Thirty Years Too Late

On the day of Claire Brooks, my wife's funeral, a grieving stranger arrived carrying white lilies. After placing them beside her portrait, he walked straight toward me. "I've envied you for thirty years," he said. Confused, I frowned as his eyes lingered on her photograph. "For thirty years, she gave me everything—her love, her time, her money. She never held anything back." He paused before looking at me with quiet resentment. "The only thing she forbade was letting you know I existed." My heart skipped a beat. "What are you talking about?" He let out a bitter chuckle. "It means that while you were married to her for thirty years, she was with me for thirty years too." Then he walked away, leaving me frozen beside her coffin. I stared after him, struggling for breath. Thirty years of betrayal and lies. The shock sent my blood pressure surging, and I collapsed in the middle of the funeral hall. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to the day Claire and I were supposed to be married. "Nathan Brooks, will you spend the rest of your life with me?" After a long silence, I took the ring from her hand and, without a moment's hesitation, threw it down the drain. Chapter 1 The romantic wedding venue fell into stunned silence. The hands of friends and family that had been raised in anticipation of applause froze awkwardly in midair. Claire Sullivan looked up at me, shock written all over her face. "Nathan Brooks?" Instead of blaming me, she grabbed my hand at once, worry filling her eyes. "What's wrong? Did I do something wrong?" I looked at her quietly. She was exactly the same as I remembered. For thirty years, she had always been like this with me. No one around us would ever say Claire didn't love me. Everyone said she loved me more than she loved her own life. Even during the car accident, her first instinct had been to shield me. She hadn't cared that she'd ended up with three broken ribs. And yet this woman who loved me so desperately had deceived me for thirty years. I closed my eyes and forced down the suffocating emotions surging through my chest. Then, beneath her worried gaze, I pulled my hand from hers expressionlessly. "We're done." Her eyes widened, and her lips turned pale. "What?" She grabbed hold of me in a panic. Her voice stumbled over itself, her eyes darting anxiously. "Is it because you don't like such a big wedding? Was all of this too much pressure for you? This is my fault. Please don't be angry with me." I said nothing. The longer I remained silent, the more frightened she became. My sister, Emma Brooks, was stunned too. She hurried over with a frown after setting down her confetti cannon. "Nathan, what's going on with you? You and Claire have loved each other since high school! She loves you so much. What's going on?" Pain tore through my chest. She was right. We had loved each other for so many years, but the deception had lasted even longer than the love. I took a deep breath. Without answering Emma, I turned and walked away under everyone's bewildered stares. I had barely made it home before Claire rushed in after me. She wrapped her arms tightly around me from behind, her voice trembling. "Nathan, tell me what I did wrong. I'll change it. I'll change anything. Just please don't leave me." I pulled away from her. The embrace that had once burned so warmly now felt cold and distant. I looked at her. "Fine. Then answer one question for me. Have you ever lied to me about anything?" For the briefest moment, her expression stiffened. Had I not known her for two lifetimes, I never would have noticed. "No. I swear. Absolutely not." Seeing that she was still lying, my heart continued to sink. Suddenly, I didn't want to say another word. I turned and went upstairs. In the middle of the night, the vibration of a phone woke Claire. She called my name twice. Seeing that I appeared to be asleep, she grabbed her car keys and quietly left. In the darkness, I opened my eyes and followed her. I needed to know how many things there still were that I didn't know. An hour later, her Maybach pulled up outside a villa in Southbridge. Claire stepped inside with a dark expression. I opened the listening software I had installed earlier that evening while she was showering, slipped on my earbuds, and immediately heard arguing. "Didn't I tell you? Unless I contact you first, don't ever contact me." I'd never heard such darkness in Claire's voice before. The man sounded hysterical. "Why? I know you're getting married to him today! He's your man. Am I not your man, too?" Claire's voice turned cold. "I love him. And what exactly are you? Ryan Mercer, I'm warning you. Don't appear in front of Nathan. Do you understand me?" Several