Chapter 1: The Moment My Life Ended

Chapter 1: The Moment My Life Ended

"BEEP!!!!!"

A long warning alarm rang out, and death suddenly came before my eyes.

I helplessly watched as the car rushed straight toward me.

The car's headlights shining directly into my eyes were the most brilliant yet terrifying light I had ever seen. At the moment the car surged toward me like a storm sweeping everything away, I felt a shock and an overwhelming sense of grievance I had never felt before.

Had I lived such a diligent life only to end up like this?

Everything seemed to slow down before my eyes. I recalled yesterday, the day I realized my entire world had completely collapsed.

I am Ella Dominic, my name before got married is Ella Oliver.

Yesterday, I returned home drenched in rain after trying to pick up the birthday cake I had ordered in advance to surprise Lilya and Ryan.

I knew the servants in the house did not like me, so I could not ask the driver to take me. I could only call a ride myself.

The driver of the ride service brought me to the entrance of the luxury apartment complex, then scratched his head and said:

"Oh dear, I can't take you all the way inside. This place strictly controls strangers."

I looked outside. It was still raining quite heavily, but if I ran quickly it should be fine. So I paid the driver and replied:

"It's okay, I can go in by myself."

The driver took the money and looked at me with concern.

"But it's still raining heavily. How about you wait at the shop across the street for a while until it stops?"

I smiled, waved my hand, then opened the car door, hugged the cake in my arms, and ran straight home.

Although the two children were mischievous and always causing trouble, they were still just children who had lost their mother. Whenever I thought of that, I felt that my situation was somewhat similar. Because of that, I always hoped I could do something to make up for their childhood.

I happily placed the cake in the refrigerator and began preparing delicious dishes for their fifteenth birthday party tonight.

Looking at the cake, I rested my chin on my hand and thought about myself.

"I wish I could celebrate my birthday just once."

In the past, I rarely celebrated birthdays because there were too many children in the orphanage, so the teachers could not take care of such small matters individually. After coming to Dominic's house and seeing Leo always busy with work, leaving all the care of the children to the nanny, I began to wonder whether they felt lonely.

I slapped my cheeks to wake myself up, no longer thinking about those things.

"Wake up! There are still so many things to do. Let's see!"

I rolled up my sleeves while humming a familiar tune and looked at the ingredients on the table.

"Today I will turn you all into a meal no worse than a five star restaurant!"

On a birthday, anyone would hope for a complete meal with family. I wanted the two children to feel the warmth of family. Even if they did not truly see me as their mother, at least I did not want them to feel lonely on a birthday prepared by servants.

While cutting vegetables, I thought about the surprised look Leo had when I told him I would personally organize Lilya and Ryan's birthday. He seemed surprised, but only replied indifferently that he would return on time before the party began.

I sighed. Perhaps he still had not felt my efforts and affection for the children.

As I was lost in thought, the sound of the door opening pulled me back to reality.

"Strange, who would come home at this time?"

I murmured and looked out to see Lilya and Ryan returning with other children.

Did they get out early today? I checked the time. It was only a little past three in the afternoon. Usually they did not finish until after four.

The children seemed very curious about me, so as soon as they sat down they excitedly began asking.

"Lilya, is your stepmother at home today? I heard she is very beautiful and good at cooking, right? Do you call her mom?"

"I heard in fairy tales, stepmothers are very evil and always jealous, causing trouble for their husband's children. Is your stepmother a bad person? Is she like in those stories?"

I laughed. These children were quite lively and had very cute thoughts. I opened the refrigerator to take out cake and milk to bring to them when I suddenly heard Lilya sigh, followed by a tone full of disgust.

"Ella is not my mother. Why should I call her that? She was just married by my father to be an unpaid nanny for us."

Her words made me freeze in shock. It was true I had never dared to hope Leo would accept me as his real wife like his former wife, nor that Lilya and Ryan would see me as their real mother. But I had always devoted myself to taking care of them and treated them like my own children.

But why... Why did this child say she saw me as a servant in my own home?

When her friends kept asking, Lilya raised her voice and declared:

"To me, she is just a housekeeper who takes care of us and does housework. She will never become my mother."

I smiled bitterly and quietly put down the things I intended to bring out. Even though I knew it was difficult for them to accept me, hearing those cruel words with my own ears still made my chest tighten.

Something inside me cracked. I had heard so many denials and reminders not to indulge in illusions, so why did it still hurt so much now? I sighed and told myself:

"Come on, how old are you already, getting sad over something like this? She just hasn't accepted you yet."

Putting aside my sadness, I picked up a large plate of seafood and opened the refrigerator.

"Huh? What happened to the cake?"

Seeing that half of the cake was ruined, I exclaimed in surprise. After checking, I realized the refrigerator plug had come loose.

"Oh no, what should I do now? This was a custom cake I ordered and looked forward to so much..."

Helplessness came suddenly like a wave crashing down a wall already full of cracks. I heard something shatter inside me, and tears streamed out. Sitting collapsed by the refrigerator, I wiped my tears and asked myself:

"Why am I crying over such a small thing? Haven't I been strong all this time?"

I knew I was not crying because the cake was ruined, but because seeing it ruined made me realize that all my efforts over the past ten years meant nothing in this house.