Seeing Constance and James flaunt their affection every single day, it only took a few days for the heartbreak to dull into numbness.
James still hadn't been discharged when my business trip ended.
I had just gotten home when a message from Constance came through.
It had been a long time since we'd communicated by phone.
She sent a photo of herself kissing James.
Once the pretense was gone, the one who was loved always grew fearless.
In the photo, she looked so tender, so devoted. The kiss was unhurried and deliberate.
My tolerance had become the currency she spent to hurt me freely.
My humility in this marriage had become the very reason she felt entitled to ignore me.
I had poured everything into this marriage, but the moment I learned about her affair, I knew I couldn't hold it together anymore.
I refused to let that old incident chain me down for the rest of my life.
I didn't reply to her message. It was time to put a period at the end of this relationship.
The truth was, my passion had been extinguished by her coldness long ago.
But for the sake of our child, I had wanted to preserve this marriage, hoping that someday she might open up to me again.
What I got instead was ruthless betrayal.
I spent three days thinking it over before I finally made up my mind.
From the moment I learned about the affair, I couldn't pretend anymore. Life under this roof would be nothing but hostility going forward.
Growing up in a home without warmth, without love, would damage our child too.
This home where I'd lived for over a decade had long since lost whatever warmth it once held.
All it gave me now was exhaustion, body and soul.
I packed in silence, erasing every trace of my existence here, piece by piece.
Then I spotted a gift box tucked deep inside the cabinet. Inside were paper lucky stars I had folded by hand when I was courting her.
Nine hundred and ninety-nine of them.
She had been overjoyed at the time, counting them every few days.
But later, they became a cheap gift that disgusted her, shoved into a corner where no one ever looked twice.
And the truth about that old incident was hidden inside those stars.
But none of that mattered anymore.
When I finished packing, I took one last look around the house.
Even though I had steeled myself to leave for good, something still ached.
But I knew she didn't love me anymore. If I kept clinging on, I'd truly become the pathetic fool she already called me.
Click.
I was about to open the door when the lock turned from the other side. Constance walked in.
She had brought James with her.
"James still hasn't fully recovered. You're the expert in this field, so you'll be responsible for taking care of him here at home until he's completely healed."
"What are you standing there for? Come give me a hand."
Constance said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world. She had brought another man into our home and expected me to take care of him.
I looked at her, long and hard, then turned and walked toward the door.
"Dr. Armstrong, what do you think would happen to your reputation if I told people my treatment didn't work?" James taunted.
I looked at him. "If you don't love her, then she deserves what's coming."
"And if you do love her, you'll end up no better than me."
I stepped past the two of them and headed for the door.
"Stop." Constance's voice was ice. "If you walk out that door, don't ever come back."
I smiled and said nothing.
There was a time when her word was law to me.
If she told me to go east, I would never go west.
But that wasn't fear. It was love.
Because I loved her, I was willing to be patient, willing to give her everything I had.
But I also wanted a love that went both ways.
"Corey Armstrong, everything you have today is because of my father. You're just going to walk away like this? How does that honor him?"
"You promised him you'd take care of me for the rest of your life."
Her father was my mentor and the hospital's chief of medicine. It was true that his guidance had propelled my rapid rise in the field.
I had always held out hope for a miracle, waiting for her to come around. Part of it was also not wanting to cause her father any grief.
But cheating was non-negotiable. It could never be forgiven.
I turned back and looked at her one last time. "I did right by him, and I did right by you. You both know that better than anyone."
"That's bullshit! If it weren't for you back then—"
I cut her off. "Constance, there's a USB drive hidden in that box of lucky stars. It has the truth about what happened."