moments passed before the man choked out a quiet response. "Okay." Only then did her tone soften. "Be good. I've already arranged for you to join the project department at Sullivan Group. Other than marriage, I can give you anything. If you want children, I can give you that too. But don't cross my bottom line." Outside, I sat in my car gripping my phone so tightly my knuckles turned white. Tears fell without warning, one after another. The dark screen reflected my pale face. The argument inside had long since ended. All that remained were their whispered sweet nothings. I took a deep breath. Then I accepted the study abroad offer to Ardenia. In my previous life, I gave it up for her. In this life, she wasn't worth it anymore. Chapter 2 Ryan Mercer... I remembered now. In my previous life, he really had worked in the project department for a period of time. No wonder he'd looked so familiar at Claire's funeral. Mockery filled my eyes. So he'd already been appearing right before my eyes that early on. I returned home. Not long afterward, Claire came back as well. After climbing back into bed, she curled up in my arms. Before long, her breathing grew slow and even. The next morning, she got up as usual to prepare breakfast for me. "I made your favorite eggs Benedict today." Watching her act as though she'd never left the house the night before made me sick. I couldn't help wondering. Across both my previous life and this one, how many mornings I'd mistaken for happiness had actually come after she'd returned from seeing another man. I ignored the hand she reached toward me and didn't touch the breakfast either. "I told you we're over. Did you not hear me?" Her expression froze. Panic flashed through her lowered gaze. "Nathan, I'm not breaking up with you." I let out a cold laugh. "You can't bear to part with this villa, is that it? Fine. I'll move out. I'll leave immediately." "No!" She denied it at once. Seeing the expression on my face, even her posture seemed to slump. "I'll go. You don't have to leave. But we're not breaking up. Take some time to calm down." With that, she untied her apron and left the villa looking utterly dejected. That afternoon, while preparing my paperwork for studying abroad in Ardenia, I noticed that Claire's phone location was once again at that little villa. I decided I might as well show up in person, expose her lies, and end everything once and for all. But by the time I arrived, her black Maybach had already sped away. I followed behind her. Eventually, I found myself standing outside the obstetrics department of a hospital. My heart sank. Ryan had an arm around her as he pushed open the door to an examination room. I watched silently through the crack in the doorway. "Congratulations. You're pregnant," the doctor said, showing them the ultrasound. "Five weeks along. The baby is developing very well." Joy flooded Ryan's face. Claire pressed her red lips together, her expression unreadable. "Claire, we're having a baby! You're going to be a mother!" Ryan pulled her tightly into his arms, his face full of anticipation. She lowered her eyes and gave a quiet laugh. "Mm." After leaving the hospital, the two of them got into the car. I followed at an unhurried pace. Then the argument reached my ears through my earbuds. "What do you mean? You want me to let Nathan raise our child?" Ryan's voice trembled. "Have you lost your mind? That's my child!" Claire sounded calm. "Nathan was injured when he was younger. He can't have children. "Over the next year, I'll use business trips as an excuse to stay away. Once the baby is born, I'll come back and give the child to Nathan to raise as an adopted child." My eyes narrowed, and I slammed on the brakes. The screech of the tires couldn't drown out the sound of my heartbeat. That child... Everything connected and suddenly made sense. In my previous life, exactly one year after we got married, Claire had used my infertility to convince me to adopt a child. At the same time, she'd spent an entire year away on so-called business trips. Back then, I'd felt guilty that I couldn't give her children. I also believed our family needed a child. So I'd agreed. I laughed until tears streamed down my face. So that child, the child I'd raised for my entire life and poured my heart and soul into... was hers and Ryan's. I gripped the steering wheel tightly. The absurdity and grief were so overwhelming that my entire body shook uncontrollably. A wave of nausea rose in my throat. My eyes burned red. Then Claire's voice came through my earbuds once more, leaving no room for argument. "This isn't up for discussion. I promise you this—if we have a second child, you can raise that one yourself." Ryan finally