I only returned home late that night. I was completely exhausted.As soon as I opened the door, I saw Rosie sitting on the couch. She looked uneasy.“Tom, we need to talk.”“The divorce agreement is on the table. Have you seen it? If there’s no problem, just sign it. This house is mine from before we got married. You can take the car. Then—”“I’m not here to talk about the divorce!” Rosie interrupted me with a frown. She quickly moved closer and wrapped her arms around my waist.“You don’t get it. Ever since Ev died, I haven’t slept at all. I’m really scared you’ll leave me, too.”She leaned against my chest. The smell of smoke on her clothes made me feel a bit sick.“Let’s have another kid. I promise I’ll make it work. Please don’t divorce me. I love you.”I pushed her away hard. Her head hit the wall, and she cried out in pain as she shot me an angry look.I realized where the problem lay. Ever since Evelyn was cremated, all our conversations kept circling back to having chi
For a long time after that, no matter what methods I tried, even waiting at the hospital for Rosie, she refused to see me. She kept repeating that she would not divorce me and would not sign any papers.I grew impatient and turned to a lawyer to handle these matters. That day, I was still waiting at the hospital for her, but she was not in her office.“Excuse me, are you Dr. Rosie’s husband?”A young girl approached me cautiously. She looked around as if afraid of being discovered. I glanced at her and realized I had seen her before. She was Liliana Pump, an intern working under Rosie. It seemed she had been trying to talk to me.“I am. Can you tell her I need to talk to Dr. Rosie?”As soon as I finished speaking, Liliana hesitated and stood still.“She is not in the hospital right now...”Liliana hesitated. It seemed as if she was making up her mind. After a moment, she pulled me aside to a quiet corner.“Sir, you’re Ev’s dad, right? Ev wasn’t actually sick. I noticed somethin
My heart ached unbearably. I let my hand drop weakly while holding my phone. Liliana looked worried. I thanked her before heading home in a daze.I sent those videos to Barbara on WhatsApp. I wanted her to see what her daughter had really done.Not long after, Barbara came banging on my door. The moment I opened it, she started yelling at me furiously.“Tom, what are you doing? I know it’s hard to accept Ev’s death. How long are you going to keep fighting with Rosie? Ev is gone and can’t come back. Why can’t you just focus on living well and have another child?”She waved her phone at me, showing the video.“You think you can scare me with this? I know how advanced technology is now. You can’t show me fake videos!”I did not bother arguing with her. I just looked at her calmly. Sure, she loved Evelyn and was very affectionate toward her. But when it came down to it, having a daughter who could support her in old age mattered more than a granddaughter who was gone.“Ev would have
Rosie’s eyes widened. She spoke in a trembling voice.“How do you have those photos?”As soon as she finished speaking, a nurse rushed in and asked Rosie to go to the director’s office.I did not stick around for her to return. Instead, I headed home.I was going to divorce her anyway. I did not need to deal with Barbara’s situation.Rosie came home late at night. She looked completely worn out. When she saw me, she wanted to lash out but held back.“How could you just come home when Mom is still in the hospital? What if something happens to her?”“Why should I care if something happens to her? She’s your mom, not mine.”Rosie looked stunned. She clearly did not expect me to say that.I ignored her and placed the divorce papers back in front of her. This time, I would not back down.“Let’s get this divorce sorted while I’m still calm. I thought about leaving you something, but I’ve changed my mind. You don’t deserve anything!“If you don’t sign it, I’ll take you to court. An
Evelyn might also be one of the victims.I called the police. When the families went wild and tried to hit Rosie, the police arrived and took her away.Rosie ended up at the police station. She wanted me to save her. She pleaded, “Tom, please! I can’t spend my life in prison. My mom still needs me. Jacob needs me too…”I managed a smirk and brushed off her pleas.“Relax. Your mom is already gone. As for Jacob, if he survives the organ rejection, that’s great. If not, well, that’s just tough luck.“Oh, and don’t count on Bruce. He’s not going to stick around. The moment he heard what happened to you, he ditched Jacob. Now he’s nowhere to be found.“When the trial starts and the verdict is out, you’ll have to stay in prison for life.”Rosie shook her head in panic. Tears streamed down her face as she grabbed my hand. She tried to prevent me from leaving.Her voice trembled as she kept begging, “As long as you testify for me, you can be a witness. You won’t be in trouble. I can lo
“Could the family member please sign the death certificate? We will then take the child to the crematorium.”My breath stuttered as I held back from taking the death certificate the nurse handed me. I stared blankly at it and stood still.I had rushed back from out of town. The last time I saw my daughter was in the morgue. I still could not accept it. Just a while ago, she was so full of life. How could she have turned into a cold, lifeless body?The nurse looked at me with sympathy. She tried to comfort me gently. “Your daughter was very brave. She donated her corneas so another child could see again. Dr. Rosie was her mother. She must have made a tough call to sign the organ donation papers.”Her words struck me like a heavy blow. I felt my head spin as I leaned against the wall to keep from falling.My eyes widened and my lips trembled as I said, “Who did you say signed those papers? I’m Ev’s father. I knew nothing about this. I don’t even know how she died!”The nurse look
