A week ago, after my hearing was cured, I went home, ready to share the news with her and Hughie.

Before I even reached the bedroom, I heard Penelope's wild voice coming from the room next door.

My whole body turned ice cold. I even wondered if I was imagining it.

Before I could step any closer, Hughie, who had always disliked me, used checking his homework as an excuse to stop me.

He pushed me away while muttering, "I don't want you going in there and messing up Daddy Darren's good time."

That was when I realized how badly he wanted to replace me as his dad.

They thought I was still deaf. They thought they had covered everything perfectly.

They had no idea I could hear every single thing clearly.

That same day, I applied for the teaching volunteer program in Lumora and booked my ticket there.

Just like we once promised each other, I would disappear completely from her world. I didn't want Penelope or Hughie anymore.

In that moment, the frantic sounds of her and Darren in the next room kept echoing in my ears.

I suddenly sat up and shoved her away, only to hear her scream as she fell to the floor. I froze for a second, instinctively wanting to help her up, but in the end, I didn't move.

Penelope wasn't angry. Instead, worry filled her eyes as she looked at me.

"Milton, what's wrong?"

I was about to answer when it hit me that I was supposed to be deaf.

After a moment, she seemed to realize it too and started signing to me.

"It's nothing. I'm just not feeling very well," I replied.

Penelope suddenly remembered something and panicked, rushing over while signing and explaining nonstop.

"Darren is really just a friend. Please don't misunderstand."

She was always calm, but today, she had lost control again and again because of Darren.

I didn't want to deal with her. I just said flatly, "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep."

Then, I turned over and lay down.

She froze. After a long moment, I heard her murmur, "Milton, I love you so much. I really, really love you. Please don't leave me. If you do, I'll die."

Tears kept slipping from the corners of my eyes.

If she loved me, then why did she betray me?

We promised each other we would never separate in this lifetime.

But if there was even the slightest betrayal, we would disappear completely from each other's world.

All the beautiful memories from before were shattered by the cruel reality, turning into nothing but an illusion.

-

Early the next morning, perhaps because she sensed how different I was, or maybe it was guilt buried deep inside her, Penelope said she wanted to take Hughie and me out to clear our heads.

"We've wanted to go to an amusement park for so long. We just never had the time. Milton, do you want to come with Hughie and me?"

She rubbed her hands together and put on a pitiful look, trying to get a response from me.

For once, Hughie didn't show impatience. His eyes were full of anticipation about going to the amusement park.

But Penelope didn't notice that her loosely fastened collar revealed her pale skin, covered in marks Darren had left behind.

Right now, all I felt toward her was disgust.

Hughie moved fast. Before I could even react, he had already packed everything he wanted to bring and headed out on his own.

After we arrived at the amusement park, Hughie kept holding my hand, and Penelope took care of us every step of the way.

If I pressed my lips together, she would immediately bring water to my mouth.

If I looked at something for more than a second, she would call out that she wanted to buy it.

They even went on all the rides I liked, but they had never dared to try before.

Penelope was clearly exhausted, yet she held my hand tightly and refused to let go. Meanwhile, Hughie leaned against me, looking genuinely happy.

In the end, Penelope bought three charm bracelets and fastened them around our wrists.

"This way, everyone will know we're a family. We'll never be apart."

I didn't say anything, but Penelope took my hand and placed it on her stomach.

"Milton, I'm pregnant again. Hughie's going to have a little brother. From now on, there'll be one more person in this family who loves you."

"Yay!" Hughie chimed in happily from the side. "I'll finally have someone to play with. I won't be bored every day anymore!"

I looked at their happy faces, and the anger in my chest nearly boiled over.

They kept saying they loved me, but they betrayed me. And now, they expected me to raise a child she had with another man?

What did I ever do to deserve this?

When Penelope saw me sitting there in silence, my expression dark, her smile faded. She used sign language to repeat what she had just said.

I almost forgot she still didn't know I could hear again.

I looked at her without any expression, my voice cold to the bone.

"Are you sure this child is mine, and not someone else's?"

Panic flickered across Penelope's face. She quickly forced a smile. "What are you talking about? How could it be someone else's?"

"Daddy, how can you doubt Mommy? I'm angry at you now!" Hughie snapped angrily.

Before he could finish, his gestures were cut off by a ringing phone.

Penelope stepped aside. It only took a moment, but when she came back, her face was full of apology.

"I'm sorry. Something came up at work, and I need to handle it."

She looked at Hughie, who immediately said, "Mommy, I'll go with you."

With that, Penelope grabbed Hughie's hand and left in a hurry.

As she turned away, I caught a glimpse of the caller ID on her phone. It was Darren.

I stood up expressionlessly, then took the charm bracelet off my wrist, tossed it into the trash, and walked outside.

Since she cared so much about Darren, I would make room for him.

From now on, the four of them could live their happy family life together.

Over the next few days, Penelope and Hughie didn't show up at all.

They only came back occasionally, their faces etched with exhaustion. They moved around cautiously, like they didn't want me to notice.

But I didn't bother asking anything. I acted like a truly deaf man.

Meanwhile, news about Darren never stopped coming.

Sometimes, it was Hughie riding around town with him in a brand new car.

Sometimes, it was Penelope cooking meals for him personally.

Everything pointed to just how much love they poured onto Darren.

And under his posts online, the comments were full of teasing and congratulations.

Meanwhile, I stayed home, busy erasing everything connected to me.

On day one, Darren posted on social media photos of Penelope taking Hughie to watch fireworks with him at an amusement park.

I took out every photo in the house that included Penelope and Hughie, tore them up, and burned them to ash.

On day two, Darren posted pictures of Penelope and Hughie setting up a sea of flowers for him by hand.

I hired workers and had the greenhouse behind the house, which they had built for me, completely torn down.

On the final day, Darren posted a photo of himself holding Hughie, both of them pressing their ears against Penelope's belly.

I finished packing all my luggage and was just about to leave when I saw Penelope, who hadn't been home in a long time, standing at the door with Hughie.

Her eyes were bloodshot. She was gripping a document in her hand, looking tense.

"Milton, this document says you're going to Lumora as a volunteer teacher. Is that true?"