Chapter 1 Chapter 1

"Mommy, will you play hide and seek with me for a little while?" When the sweet voice of my son, Archie Palmer, hit my ears, my body stiffened instantly. I looked down, and there was five-year-old Archie, lying on my lap and staring up at me with his big, round eyes. The warmth from his little body was strikingly real. This wasn't some deathbed hallucination. I was truly reborn. I returned to the day when Archie tricked me into going to the balcony for a game of hide and seek, then locked me outside to freeze to death. In my previous life, my relationship with Archie was anything but good. He liked his easygoing father, Brandon Palmer, but he couldn't stand me meddling in his business. So whenever I spoke to him, he'd lose it—smashing things, kicking, and hitting me. The worst time was when he picked up an ashtray from the table and threw it at my head with all his strength. I ended up with eight stitches at the hospital. After being discharged, I gave Archie a good beating, but Brandon stopped me. He said the kid didn't know better and that I should be more understanding as his mother. My friend, Kenna Sanders, tried to tell me that some children, even if they were my own, could never be truly raised as family. Some were just born ungrateful. She said that with Brandon favoring Archie so much, I'd be better off getting out of that family as soon as possible. But I wouldn't let go. I thought that since I brought Archie into this world, I should be responsible for his future. But reality slapped me hard across the face. In my previous life, I kept trying to repair the mother-son bond with Archie. So when he suddenly sweet-talked me into playing hide and seek, I was overjoyed and agreed right away. After all, who would've thought a five-year-old would have it in him to kill his own mother? As we played, Archie kept sneaking off to the balcony to hide. I watched him carefully, and to keep him happy, I decided to hide where he hid when it was my turn. But I never expected that the moment I stepped out onto the balcony, Archie would lock the door behind me. Hearing the sound, I rushed back to the glass door and tried to get back inside. The northern winter was bitterly cold. Snowflakes fluttered through the air. There was no heating on the balcony, and since I was inside just moments ago, I was only wearing a thin set of loungewear. The cold wind swept through my clothes, and my limbs quickly stiffened. The icy pain gnawed at my bones, sending sharp, biting chills deep into my skin. I pounded on the glass door, screaming and begging for help. "Open the door, Archie! I don't have a coat! If you don't let me in, I'll freeze to death! "Archie Palmer! The game is over! Open the door now! "Archie, please, I'm begging you. Open the door. I promise I won't bother you again." My voice grew weaker with each plea. Behind me stretched a vast expanse of white. Inside, Archie sat on the couch. He glanced at me briefly, then grabbed the remote and cranked up the TV volume. He then went to the cupboard and pulled out some sweets I usually didn't let him eat. He munched happily while watching cartoons, completely indifferent to whether I died. That was the moment it hit me that my own flesh and blood really was trying to freeze me to death.

