A year after leaving the country, I returned home to find that the only person waiting to pick me up was my son, still wearing his delivery uniform.

The moment I saw how much darker he'd become and how much weight he'd lost, my eyes instantly turned red.

When I left, Jared had been a fair-skinned, bespectacled young man with a scholarly look about him. How had he changed this much in just one year?

"Dad."

Jared seemed a little shy. After greeting me, he didn't make any further move.

I immediately pulled him into a hug and laughed as I scolded him.

"What's this? You don't even recognize your own father anymore? All that money I gave you must've been wasted!"

His body stiffened.

Only after hesitating for a moment did he return the hug before answering awkwardly.

"It's not that. You came back so suddenly. If you'd told me a few days earlier, I would've been prepared. I'm still trying to process it."

I draped an arm around his shoulders and walked toward the airport exit.

"Fine. This time I'll stay longer and keep you company. Let's see if you're still in shock then. Come on, let's go home."

I chatted and joked with Jared along the way, but the thought of going home left me cold.

Before boarding my flight, I called both Olivia and Jared.

Jared answered.

Olivia hadn't even picked up.

When I mentioned it, Jared merely responded with a quiet acknowledgment.

"She's probably... out shopping with Cyrus. He's starting college soon, so she wants to help him buy everything he'll need.

"You're starting college too, aren't you? Why isn't she taking you shopping? A few days ago, she even posted about buying Cyrus a Submariner. Does he even know how to appreciate a watch like that?"

The more I thought about it, the more irritated I became.

The idea of going home and seeing those two only made it worse.

I immediately changed my mind.

"Jared, let's not go home yet. How about we go to your place instead? We haven't had a proper father-son talk in a long time. The reason I came back this time is because of you."

I needed to understand the situation from my son's side first.

"Sure."

The smile on Jared's face looked forced.

For a brief moment, he looked like he wanted to refuse, but I didn't notice.

Instead, I quietly reminded him, "And stop pushing yourself so hard with those delivery jobs. There's no shame in honest work, but our family isn't in a position where you need to be out there doing that."

"Got it. Thanks, Dad."

Jared brushed it off with a perfunctory response.

I sensed something was off and let the matter drop.

We took a taxi to the entrance of his residential complex, only to be stopped by security.

"This is a luxury community. Delivery drivers aren't allowed inside!"

The security guard looked down his nose at my son.

Jared lowered his head slightly, unable to say a word.

I spoke up coldly from the side.

"Delivery drivers aren't allowed in? Fine. What about homeowners? He's the owner of Villa 1, Building 5, Unit 24! What kind of training does your management company provide? How can you be this unprofessional?"

It was the gift I gave Jared when he was accepted into a top high school.

The security guard merely sneered.

"Sir, you shouldn't say things like that. I know all the homeowners here. That villa hasn't belonged to him for a long time. It belongs to Mr. Young now. I don't have the authority to let him in."

I frowned.

It took me only a second to realize exactly who this "Mr. Young" was.

I immediately turned to Jared in disbelief.

"Cyrus Young? The villa belongs to Cyrus now?!"

Jared stayed silent for a long moment before finally nodding.

I grabbed his shoulders and forced him to look me in the eye.

"Jared, tell me what's going on."

"...It's nothing, Dad. Please don't ask."

Jared instinctively looked away.

The more reluctant he was, the more certain I became that something was wrong.

Only after I pressed him repeatedly did he grit his teeth and speak.

"It... it was Mom. She made me transfer it to him. She said there was no point in me keeping it anyway."

I was so furious I nearly saw red.

"And then she just gave your house to him?! She never even mentioned this to me!"

I was still seething when, by sheer coincidence, I saw Cyrus and Olivia approaching the entrance, chatting and laughing together.

"Yeah, Mom, I really liked that outfit. The only problem is that the custom tailoring was a little expensive."

Olivia covered her mouth and laughed.

"Oh, my boy, what's a little money? You're already wearing a Submariner."

The moment they spotted Jared and me standing at the gate, both of them froze mid-step.

Cyrus was the first to speak, though his expression looked awkward.

