On the day of my prenatal check-up, I accidentally found a hidden photo album on my husband's phone—full of intimate pictures of him and another girl.

I grabbed the phone and went to confront him.

He was quiet for a long time, then he just walked off to the bathroom.

After smoking three cigarettes, he finally came clean.

"When I was a kid, I accidentally hurt her and she lost her sight. She's someone I owe so much to, that's all."

Since I was already three months pregnant, I didn't push it any further.

Instead, I decided to forgive him and acted like nothing happened so we could get through the check-up.

When it was time for the blood draw—the part I was most afraid of—his orderly called him.

"General Darvold, Ms. Benefield is crying really hard because she heard Mrs. Darvold is pregnant. She's making a scene and insists on seeing you!"

As soon as he said those words, Leonardo Darvold yanked his arm away from me right away.

Without even thinking twice, he turned around and rushed off without looking back.

I put my hand on my belly, trying to hold back the hurt inside as I shouted, "Leonardo, if you walk out that door, I swear I'll get an abortion. You hear me?"

He paused for a second but in the end, he just kept walking into the crowd.

***

My heart felt like it had dropped into a deep freeze.

Memories from the past eight years flashed through my mind.

Those sudden business trips on our anniversaries, the unexplained nights he didn't come home, and how he always volunteered every week even when swamped with work.

There were signs all along, but I'd been so blinded by love that I chose to ignore them.

Now that he ripped away the last bit of trust I had in him, it was all gone.

Carson, the driver, noticed how pale I looked and couldn't stand seeing me like this.

"Noelle, not long after Ms. Benefield lost her sight, her only family—her brother—also died while serving. That's why General Darvold cares about her so much.

"But all these years, General Darvold has just been looking out for her like a younger sister. Please don't overthink it..."

Carson had been Leonardo's driver for ten years. They were practically brothers.

But in these eight years, he never told me anything about Arabella Benefield at all.

And back then? He hadn't even had the guts to look me in the eye.

If Leonardo really treated Arabella like his little sister, why had he never introduced her to me?

The more I thought about it, the more my heart hurt.

Just then, my parents called. "Sweetie, how did it go? Is the baby okay?"

"Come over for dinner later. We got a bunch of your and Leonardo's favorite dishes."

I didn't want to stress them out, so I took a deep breath to keep my voice steady. "I'm still waiting on the test results. Not sure how long it'll take.

"He... still has some stuff to handle tonight, so we won't be back for dinner."

My parents gave me a few more reminders, and I just nodded along, pretending everything was fine.

But after hanging up the phone, I still felt this tightness in my chest that just wouldn't go away.

Since I got pregnant, Leonardo had told me over and over that he'd always protect me and our baby.

But today, he actually had the nerve to leave us behind just to take care of someone else.

For five whole hours, I bombarded him with messages. But until my phone died, Leonardo never bothered to reply.

Out of nowhere, I felt like I couldn't breathe, and everything started going dark around me.

The last thing I heard was Carson shouting in shock.

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself in a hospital bed.

The doctor walked in with a report and a big smile on his face. "Ms. Maughan, congratulations. You're having twins!"

It should've been great news, but honestly? I just couldn't feel happy about it.

Back then, it was love at first sight for me with Leonardo. It took three months of chasing after him before this unapproachable gem finally noticed me.

After that, he kept getting busier with his military career. We barely managed to see each other even once every few months.

It wasn't until the day he became a major general that he got down on one knee and proposed to me at the award ceremony.

"Noelle, when we have a kid someday, I promise I'll be there with you both every single day to watch them grow up."

So many memories and promises rushed through my mind. Looking at the wedding ring on my finger, all I felt was this weird sense of absurdity.

This relationship, after eight years, had run its course.

Early the next morning, I headed back home.

That was when I finally saw Leonardo, who had been away for a whole day and night.

He was busy packing his stuff, looking completely worn out. When our eyes met, I could see guilt written all over his face. His voice was rough as he said, "Noelle, I'm really sorry.

"Arabella lost her sight because of me, and her brother was my comrade. He trusted me with her on his deathbed. I can't just break that promise."

"She has caregivers at home and security guards at her door," I cut him off.

"There are so many people looking after her. Why does it have to be you?

"All these years, how many times have you ditched me to be with her? Whether it was obvious or not? I acted like it didn't bother me every single time.

"But Leonardo, I'm not stupid."

Leonardo just stood there speechless.

After a long pause, he finally spoke in a quiet voice. But his words hit me hard again.

"Noelle, I owe her this... The only way I can find peace is by making things right with her.

"About what happened today, please... I'm begging you. Don't tell anyone, okay?

