Chapter 5

Hearing Thaddeus call me "darling" made me feel somewhat nauseous. "What if I don't want to?" I shot back. This man in front of me had decided to abort my child without even the slightest hesitation. Suddenly, I couldn't help but wonder whether losing the ability to bear children was a good thing for me. At least my child wouldn't have to be born into such a failed family. "Darling—" "Just kidding," I interrupted, burying myself in his chest with a chuckle. "The doctor already said that I can't have children. Thank you, darling, for staying by my side all these years." And thanks for everything he did for me. … Soon, the weekend arrived. Thaddeus woke up early, pressed a kiss to my face, swiftly whipped up some food for me, then came back to whisper, "Mari, I'm taking Lucille and Dan out now. You stay safe at home. If anything comes up, call me immediately." I hummed in response, then, with tears streaming down my face, turned on my phone. Rowena was already downstairs. Even before Thaddeus had gotten up, I'd already received a photo from her. Waiting inside the car, she bragged, "So what if you married him, Marisol? So what if you're his wife? I'm the one who'll give him a child. "You're not naive enough to think they're really going to the house in the suburbs to reminisce about me, are you? Don't be foolish. I've been living there all these years. Today, I'm going in for my prenatal checkup. "I'd only just casually mentioned that I wanted my whole family to go with me for the checkup, and Mom, Dad, and Thaddeus all agreed. "Just like six years ago. I'd only needed to shed a few fake tears, and Mom and Dad sacrificed you to protect my reputation. You really have led a pathetic life." Along with her messages was a flurry of photos. Over the past six years, Thaddeus would always find time to travel with Rowena. Sometimes they'd even bring Mom and Dad along. The family of four would travel everywhere, enjoying the sights and sounds. And I, the big fool, had actually taken delight in the trivial souvenirs he'd brought back for me. Endless despair surged through me, numbing my heart. After closing the chat window, I bought a plane ticket for the next day. Given Rowena's personality, she wouldn't let them return that night, which meant I could use the remaining time to leave this place. Around noon, I haphazardly ate a few bits of food before sorting through the evidence I had. I should actually thank Rowena. If she hadn't jumped the gun, I wouldn't have all this leverage. This was just like giving a pillow to a sleepy person. With all this material, not only could I make Thaddeus leave the marriage empty-handed, but I could also expose their true nature before leaving. By the time I finished, it was already 10:00 pm. As expected, Thaddeus had no intention of coming home for the night. He video-called me. The camera was blurry, so I couldn't quite make out the background, but I could clearly sense that Rowena was right beside him. I didn't expose them, however. I just smiled and promised him that I'd take good care of myself. … The next morning, I woke up very early. A lot of people were at the house—the renovation team I had called. Anything that I couldn't take with me, I asked them to remove. As for the small trinkets, I saw similar ones in Rowena's social media posts. However, mine were clearly the gifts that came with the actual purchase. I naturally had no interest in things others didn't want. Two hours later, the renovation team left carrying piles of their spoils. As for me, I gathered all the photos we'd taken together over the years, set them alight, and burned them. The fire alarm in the house wailed loudly as I walked out, my suitcase rolling behind me. This was my last gift to Thaddeus. By the time he returned, I would already be long gone from this city.