"This phrase is called 'out with the old, in with the new'," said Eric. "This is just a way for your mother to encourage you to draw a brand-new family portrait for her. After all, our little Ben has grown so much."

It was clear, Ben took his father's words to heart because he threw his body to Wanda's arm and with his childish voice he vowed, "Mommy, I’ll draw lots and lots of new family portraits for you!"

Well! Out with the old, in with the new, huh?

Wanda's eyes were full of self-deprecation. So, this old wife and old mother would have to give way to the younger and prettier Christina.

The aroma of food lingered faintly in the air and entered Eric's nose. However, when he spotted the still steaming beef stew discarded in the trash, he was surprised.

"Wanda," he called out. "Did you cook dinner last night?"

"I haven’t cooked in a long time," Wanda answered calmly. "It turned out so awful that I threw it away."

Wanda had no idea why he cared enough to ask. Even the sight of Ben clinging to her legs felt suffocating.

She stood abruptly and to bush them off, she said she felt unwell and headed upstairs.

No sooner had she reached her bedroom than her phone began buzzing incessantly. When she opened her WhatsApp, she saw Christina had sent her three photos.

The first one was a photo of Christina holding a bouquet of red roses. She was posing with Eric and Ben.

The second one showed the trio of them enjoying a meal at the restaurant they had booked weeks ago.

The last one was a close-up of an emerald bracelet on Christina's wrist.

As she stared at the warm and intimate image in the photo, the dull pain in Wanda's heart turned into a sharp pain that stabbed her heart continuously. The hurt was so bad that it was so much harder for her to breathe.

Vaguely, the memory of twenty years ago resurfaced in her mind. When she was just nine years old, her parents died in a plane crash. While her relatives were fighting to take over her custody so they could take a dip into the enormous Hamilton Family's inheritance, only Eric, who was only fourteen years old at that time, took her hand and gave her home again.

Back then, he had said, “Wanda, I’ll protect you and never let you suffer.”

That promise had turned him into the single light in her life. She had stumbled and fallen over the years, but she always followed him.

When she learned of his stomach problems, she chose to major in food science and tirelessly honed her cooking skills, just to make him comforting, nourishing meals.

When he went abroad to study, she pushed herself to take the IELTS and practice her English, all to enroll in the same university.

High society circles whispered that Wanda was nothing more than a child bride raised by the Gordon Family. Yet, she did not care. She believed with all her heart that she and Eric would have their happily ever after.

However, in the world of the wealthy, true feelings fade faster than the seasons. Eric now had a new lover, but he still tried to deceive her with lies.

As Wanda wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, Christina's message came again.

"I presume you have received your wedding anniversary gift, right? The emerald bracelet is too big and old-fashioned for me, but it should suit you perfectly."

The arrogance of the younger woman clearly could be seen in her writing. Her words dripped with veiled insults about Wanda’s age and fading beauty.

Wanda turned off her phone, took a deep breath and tried to steady herself. She wanted desperately to act as though nothing had happened. However, she could not lie to her heart.

The red roses and the jade bracelet … Actually every single "gift" from Eric and Ben had been nothing more than Christina’s discarded leftovers.

That realization alone was enough to suffocate her. She couldn’t help but question every gift from the past. Had they all been things rejected by other women? The thought made her feel like a fool forever believing she had been cherished.

Just then, Eric entered. He was holding Ben's hand who was dressed in his bear-print pajamas. "Ben insisted on sleeping with us tonight," he said.

Eric brought their child to bed and out of habit, wrapped his arm around Wanda.

“You seemed upset tonight,” he said gently. “Anniversaries aren’t about the date. What matters is who you spend them with.”

He smiled faintly as his mind drifted to the surprise he had planned. On her birthday, he was going to unveil a special gift. It was a new brand that he had named after her, "Wanda." However, he would hold this surprise for a week time before revealing it to her.

Wanda did not respond because she was afraid that the moment she opened her mouth, her hoarse voice would betray her emotions. So, she lay stiffly in his arm and murmured a barely audible response.

By the time Eric thought of saying more, he noticed she had already slept. Their son, Ben, exhausted from playing, had also fallen fast asleep in her arms.

Then, Eric's phone began to vibrate repeatedly. It was a message from Christina.

He slid his arm from under Wanda's neck and opened their chat box. Perhaps because of the guilt, he purposely turned around from the sleeping Wanda.

When the sight of Christina in a revealing outfit entered his eyes, he could not help but cough awkwardly.

She sent him a message, "Do you want to come out and play tonight?"

Just when Eric was about to decline, she video-called him. "Are you sure you aren't coming?" Christina teased. "Christmas is around the corner and I can fulfill one of your wishes … let's see … how about I act as a Christmas fairy? The kind that will grant everything you want."

Eric's heart raced. Christina sure knows how to play her cards right, he thought. Yet, tonight was his wedding anniversary and leaving Wanda alone had already crossed a line. Meeting someone else in the middle of the night would be a bit too far.

Yet, while the rationality was still running in his mind and Wanda was lying quietly beside her, his desire grew as the woman at the other end of the video call coyly slipped out of the last few layers of her clothes.

