Chapter 2

I pulled Leo into my arms and ruffled his soft hair.

"Mommy isn't going to the office that day. I’ll go to your Parent-Teacher Conference, okay?"

Leo looked at me in shock, his face lighting up with pure joy. He looked like he was about to bounce off the walls.

But very quickly, something crossed his mind, and his little head drooped.

"Mommy, are you lying to me?"

"Last time, you said you’d come to my school field day, but only Daddy showed up in the end."

"I'm already in elementary school, and some of my classmates say I don't even have a mom!"

Hearing Leo's words, the floating screen instantly went wild with comments.

[Lmao, she has completely lost the kid's trust.]

[Who can she blame? Leo used to be her little shadow. Didn't she push him away time after time to cause this?]

[The male lead too. He’s been rejected so much he doesn't even dare to get close to her anymore.]

[Just look at his face. He doesn't believe for a second that she’s being genuine.]

I looked up.

Ethan noticed my gaze and quickly, almost reflexively, let go of the corner of my robe he had been secretly twirling between his fingers.

He turned his head slightly, biting his lip. His voice was laced with disappointment.

"Elena, it's fine if you can't make it. But please, don't promise Leo if you aren't sure... Otherwise, he’ll wait for you all day, and he’ll cry again when you don't show up."

Wait, what?

I froze.

Quickly, I grabbed Ethan's hand, pressed it firmly against my chest, and practically begged him to believe me.

"I won't! I swear! This time, I’m really going!"

"You have to believe me!"

Ethan and I were married for business.

My parents had a similar marriage of convenience. They lived apart year-round and had zero emotional connection. Aside from business, they barely spoke.

I used to think that was a great arrangement.

Because I was a textbook low-energy introvert.

Even back in college, I found social relationships exhausting.

Once I took over the family business, managing projects and negotiating contracts all day, I would come home feeling completely drained.

I never wanted to date.

I had hoped my partner would be a low-energy corporate drone with strong boundaries just like me.

But I never expected Ethan to be a human Golden Retriever who could run ten corporate mergers a day without breaking a sweat.

Not only did he have boundless energy, but he also had severe separation anxiety and touch deprivation.

He loved sticking to me.

"I don't want to sleep in a separate bed from you, El."

"Wherever you go, I go."

"I love you so much, El. Let's never be apart, okay?"

In our second year of marriage, we had Leo.

We hadn't planned on having a baby so early, but it was an accidental pregnancy, and my doctor advised against an abortion due to my physical condition.

Ethan was terrified of putting me through too much pain, so he promised he would take on all the parenting duties.

But who knew our son would completely inherit Ethan's high-energy traits?

Leo loved following me everywhere. He was way more attached to me than to his dad.

Dealing with one clingy adult was exhausting enough. Now I had a mini-clinger.

It instantly triggered my avoidant attachment style.

I started hiding from them.

Ethan asked me out on dates. "Too tired, not going."

Leo wanted me to go to his school events. "Too tired, not going."

Family weekend trips. "Too tired, not going."

...

Lately, though, I had finally gotten the company's operations under control. I had promoted a few reliable assistants to take over the heavy lifting, so I wasn't nearly as exhausted anymore.

And then I suddenly realized... why hadn't my two clingy boys been bothering me the past few days?