What Sophie didn’t expect was that Luke reacted faster than her.

He shielded Helen and pushed her back with force.

Pain shot through her shoulder as she fell heavily to the ground.

Shock, disbelief, and despair overwhelmed her heart like sharp knives stabbing straight into it.

He valued that child so much that he actually pushed her for Helen...

Luke stared at his hand in shock, wanting to explain but unable to find the words.

Watching his helpless expression, Sophie suddenly laughed, tears mingling with her laughter.

“Luke, is this what you mean by you love me?”

Then she turned to Helen and asked, “And you, is this how you repay me?”

The repeated questioning left both Luke and Helen silent.

Sophie, her face pale, looked at Luke with lifeless eyes and asked one last question.

“If you say you didn’t mean to betray me, then who do you choose—the child or me?”

Perhaps out of guilt, Luke didn’t dare meet her gaze.

After a long pause, he answered with pain in his voice, “Sophie, stop making a scene. Once you calm down, I’ll come home and explain things to you, but I must keep this child.”

With that, he supported Helen and turned to leave.

Sophie’s entire body trembled uncontrollably, unsure if it was the pain in her heart or the pain in her abdomen that was worse.

It wasn’t until she felt a dampness below that she looked down at her white dress in alarm.

The sight of vivid red blood stung her eyes, and a wave of terror surged through her.

She managed to utter a weak cry. “Luke...”

She wanted to say more, to tell him that she was also pregnant, to beg him to save their child...

But the more she tried to speak, the more she couldn’t make a sound. She could only gasp for air, trying to calm herself.

Hearing her faint voice, Luke hesitated and stopped in his tracks.

Just when she thought hope was within reach, he didn’t turn back and disappeared around the corner instead.

Sophie was utterly devastated. She knew their marriage had reached its end as well.

Struggling, she forced herself to stand, clutching her abdomen as she made her way to the doctor’s office.

Dr. Clinton was surprised to see her walk in.

“Sophie, didn’t I tell you to rest early? The embryo had only just formed—you need to be careful.”

But the moment the doctor noticed the blood on Sophie’s dress, her expression turned to panic.

“Nurses, hurry and prepare for surgery!”

Two nurses immediately came over to help Sophie onto a bed.

Dr. Clinton held her hand, her eyes full of concern.

“What happened? You just managed to conceive... but with this amount of bleeding, the baby might...”

A suffocating pain gripped Sophie’s chest. How was she supposed to tell the doctor that her husband had another child and had personally pushed her?

Tears fell uncontrollably like broken beads. She squeezed the doctor’s hand tightly and struggled to speak. “Just do your best. If the child can’t be saved, then it’s my fate.”

And so, Sophie was wheeled into the operating room.

She felt as though she dreamed for a long, long time, a dream that brought her back to the past.

Luke was only 23 years old then.

He held a bouquet of flowers and a ring, kneeling devoutly in front of her.

“Sophie, marry me. I swear I’ll only love you in this lifetime. I’ll never let you suffer, and I’ll never let you be heartbroken.”

For the first five years of their marriage, he kept that promise, treating her with unwavering kindness.

To the outside world, he was a husband that adored his wife, rarely drinking or socializing. Apart from work, he spent most of his time with her.

He always said he wanted a child as the ultimate symbol of their love.

So when they learned of his infertility, Sophie willingly endured the pain of multiple IVF attempts just to have a child of their own.

But why did he treat her like this? Why...

When Sophie woke up again, she was already lying in a hospital bed.

Dr. Clinton’s eyes were slightly red, filled with regret. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t save the baby. But you’ll definitely be pregnant with another child...”

For years, Dr. Clinton had been following Sophie’s case, so no one understood better how much Sophie had endured.

After the surgery, Dr. Clinton overheard some nurses gossiping and learned about what had happened outside the office.

She felt deeply upset on Sophie’s behalf, but as a doctor, there were things she couldn’t say. All she could do was offer her powerless comfort.

Sophie stared blankly at the ceiling and murmured softly, “No, there won’t be a next time...”

Dr. Clinton sighed, reminded her to rest well, and then left the room.

Once the room was empty, Sophie pulled the blanket over her face and cried uncontrollably.

She had once been so overjoyed, eagerly looking forward to the arrival of this child, and now she felt equally devastated.

Her heart felt as though it was being torn apart, the pain so intense she could barely breathe, as if she would die in the next moment.

She bit her lip hard and silently screamed in her heart. “Luke, how could you be so cruel...”

It wasn’t until she cried herself into exhaustion that she finally fell into a deep sleep.

When she woke up the next day, Sophie had come to terms with reality.

The person she trusted most had easily destroyed the dream she worked so hard to achieve.

Now that the dream was shattered, it was time for her to wake up.

She took out her phone and sent a message to her mentor.

“Prof. Brown, I’m willing to go with you to study abroad. Please make the arrangements.”

Prof. Brown quickly replied, “Alright, the visa will be ready in about a week. Make sure to talk to your husband about it, as this trip might take a year.”

‘Talk to my husband about it? He soon won’t be my husband anymore,’ thought Sophie.

