Episode 2

Sofia sat on the floor, her body trembling violently. The phone in her hand still displayed the video she had just watched, but her vision was blurred by tears. She gasped for breath, her chest felt tight, as if something was crushing her soul from the inside.

The woman still couldn't believe what she had just seen. Her hands trembled as she pressed the screen, replaying one of the videos, hoping she was just hallucinating. But no.

Robin and Vanessa. Her husband's best friend.

On the screen, the two were so intimate, as if Sofia had never existed between them. In fact, the videos were from years ago, showing that this affair was not just a momentary occurrence—it had been going on for a long time.

And the most painful was the last video.

"How long will our relationship be like this, Mas?" Vanessa's voice was clearly heard in the luxurious room that Sofia recognized as Robin's favorite hotel. "We've had to hide for decades. I'm tired of being second."

Robin, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, still with his body not fully covered, sighed deeply. "Be patient, Van. You know my mother and father don't like you. He always wanted offspring, and you ...."

Sofia held her breath.

"I'm barren." Vanessa continued with a voice full of bitterness.

Robin nodded, his expression as cold as Sofia always saw whenever they were both at home. "Mama wants an heir, that's the only reason I married Sofia. If it wasn't for that, I would never have touched her. Believe me, my love is only for you and I'll make sure it stays that way forever."

Sofia covered her mouth with her hand, her body trembling even more.

So, for 22 years … she was just a tool? She was never loved?

All of Robin's coldness, all of his cold attitude, all of his blank stares after they were intimate … it all made sense now.

She was just a tool to pass on the Robin family line.

Sofia finally couldn't take it anymore. Her phone slipped from her grasp, falling to the floor with a soft thud.

Her tears fell even faster, her sobs breaking out uncontrollably.

Pain.

So much pain.

The pain that she had been suppressing, that she had ignored, that she had thought was just her feelings, all of it exploded in an instant.

She hugged herself on the floor, crying silently.

It turned out, she had not only lost her husband. She had lost 22 years of her life … for a lie.

****

Sofia sat on the floor, her body weak. Her tears had dried, but her heart still felt broken. For an unknown amount of time, she just stared blankly ahead, letting her mind sink into the bitter reality she had just discovered.

After taking a deep breath, she wiped her face, erasing the remaining traces of tears. She had to calm down. She couldn't look weak. With faltering steps, Sofia got up and went into the bathroom in Robin's study.

Inside, Sofia turned on the faucet and splashed her face with cold water. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, a beautiful face that remained well-maintained despite being almost half a century old. However, behind it, there were eyes that looked empty and tired.

After feeling a little better, Sofia came out of the bathroom and saw her phone still lying on the floor. With trembling hands, she picked it up and opened the screen.

Her fingers reflexively opened social media, either looking for an escape or just wanting to see something that could distract her mind.

However, what first appeared on the screen was something that only further broke her heart.

Robin's latest status.

Sofia held her breath as she looked at the photos and videos her husband had posted.

Robin was sitting at the dining table, in a beautiful garden that looked like one of the viral places that had recently been talked about.

Around him were Vanessa, the woman who had destroyed her marriage. And there were also Reno and Mikaila, the two children she had raised with all her love and sacrifice.

They were all smiling.

Laughing.

Happy.

In the next photo, Vanessa was seen blowing out birthday candles with an expression full of joy. Robin sat next to her, looking at her with a gentle smile, a smile that Sofia had never seen throughout their marriage.

Sofia swiped to the next video, and the pain in her heart increased.

Reno.

Her eldest son, who always refused to help with small things around the house, was now climbing a tree just to retrieve Vanessa's hat that was caught.

Sofia remembered very well, some time ago, she had asked Reno to help her clean the front roof of the house because the tiles were dirty. At that time, Reno immediately refused and said, "Ma, I'm afraid of heights. Besides, that's the job of a handyman, not me."

But now?

For Vanessa's sake, he was even willing to take the risk of climbing a tree without hesitation.

Sofia bit her lip, holding back the emotions that were pressing in again. She swiped the screen again, and now what appeared was Mikaila.

The girl looked so attentive and nimble when Vanessa told her to get a small plate.

Again, Sofia's heart felt sore.

In the past, when she asked Mikaila to do the same thing, just get a plate from the kitchen, her daughter didn't even want to move and only replied lazily, "Mama can get it. I'm busy."

Sofia stared at her phone screen without blinking, her eyes getting hotter.

But the most piercing was the last slide.

Robin and Vanessa sat side by side, so close. Vanessa fed a birthday cake to Robin's mouth, and the man accepted it with a warm smile.

Sofia barely recognized that expression.

A smile that was so sincere. A look full of affection.

His eyes couldn't lie, Robin really loved Vanessa.

Sofia stared at her phone screen with an empty feeling. Her hands slowly weakened, almost dropping the phone again.

Her tears didn't come out.

No crying, no sound.

There was only an empty feeling that spread throughout her body.

Slowly, Sofia put her phone on the table. Then, she stood up with a blank stare.

Everything was clear.

There was no place for her in their lives. Robin, Reno, Mikaila, they only needed her as a tool, someone who was there only to serve and fulfill obligations.

Sofia took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. No, she wouldn't cry anymore. There was no point in crying over people who had never even considered her to exist.

If all this time they had erased her existence from their lives … then now, Sofia would do the same.

Before leaving her husband's study, Sofia copied some of the videos on the flash drive to be used as evidence.

It was fortunate that Robin had a habit of collecting his daily videos. Sofia thought they were just ordinary videos that her husband often saved, but it turned out that Robin also collected indecent videos.

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