On Mother's Day, Adrian Hawthorne and his son were with his female assistant, celebrating her birthday.

From outside the maternity ward, I called Adrian Hawthorne. It was his assistant who answered, her voice gentle:

"President Hawthorne is in the shower. If you have a message, I can pass it on to him later."

I even heard my son affectionately call her 'Mama'.

I turned around, walked into the operating room for an abortion, packed my bags, and filed for divorce.

Adrian Hawthorne sneered, "You want a divorce? I get custody of our son. You'll never see him again."

I nodded in satisfaction. "That's great. I don't want you or your son. Just the money."

Later, I had a well-behaved daughter and a devoted husband.

I looked at the Hawthorne men, who had come to beg me to come home, and said with a smile:

"I hope my happiness is loud enough to disturb you."

...

On Mother's Day, Adrian Hawthorne took our son to celebrate his assistant Nina Crane's birthday.

I asked him why, and he said, "Nina Crane has been with the company for five years. What's wrong with me celebrating her birthday with her?"

Adrian Hawthorne and I had a huge fight. He sneered impatiently, "Zia Sommers, you're the one who climbed into my bed and insisted on having Finn Hawthorne. Whether he celebrates Mother's Day with you or not is his choice to make."

I held our son, Finn Hawthorne, and asked, "Why didn't you spend Mother's Day with Mom?"

Finn Hawthorne just giggled and said, "Because Aunt Nina's birthday is more important."

"You just stay home all day. Your job isn't hard at all, so you don't need a Mother's Day."

I froze. Finn Hawthorne tugged on the corner of my shirt again. "Mom, can you not pick me up from now on?"

I forced an awkward smile. "Why is that?"

Finn Hawthorne said, "Because Aunt Nina picked me up today, and everyone said she's really pretty."

"I want Aunt Nina to pick me up from now on."

In that moment, the smile froze on my face, and my heart shattered completely.

The child I had raised for six years told me that Mother's Day wasn't as important as someone else's birthday.

Tears instantly streamed down my face. Adrian Hawthorne narrowed his eyes at me. "What are you crying for?"

"What right do you have to cry? Even if you feel wronged, you better suck it up."

"Zia Sommers, don't act so wronged. If you've got the guts, then divorce me."

For Finn Hawthorne, I quit my job and personally raised him for six years. All my round-the-clock companionship earned me was being told I was unimportant.

And today, outside the maternity ward, I called Adrian Hawthorne.

A woman answered the phone, her voice sweet and gentle: "President Hawthorne is in the shower. If you have a message, I can pass it on to him later."

Through the phone, I could hear the sound of running water, and then Adrian Hawthorne's low voice: "Nina, get me a towel."

I also heard my son's clear voice calling Nina Crane 'Mama'.

I looked down at the white paper in my hand, at the words "four weeks pregnant," and laughed. "Oh. Tell him to meet me at City Hall tomorrow."

Turning, I walked into the operating room. The doctor asked me, "Are you sure you want to terminate the pregnancy?"

"Have you discussed this with your family?"

I nodded. "I'm sure."

After leaving the hospital, I saw a photo Nina Crane had posted on her social media feed. The caption read: [Three people.]

The photo was of my son, my husband, and Nina Crane.

The three of them were gathered around a hot pot.

'Adrian Hawthorne was never willing to eat hot pot with me, complaining that the smell was too strong. But I guess the smell isn't too strong when he's with Nina Crane, is it?'

'Look at them. Such a harmonious family of three.'

There was another photo from a parent-child activity at school. I messaged Finn Hawthorne's teacher and only then learned it was an event the school had organized on Mother's Day.

The teacher asked in surprise, "Finn's mom, weren't you there that day?"

I looked at the message on my phone and let out a small laugh.

'They didn't even invite me, his biological mother, to a parent-child activity at his school.'

After the procedure, I dragged my exhausted body home. The huge house was empty. I packed my suitcase, then opened the fridge and made a pack of instant noodles.

Physical pain mixed with a spreading heartache, and I swallowed my tears along with the noodles.

I took out the divorce agreement that Adrian Hawthorne had tried to force and cajole me into signing several times. In large letters, I signed my name: Zia Sommers.

In that instant, a weight lifted from my shoulders.

