Nyra stood up and answered instinctively.

Just as she was about to leave the room, she turned back to me and said, "I'm going to play with Zoe for a bit. She's a little girl. Jacob—"

I cut her off. "No need to explain. I trust you."

Nyra froze for a moment, then said, "I'm glad that you trust me."

With that, she walked out the door.

Jacob's daughter, Zoe Griffin, had been calling Nyra "Mom" from the day she moved in.

I had voiced my frustration about it before.

Nyra pointed at me and snapped, "Tyler Sloane, how can you be so heartless? Zoe is just a kid. It's already sad enough that she doesn't have a mother."

Every time I heard Zoe call her "Mom", it used to sting. But this time, I felt nothing.

I touched my chest and smiled brightly. It turned out that deciding not to love her could keep me from getting hurt.

Outside, laughter and playful shouts carried through the air.

Zoe called out "Mom" every now and then, and Nyra's voice softened in reply.

As I listened to the noise, I thought about what to do next.

After a while, my phone rang. It was Mom.

She asked if I'd had any cake and blown out the candles.

Upon hearing that, I realized I hadn't eaten a thing all day.

Before hanging up, Mom nervously asked when I'd be coming home.

Throughout my five years abroad, I'd gone back only a handful of times.

At first, my work wasn't stable. Later, Nyra said the back-and-forth was too much trouble.

Just as I stepped out of my room, Zoe suddenly hurled a toy at me. "Bad guy! Why are you in my house? Are you trying to steal my mom again?"

Before I could say anything, Jacob bent down to apologize. "Sorry, Tyler. Zoe's just a kid. Don't mind her."

Standing beside him, Nyra said seriously, "This isn't a big deal. No need to apologize. Besides, Zoe only acts like this because he scared her before."

As she said that, she stood protectively in front of Jacob and Zoe. "Tyler, you're not seriously going to get mad at a five-year-old, are you? If you do, I'd be embarrassed for you."

I didn't say a word, and somehow all the blame fell on me. "Continue with what you were doing. I'm just grabbing something."

After saying that, I opened the fridge and noticed the cake I had made was gone.

I glanced at the living room, only to find a cake on the table, completely mangled.

Noticing my gaze, Nyra said with total indifference, "That cake was yours? Zoe said it didn't taste good, so she left it there. If you want, I can buy you another one."

I tossed my homemade cake into the trash and said flatly, "There's no need."

Then, I opened the door to leave.

After a few steps, Nyra chased after me and grabbed my arm. "Tyler, where are you going?"

I looked at her, puzzled.

This was the first time Nyra left Jacob behind to come after me.

"Why did you follow me out?" I asked.

Nyra seemed taken aback by the question.

Before, I'd be thrilled if she chased after me. No matter what she'd done, I'd forgive her.

Nyra's expression faltered. She didn't expect me to be so cold. "Y-You left without saying anything, so I came out to check."

I replied casually, "Oh, I just stepped out to grab something to eat."

At that moment, Jacob showed up with Zoe. "Tyler, Zoe said she wants to go for a barbecue. If you don't mind, come along. Consider it my way of making it up to you."

"I don't like—"

Before I could finish, Nyra jumped in and agreed for me.

Then, she told me to go start the car.

Since I'd already decided to leave, I didn't want to argue with her, so I went along and headed to the garage.

When I pulled the car out, Nyra naturally slid into the backseat with Jacob and Zoe.

Only after the engine was running did she realize the situation and nervously explain, "Zoe's still little and pretty attached to me. That's why—"

Seeing the picture-perfect family of three in the rearview mirror, I cut Nyra off impatiently. "It's better if you sit together. The front passenger seat is dangerous."

Nyra looked stunned by my words because it was something she had said to me before.

When we'd argued about the front passenger seat, she had snapped, "What's the point in fighting over the front passenger seat? It's not safe anyway."

For the rest of the drive, I felt like an outsider watching them laugh and joke back there.

…

At the barbecue restaurant, the three of them went inside first.

When I parked and came in, I saw only three place settings on the table.

Nyra looked at me awkwardly and was about to wave over the waiter for another setting.

