Chapter 1

When the SATs ended, my phone buzzed with two messages.

One was a post from my husband's social media.

In the photo, he was celebrating the end of the SATs at a luxury hotel with his late friend's widow and her daughter.

The caption read: [Three days by your side, I saw how hard you worked. Congrats in advance, Emily, for acing the exams!]

The other was a message from the funeral home, asking me to pick out an urn.

On the day of the SATs, my daughter was dragged into the boys' restroom and drowned in a urinal. Her body was covered in wounds, not a single spot left untouched.

In three days, I made sure those monsters were behind bars and took care of my daughter's funeral arrangements.

But David was nowhere to be seen for those three days.

I called him a thousand times, but he never picked up. All I got in return was a cold, automated reply:

[I'm busy. Don't bother me.]

On the day my daughter was cremated, I made one last desperate call to him.

But after just three rings, he cut me off.

I stood there, lost in front of the furnace, when a memory hit me. The time David skipped Sophie's birthday, and she made a wish, so earnest.

Sophie once said softly, "Mom, if I die and Dad still isn't here, don't tell him."

She looked at me, pleading, "And don't let him come to my funeral, okay?"

I nodded, my voice barely a whisper, "Okay."

*****

I wiped away my tears, booked my ticket, and had the divorce papers ready.

From now on, his absence would no longer be a part of our lives.

When I went to pick up Sophie's ashes, it was drizzling outside.

The funeral home staff chattered away as they pressed the urn into my hands.

"You're here all by yourself? Where's her dad? It's her final farewell. It's really sad if her father doesn't show up for her last send-off."

I paused, looking at my phone. The lock screen was still on my chat app.

It was empty, no messages, just a few red dots, all just notifications from random channels.

Three days after Sophie passed, and he still wouldn't pick up.

I turned off my phone, silently forcing a bitter smile.

"I don't know."

"Maybe he's got work to do."

"Busy," I muttered.

"No matter how busy he is, he should be here for his own daughter's funeral. Can you imagine how hard it is for you to be here all alone?"

The staff mumbled under their breath, with sympathy in their eyes.

These past three days, I'd seen that look way too many times.

My tears had run dry. I couldn't cry anymore.

I didn't bother explaining. I just took the urn, numb, and turned to leave.

Even after I'd walked a long way, I could still hear them gossiping behind me.

"How tragic. Her daughter was ruined by those monsters on the day of the SATs... Sigh."

"Exactly. I heard her daughter was taking the SATs and was a top scorer in the province. She ranked first in the last mock exam."

"She was almost out of her mind when it happened. She spent three days hunting those monsters down and got them thrown in jail. The trial's tomorrow."

"But her husband never showed up. Maybe she's a widow."

By the time I got home, it was already midnight.

The house was still cold and empty. David was nowhere to be found.

After twenty years of marriage, I'd gotten used to it.

He was either at work or with Margaret and her daughter, Emily.

Did he spare some time for us, me and Sophie?

Not a single moment.

For eighteen years, Sophie and I ate undercooked spaghetti, just the two of us, scraping by.

Now that Sophie's gone, what's left for me in a marriage where my husband was always absent?

I let out a bitter laugh and began sorting through Sophie's belongings.

What used to be so familiar now felt like a blunt blade, hacking at my heart until it was raw and bleeding.

Just then, Sophie's phone rang. I froze.

I tapped open the message. It was from Emily.

She sent me a photo.

The background was an amusement park, the place Sophie had begged David to take her to, ninety-nine times.

David said yes every single time, but every single time, he was nowhere to be found.

The hundredth time, Sophie held my hand, waiting silently under the Ferris wheel until night fell.

But across the river, we watched the fireworks light up the sky, fireworks for Emily's birthday party, courtesy of David.

He completely forgot that day was Sophie's birthday, too.

After that, Sophie never brought it up again.

The photo was snapped in the moment, a little blurry, but the heartbreak in it cut right through the haze.

In the picture, David, always such a neat freak, was carrying barefoot Margaret on his back, one hand holding her high heels, the other holding Emily's hand.

The three of them moved through the rain, a bit messy, but the warmth between them was undeniable.

It was a kind of warmth Sophie and I had never known.

Along with the photo, there were two voice messages.

"David, you said if I did well on the SATs, you'd grant me one wish."

"So I wish will you be my dad? Please?"

Her voice was all sweet and cutesy, but to me, it was like nails on a chalkboard.

I gripped my phone so hard my knuckles turned white.

After a long pause, David's voice finally broke the silence.

"Okay."

"Then I'll start calling you Dad now! Dad, you're the best! Hehe!"

Her laughter rang out like silver bells.

And then David's voice came through, soft and teasing: "Don't be naughty. I'm still carrying your mom."

I pulled out my phone, my thumb hovering over his contact, wanting to ask David something.

But after staring at his name for what felt like forever, I couldn't bring myself to type a single word.

Just then, my phone buzzed with a notification. My flight was booked.

It was set to take off in the early hours of the third day.