"If this gets out, it could really hurt her. I'm worried she won't be able to handle it..."

It was the first time he looked at me like that—with such desperation—but it was all for someone else.

At that moment, it felt like someone had stabbed me. My heart hurt so much I could barely breathe.

People's first reactions cannot be faked.

When he saw me, he didn't even ask if I was okay or how the baby was doing. Every single word was about Arabella.

I dug my fingers into my palm to keep from crying.

I shut my eyes, my voice barely above a whisper. "Okay."

He let out a visible sigh of relief and then said carefully, "Arabella knows I'm going to be a dad, and she's feeling really insecure... I want to go take care of her for a bit.

"I'll come back once she's doing better next month.

"I'll try to carve out some time to stay home with you then, alright?"

To look after Arabella, he could easily ask for a whole month off. But when it came to spending just a few days with me, he had to say, "Try to carve out time."

That really showed how different it was when someone genuinely cared versus not.

There was even this certainty in his voice, as if he thought I would definitely agree.

But as I saw the deep worry for another girl in his eyes, I suddenly felt so drained.

The two little ones in my belly seemed to pick up on my emotional mess, giving a gentle kick.

I instinctively put my hand on my lower abdomen where the love we once dreamed of was growing.

But now, it felt like he didn't care anymore.

Feeling the faint pulse of life beneath my palm, I said softly, "Leonardo, you've told me you loved me so many times before.

"Remember our third anniversary? We kissed under a sky full of fireworks, and you said you'd love me more than yourself.

"When you proposed at that award ceremony, you promised everyone that you'd love me for a lifetime.

"Last year on my birthday, you brought out that cake you spent two months learning to make and said I was the only one you'd ever love.

"For all these eight years, you've remembered every little thing I liked. Every profile picture and background was of us. I always thought we'd keep loving each other like this until we were old."

I looked up into his eyes as tears finally spilled from mine.

"But today... I just can't feel your love for me anymore..."

Hearing me talk about the little moments of our love, Leonardo couldn't help but get a bit teary-eyed.

But after a moment of hesitation in his gaze, he just managed to say, "But Noelle, after her parents and brother all died serving their country, I'm all she has left."

That sentence completely crushed the last bit of hope in my heart.

I looked at him and suddenly laughed through my tears.

"Then go repay your debt properly."

Even though he had probably seen this coming, he still paused for a second.

In the end, he just gave me a deep look. Without another word, he turned and walked out of the house.

The next day, I went to find a gift for Leonardo's mom, Maria Darvold since her birthday was coming up.

Even though I had decided to divorce Leonardo, his mother, Maria, had always been kind to me.

But as soon as I walked into the mall, there he was—Leonardo.

He didn't notice me at all; his attention was fixed on the woman beside him, looking at her with a kind of attention and warmth that I hadn't seen in ages.

I felt like turning around and leaving right then, but Arabella suddenly tilted her head a bit.

"Leo, I smell that familiar laundry detergent!"

When she said that, Leonardo turned his head. The second he spotted me, he instinctively pulled Arabella behind him like he was trying to protect her.

"Noelle? What are you doing here?

"Let's just talk about this when we get home. Arabella shouldn't be seeing this; I'm just taking her out for a walk."

Arabella moved closer to Leonardo, looking a bit scared, her voice soft. "Noelle, since I can't see well, I really depend on you and Leo.

"I didn't mean to compete with you for him. I'm just scared."

I took a deep breath and replied in a calm, even tone. "Don't think too much about it. It's just a coincidence."

After saying that, I turned to walk away. I didn't want to stick around this awkward scene any longer.

But then Leonardo called out to me suddenly. "Your bag looks kind of old. How about I take you shopping for a new one?"

This bag was the gift he gave me for our fifth anniversary. I'd never wanted to replace it. But now he was saying it looked old?

Did he think our feelings had become as old as this bag?

I stopped in my tracks without looking at him and just tossed the bag into the nearby trash can.

"If something gets dirty, you throw it away! I don't like keeping anything messy. You know that! I'm a bit of a clean freak."

Leonardo's face went blank.

He was smart. So, of course he got that I wasn't just talking about the bag, but our whole relationship too.

It looked like he wanted to say more, but honestly, I didn't want to hear it anymore. I turned around and walked away.

Before I left, I caught a glimpse of Arabella out of the corner of my eye. She seemed to be fixing her hair using the glass display window as a mirror. Her movements were smooth, and you could tell she could see perfectly well.

It turned out that she had gotten her sight back a while ago.

But honestly, I couldn't care less about what was happening between those two.

That night, I got a courier package from someone in the same city. Inside was a familiar handwritten apology letter.

