Chapter 2

In the next moment, Mom opened the door and came in, carrying the cake.

I was about to open my mouth to call for help when the alarm suddenly rang.

That was it. I knew I was done for.

Mom suddenly straightened up. Like a robot that was suddenly switched on, she said, "I have to take Anne to the dance studio tomorrow. She's working too hard. I have to make something healthy for her."

Mom carefully set the cake down, closed the door without hesitation, and then turned on the freezer out of habit.

Freezing air enveloped me.

I finally lost all my strength, and I couldn't make another sound anymore.

Mom hadn't been like this when I was younger.

If I tripped and fell during dance practice, she would gently help me up.

On my birthdays, she would always have surprises in store for me.

Back then, she used to hold me up so I could blow out the candles. She said, "Anne, you're the apple of my eye. Let's celebrate your birthday while we wait for your dad to come home."

Years passed, but Dad never came home.

Mom was paralyzed due to childbirth. It took a whole year before she regained her ability to stand and walk, but her legs were still stiff.

As she aged, the complications became even more obvious. But still, Dad didn't come back.

Mom started drinking excessively. She would get drunk and hit me, but when she sobered up, she would sob as she hugged me and apologized to me.

She said, "Anne, once your dad comes back, our family will return to normal. Once he comes home, I'll love you forever!"

But now, Dad still hadn't come home, and he'd even taken a mistress.

Mom kept her word. Dad didn't come back, so she didn't love me anymore.

In the walk-in freezer, my soul gradually drifted upward and, as if guided by instinct, floated out through the main entrance.

Around an hour later, Mom returned from her grocery shopping. She deftly put on an apron and began cooking.

After an hour and a half, she was done cooking.

Mom called out, "Anne, dinner's ready! Anne…"

The doorbell rang again.

I drifted to the entrance and saw Dad standing there, looking refined and dignified.

I was furious. "What business do you have with us? You're not welcome here! Go away!"

Sadly, Dad couldn't hear me. He even shouted, "Candace, are you and Anne home? It's me, Henry!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the door flung open.

Dad was startled by Mom's frantic expression.

He took a step backward.

Mom was like a long-term prisoner who finally saw sunlight.

She hastily fixed her hair as she sobbed in joy. "Henry, it's you! It really is you! You're back! Oh my goodness, you're really back. Anne and I never moved away because we knew you'd come back."

The landlord tried chasing Mom and me away on multiple occasions, but we refused to budge.

Mom compromised time and again just so that we could stay here. Our small home turned into a warehouse, and a walk-in freezer was installed later on. Mom and I were barely getting by while we waited for Dad.

The long years of waiting and suffering finally paid off.

So now, Mom's eyes were hot with tears as she reached out to embrace Dad.

But Dad was so startled by Mom's appearance that he kept backing away. Mom couldn't walk very well. She tripped over her own foot and crashed onto the ground.

She was an absolute wreck.

I tried to help her up, but my hands passed right through her.