Chapter 2

Among friends and family, I was known as the perfect wife and mother. I poured all my energy into my husband and daughter.

After losing both my parents, I treasured them even more and believed they were the most important people in my life.

But I had never imagined that the two people closest to me would betray me.

Sitting in the car, I sank into my memories.

My story with David had started in college and taken root in the darkest stretch of my life.

Before I even had the chance to enjoy my youth, my family fell apart.

In my junior year, my father cheated. My mother couldn't bear the betrayal. She cried every day and sank deeper and deeper.

I watched my mother grow thinner by the day, and I watched our once warm home shatter. I fell into despair and shut myself away from the world.

I started hating love. I didn't even dare trust anyone anymore. I felt like every close relationship would end in betrayal.

But David stayed by my side the whole time.

He never left. He never pushed me to talk or forced me out of my shadow. He just quietly walked the track with me and sat with me in the corners of club rooms.

Whenever I cried, he would hand me tissues and gently comfort me. He told me not every relationship ended in betrayal, and that one day, someone would truly love me.

When she was hospitalized, he cared even more than I did. He ran around handling everything and took most of the pressure off my shoulders.

Even though she still passed away in the end, worn down by depression and worsening illness, he stayed by my side the entire time and became my strongest support.

In front of my mother's grave, he held my hand tightly, his eyes more serious than I had ever seen.

He said we would belong only to each other for the rest of our lives, never betray each other, and never leave each other.

After graduation, I started my own business. He volunteered to become my business manager and said he wanted to weather everything with me. From then on, our interests were tightly tied together, like there was no you and me anymore.

All these years, I had held on to that promise and believed our love could survive anything. I never thought he would be the one to break it first.

Just then, the car stopped. Emily Warren, Lily's vocal coach, and my husband were standing at my front door.

The moment the car door opened, David hurried over. He wore that familiar gentle smile on his face, not a hint of panic in sight.

He reached for my waist and bent down to kiss my forehead, speaking in an overly sweet voice. "Julia, you're finally back. I missed you like crazy after one day."

I instinctively turned my head away and pretended to fix my hair, hiding the disgust rising inside me.

He didn't notice anything wrong with me at all.

Emily stood off to the side with a polite little smile on her lips.

She walked up to me and said in an affected tone, "Lily's been way too naughty. She even forgot about her singing lesson and only cared about playing."

"My daughter wanted to go shopping. Problem?" I shot back.

She smiled faintly and fired right back. "The competition is coming up soon. Lily can't fall behind in her studies. Shopping is the worst distraction for a girl her age."

Lily pulled free from my hand and ran over to Emily, grabbing the hem of her dress.

She looked up and beamed. "Emily, I missed you so much. Everything Emily says is right. I listen to Emily the most."

David stood beside them, and the three of them looked like a happy family.

I was the one who looked like an outsider.

It felt like an invisible hand had wrapped around my heart and squeezed. The pain made my whole body shake.

I forced out a distant smile. Without even looking at David, I spoke to Emily in a flat voice. "Thanks for waiting so long. So, do you plan on staying in our house, or leaving?"