1 I was the tragic first love, the one who died taking a knife for the male lead. Ten years after my death, a System forcibly resurrected me and told me I had to be a stepmom. 「Host, your mission is to save the child on that rooftop.」 「He is your husband's son. If you don't intervene, he will die today.」 I didn't want to watch someone die, but I've been spoiled and headstrong my whole life. So, I strode over in my stilettos and gave him a light nudge with my foot. "You're just as pathetic as your father. What's with all this melodrama?" "Where is your dad, anyway? Get him on the phone. Tell him to come pick me up." ... The kid just stared at me, then looked around as if I were a ghost that had materialized in broad daylight. In the end, he didn't ask anything, just lowered his head again. I couldn't stand his defeated posture. I ran a hand through my hair in frustration and snatched his phone. "You know your dad's number?" The call log and notifications were completely empty. Not even a single spam text. He fumbled for a moment before slowly typing in a number. The phone barely rang once before the call was disconnected, leaving a series of hollow beeps. I frowned. "The nerve of that Patrick Shaw. He's really gotten bold, ignoring calls now." The kid, however, showed no reaction. He just stood beside me in silence, a perfect little statue. After eight consecutive calls, someone finally answered. A woman's voice. "This is Patrick Shaw's office. He's busy." And then she hung up, not even giving me a chance to curse her out. I was so angry I wanted to smash the phone, but the kid tugged on my sleeve. I forced myself to calm down. "It's fine, sweetie. I'll take you to find Patrick and we'll settle this." The kid just kept holding my sleeve, looking dazed. After a long pause, he managed to choke out a few words. "Don't want to be a bother." Those words completely deflated my anger. I sighed in resignation. "Then let's go back?" Once we were in the car, I studied him for a while. "Your name is Sam?" "Mhm." I asked the System again. "Is he really Patrick Shaw's son?" 「According to the rules of your human world, yes.」 I accepted my fate and started trying to be a decent stepmom, making conversation with Sam. I asked him what he liked to eat. He said anything was fine. I asked him what he liked to play. He didn't answer. I asked him why he was on the rooftop. He turned away from me. I finally lost my patience, pulled him into my lap, and asked if Patrick knew he was playing "let's jump off the roof." Only then did he slowly lift his head like a little robot and say, enunciating each word carefully, "Dad's busy. Don't want to be a bother." I felt a lump of frustration rise in my throat. Was "don't want to be a bother" the only phrase he knew? How on earth had Patrick raised his son to be like this? The System quietly tried to comfort me. 「Host, don't be so harsh. The child is just too considerate. He keeps everything bottled up inside.」 Of course, I knew that. He was just a little boy. This was clearly the fault of the adults in his life. The car pulled up to a familiar house. A crucial question suddenly occurred to me. "System, where's his mother?" 「There isn't one.」 Isn't one? The moment I stepped through the front door, I felt a sense of disorientation, as if I had just gone out for a walk instead of being gone for ten years. The coat I had carelessly hung in the entryway was still there, perfectly preserved without a single wrinkle. There was no sign of another woman's presence in the entire house, except for a green hairpin on the console table. I went upstairs, my feet finding their way easily, and opened the door to my old room. It was exactly as I had left it. When I came back downstairs, Sam was gone. I searched everywhere and finally found him in a corner of the living room. He had unearthed a calculus workbook thicker than a brick and was methodically working through the problems. He was so well-behaved it was terrifying. "Is he always like this?" I asked the System. 「Mhm. For the son of Patrick Shaw, not being exceptional is also a form of being a bother.」 I immediately marched over, snatched the workbook, and tossed it in the trash. Sam stared at me, then his brow furrowed. His head tilted slightly, like a little robot with a short circuit. I stared back at him, a silent battle of wills. Ten minutes later, I rubbed my tired eyes and admitted defeat. "I'm hungry." The little robot successfully processed the command. He scurried to the kitchen and expertly turned on the gas stove. "Don't touch that! It's dangerous!" My heart nearly leaped out of my chest. I rushed over and shut off the valve. He cowered in the corner like a startled kitten, his face a mask of confusion. I was about to lose my mind. I looked around the kitchen and couldn't help but ask the System, "How old is he?" 「Six.」 