Suddenly, Zoe burst out crying, "I don't want to eat with that strange man! Dad says he's going to steal my mom! I don't want to—"

Jacob quickly covered her mouth and gave me an apologetic look. "Tyler, kids say the darndest things. Don't take it personally."

Nyra held Zoe close, soothing her gently. Her eyes on me seemed to say I was the one causing trouble.

I chuckled softly and said to Zoe, "Kiddo, your mom will always be your mom. I'm not going to steal her."

Nyra's gaze shifted sharply at my words.

Before she could say anything, I turned and took a seat at a table in the corner. I ate my barbecue alone.

The laughter not far away floated in my ears but didn't bother me at all.

On my way home after dinner, I got a call from Nyra. "Tyler, where are you? We're done eating. Wait for us in the parking lot."

Listening to her tone like it was the most natural thing, I wondered just how pathetic I must be in her eyes.

After being treated like that, why would I go back with them?

"I'm already outside the house," I replied calmly.

That set Nyra off immediately. "What do you mean? We went out together! Why'd you leave ahead of us?"

I stayed calm. "Weren't you going to watch a movie?"

That stopped Nyra's next words dead in their tracks.

Before leaving the restaurant, I'd seen Jacob's Instagram post. "Zoe finally got to go to the movie with Mom and Dad like she always wanted."

The photo was a happy selfie of the three of them.

A friend commented, "You two are finally together! Congrats!"

Jacob replied with a shy emoji.

After a few seconds of silence, Nyra stiffened and said, "We could go watch the movie together. Didn't you say I never went with you before?"

I smiled and replied without any hesitation, "No, thanks. Have fun watching the movie."

With that, I hung up, not caring how Nyra might react.

When I got home, I received a company notice.

My application to return to Myrthia had been approved. They wanted me to wrap things up as soon as possible before heading back.

It was the first good news I'd had in days.

When Nyra came back, I was sorting through handover documents.

Still mad about my attitude on the phone, she grabbed a change of clothes and went to wash up.

By the time she finished, I was already lying in bed, ready to sleep.

Nyra stood at the foot of the bed, staring at me.

Her intense gaze was impossible to ignore, even with my eyes closed.

Just as I was getting annoyed, my phone rang.

"Tyler! Isn't today your birthday? I've brought over some company perks for you!"

Matteo's loud voice cut through the quiet night.

Nyra's expression crumbled at his words.

I hung up, then immediately got out of bed and walked out.

After thanking Matteo, I grabbed the package and headed back.

When I opened the door, Nyra was at the fridge looking for something.

I glanced over, then set down the package and went back to rest.

A moment later, Nyra came into the room and said uneasily, "There's no cake left at home. Let me get you—"

I cut her off with a yawn. "No, thanks. I'm already full."

Nyra looked even more unsettled. "I forgot it was your birthday. Sorry."

"No big deal," I said dismissively. "It's just another birthday. It makes no difference whether I celebrate it or not."

With that, I turned off the lights and went to sleep.

I slept through the night without a single dream.

…

In the following days, Nyra was always back in the bedroom on time. But I was so busy with my work handover that I had no time to spare for her.

I thought this quiet routine would last until I left.

But one day, while packing up the study, I found a pregnancy confirmation slip. Nyra's name was on it, and it was dated two months ago.

I stared at it for a moment, then kept digging through the drawers.

At the very bottom, I found an abortion consent form. It said the fetus was ten weeks along and had a heartbeat.

Jacob's signature was at the bottom.

That was the moment the last flicker of my hope finally died.

Any hesitation Nyra had stirred over the past few days disappeared, leaving my resolve rock-solid once again.

I took the consent form and the divorce agreement Nyra had given me before and walked to the living room.

Nyra and Jacob were watching a movie together.

Before she could ask why I was there, I handed her the abortion consent form.

The moment Nyra saw it, panic twisted her face. "Tyler… Honey… I can explain! T-This was because Zoe is so young. I couldn't be so cruel."

Her words made me laugh bitterly. "You aborted your own child for someone else's. Nyra, isn't that cruel?"

Her face went pale as my words sank in. Her lips trembled, but no sound came out.

I looked at her coldly and handed over the divorce agreement. "Nyra, let's get a divorce. I've already signed it. You don't have to fake it anymore. I'm stepping aside for him."