Leaving the Dust to Settle

Two years after I return to Cendria, I unexpectedly run into my daughter, whom my ex-wife had taken with her when she left me.

"Do you regret everything you've done?" she asks, her voice dripping with arrogance. "If you apologize to my new dad, Liam, I'll try to convince Mom to forgive you."

Before I can respond, an adorable little boy throws himself into my arms.

"School's finally over, Dad. I missed you so much!" he exclaims.

I take his hand and turn to leave.

My ex-daughter is furious. "If you walk away from me now, I'll disown you!" she yells after us in frustration.

I remain unbothered. She's free to do whatever she pleases. After all, none of it matters to me anymore.

My ex-wife, Vivian Johnston, stepped in front of me and blocked my path.

With a menacing look on her face, she spat, "Do you seriously think you can get my attention just by adopting a random child off of the street? It's been several years, Zachary Green. I can't believe you still don't get what you did wrong. I'm so disappointed in you."

My son, Andy Green, blinked at me and asked, "Who's this, Dad?"

I rubbed his head and replied with a smile, "No one important."

Then, I shifted my attention back toward the people standing before me.

"Please step aside, Vivian," I said with a straight face.

Vivian gritted her teeth and glared at me. My estranged daughter, Desiree Green, looked visibly angry as well.

"My patience is running thin. Apologize to Liam right now, and I'll consider getting back together with you."

Desiree chimed in, "Who cares about him, Mom? A petty man like him has no right to be my dad!"

I raised my eyebrow. Had I not made myself clear back then?

I already told them I was better off without an unfaithful wife and an ungrateful daughter. So what made them think that I'd come crawling back to them the minute they asked me to?

Vivian and I had known each other for 23 years and had been married for five. I never imagined things would end up like this between us.

We were both from the countryside. We were neighbors and were practically inseparable until we headed off to college.

Growing up, neither of us had our parents around. My parents were divorced, and my father rarely came home. Meanwhile, Vivian's parents preferred sons, so they rarely paid her any attention.

After we graduated from high school, her parents refused to pay for her tuition fees. So, I dropped out of college and got a job to fund her studies.

When we were at our lowest, we shared a single meal and split a bottle of water between the two of us.

I'd always thought that we'd naturally end up together—until she met Liam Larkin.

Vivian met him when she was in college. I didn't want to put her in a difficult position, so I decided to stop pursuing her romantically altogether.

To both of our dismay, he cheated on her with the dean's daughter. The pair even left the country together after that.

At that time, Vivian was pregnant with Liam's baby.

In spite of everything that had happened, I still took care of her. However, she was depressed throughout the pregnancy and eventually lost the baby.

Later on, Liam got married overseas and sent her a message.

"I hope you'll be able to have a fresh start too, Viv."

After she received the message, she sobbed and asked me, "I know you've always had a crush on me, Zach. Do you want to get married?"

I wasn't sure if she was doing it out of spite or if she was genuinely trying to start a new life.

But she was wrong. I wasn't just having a crush on her—I loved her. She was the first person I'd ever loved, and I couldn't turn her down.

We got married soon after that, but she didn't want to be intimate with me. I knew that she wasn't over Liam, so I never pressured her into doing anything she didn't want to do. On top of that, we also slept in separate rooms.

One day, Vivian got drunk and decided to sleep with me. As a result, she ended up becoming pregnant with my child.

She gave birth to a baby girl, whom she named Desiree Green.

I was overjoyed by the birth of our daughter. During Vivian's postpartum recovery, I personally prepared her meals and even gave her massages. I also looked after Desiree at night so Vivian could sleep without being disturbed.

After her postpartum recovery, Vivian looked visibly refreshed. I, on the other hand, looked extremely worn out and exhausted.

Everyone in our neighborhood envied her for having such a loving husband.

By that time, my business had started to gain traction. I didn't want Vivian to tire herself out from work, so I asked her to be a stay-at-home wife.

Since we had a housekeeper, Vivian didn't need to do any household chores. She was free to spend her free time however she liked.

I thought we'd lead a quiet life together for the rest of our lives. Yet, everything changed when Liam returned to Cendria.