gave in through his tears. I sat alone in the car and burst into laughter. I laughed at the fact that everything I'd once believed was happiness had been nothing but layer upon layer of deception and betrayal. The two of them returned to the villa. I arrived thirty minutes later. I stepped out of the car, walked to the front door, and pressed the doorbell. Chapter 3 "Who is it?" Ryan called out as he walked to the door and pulled it open. The moment he saw me, every expression on his face froze. His breathing quickened. "N-Nathan..." Expressionless, I shoved past him and walked inside. Just then, Claire stepped out of the bathroom. The towel in her hand slipped from her fingers and hit the floor with a soft thud. Disbelief flashed across her face. I looked around the house. Only then did I realize that traces of Claire were everywhere. Her belongings were scattered throughout the rooms. The countertops were covered with photographs of her and Ryan together. The two of us stood on opposite sides of the living room, staring at each other. I forced a smile, struggling to suppress my emotions. My hands and feet were ice cold. "Weren't you the one who said you hadn't lied to me about anything? Then what exactly is all of this?" Claire finally reacted. The color drained from her face almost instantly as she rushed toward me and grabbed my shoulders. "Nathan, listen to me. Let me explain. It's not what you think!" At that distance, Ryan's scent clinging to her was impossible to miss. Every trace of it scraped against nerves that were already close to breaking. "Let go of me!" I shook her off. The sharp crack of a slap exploded through the room. Claire's head snapped to the side, and her cheek immediately began to swell. Ryan lunged forward and shoved me hard. "Are you crazy?! How can you hit her?!" The force of the shove sent me stumbling backward. Claire immediately rushed to protect me instead. She turned and roared at Ryan, "Get upstairs! You have no right to touch him!" After a brief moment of shock, Ryan let out a bitter laugh. "He's already found out. Do you really think you can go back to how things were before? Claire, I'm the one who truly loves you!" Her expression darkened. "Go upstairs!" Ryan didn't move. It was almost as if he had been waiting for the day I found out. "Nathan, Claire is pregnant with my child." Claire's eyes widened, and her voice sharpened with warning as she said, "Ryan! Shut up!" I looked at her, mockery filling my eyes. "What are you afraid of? Let him talk. I'd like to hear just how many things there are that I still don't know." "Nathan..." Ryan let out a cold laugh. There was a hint of triumph in it, but his voice was thick with emotion. "The night you graduated from college, she told you she was going to Riverton's university district to work on a project with her advisor. She was here with me." "Ryan!" Claire shouted. He ignored her. "The ideas for your wedding venue two days ago? Those were mine. The things she said to you? Those were my words, too. She just memorized them and repeated them back to you. "And the baby? This isn't the first one. There were two before this. She just didn't keep them." With every word he spoke, the color drained from my face. The truth was even crueler than I had imagined. I gasped for air, my breathing becoming ragged. Then I collapsed to the floor. I had heart disease as a child and underwent surgery. It simply hadn't returned all these years. Claire knew that. In that moment, she couldn't spare another thought for anything else. Panic covered her face as she rushed me to the hospital. When I woke up again, it was already dark outside. Claire sat beside the bed with her forehead resting in her hands. She looked utterly defeated. The moment she saw me wake up, she rushed over. "You're awake? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?" I looked at her indifferently without speaking. After a long silence, she bent down to look at me. "Nathan, I did all of this for your sake. You can't have children. Rather than raising a child with no blood relationship to either of us, why not raise one that's biologically mine? "You understand I meant well, right?" My eyes widened. I could hardly believe what I was hearing. So my pain, the torture of being toyed with for half my life, meant absolutely nothing to her. She even believed she was doing this for my own good. I closed my eyes, and my entire body trembled. "Get out. Get out!" Claire pressed her lips tightly together before stepping forward and pulling the blanket back over me. "I'll come see you tomorrow. Calm down first. Don't get upset." As soon as she left, the hospital room door opened again. Ryan walked in, almost as though he were here