Chapter 1

Everyone says I was the twin who took everything in the womb, so I owe my sister Winnie my whole life.

Growing up, she got the big sunny room while I lived in a tiny space next to the servants' quarters.

She wore new clothes while I got her hand-me-downs.

My parents told me this was fate. I had to accept it.

Later, I met Adam Cooper.

He pulled me out of the gutter and told me I didn't owe anyone anything. He promised me a grand wedding and said that once I was pregnant, he'd take me home to meet his family.

I thought he came to save me.

Until I heard him tell my parents, "Once she gives birth, I'll marry Winnie."

That's when I understood. I wasn't a beloved wife. I was just a tool to bear my sister's child.

The marriage was fake. Five years of love was an act. Even my afe's work was stolen, destroyed, and trampled into the ground.

Now I'm lying in a hospital bed. I lost the baby, and the whole world is cursing me.

But this time, I'm done being patient.

Hazel POV

After three years of secret marriage, I was finally pregnant.

For three years, Adam Cooper had sex with me almost every night.

He said once I got pregnant, he'd officially bring me home to the Cooper family and make up for it with a grand wedding.

I was ecstatic. I ran through the pouring rain to his company to surprise him.

The door to the CEO's office was slightly ajar. Inside, I could hear Adam talking with my parents.

My heart sank.

My relationship with my parents had always been bad, and Adam rarely interacted with them either.

Why would they come looking for him?

I was about to push the door open when my father's words froze me in place.

"Winnie is coming back tomorrow. Hazel still isn't pregnant. Adam, what are you planning to do?"

I went rigid.

Winnie was my twin sister. What did her return have to do with my pregnancy?

Adam spoke unhurriedly, his tone nothing like the cold distance he usually showed my parents.

"I'll work hard to get her pregnant as soon as possible so Winnie can marry me sooner."

My mind went blank.

What did he mean, "so Winnie could marry him?" What was he talking about?

My mother's voice came through, tinged with complaint.

"If Winnie's health wasn't so poor that she couldn't have children, you wouldn't have had to put on this act for Hazel all these years or go through that fake marriage with her."

I could barely stand. My whole body trembled.

Fake marriage? An act?

I shook my head desperately, unable to believe what I was hearing.

Adam was silent for a moment before speaking again.

"The Cooper family is strict. Only if Winnie has a child will my grandfather agree to let her marry into the family.

"It's just... Hazel has had to suffer for it."

My father snorted coldly.

"What does she have to complain about! It's all Hazel's fault anyway. She took everything in the womb before Winnie was even born, leaving Winnie weak and sickly her whole life. Having her bear a child for Winnie and help her marry you is what she owes Winnie!"

I closed my eyes. Tears fell heavily.

I looked down at the ultrasound report. The words "intrauterine early pregnancy" stung my eyes.

I turned and ran out of the Cooper Corporation building.

The rain came down harder, pouring mercilessly on me. I couldn't feel anything anymore.

Winnie and I were twin sisters.

I was born healthy and strong. Winnie was severely malnourished and has been weak and sickly since childhood.

My parents decided I had stolen my sister's nutrients in the womb, so they favored Winnie from an early age.

The Jones family wasn't poor, but I never had a good life growing up.

All the good food went to Winnie. I could only wear her hand-me-downs.

Winnie got the big sunny room. My bedroom was next to the servants' quarters. Even the household staff looked down on me.

I never fought back. Never competed.

Because my parents told me every day:

"Winnie is the way she is because of you. You'll owe her for the rest of your life."

I was young then. I believed whatever my parents said.

After college graduation, Winnie went abroad for treatment, and I moved out of the Jones house. That life finally ended temporarily.

Later, I met Adam.

That night I worked late. On my way home, two thugs cornered me in an alley.

Adam drove by. He got out and chased them off with just a few moves.

He stood under the streetlight in a crisp suit, his features sharp and cold, like salvation descending from heaven.

Adam was good to me.

I'd always been used to depriving myself, wearing clothes from thrift stores that cost just a few dozen dollars. Adam sent haute couture piece after piece to my home. I rarely ate proper meals. Adam cooked every meal himself and wouldn't eat until he'd made sure I was full.

During my period when my stomach hurt, Adam would keep his palm pressed against my lower abdomen all night.

I'd always loved dogs, but Winnie didn't like them, so I never had one.

When Adam found out, he rescued a stray dog with me. We named it Lucky. Every day we'd walk Lucky together and give it baths.

He told me, "You don't owe anyone anything. Parents who don't love you don't deserve your love in return. Not every parent is worthy of their child's love."

Two years of dating, three years of secret marriage. Adam made my life better and better.

Adam taught me that I wasn't born owing anyone. I deserved better too.

It was just that the Cooper family was the top elite family and looked down on the Jones family. His grandfather was old-fashioned and stubborn.

Three years ago, we married.

He said once I got pregnant, he'd take me and the child home to the Cooper family. When his grandfather saw the child, he'd relent, and then we'd have a proper wedding.

I cried with gratitude. I didn't feel wronged at all. Instead, I felt sorry for him being caught in the middle.

Today I finally got pregnant. I thought my suffering had ended, but this was the answer I got instead.

The marriage was fake.

Getting me pregnant was so I could bear Winnie's child.

I wanted to ask Adam. What was real?

Was all the good he'd shown me just an act?

Did he only see me as a tool for bearing children?

I thought Adam was my salvation.

I never expected he'd drag me into another abyss.

Rainwater ran down my hair, mixing with the tears on my face. I couldn't tell which was colder.

Adam, since you never really wanted to marry me, then I don't want to marry you either.

Mom and Dad, since you've never really cared about me, then I won't care about you anymore either.