Slowly, Eric got up as he promised himself it would be the last time that he indulged his desire before Wanda’s birthday.

Just as he reached for his coat, Wanda stirred awake. When their eyes met, Eric forced himself to remain calm and smile, "Something urgent came up at work. Did I wake you?”

He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead as if to reassure her. Without waiting for a response, he grabbed his car keys and left.

With the slam, the door closed and once again the room went silent.

Ben startled awake by the noise, rubbed his eyes.

When he noticed that Eric wasn't there, he muttered in a small voice, “Dad is sneaking off to meet Christina alone again, next time I'll be sure to follow!”

Wanda froze. Her gaze fell on her son as her heart broke into pieces.

Realizing he had said something wrong, Ben quickly covered his mouth and hugged her as he tried to cover it.

“Mommy, Daddy must be busy with work,” he said, his voice soft and comforting. “However, I’ll always stay with you.”

Despite his words, there was a tinge of regret in his young eyes.

Wanda didn’t respond. She didn’t praise him for being thoughtful, as she usually would. She just tucked Ben back under the covers, then stared blankly at the ceiling.

Hearing the sound of the car engine downstairs, she curled into a ball and covered her ears with her hands.

Maybe if she blocked out the noise, she could convince herself that Eric really was busy with work and he was not with another woman.

Eric didn’t come home that night. He even did not return in the morning.

As Wanda sat down for breakfast, her phone buzzed with a message from him:

“I asked Jane to make chicken soup for you. Don’t forget to have some. Let the nanny take Been to kindergarten. You should rest more and not tire yourself out.”

Eric had her daily life arranged down to the last detail.

Yet, this kind of care was nothing more than a guilty conscience. It was a feeble attempt to atone for his infidelity. Every time Rick cheated, he would pour a lot of attention to Wanda.

These text messages often came at odd hours of the night. Maybe they were sent as he smoked his cigarettes after doing the deed, or perhaps ….

The thought made Wanda's stomach churn violently. She bolted to the bathroom and vomited until she felt utterly drained.

When she finally stepped out of the bathroom, Ben had already finished his breakfast and waited patiently by the door.

When he saw her, he instinctively grabbed her hand. “Mommy, if you don’t take me to school soon, I’ll be late.”

Wanda pulled her hand from his grasp and said nonchalantly, "Jane will take you to school today. I’m tired.”

"I want you, Mommy, to take me to school," Ben pleaded. "Please."

"No, I'm tired," she replied coldly and ruthlessly.

Her ruthless refusal made Ben froze and he closed his mouth. He did not understand the reason his mother who usually did what he wanted would become so cold to him. He gulped down the words as he held back his tears.

Jean, who was standing at the side, sensed Wanda was in a bad mood. She wisely dragged Ben out of the house.

Wanda didn’t have the energy to console her son’s wounded feelings.

At the front desk, the receptionist hesitated as she looked up to confirm Wanda’s identity, her disbelief was evident. Yet, she quickly masked her shock and directed Wanda to Room three hundred and two to proceed with the paperwork.

Inside the room, a masked figure confirmed the details with her, such as the time and method of her death.

After she gave her firm answers, the man reminded her once again, his voice low and somber, “Once you sign, there’s no turning back. Seven days from now, Wanda will cease to exist.”

Wanda nodded. With steady hands, she signed her name. Then she handed over the sandalwood bracelet she’d worn for years as she said, "If I’m going to die, let’s make it convincing."

The bracelet held special significance. After Ben was born, Wanda fell into a mysterious coma. In desperation, Eric, despite being a staunch atheist, had traveled to Tibet. He endured freezing temperatures and knelt every three steps to pray for her recovery.

His sincerity had moved her back then, so much so that she had vowed never to take the bracelet off, even in death.  Now, in a cruel twist of fate, she was making good on that promise.

As she left the office, she overheard the murmured gossip from the reception desk, “They say Mr. Gordon dotes on Mrs. Gordon like she’s his whole world. Yet here she is, signing up for a fake death service.”

"This shows that even the most glamorous marriages can be miserable behind closed doors.”

“I can’t believe I used to root for their love story. Turns out it was all fake.”

Wanda did not wait to hear the rest of the conversation. Maybe Eric had truly loved her at some point in the past seven years. However, for him, love was just a fleeting thing.

Leaving the service center, Wanda wandered into a nearby mall. She hoped she could distract herself.

Yet, fate was cruel. Unexpectedly, she bumped into Ben, who was supposed to be in kindergarten. At that time, he was being with Eric and Christina. The trio of them were walking side by side like a real family.

Wanda froze and stood rooted to the ground. Her mind went blank.

It wasn’t until Christina noticed her that reality snapped back into focus.

"Mrs. Gordon, why are you here?" She covered her mouth in pretend surprise. She walked briskly on her high heels toward Wanda. There wasn’t the slightest trace of guilt on her face being caught in an affair.

“Please don’t misunderstand,” she continued with a practiced innocence. “Mr. Gordon was just being kind. I recently got cast in a role where I play a mother and he thought it would be helpful for me to spend time with Ben to practice.”

“If you’re upset, please take it out on me. It’s my fault, not theirs. Mr. Gordon and Ben are completely innocent," she added.