Anniversary Gift

CHAPTER ONE: ANNIVERSARY GIFT

ANNALISE

“Happy anniversary… I can’t believe it’s been five years already,” Allison, a friend and one of the guests at our anniversary dinner, hugged me tightly.

Her warmth pressed against the tension coiling in my chest. Most of the attendees were colleagues from my former company—the one I had handed over to Sam after our marriage so I could focus on our home, our life together.

“You pulled this off, didn’t you? Gosh, your dress is fire. And Sam’s suit… I could kill for it!”

I forced a laugh. “Stop exaggerating, Allison. I just wanted to do something with my skills again. Obviously, I’m still in the game.”

“Of course you are, and this is so lovely. You know, I’ve been thinking… you should come back to work, Annalise,” Allison said softly, eyes searching mine. “Things haven’t been the same without you, and you haven’t lost your touch one bit.”

I forced a smile, stomach twisting. “You know what, Allison? It’s my anniversary. And I am definitely not talking about work right now. Have some more drinks and food, alright? Excuse me.”

I drifted through the room, greeting other guests. Allison wisely let it go. I laughed when others joked, posed for pictures, clinked glasses—but inside, a small knot of anxiety refused to loosen. Not now, Annalise. Not yet. I clung to the illusion of joy.

In the quiet comfort of our home, we celebrated love, survival, everything we had endured over five years. We laughed, danced briefly, and tried to act as if nothing could shake our perfect marriage. But beneath the surface, everything was fragile. One secret in my purse could shatter it all.

Then Veronica approached, her voice like acid cutting across the laughter. Sam’s sister, devil in disguise, smiling like she owned the night.

“You know, Annalise…” she began, her tone saccharine. “Maybe this should be your last anniversary. You should leave my brother. You’re not a good fit.”

She sipped her drink as if punctuating every word.

“You’re nothing but an old hag who could never bear him children.”

Her words cut through the air like fire. The urge to slap her, to burn her to the ground, flared hot and fast, but I buried it beneath a brittle smile.

“Thank you for your warm words,” I said, sweetness dripping from every syllable, masking fury sharp enough to kill.

If only she knew my secret. If only she knew how wrong she was.

I turned away, scanning the room for Sam. Relief surged when I spotted him, leaning into conversation, laughing softly. My pulse accelerated as I crossed the room.

“Hey, Sam.”

He turned, eyes softening as we kissed briefly. “We should share the thanks so everyone can go home.”

He nodded, addressing everyone. Soon, the guests were gone, leaving us in the stark glow of the hallway lights. And that’s when the weight hit me—Sam’s gaze fell on the purse at my side. He had found the secret.

The door clicked shut behind him, and warmth drained from the room.

“Allison was just telling me to get back to work, you know. Maybe I should… see what I pulled off.”

But there was no response. I looked at him. “Did you hear me, Sam?” I noticed his face, frozen, and knew something was wrong.

“What is it, Sam? Didn’t you have fun at the party?”

Still I got no response. He just stared, unblinking, like he was seeing straight through me.

“Oh… you’re tired, right? I know these events can be a lot. But we really pulled it off… right? Five years, babe… and all we have is love.” My voice trembled as I reached for him.

“Babe, are you okay?” My hands cupped his face, desperate for reassurance.

“You’re scaring me,” I whispered.

“When were you going to tell me?” His voice was low, firm, vibrating through my chest.

“Tell you what?” Panic surged. My stomach twisted, cold sweat prickling my neck.

“You’ve been hiding secrets from me. I can’t believe you’d do this.”

“Do what, Sam? What are you talking about?” My spine stiffened. A chill slid down my back.

He held up the envelope that had slipped from my purse—my secret, my joy, the tiny miracle I had been dreaming of.

It was the pregnancy test results from that morning. I laughed nervously, trying to mask fear. “Gosh, you scared me… it’s the pregnancy results. I was going to share them later.”

“I can’t believe you ruined the surprise,” I added.

I sank onto the couch, removing my shoes. “I found out yesterday and was waiting for the perfect time to tell you… looks like you beat me to it.”

