Her Lost Memories

She's the most one-sided mother-in-law I have ever known in my whole life. The idea of everyone in the mansion to hate me since the first day of my relationship with Norman begins from her. She builds it. Nails it in everyone's hearts and minds, including her twin daughters.

"Are you blind, you ungrateful, whore?" she growls, her eyes filled with her overflowing rage toward me, but she stretches out her patience to prevent her anger from bursting when she is with her circle of so-called gold-digger friends.

The six of her friends who were seated at the table next to her were all good and well-behaved in front of my mother-in-law, but every time they turned their backs on her, or the other way around, they stabbed her with their knives a million times.

"For God's sake!" she gasps as she clenches her fists before she continues, "Sometimes I wonder if you and your entire family are wicked old witches who cast a seduction spell on my son to marry you by force."

To release the anger that burned her heart and mind inside out, she booted the kettle away from their table area, causing more commotion to the banquet hall. "You better get out of my face before I call the security guards, you useless... idiot!" she yells at me this time.

My mother-in-law, despite everyone already looking at us worriedly, feeling disturbed, her anger and hatred toward me still lingered deeper into her embarrassed eyes.

Without asking further questions, I hurry to the main house despite having a hard time lifting both of my feet - just to get out of her evil face.

To avoid getting judged by her circle of friends because no matter how awful and pitiful I am, they will take her side like a leech whether I did it on purpose or not.

On top of that, I want to avoid my husband's noble name from getting ruined considering he is running for a government office.

"It's my fucking fault for accepting that monster in the house to be my daughter-in-law when a lot of women, wealthy and powerful showed their interest in my son. For God's sake!"

"Then you should find a way for your son to divorce her, don't you agree? What do you think about my daughter, Elaine? She's still studying college though, but we can probably work things out. After all, Norman was still in his thirties, right?"

"Or the other way around. You should find a way to kick the hell out of her from your son's life. Get her out of the mansion for good. In that way, you can find someone way better than that illiterate woman."

"Chill down, Mrs. Dela Vega. Please, take your seat. Perhaps you should lash out at her once the banquet is done. Give her the scolding she will never forget for the rest of her life."

Those were their evil pieces of advice to my mother-in-law before I locked myself in the maiden's chamber, instead of Norman's room to make sure our son could not see me being weak and wrecked.

The continuous whispers and mutterings from the crowd began to fade off the more the steps I took away from the banquet. But their mocking waves of laughter still grumble in my ears, as louder as a roaring thunder.

What worried me the most at the moment were Jennifer and Jennie. They once threatened me earlier that if something happened to the event because of me, they would turn my life into a living hell.

I didn't want my son to see their ruthlessness toward me. Even if they were evil, I still wanted our poor child to see the good side of them - the best version of this evil family - no matter what.

As soon as I got into the maiden's chamber, I screamed out aloud, as much as my throat could take, but with my hands tightly covering my mouth, not to produce any waves of sound.

While gritting my teeth, I helplessly plummet to the tiled floor, not knowing what to do to ease off the head-splitting discomfort coming from my burned feet, but my eyes burst into tears with the tip of my chin already touching the tip of my knees.

And all I could breathe out were Mom and Dad's names in silence mixed with despair. My parents were right about these people in the mansion, especially my mother-in-law. They believe that wealthy people like the dela Vegas don't think the same way the poor do.

Our family, sharing even a slice of a chicken drumstick already gives us satisfaction. We don't care if our pockets don't have a cent the entire day as long as we stick together. It was all that mattered to them.

But I choose to dream high, an impossible one to be precise. I promised my parents that once I married a billionaire, I would give them faith and hope, become their shoulder to lean on, and most of all, become their pride.

I did become my parent's pride, in fact, they spread out the news in the province about me marrying someone from a wealthy and influential household, but none of them knew about my endless suffering at the hands of my mother-in-law and everyone in the mansion.

For my mother-in-law, everything was about business - money and connections. The more money his son brought to her pocket the happier she could get. That's why instead of becoming her son's wife, she and her twin daughters, put me in charge of the kitchen.

Then I slide to the toilet room and soak my entire body with cold water to lessen the burning temperature all over me. The next morning, my husband finally got home.

"Honey, what's this?" I frown at Norman as he handed over me a piece of brown envelope. Then he drops his tuxedo on top of my shoulder and travel bag to the floor.

Those large and dark circles around his eyes prove that he looked so overwrought from his two weeks straight campaign. Good thing I prepared something on the table to renew his lost strength.

"Not in front of me, please," he stopped me as I was about to inspect the document from the envelope. "You can open and read it once I head for work. Right now, I need to feed my starving stomach. What do we have for breakfast?" he asked with a dampened smile on his face.