“Don’t forget that when your precious Bruce found out Jacob went blind, he disappeared without a trace! Yet here you are, still taking care of Jacob so devotedly.”Rosie’s face turned red with anger. She slapped me so hard that people outside peeked in to see what was happening.I ran my tongue over my lip and tasted blood.“Jacob went blind because of Evelyn! If she hadn’t pushed him, he wouldn’t have gone through this. While you’re enjoying your life, I’m here paying for her mistakes!“Bruce didn’t abandon Jacob! Jacob grew up without a mother, and Bruce raised him on his own. He’s not the kind of person you think he is!” Rosie’s voice grew louder.“Evelyn got what she deserved. She has to pay for what she did.”My heart sank. I opened my mouth to respond, but then I heard footsteps behind me.“Jacob, you can see again?! I came as soon as I heard!”Bruce burst into the room. He bumped my shoulder without a glance and went straight to Rosie. He hugged her tightly in excitement
Rosie was humming when she got home late that night. She was in a great mood.She shivered as soon as she stepped inside.“Tom! Why are you blasting the air conditioning in the middle of winter?”A second later, she screamed at the top of her lungs.“What’s wrong with you?! Didn’t I tell you to take her to the crematorium? Why would you bring her here? Isn’t it creepy to have a dead body on our couch?!”Rosie pressed herself against the wall. Her chest heaved as she stared at Evelyn’s body like it was some kind of nightmare.I calmly adjusted Evelyn’s dress and smiled.“Rosie, what are you afraid of? She’s your daughter too, right? Or did you do something to her? Are you afraid she’ll come back for revenge?”“Enough with that nonsense!”Rosie was visibly shaken. She tried to hold it together, but she still kept her distance from me and Evelyn.“I’m just as heartbroken as you are, but there’s a time and a place for everything. Why bring her body home? She’ll start to decompose
Evelyn might also be one of the victims.I called the police. When the families went wild and tried to hit Rosie, the police arrived and took her away.Rosie ended up at the police station. She wanted me to save her. She pleaded, “Tom, please! I can’t spend my life in prison. My mom still needs me. Jacob needs me too…”I managed a smirk and brushed off her pleas.“Relax. Your mom is already gone. As for Jacob, if he survives the organ rejection, that’s great. If not, well, that’s just tough luck.“Oh, and don’t count on Bruce. He’s not going to stick around. The moment he heard what happened to you, he ditched Jacob. Now he’s nowhere to be found.“When the trial starts and the verdict is out, you’ll have to stay in prison for life.”Rosie shook her head in panic. Tears streamed down her face as she grabbed my hand. She tried to prevent me from leaving.Her voice trembled as she kept begging, “As long as you testify for me, you can be a witness. You won’t be in trouble. I can lo
Rosie’s eyes widened. She spoke in a trembling voice.“How do you have those photos?”As soon as she finished speaking, a nurse rushed in and asked Rosie to go to the director’s office.I did not stick around for her to return. Instead, I headed home.I was going to divorce her anyway. I did not need to deal with Barbara’s situation.Rosie came home late at night. She looked completely worn out. When she saw me, she wanted to lash out but held back.“How could you just come home when Mom is still in the hospital? What if something happens to her?”“Why should I care if something happens to her? She’s your mom, not mine.”Rosie looked stunned. She clearly did not expect me to say that.I ignored her and placed the divorce papers back in front of her. This time, I would not back down.“Let’s get this divorce sorted while I’m still calm. I thought about leaving you something, but I’ve changed my mind. You don’t deserve anything!“If you don’t sign it, I’ll take you to court. An
My heart ached unbearably. I let my hand drop weakly while holding my phone. Liliana looked worried. I thanked her before heading home in a daze.I sent those videos to Barbara on WhatsApp. I wanted her to see what her daughter had really done.Not long after, Barbara came banging on my door. The moment I opened it, she started yelling at me furiously.“Tom, what are you doing? I know it’s hard to accept Ev’s death. How long are you going to keep fighting with Rosie? Ev is gone and can’t come back. Why can’t you just focus on living well and have another child?”She waved her phone at me, showing the video.“You think you can scare me with this? I know how advanced technology is now. You can’t show me fake videos!”I did not bother arguing with her. I just looked at her calmly. Sure, she loved Evelyn and was very affectionate toward her. But when it came down to it, having a daughter who could support her in old age mattered more than a granddaughter who was gone.“Ev would have
