I pushed open the wardrobe door, greeted by a neat row of long, conservative dresses.

Shoving them aside, I reached for an unopened pink gift box hidden at the back, a birthday present I had bought for myself on my thirtieth birthday. Inside lay a strapless, blush-pink ball gown with a low waistline, untouched, waiting.

Hugo never liked me wearing revealing clothes. To please him, I had filled my closet with outfits that suffocated me, while the ones I truly loved remained buried at the bottom, forgotten.

The thought alone made my chest tighten.

Tonight, I wasn’t dressing for him.

I slipped into the gown and added a touch of light makeup. The elegant cut accentuated my slender waist, the soft fabric cascading down my frame. My long, fair legs stood out against the delicate hue of the dress.

As I descended the stairs, Hugo’s gaze froze.

"Why are you dressed like that?" His voice was sharp, edged with something he couldn’t quite name.

Ava’s eyes flickered with an unreadable emotion as she studied me, her lips twitching as if suppressing a reaction.

Jasper, however, frowned impatiently. "It’s already late. Why haven’t you made dinner yet? I’m starving."

I met his gaze without a trace of emotion, my voice steady.

"I'm not eating at home tonight. You don’t have to wait for me."

The air in the room shifted. Hugo and Jasper stiffened at my words.

Jasper’s face darkened. "If you don’t cook, what are we supposed to eat?"

Ava let out a light chuckle, her voice dripping with amusement. "Audrey dressed up so beautifully; she must be meeting someone special. We shouldn’t disturb them. As for dinner, I can cook. After all, someone like me doesn’t have anyone to ask me out anyway."

She deliberately emphasized the word "date," her tone soaked in suggestion. As expected, Hugo’s expression darkened instantly.

"It’s late. Dressed like that, who are you going to see?"

I met his gaze, utterly indifferent. "No one. If you don’t believe me, feel free to follow."

With that, I turned and walked out. Behind me, the sharp slam of a cup against the table echoed through the room, but I didn’t so much as flinch.

For once, the evening was mine.

I decided to go shopping.

In the past, whenever I shopped for clothes, I would head straight to the men’s section, first for my husband and then for my son. By the time I was done, the day had already slipped away.

Sometimes, I would spot a dress I liked, but I never had the luxury to stop. There was always something more pressing, always a reason to hurry home and cook for them.

But tonight, they weren’t here.

Tonight, my time belonged to me.

I wandered through the stores, my fingers grazing delicate fabrics, my eyes lingering on dresses I would have once dismissed without a second thought.

I hesitated. It felt unnecessary.

I was leaving soon; I couldn’t take them with me. Buying them only to wear them for a few days felt meaningless.

As I mulled over the thought, I idly scrolled through my phone. A new post caught my eye.

Ava’s latest update.

[Yay! Such a loving little family!]

The picture showed her sitting beside Hugo and Jasper at the dinner table, a warm, intimate glow cast over the elaborate spread before them. Red wine. Scattered rose petals. The perfect scene of a happy home.

Anyone who didn’t know better would think she was the mistress of the house.

Then, my gaze landed on the bottle of red wine.

I knew that bottle.

Hugo had bought it for our wedding. He once told me he’d save it for our golden anniversary.

Yet today, he had opened it early for another woman.

How ironic.

The home I had painstakingly built had become someone else’s prize, a reward for a love I was never a part of.

But I no longer cared.

I would be gone soon. There would be no golden anniversary, no future where I clung to something that was never truly mine.

Smirking, I tapped the like button on the post before turning my attention back to my purchase.

Seven dresses in total, each one chosen purely for myself.

I wasn’t buying them out of spite. No, this was something else.

A realization.

So what if it was wasteful? So what if I couldn’t take them with me?

For once, I would stop thinking about what was practical and simply enjoy the moment.

Once I returned to my original world, frugality would be a necessity again.

But for now, before I leave, why not indulge one last time?

With several shopping bags in hand, I made my way to a restaurant I had longed to visit.

The meal was exquisite, yet a strange restlessness lingered within me as if indulgence alone wasn’t enough.

On a whim, I stepped into a renowned salon nearby. By the time I walked out, my once jet-black hair had transformed into voluminous brown waves, soft and effortlessly elegant. From a distance, I looked like a completely different woman, modern, confident, unshackled.

I had always despised my straight black hair, yet I had kept it for years because that was how Hugo liked it.

Not anymore.

For the first time in forever, I felt like myself again.

As I passed a large glass window, I caught sight of my reflection and couldn’t resist taking a picture. With a quiet smirk, I uploaded it to social media.

Caption: “It’s never too late.”

Slipping my phone into my bag, I strolled home at an unhurried pace, savoring the crisp night air.

By now, I expected everyone to be asleep.

Yet the moment I stepped inside, three pairs of eyes locked onto me.

Hugo’s gaze dragged over me, his expression darkening with each passing second. The air grew heavy, thick with unspoken discontent. His voice, cold and edged with restraint, sent a cold chill through the room.

“Why didn’t you answer your phone?”

I pulled it out absentmindedly. Seventeen missed calls.

“Oh, it was on silent. I didn’t hear it.” My tone was calm, indifferent.

I turned to head upstairs, but before I could take another step, Hugo suddenly seized my arm.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you dressed like this? And your hair, what kind of proper mother looks like this?”

I let out a cold laugh.

So that was all I amounted to in Hugo’s eyes. Just the mother of his child. Nothing more.

At that moment, Jasper leaped off the couch, his face scrunched up in disgust.

“Mom, you look so ugly now! Like some low-class thug! Change your hair back right away, or I’ll never let you pick me up from school again!”

I met his gaze, unbothered, my expression unreadable. Seconds stretched between us before I finally spoke.