My overflowing excitement started to crawl down in every fiber of my muscles when several wonderful thoughts ran wild inside my brain despite what happened last night at the banquet.

Two to mention are that I assume it could either be a piece of land title under my name or a stock certificate for our son. I will be turning twenty-eight in four days and I keep nagging him not to forget about my birthday present.

Though he didn't respond to any of my texts and calls recently, I know my husband better than anyone.

He may be the wealthiest man I have ever known and had the means to buy women, or at least cheat on me, but I am confident enough that he didn't do any of those.

"Of course, I know you're coming home this morning so I cooked you your favorites, honey." I humbly reply and follow him to the dining area despite the cold treatment he bestows on me.

Apart from my burning dream of performing in front of a crowd with my dance moves, cooking is also my specialty.

Delicious food and drinks are the spell that I cast on Norman for him to marry me. As this old aphorism says, "The way to win a man's heart is through his stomach."

Even though what I had with Norman was not the kind of promising relationship my parents expected, always being busy with his workloads, often coming home late because of his night sessions, and barely talking and having time with me, we still managed our marriage to reach seven years.

Before Norman reaches the dining table, he surprises our son with stealth kisses and hugs. While looking at them, I couldn't help but smile in the corner at how happy our son was upon seeing his father.

I didn't want to interrupt their father-and-son moment so I inaudibly lifted my feet toward our room to put down Norman's tuxedo and travel bag. And of course, to check what's inside this envelope as it intrigued me the most this morning.

However, the moment I catch a glimpse of the document, the balls of my eyes remain wide open. My gulp was even disrupted in disbelief when right in front of my eyes was a duly signed Divorce agreement.

Norman wanted to divorce me - for failing our seven years of marriage. His main reason? INFIDELITY. He claims that I failed to provide him with his manly needs, but that's barely the truth. And he knows that.

My overwhelming excitement ten seconds ago turned into horror in the blink of an eye. The worst part is that it stated in one of the clauses that I would get nothing from him or his corporation. Not even a single cent.

I was about to confront Norman about this divorce agreement but my son's wholehearted smile greeted me from the doorway. He hurries toward me and wraps his arms around me, tight enough as if he has no plans of letting me go.

"Are you all right, Mom? Are you crying?" My son asks, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Of course, honey!" I lied, obviously, even forcing the tears in my eyes not to fall. "Mom is doing great. Have you talked to Dad already?"

He nodded unhurriedly.

"Are we good to go for school?" I ask him with a smile to make sure Noah cannot sense anything, especially when he inherited his dad's smart brain.

He nodded again and let go of his grip. On our way to Noah's school, I still felt restless thinking about the divorce agreement. Norman never mentioned anything about it.

I never heard of him complaining about our relationship since we got married. Another woman? I highly doubt that. Norman's schedule was completely hectic.

He couldn't even have time for his son, how much more for another woman? So my conclusion ended up with his twin sisters and mother-in-law.

Perhaps they were the ones who forced Norman to divorce me - to get rid of me as soon as possible. But I have to confront my husband about it first to confirm my accusation.

After seeing Noah off to his school, I went back to the mansion to help everyone clean up the leftovers from the banquet last night. It's the least I can do to occupy my brain with something, especially when Norman already went to work.

Later in the afternoon, in the middle of washing Noah's clothes, I got a call from Norman's secretary. While staring at the screen of the phone, I could not help but frown.

Norman and I have been married for seven years, yet I never get a call from someone in his office. "What now, huh, Norman?" I asked myself. "Do you want me to sign the divorce agreement already?"

To get to the bottom of my assumptions, I slide the answer button, "Good morning, Mrs. dela Vega. This is Elise from Mr. dela Vega's office. I would like to inform you that your husband left something in his office. He wanted you to pick it up now."

I cleared my throat, trying to stay calm as much as possible before I spoke up, "May I ask what are those he left for me?"

"Please, give me a second, Mrs. dela Vega." Elise hangs up the phone for five seconds, "A key to a five-star hotel and I think it's a brand-new car key. He also left me a note that I should inform you to get dressed up tonight and proceed to the hotel..."

While Elise kept on talking from the other line of the phone, I burst into tears. Tears of joy, clarifying that scaring me with a divorce paper is only part of his birthday plan.

He bought me a brand-new car. Even though I didn't ask him to buy me one, it's the thought that counts. I needed a car indeed, especially to visit my parents in the countryside.

After the call ended, I hurried to our room with the soles of my feet barely touching the surface of the ground. Excitement was engraved all over my face while dressing up.

Right after putting on something elegant, I rushed to Norman's office to pick up the hotel and car keys. I didn't ask Elise further questions when I flew to the address of the hotel as fast as possible.