Chapter 2

When I saw his message, my heart, which had felt cold and hollow, started to thaw a little.

As I walked downstairs, I caught sight of William—always impeccably dressed—and was instantly reminded of the first time I met him.

William and Joanna's relationship had become a legendary love story at our school in Grynavia.

Honestly, I was a hopeless romantic, obsessed with shipping couples—even other people's love stories could keep me entertained for hours.

As fate would have it, I ended up in the very same class as the stars of that romance.

From the very first glance, William completely stole my heart.

William always knew about my crush, but we were just friends.

It wasn't until after Joanna got married that William, drunk late at night, suddenly asked me, "Sophia, will you marry me?"

My answer, a simple "Yes," kicked off eight long years of messy drama between us.

With the Kent family's status in Grynavia, William could just sit back at home and wait for people to come pay their respects.

But seeing William and Charlie gathered so happily and close around Joanna, I couldn't help but feel my heart—which had just started to thaw—turn cold all over again.

Charlie was busy pulling faces and zipping around the living room, while William and Joanna stood shoulder to shoulder, their eyes following him with that soft, doting look parents have.

Charlie bumped right into me, immediately scrunching up his nose and whining, "Mom, you got in my way."

Looking at Charlie's pout and chubby cheeks, it suddenly hit me—when was the last time the three of us felt this warm and close as a family? Maybe half a year ago.

I lifted my gaze towards William and Joanna, who were standing not far away. Joanna looked a bit flustered, while William awkwardly withdrew his arm that had been draped around her.

I truly felt like an outsider, dropping in on a scene of someone else's happy family life.

William walked over to me with real gentleness in his eyes. He brushed my cheek with his hand, forehead creased with concern.

"Didn't sleep well last night? Want me to whip you up some breakfast?" William said.

Eight years married, and this was actually the first time William ever offered to make me breakfast.

Even with all the respect and decency William showed me, and even with a kid between us, our marriage always felt like two polite strangers sharing a roof.

Even between the sheets, William was always holding back, like intimacy was just another formal ritual he wouldn't break from.

Honestly, it seemed like he was only putting on this gentle front because Joanna was around today.

Joanna's eyes flashed with jealousy, but it quickly morphed into smug satisfaction as she cocked her chin high.

"Sophia, sorry for barging in. Just thought I'd swing by. You're not going to kick me out, are you?" Joanna asked.

No matter how she mouthed those apologies, she said it all like she was staking her claim.

Seeing me stay quiet, Charlie called out, "Mom, Ms. Coombs's here. Quit standing around. Aren't you best at making pancakes? Come on, make some so Ms. Coombs can have a taste."

Then he gave Joanna a sweet smile and switched to the local dialect, "My mom's not really good at much except cooking. You have to try her food. If you come stay with us, you'll get her cooking all the time."

Joanna scooped him up in a hug and answered with that same dialect, her voice gentle. "Alright, I'll do whatever Charlie says."

William, already sporting an apron and busy in the kitchen, was promptly dragged out by Charlie.

"Dad, leave the kitchen to Mom. She's got it covered," Charlie said.

I shut my eyes, a wave of dizziness hitting me. Back when I first came to Grynavia for school and met William, I could never understand a word of the local dialect.

After Charlie was born, everyone made sure he picked it up right from the start. I was always the only one in the Kent family left out because I couldn't speak it.

So I secretly signed up for dialect lessons, just hoping I might finally blend into the Kent family's world.

Now, I've learned the dialect, and I saw right through William, Charlie, and Joanna. The whole lot still treated me like some clueless outsider, thinking they could fool me with their words.

For the first time ever, I actually stood up to William and waved him off.

"Not today. I was up way too late last night. I'm heading back to bed. Just let me know when the guests arrive," I said.

As I turned and headed upstairs, everyone froze in shock.

They were all left wondering how the usually obliging Sophia had suddenly turned into someone they didn't recognize.

William's eyes flashed with anger, and he snapped at me, calling out my name loudly.

"Sophia, it's bad enough you slept in. We've been waiting here for ages. And now you just want to go back to bed? Seriously, how lazy can you get? Why can't you be a little more like Joanna?" William spat.

I turned away and shot William a cold glare. I loved him for eight years, and at that moment, he felt like a complete stranger to me.

Joanna saw the situation and quietly ducked behind William, gently tugging on his sleeve.

"William, don't be so hard on her. Sophia's not from our circle, so of course she's going to slip up here and there," Joanna said.

I caught the hickey Joanna was practically flaunting, and sneered inwardly. So this is what their precious circle is really about—sneaking around behind closed doors, cheating, and then acting like saints in public?

In that silent standoff, the doorbell chimed—the first wave of guests had arrived.