Betrayed by Love On the eve of the Latin dance competition finals, my wife and I had planned to go skydiving together. However, a hundred meters above the ground, the parachute cord suddenly snapped. To save her, I sacrificed myself and ended up paralyzed from the waist down. I could no longer dance Latin, the passion of my life. The harsh reality hit me hard, and I could only numb myself with tears. As I drifted in and out of consciousness, I overheard a conversation between the doctor and Sophia. “Mrs. Anderson, are you sure you want to give up on the treatment? With the latest technology, we can completely heal Mr. Luke’s condition by reconnecting the bones. If we delay any longer, his life will be ruined. Forget about dancing; even his ability to have children might be…” “It’s just paralysis, not death. Besides, we already have a son.” “I can’t let him steal the championship title that Jack has been dreaming of for so long.” Lying on the hospital bed, my trembling eyes shed hot tears. So, the vow of deep love for a lifetime was something only I believed in. If you don’t want my love, I’ll take it back. “Mrs. Anderson, are you sure you want to do this? Mr. Luke is already paralyzed and bedridden. If we cut his tendons now, he’ll never be able to stand up again for the rest of his life.” “I’ve already owed Jack five years. I can’t owe him a lifetime. I just want Luke to be okay. As for Jack… I’ll make it up to him for the rest of my life.” The doctor and Sophia’s words echoed in my ears, sending a deathly chill through my body. No wonder Sophia was so eager to get me into surgery. It wasn’t to save me, but to push me into an abyss of despair. When I opened my eyes again, the anesthesia had just worn off, and my legs were in excruciating pain. In no time, tears soaked my pillow. The pain seeped through every fiber of my being, and I didn’t even dare to cry out loud. Hearing the commotion, Sophia rushed in from outside, pretending to be anxious and worried. Seeing me, she burst into tears: “Honey, you’re finally awake. I thought I’d never see you again.” “How are you feeling? Any better? Promise me you’ll never do anything so dangerous again. You nearly scared me and our baby to death.” I was horrified to realize that I had never truly seen through her. My throat felt stuck, and I couldn’t speak. I could only force a slight smile, pretending that nothing had happened. She held my head against her chest: “Don’t worry, everything will be alright.” Suddenly, there was a commotion outside the door. “Young master, you can’t go in. Mr. Luke needs to rest.” “Mom, the toy Uncle Jack gave me is broken. Can you take me to see Uncle Jack?” Our son’s voice broke the silence. Sophia awkwardly held him back. “Be quiet for a moment, your dad is sick.” Only then did our son notice me lying on the hospital bed. “What happened to you?” I had been too busy with work at the dance studio to pay much attention to my son, so he wasn’t very close to me. Seeing my son so concerned, the coldness in my heart dissipated a little. After all, he was still my own flesh and blood. I instinctively wanted to caress my son, but Sophia pulled him away as if guarding against a thief. “Dad’s legs hurt. Don’t hurt him.” Despite her efforts to hide it, I could still see the disgust in her eyes. “Will Dad be disabled forever? I don’t like a disabled dad. Mom, I want Uncle Jack to be my dad.” I froze, my throat dry: “Baby, don’t you like Daddy?” My son shook his head. “I don’t like you. I like a dad who can dance Latin. Uncle Jack is better.” Just as I was about to speak up and educate him, Sophia quickly picked him up and carried him away. “Be good, baby. Dad needs some quiet. Let’s go outside, okay?” “Don’t take a child’s thoughtless words to heart.” I was about to say something when Sophia received a phone call. From my angle, I could clearly see the caller ID. The name “Jack” was glaring on the screen. As soon as she answered the call, Sophia walked towards the balcony. She had always taken good care of herself, maintaining a graceful figure, though she usually wore a cold expression. So, she could smile too. But the smile wasn’t for me. “Wait for me, I’ll be right there,” she said after a few words. Her eyes turned red, and tears welled up. I was about to call out to her, but to my surprise, she picked up our son and left. “There’s been a mishap at the competition venue, and Jack is injured. I’m going to check on him.” “Wait, I want to—” Before I could finish, she quickly cut me off. “Can’t you be more considerate? Jack loves Latin dance so much. If he suffers any injury, he’ll regret it for the rest of his life.” So, it’s okay for me to be paralyzed and have my tendons cut? Sophia, how much of the love you spoke of was actually real? For the next month, I didn’t see Sophia at all. On the