Farewell! My Cheating Husband
I spent a week in the hospital.
Today was the day I got discharged.
A message came in on my phone from my boyfriend Zack Redmond.
Wait for me at the hospital, I'll come to pick you up.
I understood; he was trying to make amends with me.
When the earthquake struck, he pushed me away, grabbed his true love Claire Meadows, and fled, leaving me alone in the crumbling room.
Later, I saw a picture on Claire's social media of them holding hands in the safety corridor during the earthquake.
The caption read: "True love is when disaster strikes, you push everything aside and run towards me."
Apparently, I represented "everything" that needed to be pushed aside
I left a cold message: "Don't forget to send me an invitation to your wedding."
Immediately, I called Zack to confront him.
It took eight calls before he finally answered.
In a calm tone, he said, "I've told you before, I had a history with her before, but now we are just friends. Can you stop being so petty?"
His accusation made me seem narrow-minded and unreasonably troublesome.
After a pause, he asked, "Are you okay?"
A day after the aftershock, and he finally remembered to ask if I was okay?
I didn't reply and hung up the phone.
We fell into a cold war.
It had been a week now.
In the past, whenever there was a conflict between Zack and me, I was the one trying to break the ice.
If by chance he initiated the reconciliation, I would have been pleasantly surprised.
Today, when he offered to pick me up from the hospital, I remained indifferent, just casually responding with "okay."
The hospital ward was tense after the aftershock, and the nurses had already completed my discharge procedures.
At the hospital's entrance, I called him, but no one answered.
The summer sun was scorching, making me feel anxious.
In no time, my clothes were drenched in sweat, and my head was spinning from the heat.
A taxi pulled over and asked if I needed a ride, but I declined.
I wanted to wait for Zack to come and pick me up, still holding onto a glimmer of hope.
And so, I stood under the scorching sun for over two hours.
The sun was blazing, and the weather was hot, but my heart was gradually cooling down.
For some inexplicable reason, I clicked on Claire's social media.
Her latest post read: "Zack was worried I'd get heatstroke, so he thoughtfully drove me home!"
The picture showed Zack's profile as he gripped the steering wheel, wearing our engagement ring on his hand.
I liked the post.
Zack couldn't be in two places at once, so I had to hail a cab back home by myself.
It was already noon, and there were hardly any taxis around.
I waited for half an hour before finally managing to flag down a cab.
I was nearly suffering from heatstroke.
Zack and I work at the same company. We started living together after getting engaged last year.
By the time I got home, it was already two o'clock.
Zack woke up from his nap and suddenly remembered he hadn't gone to the hospital to pick me up.
When I opened the door, he was busy on his phone while changing his shoes.
Upon seeing me, he hung up the phone.
"Why did you come back by yourself? I was just about to come get you!"
I smiled without saying a word.
He glanced at me, "Since you're back on your own, I'll head to work."
I still just smiled, saying nothing.
I went to the room, and drank some heat relief syrup, but still felt uncomfortable all over, so I took a quick shower and went to bed.
When I woke up, it was already past six, and I felt much better.
I hadn't eaten lunch, so I made a sumptuous dinner.
There were many dishes, but it was just enough for one person.
I was eating when Zack entered the room.
He went to the kitchen to wash his hands and opened the pot, but found it empty.
As he stood there staring at the empty pot in silence, I had already finished eating and was tidying up the table.
The meal was delicious, and I finished it all without wasting any.
As I was washing the dishes, he stood by watching me for a long time without saying a word.
Once I finished washing the dishes, he left the kitchen without a word, looking annoyed, and went to the study.
I still felt weak all over, so I went back to bed.
Throughout the night, Zack didn't return to the room.
When I woke up and saw the empty left side of the bed, I got up calmly.
He was still asleep, and I made breakfast for one person as usual.
By the time he woke up, I was already sitting at the table eating breakfast.
I kept my head down while eating, but I could feel his intense gaze on me.
Even when he slammed the door and left, I didn't look up.
After leisurely finishing breakfast and washing the dishes, I went to work.
My colleagues knew I was injured in the earthquake, so they voluntarily lightened my workload.
My boss, Lisa, called me over.
"Melody, have you thought about the overseas assignment?"
The company decided to send Lisa to explore the market in Franconia, and she wanted to take me with her. She had mentioned it several times.
I was quite tempted; following the boss to build a new market was an opportunity that would surely pay off in the future.
However, I had always been concerned about Zack and didn't want a long-distance relationship, so I hadn't agreed yet.
But now I nodded. "I've made up my mind. I'll go with you to Franconia to build our business."
Lisa patted my shoulder with a relieved expression. "Great, with your help, we will surely succeed."
At noon, when Zack messaged me, my colleagues had already bought lunch for me.
"Why are you so temperamental all of a sudden?"
