After My Fiancée Cheated on Me, I Asked for a Divorce

1

Today was the day Essie Parrish and I were supposed to get our marriage certificate. We were sitting in the waiting area at City Hall, waiting for our number to be called. Just as it was about to be our turn, Essie received a phone call, and her face suddenly changed.

I asked her what was wrong.

She said anxiously, "Kermit had a car accident. I have to go to the hospital."

Kermit Fox was her ex-boyfriend.

Essie grabbed her bag and ran out of City Hall. I chased after her and stopped her. "Kermit is in the hospital. There are doctors and nurses to take care of him. Do you really need to rush there right now?"

Essie turned to look at me, her face full of worry. "Ervin, you know Kermit has no family here. He needs me right now."

With that, she got into a taxi and sped off.

The whispers from the couples around injured my pride.

I left City Hall and drove to the hospital.

When I found Essie, she and Kermit were sitting on the waiting bench in the corridor. Essie was peeling an apple for him.

Essie was surprised to see me. "What are you doing here?"

I was speechless. How was I supposed to get the certificate without her?

I glanced at Kermit, who looked perfectly fine. His face was clear, his clothes clean, and his hair neatly styled. He didn't look like someone who had just been in a car accident.

Essie explained, "Kermit cut his hand."

She even showed me the wound on Kermit's wrist.

This wound was more like it was about to heal than anything needing urgent care.

I held back my anger and asked Kermit, "Are you okay?"

Kermit rubbed his temples, pretending to be weak. "It's nothing serious. I'm just a little dizzy. I'll be fine. You don't need to worry about me."

"What a considerate guy!" I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and said to Essie, "Since he's fine, let's go back. City Hall hasn't closed yet."

Essie hesitated. "Ervin, I really can't leave right now. There's no rush to get the certificate. We can do it another day."

Her words made my heart sink into a cold abyss.

To her, even the smallest thing about Kermit was a big deal, while no matter how big something was for me, it was nothing.

I remembered when Essie and I were on vacation, Kermit called, and she cut our trip short.

Another time, I was cutting a cake, and Kermit texted that he had a fever. Essie immediately left my birthday to take care of him.

Even when we were watching a movie, and it reached the most exciting part, as long as Kermit called her, she would choose him over me without hesitation.

I had argued with her about this many times, but she always denied having any feelings for Kermit. She would always say Kermit was just a friend.

A friend was more important than a fiancé.

2

Watching Essie cut the peeled apple into small pieces and feed them to Kermit, I couldn't take it anymore.

I said, "Essie, choose one—me or Kermit."

Essie didn't even look up, sounding a bit annoyed. "Ervin, don't be childish. I'm already dealing with enough."

Kermit looked at me with a mocking gaze, as if to say Essie's choice was obvious.

I closed my eyes, turned around, and left the hospital.

That evening, I got a call from Essie's mother. Before I could say anything, she spoke in a dissatisfied tone. "Why haven't you two come back yet? Didn't you say you'd come home for dinner after getting the certificate? Her father and I have been waiting, but we haven't seen either of you."

I calmly asked, "Essie hasn't come home yet?"

Of course, I knew the answer. Whenever she was with Kermit, she never remembered the time.

Essie's mom was surprised. "What? Essie isn't with you? Ervin, did you do something to upset her? Let me warn you, we agreed to the marriage, but you can't mistreat our Essie. Her father and I won't stand for it."

I patiently listened to her rant and threats, then sighed. "Mrs. Parrish, Essie and I didn't get the certificate. We've broken up."

Ending this relationship wasn't a rash decision. I realized that no matter how much I did, I couldn't move someone who didn't love me.

That night, I drank alone until I blacked out. When I woke up, I found myself lying in my bed.

The air was filled with the enticing smell of food. Rubbing my temples, I walked to the living room and saw a bowl of steaming oatmeal on the table.

In the kitchen, Mable Wyatt was washing dishes.

Mable and her parents lived upstairs. We had been childhood friends and remained close over the years. But after I started dating Essie, I kept a distance from female friends to respect her feelings. I hadn't kept in touch with Mable much in recent years.

Seeing me awake, Mable dried her hands and walked over to explain, "When I got home last night, I saw you sleeping by your door, and the keys were on the ground. So, I took the liberty of bringing you inside."

I scratched my head, feeling embarrassed, and thanked her.

Mable advised, "Don't drink too much. You know your stomach can't handle it. Have the oatmeal while it's still warm. I'll head back now."

She opened the door but stopped at the entrance.

3

"What's wrong?" I asked.

I walked over curiously and saw Essie and Kermit standing at my front door.

The atmosphere froze for a moment. Essie spoke first, her tone sour and aggrieved. "No wonder you said all that nonsense to my mom and didn't contact me all night. You had a date with another woman."

Mable explained, "You've got it wrong. Last night, Ervin..."

I cut off her explanation and said to Essie, "My business is none of your concern. We've already broken up."

