Exit the Substitute: Walking Out of Her World

"You promised you'd spend Valentine's Day with me," I said. Celine didn't respond, but I saw her fingers curl up subconsciously. I could tell that she felt guilty.

After some time, I broke the silence once again, saying, "Let's just head home."

"I'm sorry," she whispered as the car began to move.

I rolled down the window and pretended like I didn't hear her. Then, I let the wind mess up my hair and brush the tears from my face. Fortunately for me, Celine couldn't see any of it.

The two of us stayed silent as the car sped down the road. As we were nearing home, I took a deep breath and composed myself. Subsequently, I opened the door and exited the vehicle.

Before I could even unlock the front door, I heard Will crying out from the inside of the house. Once I opened the door, he immediately threw himself into Celine's arms and exclaimed, "Mommy! You're finally home!"

He continued, "Dad locked me inside and wouldn't let me out. But I want to go to the amusement park!"

Upon hearing this, I froze. I didn't think that my child would be able to lie through his teeth like this. Celine paused and instinctively glanced toward me.

"He just didn't want to bring you there on his own. He didn't think that he'd be able to keep you safe. How about we both bring you to the amusement park today?"

She caressed Will's hair and explained on my behalf.

"I don't want him to go with me!" Will declared decisively. He turned away from me and rolled his eyes at me with obvious disdain.

I stared at this side profile and felt frozen in place. I had been trying to balance my work and my family, but it seemed like I had failed. As a result, my son was distant, and my wife didn't seem to love me.

I crouched down and reached forward to hold Will's hand. Then, I asked in a gentle voice, "You asked me to help you assemble a toy some time ago. Do you want to play with it together after I finish building it?"

Will finally turned his head over to look at me. Blinking at me, he nodded his head and replied, "Okay. But we can only do that after I get back from the amusement park."

His small promise warmed my heart. When I heard the door close, I glanced around the empty house and picked up Celine's phone once again.

"As long as you'll have me, my heart will always belong to you." I read the message out loud. The unsent message drafts contained Celine's feelings as a teenager.

"What about me?" I asked.

My fingers were trembling, but I still felt somewhat hopeful. Celine was 18 back then. Now, she was an adult with a family. She wouldn't have had a child with me if she didn't actually love me.

"I don't love him, so I had a child with him. I hoped that the child could love him for me, but the child takes after me, and he only loves you."

I felt my breath hitch in my throat. My vision became blurred, and my breathing began to grow heavy. Was this what she meant when she drunkenly claimed that the child was her gift to me?

Initially, I thought that she wanted us to have a child together. I assumed that our son was the proof of our love. But now, I could understand everything.

If I were still 18, I'd choose to walk away without a single shred of hesitation. But now, I had an adorable son and a family everyone envied.

I clenched my fists and returned to my room. As I stared up at the ceiling, tears began to stream down my face.

"You're a coward, James Sawyer!" I couldn't help but mock. Then, I eventually drifted off to sleep.

In my dream, I saw a young girl smiling at me as she stood in the sunlight. She waved at me before handing me a sketch that she had drawn just for me.

The girl only had eyes for me.

Once I woke up from my dream, I stared at the dark room around me and tried to locate the light switch. Crap! I hadn't assembled Will's toy!

I hurried downstairs, expecting to see my angry son. But to my surprise, the house was completely empty.

My vision blurred, and I slowed down. It was already 10:00 pm—why weren't they back yet?