In the fifth year of my marriage to Cynthia Bolton, she suddenly transfers a sum of money into my bank account.

The note on the transfer reads, "Tuition for our son."

I am completely stunned for a moment. No matter how hard I think about it, I couldn't figure out how exactly we could have a son.

After Cynthia divorces her ex-husband, she marries me. She tells me that she's afraid of pain and of having children. On our wedding day, the very first condition she sets is that we remain child-free.

And because I love her, I agree readily. To put her mind completely at ease, I even undergo a vasectomy.

Staring at the transfer notification, I slowly turn around and ask her in a trembling voice. "What's the meaning of this?"

Cynthia freezes for a moment. When she notices the bank account number she has sent the money to, a flash of annoyance crosses her eyes.

Silence hangs in the air for a long time.

Then, she lets out a long sigh and explains indifferently, as if she is talking about something that is absolutely ordinary.

"Not long after I divorced Bradley Wilson, I found out I was pregnant."

My wife Cynthia Bolton's voice was soft, but her words hit my chest like a ton of bricks.

I stared down at the floor, my mind racing as I tried to process what she'd just said.

Seeing my sheer disbelief, Cynthia let out another sigh and explained calmly, "The night before the divorce went through, we didn't use protection. You and I weren't married yet, and it was all consensual. I'm sorry I kept it from you."

Her words left my brain completely numb.

I knew she was divorced, but I never had any idea she was still in contact with her ex-husband right up until the end.

My breathing grew shallow, and my voice shook. "If you hadn't transferred the wrong account today, were you ever going to tell me?"

Cynthia said nothing.

Her silence only made my heart sink further.

"Why didn't you have an abortion? You told me you wanted to be childfree because you were afraid of the pain. I trusted you so much—"

"Daniel." Cynthia cut me off, her brows furrowing.

She tapped her fingers on the table—a sign she was losing her patience.

"I knew you'd react like this, which is exactly why I hid it for five years. Don't you get it? I wanted to be childfree with you because I already have a kid. I don't have the energy to raise another one!"

It all made sense now. No wonder she left for an overseas assignment less than a month after our wedding.

No wonder she wouldn't let me go with her.

No wonder her phone was always turned off, and she was gone for over a year.

And I'd been naive enough to think she was just busy with work.

Noticing my silence, Cynthia pulled out her phone and transferred another chunk of money into my account.

She actually sounded relieved, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "It's been exhausting keeping this a secret all these years. Honestly, it's probably better that you know now. I know you feel cheated right now. Just tell me what you want, and I'll make it happen."

I clenched my fists, a suffocating tightness squeezing my chest.

Resentment and agony flooded my mind. I opened my mouth, and my voice came out raw and hollow. "Cynthia, cut ties with them right now. Do that, and I can let this go."

I didn't even know how I managed to force those words out.

But how could I just walk away and give up on us?

Cynthia's expression instantly darkened. She leaned against the edge of the table, her gaze turning ice-cold.

"Daniel, you know that's not going to happen. And I'm warning you. Don't you dare bother them."

The moment the words left her mouth, there was a knock at the ajar door.

It was our new downstairs neighbor. We'd just exchanged hellos yesterday. I remembered complimenting him on how cute his kid was.

"Mommy!"

The toddler's bright voice made my pupils dilate.

Cynthia froze too, but the moment she saw who it was, her expression melted.

She scooped the four-year-old boy into her arms and kissed his cheek. "What are you guys doing here?"

The man just smiled. He looked at me and offered a polite nod. "Hey, I'm Bradley Wilson. We met yesterday, remember?"

So this was her ex-husband.

"Theo is still young. He needs his mom. I figured moving into the apartment right below yours would make things easier for everyone."

Ever since they walked in, Cynthia hadn't taken her eyes off them.

A profound exhaustion washed over me. I opened my mouth and said, "Cynthia, I think we should get a div—"

Theo Wilson's whining drowned out the rest of my sentence. He tugged at Cynthia's hand and pulled her toward the hallway.

"Mommy, you promised we'd go play! You're breaking your promise!"

Cynthia gave a helpless chuckle and lifted him back. Her face glowed with a tenderness I had never seen before.

The door clicked shut, leaving the apartment dead silent again.

Cynthia left and didn't come back that night.

Once I made up my mind to divorce her, I went to the nursing home to visit her mother, Mia Harper. I figured I owed it to her to let her know what was happening.

"Daniel, how come you didn't come with Cynthia?" Mia beamed the moment she saw me.

She had been my mother's best friend. Ever since my parents passed away, she had treated me like her own son. Every time Cynthia and I had a fight, she always took my side.

When I saw Mia, a sudden lump formed in my throat. I tried to force the truth out a few times, but the words choked me.

She was getting old and her health was failing. She couldn't take this kind of shock.

But I couldn't hide it forever. I took a deep breath and looked her in the eye. "Mom, I'm going to divorce Cynthia."

The smile froze on Mia's face before she asked cautiously, "Did you two get into another fight? Tell me what happened. I'll straighten her out for you."

Watching her pat her chest defensively for me made my eyes sting.

I still couldn't wrap my head around the fact that Cynthia had secretly had a child with her ex-husband and kept it from me for five whole years.

Right then, the ward door swung open.

A little boy came bursting into the room. It took me only a second to recognize him as Theo.

Sure enough, Cynthia walked in right behind him.

"Granny! Mommy and I came to see you!"

Mia's face instantly lit up. She pulled Theo into her arms, showering him with kisses. "My sweet boy, it's been so long since you visited me! Let me see if you've gained any weight."