Fantastic. A six-year-old cooking on a gas stove. Patrick Shaw has to be out of his mind. I paced back and forth, hands on my hips, trying to rein in my temper. Finally, I turned to Sam. "That's too dangerous. I'll take you out to eat." "System, get your virtual butt out here and tell me what the hell has been going on for the past ten years." The System glitched for a second before starting its report. After my death, Patrick had thrown himself into his work, becoming a relentless workaholic. He neglected his own health and well-being, so it was no surprise that he had no capacity to care for Sam. For years, he had hired nannies to look after the boy. But with no other adults around, the nannies would often secretly abuse Sam. It was only when the bruises became too numerous to hide that the abuse was discovered. Patrick fired the nanny, and for the first time, Sam made a request. "I can take care of myself. I don't need a nanny." "I won't be a bother." From that day on, Sam lived alone. Patrick's assistant, a woman named Olivia, would check in on him every couple of days. "Who's Olivia?" 「Patrick's new assistant, hired after you died.」 It seemed a lot had happened in Patrick's world during my ten-year absence. Ignoring my internal monologue, the System continued. 「Olivia has a reputation for being well-liked at the company, which is why Patrick trusted her with Sam. But Sam never liked her. In fact, he showed a clear aversion to her.」 "Why?" For a child as emotionless as Sam, a clear aversion was significant. 「Because Olivia tried to manipulate him. She told him to tell Patrick, 'I want Olivia to be my mom.'」 「But Sam refused. So, from then on, Olivia targeted him in subtle ways.」 "Like what?" Adult malice might not be as direct as a child's, but for a vulnerable boy like Sam, it was surely devastating. 「As you've seen, Sam is very withdrawn.」 「So, she told Patrick that Sam was slow and a liar. Then she'd turn around and tell Sam that Patrick saw him as a burden and wished he wouldn't cause any more trouble.」 「She told him that a bastard of unknown origin like him was unworthy of love, and that once she married Patrick, his days as a burden would be over.」 My nails dug into my palms. I let out a cold laugh. "A burden, huh?" 「What are you planning to do?」 the System asked meekly. "Help Patrick get his eyes checked. If he's not going to use them, he might as well donate them. And as for that Olivia, bullying a child like that... I'm going to make her life a living hell." As if on cue, Olivia arrived. A haughty voice echoed from the doorway. "You brat! This water is scalding! Are you trying to kill me? And who gave you permission to bring a strange woman into this house?" "Do you think this is a shelter? Isn't it enough that I have to deal with you, you little piece of trash? Now you're bringing in a big one?" "Tell her to get out." Sam, who had never once stood up to her, moved. He stood in front of Olivia, blocking her path. "No." Olivia gritted her teeth in fury. "Sam, do you have any idea what you're doing? Do you want me to call your father right now and have him throw you out on the street? Move, you little bastard." Sam just stood there, his head bowed, not moving, not responding. My heart felt like it was being pricked by a thousand needles. I walked up to Olivia. "You seem to love trash talk so much. How come you haven't been recycled yet?" Before she could say another word, my hand connected with her face. "You hit me?" "You're damn right I did." I pulled Sam behind me, shielding him. Olivia clutched her cheek, her eyes raking over me with disdain. "Do you have any idea who I am? I'm Patrick Shaw's most trusted assistant. The woman who has been by his side the longest. So you've won over this little bastard. So what? I'm the one who's going to be with Patrick. And when that happens, I'll have you both thrown out." Then, she turned her threats on Sam. "Mr. Shaw specifically ordered that woman's room to be locked up. No one has been allowed in for ten years. And you let a complete stranger in. Just think about the consequences. If I tell him about this, you're finished. So..." Slap. Another one. "Still barking?" Olivia clutched both of her now-reddened cheeks, staring at me in disbelief. "You hit me again?" "Do I need an appointment?" She lunged at me, but Sam immediately stepped in front of me, a small, unwavering shield. Olivia hissed, "Fine. Fine. Fine," and pulled out her phone, dialing Patrick. "Mr. Shaw, I just got here and Sam has brought a strange woman into the house. He even let her into... into your late wife's room... And they hit me..." I snorted. "The guilty one is always the first to complain." "Wait!" Patrick's voice suddenly came through the phone, filled with a mixture of shock and a tremor of hope. "Turn on the video. Let me see her face." Olivia looked confused, but she obeyed, pointing the camera at me.
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