The elevator chimed softly as I stepped out, clutching the small gift box in one hand and the envelope in the other. Inside the envelope was the pregnancy test I’d been hiding for days—proof that after four years of waiting, I finally carried Arthur’s child. I had planned to surprise him tonight, on our anniversary.

I paused before the hotel suite door, my heart pounding with nervous excitement. The bouquet of white lilies I had ordered earlier had already been delivered inside. This was supposed to be perfect—a fresh beginning for us.

But just as I lifted my hand to knock, the muffled sound of laughter and voices froze me in place.

“Are you really still dragging Diana around, Arthur? She’s so dull, she doesn’t even suit you.”

“She’s useful,” Arthur’s deep voice replied casually, followed by the clink of glasses.

The air seemed to leave my lungs.

Another voice chimed in. “Kylie’s back from abroad, isn’t she? The real Jennings daughter. Honestly, you two make more sense together.”

Kylie. My so-called sister. The one who had grown up in an orphanage while I was raised in the Jennings household. The one everyone adored once they found out the truth—that she was the true daughter, and I was nothing more than a mistake.

My stomach knotted.

Arthur chuckled. “Diana is harmless. She’s desperate to please me. She’ll never disobey—if I told her to throw herself into the river, she’d probably do it. Keeping her around isn’t a loss.”

The words stabbed deep, slicing apart everything I had believed about him. My fingers trembled and the envelope slipped from my grasp, falling silently to the carpet.

“When will you replace her then?” someone asked with a laugh.

Arthur’s tone turned cold. “Soon enough. Diana was only ever a placeholder. Kylie should have been the one by my side from the beginning. Everyone knows that.”

I pressed my hand over my mouth to keep from crying out. My vision blurred as tears filled my eyes. So this was it—the man I had loved so blindly, the man I had trusted, had never truly wanted me at all.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I picked up the envelope and backed away from the door, each step heavier than the last. The gift box felt like lead in my hand before I finally dropped it into the trash bin outside the suite.

...

I wandered aimlessly through the city streets, the night air sharp against my skin. My thoughts spun wildly—my husband’s betrayal, my family’s rejection. Just then, my phone buzzed in my hand.

It was an unknown number. I hesitated, then answered.

“Diana... it’s about my mother...”

The words blurred as the voice on the other end broke the news. The housekeeper who had raised me, the only one who had ever shown me kindness in that cold Jennings household, had died suddenly in a car accident.

The ground beneath me seemed to collapse. Aunt Melanie was gone... The only person who had ever truly cared for me was gone.

My tears blinded me as I stumbled toward the riverside, the world dissolving into a haze. Betrayed by my husband, rejected by my family, now abandoned by the only mother figure I had ever known... there was nothing left.

Maybe Arthur had been right. Maybe I was just a stray no one wanted.

I stood at the edge of the river, the waves pulling at the shore as if calling me in. My body trembled as I leaned forward. My decision solidified.

Before I could take that final step, my phone rang again.

“Diana, where the hell are you?” Arthur’s impatient voice barked through the line. “Why haven’t you come to the hotel yet? Stop humiliating me in front of my friends. Come here, now.”

The call cut like a knife. Even in this moment, all he cared about was saving face.

My heart twisted, despair pushing me closer to the edge—until suddenly, a faint flutter stirred in my belly. Life. My child. Our child.

I collapsed onto the damp grass, sobbing uncontrollably. I couldn’t take them with me.

...

When I finally returned home, exhaustion dragged me into sleep. But the blanket was suddenly yanked off me, jolting me awake.

“Diana!” Arthur’s furious voice cut through the dark. “Why didn’t you come to the hotel? Do you have any idea how you embarrassed me in front of everyone?”

My lips trembled. “I wasn’t feeling well,” I whispered, my pale face half-buried in the pillow.

Arthur’s anger faltered as he looked at me, guilt flickering in his eyes for the briefest moment. He sighed, loosening his grip.

"Tsk. You're being dramatic again.

I only stared at him, my heart aching with every word.

“Anyway,” he continued, “Kylie’s coming back tomorrow for her birthday. We’ll go to the homecoming party together.”

The name alone was enough to twist the knife deeper into my chest.

