My husband, a notorious neat freak, suddenly developed a passion for second-hand goods. He even joined our neighborhood’s online buy-and-sell group. He spent his days rushing to other people's apartments, collecting all sorts of used baby items. From diapers to strollers, he crammed them into the nursery until it was overflowing. He was so obsessed that when I collapsed from a sudden, sharp pain in my abdomen, he couldn't even be bothered to come home. "Honey, I'm in the middle of haggling with someone," he'd said over the phone. "Just grab an Uber to the hospital, okay?" That was the last straw. After I was discharged, during a family dinner to discuss baby names, I announced I was getting an abortion and a divorce. Ethan slammed his hands on the table, sending dishes crashing to the floor. He proceeded to smash everything within reach. "Just because I was haggling and didn't drive you to the hospital? You want a divorce over that?" he roared, his face contorted with rage. "I bought all that second-hand stuff for you! Why else would I be pinching every penny like that?" I watched him calmly, a cold smile touching my lips. "Since you love second-hand so much," I said softly, "I'll do you the favor of becoming your second-hand wife." 1 "You're looking down on me for buying used things, is that it?" "Do you have any idea how much a baby costs? Or your own recovery fees? Where do you think that money is coming from!" "Besides, the stuff is practically new. I'll sanitize everything if you're so worried." His eyes were bloodshot as he screamed the words at me. Beside him, his mother shot up from her chair, her face a mask of anxiety, and grabbed my arm. "Oh, what's all this nonsense? We're a family. No need for such angry words." She turned to her son. "Ethan, you shouldn't argue with a pregnant woman. They get emotional. You have to be more understanding." I coldly shook her hand off me. "I am not joking. I'm serious. Let's get a divorce. There's no point in us staying together anymore." His mother dug her nails into my arm. "Now you're just pushing it! Ethan is doing all of this for you. I've seen the things he brought home—they're all top brands!" "Besides," she added with a sneer, "you were a bargain yourself. We got you for a bride price of ten grand, you can't just up and leave." Even my own mother sided with them, her voice pleading. "Eva, don't be childish. You and Ethan were together for seven years before you got married. You have a baby on the way. How can you talk about divorce?" "Your hormones are all over the place. Why don't you come stay with me for a few days?" My expression remained unchanged. "The courthouse, tomorrow morning. To file the papers." The entire family erupted in anger, accusing me of being impulsive and irrational. Only Ethan seemed to realize I was serious. His tone softened, and he tried to apologize. "I'm sorry, Eva. I lost my temper. If you want to go stay with your mom, I understand." "Just… don't talk about divorce so lightly. You know how hard it was for us to get here. You said it takes seven years to truly know someone, so I gave you seven years. That time, that energy… that's a huge investment for anyone." I scoffed internally. I thought seven years was enough to see through a person. I was wrong. "In that case," I said, my voice flat, "it's best to cut our losses now. Let's not waste any more time." The words had barely left my mouth when my mother, who had always been so gentle, slapped me hard across the face, her own face flushed with fury. "Eva, I have spoiled you rotten! I've let you become this selfish brat." "Have you forgotten who bought you medicine every time you had a stomach ache? When you said you wanted a baby, Ethan immediately started consulting with doctors. I'm your mother, and even I wouldn't go to those lengths for you!" "If you get a divorce now, what about the baby? You'll raise it yourself? Don't think for a second I'm going to help you clean up this mess." Ethan immediately rushed to my side, gently guiding me to the sofa and pressing an ice pack to my swollen cheek. He frowned at my mother. "Mom, you can't just hit her! It's my fault, I'm the one who made Eva upset." A bitter smile twisted my lips. This gentle act of his had fooled me for seven years. It had fooled our entire family. The sight of it made me want to vomit. I wanted to scream the truth, but the thought of my mother's heart condition held me back. "I'll get an abortion," I said, my voice hollow. "I don't want my child to be born into a loveless home." Ethan froze, staring