"M-Mr. Ford."

I didn't even spare him a glance.

My fists clenched so tightly that my knuckles cracked as I stared at Olivia.

"What did he just call you? Mom?"

####CHAPTER-NAME:

"Well, Cyrus is a good kid, so I accepted him as my godson. Otherwise, he wouldn't be calling me Mom. You were in a bad mood earlier, and you're still acting like this now that you have come home?"

Inside the house, Olivia sat on the sofa, anxiously explaining herself.

Cyrus, sitting beside her, wore an equally sincere expression.

"It's true, Mr. Ford. I owe Olivia a great deal for believing in me and giving me this opportunity. Without your family's help, I'd probably still be working in some remote backwater somewhere."

My gaze shifted between the two of them.

A humorless laugh escaped me.

"So, becoming your godson gives him the right to take someone else's house?"

A flicker of guilt crossed Olivia's face.

Even so, she continued trying to justify herself.

"When you take a godson, of course you have to give him gifts, especially for families like ours. If the gift isn't valuable enough, wouldn't that reflect badly on you?"

As she spoke, she glanced at Jared, who had remained silent the entire time.

"Besides, everything you own will belong to our son eventually anyway. I only prepared a few things for Cyrus."

The moment the conversation turned toward him, Jared lowered his head uncomfortably.

I remained cold and said nothing.

Instead, I took a sip of the tea the housekeeper had just served.

The room fell silent.

No one spoke.

Cyrus saw I wasn’t warming up to him and put on a pitiful expression.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Ford. I never meant to cause this much trouble. How about this? I'll give everything back. Maybe that'll help calm you down."

I raised an eyebrow but still didn't respond.

Who taught him to act as though he was making some noble sacrifice by returning things that had never belonged to him in the first place?

As he spoke, Cyrus rose to his feet and started taking off his clothes.

"Oh, Cyrus, don't do this. What are you doing?"

Olivia hurried over and stepped between us, trying to smooth things over while repeatedly glancing in my direction.

"Simon Ford! Cyrus is still just a kid. Are you really going to take back gifts you've already given him? Do you have to make this so embarrassing for me? Can't you be a little more generous?"

Watching Cyrus take off his jacket and shoes while stubbornly keeping the Submariner on his wrist only made my anger flare even higher.

I took a deep breath to keep myself under control.

"That's enough! Stop taking things off."

Olivia immediately broke into a smile.

She stepped forward and lightly hooked an arm through mine.

"See? That's just how you are. I know I was wrong this time. Cyrus, aren't you going to thank Mr. Ford?"

Cyrus paused halfway through removing his clothes before obediently responding, "Thank you, Mr. Ford."

Olivia seemed quite pleased with his reaction and immediately tried to persuade me.

"Simon, I think Cyrus is genuinely smart and considerate. Why don't you take him on as your godson too?"

The color drained slightly from Jared's face at her words.

I caught every change in his expression, and my anger surged again.

"You're really saying something like that right in front of our son? Aren't you worried about hurting his feelings? You want me to take Cyrus as my godson? In your dreams!"

With that, I shook Olivia's hand off.

Her expression stiffened for a moment before she forced it down and blurted out, "Jared isn't even your biological son. You've devoted yourself to him all these years, so what's wrong with having another godson?"

I froze, staring at Olivia in disbelief before instinctively looking at my son.

"What nonsense are you talking about?!"

But Jared's expression remained calm, and he merely gave a bitter smile.

"It's okay, Dad. I've known for a long time."

I shot Olivia a vicious glare and pointed at her, so furious that I couldn't get the words out.

"What did we agree on back then?! Olivia Quinn! Have you been treating my words like they meant nothing?"

Olivia looked somewhat uncomfortable.

After a long pause, she muttered, "I... I accidentally let it slip before! Why are you getting so angry over this?"

"Why am I getting so angry?"

I was on the verge of exploding, barely suppressing the rage inside me.

"Olivia, have I spoiled you too much all these years? Why haven't you told me about everything that's been happening in this family?!"

####CHAPTER-NAME:

"Stop!"

