Rebirth: The New Bride Wants A Divorce-Chapter 511: Happy birthday,Anna

Anna stared at him, her earlier panic dissolving into stunned silence.

"You—" she breathed. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

He walked toward her slowly.

"I wanted it to be a surprise," he said.

She looked around again, taking in the lights, the candles, the effort.

"You turned off the entire garden just to scare me?" she demanded, though her voice wavered between annoyance and awe.

"I turned off the lights so I could turn them on properly," he corrected.

Anna placed a hand over her chest, trying to calm her racing heart.

"I thought something happened to you," she admitted quietly.

Daniel’s expression softened instantly.

He stepped closer and gently took her hands.

"I’m sorry," he said sincerely. "I didn’t mean to scare you."

She looked up at him.

"You called me three times," he added with a faint grin. "I had to hide behind the hedge."

Her eyes widened. "You were hiding?"

"Yes."

She stared at him for a second longer before lightly hitting his arm.

"You’re unbelievable."

"And yet," he said, guiding her toward the softly lit table, "you came running for me."

Anna glanced at the glowing garden once more.

Her panic had turned into something else entirely.

Something warm.

Something overwhelming.

"You’re impossible," she muttered.

Daniel smiled. "But I’m yours."

His hands wrapped instinctively around her waist, steady and warm, and Anna felt her body slowly relax against him.

"I’m sorry for scaring you," he said softly. "But I wanted this to be memorable."

Anna tilted her head slightly, confusion flickering in her eyes. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

The last time they had come to Rosewood House, he had surprised her with a quiet date.

That night had meant everything to her. It wasn’t just romantic—it had marked a new beginning for them in this life. A choice. A confession. A shift in the way they loved each other.

But tonight felt different.

More elaborate.

More intentional.

If this was just another date, why go to such lengths? Why the blackout? Why the secrecy?

She opened her mouth to ask—

"Happy Birthday, my love," Daniel whispered into her ear.

And in the next second, the sky lit up.

A soft blast echoed above them, and pink fireworks bloomed against the darkness like scattered stars.

Anna gasped, her eyes lifting instinctively to the sky. Another burst followed. Then another. Golden sparks cascading down like falling light.

For a moment, she couldn’t breathe.

Her mind struggled to catch up with what was happening.

Birthday.

Her birthday.

She had forgotten.

Completely.

Growing up, birthdays had never felt like something that belonged to her. In the Bennett mansion, celebrations had always been grand—for Kathrine. Guests. Decorations. Music. Laughter filling the halls.

For Anna, it had been different.

Quieter.

Smaller.

Sometimes just Roseline wishing her softly in the morning. A small cake, if that. No friends. No gatherings.

The doctors had said loud environments might trigger her trauma. That she should avoid overwhelming situations. So she stayed inside. She adapted. She convinced herself it didn’t matter.

Over time, she stopped expecting anything at all.

Eventually, she stopped remembering.

She lived her life as if the day she was born was just another ordinary date on the calendar.

And now—

Now someone had remembered for her.

"Thank you for existing, wifey," Daniel murmured against her hair.

The words broke something open inside her.

Tears welled in her eyes before she could stop them. Not dramatic sobs. Just quiet, uncontrollable emotion spilling over.

Daniel noticed immediately.

"Hey," he said softly, turning her gently to face him. "Why are you crying? Did I overdo it?"

She shook her head quickly, laughing through her tears.

"No," she whispered. "You didn’t."

Her voice trembled.

"I just... I forgot," she admitted. "I forgot it was my birthday."

Daniel’s expression shifted, something protective and tender settling in his eyes.

"You don’t have to remember," he said quietly. "That’s my job."

Another firework burst above them, bathing her face in pink light.

Anna looked up at him, really looked at him.

All her life, she had doubted her worth. Doubted whether her presence mattered as much as others’. Doubted whether she was meant to be celebrated.

And here he was.

Celebrating her existence.

Not her achievements.

Not her usefulness.

Her.

She stepped into him without hesitation, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and pressing her face against his chest.

"Thank you," she whispered, her voice thick with emotion.

For the first time in a long time—

She didn’t feel like an afterthought.

She felt chosen.

***

Meanwhile, inside Ethan’s condo, Kathrine sat on the edge of the couch with her phone in her hand.

The city lights shimmered beyond the glass windows, casting a quiet glow into the room. It should have felt peaceful.

Instead, she felt restless.

Her thumb hovered over Anna’s contact.

A part of her wanted to call.

To hear her voice.

To wish her properly.

But another part of her hesitated.

Daniel’s message from earlier replayed in her mind.

Don’t bother us tonight. I want to spend my time with my wife. No interruptions.

Kathrine rolled her eyes.

"Possessive much?" she muttered under her breath.

Still, she understood what he meant.

After everything happening around them—Collin resurfacing, Norma circling, Hugo’s condition—Daniel probably wanted one uninterrupted night.

And tonight was Anna’s birthday.

Kathrine leaned back into the couch and stared at the ceiling.

Birthdays.

She had grown up with grand celebrations in the Bennett mansion. Lavish décor. Guests filling every corner. Expensive cakes. Carefully curated guest lists.

Everything had always been big.

Everything had always been visible.

But Anna’s birthdays had never looked like that.

Kathrine remembered the difference now, with a clarity that made her chest tighten.

While hers had been loud and celebrated, Anna’s had been quiet. Controlled. Protected under the excuse of "medical advice."

She had been too young to question it back then.

Too sheltered to notice the imbalance.

Now she did.

And that realization didn’t sit comfortably with her.

Her phone screen dimmed.

Kathrine sighed and sat up straight again.

"Loser," she muttered, though she wasn’t sure if she meant Daniel—or herself.

She unlocked her phone.

Calling might interrupt.

But a message wouldn’t.

Her fingers moved quickly across the screen.

Happy Birthday, Anna. I hope tonight reminds you how much you matter. You deserve to be celebrated—properly. Don’t let anyone dim that light. – K.

She paused for a second, reading it over.

It wasn’t dramatic.

It wasn’t overly sentimental.

But it was honest.

She hit send before she could overthink it.

The message delivered almost instantly.

Kathrine set her phone down on the coffee table and leaned back again, exhaling slowly.

She wouldn’t intrude on their night.

But she wasn’t going to stay silent either.

Whatever their past had been—whatever mistakes they had all made—

Tonight wasn’t about that. It was about acknowledging Anna’s existence.

And for once, doing it without noise. Without comparison. Just quietly.

The way it should have always been.