Her eyes were overflowing with pure adoration.

I stood at the foot of the bed, completely paralyzed.

It took me a long time to find my voice. My fingers trembled uncontrollably. "Mom… so you knew all along."

Hearing this, Mia awkwardly let go of Theo. She shot a look at Cynthia before turning back to me. "Daniel, is this why you want a divorce?"

At the mention of divorce, Cynthia let out a cold scoff. "Mom, don't listen to him. I just finally told him the truth about Bradley and Theo. He's just throwing a tantrum."

Mia, now fully understanding the situation, spoke to me in an earnest tone. "Daniel, before your mom passed, she asked me to look after you. Ask yourself, haven't I treated you well all these years?

"You and Cynthia have been together for so long. Don't throw around the word divorce over every little thing. Since you have a medical condition and chose to be childfree anyway, why not just raise Theo as your own son?"

The color drained from my face. "What medical condition?"

Mia frowned, her patience wearing thin. "Cynthia already told me you can't have kids. Stop being so petty over something so minor."

My brain went entirely blank. When reality finally registered, a bitter, hysterical laugh escaped my throat.

Cynthia was the one who insisted on being childfree, which was the only reason I had gone to the hospital to get a vasectomy. Now, in her narrative, I was the one who was broken.

Cynthia averted her gaze, refusing to meet my eyes.

Mia sighed and tried to reason with me again. "I'm old, Daniel. All I want is to see my family whole. It's just a kid. It doesn't cost you anything."

Maybe out of a lingering sense of guilt, she promised to register Theo under my legal guardianship. She even offered to put up all her savings as a guarantee that Cynthia would never cross the line with Bradley.

But none of these promises meant a thing to me anymore.

Mia clutched her chest, and the warmth completely vanished from her face. She grabbed the cup from the bedside table and hurled it at me. The hot water scalded my skin with a sharp sizzle.

"Daniel Houghton! Are you trying to drive me to my grave? I have been so good to you all these years, and you won't even compromise on this one tiny thing? Are you even human?"

"Mom, he'll agree once he cools down. Don't waste your breath," Cynthia chimed in, her tone entirely unbothered. She was still convinced I would give in, just like I always did.

Mia's words turned my heart completely to stone.

I had basically grown up under her roof. I truly loved her like a second mother. I had genuinely believed that she, like me, had been kept in the dark by Cynthia.

But in the end, I was the only fool left out of the loop.

Deep down, I finally realized that the only people who ever truly loved me were already dead.

After leaving the nursing home, Mia blocked my number.

For the next few days, there was total silence.

Now that all the cards were on the table, Cynthia didn't bother coming home either. Since Bradley's apartment was directly below mine, she moved all her belongings down there.

Almost every single night, I could hear the noise from downstairs.

They were always together, coming and going as a family. Even the neighbors who knew me started giving me strange looks.

A week later, while I was at work, Cynthia finally called. Mia had fainted.

The moment I rushed into the hospital, Cynthia slapped me across the face with everything she had.

A sharp ringing filled my ears as my vision swam. The loud crack of the slap made the people nearby stop and stare.

Cynthia's chest heaved with rage. She looked at me like she wanted to tear me to pieces.

In all the years we had been together, she had never once laid a hand on me.

"Daniel, I didn't realize you could be this disgusting! How could you go around telling everyone Theo is a bastard? Do you have any idea how cruel that is to a child? Today was his first day of preschool, and he came home crying his eyes out!"

"Mom was so upset over this that she had a heart attack! She's in the ER right now! If anything happens to her, I will make you pay."

She practically spat the words through gritted teeth. But her words left me utterly bewildered.

What did she mean I was spreading rumors about Theo?

Noticing my silence, Bradley, who was standing right next to Cynthia, put on a victimized expression. He pulled up Theo's sleeve, his face twisted with anger. "Because of what you did, my son was ostracized at school today, and I'm getting dirty looks too."

Cynthia poked her finger hard into my chest, emphasizing every single word. "Daniel, don't forget that we weren't even married back then. If anyone is the homewrecker here, it's you."

Her words stabbed like a knife to my heart.

But she was the one who had cheated.

A profound wave of exhaustion washed over me. I said quietly, "I don't know how that rumor started. It had nothing to do with me."

Just as the words left my mouth, my phone vibrated violently in my pocket.

It was a call from the cemetery where my parents were buried.

The staff member's frantic voice came through the speaker. "Mr. Houghton! Your parents' graves have been vandalized! We're trying to handle the situation right now…"

My brain short-circuited.

I snapped my head up, glaring at Cynthia and Bradley. "Did you do this?"

Bradley looked away with a smug smirk on his face. "You deserved it. That's what you get for targeting my son. I just hired some guys to teach you a lesson. Cynthia agreed with it too—"

Any shred of sanity I had left snapped. I raised my fist and slammed it hard into him.

Bradley crashed to the floor. I pinned him down and clamped my hands around his throat. My eyes were completely bloodshot.

"How dare you? Those are my parents! How dare you desecrate their graves?"

Bradley's face flushed red, and he couldn't say a word.

The next second, a blinding pain exploded at the back of my head. Everything went black as I collapsed onto the floor.

Cynthia had smashed the glass in her hand over my skull. The jagged shards sliced into my neck, and blood began to trickle down.

Her hand kept trembling, and the surrounding crowd erupted into screams.

My vision began to blur and fade.

The last thing I saw was Cynthia cupping Bradley's face tenderly while shouting for a doctor.