1 Four years into our marriage, my husband, Leo Williams, who never posts anything, broke his social media silence with a new story. 【What a greedy little kitten.】 The picture was of a girl wearing a pink cat-ear headband, her cheeks flushed red and tongue stuck out from the spice of the hot pot she was eating. It was Holly, the new streamer at his company. Less than a minute later, a comment from a mutual friend popped up: 【Bro, you forgot to switch accounts!】 And just like that, Leo’s new post vanished like a phantom. But it reappeared moments later on Holly’s own social media page. Then, his call came through. The old me would have already screenshotted it, called him first, and launched into a tirade. It would have ended in a screaming match, no question. But this time, I was thoughtful enough to let the call ring until it went to voicemail. … By the time Leo got home, I was nearly asleep on the sofa. He slipped off his jacket and bent down to change his shoes. “Why didn't you answer my call?” Leo rarely prodded like this unless he knew, deep down, that he was in the wrong. “Fell asleep,” I mumbled without lifting my head. “Didn’t hear it.” “Had to work late unexpectedly. You don’t always have to wait up for me. You don’t have to make yourself so pathetic.” The old me would have shot back, insisting loudly that I did it because I loved him. But there was no point in arguing anymore. Leo handed me a square velvet box, gesturing for me to open it. Today was the day his company went public. To celebrate, I had done what I always did: left work early, bought groceries, cooked his favorite meal, and waited for him to come home. But I had waited half the night for a man who had promised he’d be home early, and he never came. I pretended not to notice the thick, greasy smell of hot pot clinging to his clothes as I took the box and set it aside on the coffee table. I’d seen this box before. The last time was when he’d missed my birthday. The logo, the floral pattern—it was identical. Leo stared at the box for a moment, his brow furrowing. His voice dropped. “Sienna, can you stop being so childish?” Buying me jewelry was Leo’s standard way of offering an olive branch. As long as I accepted the gift, the unpleasantness between us would be swept under the rug, never to be mentioned again. But this time, I had no intention of taking his olive branch. And that, naturally, made him angry. “Let me put it on for you.” Not giving me a chance to refuse, he opened the box and took out the bracelet inside. He reached for my wrist, but his hands froze when he saw the identical bracelet already clasped there. “Just leave it,” I said, pulling my hand back and rising from the sofa, ready for bed. “It’s late. We both have work tomorrow.” “I’ll have my assistant take you to pick out something new another day.” “No need,” I replied, my voice as cold as ice. 2 Perhaps out of guilt for the duplicate gift, Leo suggested we drive to the office together the next morning. My body ached, and I didn’t feel like driving, so I didn’t refuse. Leo stood in front of his car, his brow knitted so tightly the lines almost touched. At some point, he had started to despise me riding in his car, especially in the passenger seat. He’d even pushed me to buy my own car to avoid it. It was probably because I used to fight with him like a maniac over my right to that seat. He’d grown tired of it. But now, for Holly’s convenience, his car was a shrine to her. It was filled with cat-themed plush toys and decorated with cute, hand-drawn stickers. He’d even had the passenger seat professionally redesigned, just to make sure the petite Holly was perfectly comfortable. Seeing me waiting, however, he finally pulled the door open and started moving the mountain of plush toys to the back seat. Watching him go back and forth, I frowned. “You know what? I’ll just drive myself.” He tossed the last stuffed cat into the back. “No, let’s go together. Holly’s just… whimsical. She loves these little trinkets. Don’t mind them.” I stared at the pink, custom-fitted seat, a piece of a different world dropped jarringly into the car’s sleek interior. I refused. It was, I decided, deeply unsettling. I reached for my own car door, but Leo shot forward to block me, sliding into my driver’s seat instead. “I’ll drive. I said we’d go together.” I watched him for a long moment, not missing the flicker of discomfort in his eyes. So, he did know how inappropriate it was to transform his passenger seat for another woman. Leo looked like he wanted to explain, but I cut him off. “We’re going to be late. Just drive.” He pressed his lips into a thin line and started the car. While we were stopped at a red light, his phone rang. It was a custom ringtone, one I didn't recognize. A pitiful, whiny voice came through the speaker, punctuated by faint sobs. “Leo… my tummy hurts so bad… I think it was something I ate yesterday. Can you please come take me to the hospital? Please, Leo? You’re the best.” After he hung up, Leo didn’t even glance at me. He didn’t say a word. He just yanked the steering wheel, pulled over to the curb, and quickly unbuckled my seatbelt for me. His tone was final, leaving no room for argument. “An employee isn’t feeling well. I have to go check on her. We’re almost at the office. You can walk the rest of the way.” I hadn’t even had time to close the door before he hit the gas and the car peeled away, leaving me standing in a cloud of exhaust. 