Chapter 2

After speaking, without waiting for their reaction, I turned and went to the bedroom to pack.

Since I'd decided to leave completely, I didn't want to leave any trace here.

The laughter from the living room seeped through the door. My hands paused slightly as I folded clothes.

"Marcus, I want to use your surname for this child. That way, even if he calls someone else 'dad' in the future, he'll always remember you're his real father."

Even without seeing it, I could imagine the deep affection on Vivian's face as she said this.

My heart had long been torn to shreds by her.

I suddenly remembered last month when I rushed home, holding a souvenir I'd bought for Vivian from abroad.

But at the doorstep, I saw Vivian and Marcus returning hand-in-hand from a walk.

Unlike Vivian's panicked expression, Marcus looked at me with puzzled eyes and questioned whether I'd come to the wrong door.

I said nothing, my gaze fixed on Vivian's pregnant belly.

After eleven months away, my wife was pregnant.

No matter what, I couldn't deceive myself into believing this child was mine.

Until Vivian frantically positioned herself in front of Marcus and introduced me.

"This is my husband, Anderson."

I thought hearing this would make Marcus back off, but instead, like the man of the house, he invited me to come in and sit.

As we passed each other, he spoke in a voice only we could hear.

"I heard you're quite a bit older than me? Then I'll call you 'bro.' After all, your wife is carrying my child."

My chest burned with rage. I couldn't hold back anymore and punched him hard in the face.

I completely lost my rationality. The eleven months of missing Vivian transformed into fury.

If there'd been a knife nearby, I might have actually killed this pair of adulterers.

A neighbor heard the commotion and called the police.

We were all taken to the station, but since it involved domestic matters, the police couldn't intervene much and just sent us home.

As soon as we got home, my in-laws, who'd rushed over, didn't ask anything—they just berated me.

They cursed me for causing such a scene as soon as I returned, making the neighbors laugh at us.

They also cursed me for wasting all those years of education, actually resorting to violence, and said they'd never forgive me if something serious happened.

Turns out they'd known all along about Vivian and Marcus being together, and even fully supported them.

In just one year, Marcus had become the perfect son-in-law in their hearts.

Only I had been kept in the dark.

My mouth tasted bitter. I felt terrible.

Vivian trembled as she walked to my side, trying to take my hand and persuade me.

"I never meant to betray you. Marcus isn't well. The doctor said he has at most six months to live. I couldn't bear to see him die without even having a child."

"I wanted to discuss it with you before, but you were abroad, and I was afraid you'd worry too much and it would interfere with your studies. I planned to tell you when you came back."

"If you're willing, can we raise this child together?"

Having children—such a major decision—yet she made it sound so trivial.

I placed the last piece of clothing in my suitcase. Just then, my mother-in-law pushed the door open.

Seeing the suitcase by my feet, she wore an expression that said I was finally being sensible. "Since you haven't been back, I let Marcus sleep in your room. The study has been converted into a nursery too, so tonight you'll have to make do on the couch. Or you could go stay in a hotel?"

I was truly exhausted and had no energy to go find a hotel.

I nodded, planning to make do on the sofa for the night.

But deep into the night, the baby's cries kept coming from the bedroom.

I rolled over, about to put in earplugs, when I heard Vivian's complaining voice.

"Can't you do something about the baby? He keeps crying."

"You're my baby. Taking care of you is enough. Crying is good for a baby's lung capacity."

Vivian laughed softly and said "you're terrible," followed by a shameless giggle.

I pulled the blanket over my head, trying hard to ignore those obscene sounds.

But when I closed my eyes, Vivian's face appeared—how she looked the first time she confessed to me.