Mark pulled his silver car into the long paved driveway of his suburban mansion.
He smiled as he looked at the colorful bouquet of fresh roses sitting on the passenger seat.
Today was a very special day for his growing young family.
It was his wife Maya's twenty-eighth birthday.
She was also six months pregnant with their very first child.
Mark had worked extra hours at his law firm just to finish early today.
He wanted to surprise Maya with a home-cooked dinner and expensive gifts.
He grabbed the bright roses and walked up the wide brick front steps.
He unlocked the heavy mahogany front door with a happy whistle.
Mark: Happy Birthday, sweetheart!
His cheerful voice echoed off the high ceiling of the grand entryway.
But nobody answered his call from the main living area.
Instead, a heavy silence hung in the cool air of the house.
Mark walked around the hallway wall into the wide formal dining room.
His heart instantly dropped right into his stomach.
A expensive chocolate birthday cake lay smashed completely flat across the white marble floor.
Thick brown icing was smeared all over the shiny light tiles.
His pregnant wife Maya was kneeling on her hands and knees in the mess.
Her soft sweater was dirty and tears streamed down her red cheeks.
She was desperately trying to wipe up the sticky icing with thin paper towels.
Mark: Maya! What on earth are you doing down there?
Mark dropped the bouquet of flowers onto the hardwood floor.
He rushed forward quickly to grab his wife by her soft arms.
Maya looked up with wide, frightened eyes as tears fell down her face.
Maya: Mark, I... I am so sorry about the mess.
Mark: Why are you kneeling on the hard floor in your condition?
Mark lifted her up gently and helped her sit on a soft dining chair.
Then he turned around and noticed his mother sitting calmly nearby.
Evelyn was sipping hot tea from a fancy porcelain cup on the velvet sofa.
She looked completely calm and unbothered by the dramatic scene.
Mark: Mom? Did you stand there and watch her do this?
Evelyn: She made a mess, so she can clean it up!
Mark: She is six months pregnant with your future grandchild!
Evelyn: That does not give her an excuse to be clumsy in my home.
Mark: This is my house, Mom, not yours!
Mark felt a strong wave of pure anger rising inside his chest.
He looked at his mother's cold face and could barely recognize her.
He took a deep breath and tried to keep his voice steady.
Mark: Tell me what actually happened right now.
Maya wiped her cheeks with a shaking hand and took a deep breath.
Maya: I was bringing the cake out to the table for us.
Evelyn: She tripped over her own feet like an idiot!
Maya: No, Mark... your mother bumped into me on purpose from behind.
Mark gasped as he heard his wife's quiet words fill the quiet room.
Evelyn set her tea cup down on the glass table with a loud rattle.
Evelyn: How dare you lie to my son on your birthday!
Mark: Be quiet, Mom, and let her finish talking!
Maya: She pushed my arm and said I did not belong in this family.
Maya: Then she told me to clean every inch before you came home.
Mark stared at his mother with absolute shock in his eyes.
The room suddenly felt ice cold as the truth began to sink in.