My long - vanished ex - husband burst in, his face twisted with fury. "You venomous witch, driving our son to attempt suicide. I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"
He lunged at me, grabbing my hair and slapping me so hard that stars danced before my eyes.
"Ethan, watch me avenge you!" he roared.

Fists rained down on me, and I felt as though my bones were being shattered.
As I let out a scream, he shoved a towel into my mouth, muffling my cries.
Helpless and pinned down, I turned to Ethan for aid, my eyes pleading.
But he turned his head away, his expression cold. "Mom, if you can't give me the life I desire, you shouldn't have brought me into this world. Everyone is responsible for their own actions."
I was beaten to death, my final moments filled with a suffocating sense of despair.
Memories came flooding back, making me shudder uncontrollably.

"You keep spacing out. I said, no gift I like, no exams."
Ethan's irritated face snapped me back to the present.
Thankfully, there was still time.
"The exams are your responsibility. Take them or don't; it's your choice."

"But you're an adult now. If you skip college, I won't continue to support you. Everyone is responsible for their own actions, right?"
The next day, I boarded a flight to a major city for a crucial company project negotiation.
It was a rare opportunity - if successful, I could break through the glass ceiling at my managerial level and become a director.
In my previous life, I had skipped it because of Ethan's exams.
Recalling his indifference as I lay dying, Henry's self - righteous fury, and their complete lack of guilt or hesitation, as if I deserved what I got, I let out a bitter laugh.
Before boarding, I shut off my phone, bidding farewell to half of my life.
At the project site, I led my team with unrelenting determination. We analyzed competitors, refined proposals, and secured resources around the clock.
We signed the deal a week ahead of schedule.
A sense of relief washed over me.
This second life was worth it - I was going to take charge of my own fate.
During the celebration dinner, Ethan's call came late. His rage was deafening. "Is this how a mother behaves? You don't give a damn about my exams. Where have you been? I'm out of money!"
I calmly retorted, "Didn't you say no gift, no exams?"
His bravado wavered. "You said you'd stop supporting me if I didn't study. What else could I do? I took the exams. Now buy my gifts, or my friends will make fun of me!"
What a cowardly bluster.
"I sent you the list. Just buy it."
I checked his message - the same extravagant list as before.
He was treating me like a genie in a bottle, granting his every wish.
This time, I didn't hesitate. "You think $70,000 is loose change? I didn't agree to it before, and I'm not buying it now."
He exploded. "Dad wouldn't be so stingy. You're too selfish to be a parent, or even deserve to have kids."
There it was again, that "don't have kids if you're poor" rhetoric. I smirked. "If your dad's so rich, why aren't you with him? Don't you want to be?"
"Since he's so generous, let him buy it. You've been in touch with him, right? For something as important as exams, didn't he send you a fat check?"