Normally, Madeline would have collapsed into Nathaniel's arms, surrendering to his touch with a quiet surrender. But tonight, she held herself together. She reached out and grasped his hand firmly, her voice level and calm. "Nathaniel, your phone has been ringing."
Nathaniel's response was hoarse, laced with impatience. "Don’t worry about it."
Madeline closed her eyes, the words she wanted to say rising in her throat, but she held back. The phone rang again, its harsh sound slicing through the quiet. Both of them flinched.
Nathaniel’s eyes grew dark, filled with frustration. He reached for the phone, his fingers hovering just as the call disappeared. His brows furrowed tighter. Without a word, he pulled away from her, stepping aside to answer the call. In the silence that followed, Madeline could hear the faint sound of a woman’s sobs through the phone.
Nathaniel muttered an annoyed "Hmm" before abruptly ending the call. He quickly changed into his clothes, barely meeting Madeline's gaze as he spoke. "Madeline, there’s an emergency at the company. I need to go."
Madeline’s breath hitched, and she tightened her grip on her hands, her nails digging into her palms as a wave of humiliation surged through her. Her throat ached with the understanding that he had to leave, but still, she fought to hold on, to make him stay. "Can you not go? You haven’t eaten the meal I made for you."
Nathaniel moved swiftly, gathering his things. He ruffled her hair affectionately, his voice soft but insistent. "Be a good girl, I’ll eat when I come back."
As soon as he left, the emptiness in the house seemed to swallow her whole. Madeline, her hands trembling, grabbed her phone and searched for the unfamiliar number. She added it on Instagram
The woman's name was Zoe Jackson—she was beautiful. Madeline scrolled through her account, noticing the photo updates chronicling her pregnancy journey. And in every photo, there was always a man’s back. Madeline didn’t need to look closely to recognize him. It was Nathaniel.
Every time he had worked late or gone on a business trip, he had been with Zoe.
Madeline's heart clenched. She bit her lip, her eyes fixed on the screen as she tortured herself by scrolling through each new photo.
Then, another update appeared. Madeline clicked on it without thinking, her breath catching in her throat. The photo showed Nathaniel, his head bowed, half-kneeling as he put on Zoe’s shoes. Beside it, a ultrasound photo of a child—already formed, already real.
"The child looks so much like his father. I hope he can love me as much as his father does in the future."
The words echoed in Madeline's mind as she stared at the ultrasound photo, the image of the child becoming sharper and more real with each passing second. It was as if the ground beneath her feet had crumbled, and she was falling into an abyss. Her heart shattered completely. She had tried to hold it together for so long, but now, it all came crashing down. The last wall she had built inside herself was broken beyond repair.
Nathaniel truly had a child. No wonder he had insisted she not have one. No wonder he had discouraged their own attempts at starting a family. And the child—this little life—looked so much like him. Madeline couldn’t even deceive herself anymore. It was clear. He had a child with another woman.
Tears flowed freely as Madeline’s heart splintered into pieces. She set an appointment with the doctor, her hands shaking as she locked the ultrasound report into a box, a container that now held not just the paper, but the remnants of her broken heart.
Zoe's due date was just three days away, and she had scheduled the operation for that day. Madeline lay awake, wondering how Nathaniel would feel if he knew that on the same day, he would lose one child, while Zoe gave birth to another. Would he be happy for the arrival of his child with Zoe? Or would he mourn the loss of the child she could never give him?
But in that moment, Madeline realized something—Nathaniel's feelings no longer mattered. It was clear now. She had never been good enough for him in his family’s eyes. His mother had always disliked her, mocking her for being a "hen that couldn't lay eggs." Madeline had put up with it, but only because of Nathaniel. He had always defended her, stood by her side, and even moved out to live with her, away from his mother's cruel remarks. She had believed in his love, in his words that he didn’t need a child, that he was content with just her.
But it was all a lie. While she had endured years of painful IVF treatments in hopes of giving him the family he wanted, he had already been building a family with someone else, and now the child was on the verge of being born.
Madeline felt foolish, utterly naive. She didn’t want the child anymore. She didn’t want Nathaniel either.
Later that night, as Nathaniel quietly slipped into bed beside her, pulling her into his arms, Madeline could smell the familiar perfume on him once again. This time, she knew exactly where it came from.
