Is it because He's Back

This was the third time.

Three times, I had tried to tell him, and three times, I had been turned away.

Reflection led me to conclude, maybe we didn't have the destined relationship.

I was glad that I did not tell him, this way, the divorce would be more straightforward and neat.

In a big city like California, getting a divorce would mean, we would scarcely bump into each other.

There is a chance that he may never know in his whole life that we share a child.

Upon hearing my thoughts, Amelia agreed, saying, "A child would never want a trash father.

Not telling him is the right thing to do."

It was only a little past two in the afternoon when I walked out of the hospital after finishing my IV.

Amelia, supporting me, walked towards the parking lot, saying, "Your car was sent for repairs to the 4S shop.

It got pretty banged up and would take about a week to fix.

I will accompany you to pick it up once it's ready.

For the next few days, just give me a call wherever you want to go, and my driver, Samuel, will be at your service."

"I couldn't help but laugh, "Are you planning to hover around me all day?

Don't you have work? Don't worry, I have another car."

Richard may have never given me love, but he never made me lack a house, a car, or money.

Little did he know, love was the only thing I wanted.

"The doctor said you still need to be under observation for two days after returning home; driving is probably the last thing on your list," she said.

Without thinking, Amelia tried to poke at my face.

But when she saw the bandage on my forehead, she sheepishly withdrew her hand.

In the midst of conversation, we got into the car and quickly left the parking lot.

Amelia wanted to smoke, but in deference for my pregnant state, she put it back.

"I originally wanted to accompany you to the graveyard, but given that you just got a fright and are carrying a child, it's better to put it off.

First, take care of your matters with Richard. Once everything is settled, it won't be too late to pay a visit to your father and mother."

"Okay."

The car drove in the direction of my home.

However, it was soon no longer my home.

A new person would soon move into the space I had painstakingly decorated, then erase all traces of my existence.

Richard will probably forget about my existence in his life rather quickly. ...

When I got home, I realized that my phone had run out of power.

When I plugged it in, a string of missed calls popped up on the screen.

They were from Richard.

This was the first time he had called me this many times, after I had decided to divorce him.

In addition, there was a photo from a strange number.

It was the same number that sent that video half a month ago. In the picture, the president of the Lincoln Corporation, Richard, surprisingly held popcorn and an ice cream cone in his hands.

Standing close to him was Bianca.

The time was just before I woke up in the hospital.

Turns out, they were just on a date.

He left his wife who was supposed to go to the hospital, just to accompany his first love on a date.

What a heartfelt and touching play.

A bitter smile spread across my lips, and I sat by the window with my phone for a long, long time.

He didn't come back.

In the evening, Aunt Sandra called me to dinner.

The meal tasted as bland as wax.

Thinking of my child, I forced myself to drink a bowl of porridge and ate a few shrimps, then wiped my mouth with a napkin.

Getting up to go upstairs, I made a call to Amelia and then began to pack up my things.

Three years is not a long time, yet I had a lot of stuff.

I'm not used to having others handle my stuff, and I don't like to leave anything behind to annoy others.

One by one, everything went into my suitcases.

"Missus..." Aunt Sandra passed by the door and was puzzled by the sight of several large suitcases in the room, "Are you planning a trip abroad?"

"No."

I shook my head and gently said, "I'm moving out.

If there's anything I leave behind, could you keep it safe for me? I'll arrange for a courier to pick it up."

Aunt Sandra seemed confused, "Why do you want to move out so suddenly? Did you have a fight with your husband? I'll call Grandpa right now, he can persuade him!"

"Aunt Sandra, grandpa's blood pressure has been unstable lately, we can't stress him out.

Besides, Richard didn't fight with me, I just don't want to live with him anymore."

How could he argue with me? I'm not even up to his level.

Seeing my decision, Aunt Sandra could only anxiously look at me, wanting to persuade me otherwise, but she had witnessed all three years of my marriage to Richard.

How we respected each other.

I fooled myself then, pretending that Richard's distant demeanor was just his personality.

But Aunt Sandra probably knew better, she knew about Richard's past with Bianca.

In the end, she failed to come up with any words to persuade me.

As I closed up my last suitcase, the sound of a car's engine echoed from the courtyard. Richard had returned. Perhaps Aunt Sandra had told him something.

He hurried up the stairs, his gaze falling on the suitcases set next to each other, and eventually landed on my forehead.

His voice trembled slightly, "Your forehead, how did you get hurt?"

With a bitter laugh, I replied, "It's nothing.

I just had a car accident while you were on a date with her."

His icy, placid eyes flinched slightly.

Standing by the edge of the bed, I clutched my hand, "Richard, we should..." —

Divorce.

The resolution was firm, I knew there was no turning back.

But having to face the man I had loved for seven good years, I felt a blockage in my throat, making it impossible to utter those three words.

I couldn't clearly differentiate if it was him I couldn't let go of, or the intense passion I harbored for myself once upon a time.

"Sophia!" Richard became stern, cutting off my remaining words.

He closed the distance in three strides and held me in his arms,

"This is your home.

Where are you moving with all your luggage?"

"Let me go!"

A mix of woody cold fragrance melded with a woman's perfume wafted into my nostrils, making me feel nauseous—and I struggled fiercely.

"Let me go! Richard!"

"No."

His grip was so forceful that my feeble struggles seemed negligible to him, akin to a mayfly shaking a tree.

I felt an indescribable sense of powerlessness.

Taking a deep breath, I asked,

"Why persist? I'm willing to let both of you be, can't you do the same for me?"

Burying his head in the crook of my neck, his voice held traces of anxiety, "

Sophia, I never thought of divorcing you."

"Is that so?"

"I want to laugh, but I can't.

My emotions are escalating rapidly, and in a hysterical tone, I say, 'But I do want to.

I'm tired, I don't want to continue living this way anymore! I don't want there to always be a third person in my marriage!'"

"It won't happen again, it really won't."

He holds me very tight, then loosens his grip a little concerned I might feel pain.

"It won't happen again?"

I seize the opportunity to push him away and look at him with disappointment and resentment, "Have you forgotten?

You said the same thing a week ago, and I also said there won't be a next time.

He probably thought I was just saying for the sake of it.

He doesn't realize that that sentence, more than anything else, was aimed at me.

No more next, I cannot continue to let myself spiral down this path.

He closes his eyes, "She slit her wrists this morning and was admitted to the hospital.

I just wanted to visit her."

"I know."

I shrug my shoulders, trying to sound as relaxed and composed as possible,

"I'm aware of it all.

Her mother saved your life once.

She slit her wrists, you of course couldn't ignore.

It's absolutely normal for you to want to visit her."

"After your visit, you realise, if you had arrived two minutes earlier, her wound would have started healing.

You should be a bit annoyed, but she kept throwing tantrums.

She told you that if you spent the day with her, she wouldn't bother you anymore."

Under Richard's ambiguous expression, I continue speaking, "In truth, you didn't believe her, but you indulged her nonetheless.

For whatever reason, only you, Richard, would know.

I honestly can't guess."

"Either way, I no longer wish to be caught in between you two."

"Richard, let's get a divorce."

The air seems to freeze with the fall of those words.

Richard's tall frame stiffens, his dark eyes stare at me like a hawk.

After a moment, he loses his usual gentleness and says, mockingly,

"Is it because he's back?"