My parents had treated me with the same indifference for ten years. Even the amount of money they gave me had never changed. I crumpled the bill into a tight ball and tossed it into the trash.

After last night ended badly, they stopped pretending altogether.

I heard Mom talking on the phone in her room. Her voice was brimming with excitement. "The venue is already set up. It looks just like a fairy tale!"

Dad was giving instructions on the balcony. "Bring the bottle of '82 Lafite. We have to make sure Ben enjoys himself today."

All the while, I drifted through the house like a ghost.

Suzy left early that morning. Before she went, she glanced at me with a complicated look. "Christopher, no matter what you see, trust me."

Trust her? Trust that she was part of this deception too? I let out a cold laugh and said nothing.

Around noon, a delivery truck stopped downstairs. Two workers unloaded an enormous gift box tied with an exaggerated blue bow.

I stood by the window and watched. It turned out that, to them, I didn't even deserve a gift.

Mom hurried downstairs, smiling from ear to ear as she signed for the delivery. She directed the workers with extreme care, afraid it might get damaged.

I recognized the logo. It was a limited edition piano released just last month, priced well into six figures. Meanwhile, my old piano, which I had used for ten years, had yellowed keys and was out of tune.

I had hinted at it to Mom before, but she always replied, "If it still works, keep using it. The household expenses are heavy."

It turned out that the expenses were not the problem. I simply wasn't worth it. The last trace of hope in my heart was completely extinguished.

That afternoon, I changed into a black suit.

I neatly styled my hair and adjusted my appearance to conceal the exhaustion in my eyes. I couldn't let them see me in such a disheveled state. I would draw a clear line between us with my head held high.

I had overheard the address for the party during Mom's phone call the night before. They had reserved the most prestigious banquet hall in the city.

I took a cab there. Along the way, the driver kept marveling at the impending event. "Young man, what big occasion is it today? The road ahead is blocked. I heard that some rich family is throwing a birthday party for their son, and it's incredibly extravagant."

I forced a faint smile and said nothing. Yes, the party was grand—so grand that it was built on ten years of my grievances.

A long red carpet stretched across the entrance of the hall, flanked by rows of blue rose arrangements.

On the welcome sign at the entrance, elegant cursive letters read, "Happy Birthday to My Sweetheart."

It was signed, "With love, your Mom and Dad."

I stared at those words, finding them painfully glaring. I took out my phone and sent Suzy a message. "I'm here to see your so-called surprise."

Then I took a deep breath and stepped inside in my leather shoes.

Inside the banquet hall, glasses clinked, and laughter filled the air. My parents stood in the middle of the crowd, smiling warmly as they entertained the guests. Beside them stood a boy dressed in a blue formal suit.

That was Benjamin. He looked like a proud peacock, basking in everyone's attention and well-wishes.

Mom personally placed an exquisite diamond crown on his head and said gently, "Ben, today you're our most precious little prince."

Dad handed him a velvet box containing a dazzling diamond watch. "Do you like it? I had it custom-made just for you."

Benjamin smiled sweetly. "Thank you, Mr. Blake and Mrs. Blake. You are so good to me."

The guests around them gasped in admiration.

"Oliver, I can't believe how well you're treating your godson. You're doting on him more than your own son!"

"Exactly. With generosity like this, we can't even compare."

"Oliver, he's only a godson, and you're already treating him like this. If it were your own son's birthday, you'd probably pluck the stars from the sky!"

My parents laughed heartily. They waved their hands repeatedly and said, "It's the least we could do."

No one noticed me standing in the corner. I held up my phone and recorded the scene clearly. Then, I straightened my suit, picked up a glass of champagne, and slowly walked toward them.

The surrounding noise seemed to fade away. All I could see was that harmonious "family of three".

Mom raised her glass and announced to the guests, "Thank you all for coming to celebrate our sweetheart's birthday today—"

"Your sweetheart?" I asked.

I repeated Mom's words in an icy tone.

The smiles on my parents' faces vanished instantly.

Mom reacted faster. She stepped forward and reached for my hand, but I turned aside and avoided her. "Chris, why are you here?" she asked.

Her voice trembled. "Come here, let me introduce you. This is—"

I cut her off, fixing my gaze squarely on Benjamin. "This is Benjamin Smith, your sweetheart, right?"

The smile faded from Benjamin's face as well. He looked at me, visibly at a loss. A flicker of sympathy passed through his eyes before he turned to my parents for help.

"Who is this?" a guest asked.

Dad's face darkened completely. He lowered his voice and snapped, "Christopher Blake! Stop causing trouble here and go home!"

"Causing trouble?"

I laughed coldly. "Dad, did you forget what day it is? Today is also your own son's birthday—mine."

I spoke every word clearly.

Gasps and murmurs spread through the crowd. Everyone's eyes shifted back and forth between my parents and me, filled with curiosity and gossip.

"So he's the real son… Then—"

"Unbelievable. How can they ignore their own son's birthday and throw such a massive party for an outsider?"

"What's Mr. Blake thinking? I honestly don't understand it."

As the murmurs reached my parents, their expressions darkened. Mom's lips trembled.

Dad's eyes went from panicked to furious. "That's enough!"

Dad slammed his hand on the table. "Did you really have to ruin everything today?"

"Ruin everything?"

I raised my phone and clicked on a video. "Mom, who's really ruining everything? Who's the one who's preparing a surprise for me while putting a crown on someone else and giving him a watch?"

On the screen, the footage clearly showed Mom gently placing the crown on Benjamin's head.

"Ben, today you're our most precious little prince," she said.

Those words echoed through the silent banquet hall from the phone's speaker. All the color drained from Mom's face.

I switched to the group photo. "And this—how did the son of your so-called important client become your sweetheart?"

I turned the screen toward the crowd so everyone could see the photo and the comments beneath it. The guests' faces contorted with surprise, judgment, and disbelief.

Dad trembled with rage. He jabbed a finger at me wordlessly. "Christopher Blake, y-you—"

"What?" I asked.

I met his gaze. My eyes were welling up, but my voice stayed cold. "I just want to ask you this in person. Does having a new son feel so much better than having me? What did I do to deserve being humiliated and cast aside like this?"

My voice grew louder, echoing the ten years of anguish I suffered.

Benjamin's face turned pale. He tugged at Mom's sleeve and whispered, "Mrs. Blake, this—"

Mom yanked her hand away from him. She looked at me with eyes full of regret. "Chris, it's not what you think. It's really not what you think!"

"Then, what is it?" I demanded. "Come on, say it!"

At that moment, the doors of the banquet hall were pushed open.

Suzy rushed in. When she saw the tense standoff, her face went pale. She ran up to me and gripped my arm tightly. Her voice was shaking. "Christopher, listen to my explanation!"

"Enough! I don't want to hear any more explanations from you!" I shouted.

I struggled to break free from her. I had already achieved my purpose today. I wanted everyone to see the true faces of my so-called model parents, letting the carefully crafted image they had spent years building fall apart today.

I raised my phone high, ready to project the group chat screenshots onto the big screen. "Mom, Dad, this show is over!"

Just as I was about to press the projection button, Suzy snatched my phone and clutched it tightly to her chest. "Christopher! Please! Just wait five more minutes!"

Her eyes were red, and her voice was filled with desperation.