Chapter 1

"Mom, I don't want this dad. I want Mr. Linden to be my dad."

Silence abruptly descended upon a police station in Molto as a childish voice rang out.

Everyone turned to look at the man seated off to the side—Robin Weisz. Their eyes were full of contempt. In their minds, for someone's own son to publicly disown them, he had to have failed pretty miserably as a father.

Robin's gaze, however, remained calm. True heartbreak wasn't about screaming or throwing a fit. It was about the silence. It was about sitting there without a word, while the other person had no idea one's heart had already turned to ashes.

Right now, that was exactly how Robin felt. He lifted his head and looked at the woman in front of him.

Short wine-red hair framed a delicate face. Her fitted officewear showed off every curve. This was his wife, Angeline Sharpe, but the way she looked at him was nothing short of cold, disdainful, and mocking. It was as if he'd done something unforgivable.

Another man's arm was wrapped possessively around her shoulder. That man was Oscar Linden, Angeline's high school sweetheart. At that moment, Oscar looked at Robin with clear provocation in his eyes.

If anyone bothered to look closely, they would notice that Robin and Oscar actually shared a few similar features.

Robin and Angeline first met at their college club fair. They were both freshmen at the time and had joined the same club because of their shared love of sports.

As for Oscar, who was also Angeline's first love, he hadn't done well enough in the SATs to get into a decent college. So, he'd chosen to study abroad. Before leaving, he'd dumped Angeline, leaving her heartbroken.

In the sports club, she'd met Robin, who looked a little like Oscar. He'd become her only emotional lifeline, and she'd actively pursued him.

At the time, Robin was oblivious to this. He just thought his dream woman had suddenly descended into his life, and he'd fallen hopelessly in love.

After they started dating, Angeline took him to change his hairstyle, change his glasses, and pick out new clothes. She'd even adjusted the way he talked and moved.

Back then, he'd gotten the vague sense that she was trying to turn him into someone else, but he brushed it off. Cliches like that only existed in novels and TV shows, right? They didn't happen in real life.

Reality ultimately proved him wrong.

After graduation, as his career gained traction, Robin proposed to Angeline, and she accepted. With a family to support, Robin threw himself even harder into work.

He'd loved video games since he was a kid, and his dream was to design his own games with millions of players. With that dream in mind, he'd only applied to computer science programs when filling out his college applications. By his sophomore year, he'd teamed up with a few buddies to start their own game studio.

It turned out he had real talent in this. In just a few years, they released seven games. The worst-selling title sold 3.82 million copies worldwide, and the best-selling one hit 10.85 million. Robin became a big name in the gaming world.

But just as his career was taking off, everything changed. The year after graduation, his and Angeline's son, Sam Weisz, was born.

From the day he came into the world, Sam's health had been fragile. He needed constant care. Robin didn't feel comfortable leaving him with his grandparents, and Angeline was busy clawing her way up the corporate ladder with no time to spare.

So, Robin chose to walk away from his career and focus on his family, devoting himself completely to raising Sam. In his mind, once Sam started grade school, he would jump back into the gaming industry.

But everything started to unravel two years ago, when Oscar returned to the country.

That was when Robin found out Angeline had an unforgettable love hidden in her heart. It was also when he realized Angeline had only pursued him in college because he looked similar to Oscar. All those makeovers after they'd gotten together were just to make him look even more like Oscar.

By then, they already had a child. Robin just wanted to give Sam a complete, intact home. But as time went on, things kept changing.

Angeline started taking Sam to concerts with Oscar. When Robin had an appendicitis attack and was writhing in pain at the hospital, she was out celebrating Oscar's birthday. On Robin's birthday, she and Oscar took Sam on a trip. There were far too many moments like that to count.

And just now, Sam's words had been the final, fatal blow. Right then and there, Robin finally made the decision he'd been hesitating over for years.

He looked straight into Angeline's eyes and said, "Let's get a divorce."

The thought had formed years ago. He'd just never voiced it for Sam's sake. But now, he understood that this was all he was getting in return for sacrificing his career and life for this family. If that was the case, what was the point of holding on to a wife and son like this?

Angeline merely snorted at his words. "Robin, can you be any more ridiculous? Don't stoop to such a cheap stunt, even if you just want me to come home to you."

Did Robin want her to come back to him? Maybe it would've been his intention once upon a time, but now…

"Angeline, I'm serious this time," he said flatly.

Angeline was taken aback. She took a good look at Robin and, for the first time, saw nothing but frostiness in his eyes when he gazed at her. It was as if they were strangers. She'd never seen that look on his face before.

Oscar, on the other hand, was delighted by the conversation. He did his best to hide it, though.

"Robin, calm down. Angie and I are just friends, alright? Kids just say whatever comes to mind. As an adult, you can't take every silly thing they say to heart," he said smoothly.

His voice made Robin's stomach turn, but Robin didn't respond to him. He simply stood up and walked over to Angeline.

He said, "Starting today, I'm not going home anymore. I'll email you the divorce papers tomorrow. If you're fine with the terms, we can submit the divorce application in the afternoon. From then on, we'll live our separate lives and have nothing to do with each other anymore."

Then, he glanced at Oscar. "As for whoever you want to be with after the divorce, that's none of my business."

With that, Robin turned to leave. Just as he was about to step out of the police station, Angeline's voice rang out behind him.

"If you divorce me, I'm taking full custody of Sam. You won't have any visitation rights. You know I'm a lawyer—I can make that happen."

Robin nodded. "Fine."

That one word left Angeline stunned. As his wife, she knew exactly how much Robin loved Sam. Yet now, just to get divorced, he was willing to give Sam up. For the first time, panic crept into her chest.

Meanwhile, Sam's face lit up with genuine excitement. He knew that if his parents divorced, it meant Robin wouldn't be living with them anymore. No one would force him to eat his greens, do his homework, or drag him out for runs. He could do whatever he wanted.

"Anything else?" Robin asked Angeline, his tone utterly flat.

"N-No…"

As the owner of the largest law firm in Molto, Angeline was usually sharp-tongued and eloquent. But now, she couldn't even string a sentence together.

"Alright." Robin strode out of the police station without another look back.

As he stepped past the doors, he felt strangely light. Maybe divorce wasn't such a bad thing after all. For years, he'd sacrificed everything for his family. Now, he could finally live for himself.

But there was something even more important he needed to take care of first. He pulled out his phone, found a number, and made a call.

Soon, the call connected. Jack Landeau's lazy, teasing voice rang out on the other end of the line. "Hey, jackass. What's up? Why are you calling me all of a sudden?"

"Where are you?" Robin asked.

"At home."

"I'm coming over."

"What happened?" Jack immediately realized something was off. The laziness vanished, and he sounded serious now.

"I'm getting a divorce. I need you to help draft the divorce agreement," Robin said.

There was a brief silence. Then, Jack asked, "Where are you? I'll come get you."

As Robin's buddy, he knew his friend needed someone by his side right now.

"I'll send you my location."

"Got it. Sit tight. I'm on my way," Jack said before ending the call.