Part 01.

Tonight should have been the happiest night of my life.

But who would have thought that my twentieth birthday would instead become the beginning of a nightmare I had never imagined?

My name is Violetta Laurent.

Tonight, I officially turned twenty. And tonight was also the night my secondary gender was finally revealed.

I was an Omega. More precisely, a recessive Omega.

"Happy birthday, sweetheart." Mother smiled gently as she kissed my forehead.

I smiled happily. "Thank you, Mom."

Father, who was sitting beside her, only gave me a faint smile. I knew he was disappointed. Ever since I was little, I had always heard how much my family hoped to have an Alpha heir who could carry on the Laurent name.

And tonight, that hope seemed to crumble the moment my examination results came out. A recessive Omega. A status considered the weakest.

Yet Father still tried to smile. He even handed me a gift box.

"This is for you."

I accepted it with both hands. "Thank you, Dad."

"Open it."

I opened the box and found a simple necklace inside. My eyes lit up.

"It's beautiful."

"If you like it, wear it."

I immediately put it on. "Thank you, Dad."

Father merely nodded.

That night, our house was filled with guests. Music could be heard from the main room. Lavish dishes covered the table while our relatives busily wished me a happy birthday.

I had no idea that happiness would only last for a few more minutes.

"Violetta… ahh… shh…" Mother's voice sounded faint.

I turned toward her. "Mom?!"

Mother's face suddenly turned pale. Her hand clutched her chest.

"What's wrong, Mom?"

"I... my chest… it hurts." Mother's body suddenly swayed.

"Mom!" I ran over and caught her before she fell to the floor.

"Mom! Open your eyes!"

Mother didn't answer.

"Mom!" I shook her body in panic. "Dad! Help!"

Father immediately rushed over. "What happened?"

"Mom suddenly fainted!"

"Call an ambulance!"

"Please! Hurry and call an ambulance!"

I kept holding Mother's hand. "Mom, wake up..." My voice trembled. "It's my birthday, Mom. You were just wishing me a happy birthday..." Tears began to fall from my eyes.

"Please don't leave me..."

A few moments later, the ambulance took us to the hospital.

But none of my prayers were answered. The doctor came out of the examination room with a serious expression.

"Doctor..." Father stepped forward. "How is my wife?"

The doctor was silent for a few seconds. "I'm sorry."

That one word made my entire body feel frozen.

"What do you mean, Doctor?"

"We tried to help her, but..." The doctor sighed. "Your wife suffered a severe heart attack."

I shook my head. "No..."

"I'm sorry. We couldn't save her."

"Mom..." My knees felt weak. I collapsed onto the floor. "That's impossible..."

Father stood there silently. All the color had drained from his face. "Doctor..." His voice sounded heavy. "You must be mistaken?"

"We did everything we could."

I cried. "Mom..."

That night, I lost the person I loved most. And from that night onward, everything changed.

Two months passed.

The house that had once felt warm now felt like a foreign place. Father spoke to me less and less. Even whenever he looked at me, his gaze always made my chest feel tight.

One afternoon, Father came home. But he wasn't alone.

A woman stood beside him. She looked elegant, but there was a weary expression on her face. Beside her stood a girl whose age was not much different from mine.

I looked at them in confusion.

"Dad... who are they?"

Father took off his jacket. "They're going to live here."

I frowned. "Live here?"

"Yes."

The woman smiled at me. "Violetta, right?"

I nodded slowly. "Yes."

"I'm Clarissa." She pointed at the girl beside her. "And this is my daughter, Seraphina."

Seraphina gave me a faint smile. "Hi."

I politely returned it. "Hi." I looked at Father. "Dad, I don't understand."

"What don't you understand?"

"Why are they living in our house?"

Father was silent for a moment. Then he answered in a flat voice. "Clarissa is my wife."

I froze. "What?"

"Starting today, she's your stepmother."

I stared at Father in disbelief.

"You got married?"

"Yes."

"But—" I swallowed hard. "Mom only died two months ago."

Father's face immediately hardened. "Don't talk about your mother."

"But, Dad..."

"I said don't!"

I fell silent. Seraphina looked slightly surprised.

Clarissa immediately touched Father's arm. "Don't be angry. Violetta is still grieving."

Father took a deep breath. "From now on, you need to learn to accept reality."

I looked at him with tears welling in my eyes.

"Have you already forgotten Mom?"

Father didn't answer.

"Answer me, Dad."

"Violetta."

"You never even cried at Mom's grave."

"Enough."

"You brought another woman into this house only two months after Mom died."

"ENOUGH!" Father's voice echoed throughout the room.

I fell silent.

Father stared at me sharply. "Ever since you were born, this family's life has never truly been peaceful."

I froze. "What do you mean?"

"If only you weren't a recessive Omega—" Father stopped.

I stared at him, my chest tightening. "If I weren't an Omega, what?"

Father turned his face away. "Forget it."

"No. Tell me, Dad!" I stepped closer to him. "Are you ashamed to have a daughter like me?"

Father didn't answer.

I gave a bitter smile. "So it's true."

"Violetta..."

"You think I'm a bringer of bad luck because Mom died."

"Don't make your own conclusions."

"Then why do you always blame me?"

Father fell silent. And his silence became the most painful answer of all.

Clarissa finally spoke. "Violetta, I know this is difficult for you."

I looked at her.

"But I didn't come here to replace your mother."

"Good." I wiped away my tears. "Because no one could ever replace Mom."

Seraphina scoffed softly. "Why do you have to make things so complicated?"

I looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"We just want to live in peace."

I let out a small laugh. "This house is my home."

Seraphina raised an eyebrow. "And now it's my home too."

I fell silent. Only then did I realize it. Ever since the night of my birthday, my life had completely changed. I had lost Mom. Lost Dad's affection. And now, strangers were beginning to take over the home that had once been the only place where I felt safe.