the door. “Is that Lily outside?” Her voice was as gentle as always, which made it impossible for me to believe that the lawyer hiding behind that man was Mom. The door opened. I looked into Mom’s eyes, my voice trembling. “Mom, what were you just saying?” Mom’s gaze avoided mine. “Nothing, Lily. You should get some rest. Mom needs to go deliver takeout.” I watched her hurried escape, and tears finally slipped from my eyes. I grabbed her clothes, asking, somewhat out of control, “Mom, was it really you?” Mom didn’t turn around, just kept repeating, “Lily, I don’t understand what you’re saying.” Then, she pulled her shirt hem from my grasp. My hands were empty, and so was my heart. I knelt on the floor, self-destructively scrolling through the video comments. “This isn’t really staged by this girl, is it? Her own mother won’t even help her.” “Maybe she provoked him.” “I knew it. Who just randomly assaults someone on the street? It takes two to tango, right?” Tears hit the phone screen, blurring the words and making it impossible for me to read what people were saying. “Ding-ding—” A message popped up on my phone. “Surprise, right? Your mother is my defense attorney. It wasn’t me who pushed you into the abyss, it was the person you loved most.” It was that man, Marcus. His words shattered my last shred of illusion, bluntly telling me that the person who had caused me so much pain for all these years was my beloved mother. I got up from the floor and started packing. I had to leave this place. But the moment I grabbed my suitcase and opened the front door, I regretted it. I wanted to give Mom and me another chance. She raised me, cared for me; I couldn’t believe she felt no love for me at all. I dragged the suitcase back, sat on the sofa, and waited for Mom to come home, to give me an answer. 2 Darkness slowly consumed me as I sat on the sofa. The door opened. Mom walked in, turned on the lights, and seeing me on the sofa, she jumped. “Lily, what are you doing sitting there?” I didn’t speak, just held my phone up to her. Mom’s face slowly reddened as she looked at the comments. “Lily, these people are all lying to you.” Although I had anticipated Mom’s reaction, at that moment, I still couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow. I nodded, then put the message that man sent me in front of Mom. “Is this also a lie?” Mom looked at me, her mouth opening and closing, unable to speak. I grabbed her clothes, crying as if my heart was tearing. “Mom, why? You knew everything! Why?!” Mom seemed to be lashing out in anger, or perhaps provoked by my disrespectful demeanor, and shoved me to the ground. “He didn’t have money for a lawyer; the court directly appointed me as his legal counsel! What was I supposed to do?!” I lay on the floor, looking at Mom. I had never seen Mom like this before: agitated, breaking down. She pointed at me. “Do you think I wanted this? Do you think I wanted him to win?! But I had no choice!” I sobbed, my voice choked with tears. “How could you have no choice? You clearly could have… could have given up defending him.” “That would ruin my hundred percent win rate, absolutely not!” Mom’s answer came without a moment’s hesitation. The speech I had prepared in my head was now impossible to deliver. Mom looked at me, head bowed in silence, and her tone softened a little. “Lily, I never intended for you to know about this. Now that you do, don’t appeal again.” I scrambled up from the floor, out of control. “Why! Are you going to strip away my right to appeal too?!” My voice was loud, but the tremor in it was unmistakable. I didn’t understand. In Mom’s eyes, did all my suffering, all this pain, mean less than her hundred percent win rate? Mom sat on the sofa, looking at me, standing in the middle of the living room, my face flushed with anger. “Do you think you can find a lawyer who can beat me? The money I gave you isn’t enough to hire a good lawyer, is it?” Her voice carried a hint of triumph. Triumph that she had long prepared for this very situation. The money she gave me wasn’t much, just enough for basic needs. Whenever I used to ask her for money for a lawyer, she would pull out a few crumpled hundred-dollar bills from her pocket and hand them to me, saying: “This is what Mom earned lately, working tirelessly delivering takeout. Take it and hire a lawyer. Mom will definitely make sure that man goes to jail!” But I would look at her hunched back, and only take a few bills each time. That money was never enough to hire a decent lawyer, but I never blamed her. I truly believed back then that she endured wind and rain every day delivering takeout, and every night I would feel guilty. It turned out it was all a lie. Tears flowed uncontrollably. “Mom, if you promise not to defend him next time, I’ll pretend I never knew any of this, okay?” 3 I pleaded humbly. I knew I should be running out the door right now, or at the very