“Do as you please.”

Jasper’s lips trembled. He hadn’t expected his usual threats to fall flat. The realization sent him into a full-blown tantrum, tears, stomping, wailing.

Ava smiled gently, pulling him into her arms.

“Jasper, don’t cry. If you keep crying, Auntie will feel heartbroken. If you want, I can pick you up from school instead.”

Jasper sniffled, touched by her kindness, and threw himself against her.

“Aunt Ava, you’re the best! I wish you were my mom.”

Then, he turned, glaring at me with resentment.

“Unlike some people, who only care about themselves and completely ignore their responsibilities as a mother. So selfish.”

Hugo’s sharp gaze softened the moment it landed on Ava. His voice, once cold and cutting, turned warm, indulgent.

“I’ve been busy with work and haven’t had time to take care of Jasper. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

Ava’s cheeks flushed instantly. She lowered her gaze, feigning modesty.

“You’re too kind. If it weren’t for you taking me in, I might be homeless right now.”

A subtle warmth passed between them, an intimacy so blatant it made my stomach turn.

I watched in silence, my expression unreadable, yet a cold detachment settled deep within me.

How ridiculous. I felt like a stranger in my own home.

Could they not have waited a little longer? The wife was still here, yet they carried on as if I had already vanished.

Just a few more days, was that too much to ask?

Saying nothing, I turned and walked toward the bathroom. But the moment I stepped inside, I froze.

My towel. My toothbrush. Both were carelessly discarded behind the toilet tank like trash.

And in their place, rows of unfamiliar feminine hygiene products lined neatly on the counter.

The door swung open, slamming against the wall, and the metal hook at the top struck the back of my head.

A sharp, searing pain exploded through my skull. My vision blurred, stars bursting before my eyes.

“Audrey, could you wait a bit? Let me finish washing these clothes first.”

On the other side, Ava had already started scrubbing soap into her underwear, her movements slow and deliberate. When she caught sight of my pained expression, a flicker of amusement danced in her eyes, barely concealed beneath her feigned innocence.

“Audrey, you’re too careless. Lucky for you, I reacted quickly. Otherwise, you could’ve been seriously hurt.”

With a light remark, she effortlessly shifted all blame away from herself while subtly making me seem at fault.

A slow burn settled in my chest. I gritted my teeth through the pain, stepped forward, and met her gaze head-on. My voice was clear, unwavering.

“You bumped into me. Apologize.”

Ava hadn’t expected me to confront her so directly. Her lips trembled, and in the next instant, tears welled up in her eyes, shimmering like a practiced performance.

“Audrey, do you not like me?” she murmured, her voice trembling with grievance. “Why do you always pick on me? If I did something wrong, just tell me. I’ll change. Isn’t that enough?”

I frowned. She was the one who had hurt me, yet somehow, she twisted the moment into one where she was the victim, and I was the aggressor.

I’d had enough. My patience snapped.

“It’s just the two of us here,” I said flatly. “You can drop the act. I’m not buying it.”

Just as the words left my lips, the bathroom door swung open.

Hugo stepped inside, and right behind him, Jasper rushed in. The moment he spotted Ava’s tear-streaked face, he ran to her, standing protectively in front of her like a tiny shield.

“Mom, I won’t let you bully Aunt Ava! You’re a bad woman!”

A bad woman?

For a moment, I thought I’d misheard. My son, the child I had cherished and raised, was looking at me with nothing but hostility.

What did I do wrong?

I was the one who had been hurt, yet even Hugo’s gaze held disappointment as if I were the one truly at fault.

“I understand that you don’t like Ava, but you can’t keep looking for chances to bully her.”

“You’ve changed, Audrey. You weren’t like this before. You used to be so understanding. Look at you now; you’re completely unreasonable.”

Who was the one who changed?

Once, no matter what happened, they stood by my side without question. Now, all they did was blame me, refusing to listen or see. And yet, they dared to say I had changed?

A deep, suffocating sadness crashed over me like a tidal wave, raw and unrelenting. Every breath felt like agony, a dull ache pressing against my chest.

But I swallowed it down. This pain was mine alone to bear.

Without sparing me another glance, Hugo and Jasper turned away, focusing solely on Ava as they carefully led her out.

The moment their figures disappeared through the doorway, a single thought echoed in my mind: just two more days, and I would finally be free.

At the first light of dawn, I slipped out the door.

At the fresh market, I picked out a plump chicken, a softshell turtle, and a bag of high-calcium milk powder, things the elderly needed.

After marriage, my in-laws had always treated me like their own daughter, warm and kind.

Before I left for good, I wanted to see them one last time.

As I stepped through the familiar doorway, my mother-in-law greeted me with a bright smile.

“Audrey, what brings you here on a random day like this?”

I let out a light laugh. “What? Mom, you don’t want to see me?”

She beamed, her face lighting up with joy. “What nonsense! Your dad and I are always looking forward to seeing you. We don’t want to disturb you when you’re busy with work. By the way, where are Hugo and Jasper? Why didn’t they come with you?”

The moment she mentioned my husband and son, the bitterness I had fought so hard to suppress came rushing back, raw and unrelenting. It coiled in my chest, a sharp ache I could barely contain.

Sensing the shift in my expression, my mother-in-law’s brows furrowed with concern. “Did something happen? Are those two giving you trouble? Let me tell you, Audrey, you can’t just let them walk all over you. If they step out of line, don’t hesitate to hit, scold, or teach them a lesson. Don’t hold back.”

My father-in-law’s voice rumbled from the kitchen as he busied himself with the ingredients. “Your mom’s right. A man who isn’t disciplined won’t learn. If you can’t bring yourself to do it, just say the word, we’ll handle it for you.”