3 Honestly, at this hour, almost no one walked to work. When the light turned green, the driver of an e-scooter, probably not expecting a pedestrian in the crosswalk, rounded the corner and slammed right into me. My hands, knees, and forehead were scraped up to varying degrees. The nurse cleaned my wounds, placed a large bandage on my forehead, and gave me instructions. “Try to keep it dry for the next few days. No baths. And apply this ointment on schedule.” I took a cab from the hospital to the office. The driver had two phones mounted on his dashboard. One was for navigation. The other was streaming Holly’s live broadcast. The comment section was flooded with messages of concern. “Aww, thank you all for caring so much! Your kitty is fine, I promise. It’s a good thing Leo got here so quickly! I don’t even need to go to the hospital anymore.” “Nooo, I haven’t confessed my feelings to him yet! Stop saying that, you guys! He’s sitting right here watching. Yes, he’s super, super sweet.” I looked down at my own phone. Two messages from Leo sat there, seething with anger and impatience. “My assistant said you missed the project planning meeting today. Where were you? Get to the office now.” “I ask you to walk a few blocks and you throw another one of your fits? What is wrong with you?” The hypocrisy was staggering. That evening, I had just finished applying ointment to my cuts and was curled up on the sofa watching TV. The sound of the front door’s keypad broke the silence, followed by Leo’s mocking voice. “And here I thought you’d finally learned your lesson. You’ve been so quiet these past few days. Turns out you were just waiting for this.” The TV must have been too loud for him, because he strode over and ripped the plug from the wall. “Sienna, do you have a brain in your head? We’ve been preparing for that project meeting for two weeks! Do you have any idea how much money the company loses when a project is delayed?” I looked up at his face, contorted with disgust. Then I saw him freeze. His gaze locked onto the bandage on my forehead, then traveled down to the raw scrapes on my hands and legs. He frowned. “What happened to you?” I broke his gaze, my voice casual. “It’s nothing. Just got hit by a vehicle on my way to work.” Leo’s eyes flickered, and a hint of guilt crossed his face. He stepped closer, trying to inspect my injuries. “Why didn’t you call me?” I flinched away from his touch, a humorless smirk on my face. “It’s just a scratch. Nothing important. I’m sure your employee was a higher priority.” Was there any point in calling him? He’d answer the phone and, without asking a single question, launch into a tirade of baseless accusations and complaints. Did he ever actually care what I had to say? He never came when I called before. Why would today be any different? My words stung him. He straightened up, a cold sneer on his face. “Sienna, do you have to be so sarcastic? It was wrong of me to leave you on the side of the road, I admit it. But are you a child? You can’t even walk down the street without getting hit by a car?” I stared at him, speechless. You see? Even a simple statement of fact was twisted into sarcasm, immaturity, a childish taunt. I had no intention of engaging with him. I got up and started for the bedroom. Noticing how much pain I was in as I walked, Leo’s expression softened slightly. He sighed and came over to help me. “I’ll sleep with you tonight. That way I can take care of you.” It had been a long time since Leo had come to bed before midnight. Holly had claimed that the constant harassment from viewers on her stream was making her anxious, that she was afraid of becoming depressed. She insisted he stay with her during her broadcasts. So every night, Leo would go to his study, half-working, half-watching her stream. He would frequently join her on camera for a “sweet interaction.” I had fought with him about it, cried, screamed—nothing changed his mind. Leo was adamant that it was “just work.” He finally threatened me with divorce, and I had no choice but to back down. I didn’t refuse his offer. But as he reached out to pull me into his arms, I spoke softly. “Leo, let’s get a divorce.”
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