day I was discharged from the hospital in a wheelchair, her image suddenly appeared on the rolling screen in the hospital lobby. But the person beside her wasn’t me. “We’ve heard that Mrs. Anderson and Mr. Jack were college sweethearts. After all these years, they still seem so in love. What’s the secret to keeping your love fresh? Can you share it with us?” “Mrs. Anderson has been by Mr. Jack’s side in the hospital, taking care of him non-stop. Mr. Jack, do you have anything to say about this?” “We’ve heard that Mr. Jack won the Latin dance competition. Do you two have any expectations for the grand finals two months from now?” Under the spotlight, her face blushed with girlish shyness. She turned to look at Jack: “I believe in Jack. He will definitely achieve his dream.” The audience erupted in thunderous applause. In a corner ignored by all, a tear slid down my cheek. College sweethearts? So, Jack had always been Sophia’s unattainable love. No wonder she was willing to give up the Anderson Group to accompany me. It turns out she had heard Jack would be there too. So she had planned all along to sacrifice me to pave the way for Jack. Realizing all this, my soul felt as if it had been ripped away. Heartbroken and disillusioned, I immediately sent a message to my brother, a doctor working in Southeast Asia. [I heard you were researching nano-periosteum regeneration technology before?] [No matter what the survival rate is, I want to do it.] After arranging a time with my brother, I returned to the home where I had lived for five years. Coincidentally, Sophia called. “Honey, I heard from the hospital that you’ve been discharged. Where are you now?” Before I could speak, Sophia continued: “The organizers are holding a celebration party. I’ll send you the address on your phone. This is the coronation ceremony for your good friend Jack. Don’t forget to come, okay?” She hung up without even waiting for my response. Good friend? She really knew how to make excuses for herself. I had met Jack less than twice in total. The banquet hall was set up on the top floor of a local five-star hotel. When I appeared in my wheelchair, I almost became the focus of the entire room. There were looks of contempt, mockery, sympathy… and more predominantly, disgust. Panic and unease overwhelmed me. After desperately searching for Sophia’s figure to no avail, I found my son next to a waiter. He saw me too. I moved my wheelchair forward: “Baby, where’s Mom?” But my son, who used to show me some respect, suddenly changed his expression. “You’re not my dad. I don’t have a useless dad like you.” Under everyone’s gaze, I felt utterly humiliated. I lowered my eyes and said bitterly, “I’m sorry, Dad has embarrassed you.” My son frantically tried to explain to those around him: “He’s not my dad. My dad is a healthy person named Jack.” Probably unable to bear the criticism, my son gave me a resentful look before running away in tears. It’s my fault that even my son doesn’t want to acknowledge me. Like a misfit monster, I avoided the crowd and moved my wheelchair up to the rooftop. A door separated two worlds, and I cried. Suddenly, I heard Sophia’s voice. “Jack, I was too impulsive five years ago. I still love you.” “Sophia, thank you for everything you’ve done for me, both five years ago and now. My feelings for you haven’t changed, but I never imagined that time would fly by so quickly. You already have a family and a child. It’s my fault for not being able to control my heart and loving you.” “No, it’s not your fault. You’re wonderful and deserve all the precious things in this world.” “Including you?” Through the thick glass door, I saw Sophia’s blushing cheeks. The sound of lips and teeth intertwining filled my ears as they made love again and again. “If Luke finds out what I’m doing with you, he’ll definitely be angry. Am I a bad person?” “He’s paralyzed in bed and can’t perform as a man anymore. I love you and want you. He’s just a useless cripple who can’t make any waves.” Listening to the sounds of their lovemaking, I felt nauseous. I frantically pushed my wheelchair away and hugged the trash can in the stairwell, vomiting violently. When I came out, I happened to run into Jack. I discreetly turned on my phone’s voice recorder. He looked satisfied, looking down at me condescendingly. “If I were you, I’d jump off the building and die right now. Your wife doesn’t love you, your child doesn’t recognize you. What’s the point of living?” “I know you saw everything just now. How does it feel to watch your own wife succumb to me with your own eyes? Not good, right? Do you know how I’ve lived these years? In every Latin dance competition, I was always overshadowed by you. But now it’s all good. You’re no longer a threat to me.” “To be honest, when Sophia first said she wanted you to voluntarily withdraw from the Latin Dance Association, I didn’t believe her. I never thought she would actually marry you and take you to start a business elsewhere. