After seven years of marriage, my husband finally agreed to accompany me back to my parents' house for the holidays. But once again, the car pulled to a stop outside his first love's apartment building. "I accidentally took a wrong turn." He didn't even look up from his phone. "Since we're already here, let's just eat here today." His first love's mother came out to greet us with a beaming smile, immediately grabbing his wrist. "My dear son-in-law, you're finally here!" When she saw my son, her smile grew even wider. "Leo! Did you miss Grandma?" My son greeted her sweetly. I was the only one left standing in the entryway, still holding the gifts I had bought for my own mother. This was the seventh time he had "accidentally taken a wrong turn." Suddenly, I felt a profound sense of clarity. It was time for me to take a different road, too. ... "Claire, you came too?" Mrs. Davis looked at me, a flicker of dissatisfaction crossing her eyes, though she maintained a polite smile. "You're not getting any younger, you know. Why are you still following your brother around everywhere?" My fingernails dug so hard into my palms that they ached. When you think about it, it was actually quite hilarious. I had been married to Arthur Sterling for seven years. Yet every year, on the second day of Christmas, he brought me to his first love's house. He even told her mother that I was his sister. Right in front of this woman, my own son, Leo, was forced to call me "Auntie Claire." "Mom, don't worry about her," Arthur chuckled softly, walking into the house with the ease of someone who truly belonged there. "Where's Chloe?" Right on cue, Chloe Davis emerged from the bedroom and naturally linked her arm through his. "Husband." When Leo saw her, he immediately ran over and hugged her leg. "Mommy! I missed you!" Arthur looked down at the two of them, the corners of his mouth curling up into a gentle, tender smile—a smile I had never seen him direct at me. My chest tightened as if squeezed by an invisible hand, making it hard to breathe. Mrs. Davis went into the kitchen. I looked at Arthur, hesitating for a moment before keeping my voice low. "Didn't you say... you were going to accompany me to my parents' house this year?" He still didn't look at me, replying casually, "I'm just so used to driving this route, I made a wrong turn by mistake." Leo, playing with blocks nearby, heard us and piped up in his sweet, childish voice: "Mommy is here! I like it here. I don't want to go to your house." I froze. That sweet, innocent voice hit my ears like a sharp knife. Chloe quickly stepped toward me, her face full of guilt. "Claire, kids just say whatever pops into their heads. Please don't take it to heart." She sighed, her eyes already turning red. "I'm so sorry... If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have to suffer this kind of humiliation." Arthur immediately frowned and wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders. "What did you do wrong?" He reached up to wipe a tear from the corner of her eye, then turned his head to glare at me, his brow heavily furrowed. "Claire, stop picking fights over nothing." I lowered my eyes. On the console table sat a framed photograph—a picture of the three of them smiling together. Arthur and I had never taken a single photo together. