My husband, Martin Wells, had always hated children. Yet, he suddenly fell in love with our neighbor’s baby. Every night, he stayed up late taking care of the child. He ignored me completely, even when I had a car accident and needed surgery.
Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore, so I filed for divorce at the party that was meant to celebrate my discharge from the hospital. Immediately, all of my friends and family responded that the car accident had damaged my brain.
In response, Martin threw wine onto my face and shouted angrily, “I couldn’t take care of you because you got yourself into an accident and got yourself hospitalized! Are you seriously jealous of a six-month-old baby?”
I slowly wiped the wine that dirtied my gown as I glared at the mysterious red marks on his neck, saying coldly, “Since you love her child so much, I’ll let you stay with them forever after we divorce.”
——
Martin’s face showed confusion and emotion at the same time. Without further ado, he pulled up his collar to hide his neck.
His eyes turned red with anger as he yelled, “Sophia, what do you mean? I went to care for Nancy so I could learn how to take care of babies … for our future children! And now you want a divorce for such a ridiculous reason? Have you gone crazy?”
I ignored his shouting and kept my expression calm. Instead, I took the divorce papers from my bag and handed them to him.
“Sign it. We’ll meet at the Town Hall tomorrow morning.”
Everyone around us was shocked, staring at me in disbelief. But I couldn’t care less. I held the divorce papers before turning to leave. They couldn’t believe that a couple everyone admired could fall apart so suddenly.
Martin looked stunned, clearly not expecting me to have already prepared the documents. When my mother saw how serious I was, she realized I wasn’t joking. She was the first to pick up the divorce papers from the table. After reading them, her face darkened.
“Sophia, are you really going through with this? Both you and Martin have been married for ten years. Everything between you seemed fine. What happened?”
Everyone tried to talk me out of it, even Martin’s friends.
“Yes, Sophia, you and Martin have been together for ten years. Don’t let a neighbor’s baby come between you.”
“The neighbor is a single mother. Martin’s just helping her because he feels sorry for her. Are you really that petty?”
“He didn’t want kids because he didn’t want to mess up your career. How come you don’t understand that he’s being considerate for your sake?”
The people around me accused me of being heartless. Still, I said nothing. I still handed the divorce papers back to Martin.
“This marriage needs to be over. I will not stand it anymore.”
My father arrived after hearing the news. He quickly slapped me hard across the face, which burned instantly. Holding my swollen cheek, I heard him yell furiously, “You ungrateful girl! How dare you divorce a man as good as Martin? I’ll beat some sense into you!”
“Martin has supported you for years so you could focus on your career. And now you want to leave him? Do you even know shame?”
My mother instantly put herself between her and my father, grabbing my hand and speaking softly but firmly, “Sophia, talk it out if you have problems. Don’t get a divorce. You’ll never find a husband this good again. If you’re divorcing because you’ve fallen for someone else, I won’t forgive you.”
I slowly raised my head. Not long after, I could taste blood in my mouth, while the crowd whispered all around me. Martin then stepped forward. He held me as if he cared deeply, tending to my injuries like the perfect husband everyone believed he was.
But only the two of us knew the truth behind our marriage.
He gently said, “Sophia, I know you might have feelings for someone else … but I’m the only one who truly cares about you.”