at me in disbelief. "What did you just say?" "You've always wanted a child. I… I've already bought all the baby supplies. I even booked a spot at that exclusive postpartum wellness retreat. How can you just… give up on it?" "Eva, take your anger out on me, but don't hurt the baby." Even his mother was panicking now. "Eva, we can argue, but don't do something so drastic. Ethan went to so many doctors to help you conceive this child." "Even if you two have fallen out of love, think about us! We're old, we're just waiting to hold a grandchild." My mother was also terrified by my words. "Don't scare me like this, Eva. An abortion is so damaging to your body. Don't do something foolish." Suddenly, as if struck by a thought, Ethan dropped to his knees and began slapping himself across the face. "I'm sorry, honey. I'm so sorry I didn't take you to the hospital that day." "But I saw this amazing breast pump, it was brand new, and I was trying to talk the price down… I just lost track of time." He was crying as he spoke, as if this were all my fault. The family's gazes turned on me like daggers. "Eva, what is there to be so angry about?" his mother chided. "Ethan was doing it all for you. Besides, it's not like you couldn't have called someone else. What if he wasn't home? Would you have just stayed there and not gone to the hospital?" 2 Just then, there was a knock at the door. It was Raelyn, the young widow from the building next door. She stepped inside, her expression timid. "I heard people saying you two were fighting, so I came to see if everything was okay." Her eyes fell on Ethan kneeling on the floor, and she quickly added, "Ethan was at my place picking up the breast pump that day. That's what delayed him. Please, don't get a divorce over this." I stared hard at Ethan. Sure enough, the moment Raelyn walked in, a flicker of panic had crossed his face. His mother scowled at me. "Eva, you heard her. Raelyn came all the way here to explain. There's no point in dragging this out." "Besides," she continued, "Ethan has to work and he has to manage your moods. As the old saying goes, you can't have your cake and eat it too. As a wife, you should be a little more considerate." I took a deep breath, my voice firm and serious. "Ethan, I don't want to make this ugly. If you won't come to the courthouse, then just sign these divorce papers." To my shock, Raelyn snatched the papers from my hand, clutching them to her chest. "I won't let you two get divorced," she said stubbornly. "Eva, just blame me. It's my fault for giving him the breast pump and making you late for treatment." "I'll move out tomorrow. I'll never bother you again. And I'll give you back all the money for the other things. You can just have them." As she spoke, she sank to her knees in front of me, tears streaming down her face in a show of false sincerity. Ethan immediately pulled her into his arms, a protective gesture laced with anger directed at me. "Eva, this is between us. You don't need to bully someone else. Raelyn is a widow, where is she supposed to go? And she's helped you so much, you should at least show some gratitude." Tears welled in Raelyn's eyes as she put on a magnanimous front. "Eva, Ethan is a really good man. He was even asking me questions about pregnancy, all so he could take better care of you." "I've been married before, and now I'm alone. I know how precious it is to have someone by your side. You're pregnant, for heaven's sake. That's a blessing some people would kill for." "If you've fallen for someone else out of a moment of impulse," she said, her voice dripping with concern, "please, think it through. Good men like Ethan are hard to find." She had turned the tables, pointing the finger directly at me. My mother-in-law grabbed a throw pillow and hurled it at me. "I knew it!" she shrieked. "I knew there had to be a reason you'd want to divorce a man as good as Ethan. You've got some other man on the hook!" "Let's get the divorce then! Our family doesn't want a cheap slut like you! And you can walk away with not a single penny!" "Plenty of women would be thrilled to have him. I think Raelyn here is a much better fit." At that, a blush crept up Raelyn's cheeks. Ethan didn't deny it. His silence was an admission. His own eyes grew red as he put on a heart-wrenching performance. "Eva… tell me it's not true. What does he have that I don't?" I glanced at my mother, swallowing the rage that was threatening to boil over. "You know exactly what the truth is." With that, I turned to leave. But as I moved, Raelyn's hand shot out, reaching for my stomach. On pure instinct, I shoved her hand away. But she used the momentum, collapsing dramatically to the floor. "Raelyn!" Without a second thought, Ethan lunged at me, shoving me hard. My head spun. A sharp, searing pain shot through my abdomen, and I felt a warm gush of blood between my legs. "Someone call an ambulance!" my mother screamed in panic. 