I was a bit confused and didn't quite understand what he meant.
So, I didn't reply and just put my phone aside to eat.
When he didn't get a response, he sent another message after a while.
"I haven't had lunch yet."
Since Zack and I started living together, I'd been cooking breakfast and dinner for him, and I even ordered his lunch.
Sometimes, worried that too much takeout might not be good for his health, I would wake up early to prepare a packed lunch for him.
Even during our cold wars before, I wouldn't forget.
But he felt I was being too controlling, sometimes throwing the meals I made into the trash and ordering takeout instead.
Didn't he think takeout tastes better than what I cook?
I simply replied, "I forgot. Order takeout for yourself!"
I silenced my phone and focused on eating.
It wasn't until after finishing my meal that I saw Zack had messaged me again.
"Let's go home together tonight!"
I was stunned.
Zack believed that an office romance was bad for his career, so no one in the company knew about our relationship so far.
To avoid suspicion, we almost always commuted separately.
Still suffering from the aftereffects of heatstroke and feeling unwell all over, I didn't refuse.
I waited in the underground parking lot for forty minutes after work, but I didn't see his car.
I called him seven or eight times, but all I got was a busy tone.
So I decided not to call.
Twenty minutes later, he called me.
When I picked up, I heard his displeased voice. "Melody, what's going on? It's been an hour, and you still haven't come out?"
I could imagine the expression on his face as he said this, furrowed brows and tightly pressed lips.
Every time I saw him like that, I couldn't help but feel anxious, blaming myself for making him unhappy.
Regardless of who was right or wrong, I would always apologize first.
But this time, I looked around and said, "I've been waiting in the underground parking lot for an hour and still haven't seen your car."
He instinctively replied, "How is that possible? I'm at the usual spot, gate 3..."
Mid-sentence, he snapped back to reality and lowered his voice, "I'll come to pick you up right now!"
I remained silent for a moment and just said, "Hmm."
There was no "usual spot" for Zack and me.
Gate 3 was where Claire got off work.
It turned out he wasn't avoiding an office romance.
He was avoiding having an office romance with me.
I waited another half hour in the underground parking lot until Zack's car finally arrived.
The passenger seat window rolled down, revealing Claire's face with a sweet smile.
"Melody, sorry for keeping you waiting. I couldn't find a cab while shopping, so I had Zack pick me up first. You're not mad, are you?"
I smiled and opened the back seat, getting in. "Not at all."
Zack thought it was a bit much and explained, "It's hotter outside than in the underground parking lot, so I went to pick her up first."
I chuckled, "It is quite hot outside."
He glanced at me through the rearview mirror, saw my natural expression, and stayed silent.
Zack noticed my unusual behavior, knowing that in the past, whenever he neglected me for Claire, I would definitely make a scene.
I'd even act like a lunatic, constantly asking whether Claire was more important than me.
He would always impatiently rebuke me, "I've said it before, Claire and I are just normal friends now. Why do you keep harping on it? Can't I have a past?"
After saying that, he would slam the door and leave me alone in the quiet room, tearful and self-reflective, wondering if I was truly being too petty.
Was I really so petty and unwilling to let go?
It was just that in this relationship, he had never given me any sense of security.
As I was lost in memories, the sound of Claire munching on potato chips echoed in my ears.
I instinctively glanced at the driver's seat.
Zack didn't say anything.
"Melody." Claire leaned over the seat and offered me some. "Have some!"
Zack suddenly spoke up, "She doesn't eat them. Potato chip crumbs are hard to clean up in the car."
"Oh!" Claire awkwardly said, "Zack, sorry, I just dropped some crumbs too."
Zack replied nonchalantly, "It's okay, I'll clean it up."
I quietly listened to their conversation, my thoughts inevitably drifting back to the past.
Back when we first started living together, I was running late and didn't have time for breakfast, so I brought a pack of cookies into his car.
Seeing me holding the cookies, he yelled at me to throw them in the trash.
"Throw them away. No eating in my car."
I explained to him, "I have low blood sugar and need to eat something. Don't worry, I'll be careful not to drop crumbs in the car."
But he didn't listen to my explanation and insisted that I throw them away.
When I refused, he actually kicked me out of the car, then hit the gas, leaving me behind in the garage.
It was snowing that day, and the weather was freezing. I struggled in high heels to reach the platform, waiting for over half an hour in the cold wind, nearly freezing solid before the bus arrived.
I was inevitably late to the office. Lisa, considering the weather conditions, didn't scold me.
While waiting for the bus, I almost fainted from low blood sugar, but fortunately, I didn't toss away the cookies. I ate two pieces and recovered.
But now, I heard him casually telling another woman, "It's okay. I'll clean it up."
It turned out his principles vary from person to person.
And I wasn't the one who could make him break his principles.
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