My relationship with Adrian Hawthorne was neither smooth nor something to be proud of.

I'd been secretly in love with him for five years. He had a girlfriend the entire time, so I never dared to cross the line.

Nina Crane was his ex-girlfriend.

Later, Nina Crane got into a university abroad, so she broke up with Adrian Hawthorne.

Back then, Adrian Hawthorne was crouched in a bar. Under the dim lights, he looked unusually dejected. I handed him a tissue. He gave a soft, self-mocking chuckle and asked, "Are you here to laugh at me?"

I frantically shook my head. "No, of course not, Adrian."

He gently took my hand, and I lost my balance, tumbling against him.

He asked me, "Well then, do you want to be with me?"

In that moment, my heart was pounding.

The scent of alcohol hung in the air, and his cheeks were slightly flushed. All I had meant to do was comfort him.

His nose brushed against mine. "You like me?"

"Little freshman."

'I couldn't help but tense up; I thought I'd hidden my crush so well.'

My heart was a mess, but I nodded. "Mmm."

He was drunk, and he pulled me into a forceful embrace, his kisses wild and messy. 'Honestly, I don't know who was taking advantage of the other's vulnerability—him, or me.'

But I pushed him away. "Adrian, I'm not Nina."

He nodded. "But you like me, right?"

A tear trickled from the corner of my eye. "Yes."

His strength was overwhelming. He whispered, "Nina."

I slipped away quietly when I woke up. I'd forgotten about birth control. Two months later, I found out I was pregnant.

My mother dragged me onto the street and screamed at me, "You better tell me who the hell this man is, or I'll make your life a living hell!"

"Do you have any idea how humiliating this is?"

She beat me with a stick, and I desperately tried to dodge.

I wouldn't tell her, so my mother got the security footage and found out it was Adrian Hawthorne.

She refused to let me get an abortion. Instead, she went and raised hell with the Hawthorne Family until their elders forced Adrian Hawthorne to marry me.

My mother demanded a bride price of $30,000.

Adrian Hawthorne gripped my chin. "Why didn't you get an abortion?"

'Was I supposed to tell the man I'd been in love with that my mother was greedy and wanted to trade the baby in my womb for cash from his family?'

My lower abdomen throbbed with a dull ache. Adrian Hawthorne didn't come home with our son until the middle of the night.

I used to always leave a light on for him. Not anymore.

Reeking of alcohol, he stood at the foot of the bed and frowned. "Why didn't you leave a light on tonight?"

I was already feeling awful from the recent miscarriage, and now he was making a racket showering in the middle of the night. A wave of anger washed over me. "It's too bright. I can't sleep."

My voice was loud, and he froze, stunned.

'After all these years of being in love with him, this was the first time I'd ever snapped at him.'

I narrowed my eyes. "The light's too bright. Turn it off."

"And if you're going to shower, use the other bathroom."

When I got up, I saw the divorce papers on the table, still unsigned.

Adrian Hawthorne used to always complain that I didn't have a life of my own. I just liked sharing my day with him.

I opened our chat history. It was just a long stream of my own messages, one after another. He hadn't replied to a single one.

Today, I messaged him again: [Are you free anytime soon? When are you going to sign the divorce papers?]

[I'm free whenever. We can go to City Hall and finalize the divorce.]

He still didn't reply.

I didn't pick up our son from school this evening. He's the one who said he wanted "Aunt Nina" to get him. Fine, let Nina get him then.

He also complains my cooking is terrible. He says it's not as good as the KFC "Aunt Nina" gets him. In that case, I guess I don't have to cook anymore.

Suits me. I can't be bothered anyway.

I'd ordered some takeout crayfish and was eating them while watching a variety show and drinking a soda when Adrian Hawthorne suddenly came back.

He was frowning, holding our son by the hand. With a cold expression, he demanded, "Why didn't you go pick up our son?"

I glanced over at our son, whose face was full of grievance, while I kept nibbling on a crayfish. "Huh?" I asked, confused. "Didn't Finn Hawthorne tell me not to pick him up?"

Adrian Hawthorne fell silent. His eyes swept over the dining table, and he asked, "You didn't cook?"

Adrian Hawthorne never used to come home to eat dinner with me. I would wait from dawn till dusk, only for him to return reeking of alcohol.

