Chapter 1

My girlfriend tricked me into working abroad for a year, but ended up having a child with her childhood sweetheart.

A day earlier, as I was leaving the mall, I was accidentally grazed by a luxury car.

As I got out to argue, I discovered the driver was my girlfriend, whom I hadn't seen in a long time.

Just as I was about to walk up and hug her, a man got out of the car holding a child.

"Sorry about that. My wife isn't very careful when she drives. How about we settle this privately?" he said.

I looked at my girlfriend in disbelief, let out a deep sigh, and said, "It's fine. I wish you both happiness."

My girlfriend instantly panicked and quickly grabbed my arm.

"Marvin, don't you love me anymore? How can you be so calm?!"

*****

I stood frozen in shock.

I rubbed my eyes, carefully scrutinizing the gentle and beautiful woman before me.

Finally, I confirmed that she was Joanna Swanson, my girlfriend of five years.

Her demeanor, however, was completely different from when she was with me.

When we were dating, she was always cool and reserved; I had to painstakingly ask for ages just to hold her hand.

But now, she was nestled beside that man, her face beaming with happiness, looking completely like a woman deeply in love.

A year ago, Joanna told me her family had arranged an overseas job opportunity for her: an international research project located in a remote town.

She explained that the internet signal there was poor, the workload was intense, requiring her full dedication, so she would reduce contact with me.

Throughout the year, she had indeed only called once, during Christmas, to exchange a few brief greetings.

During that sole conversation, I couldn't help but mention my intention to propose after her project concluded. She immediately interrupted me, insisting that she was against marriage, disliked formal weddings, and didn't want children.

She said, "As long as our relationship is strong, we can continue dating and focus more of our energy on our careers."

Because I loved her, I respected her choice and suppressed my desire to start a family.

But in the end, I was too naive.

I thought that she was working hard for her career this year, but I never expected that she had a child with someone else behind my back.

If we hadn't run into each other by chance in the mall parking lot today, I might still be in the dark.

As Joanna approached, a trace of embarrassment flashed across her face, but she quickly regained her composure.

I looked at Joanna's seemingly calm face and struggled to maintain my own composure. "Your baby is so cute. Is it a boy or a girl?"

The man immediately puffed out his chest and proudly boasted, "It's a girl. She looks exactly like her mother; she's sure to be a great beauty someday."

With that, he lovingly embraced Joanna, kissing her on the cheek, his eyes full of affection.

Joanna took the baby, asking me with a hint of impatience in her tone, "You're not specifically waiting for me here, are you? What exactly do you want?"

The man noticed the tension between Joanna and me, looking bewildered. "You... know each other?"

Joanna scoffed, her voice filled with mockery towards me. "He's Marvin Parker, the one I told you about."

The man suddenly realized, then frowned, a hint of disdain appearing on his face.

"Oh, so you're Marvin." Saying this, he extended his hand to me, deliberately flaunting the couple's rings on his finger. "Let's get acquainted. I'm Max Spraggins."

My hand froze in mid-air, and I was momentarily at a loss.

This man was none other than Max Spraggins, Joanna's childhood sweetheart.

It turned out that Joanna's so-called anti-marriage stance was merely an excuse to avoid me.

She had been waiting for Max to return, so they could marry and start a family together.

As for me, I was just a backup, silently waiting in this relationship for five years.