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have reached this position today.” Every word he said was like a knife stabbing into my heart, each sentence shattering my worldview. So, my relationship with Jack wasn’t just the two encounters I thought we had. In places I didn’t know about, he had looked up to me countless times. When Sophia married me back then, it was actually to clear obstacles for Jack. After five years, she made the same choice again, even though this time she was sacrificing my lifelong passion for Latin dance. She was still willing to do it. I gritted my teeth in hatred: “It’s because you’re not as skilled. You…” “Jack, are you done?” “I’m here, ah…” Right in front of me, Jack tripped over his own feet, fell down the stairs, bleeding profusely, and clutching his leg while screaming non-stop. Sophia immediately embraced Jack, glaring at me angrily. “He has done nothing wrong to you, so why did you do this!” Jack clung tightly to her sleeve in her arms: “It’s not his fault. I tripped over his wheelchair myself. I was in his way.” “Jack, when will you ever learn to be harsh? It’s clearly him who has held you back for decades!” After comforting Jack, she helped him leave, saying coldly: “You go back by yourself. I don’t want to see you right now.” I don’t know how I got back home. When I came to my senses, I had already drafted a divorce agreement. Tomorrow would have been our sixth wedding anniversary. But Sophia had probably forgotten about it. In this house, only the study was a place she would go to every day, but she never allowed me to enter. Walking into the study, the walls were covered with photos of her and Jack. In every picture, they were smiling brightly and tenderly. So, every day you were with me, you were thinking of him. I placed the divorce agreement on her desk. Out of some inexplicable impulse, I turned on the computer. The computer was password-protected. I suddenly remembered Jack’s birthday from a previous registration form and entered it without hesitation. The next second, the computer unlocked. What greeted my eyes was a photo of her kissing Jack. In the bottom right corner of the screen was a file she had named “Treasure”. With trembling hands, I clicked it open, and what I saw was a paternity test report. Below was a line in large letters, supporting that Jack was Ethan’s biological father. I couldn’t believe it and opened it repeatedly, reading it line by line, over and over again. Tears fell drop by drop until my eyes were sore from crying. The test was done one day after Ethan was born. So when I was eagerly awaiting the arrival of a new life, Sophia was secretly getting a paternity test done. She hadn’t even recovered from the pain of childbirth at that time. I shifted my gaze to Ethan’s 100-day photo on her desk and roughly took apart the frame. The words behind the photo instantly shattered all my self-esteem. [The child is yours. I’m so happy.] [Every day I spend with him is proof of my love for you.] The last line in small letters was even freshly written. [He’s crippled now, not much of a man anymore. From now on, I belong only to you.] I frantically swept everything off the desk. Trying to stand up from the wheelchair, I fell again and again, my tears almost dried up. What were all these years for? The daily busyness in the kitchen, every word of care, the gentle warmth of hot soup and ginger tea – in your eyes, were they all just declarations of love for another man? No wonder you were unwilling to say an extra word to me, to eat an extra bite of hot food. It turns out you were afraid of betrayal. The silent night almost engulfed me. I’ve always been an extra person. Since five years ago. If that’s the case, I’ll leave. I signed the divorce agreement and left it in the study. I erased all traces of my existence. Discarding everything related to her and our son, I bought a boat ticket in the middle of the night, packed my bags, and left. The next morning, the housekeeper called Sophia. “Ms. Anderson, I just received a call from the port. They said Mr. Luke met with an accident at sea, and his body was never found…” “What nonsense are you talking about? How could a cripple go to sea? And what about the anniversary gift I asked you to buy for him? Did you give it to him?” “I didn’t have a chance to give it to him before Mr. Luke disappeared. Also, it seems he found out that you instructed the doctors not to treat him and even had them cut his tendons. I found a suicide note in his room.” As the housekeeper’s voice continued to echo, the phone suddenly slipped from Sophia’s hand.
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