1

CHAPTER ONE

VERA: POV

“Argh! Aaah… faster, Draven… hurry up…”

That was the first thing that greeted me the moment I stepped into the house I was renting with my boyfriend.

I had just come from the clinic for a check-up, and that’s where I received the best news I had been waiting for so long—I was pregnant. The entire ride home, I couldn’t stop smiling as I imagined how I would tell Draven that we were going to have a child.

I held the small paper result tightly, picturing his reaction. I thought he would wrap me in a hug. I thought he would be overjoyed. I thought… we were going to be happy.

But as soon as I stepped inside, a different kind of noise met me.

“Ahh… Draven…” a woman moaned again, accompanied by the gentle creaking of the bed coming from our bedroom.

My entire body suddenly went cold. It felt as though a heavy weight had slammed into my chest while my knees slowly gave out. What I was hearing didn't register immediately, but it was enough to crush all the joy and excitement I had carried with me just moments ago.

Slowly, I approached the bedroom door, my hands trembling as I held tightly onto the paper that was supposed to prove that our family was finally complete.

“Ahhhhh!” the woman groaned loudly, and I could clearly hear her seductive whispers right beside my boyfriend's ear.

I froze in place as I saw what they were doing. The woman was lying on the bed with her thighs wide open, and Draven was between them, completely engrossed in rhythmically moving above her, as if he had nothing else on his mind except the pleasure they were sharing.

It felt as though all the air was being sucked out of my lungs. I couldn't believe that the man I dreamed of spending the rest of my life with was breaking me to pieces right before my eyes.

“Are you sure you’re leaving Vera?” the woman asked sweetly while running her hand over Draven’s chest. “Are you ready to go back to your family in Manila with me?”

Draven paused for a moment before smirking.

“Yeah, babe. We’re leaving this place,” he answered without hesitation, continuing what they were doing. “I can’t stand being with Vera anymore. Sure, we live under the same roof, but I can't feel any skill from her in bed.”

With every word that came out of his mouth, it felt like a knife repeatedly plunging into my heart. I squeezed the ultrasound paper tightly in my hand as I forced myself not to collapse from the agonizing pain.

“WAKE UP!”

I sat up abruptly in bed upon hearing Uncle John’s loud shout. Drenched in sweat and breathing heavily, it felt as though the nightmare I had been desperately trying to forget was happening all over again right in front of me.

“You’re having nightmares again, Vera. What’s your plan? Are you just going to keep living here in our house with your aunt forever?” he barked at me.

Uncle John was my late father’s brother. I had been staying with them ever since Draven abandoned me while I was pregnant. Even though years had passed, I still felt like a burden in their home.

“Yannah has been crying for a while now. She says she’s hungry, but we don't have anything to give her,” he added, visibly irritated. “Get up already so you can get to work.”

I quietly bowed my head while clutching my thin blanket. From the adjacent room, I could hear the soft yet continuous cries of my child. My heart felt squeezed with every sob she made.

I quickly wiped away the tears welling in the corners of my eyes before forcing myself to stand up. Even though my body felt heavy and my mind was utterly exhausted, I had no choice but to get up—because I had a child to raise.

When I went into the other room, I was immediately met by the sight of my three-year-old daughter, Yannah. She was crying while standing beside the table, staring at her cousin who was happily enjoying three pieces of fried chicken.

“Mommy… I’m hungry…” Yannah sobbed, wiping the tears from her cheeks.

My heart sank seeing how she stared at the food, as if hoping someone would pass even a single piece to her. But her cousin was simply busy eating, completely unbothered by my crying child.

I clenched my fists tightly, swallowing the pain and shame that washed over me. As a mother, that was the most painful thing to witness—your own child crying from hunger while you have nothing to give them, not even a simple meal.

So I decided to look for a job as a housemaid in Manila, taking my child with me. I refused to leave Yannah behind with them, especially knowing that no one else would care for or love her except me.

I would much rather exhaust myself working every day than listen to my child cry from hunger or watch other people look down on her. Even though life in Manila would be hard and I had no guarantee of what kind of job awaited us there, I was willing to endure everything—just to give my child a proper life.

And while looking for work, I ran into Marie—our former neighbor from the province.

She was surprised to see me with Yannah, but she immediately felt pity for our situation. Coincidentally, they were looking for a maid at the mansion where she worked, so she offered to let me come along.

Having no other options, I agreed right away.

When we arrived at the mansion, I almost stopped in my tracks because of how massive and beautiful the house was. The ceilings were towering, the decorations were expensive, and every corner clearly belonged to a very wealthy family. Even simply breathing made me afraid that I might break something in such an elegant environment.

However, what puzzled me greatly was the large portrait hanging in the center of the mansion.

My eyes widened as I saw who was in the picture.

Draven—my ex-boyfriend—was standing in the middle, smiling alongside his parents. He was dressed neatly, looking entirely different from the man I had known in the province.

It felt like my world suddenly came to a standstill.

“No… that’s impossible…” I whispered softly, my entire body going cold.

I instinctively stepped back upon seeing his picture. I held onto Yannah tightly as all the pain and memories I had tried so hard to bury in the past rushed back into my mind.