Chapter 2

The next morning, Lucian went into the kitchen for the first time in years. The Alpha, who had not touched cookware in eight years, personally made a full breakfast spread.

Jasmine sat at the table, cupping her face in her hands as she smiled. "Lucian, you are so good to me."

"Jasmine, you deserve the best. I made shrimp pizza, your favorite. Your health is poor, so you need nourishment."

"Yeah, pretty auntie. Eat this one. This one is good."

The three of them sat around the table, happy and warm, as if I were the intruder.

When he saw me come downstairs, Lucian cleared his throat. "I made shrimp pizza. Have some."

"Yes, Lucian's pizza is delicious. Try it."

As Jasmine spoke, she picked up a piece and placed it into my bowl.

Expressionless, I casually dumped the food into the trash.

Jasmine's eyes reddened instantly. "Serena, even if you have a problem with me, you shouldn't waste Lucian's kindness."

The moment she cried, Lucian panicked.

He snapped coldly, "Serena, I endured you last night, and now you are wearing that dead face again first thing in the morning. Who are you showing it to? Can you stop acting out?"

"I have a stomach ulcer. I cannot eat seafood. Did you not know that?"

Lucian froze.

When Caleb was little, he was difficult to care for. To look after him, I often ate irregularly, and over time my stomach grew weak.

Perhaps Lucian himself had forgotten that once, he was the man who would pick the shrimp off my pizza one by one.

Jasmine blinked. "A stomach ulcer doesn't matter, does it? If it were me, even if I had to take stomach medicine, I would eat every bite of the breakfast Lucian made himself."

Caleb echoed her in a strange tone from the side. "Exactly. Aunt Jasmine knows how to respect Daddy's cooking. Unlike you. You don't care about Daddy's hard work at all. You're so bad."

Lucian came back to himself and smiled indulgently. "All right, pup. I know you mean well. Your body cannot handle trouble right now."

I did not want to watch this farce anymore. I threw down my chopsticks.

"Then you had better eat all of it. Do not leave a single piece of trash."

After returning to my room, I began studying design drawings again.

After all, I had been away from the industry for eight years. It was impossible not to be rusty.

But the laughter outside the door was so loud that I could not focus.

Outside, Jasmine laughed and asked Caleb, "What do you think of your mother?"

"She's so annoying. She nags all day, dresses so badly, and she's already fat, but she still keeps me from eating snacks."

Jasmine giggled. "What about me?"

"You're pretty. You take me out to play and buy me good food. You're especially nice."

"Then do you want to call me Mom?"

"Can I?" Caleb immediately called sweetly, "Mom!"

Inside the room, I felt cold to the bone again.

Caleb was born weak and needed more careful care than other children. Lucian had never managed him because of pack affairs, so I resigned from work and raised him bit by bit.

I never imagined that in his heart, I could not compare to a stranger who took him out to eat and play.

Thunder outside the window pulled me back to the present.

It was raining.

Remembering the flowers on the balcony, I hurried out to bring them in. But the flowers I had carefully cultivated had already been deliberately ruined beyond recognition.

Before I even had time to feel heartbroken, I heard a click.

The balcony door had been locked from the outside.

"Caleb! Open the door!" I beat desperately against the glass.

But all I saw was Caleb calling to Jasmine from outside. "Mom, come quick. She looks like a drowned rat."

"Caleb, let's go play in the living room."

"Yay!"

Caleb stopped paying attention to me and skipped away, holding Jasmine's hand.

Lightning flashed and thunder rolled. I curled up in the corner of the balcony as rain soaked me from head to toe.

From body to heart, I was utterly chilled.

Only after the last petal had been beaten to the ground by the rain did Lucian finally let me out of the balcony.

Under the bright lights, my face was deathly pale, and my wet hair clung to my cheeks like a ghost.

Jasmine covered her mouth and pretended to be shocked. "Oh my, Serena, what happened to you?"

Caleb hid behind her and made faces at me.

After Lucian learned what had happened, he merely frowned. "Serena, you are already an adult. How could you still get locked on the balcony? Be more careful next time."

I said nothing. I only reached out, wanting to grab Caleb and stop him from making faces.

Lucian grew anxious and shoved me away. "What are you doing? Are you going to quarrel with a child? He is immature. Are you immature too?"

The Alpha's powerful aura made me lose my balance. I fell heavily to the floor.

Caleb burst into laughter.

In this farce, I, the victim from beginning to end, became the only one on trial.

I looked at father and son and gave a laugh.

Then I stood up and walked toward them expressionlessly.

They thought I had come to make peace. Both the adult and the child wore undisguised mockery on their faces.

I slapped each of them across the face.

Caleb widened his eyes, covered his cheek, and cried for Jasmine to hold him. "I don't want you. You're a bad mom. You're a vicious she-wolf. No wonder nobody wants you."

Lucian was even more furious. His pupils narrowed into vertical slits, and a low growl rumbled in his throat.

"Serena! Do you still look like a Luna?"

"You are both so noisy."

I had wanted to hit them for a long time.

Jasmine took the opportunity to faint, and Caleb was so frightened that he stopped crying.

Lucian hurriedly carried Jasmine and rushed out. Before leaving, he did not forget to threaten me.

"If Jasmine's condition worsens, I will make you pay."

Probably afraid I would abuse Caleb at home, he dragged his son away as well.

Good.

Let them all leave.

The house was finally quiet.