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

I stopped pounding on the door, letting my body slide down the glass until I collapsed onto the freezing tiles. Kenna's words echoed in my ears, and I let out a bitter laugh. I brought this on myself. The unbearable cold drained the heat from my body, inch by inch. I started hallucinating. I felt like I was burning, as if flames were licking at my skin. I began pulling off my clothes. Then, my heart stopped. My soul left my body. I saw Archie leisurely walk up to the glass door with a phone in hand. He looked down at me. Lying there on the balcony, barely clothed, I looked pitiful. Archie suddenly covered his mouth and giggled. Through the glass, he made silly faces at my corpse. "Mommy, you look just like that stray dog downstairs! So ugly! You're such a pervert, Mommy! Why aren't you wearing clothes? Grandma says women like you are indecent! I'm gonna take a picture and send it to the family group chat!" Then, he cracked the door open. A blast of icy wind rushed in. He shivered violently and quickly slammed the door shut again. Still standing behind the glass, he gave Brandon a video call and aimed the camera at me. Suddenly, he started crying. "Daddy! Mommy froze to death… Come home, Daddy. I'm scared! "Daddy, now that I don't have a mom anymore, can you take Ms. Cole home to be my new mom?" … "Mommy! Are you even listening to me?" Archie's impatient voice yanked me out of my memories of my past life and back into the present. As I stared at the little devil in front of me, the last shred of motherly love I had melted away like the snow outside the window. I shoved Archie hard. He fell backward, landing flat on his butt with a loud thud. Just as he was about to throw a tantrum, I got up and smiled at him. "Didn't you want to play hide and seek? Well, what are you waiting for? Go hide." Archie froze for a second. He swallowed back the curse words that were about to spill from his mouth. Rubbing his sore backside, he ran toward the balcony—just like in my past life—and hid behind the washing machine. Once he was completely out of sight, I walked over, shut the glass door, and locked it. The moment Archie heard the click of the lock, he bolted out from behind the washing machine. He stared at the door, confused. A five-year-old couldn't hide his emotions. His face practically screamed, "How did you think to lock the door first?" Archie looked up at me through the glass door and started yelling, kicking, and pounding on the door. "Open the door! Let me in! Evil Mommy! Are you trying to freeze me to death? Regina Foley! As the man of the house, I command you to open this door right now, or I'll tell Daddy! I'll make him divorce you!" When I heard him say "the man of the house", I almost laughed. Archie started attending kindergarten when he was three. Back then, he was still so attached to me. At the kindergarten gate, he clung to me and sobbed uncontrollably, refusing to let go no matter what. He cried over and over, "Don't go, Mommy! I want you!" That day, I comforted him patiently. "Archie, you're a man now. Grown-ups stand tall and strong. It's just kindergarten. You can do this, Archie. Be brave, just like Maximus Titan!" "Yeah, I can do it! I'm a man! When I grow up, I'm gonna protect you, Mommy!" Teary-eyed and sniffling, three-year-old Archie promised to be my knight and protect me for a lifetime. That day, I was truly happy. But somewhere along the way, Archie's idea of being a "man" changed. "I'm a man. You have to listen to me! Go buy me ice cream now!"

Chapter 3 Chapter 3

Archie had said, "Daddy and I are the men of the house. Mommy, you're just our servant. You have to take good care of us. Only then will I make money to support you in the future." … When I still didn't respond, Archie started to panic. He was shivering with his little arms wrapped tightly around his body. The snow outside grew heavier, and flakes began sticking to his hair. He dropped to his knees in front of the glass door, and his attitude toward me took a complete turn. "I'm sorry, Mommy. I won't play hide and seek anymore. Please let me in. "I won't eat junk food again, Mommy. I won't play on my tablet at night either. I don't like Ms. Cole anymore. I won't ask for her to be my mom… Please, let me in… "I'm so cold, Mommy…" See? He understood everything perfectly. He knew exactly what would make me angry, but he did it anyway. I watched as his little face turned purple from the cold. Only then did I slowly unlock the door. It wasn't because I felt sorry for him. I just couldn't let him actually freeze to death because if he did, I'd go to prison. Throwing my future away over an evil child wasn't worth it. Archie weakly lifted his arms, wanting me to carry him. He looked so adorable. If I saw a child like him on the street, I might have felt pity. But now, as I looked at his face, all I could think of was everything he did to me in my past life. I remembered how he took photos of my half-naked corpse and sent them to the family group chat, letting everyone mock me. I lowered my gaze and took a step back. Archie's hands grasped at empty air. Coldly, I said, "I found you, Archie. You lost. Now it's your turn to find me." With that, I turned and walked away. Archie knew I wouldn't come to hold him anymore, but he didn't understand why. His instinct for survival drove him to crawl toward the warmth, just like a dog. … In the end, Archie came down with a fever. With that, the game of hide and seek was over. Brandon called while I was at the pet store, bathing a stray dog. Watching the little pup go from filthy to clean made me feel a little better. It wagged its tail at me, barking happily in the pet bath. I scratched its head while listening to Brandon's furious voice on the phone. "Regina Foley! Do you even know that Archie has a fever? Where the hell are you? It's freezing outside! How could you leave him home alone? Do you even have a shred of parental responsibility?" I feigned surprise. "What? Archie has a fever? That's impossible! He was perfectly fine when I left." Brandon ordered me to get to the hospital immediately because he didn't know what medications Archie was allergic to or his past medical history. I shot back, "You're Archie's father. Your son is sick, and you don't know anything about him. The moment something happens, you blame me? Do you have any sense of parental responsibility? "I'm not in the city right now. Archie said he wanted cake from that bakery in the suburbs, so I drove out to get it. I won't be back for a while. "Call his kindergarten teacher. I remember when we enrolled him, they recorded each child's allergies." Then, I hung up. I handled everything at Archie's kindergarten. Brandon barely even picked him up. He wasn't even in the parents' group chat. If he actually had the teacher's number, that would be strange. … Two hours later, I knocked on the ward door, holding a mango cake. The person who opened the door wasn't Brandon. It was Archie's kindergarten teacher, Ellie Cole.

