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Chapter 1: First Love
A relentless downpour began to fall, the rain striking the ground in steady sheets.
At the entrance of the hospital, Cecilia Smith stood motionless, clutching the pregnancy test result in her delicate, trembling hand. The outcome was clear: not pregnant.
“Three years into your marriage, and still no child?” Paula Escobar, Cecilia’s mother, stood before her, her voice laced with disappointment. Dressed to the nines and teetering on high heels, she pointed a scornful finger at her daughter. “You’re useless. If you don’t get pregnant soon, the Rainsworth family will cast you out. What will the Smith family do then?”
Cecilia’s eyes seemed empty, distant, as though the weight of her mother’s words had drained her of all emotion. The words she longed to speak stuck in her throat, crystallizing into a single, helpless sentence.
“I’m sorry.”
Paula’s face twisted in further disgust. “I don’t want your apologies. What I want is for you to give Nathaniel a child. Do you understand?”
Cecilia’s throat tightened, the words too painful to voice. Three years of marriage, yet Nathaniel Rainsworth had never so much as touched her. How could there possibly be a child?
Seeing the helplessness in her daughter’s eyes only fueled Paula’s frustration. “If you can’t do it, then let Nathaniel find another woman. At least he’ll remember your kindness.”
Cecilia stared, stunned, as her mother’s words echoed in her mind. Her own mother had just told her to find another woman for her husband. The chill that ran through her body seemed to freeze her to the bone.
As Cecilia sat in the car on her way home, Paula’s last words reverberated in her mind, drowned out only by a dull, intermittent roaring in her ears. Her illness had worsened.
Her phone buzzed. It was a message from Nathaniel, as predictable as always. “I won’t be coming home tonight.”
Three years of marriage, and Nathaniel had never once spent a night at home. He had never touched her. Cecilia still remembered their wedding night.
He had coldly declared, “Since you from the Smith family dared to trick me into marriage, be prepared to face a lifetime of solitude.”
The Smith and Rainsworth families had arranged the marriage for business purposes. The promise had been made, a mutual benefit for both sides. But on the day of the wedding, the Smith family had changed their mind, transferring all their assets, including the multi-billion-dollar dowry meant for Nathaniel, elsewhere.
A shadow crossed Cecilia’s expression, but she responded to Nathaniel’s message with her usual, simple reply: “Okay.” Without thinking, she crumpled the pregnancy test report in her hand, turning it into a ball.
At home, she tossed the report into the trash. Every month, at this time, a deep exhaustion seemed to wash over her. She didn’t bother making dinner, instead lying on the couch, drifting in and out of a dreamlike state. The roaring in her ears never ceased.
This was another reason Nathaniel despised her. She was hard of hearing—something that, in high society, was almost considered a disability. How could he possibly allow her to have a child in such a state?
The wall clock ticked monotonously. It was five in the morning. In another hour, Nathaniel would return.
Only when daylight began to break did Cecilia realize she had fallen asleep on the couch all night. She sprang to her feet, rushing to prepare breakfast for Nathaniel, terrified of being late.
Nathaniel was meticulous about time. Once, when Cecilia had missed preparing his breakfast because she was at her father’s funeral, he didn’t speak to her for an entire month.
At six o’clock, Nathaniel arrived, as punctual as ever. Dressed in an impeccably tailored suit, his tall, slender frame exuded an air of restrained elegance. His handsome features were striking, yet they seemed as distant and cold as always.
Without sparing her a glance, he sat at the table. “You don’t need to make breakfast for me anymore.”
Cecilia froze, her mind struggling to comprehend his words. She wasn’t sure if it was instinct or something else, but she blurted out a response, one that surprised even herself.
“Did I do something wrong?”
Nathaniel lifted his eyes to meet hers—eyes that had remained indifferent for the past three years. His lips parted slightly. “What I want is a wife, not a housekeeper.”
For three years, Cecilia had always worn the same pale gray clothes. When responding to messages, she would only type one word: “Okay.” If not for the business alliance and the deceit of the Smith family, Nathaniel would never have married someone like her. She wasn’t his match, not in any way.
“What I want is a wife, not a housekeeper.”
The ringing in Cecilia’s ears grew louder, and a lump formed in her throat. Still, she uttered the word that Nathaniel hated most.
“Okay.”
Nathaniel rose, his chair scraping sharply against the floor as he stood. He seemed irritated, even at his favorite breakfast, now tasteless in his eyes.
Then, to his surprise, Cecilia reached out and grabbed his hand.
“Nathaniel… is there someone you like?”
The words seemed to hang in the air, and Nathaniel’s eyes darkened. “What do you mean?”
Cecilia looked up at him. Nathaniel was more than just her husband of three years—he was the man she had loved for twelve long years. Swallowing the bitter lump in her throat, she thought of her mother’s words and spoke again.
“Nathaniel, if there’s someone you like, you can be with her—”
Before she could finish, Nathaniel cut her off, his voice laced with contempt.
“You’re crazy.”
In the end, life was all about letting go.
After Nathaniel left, Cecilia found herself alone on the balcony, staring at the relentless rain outside. She had to admit, despite loving Nathaniel for twelve years, she still didn’t understand him.
The sound of rain was sometimes sharp, sometimes muffled.
A month ago, the doctor had said, “Ms. Smith, your auditory nerves and central nervous system have undergone pathological changes, leading to further hearing loss.”
“Is there any way to treat it?” she had asked, her voice soft with hope.
The doctor shook his head. “Long-term sensorineural hearing loss doesn’t respond well to medication. I suggest continuing with your hearing aid for rehabilitation.”
There was no cure.
Cecilia removed her hearing aid. In that instant, the world around her quieted. She wasn’t used to such silence. She turned on the television, cranking the volume up as high as it would go, but still only a faint sound could be heard.
It was an interview with Stella Ross, the internationally renowned queen of love songs, returning to the country after years abroad.
Cecilia’s hand trembled as she held the remote. It wasn’t just any interview. Stella was Nathaniel’s first love.
The years had only made Stella more beautiful. She faced the camera with confidence, no longer the shy Cinderella who once sought the Smith family’s support.
When reporters asked her why she had returned, she boldly replied, “I came back to reclaim my first love.”
Cecilia’s hand slipped, and the remote clattered to the floor.
Her heart sank. The rain outside seemed to intensify, as if mirroring her fears.
She was afraid—afraid that Stella would steal Nathaniel away from her. Once, she had been the cherished daughter of the Smith family, but even then, she couldn’t outshine Stella, who had no background at all.
Now, Stella had become an international sensation—confident, radiant, and everything Cecilia could never be.
Panic seized her, and she quickly turned off the television, before scrambling to clean up the untouched breakfast.
In the kitchen, Cecilia paused. Nathaniel had left his phone behind. She picked it up absentmindedly, accidentally unlocking it. The screen flashed with an unread text message.
