I went home in a daze. My daughter hadn't been discharged from the hospital yet, so I had to go back to get something so that I could take care of her at the hospital. When I opened the door, I never thought three pairs of eyes would look straight at me as if I were an uninvited guest who broke into someone else's home.
The dim light, the steaming dishes on the table and the smiles that hadn't yet faded all revealed the warmth they shared at that moment.
"Dad, who is this lady? Why does she have the key to our house?" a child's innocent voice asked.
Stefan looked embarrassed. "Why are you back so suddenly?" he asked awkwardly.
"Dad? Stefan, since when did we have a son?" I couldn't help but mock him.
Stefan opened his mouth to explain but was interrupted, "Please don't misunderstand, Zelda. Charlie just misspoke. Stefan has been kind to me because of my situation. There's nothing happened between us. Please, don't blame him," she said, feigning innocence.
"Nothing happened?" I seized on her words.
Stefan snapped before I could make a fuss, "Zelda, that's enough! Stop projecting your filthy thoughts onto us. What I have with Yolanda is not what you think."
I stared coldly at Stefan for a long time, as if only today I finally saw him for who he was. How could he be so shameless?
I didn't want to argue with him anymore. To me, this marriage had reached its end. The most important thing now was my daughter.
Ignoring the three, I turned and headed towards my daughter's room. Just as I reached the door, Yolanda's son, Charlie, jumped from his chair and ran before me, spreading his arms to block my way. "You're not allowed to go into my room," he said. His young voice was already filled with an overbearing arrogance.
My face darkened. It was my daughter's room. When did it become Yolanda's son's?
I gently pushed him aside, but he deliberately stumbled and fell to the floor, bursting into loud sobs. "Dad! Mom! This lady pushed me!"
Yolanda was heartbroken and ran over to protect her son. Stefan also came over, looking at the mother and son with concern. Then his arm suddenly swung, leaving a bright red slap mark on my face.
"Zelda, you've gone too far! You even bully a child."
My face burned with pain and my body trembled uncontrollably. Tears welled in my eyes, brimming with disappointment toward the man before me.