The visit.

“Isabella, fasten your seatbelt. I don’t want to be responsible for an accident.”

Isabella sighed, her fingers twitching against her lap as she gazed out the window, feeling a knot in her stomach.

She swallowed hard, her throat dry.

And then, she bit down on her upper lip, the pressure grounding her against the whirlwind of thoughts she couldn’t escape.

“Isabella! Did you hear what I said earlier?”

“Let me be, Evelyn… I mean, Mom,” Isabella snapped, yanking the seatbelt and fastening it with a sharp click.

She slumped against the seat, exhaustion pressing down on her like a weight.

The endless ride, the draining day—it was all too much.

The only reason Isabella had agreed to follow her mother was because of Jackson— her boyfriend.

Her mother, eyes fixed on the road, exhaled heavily before stealing a glance at Isabella. “Are you still upset about spending the entire holiday with me?” she asked, her brows lifting in quiet scrutiny.

Isabella averted her gaze from outside the car window, turning to face her mother. “I only agreed to come because I want to surprise my boyfriend for his birthday—and I needed some fresh air,” she said, her voice edged with impatience.

With a sigh, she ran her fingers through her hair, digging into her scalp as if trying to ease the frustration simmering beneath her skin. “Besides, I’m not exactly thrilled about this,” Isabella added, her tone flat and voice void of emotions. “We haven’t spoken in years, and now, out of nowhere, you expect me to spend my holiday with you.”

“Isabella, don’t be like that, okay?” Isabella mother whose name was Evelyn stated, her voice gentle yet firm as she shifted her gaze back to the road. "I let you stay with your uncle so you could keep him company after he lost his wife," Evelyn reasoned, her voice defensive as she tried to justify her lack of communication with Isabella.

She sounded as if the explanation could justify the years of silence.

Hearing her mother's explanation, Isabella couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

Her mother’s explanation felt hollow, a poor attempt to justify the years of distance.

It made no sense—Isabella had always lived with Evelyn, her single mother who had no idea who Isabella’s father was.

For years, it had been just the two of them, figuring life out together, growing closer with each passing day.

Then, suddenly, everything changed.

The death of Isabella’s aunt had been tragic, but what hurt more was how easily Evelyn had sent her away, as if their bond had never mattered.

One moment, they were inseparable; the next, Isabella was uprooted, handed over to her uncle who had lost his wife.

He barely knew Isabella.

Now, after all this time, Evelyn wanted to pretend like it had been the right decision—as if Isabella should understand but all she felt was the familiar sting of abandonment.

Her uncle, drowning in grief after losing his wife, had poured all his attention into Isabella, who was only eight at the time.

He became the father she never had, shielding her from the loneliness that came with being sent away.

In his quiet, sorrowful way, he made sure she never felt unwanted, even when he was struggling to hold himself together.

But that stability shattered just a months ago.

On a fateful morning, Isabella had gone to wake him up, only to find him unresponsive.

He had passed in his sleep, leaving her alone once again.

The house that once felt safe became suffocating, filled with echoes of a life that no longer existed.

Isabella felt that her entire life crumbled right in front of her because the one person she had always seen as her family was dead.

Now, sitting in this car with the woman who had sent her away, Isabella couldn’t help but wonder—why now?

Why, after all these years, did Evelyn suddenly want to be a mother again?

Throughout the years Isabella lived with her uncle, Evelyn never once visited. No letters, no phone calls—just silence, as if she had been erased from her mother’s life.

But when her uncle died, everything changed.

Evelyn showed up, staying by Isabella’s side through the mourning period, through the burial, through the painful acceptance of loss.

Then, as if trying to mend the years of absence with a single gesture, Evelyn offered to take Isabella with her.

She believed a change of scenery, even if temporary, would help Isabella move on faster. But Isabella knew better.

Grief didn’t fade just because you ran from it. And no matter how much her mother pretended to care now, it didn’t erase the fact that she had abandoned her when she needed her most.

“Isabella! We’ve finally arrived at my beautiful mansion,” Evelyn announced suddenly, pulling into the garage.

Her words jolted Isabella from her thoughts, dragging her back to the present.

Stepping out of the car, Isabella took in the vast compound before her.

A meticulously maintained garden surrounded a streaming fountain which was located at the middle of the compound.

The place was undeniably beautiful, almost dreamlike—but to Isabella, it felt foreign, like a world she didn’t belong to.

Isabella exhaled softly, tucking a few loose strands of hair behind her ear.

Without a word, she walked to the booth of the car, her movements slow and deliberate.

As she grabbed her luggage, she cast a glance at her mother, brows arched in quiet skepticism.

“Do I have a room inside or…”

“You want to go out, right?” Evelyn interrupted before Isabella could finish her statement. “Your room isn't quite ready yet, and my husband isn't home, so why don't you go out and enjoy yourself for a bit while I finish setting up your things?"

Evelyn's shoulder dropped down in exhaustion. ‘How could I forgot my mom had a new husband just two years ago?’ Isabella mused within herself as she opened her handbag, scanning to see if she had enough cash.

“Um… Mom… I mean, Evelyn, I’ll be back in the evening. It’s my boyfriend’s birthday, and I want to surprise him,” Isabella said, her tone indifferent. Without waiting for a response, she turned on her heels and walked away, putting distance between them.

But unfortunately… she had no idea that surprising her boyfriend would make her entire world crumble into pieces.