What I Saw At His Mom’s House Changed Everything

I’ve been with Mark for five years—loving a man with two kids and a complex past. I showed up for birthdays, band-aids, soccer games, school pickups. I never tried to be their mother, only a steady voice in the room. I believed love lived in consistency. What I didn’t realize was how invisible I had become.

It was Mia’s birthday. We’d dropped her off at Mark’s mom’s house, and I was invited inside to see her gifts. Laughter, cake, balloons. Then my chest tightened: a pink art set sat open on the table. I recognized it instantly—same sticker, same handwriting I had scribbled, half-scratched off: “To Mia, from Lily.”

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