least, cursing her fiercely. But I still chose to beg, because she was my mother, and I knew she loved me. Her tears were real when she found out I had been assaulted. It was real, too, that she held my hand day and night, afraid I might do something drastic and leave her. So I was willing, I was willing to give her another chance. If only she would say yes. I looked at her with desperate hope, but she remained silent. My heart leapt into my throat. “No.” My heart shattered. She looked at my trembling form and said, “Lily, if I win, I can give you a better life. The past is over; let’s not dwell on it.” I don’t know why she thought the past was over for me. I backed away. “Mom, if you’re still going to defend him, then just pretend you never had a daughter like me.” She stood up, slamming the delivery helmet she was holding onto the floor. “How long are you going to keep this up?! Can’t we just live a peaceful life? It’s been years, hasn’t that incident passed in your mind?!” I was startled by her outburst. She actually thought that continuing to appeal was my fault. I didn’t want to talk to her anymore. Perhaps we were destined to cut ties. I pushed my suitcase towards the door. “Mom, I won’t give up. I don’t believe injustice can truly triumph over justice.” I opened the door. One foot had just stepped out when I heard Mom’s voice. “Lily Evans, if you don’t want me as your mother anymore, then leave! Once you go, don’t ever come back!” I didn’t hesitate. My other foot stepped out the door. Mom, you weren’t giving me a chance; I was giving you a chance. You didn’t take it, so now we only have this path. I closed the door, shutting out her voice. Dragging my suitcase downstairs, I suddenly didn’t know where to go. Was I really wrong? Should that incident really be ‘over’ for me? My phone rang again. That man had sent me another message. “Your mom told me you still plan to appeal? Heh, I’ll be waiting.” What followed were more obscene words. He said I wouldn’t win, that my failure would give more people like him confidence, that I would harm more girls. He said he still remembered how I tasted. My hands squeezed the phone tightly. How could it be over?! How could it?! 4 I blocked him. I wanted him to lose, for him and everyone with those vile thoughts to know the consequences of their actions. I took out my phone and filed the lawsuit again. I wouldn’t stop, not until the appeal period ended. But now I needed money. Enough money to hire a better lawyer. I dragged my suitcase, found a random motel, and started a livestream. Because of the video I posted tonight, I had gained quite a few followers. Many people joined as soon as they saw me go live. The comments were mostly about me, but I remained silent, waiting for the viewership to grow. Soon, it surpassed a hundred thousand. I finally began to speak. “Hello everyone. You probably know I’m the girl who was assaulted.” As soon as I said this, the comments section flooded even faster. Most people called me indecent, saying how could I even talk about such a thing on livestream. I ignored them and just told my entire story. Slowly, the speed of the comments slowed down, and my voice began to crack with emotion. I still couldn’t accept that my own mother was the source of my pain. After finishing my story, I paused for a moment, composing myself before continuing. “I’m not saying all this to seek pity. It’s just that I genuinely don’t have money to hire a lawyer right now. Can anyone help me? I can write an IOU and pay you back as soon as I start working.” Suddenly, all sorts of gifts filled my screen. The comments section was filled with people saying I didn’t need to pay them back. I cried and bowed to everyone. But truthfully, there were still many negative comments, which I ignored completely. Just as I was about to end the stream, there was a forceful knock on my door. I walked over and asked. “Who is it?” “Miss Evans… it’s… I’m here to bring you water.” It was the front desk’s voice, but for some reason, her voice was trembling slightly. I opened the door. It was Marcus. He held a knife to the front desk attendant’s throat. When he saw me open the door, he shoved her aside. He stormed in. “Damn you, you bitch! Do you have a death wish?! Who gave you permission to talk about this on stream? Don’t you have any shame?!” I knew why he was so angry. Because I had just directly said his name on the livestream. That little bit of dignity he had desperately tried to maintain, I had ripped it away. “You deserve it! If you hadn’t done those things, what would I have to say? Besides, you’re the one who should feel shame!” He took a few steps forward and grabbed my throat. “You dead woman, I’m going to kill you right now.” I fell backward, not struggling at all. Because I knew his assault would be broadcast completely live. This time, hundreds of thousands of viewers were my witnesses. I didn’t believe I would lose.