He didn’t respond, just stared. Then, flat and final:

“Get rid of it.”

“What… what did you say?” My breath hitched.

“I said get rid of it, Annalise.”

“You’re joking,” I whispered. “It’s been five years, Sam—five years! And I finally have a chance to be a mother… we get to be parents—”

“Stop this, please.” I said as I tried to cling to him but he shoved me instead.

“You know, Annalise, it’s either me or the baby.”

“Really, Sam? Stop this. This prank is no longer funny!” My laugh came hollow, broken.

“I’m giving you two options,” he said, cold. “Either you terminate this… or we get a divorce.”

My smile shattered, crumbling into jagged pieces I couldn’t gather. “Sam… what? What are you talking about?”

“I don’t want a child. I never wanted one, and I don’t want one now.”

The words hit like a hammer. My lungs screamed. “Sam… we prayed for this. We cried on the bathroom floor after every negative test. You told me you wanted this too.”

“I told you what you wanted to hear,” he said sharply, with no warmth. “None of that meant anything.”

Pain sliced through my chest. “You’re asking me to choose between you and our baby?”

“It’s not a baby,” he snapped. “It’s a complication. I’m asking you to choose us. I love you. Isn’t that enough? Don’t you see a child will ruin everything? I want a future with you—just you.”

He stepped closer, cupping my face in an intimacy I wanted to believe could erase his cruelty. I kissed him briefly, clinging to the flicker of the man I thought I knew.

Reality cut through, sharp and merciless. I pulled away, breath trembling. “I can’t,” I whispered. “Sam, I can’t give up this baby.”

“Annalise—” His voice rose with frustration, but I cut him off.

“No,” I repeated. “This is everything I’ve ever wanted. A family. A chance to be a mother. Your sister… she told me I’m not enough, that I can’t give you a child. And now that I finally have this miracle—you want me to destroy it?”

Sam shrugged, indifferent. “I don’t want a baby, Annalise. I’m not changing my mind.”

Tears blurred my vision. “But I do.”

“Then you made your choice. This is over, Annalise. Our marriage was good while it lasted.”

My stomach churned violently. My heart threatened to tear itself apart.

He picked up his phone, scrolling with cold detachment. “I’ll call my lawyers in the morning.”

Desperation clawed at me. “Sam, please… we can talk. We can figure this out—”

His phone rang, cutting me off. He glanced at the screen, and the anger in his eyes melted into something soft, warm, tender. He even smiled—the faintest curve of his lips.

“It’s Veronica,” he murmured. “My sister. I need to take this.”

Of course. His sister—the same one who acted as if she were his mother, who thought I was never good enough, who claimed I seduced him into marriage because I was older.

He walked out, answering through his smartwatch. The door slightly ajar, I sat down, my body shaking. Hand pressed to my stomach, trying to comprehend how the man I loved could reject the very thing we had dreamed of for years.

Why would my husband want to leave me because of a child—my one chance to be a mother?

I didn’t mean to listen. I swear I didn’t. But his voice slipped through the crack of the door.

“Hey,” he said—calm, gentle.

My breath hitched. He hadn’t spoken to me like that all night.

“How is my boy?”

I froze.

My boy?

At first, I thought of Veronica’s sons—maybe he meant a nephew. Maybe…

“Tell him Daddy misses him.”

Everything inside me stopped. Lungs refused to draw breath. Heart thudded painfully. Vision blurred.

Tell him… Daddy misses him?

I waited for him to correct himself, to laugh and say, “I mean Uncle Sam.” Anything.

But he didn’t. His voice remained tender, warm—tender in a way he had not been toward the life growing inside me.

And in that moment, the truth settled like ice:

He wasn’t talking about his nephew or Veronica’s children.

He was talking about his own child. A child I never knew existed.

My lips trembled. Whispering into the quiet room:

“What…?”

The world tilted. Walls dissolved into a blur. My miracle meant nothing. He already had a miracle somewhere else. A family somewhere else. A truth he had hidden from me for God knows how long.

And I—

I had been living in the shadow of a lie.