Margaret clutched her chest, fumbling for her medicine.
“You nearly scared me to death, Lily. You really don’t know when to keep quiet.”
I looked her dead in the eye.
“Didn’t Chloe say the same things? I thought that was the Brooks family tradition at dinner.”
Robert instantly stiffened.
“Chloe’s just a girl—she’s your sister-in-law! You’re the elder! What kind of example is that?”
“You really want to kill us with anger?”
Ethan finally calmed down.
“Lily Carter, apologize to my parents and to Chloe!”
I stared at him coldly.
“No. I don’t think I did anything wrong.”
“When Chloe said it, none of you reacted. I thought you liked this kind of talk.”
Scanning their faces, I couldn’t stand another second. I turned to leave, but Ethan yanked me back.
“Lily, this is the Brooks family dinner! Try leaving and see what happens!”
“Chloe is my sister—how can you stoop to her level?”
Right. Chloe was his sister.
That’s why she could wear my wedding gown at my own ceremony, brushed off as childish mischief.
That’s why she could lie openly on our marital bed, excused as some ridiculous family tradition.
Because she was the sister, I always had to give in.
She could call me an old hag in jest—I had to endure.
She could mock me for my age—I had to swallow it.
Two years of marriage, and I’d lost count of how many times I’d tolerated her.
Not anymore.
I said coldly, “Ethan Brooks, we’re done.”
He froze, unable to react. Robert and Margaret panicked too.
Chloe quickly hurried over, grabbing my arm with feigned sweetness.
“Lily, I know you don’t mean it. You’ve only been married two years, still in the honeymoon stage. Why talk about divorce?”
“It’s my fault. I know I was wrong. I won’t say those things again, okay?”
“It’s just that after so many years, I can’t stop leaning on my brother. I lost my sense of boundaries.”
She tugged me with one hand and pulled Ethan closer with the other.
“Ethan, go comfort Lily! Don’t let her really divorce you. What if she’s pregnant for real one day? You’ll regret it!”
“What, do you really want me to be a child bride? I don’t even want to get married!”
She kept shooting looks at Ethan.
And the next moment, Ethan gave in.
“Fine, Lily, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have spoken harshly or doubted you.”
“Don’t make a scene. Do it for me, okay?”
“My parents are watching.”
I stared at his anxious, perfunctory face—and laughed.
Even when apologizing, he needed Chloe to prompt him.
“See? That’s why I want a divorce.”
“Ethan, I’ve had enough.”
I shook him off and got into the car, not looking back.
He didn’t chase me. Instead, he posted photos on social media of the family dinner—without me.
The four of them, all smiles. After I left, Chloe slipped right into my seat beside Ethan.
When they clinked glasses, she deliberately brushed his hand. Their eyes met, the flirtatious tension stabbing at my heart.
The only comments came from Robert and Margaret:
“We’ll always be one family, never apart.”
At 1 a.m., Ethan came home.
I was lying in bed, awake but unwilling to open my eyes.
I’d given him countless chances.
Even I found it pathetic.
Maybe that’s just how women are—harsh words on the lips, but always giving the man another step down.