3 When I woke up, the first thing I felt was a dull, aching emptiness in my belly. Something was gone. Ethan was slumped in a chair by my bed, dark circles under his eyes. He saw me awake and immediately started fussing. "How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?" I looked straight at him, and a bitter laugh escaped my lips. "It's better that the baby's gone." "Ethan," I said, my voice cold and clear. "Are you still going to pretend with me? Even now?" He blinked, then put on a confused expression. "Eva, what are you talking about? I don't understand. Whatever I did wrong, just tell me, and we'll fix it together. Don't be like this." I was about to lay out all his disgusting secrets when the older woman in the next bed cut me off. "You young girls," she clucked, "you've all been poisoned by the internet. Always threatening divorce. Who would want to live with that?" "Besides," she added, gesturing at Ethan, "I saw this young man sit by your side all night long. A man that good is a rare find these days." Just then, my mother-in-law pushed the door open. Seeing me awake, she rolled her eyes. "Ethan took care of you all night. The least you could do is be grateful." "I've been thinking," she continued, her voice dripping with malice. "Letting you leave with nothing is too easy. Who's going to compensate my son for the seven years he wasted on you?" "Here's the deal. You tell us who your lover is, and then you give us a grandson. Then we'll call it even." Ethan clearly agreed with this plan. "We've been together so long," he said, his voice deceptively soft. "How could I bear to let you leave with nothing?" "Who is he? Don't worry, you can tell me. I won't cause any trouble for him." Something inside me snapped. "How many times do I have to say it? I just don't want to be with you anymore! Is that so hard to understand?" "You accuse me of cheating? Why don't you take a good look at yourself first?" The room fell silent, everyone stunned by my outburst. Only Ethan had the nerve to reach for my hand, his voice laced with false concern. "Don't get excited, Eva. Just calm down. You just had a miscarriage." I yanked my hand away. "Stop acting. You make me sick." He froze, at a loss for words. After a moment, tears started to well in his eyes. "Eva, I know I'm not perfect. I know I neglect you sometimes. But for all these years, my love for you has been real." "In school, I let you copy my homework. After we started working, I bought you designer bags. When you got pregnant, I rubbed stretch mark oil on you every night. Whenever you had a craving for something sour, I would…" I cut him off. "Are you done? The homework you let me copy was all wrong. The purse was a cheap knockoff. And you didn't even know the right way to apply the stretch mark oil." "Let's just end this. I'm tired. Since you won't agree to a divorce, I'll see you in court." Ethan was silent for a long moment. Then he said one last thing before he left. "You really don't have a heart, Eva. I guess it makes sense. You never had a father, after all." My face remained a placid mask, but under the thin hospital blanket, my hands were trembling. A little while later, my mother came in with a fruit platter. "Eva," she began hesitantly, "I heard what was said. Ethan asked me to come take care of you. How can you divorce such a good man?" "They're all gone now. You can be honest with me. Did you fall for someone else? It's okay, I won't blame you." I let out a sharp, humorless laugh and turned my head away. "It's not working out. It's just not working out. Why is that so hard for everyone to understand?" That was the breaking point. My mother's long-suppressed anger finally exploded. She swept the fruit platter to the floor and started hitting me, tears of rage streaming down her face. "Eva! I raised you all by myself, and for what? So you could throw a tantrum and get a divorce?" "Do you want to end up like me? Alone for the rest of your life?" "You go and apologize to Ethan right now! If you don't, I will never acknowledge you as my daughter again!" She stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
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