Chapter 3

By the time I brought Minnie home, Alden and Clarissa were nowhere to be seen.

I went back to my bedroom and threw all of Clarissa and the baby's stuff out the door.

That included every single photo of Alden and I from the wall.

Those pictures recorded the day we started dating to our wedding, including every birthday, anniversary, trip, and all the little moments in between.

Over the years, the polaroids had covered the whole wall.

I used to just stare at those photos, trying to convince myself that Alden and I were still truly in love.

But now, I wasn't going to lie to myself anymore.

Just as I finished cleaning up, I got a call from the dance troupe director. He was earnestly urging me to join next month's tour, just like he always did.

This time, I didn't even let him finish before I agreed.

I'd been taking a backseat in the dance troupe for ages.

After Clarissa got pregnant and quit, she just couldn't stand seeing me as the lead dancer. She always blamed her being hormonal from pregnancy to cover up how jealous she was of me.

Alden would always soften up and ask me to quit dancing, and then transfer me money like that was supposed to make it all better.

So I slowly became a supporting dancer and stopped joining the major tours.

I just didn't want to put Alden in a tough spot.

But now, why should I sacrifice my career for love? Alden had nothing left to offer me.

After Clarissa and the baby finished their check-up, Alden brought them back home.

As soon as he saw me, Alden made some effort to be friendly.

"You and Minnie doing okay at home?" he asked.

I couldn't stand how Clarissa looked all smug, holding the baby behind him. Ignoring his question, I said, "Minnie's doing a lot better since I brought her home."

Maybe because they felt guilty, neither of them said a word. Alden looked like he was waiting for me to vent, hoping we could make up afterward.

But I just opened a package in silence and took out a toy.

Alden instinctively stepped forward, reaching out to take it.

"This is a toy I bought for Minnie. I wasn't trying to take Clarissa's kid's toy," I said.

His face fell, and he stammered, "O-Oh, I see. I thought wrong."

Suddenly, I remembered how I used to bend over backwards for Alden, even buying toys and clothes in advance for Clarissa's kid just to keep him happy.

But now, my heart was only aching for Minnie.

"Alden, can you go to the pharmacy and grab me a bottle of multivitamin C?" Clarissa said then.

Alden agreed without a second thought, just like always. Clarissa lifted her chin at me, looking all triumphant, like she'd scored some big win.

I couldn't care less. I just kept playing with Minnie and her new toy.

When Alden came back with a big bag of vitamins and supplements, Clarissa's smile vanished.

"Why'd you buy the same supplements for me and Zara?" she complained.

"They're good for both moms and babies. You and Zara both need the extra nutrition right now," Alden said.

He shot me a guilty look.

I just felt confused.

Back then, I couldn't even ask Alden for the same things Clarissa had. Even if I took something she didn't want, he'd still get on my case about it.

"Zara, Clarissa's pregnant. Her diet and supplements need to be carefully chosen. Why do you insist on having the same things as her? Are you just trying to stir things up?" Alden would say.

Later, when I got pregnant, Alden came up with another excuse.

"Clarissa's in a critical stage of her pregnancy. It's only right for me to spend more time and money on her. You're just in the early stages, so there's no need to go overboard for you yet," he said.

But now, what was going on with him? Suddenly, I was just as important as Clarissa?

Before I could even reach for my own supplements, Clarissa started tearing up, clutching her baby, both of them in tears.

I said, "It's not my fault she's so sensitive. I didn't even ask for these supplements."

No matter what Alden said, I turned around with Minnie in my arms and headed back to my room.

When Alden reached out to stop me, I shot him a cold, indifferent look.

"Why don't you go play the caring husband and look after Clarissa and the baby? She just became a mom, so you better keep an eye on her emotions. Wouldn't want her slipping into postpartum depression, right?" I said.

My concern wasn't unfounded, but Alden got worked up.

"Zara, I'm being fair to both you and Clarissa now. Why are you still giving me that attitude?" he snapped.

Turned out he knew he'd been treating me unfairly all along.

But now, I felt Alden was the one being unreasonable.

"Back then, whenever I wanted the same stuff as Clarissa, you just said I was being childish," I shot back.

I frowned. "And now you went and got me the exact same supplements as her. So what are you mad at me for?"

He just got even more agitated. "But Clarissa only gets so worked up because of you!"

He was just impossible to reason with. I didn't want to waste another breath on this.

I said, "Fine, it's all my fault. I'm the one messing up your happy family. Go on, comfort your precious baby and the new mom before she can't squeeze out another tear."