When He Stops Protecting Me

At that time, everyone believed we would never end up together.

They thought an ugly duckling like me, born in a small town, could never deserve someone like Helena.

But she didn’t care—she only wanted to be with me.

She endured all the pressure and proposed herself, shielding our love from malice.

Under her protection, my once harsh and poor life suddenly became easy.

Flowers, jewelry, guaranteed grad school admission, study abroad—

everything was handed to me.

I didn’t need to ask for anything.

As a naïve, idealistic teenager prone to dreaming,

I quickly fell for Helena’s relentless pursuit.

I gave up my future and married her.

Dating, marriage, pregnancy, childbirth—

everything followed naturally.

Back then, life seemed effortless.

Everything I wanted was within reach.

I was lost in love’s sweetness—

unaware that every gift from fate carries a hidden price.

The day Emma was born,

Eleanor Rhodes appeared for the first time and took my baby away.

Her face was polite, her tone cold and arrogant.

“Emma is the future heir of the Rhodes family—of noble status.

With your upbringing and limited education, you’re unfit to raise this child.”

My own flesh and blood, the child I’d longed for—

and I wasn’t even allowed to hold him.

Even seeing him required permission.

I begged Helena not to be so cruel, not to take my child.

She looked at me strangely.

“My mother’s right—you’re from the countryside.

She said I can be willful, but only she decides anything about the child.”

I nearly collapsed in tears.

But Helena ignored me, hugged my waist, and kissed me lightly.

“Alright, alright, don’t cry,” she said with a faint smile.

“If you love kids that much, we can have another.”

I couldn’t refuse.

But when she saw the gray strands I’d grown from caring for her,

a flicker of conflict and disgust flashed in her eyes.

After hesitating, she only said coldly,

“You’ve had a long day—rest.”

Her indifference hit me like lightning, shattering my dream.

I remembered Eleanor’s scorn and everyone’s ridicule.

Suddenly, I understood—

this so-called love was nothing but a spoiled princess’s whim.

Fate had once gifted me everything—

now, it demanded repayment.

The child was only the beginning.

Helena’s coldness caused my status in the Rhodes family to plummet.

The hostility around me pushed me into deep depression.

I lay awake every night, unable to sleep.

I called her, but she never answered.

I texted her, but got no reply.

I feared something had happened to her.

But the next morning, news broke—she had cheated.

Her photos with a minor celebrity spread everywhere.

People online mocked me, wondering when the rich family’s son-in-law would be thrown out.

The gossip and laughter crushed my final illusion.

I couldn’t accept it.

My condition worsened.