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Scrolling through a forum at work, a post caught my eye: [I think my wife doesn’t like me.] [She likes looking at my face, but whenever she sees my body, she looks away in disgust.] [She barely touched the breakfast I made this morning.] [And she forgot the bento box I packed for her… Does she not like me at all?] What kind of person is this? I thought, shaking my head. Then I reached into my tote bag for the adorable bento box my own sweet husband had made for me. I rummaged around. And around. Wait a minute. Where was my bento box?! 1 It was just past ten when I finished the proposal, with more than an hour to go until lunch. Operating under the sacred principle of “a workday without slacking is a day wasted,” I happily pulled out my phone. A forum post immediately grabbed my attention: [Help, I think my wife doesn’t like me. What should I do?] The thread was blowing up. Hundreds of comments in just a couple of hours. [Care to elaborate?] [Is this an arranged marriage or something?] The original poster (OP) patiently replied: [Not an arranged marriage. We met on a blind date. Her mom and my mom are best friends.] [It was love at first sight for me. She’s beautiful, kind, and gentle. Just… perfect.] [I’m decent-looking, but my body isn’t her type.] What kind of body? A beanpole? The commenters seemed to think so too, but OP quickly clarified. [I’m the… really built type. I was born with a larger chest, and my shirt buttons are always straining. It’s honestly a problem for me.] [The main issue is, my wife hates my body. Is there any way to make my chest smaller?] A user asked, reasonably: [How do you know she doesn’t like it? If she hated it, she probably wouldn’t have gotten together with you in the first place, right?] OP posted a [sad] emoji. [She likes my face, but whenever she glances down at my body, she turns away with this look of disgust.] [Once or twice, I could tell myself it was a coincidence. But it’s happened too many times to ignore.] [I think she only agreed to date me because of our moms. She’s too kind to say anything mean about my body, and she even tells her parents I’m thoughtful and sweet.] Ah, a gentle, insecure, large-chested househusband. A “himbo,” if you will. And there are people in the world who don’t appreciate this type? Tragic lack of taste. 2 Come to think of it, Liam and I also met on a blind date. And our mothers are also the best of friends. When my mom first suggested I meet her friend’s son, I was reluctant. My type was very specific: big-chested, gentle, husband material. Liam’s mom was five-foot-two and weighed maybe a hundred pounds soaking wet. His dad was the opposite, six feet tall and built like a friendly bear. I couldn’t imagine what their son would look like. What if he wasn’t my type? It would be so awkward to turn him down and potentially strain our mothers’ friendship. My mom just waved off my concerns. “Do you think I don’t know what you like? I’ve seen him. Trust me, you’ll be more than satisfied.” My heart sank. Then she produced a photo. A guy in his twenties, sunglasses, leather jacket. Not bad-looking. Broad shoulders, trim waist, lean muscle. But still, not the type to make my jaw drop. As I was about to sigh, my mom grinned. “That’s not Liam.” I was confused. “Then who is it?” “That’s his dad.” My world tilted. There was no way the cool, lean guy in the photo was the same person as Liam’s cheerful, portly father. “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” my mom said, tucking the photo away. “His dad only gained weight because of medication. Back in the day, he was the village heartthrob. And Liam… well, let’s just say the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. In fact, it rolled to a much better spot. Just go see for yourself.” 3 My curiosity piqued, I agreed to the date. It was at a cozy café, the kind of place you see in romantic movies. Before I left, my mom gave me a “secret weapon,” a small sealed envelope she told me to open only after we’d met. Standing outside the café, I could feel the envelope in my pocket, a little thrill running through me. I pushed open the door and scanned for our table: third from the entrance, by the window. One, two… three. The first thing I saw was a broad shoulder. Then, a chest so powerful it looked like it was about to burst the buttons of his shirt. The man looked up. A handsome, fair-skinned face met my eyes. My breath hitched. My brain went completely blank. A wave of heat washed over me, and I had the sudden, primal urge to run to the nearest park fountain and beat my chest like a gorilla. I restrained myself. Relying on pure muscle memory, I produced the smile I had practiced a hundred times in the mirror. Liam’s ears turned a shy, adorable red. “You… you must be Audrey?” I gracefully took my seat. He nodded, pushing a glass of peach soda toward me. I blinked. “My mom said you like this,” he said softly, a bashful smile playing on his lips. “So I ordered one for you. I hope that’s okay?” Marry me, my brain screamed. Outwardly, I just took the glass, tucked a stray