Sterile Lies, Pregnant Truths

To everyone else, I was just a "kept man." A trophy husband. All because I was born with nothing. Only Sienna, from beginning to end, told me I was great. She told me I wasn't the useless trash they claimed I was. We eventually got married. We were deeply in love, or so I thought. On our third wedding anniversary, I held a black card in my hand—loaded with enough cash to buy several luxury villas—intending to give it to Sienna as a surprise. Sienna gently wrapped her arms around my neck, leaning in to whisper softly: "Ethan, you’re going to be a father." My entire body went rigid. I pulled my arm back, staring at her, pronouncing every single word with chilling clarity: "But Sienna, I’m completely sterile." Sienna froze. For a few seconds, she just stared at me blankly, as if her brain couldn't process what I had just said. Then, her face turned incredibly pale. She aggressively shook off my hand, stood up, and her eyes instantly welled with tears. "Ethan Hayes! If you don’t want this baby, just say it! Why would you make up such a disgusting lie?" "Are you accusing me of sleeping around? How could you humiliate me like this?" "I am so incredibly disappointed in you!" With that, Sienna crouched by the sofa and started sobbing uncontrollably. Meanwhile, I just sat there, forced to remain silent. Sienna would never believe me. After all, we had both done full-body checkups before getting married. Back then, no fertility issues had shown up on my report. I clenched my fists tightly, then slowly let them go. I walked over, crouched down next to her, and gently pulled her into a hug. In my usual comforting tone, I coaxed her: "Sienna, I was just joking. Why are you crying?" "You shouldn't cry during pregnancy. It’s bad for the baby." Sienna hit my chest a few times. Seeing that I was submissively taking the blame and letting her vent, she finally pouted and wiped her tears. "Fine. I’ll let it slide this time." "By the way, didn't you say you had a surprise for me? What is it?" Sienna opened her eyes wide, looking at me with pure anticipation. I leaned down to kiss her forehead, slipped the black card back into my pocket, and scooped her up in my arms, walking toward the bedroom. "I’m not telling you yet. You’ll find out later." "Stop it~" Sienna giggled, hiding her blushing face against my chest. She couldn't see the cold, deep sorrow creeping into the depths of my eyes. The woman I had loved for fifteen years had just handed me a green hat. Was this my surprise?When the morning sun filtered through the blinds, Sienna was still fast asleep. I carefully studied her bare face, my gaze drifting lower and lower until it rested on her exposed collarbone. The weather was still chilly. I reached out to pull the blanket over her, but on a sudden, twisted impulse, I gently tugged her collar down instead. A fading, dark purple hickey was stamped right there on her skin. I wasn't a teenager. I knew exactly what that mark meant. A wave of intense nausea hit me. I rushed out of bed and ran to the bathroom, dry-heaving over the toilet. This was the wife I had promised to cherish for the rest of my life. For the past six months, Sienna had told me she wasn't feeling well and hadn't let me touch her once. Every night when I wanted to hold her close, she would push me away. I had respected her. I loved her so much that I couldn't bear to let her experience a single second of discomfort. Now, looking back, my respect was just a massive, hilarious joke. She acted like a proud queen in front of me, yet she was begging like a dog in another man's bed. So what was I? Just a convenient idiot? "Babe, what's wrong?" While I was staring blankly into the toilet bowl, Sienna stood at the bathroom door, rubbing her eyes sleepily. I shook my head, forcing a smile as I walked past her. "Nothing. Don't forget about your college alumni hangout tonight." "Oh! If you hadn't mentioned it, I completely would've forgotten. I need to get dolled up." Sienna instantly perked up, practically skipping over to her closet to pick out an outfit. In the past, I would always sit on the edge of the bed, watching her try on dress after dress with adoring eyes, only for her to leave me alone at home while she went out. But this time, looking at her excited silhouette, I suddenly asked: "Can I come with you tonight?" Sienna’s body stiffened. She clearly didn't expect me to make such a request. After all, in our three years of marriage, I had never once asked to meet her friends, let alone attend her college reunions. In the five years we had been together and the three years we had been married, I was always the one she kept hidden. The one she was too ashamed to show off. She bit her lip, looking at me with a conflicted expression. "Babe... it's just a class reunion. No plus-ones are allowed..." I nodded calmly. "Okay." Just as I was about to turn and leave the room, Sienna rushed over, wrapped her arms around my waist, and said coaxingly, "I promise I'll introduce you to my friends next time, okay?" After a long pause, I replied with a raspy voice: "Okay."That evening, Sienna hesitated at the door before leaving, looking back at me repeatedly. I just sat calmly on the sofa, watching TV. "Babe, I might be home a bit late. Go to sleep if you get tired." "Okay." Only when the heavy click of the front door echoed through the apartment did I turn off the TV. I opened