"Dad..." Ceilia's feeble voice reverberated in the quiet room, intertwining with the echoes of her own thoughts.
To her astonishment, Xia Tian abruptly spun around, his eyes meeting hers.
In that moment, disbelief coursed through her veins, for she had believed herself invisible and inaudible to others.
His outstretched hands held a peculiar allure, intensifying her astonishment. But what happened next shattered her into petrified stillness.
"N-Not again..." Ceilia's voice trembled, barely escaping her quivering lips. Instead of reaching out to her, Xia Tian's hands moved towards Irene, standing just beside her, snatching the tiny baby into his embrace.
As the realization sank in, Ceilia's question dribbled out in a final, haunting murmur, "Why?" And in that stark moment, her voice succumbed to eternal silence.