for revenge. "Oh, right. There's one more thing you should know." Chapter 4 I looked over at him. Ryan had already made himself comfortable in the chair beside the bed, an unmistakable challenge written across his face. "Back then, she was the one who changed your college application, too." My heart lurched. "What did you say?" He let out a quiet laugh. "It was never her bratty little sister messing with it by accident. That was just an excuse. "It was Claire. She changed your application from Ashbourne University to the same school she was attending. She did it right in front of me." My thoughts descended into chaos as memories came flooding back. After the college entrance exams, I'd trusted Claire completely. She knew all my application details. But when the acceptance letters arrived, I discovered that my first-choice university, Ashbourne University—the one I had been certain I would get into—had somehow changed to Seaview Institute of Technology, the same university Claire attended. Back then, I felt like I'd been struck by lightning. I'd rushed to confront her. For a moment, I'd even wondered if she had changed my application herself. But before I could even reach the Sullivan residence, her younger sister, Sophie Sullivan, had dropped to her knees in front of me, crying. "I'm sorry, Nathan. I didn't know it was your college application. I thought it was just something people filled out for fun. "Please forgive me. I really didn't know." I had been completely stunned. Claire immediately sent Sophie overseas and cut off her financial support. Then she lowered her head in apology, guilt written all over her face. "I'm sorry, Nathan. I've sent her abroad and punished her for what she did. It's all my fault." Back then, seeing Sophie receive such a severe punishment, I no longer had any grounds to keep blaming her. Since it meant Claire and I could attend the same university, I chose not to pursue the matter any further. So that was the truth. From beginning to end, it had all been Claire's scheme, a performance she directed herself. She was the one who changed my future. Ryan smiled. Then, as though his mission had finally been accomplished, he left the room. I sat alone on the hospital bed. From darkness until dawn, I remained motionless, my heart feeling like it had been ripped out. Not long afterward, the hospital room door opened again. Claire walked in carrying breakfast. I watched as she carefully arranged everything on the table. Her expression was so focused, as though nothing in the world mattered more than making sure I ate. It was revoltingly fake. "Why?" My voice was hoarse. Claire looked up in surprise. "What?" "Why did you change my college application?" Her movements froze. After a long silence, she finally spoke, "Didn't you want to stay with me? You didn't need to go to Ashbourne University. The Sullivan Group was always going to be yours. I just wanted you to stay by my side. I didn't want you working so hard." I lost control. I swept the breakfast off the table and sent it crashing into her. My entire body shook with anger. "Claire, that was my life! Do you have any idea how much I sacrificed for Ashbourne University?!" Scalding oatmeal splashed across her clothes, but she didn't even flinch. Instead, she simply said, "I only did it because I love you." I lowered my head and let out a bitter laugh. The sound was filled with endless sorrow. "Love? Sleeping with another man and making me raise your lover's child is love? Destroying my life is love? Claire, your love is poison." Her eyes fluttered. "Calm down." She pressed her lips tightly together. The woman standing before me felt like a complete stranger. "I've already started re-planning the wedding. I hope you can forget all of this and that we can live our lives properly together. "The invitations have already gone out to your friends and family. If you don't want your parents to be embarrassed, be at the venue the day after tomorrow." Her threat was delivered without emotion. "And I know you can't bear to leave me. Nathan, be reasonable. Don't make this ugly for everyone." With that, she turned and walked away without looking back. The hospital room fell silent. I closed my eyes and let out a bitter laugh. When I opened them again, there was nothing left except hatred and resentment. Threatening me with my parents? Not a chance. I immediately called my parents and told them I was leaving for Ardenia. I also told them to block Claire's number. By tomorrow evening, when the plane lifted off the runway, Claire and I would never have anything to do with each other again. But first... I let out a cold laugh. I'd left her a very special surprise for the wedding the day after tomorrow.