The slap never landed.

Cyrus lunged forward and grabbed my arm.

He wasn't a little kid anymore. The strength in his grip caught me off guard.

I paused.

No matter how hard I tried to pull free, he held on with all his strength.

When he turned to look at me, his eyes were filled with hatred.

"...You dare stop me?"

I met Cyrus's gaze and spoke through gritted teeth.

"Get out of my way! You don't get a say in this family! Who the hell do you think you are to stop me?"

The next second, I kicked him away without the slightest mercy.

Cyrus clutched his stomach and staggered backward with a cry of pain before collapsing onto the floor.

Olivia let out a shrill scream and rushed over to check on him.

"Cyrus! Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

Cyrus's eyes were red.

Pain twisted his face as he grimaced.

The moment Olivia saw that, she looked up at me with fury blazing in her eyes.

"Simon! If anything happens to Cyrus, you'll answer for it! Have you lost your mind? Did you come back from overseas just to go crazy? What kind of bastard are you?"

Her words only made me angrier.

I'll answer for it?

She treated our son like dirt, and I hadn't even begun to settle the score with her.

Yet now she was turning everything around and blaming me instead.

Back when Olivia and I first got married, she had been diagnosed with infertility.

To fulfill her wish of having a child, we adopted Jared.

Back then, we promised each other that Jared would be our son, no different from one born to us.

Even if her condition was cured someday and she became able to have children, we would never have another child of our own.

And the truth about Jared's adoption would remain a secret from him forever.

Now not only had she let Jared find out, she was openly favoring Cyrus.

That could only make things harder for Jared.

In all our years of marriage, I had never laid a hand on her.

I'd spent all these years taking care of her and giving her the best of everything.

And this was what she'd become.

"Fine, Olivia. Let's see exactly how you're going to make me pay for it!"

Just as I was about to move again, Jared grabbed hold of me.

"Dad! Stop!"

I looked at him, unable to understand why he was stopping me.

Jared shook his head and spoke through clenched teeth.

"It wasn't Mom who told me. I... I found out by accident. She didn't do it on purpose. Please stop."

I took several deep breaths before finally forcing down my anger.

"Fine. I'll listen to you, but this isn't over."

"Get out! From now on, you have nothing to do with this family! Who the hell do you think you are? Just because you're wearing a Rolex and driving a nice car, you think you're somebody?"

Cyrus froze.

His face quickly flushed red with humiliation.

Then, at last, he snapped.

He lifted his chin defiantly and shot back, "What right do you have to tell me to leave? Everything I have was given to me by my mom! It has nothing to do with you!

“I gave you a little respect, and now you actually think you're some kind of authority figure?"

The moment I heard that, my heart sank.

Over the years, work kept me busy.

Olivia had always handled Cyrus's sponsorship, and I trusted her completely, so I rarely asked questions.

Cyrus had been away at boarding school and only moved in after graduating from high school.

Meanwhile, I'd spent that entire period traveling for work, including a full year overseas.

It was no wonder he assumed the company belonged to Olivia and spoke to me with so little respect.

"Cyrus, just stop talking, okay?"

Olivia stepped forward and gently tugged at his arm.

But there was no stopping his temper now.

With a mocking laugh, he glanced at Jared beside me and sneered, "I'll be honest with you. Yeah, I deliberately made things difficult for Jared. So what?

“The fact that I was willing to bully him was practically an honor for him. He really thinks he's some rich kid? If I'm not good enough, then what makes him any better?"

I saw Jared's fists clench so tightly that his knuckles cracked.

Several times, he opened his mouth as if to speak, only to stop himself.

I immediately fixed Cyrus with a cold stare.

"What exactly do you mean by that?"

A knowing smile appeared on Cyrus's face.

"It's simple..."

"Cyrus! Don't say it! Shut up!"

Olivia realized what he was about to reveal and cried out in panic.

But Cyrus's eyes had already turned red.

He shouted the words anyway.

"Because I'm Olivia Quinn's biological son! What is Jared supposed to be? Who does he think he is? He wants to stand equal to me in this family? Dream on!"