On the other end of the phone, Alice’s tone suddenly turned cold. "Are you serious? Are you really going through with this? I am your only family now and you want to divorce me?"
Her words struck me like a dagger. Six months ago, my parents had gone on a trip. Their bus was caught in a landslide on a mountain road. By the time rescuers arrived, it was too late—they were gone.
Alice knew this was the most painful memory of my life, yet she still used it against me. I was speechless.
After a moment, her voice softened. "I'm sorry, I got a little emotional. Tomorrow is the weekend—why don’t we go to the resort? I’ll take you to a hot spring."
I had suggested going to the resort multiple times before, hoping it could help bridge the growing gap between us. Every time, she refused, claiming she was too busy with work.
And now, suddenly, she was willing to go? Too late.
"No need," I rejected her outright.
She was silent for a moment, then spoke again, this time with a coaxing tone. "Last night, Mike and I were really just working. Adam, we've been childhood friends for over twenty years. Don't you believe me?"
How was I supposed to believe her? The affair between her and Mike didn’t start last night—it had begun months ago.
I still remember the night I first got a hint of their relationship. Alice was in the shower when her phone, which she had left on the couch, suddenly rang. It was a video call from someone labeled as "Brother."
Thinking it was one of her cousins, I instinctively answered. To my shock, the screen revealed a shirtless Mike. The moment he saw me, he froze, his expression stiffening before he quickly ended the call. I sat there, feeling a mix of confusion and unease. When Alice came out of the bathroom, I told her about the call.
Her reaction was explosive. "Adam, who gave you the right to touch my phone? Do you have any manners?"
I was taken aback but quickly apologized. Only then did she bother to explain. "Mike rents a shared apartment. There's no air conditioning, so he wasn’t wearing a shirt. He was calling me for work."
I had naively believed her. I thought it was just a minor misunderstanding. I didn’t realize it was just the beginning.
From that day forward, Mike became a constant presence in our lives. His name was always on her lips. She spent hours texting and calling him, sometimes ignoring me completely. She even left me behind to go on a week-long trip with him.
Every time, she used work as an excuse, treating me like an idiot. Once upon a time, I would have tried to pull her back, to fight for our marriage. But now, she was too far gone.
I took a deep breath and told her, "Whether I believe you or not doesn’t matter anymore."
The moment I finished speaking, I heard a quiet snicker from the other side of the call. Mike. She had put me on speakerphone. I had no more words to say. Without hesitation, I ended the call.
A few moments later, Alice sent me a message.
[Now you’re hanging up on me? Adam, do you still want to have a good time?]
I ignored her. Instead, I contacted a lawyer and asked him to prepare the divorce agreement. This mistake of a marriage—it was time to end it. That evening, just as I was about to leave work, I received a friend request from none other than Mike.
I hesitated for a moment but accepted it. Almost instantly, a message popped up.
[Brother-in-law, my sister asked me to come live with you. Do you want to help me move?]
It was followed by a voice message. Alice’s voice came through, nonchalant and commanding.
"Adam, you don’t need to come over. Just go home and pack up the second bedroom for Mike. You can move into the other one. Mike gets cold easily and your room gets the morning sun—it’s better for him."
I blinked, staring at my phone in disbelief. I wasn’t afraid of the cold. And yet, she had spoken as if her decision was final, as if I had no say in my own home. I let out a laugh—cold, sharp and filled with nothing but anger.