For a long time after that, no matter what methods I tried, even waiting at the hospital for Rosie, she refused to see me. She kept repeating that she would not divorce me and would not sign any papers.I grew impatient and turned to a lawyer to handle these matters. That day, I was still waiting at the hospital for her, but she was not in her office.“Excuse me, are you Dr. Rosie’s husband?”A young girl approached me cautiously. She looked around as if afraid of being discovered. I glanced at her and realized I had seen her before. She was Liliana Pump, an intern working under Rosie. It seemed she had been trying to talk to me.“I am. Can you tell her I need to talk to Dr. Rosie?”As soon as I finished speaking, Liliana hesitated and stood still.“She is not in the hospital right now...”Liliana hesitated. It seemed as if she was making up her mind. After a moment, she pulled me aside to a quiet corner.“Sir, you’re Ev’s dad, right? Ev wasn’t actually sick. I noticed somethin
I only returned home late that night. I was completely exhausted.As soon as I opened the door, I saw Rosie sitting on the couch. She looked uneasy.“Tom, we need to talk.”“The divorce agreement is on the table. Have you seen it? If there’s no problem, just sign it. This house is mine from before we got married. You can take the car. Then—”“I’m not here to talk about the divorce!” Rosie interrupted me with a frown. She quickly moved closer and wrapped her arms around my waist.“You don’t get it. Ever since Ev died, I haven’t slept at all. I’m really scared you’ll leave me, too.”She leaned against my chest. The smell of smoke on her clothes made me feel a bit sick.“Let’s have another kid. I promise I’ll make it work. Please don’t divorce me. I love you.”I pushed her away hard. Her head hit the wall, and she cried out in pain as she shot me an angry look.I realized where the problem lay. Ever since Evelyn was cremated, all our conversations kept circling back to having chi
When I opened my eyes again, Evelyn had already turned into a pile of ashes. I stumbled over and pushed Rosie aside. The staff nearby were startled by my cries.Rosie sighed in relief and said softly to me, “Ev has now been cremated. Stop crying. Let’s pack up the ashes and head home.”I ignored her. With red-rimmed eyes, I slowly picked up the ashes and placed them into the urn. Rosie remained quiet as she supported Barbara, who had fainted from crying.After a long moment, Rosie finally pulled me to the side and spoke in an unusually gentle voice. “I know you’re very sad right now. I don’t understand why you’re angry with me. My mom isn’t well and has always hoped for us to get along. Can we just let this go?“We can have another child. One who’s better and smarter than Ev—”“Get lost!”I slapped Rosie hard across the face, leaving her stunned in place. “You don’t deserve to be a mother. You never even let Ev call you ‘Mom’! Now, you’re putting on this act? Do you think burning
Rosie did not say a word when I confronted her. She glanced at Evelyn for a moment and quickly looked away.Then she said in a loud voice, “I’m a doctor. Evelyn has been dead for a while. Do you really think an autopsy will bring her back?”Her voice was so loud that it caused the family photo to fall and shatter on the floor. The tension in the room intensified.Just then, Rosie’s phone rang.When she saw who was calling, her frown eased. A smile spread across her face. It was Bruce. I could hear Jacob’s happy laughter in the background.“Mommy, I miss you. Can I sleep with you tonight?”Sure enough, Rosie said yes right away before hanging up. She turned back to Evelyn on the couch. I could see some disgust in her eyes.Before she could speak, I calmly said, “Let’s get a divorce. Then you can go be with your first love and take care of a kid that isn’t even yours.”To be honest, it had been one-sided for me all these years. I married Rosie and did everything I could to make h
Rosie was humming when she got home late that night. She was in a great mood.She shivered as soon as she stepped inside.“Tom! Why are you blasting the air conditioning in the middle of winter?”A second later, she screamed at the top of her lungs.“What’s wrong with you?! Didn’t I tell you to take her to the crematorium? Why would you bring her here? Isn’t it creepy to have a dead body on our couch?!”Rosie pressed herself against the wall. Her chest heaved as she stared at Evelyn’s body like it was some kind of nightmare.I calmly adjusted Evelyn’s dress and smiled.“Rosie, what are you afraid of? She’s your daughter too, right? Or did you do something to her? Are you afraid she’ll come back for revenge?”“Enough with that nonsense!”Rosie was visibly shaken. She tried to hold it together, but she still kept her distance from me and Evelyn.“I’m just as heartbroken as you are, but there’s a time and a place for everything. Why bring her body home? She’ll start to decompose
“Don’t forget that when your precious Bruce found out Jacob went blind, he disappeared without a trace! Yet here you are, still taking care of Jacob so devotedly.”Rosie’s face turned red with anger. She slapped me so hard that people outside peeked in to see what was happening.I ran my tongue over my lip and tasted blood.“Jacob went blind because of Evelyn! If she hadn’t pushed him, he wouldn’t have gone through this. While you’re enjoying your life, I’m here paying for her mistakes!“Bruce didn’t abandon Jacob! Jacob grew up without a mother, and Bruce raised him on his own. He’s not the kind of person you think he is!” Rosie’s voice grew louder.“Evelyn got what she deserved. She has to pay for what she did.”My heart sank. I opened my mouth to respond, but then I heard footsteps behind me.“Jacob, you can see again?! I came as soon as I heard!”Bruce burst into the room. He bumped my shoulder without a glance and went straight to Rosie. He hugged her tightly in excitement