Chapter 1

David slid the door handle with excitement and watched it open widely. Suddenly, his face felt cold when he saw who was standing there.

"Good morning, ma'am," he greeted his mother-in-law, feeling shocked.

"What's so good about this morning, you pauper?" she yelled at him harshly.

"Why didn't you wash my clothes before leaving this house?! And who gave you permission to leave?" she questioned sternly.

Words escaped David as he felt stupid and couldn't think of a reply to defend himself. Before he could respond, his face received two heavy slaps in a second.

"Are you deaf?" Mrs. Elena Wendy, his mother-in-law, asked, coming after the hot slaps.

He covered his face with his left hand and felt hurt inside. The pain from the slap ran through his veins deeply. He doubted if what hit him was a lady's palm because it was so hard and tough that it made his upper jaw dropped on his tongue forcefully, resulting in a tear.

That morning, he had woken up early and gone to the nearest market to buy a birthday present for his wife. Since they got married three years ago, he had never had the opportunity to gift her on her birthday.

Either he got caught up with the house chores throughout the day, or he was broke. Not that he was rich now, but since a few months ago, he had been saving up some pennies he earned from running errands for the Wendy family.

"I went to the market," he muttered in pain of the heavy slaps, his eyes already red as fire.

"To the market? To do what? Who sent you?" she bombarded him with multiple questions in a second.

"I went there to get a birthday gift for my wife," David mumbled.

"You have a wife?" she asked interrogatively.

David felt stunned by the question. He intended not to answer, but he might receive another resounding slap. He quickly swallowed his hesitation and muttered, "Yes, ma'am. Diana Wendy is my wife."

She scoffed and clapped her hands frantically, glaring at his foolishness.

At first, he was dumbfounded by the stupid question, and secondly, he was stunned by her reaction when he replied.

'Did she forget I'm Diana's husband? that's insane. Well, I can't blame her for that, since I'm nothing but an errand boy to the Wendy family, despite that they have enough maids,' he thought silently.

Mrs. Elena dragged him recklessly, and he staggered into the living room, losing his control. "Diana!" she shouted at the top of her voice.

David was curious about her next action, but he knew it would never be in his favor.

Diana heard her mother's voice echoing through the walls in her room and rushed out to the living room.

Suddenly, she stopped when she saw a red palm print on David's face, then looked at her mother in confusion.

She turned her face down afterwards, closing her eyes firmly, and muttered, 'What problem has he caused for himself this time again?'

"This loser said he got you a gift," Mrs. Elena let out mockingly.

Diana raised her head, gazing at him with so much pity. He was a piece of trash, but still, her husband anyway. She had married him blindly. She thought his future would be fruitful since he was intelligent in college. He also graduated as one of the best students at Brentford College.

Diana moved close to David and asked, "Where is the gift, darling?"

David's heart skipped a beat. He looked at his wife warmly and reluctantly reached into his pocket to retrieve the present.

Just then, a striking laughter came from the entrance. The three of them instantly turned towards the sound, only to see Tony, Diana's cousin.

David bit his lips tightly, and his heart raced. He knew Tony would be nothing but salt added to his wound.

"Bring it out, you loser," Tony mocked from a distance.

David had planned to give his wife the gift secretly, but his mother-in-law had changed the narrative.

David saw Mrs. Elena's furious gaze and quickly brought out the gift. It was a small, shabby box, and the words written on it had already faded.

"Open it!" she commanded mockingly.

Diana wanted to help her husband out of the embarrassment, but there was nothing she could do.

"Why are you wasting so much time?" Tony yelled, walking towards him.

David's hands trembled, and his heart was heavy in his chest. He opened the box slowly, and Mrs. Elena and Tony burst into roaring laughter.

David felt so disappointed in himself. He couldn't bear the disdain any longer, but he dared not leave the spot. He was worried about letting his innocent wife witness his embarrassment. Diana looked enraged and dissatisfied. She wanted everything to end immediately.

Tony picked up the item inside the box. It was an old pendant necklace. He burst into another loud laughter and asked, "How much did you get this useless necklace for?"

'What business does he have with the price? After all, he called the necklace useless,' David thought silently.

He decided to fake the price but he didn't want to be foolish enough to mention a ridiculous price.

"I got it for $150," David murmured.

Mrs. Elena was enraged. She walked up to him and spit on his forehead, splashing into his eyes. Diana buried her face in her hands in immediate disgust and mumbled, "Enough, Mom!"

David regretted his existence in that moment, struggling to open his eyes. He had to clean his face with his tattered shirt. He had made countless wishes in an instant, but above all, he wished he could disappear from their sight.

The fact that his wife was already pleading on his behalf made him slightly relieved, but it wasn't enough.

Her mother turned to her and yelled, "What's wrong with you, Diana? Has this moron charmed you? Mr. William was here this morning. He brought an Italian high-heel shoe worth nothing less than $150,000. Are you telling me you prefer this faded, useless necklace over luxurious heels?"

David opened his mouth in awe, but he kept the shock, instantly. 'What's wrong with William Blatt? Why does he have to spend so lavishly on someone else wife?' he silently questioned.

"My daughter is only worth $150 to you? You should be ashamed of yourself. You are nothing but a loser," Mrs. Elena wailed at David.

He couldn't say anything. He stood shamefully, his eyes twitching.

Tony moved closer to him and muttered, "You will remain a loser, no matter how hard you tried to prove it wrong."

David closed his eyes firmly, feeling so bad with Tony's words. But he concurred with the truth he just said. No matter how hard he had tried to prove his worth, he only became more useless to the family.

Tony turned to Diana and uttered, "Your husband is such a disgrace to the Wendy family."

He moved slightly towards Mrs. Elena and pleaded, "I'm so sorry for whatever headache my cousin has caused you with her hopeless husband."

He walked towards the exit door before announcing loudly, "Granny said I should inform you that every member of the family should assemble in the meeting hall by 2 P.M."

Tony walked out of the living room without a second glance.

Mrs. Elena glared at her daughter, who looked so unhappy, and her good-for-nothing husband, then left in irritation.

Diana ran back to her room, her heart full of sadness, and David followed her immediately.