Chapter 3

I abandoned my wife and my child.

The scene back then was chaotic and humiliating, even making the local trending searches.

Scarlett publicly condemned me, resolutely signing the divorce agreement, cutting ties between us.

A gentle smile appeared on my lips. "She is the best person I've ever met in my life."

Cambria looked puzzled. "If Ms. Byrd is such a good person, why did you two still divorce?"

I smiled and said, "Because I cheated."

"What?" Disbelief filled her eyes. "Is that true?"

I said, "Of course not.

"I'm already gravely ill. Besides, I love her deeply. How could I ever look at another woman?"

I smiled and asked, "Aren't you working in social media? Why do you believe everything I say? Young people are easily deceived."

Cambria blushed and stammered, "I... I just started in this field.

"If you haven't cheated, why do you insist on breaking up and getting divorced?"

My smile faded as a hint of sorrow appeared in my eyes.

I said, "Because I owe her too much."

Six years ago, Scarlett, my girlfriend of four years, wanted to marry me, but I refused.

At that time, my mother was seriously ill and waiting for a bone marrow transplant.

The cost of the bone marrow transplant, combined with other medical expenses, was nearly 300 thousand dollars.

My dad said, "Our family can't afford it anymore, and we can't drag Scarlett's family into this."

I agreed with them. I worked long hours with my father to earn money.

I knew a long time ago how harsh life could be. Because we couldn't pay the 7 thousand dollars for hospitalization, my mother was pushed out into the corridor.

Every second spent raising money was a race against time and life.

I thought that when Scarlett learned about my family's situation, she would choose to end our relationship.

But she didn't.

After I refused to get married, Scarlett came to see me more than once. One time, she looked at me softly and said gently, "Finlay, don't be afraid. You still have me."

Her gaze blazed, sweeping over me like the night wind, sending wave after wave across the core of my heart.

I was moved to tears. Someone as humble as me, buried in the dust, could never resist a girl's passionate love.

My father was right. A woman as wonderful as her would be pitiful if she truly married me.

But I really wanted to be selfish, just this once.

So that time, I didn't let go of her hand, and I didn't refuse to marry her.

"Life was really hard for us then. We registered our marriage but couldn't afford a wedding. She worked especially hard, taking on part-time jobs after work every day. We scraped together money from everywhere and finally managed to pay for my mother's surgery."

Cambria listened to my story and sighed, "It's good you managed to gather it all. All the hard work was worth it.

"Mr. Hudson, did your mother recover and leave the hospital?"

I looked at the slowly setting sun. My eyes grew moist, and my voice trembled slightly.

I said, "Three minutes after we gathered the surgery money, my mom passed away."

Cambria was stunned.

She probably didn't expect despair to return again.

We were so close to hope.

I raised my hand to wipe away my tears.

"I know. My mom just didn't want our family to struggle. She was afraid we'd be too exhausted, so she left. After she passed away, we paid back all the money we had borrowed, and Scarlett and I even saved an extra 10 thousand dollars.

"We arrived at Lakeshireville and bought a wedding dress for 100 dollars. We sat here and held our wedding. Maybe some people think a 100-dollar dress is too cheap, but for me, that 100 dollars used to be my monthly living expense. I don't think it's cheap. It just makes me feel deeply happy.

"To be able to marry the one I love, even if I wore a wedding suit that cost 10 dollars, I'd still be joyful."

Thinking of that moment, I couldn't help but smile.

"And then she conceived. Do you know the happiness of that instant? I could almost touch the soul of our unborn child. Her body seemed a radiant citadel, sheltering the fragile miracle we had created together.

I took out my phone and showed the camera photos of my son from infancy to now.

Each photo had a heartfelt caption.

"When you were just born, so tiny, so funny-looking, your face all wrinkled—I found you silly, but loved you deeply."

"At one year old, you were too playful and adorable, easy to fool and comfort, and already called me 'dad.'"

"I'll save these photos for you. One day, you'll realize—your eyes were small from the start. That's my single eyelids you inherited, so your mom's off the hook."

The camera captured one photo after another.

This episode was also coming to an end.

I spoke the summary of this episode to the camera.