The Illusion of Forever

Ashley had been moved into the sunniest room in the house by Nicholas. It was the very room I had deliberately reserved when I designed it to be a nursery. Now, it was being used by a woman who was a complete stranger to me, arranged there by the man I loved.I stood in the living room, listening to the cheerful laughter that echoed from the crevice in the door. So many times, I wanted to burst in and tell that heartbroken woman that Nicholas was mine, but I couldn't.After all, they were only friends. He had reassured me of that, saying he was just showing her some compassion. If I objected, I wouldn't be the understanding and reasonable Luna Cromwell that I was supposed to be.I absentmindedly placed a hand on my still-flat belly and glanced at the sky gradually darkening outside the window. I then grabbed my phone and headed out to buy groceries.Ever since we found out I was pregnant, Nicholas had repeatedly urged me to quit my job and focus on taking care of our baby. He promi

At noon, I was right in the middle of sipping on some porridge when I received a video call from my mother. Her eyes filled with sorrow the moment she noticed my pallid face and the bowl of porridge in my hands.This was the longest period I had ever been away from home. Never had my parents and I ever been apart in my twenty-seven years of life until now.With a note of concern and frustration in her voice, she asked where Nicholas was and how I could be suffering so much during my pregnancy. I didn't know how to begin telling her everything that had happened recently.To my parents, Nicholas was the perfect match. We had grown up together. He was dependable, honest, a graduate from a prestigious university, and held a stable job. He was everything they could hope for in a son-in-law, and we had been in love.Remembering all this made my tears sting the corners of my eyes. In the end, I brushed off her questions with a few vague responses and quickly ended the video call. They h

The tears I had held back for so long finally spilled over.'Why… Why are you doing this to me? Why marry me if you never loved me? Why string me along like some heartless robot for all this time?' I thought.Ashley was pushed into the bedroom by Nicholas, who quickly shut the door behind her. He didn't want her to see the messy state of his marriage, just like Ashley's marriage. He was afraid it might hurt her again."Luna, what's gotten into you? Is it truly necessary for me to accompany you to every prenatal appointment?""Why are you treating me like this?"Nicholas seemed to realize something, and his tone softened as he sat beside me and gently coaxed me. "Luna, she's sick. Do you really need to fight with someone who's ill?"I looked up in disbelief at the man I no longer recognized through a haze of tears. "Nicholas, I'm your wife.""Stop acting like some jealous woman. It's exhausting. Can't you be more forgiving? More generous? When Ashley gets better, I'll come to spe

In the last couple of days during my postpartum care, Nicholas stood at my doorstep every day, adamant about seeing me. No matter how much others persuaded him to leave, he simply wouldn't, truly acting like a man who loved me deeply as best as he could.Before he made a scene, I opened the door and let him in. Still, even when I confronted him face-to-face now, he insisted that he didn't do me wrong."Do you dare to take off your clothes then?" I asked.At once, he declined with an excuse, saying that he was shy.My lips twitched into a sneer as I observed his response. "You're probably shy because of the marks left by your ex-girlfriend, who you've been longing for two years after sleeping with her. Am I right?"Seeing that I exposed his lie, he became furious and condemned me for slandering him.However, I paid no attention to his fury and kept pushing him to remove his shirt if he wanted me to believe he was telling the truth. Eventually, he didn't dare to do as I said and bo

After I joined the new company, I worked hard and attained countless project deals. My supervisor valued my hard work, and my life had been thriving. From time to time, I would receive apology calls or texts from unknown numbers, but I deleted and blocked them all when I saw them.Later, I went on a business trip to Wavecrest City, where I settled down when I was still married to Nicholas. By chance, I encountered him, who was selling insurance. After the divorce, I stopped paying attention to his life in the past few years.In a nutshell, I lived a good life without him.Nicholas and I bumped into each other. Surprise emerged in our eyes when we looked at each other. He suggested we had coffee together, but since I was going on a date with my new boyfriend and figured I couldn't let him misunderstand me, I declined Nicholas' offer.A trace of embarrassment flashed across Nicholas' face. Then, he said calmly, "Luna, I indeed had done you wrong before. Please forgive me.""Nicholas