Chapter 3

Ethan wanted to chase after me.

But Mia's voice echoed from the room behind him: "Ethan! Come back quick, Iris is crying again!"

In the end, he just left me there, throwing the umbrella into my hands.

"I'm not divorcing you. Just go home and calm down first."

I opened the umbrella. It had a gaping hole in the fabric, much like my fractured marriage with Ethan.

The rain dripped through, soaking my face.

It wasn't enough to drown me, but it was enough to freeze whatever warmth was left in my heart.

Sitting in the back of the Uber, I opened Instagram. I went to Iris's profile, and saw she had just uploaded a new reel.

"Our little princess is finally here. My husband named her Rosalie."

My hands clenched so hard my knuckles turned white. An overwhelming wave of grief flooded my chest.

Rosalie.

That was the name I had chosen for the baby I lost years ago.

Back then, Ethan's business rivals had sent thugs to trash our house. I had thrown myself over him to protect him and was beaten so badly I miscarried on the spot.

Now, he had handed that very name to another woman's child on a silver platter.

My trauma, and the death of our first child, meant absolutely nothing to him.

Tears blurred my vision. Shaking, I scrolled down her feed.

On the day I was in a terrible car accident and broke my leg, my parents and Mia had sent me generic text messages—while they spent the night setting off fireworks with Iris on the beach.

When I was throwing up my guts from severe morning sickness, they ordered me some random soup delivery—while they took Iris on a seven-day luxury trip to Europe to see the Northern Lights.

On my birthday, they all claimed they were too busy with work—while they went camping and stargazing with Iris.

There were over six hundred posts. I forced myself to watch them, one by one, torturing myself until my heart went completely numb and my tears dried up.

I used to have doubts, but I had clung to a desperate shred of hope.

But now, with the truth laid bare, I had to admit that they had all been playing me for a fool.

Pulling myself back to reality, I gently stroked my pregnant belly, taking deep, steady breaths.

"Don't worry, sweetie. Mommy is going to take you away from here very soon."

I went back to my parents' house, intending to grab my passport and birth certificate.

I unlocked the front door.

But the sight before me was completely foreign.

All of my belongings were gone. In their place was a beautifully decorated, cozy nursery fit for a princess.

I reached out to touch a seashell nightstand lamp. Suddenly, a sharp voice barked from behind me: "Don't touch that!"

My parents were standing in the hallway, carrying grocery bags, looking at me with pure annoyance.

"Iris doesn't like people messing with her things. She'll get upset."

I looked at them. "Where are my things?"

"In the basement."

"This was my room."

My mom glared at me, walking into the kitchen. "I'm Iris's godmother now. Do you really have to be jealous of everything?"

I was pushed to the side, my wet clothes sticking uncomfortably to my skin.

But neither of them asked if I was cold.

A bitter burning throat caught up to me, and my eyes welled with tears. "What about me? Am I not your daughter anymore?"

My mom didn't even look up. "How can you compare yourself to Iris? She's sweet, loving, and always brings so much joy into this house. She's like a little ray of sunshine."

"Unlike you, always walking around with a long face, acting like the whole world owes you something."

She sighed. "If you hadn't forced your way between them, Iris and Ethan would have been married years ago."

"They were always meant to be. They hid their feelings for years just to spare your feelings. Can't you be a little understanding for once?"

My own mother was asking me to be understanding of my cheating husband and his mistress.

I forced a laugh and wiped my tears. "Fine. Let her be your daughter from now on."

"What are you throwing a tantrum for now? Where are you going?" My dad looked over, irritated.

"I'm taking a job in Seaside City. I'm leaving, and I'm never coming back."

I pulled out my phone, wanting to check the official offer email.

Instead, I saw a rejection notification from the Seaside General Hospital Board:

Dear Applicant, following a formal report and background check, your application has been rejected due to resume falsification and multiple records of financial misconduct. You have been permanently blacklisted from our network.