hair behind my ear, and took a delicate sip. Then I looked up and gave him my most dazzling smile. “Thank you. I love it.” 4 I couldn’t believe my mom knew me so well. Liam was my dream man personified: broad shoulders, narrow waist, huge chest, a handsome face, and that perfect husband vibe. While he was in the restroom, my hands trembled as I opened the “secret weapon.” It was a single slip of paper. Honey, your mom knows best, right? Aren’t you just dying? Dying was an understatement. I love you, Mom! Mwah mwah mwah!!! 5 We exchanged numbers, and after a few more dates, we met each other’s parents and set a wedding date. It all happened so fast, so smoothly. Every time I looked at his face, at that magnificent chest, I wanted to drag him to the courthouse right then and there. They say marriage is the tomb of love, but the thought of having Liam all to myself, even in a tomb, was thrilling. On our wedding day, he wore a custom-tailored suit that accentuated his physique perfectly. During the ring exchange, I finally broke. A warm drop of blood dripped from my nose onto my arm. I didn’t even notice at first, but Liam saw it and panicked, cupping his large hands to catch the flow. The officiant rushed over with napkins, and the ceremony was hastily concluded. Liam carried me, princess-style, to the lounge. I finally got to feel those incredible pecs, but we still hadn’t kissed. Seeing me staring at him, his ears went red again. “Wh-what is it?” “I want a kiss.” He froze for a second, a blush creeping up his neck. Then he leaned down. A feather-light touch. My heart hammered against my ribs. 6 Snapping back to the present, I was still reliving that day. Thinking about Liam was my ultimate work-day pick-me-up. The wife in that forum post had no idea how good she had it. Young people these days, chasing after skinny guys when a real man is right in front of them. The comments were all trying to console the OP, but I just wanted to shake his wife. Cherish him! Not every girl is lucky enough to find her perfect, pure-hearted, big-tiddied man! I kept scrolling, morbidly fascinated by his insecurity. [My wife is amazing. Everyone at her company loves her. Her boss really admires her.] [I’m not on her level. I’m an introvert, not good with people, so I’m a stay-at-home husband.] [I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that. I love being her support system, and I love cooking for her.] [But she doesn’t seem to like my cooking. She barely ate breakfast this morning.] [And she left the bento box I packed for her… Does she not like me at all?] A user asked: [So you don’t have a job? Just your wife works?] [That’s not good, man. Everyone needs their own career.] OP replied: [I don’t have a job, but I have an income. I just collect rent every month.] [Thanks for the concern, but I’m happy where I am.] A landlord. Come to think of it, Liam’s family also owned a bunch of properties. Was this a househusband thing? [If you don’t mind my asking, how many properties are we talking about?] OP: [A few here and there. About five buildings in total.] [BUILDINGS?!] [I thought this was a sad story, turns out it’s about a secret tycoon.] A tycoon, maybe. But anyone can be anything on the internet. 7 I went to the breakroom for some water and got caught up in a twenty-minute gossip session with my work bestie. When I got back to my desk, the post had been updated. [My wife’s suitor once met with me and told me to divorce her.] [I know I’m not good enough for her, but I love her so much.] Whoa. Plot twist. I immediately forwarded the post to my friend. [Her suitor is her boss. He said he’s liked her for years, they were college classmates. He knew her long before I did… but I don’t want to let her go.] The comments exploded with advice. [Just ask your wife directly! Be upfront!] [She married you! Obviously, she loves you more!] [If your boss is hitting on you, isn’t that a hostile work environment? She should find a new job!] OP only replied to the last one: [My wife and her boss have always just been friends. I don’t think she even realizes he likes her.] A comment shot to the top: [If you sit next to a bonfire, don’t you feel the heat?] [I think your wife knows, but doesn’t want to ruin the friendship, so she ignores it.] The thread quickly turned against the wife. [But they’re married! Setting boundaries is essential.] [She’d rather hurt her husband than a ‘friend’?] OP rushed to her defense: [No, it’s not like that. My wife is just a very straightforward, simple person.] [Lots of guys had crushes on her before, but she never noticed. That’s why she’d never been in a relationship before me.] [Her mom told me all this. My wife has no idea.] [And the suitor never actually confessed to her. My wife genuinely doesn’t know he likes her.] Never been in a relationship before? That sounded familiar. I was the same way before I met Liam. Our wedding kiss was my first kiss. The comments were merciless, telling OP he was being played by a manipulative woman. But I wondered… could someone really be that oblivious?

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