'So I've gotten smarter. If neither the father nor the son wants to eat my cooking, why should I bother making it?'

I looked at him, puzzled. "You never used to come home for dinner, either. Wouldn't it have been a waste for me to cook?"

His expression darkened slightly as he glanced at the crayfish shells on the table.

He sat down next to me with our son. In addition to the crayfish, I had also ordered a lot of barbecue.

'When I saw him start to roll up his sleeves, I knew something was wrong.'

I shielded the crayfish protectively. He raised his eyes to look at me.

I cleared my throat. "There's not enough for me. Order your own."

Finn Hawthorne's eyes welled up with tears as he looked at me.

Adrian Hawthorne's expression grew even darker. He pulled out his phone and had his assistant order a delivery.

He stared at me, his gaze sending a shiver down my spine. "Zia Sommers, you can't even remember to pick up your own son."

"You're not even as good as Nina Crane. If you don't want a son anymore, you might as well just let Nina Crane raise him."

"You're sitting here stuffing your face while your son waits for you at the school gate."

"Do you have any idea what the temperature is? How cold it is outside?"

'How ridiculous. Is it that I don't want him?'

'He's the one who refuses to acknowledge me as his mother.'

I nodded. "Fine. He calls Nina Crane 'Mama Nina' anyway."

I looked down at the little boy by my feet, a miniature copy of Adrian Hawthorne.

Finn Hawthorne glared at me. "I don't want you! I want Mama Nina!"

Looking at this child, who bore no resemblance to me yet had caused me endless suffering, all I felt was that none of it had been worth it.

"Take him or leave him," I muttered, turning away to wash my hands, ignoring the father-son duo.

The Hawthorne Family has a gathering every month, and each time, Nina Crane shows up and acts the part of the hostess.

Finn Hawthorne's birthday today was no exception.

A few wealthy socialites were gathered around Nina Crane. She was wearing a dark green evening gown, and Adrian Hawthorne was in a matching dark green couture suit.

'I had to admit, Adrian Hawthorne was genuinely handsome. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been in love with him for so many years.'

He had refined features, a high-bridged nose, and a tall, slender frame that made him stand out in any crowd.

Today, Finn Hawthorne had adamantly refused to wear the outfit I'd picked out for him. It wasn't until I saw Nina Crane holding his hand, with him dressed in a small, dark green tuxedo, that I finally understood.

'So they were wearing matching family outfits.'

The three of them stood together, looking for all the world like a perfect family. When it was time for Finn Hawthorne to make his birthday wish, Adrian Hawthorne held him in his arms. Finn clasped his hands together and said, "I wish Aunt Nina could be my mom."

My expression remained unchanged as I looked at Adrian Hawthorne. He raised his eyes to meet mine and asked, "If you had ever been a proper mother to him, would he be making a wish like that?"

'I was the one who carried Finn Hawthorne for nine long months. I was the one who nearly died giving birth to him. I'm the one who's suffered the most, so what right does he have to criticize me?'

Nina Crane moved about with ease, greeting relatives as they came and went. Adrian Hawthorne came over to me and asked, "You're supposed to be the hostess. What are you doing just sitting here?"

I continued to sip my coffee leisurely. "I'm drinking coffee. Can't you see?"

'In the past, I was the one who did all the dirty, exhausting work for the Hawthorne Family. I'd be in the back kitchen with the staff, cleaning and cooking, while Nina Crane was out front, putting on airs as the lady of the house.'

'Whoever wants to be the lady of the house is welcome to it.'

Just then, Miss Hawthorne came over and called out affectionately to Nina Crane, "Saozi, where's my brother?"

Then she turned and expertly ordered me around. "Zia Sommers, what are you doing just sitting there? Go and help wash the fruit."

A plate of mangoes was placed in front of me.

'I'm allergic to mangoes. She knew that perfectly well and was doing this just to torment me.'

I remained unmoved. Her spoiled-brat temper flared. "You weren't so high and mighty when you were seducing my brother, were you?"

"If it weren't for you, Nina would have been my saozi years ago."

I swirled the coffee in my cup, feigning a move to splash it on her. "Are you out of your mind? Don't you dare start your crazy act with me!"