Over the past eight years, whenever he made me mad, he always apologized like this. Sometimes his letters were so long they barely fit in the envelope, and every line was packed with heartfelt love.

But this time, the envelope felt light. It only had a thin piece of paper inside.

"I'm sorry."

That was it, just those words.

Looking at those three little words, I found myself laughing and crying at the same time.

Because I knew he had really loved me before, and now I could see all too clearly what it looked like when that love was gone.

While Leonardo was still out, I started packing my bags.

The desk we picked out together in the study, the succulents we planted side by side on the living room balcony, those couple mugs in the kitchen.

Memories hit me like a tidal wave, almost drowning me.

I remembered our first day moving in. He carried me over the threshold and said with a grin, "Noelle, this is going to be our home from now on."

All those little moments of happiness had turned into sharp reminders that cut deep, leaving me feeling bruised all over.

As I packed my things piece by piece, my heart grew colder with every passing moment.

This house that once held all my love and dreams was now filled with nothing but betrayal and lies.

I didn't want to stay here any longer.

So I dragged my suitcase back to my parents' place.

When they saw me coming back unexpectedly, their faces were full of surprise and concern. But they didn't ask too many questions. They just quietly took my suitcase from me.

Three days later, I went with my parents to Maria's birthday party.

As soon as she saw me walk in, she rushed over and grabbed my hand tightly. There was a mix of worry, helplessness, and apology in her eyes.

I did my best to smile, handed over the gift, and shared my good wishes.

But then everything just froze in that moment.

Leonardo had shown up. Beside him stood Arabella, looking as timid as ever.

Arabella still had that fragile, delicate vibe, holding onto him tightly.

Everyone stared at their joined hands before turning to me with mixed expressions.

Maria's smile disappeared in a flash.

Leonardo's dad even slammed his hand on the table. "You jerk! What do you think you're doing?"

But Leonardo just looked past everyone and focused on me first.

"Why did you take stuff from home?"

I replied calmly, "I moved it back to my parents' place."

He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "That works too. There are people there who can look after you. I'll come by and pick you up for your next prenatal check-up."

Right after that, he grabbed Arabella's hand and introduced her, "This is Arabella, the younger sister of one of my fallen buddies. She has some issues with her eyes, so I've been looking out for her all these years."

Arabella flashed a sweet but proper smile, handed over a gift box, and said in a soft voice, "Maria, happy birthday! This is just a little something to show I care."

Maria's expression went icy. She didn't even look at the gift.

Instead, she squeezed my hand tightly and declared loudly and clearly, "A gift? The one Noelle gave me is more than enough!"

Arabella's smile froze, and her hand holding the gift hovered awkwardly in the air.

Then she suddenly turned to me with a sarcastic tone dripping from her words. "Noelle, you're really lucky to have such a responsible husband like Leo.

"Unlike me, I don't have any family either. My eyes are messed up too. All I can do is rely on Leo's pity to get by..."

A loud slap echoed in the room.

I couldn't believe it when my mom slapped Arabella across the face.

"Mom!"

My mom was shaking with anger, her eyes blazing as she glared at Leonardo.

"I know my daughter better than anyone! She gave you the best years of her life, put her career on hold to support you, and even when she got pregnant, she handled everything by herself. No matter how much pain she went through, she never complained!

"Leonardo, we understand you want to make up for your past mistakes. But you can't just let people treat her like this!

"You left her all alone in the hospital, and now you're bringing this rude woman into her life? What kind of man are you?"

My mom's words shattered any pretense left between us, and I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

Arabella was hiding her face, tears welling up in her eyes as she clung tightly to Leonardo's arm, trembling.

Leonardo quickly stepped in to protect her, his brows knitted together. When he looked at me, there was a hint of blame in his gaze.

"Noelle Maughan! If you've got any complaints, take it out on me! Why did you tell your parents about this? Do you really have to make such a big deal..."

Before he could finish his sentence, I raised my hand and slapped him hard with all my might.

Everyone froze in shock.

I stared at the red mark that appeared on his cheek, my voice icy cold. "Leonardo! You're the one who deserves this slap the most!"

The next second, I pulled out a piece of paper from my pocket and slapped it right in his face.

"Open your eyes wide and see what this is!"

Leonardo picked up the paper, and his eyes went wide as he realized what it was.

"Noelle, you're having... twins?"

Pure joy lit up his face. It was the first time I'd ever seen him smile like that.

At that moment, it felt like he forgot all about Arabella and how many times he had left me hanging.

It was as if once the babies were here safe and sound, everything else could just be wiped away with one clean sweep.

He rushed over to hug me, but I pushed him away without holding back at all.

"Don't get too excited yet.

"I've already scheduled an abortion for tomorrow."