After a brief hesitation, Sophie quickly replied, “Okay.”

She stayed in the hospital for five days, during which Luke sent her messages every day, just as he always had, detailing his schedule.

“Sophie, I’m staying late at the office today, working overtime with the team. I’m so exhausted—I just want to be with you.”

“Sophie, without you here, even my favorite roast chicken go uneaten.”

“Sophie, are you still mad? Can you come home now? I miss you so much...”

Every word was filled with affection, but Sophie didn’t reply to a single message.

Because on Helen’s social media, she saw a completely different side of him.

“Mr. Shaw is so thoughtful, he even came with me to buy clothes for the baby.”

“Mr. Shaw’s cooking is amazing. These are the best roast chicken I’ve ever had.”

“This is the baby’s room Mr. Shaw personally prepared for the baby. We’ll be able to live here together soon.”

Sophie knew Helen posted this on purpose to provoke her.

Helen had already won once, taking Luke away from her.

Now she wanted even more, and Sophie understood that.

What she couldn’t understand or accept was how the man she had shared a bed with for five years could act so convincingly.

On one hand, he expressed his love for her, while on the other, he cared for another woman and even fathered her child.

Sophie felt she was on the brink of collapse. She couldn’t tell which version of Luke was real anymore.

Did the Luke who once loved her and only her even exist?

Finally, Sophie calmly opened the recording app and captured every post on Helen’s social media.

When she packed her things and was discharged from the hospital, only Dr. Clinton was there to hail a taxi for her and offer her careful reminders.

“Even after leaving the hospital, you must take good care of yourself. No matter what happens, your health is most important.”

Sophie’s eyes were filled with tears, and she nodded firmly.

During the hardest period of her life, it was this angel who warmed her heart.

Yet the man who had vowed to love her for a lifetime was pathetically busy caring for another woman.

From that moment on, she knew she would never need him again.

At that moment, Sophie's phone buzzed with a message from her Prof. Brown.

"Sophie, the visa has been approved. I've booked a flight for you tomorrow night. Get ready—your colleagues are all excited to see you."

A warmth filled Sophie's heart, and her eyes grew moist without her realizing it.

No matter how many years had passed, only Prof. Brown and her profession had never betrayed her.

She wiped away the thin tears at the corner of her eyes and quickly replied, "Thank you, Prof. Brown. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you as well."

When Sophie stepped back into her house, a sense of disorientation washed over her, as though she were stepping into a different lifetime.

In just a few days, her entire life had been turned upside down.

The house was eerily quiet, a clear sign that Luke hadn't been home during her absence.

But since she had decided to leave, there was no point in caring about that anymore.

After standing dazed for a while, Sophie finally started clearing out the house.

The couple's mugs, pillows, and plush toys—all of them were packed into garbage bags.

The photos on the walls were also taken down, one by one, and burned.

Those photos were taken on every anniversary during the past five years—a special way of marking their memories together.

Luke had once promised her that they would keep taking such photos, capturing their happiness until they grew old, so he could remember every stage of her life clearly.

But now, it was all just a joke.

There was no future for her and Luke anymore.

After working tirelessly for hours, Sophie had finally cleared out everything from their bedroom.

She thought she could quietly leave the next day without anyone noticing, but then she heard the sound of the front door unlocking.

Sophie froze for a moment before hastily hiding her luggage behind the door and closing the bedroom door.

As expected, it was Luke.

The moment he saw Sophie, his face lit up with joy, filled with what looked like deep affection.

It was as if he had simply been away on a long trip and was overjoyed to see her after such a long time.

He rushed over to hug Sophie, his voice choked with emotion. "Sophie, you're finally back. I've missed you so much..."

Sophie had thought her heart was numb, but now it started to ache again, making it hard for her to breathe.

She couldn't understand how he could act as if nothing had happened.

She couldn't understand how he could be such an incredible actor.

Sophie struggled desperately to break free from his embrace, only to notice Luke's mother standing behind him.

Her heart sank, and the word "Mom" felt stuck in her throat, impossible to say.

Luke's mother avoided her gaze, looking guilty as she spoke first.

"Luke heard from the property management that you were back, so he asked me to come along to explain things to you."

"Sophie, the child was an accident. Luke never wanted it, but his father is very ill and really wants to see a grandson before he passes... so we..."

Luke knelt in front of Sophie, wrapping his arms around her waist as he began to beg pitifully.

"Sophie, I don't even know how I ended up drinking so much that night, let alone how I ended up in bed with her. It was a mistake, one I deeply regret. But I don't like her at all, and I never intended to betray you. If it weren't for my dad, I wouldn't have kept that child... Please, forgive me for this one thoughtless mistake, okay?"

His eyes were red, his tone filled with humble pleading, and his words made it clear how little he cared about the child.

But to Sophie, it was hilarious, and her face grew even colder.

If she hadn't seen Helen's social media posts, she might have convinced herself otherwise.

But she had seen them. She had also felt Luke's anticipation for that child.

How could she possibly believe he didn't care about the child?