The Urban Abyss

The Unchangeable Past

On a bench in the central park, an old man huddled in a corner, head buried, smoking a cigarette. Vivienne examined his ID: the man's name was Zachary, fifty years old, residing hundreds of kilometers away from this city. Vivienne returned the ID to him: "How do you know Sophia? And why have you been following her?"

Zachary tossed away the cigarette butt, revealing a shocking truth: "I am Sophia's biological father; I just wanted to see her." He shared an unknown past.

Years ago, when Sophia's mother, Vivienne's aunt, was a young woman, she fell in love with her supervisor at the factory where she worked, who was Zachary. He was a married man, and their love was abnormal and forbidden by societal norms, especially during that era. Amid their secret relationship, Sophia's mother became pregnant. They decided to have the child, and Zachary promised to divorce his wife early to marry her, offering her and the child a legitimate status and resolution.

To conceal the pregnancy out of wedlock, Zachary sent Sophia's mother to this city hundreds of kilometers away, renting her a place to stay until childbirth, while he returned to his city to discuss divorce with his wife. 

Unexpectedly, these discussions dragged on for years, with reactions from his wife and her family more intense than Zachary had anticipated. Around the time of Sophia's birth, Zachary visited the mother and daughter frequently, buying them clothes, but this fell far short of the life together Sophia's mother had hoped for. 

Her patience and love eroded under the strain of raising their daughter alone. She refused to see Zachary again unless he could present her with a divorce certificate.

Trapped in a difficult situation for two years, Zachary finally divorced his wife and immediately went to find Sophia's mother, only to discover that she and her daughter had vanished without a trace. Zachary rented a simple house and worked while searching for them.

After half a year, he found Sophia's mother working as a dancer in a newly opened nightclub. She had changed, wearing heavy makeup and flashy clothes, mocking Zachary's poverty instead of rekindling their past relationship. Despite several confrontations, Sophia's mother did not take him seriously, relying on the city's most formidable thugs for protection. With no other options, Zachary returned to City B, losing his wife, house, and job in the process.

Zachary's voice was hoarse with emotion: "I hate that woman; she ruined my life! I've cursed her countless times for not ending well, and indeed, she was a woman with no good end, dying before forty—"

Vivienne cut him off, unwilling to hear more about her aunt: "If she's already passed away and the past is the past, why are you still looking for Sophia?"

Zachary clutched his hair, sobbing: "I've remained unmarried, and despite my hatred for that woman, her daughter is my only blood. In recent years, I've made some money and wanted to acknowledge her, to leave something for my daughter. After her mother's death, she moved, and I've been searching for her whenever I could, only recently finding Sophia."

Vivienne, ever vigilant, asked: "So, you've known Sophia's address all along?" Zachary scoffed: "That woman was capable, buying a house with the money she earned. I've tried to discuss our daughter over the years, always ending in discord, as she refused to let me see my daughter..."

Vivienne silently observed him as he buried his face in his arms, weeping: "I just wanted to talk to her last time. How could I harm her? She is my only daughter!"

Vivienne took his address and phone number, promising to speak to Sophia on his behalf, and let Zachary leave. She returned to Sophia, where Cathy had already gone to sleep, and Sophia was quietly reading under a small bedside lamp.

Vivienne softly shared the encounter and Zachary's words. Sophia fell into deep thought: "Oh, no wonder he seemed familiar—it was him—"

She slowly told Vivienne: "I remember now. The night my mother died, that man came over. I was in high school, coming home from night study, and I heard arguments inside—the usual trouble from my mother's dubious friends. I'd hide away, but that time, I hid on the upper floor's staircase, peeking down. Soon, a tall, thin man left, and looking back, it must have been him, just much older now."

Sophia's voice was somber: "I clearly remember that night because my mother died then. Our newly renovated house had a gas leak; her bedroom was next to the kitchen, mine across the living room, and I didn't hear a thing. Awoken by the gas in the early hours, I struggled to open the windows and doors, called emergency services, but it was too late for my mother..."

It was the first time Sophia discussed her aunt's death with Vivienne, who asked: "Was there an investigation report afterwards?" Sophia calmly replied: "Yes, the report mentioned the gas valve was loose, causing the leak. That was it."

Vivienne was lost in thought.