Chapter 5
“Sweetheart, you’ll agree. I’m waiting for your
answer.
Gavin grabbed his suit from the couch and strode out.
I watched his figure grow distant, a wave of bitterness and helplessness crashing over me, filling my chest with an overwhelming tide of emotions.
I had listened to my father’s advice.
I had come to terms with things, but actually putting it into practice… was so difficult!
It was so hard!
Every time I saw Gavin, my mind replayed
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the image of him and Karena in bed on my birthday, over and over, torturing me endlessly.
I buried my face in my hands, crying silently.
Gavin hadn’t been home for half a month, and I didn’t have the courage to message him. I despised my own weakness, yet at the same time, I comforted myself: while avoiding may be shameful, it was useful, wasn’t it?
At least, as long as I didn’t see him, my heart wouldn’t hurt so much.
But I also knew I couldn’t keep hiding like this, retreating from everything.
So, I decided to keep myself busy, to push the pain away as quickly as possible.
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Aside from the regular visits from the family doctor, I spent my time tending to my flowers and plants with great care. I also visited my mother in the hospital and chatted with my father, who was taking care of her.
Time and the busyness of life gradually dulled the pain.
But it seemed like Karena had made up her mind not to let me have peace.
Two weeks later, as I was leaving the hospital, Karena appeared in front of me, holding a little boy’s hand.
“Walon, greet your aunt!”
“Hello, Auntie.”
The little boy, who looked around five
years
old, obediently greeted me.
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I stared at Karena and the little boy, my facial muscles twitching involuntarily. I was shocked and at a loss for words.
Walon?
That name–yes, I remembered it. He was Karena and Gavin’s illegitimate son.
As a close friend of Karena, I’d never seen this child until today.
Karena, Karena, you’ve really hidden this child well!
Look at those eyes, that nose, those lips… he looks just like Gavin!
I instinctively looked down at my own belly, my throat tightening, my heart skipping a
beat.
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Karena seemed pleased with my reaction and smiled sweetly. “Emonie, there’s a café nearby. Why don’t we sit down and talk? Some things, you can’t keep avoiding–they have to be faced!”
As if afraid I would refuse, she added, “Do you think I’m here to convince you to divorce Gavin? No! Actually, what I want to tell you is how Gavin sabotaged your father’s company, then seized the
opportunity to acquire it, playing your whole family like puppets!”
At the café.
I ordered two cups of coffee and sat across from Karena.
She couldn’t wait to start speaking.
“At the time, Gavin was secretly working
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against your father’s company. Your father had no idea. With no other options, he reached out to Gavin for a merger, and Gavin was thrilled! Merging with your family made it so much easier for him to take over your father’s company, and he even got a ‘nanny‘ for free–such a great deal!”
“That’s the real reason your company went under! And you still think Gavin loves you? You still think it was him who kept your father’s company from collapsing? You should be grateful to him? How foolish can you be!”
W–What?!
How could this be true?!
At that moment, my brain felt like it had hit the pause button–everything went blank.
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الله
My eyes widened, but my focus was lost.
“So, Emonie, Karena said, her voice sharp, “Gavin doesn’t love you at all. Why haven’t you divorced him yet?”