Essie got flustered. "What breakup? Did you discuss it with me? Did I agree?"

I glanced at Kermit and smirked, "Did you discuss it with me when you ditched me for him? Did I agree?"

Essie was left speechless. Kermit immediately stepped forward to protect her.

He said, "Don't blame Essie. It's my fault. I shouldn't have asked for her help. I panicked at the time."

I laughed coldly, "No worries. She can take care of you wholeheartedly from now on."

Essie got upset. "Ervin, Kermit already feels bad enough. What's with all the sarcasm?"

Kermit quickly held Essie back. "Essie, stop talking. You'll make Ervin angry."

Watching their perfect harmony, I couldn't help but want to applaud.

I decided to lay on the sarcasm thick. "Oh yes, you're absolutely right."

Essie stomped her foot in anger and embarrassment. "Ervin, don't push it. I came to find you. Do you want me to call off the wedding?"

I couldn't help but laugh, "Please, I wasn't planning on marrying you anyway."

Essie stared at me in disbelief, seemingly unable to believe such heartless words could come from my mouth.

Kermit supported the swaying Essie and loudly berated me, "Ervin, how can you treat Essie like this?"

I nearly rolled my eyes. When men acted coy, they really gave women a run for their money.

I remained unmoved and looked at Kermit with contempt. "What's the matter? You're always going on about 'Essie this' and 'Essie that', acting like you couldn't live without her. Now that I'm letting you two be together, shouldn't you be thrilled?"

Kermit's face darkened. "You..."

He stuttered for a while, unable to come up with a single word to refute me.

I waved my hand at them impatiently. "I won't invite you in. Have a safe trip home."

Essie ran off in anger, with Kermit chasing after her.

The hallway fell silent again. I looked at the bewildered Mable and awkwardly smiled, "Sorry about the mess."

Mable hesitated for a moment before advising, "You've been together for so long. Don't be rash."

"It's not rashness," I said. "We've already broken up."

Thinking of Essie, I surprisingly didn't feel sad. I guess I had stored up enough disappointment and finally saw reality.

At that moment, I felt a sense of relief, as if I had been reborn.

4

The news of my broken engagement reached my mother in the North. Her comforting voice came through the phone, "The Parrish family is too difficult to deal with. It's better this way. I'll introduce you to a much nicer girl."

My parents divorced when I was in high school. The court granted custody to my mother, but she waited until after my college entrance exams to remarry and move north.

Years of loneliness and lack of family affection had made me yearn deeply for love.

I dreamed of having a home with someone I loved. Even though Essie constantly disappointed me, I still believed in her, thinking she would eventually see my worth.

I had been naïve before, but thankfully, I cut my losses in time.

To my surprise, three days later, my mother arranged a blind date for me. She said the girl was a friend's daughter, a wonderful person, and had already set up the time and place. I had no choice but to agree.

What I didn't expect was that my blind date turned out to be Mable.

Seeing her equally bewildered expression, I couldn't help but burst into laughter.

My mother hadn't lied. Mable was indeed her friend's daughter. Not only was she beautiful, but she also had a fantastic personality.

Looking at the nervous Mable, I blurted out, "Will you marry me?"

Mable seemed stunned, staring at me without responding.

I belatedly realized how abrupt and frivolous I sounded, especially since I had just broken up with my ex-girlfriend. She must have thought I was looking for an emotional rebound.

Just as I was about to explain myself, Mable, blushing, nodded solemnly and said, "Okay."

Now it was my turn to be stunned.

Back in the day, Mable had been the campus beauty, pursued by countless boys.

Although we were childhood friends, she had always been like a goddess to me. I never dared to imagine having any kind of romantic story with her.

At that moment, I felt a dizzying sense of incredible luck.

Both sets of parents quickly learned about our relationship. My mother even flew back from the North overnight to host a gathering, enthusiastically organizing a dinner for both families.

Everyone was overjoyed to see each other. My mother, holding Mable's hand, exclaimed emotionally, "Mable, I'm entrusting my son Ervin to you from now on. If he ever mistreats you, tell me, and I'll fly back to teach him a lesson."

I could only stand there, speechless.

The parents on both sides eagerly began discussing our wedding plans.

Feeling uneasy, I pulled Mable out of the private room and carefully said, "If you think this is moving too fast, I can explain to them."

After all, she was a young girl, and I didn't want her to feel rushed into such a major life decision.

Mable looked at me with a hint of confusion. "Are you getting cold feet?"

I was taken aback, then straightened my back defiantly. "Of course not!"

Mable smiled. "Then let's get married."

A month later, Mable and I obtained our marriage certificate.

Looking at the booklet, I happily lifted Mable and spun her around before sharing the news on social media.

When Essie angrily came to pound on our door, Mable and I were just returning from grocery shopping, hand in hand.

Essie, panting, demanded, "Did you marry someone randomly just to spite me? To get my attention?"

She grabbed my hand, hysterically shouting, "Go get a divorce. Now!"