"You can go alone," I whispered.

“Stop acting like this, okay? You should be grateful you grew up in a wealthy family, Diana. Kylie is trying so hard not to make you feel left out. Don’t make things more difficult.”

Clenching my fist, I nodded faintly, too weak to argue, as silent tears burned down my cheeks.

On our anniversary night, I had finally learned the truth: I was nothing but a shadow, a mistake… a substitute.

The Jennings mansion was dazzlingly lit, laughter spilling out through its gilded doors as guests poured in to celebrate Kylie’s long-awaited return. To everyone, it was her birthday. To me, it felt like a funeral—the slow burial of my last shred of belonging.

Arthur’s hand pressed lightly against my back as we entered together. “Smile,” he murmured near my ear, his voice calm but edged with warning. “Don’t embarrass me in front of Kylie.”

My body stiffened. I knew better than to resist.

“Kylie!” someone called, and all eyes turned toward her.

She descended the grand staircase in a flowing ivory dress, her smile warm and luminous. Every step she took drew admiration. My heart twisted when I saw her pause at the sight of my twin brothers waiting at the bottom—her brothers, not mine. They beamed at her as though they had found their missing treasure at last.

“Happy birthday, Kylie!” Guests crowded around her, showering her with praise.

Then her gaze landed on me. “Sister!” she exclaimed, her eyes glistening with what looked like affection. She walked over, holding my hands tightly, but her glance lingered on Arthur just a little too long.

“I’ve missed you so much,” she said sweetly. “Even though you didn’t call or write… I still hoped one day we could be close.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came. My throat was too tight, my heart too heavy.

Kylie sighed, her expression full of gentle sorrow. “You must have felt lonely growing up in such a big house. I can’t blame you for misunderstanding me sometimes.” Her voice trembled just enough to sound sincere.

“She’s right,” one guest whispered nearby. “Even after studying abroad, Kylie’s grades are excellent. Unlike Diana, who wasted her chance at the same school.”

“Honestly, it’s no wonder. Diana’s only where she is because she grew up in wealth. She couldn’t compare to Kylie even if she tried.”

Laughter rippled through the crowd, their voices sharp as knives.

“She should be grateful Kylie doesn’t blame her,” another added. “If anything, Diana owes her for all the trouble she caused.”

Each word sank like a stone into my chest. I kept silent, biting down on my lip until I tasted blood.

“Please don’t say that.” Kylie’s voice carried over the chatter, soft but firm. She turned to the guests, her eyes glistening. “Diana is my sister. Don’t make her feel worse. She didn’t mean to hurt me.”

Her plea only made the whispers grow louder, more cutting.

“See? Kylie is so considerate. Even when Diana wrongs her, she still protects her.”

“Diana doesn’t deserve her.”

I couldn’t breathe. My vision swam as heat rushed to my cheeks.

Excusing myself, I slipped away from the party, the laughter and music muffling as I pushed open the glass doors to the garden. The night air was sharp and cold, the scent of roses heavy around me. I inhaled deeply, trying to calm the tremor in my chest.

But the sound of deliberate footsteps soon followed. Kylie’s heels clicked against the stone path as she approached.

“Running away again, sister?” Her voice was light, but her eyes glittered in the dark. “You’ve always been so good at that.”

I turned to face her, but she only smirked.

“Do you really think Arthur loves you?” she asked suddenly, her tone sharp beneath the sweetness. “He married you because of the family alliance. That’s all. If he had known I was the real daughter back then, you never would have stood at the altar.”

My body froze, blood draining from my face.

Kylie leaned closer, her whisper laced with poison. “While you sat at home waiting, Arthur was with me. Every anniversary trip, every so-called business outing… it was me he spent the nights with, not you. I know what he likes, Diana. He told me you were too dull, too plain, too submissive. You could never satisfy him.”

My chest heaved as bile rose to my throat. The ground beneath me seemed to tilt.

“Don’t look so shocked.” Her smile widened, cruel and triumphant. “Arthur and I have always been the real couple. You were just holding my place until I came back.”

I staggered backward, clutching my stomach as tears burned down my cheeks. My world was crumbling again, piece by piece, and this time, I wasn’t sure I had the strength to survive it.

