And then I heard it. A car pulled up to the gate. Someone started banging on it — loudly, furiously, with fists pounding on the metal.
‘Open the bloody gate!’
My stomach clenched. That voice. I knew it.
It was my ex.
‘Of course you’ll be here!’ he shouted from the other side. ‘A cosy barbecue, like a happy little family!’
I jumped up from the table. Alex froze halfway.
‘Didn’t you think I’d find out?’ my ex continued to shout. ‘Your neighbourly date was visible from the street. Guess who was driving by at just the right moment!’
‘What are you doing here?’ I shouted back.
‘I’m here for my son! But he’s not even home. And his mother is too busy here with my brother!’
Alex lowered his head. I slowly turned to him.
‘Please tell me he’s lying.’
But he didn’t say a word. Then the gate creaked open. Alex unlocked it. And my ex burst in like a hurricane.
‘Same father. Different mothers. Shared DNA. And you know what? We’re going to use it.’
‘What the hell are you talking about?’
‘Simple. If Alex turns out to be the real father, not me, then… boom! You’re an adulteress. The court will decide that Kevin isn’t mine. And guess what else isn’t yours? This house.’
‘This is crazy. He’s not the father, and you know it!’
I turned to Alex.
‘Alex? Say something.’
Alex didn’t say a word. His eyes dropped to the floor.
That silence? It told me everything.
I felt something crack inside me. Like a lock clicking, only in reverse.
‘So it was true?’ I whispered. ‘It was a plan?’
Alex swallowed hard. He looked at me, then lowered his eyes. ‘It… it wasn’t my idea,’ he muttered.
‘Then whose was it?’
He was silent for a moment. Then he exhaled slowly.
‘My mum’s. She said no judge would question a test from a “reputable lab”. Said it would be clean, airtight.’
He paused, his voice thinning.
“Her best friend runs the place. I just had to… give the sample. And keep you close. But I didn’t expect to actually fall in love with you.”
My ex burst out laughing loudly and bitterly.
‘Come on, Alex! Is this a soap opera? You were supposed to play her, not fall in love with her!’
Alex flinched.
‘You had one job. To seduce her. To distract her. To get the house. And now look at yourself — whining like some sad puppy.’
‘I didn’t mean to…’ Alex stammered. ‘I didn’t want it to go this far…’
‘You’re pathetic,’ my ex hissed. ‘We had her wrapped around our little fingers. All you had to do was smile and keep quiet.’
Alex opened his mouth, but no words came out. I took a breath. Cold. Calm.
‘Get out. Both of you. Now.’
The perfect evening had turned into an ambush. But I didn’t cry. I decided to fight.
I didn’t sleep that night. But I didn’t cry either. I opened tabs. I made phone calls. I read about DNA tests, inheritance law and the dirty tricks people use in court.
And then Sophie, bless her, turned to an old friend for help.
The lab technician who signed the DNA test?
She’s my ex-mother’s goddaughter!
Sophie even found out which clinic. It all added up. A fake test. Swapped samples. A neat little plan.
The next morning, Alex was standing on my doorstep. He looked pale, like a man who had finally realised he wasn’t the hero of his own story.
‘My brother used my DNA instead of his,’ he began. “They wanted to prove that Kevin was mine, not his. To make you look like a fraud. To take the house. It was my mother’s plan. I thought I was just helping the family… but then you happened.”
I didn’t let him finish. I raised my hand and tapped my phone screen softly.
‘Remember last night? When you tried to explain everything?’
I pressed the play button on the voice memo.
‘My mum and I have it all figured out. If she admits to fraud, we’ve got the court in the bag.’
Alex’s face drained of colour.
‘It’ll go to court,’ I said calmly. ‘And I’ll win.’
‘I… I’ll testify. I’ll give you everything. I swear…’
‘I don’t believe a word you say anymore.’
He didn’t argue. He just left. The chessboard had been turned upside down. I was no longer a pawn. I was making the next move.
The trial didn’t take long.
My lawyers had everything covered. My ex tried to wriggle out of it, but the judge wasn’t having any of it. He granted me sole ownership of the house, with no loopholes or conditions.
Alex disappeared. I didn’t ask where.
Later, I sat at the kitchen table with Sophie.
‘I’m the worst friend in the world,’ she said. ‘I pushed you into going on that stupid date.’
‘I let myself believe. Because I wanted to. I needed something good. Someone kind. Even if it was fake.’
‘You didn’t deserve any of it.’
‘No. But I got through it.’
‘So… it’s over?’
‘No.’ I smiled. ‘It’s just beginning.’
‘I heard you won the counterclaim?’
‘Yes.’ I raised my cup. ‘Pain and suffering. Enough for a new coffee maker. And maybe even a second home.’
Sophie burst out laughing.
‘He tried to break you. But girl, you just got wittier.’
‘I still have Kevin. And I have peace.’
Kevin called from the other room and asked if I wanted to help him build a railway track. I smiled.
‘I’ll be right there, sweetheart.’
This was the only home I needed. I got up, stretched, and looked out the window. The yard was quiet.
‘The next time someone rings my doorbell with a latte, they’d better not have any ulterior motives.’
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