[~Song Recommendation: Everytime by Britney Spears~]

'I have to hurry. Dylan is waiting for me back at home,' Camilla Watson-Veston told herself inwardly as she gripped the steering wheel of her car late at night.

The sound of raindrops on her car's roof echoed the storm within her heart. Tears streamed down Cammy's face, and the car felt like a sanctuary of grief as she clutched the urn containing the ashes of her twin children. 

The weight of the container seemed to magnify the void left in her life, a reminder of the irreplaceable loss and sorrow she had endured in the past few weeks.

Cammy whispered, addressing her departed darlings, "It's okay, my loves. We will reunite in Heaven someday. What matters is that you are free from pain." She wiped away her tears, preparing herself after reaching her destination.

She parked outside the back entrance of their vacation home in the countryside to place the urn of her newborn babies. Her husband had built a small columbarium at the very end of their property where his parents and brother's ashes now lie.

She wanted to do it alone, to say goodbye to her twins without her firstborn son, Dylan, seeing her cry. To her surprise, her husband's car was already parked within the property, and the lights in the living room glowed warmly.

"Hmm, perhaps Duncan spoke to one of the maids, and they informed him I'm on my way here," she mused—a sense of relief washed over Cammy as she saw that her husband was finally home.

Just a month ago, she had given birth prematurely while Duncan was overseas, addressing court issues related to her father's business… Problems that her mother caused. 

While their marriage had faced difficulties over the years due to Duncan's drinking and suspected womanizing, he had never abandoned her or her family. He continued to support them and help resolve the problems within her father's company to salvage it from the verge of bankruptcy.

Placing the urn on the console table in the living room, which she intended to retrieve later, she spoke to the ashes of her twins, "I'll go fetch Daddy so we can bid you both farewell."

Expecting to find Duncan in their bedroom, Cammy moved towards it, relieved that her husband had arrived on time. Despite his initial statement about not being able to return on time from his business trip to join her in the cremation of their twins; the fact that he was present now eased the ache in her heart, and she was delighted.

"Hon–"

Cammy stood motionless as she opened the bedroom door, her heart seemingly halting, and her breath catching in her lungs. A chill swept over her, turning her skin cold and draining color from her lips as if she had encountered a ghost.

The surge of blood from her toes to her head left her feeling dizzy, her vision slowly fading to black. With trembling hands, she carefully closed the door, desperate to avoid any noise that might disturb her husband. 

He lay peacefully on their bed as he slept, entwined with another woman, both of them naked… A woman whom she was familiar with, after seeing her multiple times on TV and the internet.

She leaned against the wall beside the door and closed her eyes. Tears seemed to have already left her after crying a lot for so many days after their premature twins died. She clutched her chest, checking if her heart was still there for it seemed to stop beating.

She heard some noises inside the room and she didn't know why, but she ran. She ran as fast as she could out of the house and back to her car while the rain was coming down in sheets. 

By the time she reached her car, her hair was plastered to her face, and her clothes clung to her skin. Her hands were shaking, and she didn't know how she managed to start the car, but she did.

Rainwater dripped from her hair onto her lap, pooling in her seat, but she barely noticed. All she could focus on was getting out of there.

Cammy's trembling hands gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles turning white as the heartbreaking images of her husband's betrayal replayed in her mind while fleeing from their vacation house.

Driving away, she suddenly remembered—she had left her twins' urn on the console table. "Fuck!" Cammy slammed her palm on the steering wheel, pulling over to the side of the road.

She covered her face with both hands, contemplating if she should go back or not. The thought of facing Duncan and his other woman felt unbearable. As if on cue, rain poured harder than before, matching her falling tears.

The pain and denial she had suppressed surged in. Emotions she never wanted to confront flooded in. "Why? Why are you doing this to me, Duncan, my love?" Cammy cried, her wails merging with the rain's intensity. She felt her heart physically breaking, she struggled to breathe.

"You are the only man I have ever loved… Am I not enough?" she questioned herself, recalling the sacrifices she made for Duncan.

Despite Duncan's claim that he couldn't return due to her father's company's court trial, he lay in bed naked with another woman. The betrayal cut deep, and Cammy grappled with the pain of being deceived by a husband she believed was acting for her benefit. 

The years of trusting Duncan, believing he fended off advances from other women, shattered in an instant. For all the years she spent convincing herself that she was merely a paranoid wife, it turns out she wasn't. 

Despite her instincts warning her of something amiss, she dismissed those feelings and chose to believe Duncan, convincing herself it was all in her imagination, like what he would always say.

Yet, here she is, tears streaming down her face together with the pouring rain, while hiding in her car, feeling more alone than ever. The man who vowed to be with her until death, tore that promise apart, leaving her with shattered dreams and a harsh reality.

In the depths of her despair, her phone rang, displaying the name of the last person she wanted to talk to.

Contemplating for a moment, she weighed the decision as she stared at the screen. However, thinking of her family, she mustered the courage to answer the call.

With a sigh, Cammy tried to speak calmly, saying, "I'm sorry, Mom, I can't talk to you. I'm in a bad situation right now. Can I call you back tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry to hear that, dear. But you'll surely conceive again. Fortunately, they only lived for ten days, so you can move on easily and focus on having another baby," her mother casually commented, assuming she was talking about the death of her children. A comment that pinches Cammy's heart.

Cammy rolled her eyes, biting her tongue to refrain from answering back.

'It's not about the time they spent in this world; it's the love that I gave them from the moment they came to life,' she thought, making an effort not to say more to her mother, as it would undoubtedly prolong their conversation.

"Anyway..." Monica Watson continued, "I'm calling because I need money. My friends visited us and stayed here for a week, so I used everything you and Duncan gave me. My card is maxed out. They invited me to join them on their cruise on Monday, so I need to buy new clothes and shoes."

"But who will take care of Dad? He has his annual checkup next week."

"Well, that's what the private nurse is for. Can you deposit the money into my account tonight?" Monica asked, steering away from discussing her husband, who is now a useless paralyzed old man who did nothing but lie in bed waiting for his death.

"I don't have money right now, Mom. You know that Duncan gives my allowance at the end of every month, and I use it all up due to the cremation expenses for my twins. You'll have to wait for the next scheduled fund transfer."

"I can't wait; the trip is two days. Ask Duncan to give you more, and—"

"NO! I don't want to talk to him or even see his shadow right now…" Cammy couldn't control her anger anymore as the painful memory resurfaced. She tried to cover her mouth, but it was too late; her mother had already heard her sobs.

"Are you crying? What happened? Did Duncan hit you again? Do you want me to come there and scold him for you?" Monica offered coldly after rolling her eyes. 

She had enough of the drama that her daughter always had with her husband. A drama that her daughter always starts because of her jealousy, always accusing her husband of something he surely wouldn't do.

For Monica, her daughter is just being paranoid since she always stays at home and rarely goes out with her friends. She has no social life, always keeping a low profile, unlike her who is always the life of the party. She sees Cammy as someone who is too obsessively skeptical and insecure that she's already suspecting her hard-working husband of seeing other women. 

'Here we go again… So ungrateful to have a handsome, rich, and intelligent husband like Duncan,' Monica thought.

Cammy exhaled slowly, trying to steady herself so she could speak clearly. Her mind was already racing with thoughts of what to say to her mother. Should she tell the truth, or should she lie?

Cammy felt torn, knowing exactly how her mother might respond. But right now, she needed someone—someone who could soothe her aching heart.

"Mom…" she whispered, her voice trembling, hoping deep down that, just this once, her mother would be on her side.