my phone, checked her shared Snapchat location, grabbed my coat, and walked out. Sienna’s alumni party was held at a high-end lounge downtown. I parked my car across the street and watched from a distance as she walked in, her arm tightly locked with a young boy's. The Uber driver turned around and joked, "Man, is that your wife and son?" I let out a bitter laugh but said nothing. Even a random driver could see how young that boy was. And yet, she was cheating on me with him. After entering the lounge, I gave the receptionist Sienna’s name. Unsurprisingly, the reservation was under her name, meaning she was foot the bill again. The hostess led me to the private VIP booth and knocked. Even through the heavy oak door, I could hear the rowdy, drunken laughter inside. "Come in!" someone shouted. The hostess opened the door and stepped aside, letting me walk in. The room was filled with half-drunk people. A few women pointed at me, giggling. "Ooh, did we hire a male model? He’s hot, but he looks kind of familiar." Another woman playfully shoved her. "Anyone with a pretty face looks familiar to you." Laughter erupted in the room. I ignored them, my gaze locking onto the center of the main booth. Sienna was sitting there, her face draining of all color as she stared at me in sheer panic. She aggressively shoved away the young boy, whose face was flushed red from alcohol as he tried to bury his head in her lap. She scrambled to her feet, stammering: "E-Ethan? What are you doing here?" Her words instantly sobered up the room. The women who had been teasing me earlier blinked, finally realizing that I was the "kept husband" they always whispered about. They awkwardly took sips of their drinks. One of them forced Sienna back into her seat and waved a dismissive hand. "Wow, does your husband keep you on that tight of a leash? He has to follow you even to a college reunion?" "No wonder he's unemployed and lives off you. Must have a lot of free time, huh?" Sienna didn't answer them. She quickly walked over, grabbed my hand, and flashed a desperately eager smile. "Did you miss me that much, babe? Come, sit down." She dragged me toward the inner booth. The young boy, who had been silent the whole time, was now mostly sober. He bit his lip, looking at Sienna with puppy-dog eyes. "Sienna... what about me then?" Before Sienna could speak, I took a step forward, a cold, mocking smile on my face. "You?" "You're Kept Toy Boy Number Two, kid."The room fell dead silent. Sienna's expression turned incredibly ugly. Keeping her mouth shut, she forcefully pushed me down onto a chair and sat beside me, refusing to say another word. See? Just one sentence that bruised her ego, and she was throwing a tantrum. She never thought she was in the wrong. Or maybe she believed that even if she was, I would always forgive her. I signaled the waiter to bring me a clean plate and silverware, then began to eat the appetizers slowly and elegantly. Seeing that I didn't start screaming or throwing plates, Sienna’s friends gradually relaxed and started chatting again. "Honestly, Sienna, you trained your husband so well." "Right? Way better than my guy. My husband throws a fit if I even go to a bar with girls." "You better cherish him, Sienna." "There are plenty of pretty boys out there, but finding one this obedient is rare." One of the women winked at Sienna. Sienna snapped at her to shut up, but a smug, uncontrollable smile spread across her face. She loved being put on a pedestal. And because of their compliments, her attitude toward me softened. "Babe, let's go home after we finish eating," Sienna whispered, leaning her head onto my shoulder affectionately. I turned my head to look at her, and in doing so, I caught the furious, jealous glare from the young boy sitting next to her. "Aren't you going to introduce us?" I pointed at him casually. "Oh, he's just my friend's younger brother. He insisted on tag-along tonight. Right, Chloe?" The woman named Chloe immediately caught Sienna’s desperate signal and nodded quickly. She pulled the boy closer and laughed nervously. "Yeah, my baby brother! Ethan, don't overthink it. Sienna is a good woman, you're lucky to have her." The boy remained silent, letting Chloe drag him, but his burning eyes never left my face. A friend's younger brother. A "brother" who was practically melting into my wife's lap just minutes ago. I smiled, choosing not to expose them. I turned directly to the boy. "Little brother? How old are you? What’s your name?" "I'm not your brother," the boy spat, his voice trembling with anger. "My name is Jaxon Miller. I'm an adult, which means I can do whatever the hell I want!" With that, his intense gaze shifted back to Sienna, but she just buried her face deeper into my chest to avoid him. "An adult," I nodded, agreeing with him. "Since you're an adult, you should know what boundaries are." Jaxon seemed startled by the sudden, sharp edge in my eyes, but he quickly recovered, puffing out his chest. "Who cares about boundaries?" "I only know one thing: the brave ones get to enjoy the world first!" I burst out laughing. I pushed my chair back, stood up, and clapped mockingly. "Well said." Sienna's face flushed a deep crimson, then turned pale. She grabbed my hand and practically dragged me out of the VIP booth, leaving her friends frozen in place. The moment we got into the car, Sienna finally exploded, pointing her finger right