The garden lights glowed faintly against the dark sky, casting long shadows across the pond. Kylie leaned closer, her perfume cloying as her words dripped with venom.

“I’ll get everything from you, Diana,” she whispered, her lips brushing my ear like a lover’s secret. “Arthur, my family, the wealth… all of it will be mine. And you? You’ll be left with nothing.”

Her smile widened when she saw the horror in my eyes.

Then, as if on cue, she gasped dramatically and stumbled backward. The sharp crack of her heel on the stone pathway echoed before she pitched toward the water.

“Kylie!” Instinctively, I reached out to steady her. But the moment my fingers brushed her arm, she twisted and shoved me forward instead.

Cold water closed around me as I plunged into the pond, the shock stealing my breath. My limbs flailed as I fought to surface, gasping, hair plastered to my face.

“Diana!” A voice cut through the night—but it wasn’t a concern for me.

Arthur was rushing forward, his arms wrapped protectively around Kylie, who now sobbed pitifully against his chest.

“Arthur… I—I didn’t mean to upset her. Maybe I said too much…” Kylie’s voice quivered, her tears glistening in the garden lights.

“What the hell were you thinking, Diana?!” Arthur’s furious roar stabbed through me as I trembled in the water. His glare burned with anger, not at Kylie, but at me.

“I didn’t push her!” I choked, shivering violently. “She—she shoved me!”

Kylie shook her head quickly, her sobs growing louder. “No, no… Diana must be upset. Don’t blame her, Arthur. She’s my sister. I don’t want her to feel humiliated.”

Her false kindness only painted me crueler in everyone’s eyes.

“I was the one who was pushed into the water,” I cried, my voice cracking. “Yet you still blame me. Why, Arthur?”

His jaw tightened. “Because I know Kylie. She’s always been kind—she would never harm anyone. It’s you who twists the truth, Diana. You’re framing your innocent sister.”

My body went cold. “Innocent?” I whispered, my heart sinking.

Arthur’s expression didn’t waver. “Apologize to her, Diana. Right now. Or stay in that water until you freeze for all I care.”

“I won’t,” I whispered, my teeth chattering.

“What did you say?” His tone sharpened, dangerous.

Arthur’s jaw tightened, his voice like ice. “Apologize to Kylie. Right now. Or stay in that water until you freeze for all I care.”

“I won’t,” I whispered, my teeth chattering.

“What did you say?” His tone sharpened, dangerous.

“I said I won’t apologize.” My throat burned with the weight of my defiance, tears streaming down my cold cheeks.

Arthur’s face darkened. Without another glance at me, he scooped Kylie into his arms. “Fine. Since you’re so stubborn, you can freeze there.”

And with that, he carried Kylie back toward the mansion, her sobs echoing sweetly into the night, leaving me abandoned in the water.

...

With shaking limbs, I dragged myself out of the pond. My dress clung to me, heavy and dripping, each step painful as I stumbled to the roadside. Trembling, I hailed a cab.

On the way home, my phone rang. It was Aunt Melanie’s daughter, her voice broken with grief.

“Diana… the burial is tomorrow. If you want to see her one last time, you should come early.”

“I will,” I whispered, my voice hoarse, before ending the call.

Tears blurred the city lights as I leaned against the cab window. Shivering, I asked the driver to stop by a boutique. My clothes were soaked through, and I couldn’t go to Aunt Melanie’s funeral like this.

But when I stepped inside, the saleslady’s eyes swept over my dripping form with disdain. “We don’t welcome people like you. Leave before you dirty the place.”

Her sharp words cut deeper than the cold. Faces turned to stare, their judgment burning into me. My throat tightened, but I forced myself to turn around and leave.

I finally found a small thrift shop on a side street. The owner didn’t ask questions, only handed me a secondhand dress at a cheap price. It wasn’t much, but at least it covered me.

Clutching the thin fabric against me, I headed home, tears welling up once again. Aunt Melanie, the only person who had ever loved me, was gone. My husband despised me. My family wished I didn’t exist. And the one who replaced me wanted to strip me of everything.

At that moment, I wondered if there was anything left of me at all.