When Benjamin woke up the next morning, the first thing he said was not an apology.
He looked at me with a cold, distant expression and said, "Jocelyn Stevens, I will take responsibility. I will marry you."
At that moment, I thought all the pain I had endured was finally worth it.
I thought the man I loved had finally chosen me.
I thought our story was about to begin.
But that illusion shattered soon after.
A few days later, at a gathering with Benjamin's friends, I accidentally overheard their conversation.
"Ben, you should consider yourself lucky," his friend said with a laugh. "Jocelyn is beautiful, wealthy, and she loves you more than anyone. What else are you looking for? Just marry her and settle down."
The room went quiet for a moment.
Then I heard Benjamin laugh softly.
It was a cold, mocking laugh.
"Honestly, I did have some feelings for her in the beginning."
My heart skipped a beat.
But his next words froze my entire body.
"I just never expected her to be that kind of woman."
His voice was filled with disgust.
"Drugging me and forcing herself on me that night… Every time I think about it, I feel sick."
My fingers tightened around the edge of the door.
I stood there, unable to move.
I wanted to rush in and tell him the truth. I wanted to explain that I had never drugged him. That everything had been a misunderstanding. That I had loved him for years and would never hurt him.
But before I could find the courage, Benjamin had already received his visa.
Two weeks later, he left the country.
Without giving me a chance to explain.
Without looking back.
But that one night changed my entire life.
Because I was left with a child.
I gave birth to my daughter, Esther, alone.
During those long months, I held onto one hope.
Benjamin would come back.
When he returned, everything would get better.
Esther would finally have a father.
And our family would finally be complete.
But reality gave me the cruelest answer.
Benjamin came back, but he didn't come back to us.
He came back to Cynthia and her daughter.
The villa was silent that evening.
I sat on the sofa, staring at my phone screen.
Benjamin had been gone for so long that I had already memorized the time difference between us.
I was just about to call him and ask when he would arrive home.
Then the front door opened.
Benjamin walked in.
He looked exactly the same as he had before he left.
Calm.
Indifferent.
As if nothing between us had ever changed.
His eyes briefly landed on Esther, who was sleeping peacefully on the couch.
Then he casually removed his coat and said,
"Jessica is coming over tomorrow."
I looked up at him.
"What?"
"You and Esther should go out for the day."
I stared at him in disbelief.
Benjamin noticed my expression and smiled faintly.
"Jessica is possessive. She doesn't like seeing another little girl calling me Daddy."
For a moment, I couldn't believe what I had just heard.
Then I laughed.
A quiet, bitter laugh.
"Benjamin."
My voice trembled.
"Do you even remember who your real daughter is?"
His expression darkened.
"Jocelyn."
"Do you know what happened to Esther at kindergarten today?"
Before I could finish, he interrupted me.
"I don't need you to remind me."
His tone was impatient.
"I'm sorry about what happened today, but Jessica also had a parent-teacher meeting. Cynthia and her ex-husband are divorced. She's raising Jessica alone. She can't handle everything by herself."
I looked at him silently.
Then I heard the words that hurt me the most.
"Before I met you, I promised Cynthia that I would never let her suffer."
Benjamin looked at me as if he was explaining something obvious.
"I married you, didn't I? I gave you what you wanted."
"So you have no right to stop me from taking care of them."
His voice softened slightly.
"This is something I owe them."
Something I owed them.
I lowered my eyes.
So in his heart, Cynthia and Jessica were the people he needed to protect.
And me?
The woman who waited for him.
The woman who gave birth to his child.
The woman who spent years loving him.
I was just the person who got what I wanted.
After saying that, Benjamin threw his coat aside and walked into the bathroom.
Soon, the sound of running water filled the house.
It covered my quiet sobs.
At that moment, I finally understood.
If I had known that marrying Benjamin would bring me this kind of life, I would rather have never held onto that night.
I would rather have let go from the beginning.
I looked down at the divorce agreement I had just finished writing.
I had planned to leave him long ago.
But because of Esther, I hesitated.
I didn't want my daughter to grow up without a father.
I didn't want her to experience the same loneliness I had once felt.
So I gave this marriage one last chance.
But Benjamin had already made his choice.
And now, I had to make mine.
The next morning, Esther woke up and heard that her father had returned.
Her eyes instantly lit up.
"Mommy! Daddy is home?"
She jumped out of bed excitedly.
"I want to show Daddy my painting!"
Children were always the easiest to forgive.
Despite everything that happened at kindergarten the day before, Esther still loved her father.
She still believed Benjamin loved her.
Holding the painting she had spent an entire week making, she ran downstairs happily.
But the moment she stepped into the living room, her smile froze.
Cynthia was sitting there.
And beside her was Jessica.
Benjamin was sitting next to Jessica, carefully peeling an orange for her.
The scene looked like a perfect family.
Esther stood there quietly.
Then she asked in a small voice,
"Daddy... who are they?"
Benjamin immediately frowned when he saw her.
"Why are you still here?"
His first words were not "I missed you."
Not "Come here, Daddy wants to hug you."
Only blame.
"Where's your mother?"
Esther's small body stiffened.
She lowered her head, then slowly raised the painting in her hands.
"Daddy..."
"I drew this for you."
"It's a family portrait."
"I spent a whole week making it. I wanted to give it to you when you came home."
Her eyes were filled with expectation.
She carefully held the painting toward him.
But before Benjamin could take it, another small hand grabbed it.
Jessica looked at the drawing for a few seconds.
Then she laughed.
"What a stupid picture."
Before anyone could react, she tore it apart.
Rip.
The sound of paper splitting echoed through the living room.
Esther froze.
Her little hands slowly dropped.
Jessica raised her chin proudly.
"He's my daddy."
She stepped closer and looked at Esther arrogantly.
"All the kids at school say you're a fatherless child."
"Who gave you permission to call my daddy yours?"
Then she pushed Esther hard.
My daughter's small body fell backward.
And at that moment, something inside me completely broke.