at my nose. "Ethan Hayes! What the hell was that?! Are you accusing me of cheating?!" "How dare you doubt me?! We’ve been together for so many years, and you don't even trust me?" "Why don't you ever remember the good things I did for you? If it weren't for me, you—" I slammed on the brakes. The last trace of a smile vanished from my face. My eyes turned ice-cold as I turned to stare at her. "If it weren't for you, what?"I knew exactly what Sienna wanted to say. If it weren't for her, I would have dropped out of school and been working a dead-end manual labor job. I was once a nobody. A beggar at the very bottom of society. My parents divorced when I was a kid. My mother didn't want a financial burden like me, so she packed her bags and left without looking back. I lived with my father, who eventually drowned his sorrows in gambling and racked up massive debts. In the end, he even stole the meager tuition money I had saved from working part-time jobs. Later, he lost our house. The two of us ended up living in an abandoned, drafty warehouse, begging for food, waiting for death to take us. My father’s wish came true. During a brutal winter storm, he froze to death. And I didn't even have the money to cremate his body. Who could imagine that in this modern world, someone could be that desperately poor? But that was my reality. I sat on the icy curb, reading discarded textbooks while begging for change, trying to raise enough money to cremate my father. And then, like a scene out of a movie, Sienna appeared. She took me back to the Vance estate as a charity project. Her family paid for my father's cremation and sponsored my education, letting me act as her personal tutor and study partner. That was the only truly kind thing she had ever done for me, and I had remembered it my entire life. So later, when my startup succeeded and I repaid every single penny her family had spent on me, she told me she liked me. And I, without hesitation, chose to be with her. I felt eternally indebted to her. I did everything to treat her like a queen. Even when I noticed her suspicious behavior, I kept quiet. I told myself that this was the price I had to pay. Sienna thought so too. Whenever we had a disagreement, she would throw the past in my face: "If it weren't for me, would you have this company today?" "If it weren't for me, you would’ve frozen to death on the streets!" "If it weren't for me, your father would still be rotting in an unmarked grave!" I could never argue back because she was right. And every time she said it, my guilt deepened, and I tried even harder to please her. Sometimes, I couldn't even tell if what I felt for her was love or just a heavy, suffocating sense of obligation. But now, seeing her pregnant with another man’s child, I finally got my answer. I had loved her. Perhaps on that cold winter day, when she stood before me in her beautiful, warm designer coat, smiling as she handed me a hot baked potato and said, "Come on, let's go home." That walk home lasted fifteen years.By the time we got back to the apartment, it was past midnight. Sienna kept her face dark and silent. She slammed the bedroom door shut and locked it from the inside. I grabbed a throw blanket from the closet and lay down on the sofa. This wasn't the first time, so I was used to it. When we bought this apartment, Sienna insisted on having only one bedroom, with no guest rooms allowed. She said it was to make sure I treated her well. If we ever fought, I wouldn't have a bed to sleep in. I had agreed. So whether it was summer or winter, whenever Sienna was unhappy, I was banished to the sofa with a single blanket. It was the dead of winter, and the cold made it impossible to sleep. When I tried to turn on the central heating, I realized Sienna had locked the smart thermostat from her phone. I curled up tighter on the sofa, a bitter chuckle escaping my lips as my heart grew colder. Did Sienna actually love me? I didn't know. Was this her version of love? As drowsiness finally began to take over, I heard faint crying coming from the bedroom. Just one muffled sob was enough to wake me up. My heart construct involuntarily softened. I hesitated, then quietly stood up and walked over to the bedroom door, pressing my ear against the wood. Sienna was indeed crying. I pulled the spare key out of my pocket. Even after everything, I still couldn't bear the thought of her crying alone in the dark. But before I could insert the key, Sienna’s voice drifted through the door, choked with tears. "I miss you so much, baby... *sniffle*..." "I made him sleep on the couch. I won't let him touch me. I only want you." "I don't feel anything for him anymore. Why don't you believe me? *sob*..." My entire body went numb. The strength drained from my fingers, and the heavy metal keys slipped, clattering loudly against the hardwood floor. *Clang!* Instantly, the crying inside the bedroom stopped. I didn't open the door, and Sienna didn't come out. Time seemed to freeze in that agonizing silence. Suddenly, my phone buzzed in my hand. A notification popped up—someone was requesting to add me on Snapchat. I unlocked my phone. The bright screen made my eyes wince, but I still clearly saw the profile picture of the sender. It was a photo of Jaxon and Sienna kissing. But what was even more piercing was the custom add-message below it: *“You pathetic leech. No wonder your own mother didn't want you.”*