Chapter 4 Chapter 4

Ellie was Archie's beloved teacher and the woman he saw as his perfect mother. Despite the freezing temperature outside, Ellie stood in the ward wearing only a thin, low-cut top and a wool coat that was more for fashion than warmth. Her cleavage was on full display, with a few strands of hair falling seductively over her chest. Her long, slender legs were wrapped in sheer black stockings, and her youthful, heavily made-up face exuded an undeniable charm. But her face was still flushed, and the broken skin on her lower lip glistened with traces of moisture that hadn't been wiped away. Anyone who saw her like this wouldn't think of her as a kindergarten teacher, but rather… The moment Ellie saw me, a flash of surprise crossed her face. Feigning ignorance, I pointed at the broken skin on her lip and asked with concern, "Did you get a heat rash, Ms. Cole?" Ellie touched her lips, and whatever crossed her mind made her cheeks flush even deeper. She shyly nodded. "Young people sure run hot, getting a heat rash even in the middle of winter. You should watch what you eat, Ms. Cole. Some foods won't just make the rash worse; they might upset your stomach too." Smiling, I stepped into the ward. As I passed Ellie, I thought I heard the faintest sigh of relief from her. I turned back and asked her with a frown, "Where's my husband? That's a little irresponsible of him. He called you over while he sneaked off to slack." Ellie barely relaxed for a second before my words made her tense up again. She quickly knocked on the bathroom door. The sound of running water had been going nonstop since I arrived. "Mr. Palmer, Mrs. Palmer is here," she called. Then, turning back to me, she forced a smile. "You misunderstood, Mrs. Palmer. Mr. Palmer isn't slacking off. He's been taking care of Archie this whole time. He just stepped into the bathroom. He should be out any minute now." I nodded without pressing further. Ellie led me toward Archie's bed. Her cheap perfume was so strong that it nearly overpowered the sharp scent of disinfectant in the room. It was suffocating. Back when I kept fresh flowers at home, Brandon always complained about the smell. Archie went even further—he tore them all up and threw them in the trash. Then, he had the audacity to glare at me and warn me never to bring flowers home again. He said I was wasting Brandon's money. In my past life, I always wondered why. Brandon and Archie used to go to the flower market with me. Archie even asked Brandon to buy the prettiest blossom and tuck it behind my ear, calling me the most beautiful mom in the world. But now, looking at Ellie's delicate, pampered appearance, I finally understood. It wasn't that they couldn't stand the scent of flowers at home. They just grew too accustomed to the smell of cheap perfume. The flowers at home no longer held any appeal for them. Archie was awake. The moment he saw me, he grabbed the apple beside his bed and hurled it at me. I reacted quickly, instinctively dodging behind Ellie. The apple struck her forehead hard, leaving a swollen lump. Ellie shrieked in pain. I instantly put on my best strict-parent face and scolded Archie, "What is wrong with you, Archie? Why would you throw an apple at Ms. Cole? She came all the way here in the middle of the night to take care of you. Do you have any idea how hurtful your actions are?" Archie froze. He sat in bed, staring at me, then at Ellie, who was clutching her forehead in pain. It took him a moment to process what had just happened. "I wasn't trying to hit Ms. Cole! I was aiming for you! This is all your fault! You locked me out on the balcony! You made me sick! You're a bad mom! I'll kill you!"