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“Face it—you've always been his backup plan. His last resort.”
“I'm tired of this. I'm stepping aside. Let's get a divorce.”
There was no anger left in me, just a hollow certainty.
When you're hurt enough, you just go numb.
“David, are you serious?" She rolled her eyes, a familiar condescension in her voice. "You're throwing a tantrum over this? Threatening divorce? Grow up.”
“I know you're upset about the... situation. I'll be staying at the hospital with Jake. We can take some time apart for you to clam down.”
“But this is the last time I'll tolerate you using divorce as a threat. If you dsay it again, I won't take you back.”
Then she packed a bag and walked out.
She didn't believe I meant it. She thought I was just being emotional, that I'd eventually come crawling back like I always did.
I guess that's what always happened before. Every argument ended with me apologizing.
I thought I was being loving, committed. She saw it as weakness.
I don't know if Lily is just a hopeless romantic or just has a profound victim complex.
Back in college, no matter how horribly Jake treated her, she'd twist it into a sign of his secret affection.
Once someone teased them about dating, and Jake snapped, “I'd never date her.” He was cruel. But Lily said he was just “protecting her reputation.”
There was this girl who liked Jake and bullied Lily constantly, and Jake flirted with the bully, Lily decided he was "distracting" the girl to keep her safe.
There were so many stories like that.
The truth was simple. Jake didn't care about Lily. She wasn't even on his radar.
If he weren't desperate, he wouldn't even remember she existed.
That's probably why she married me in the first place—she knew she'd never have Jake, so she settled for me.
Maybe I'm no better. I did my share of foolish things for what I thought was love.
But at least I'm awake now. Nothing she does can hurt me anymore.
My phone rang. It was my cousin. “David... did you know Lily terminated the pregnancy? And she's donating part of her liver to some guy?”
I asked, “How did you find out?”
“I saw her at the hospital. I was visiting a friend in the same ward as this Jake guy.”
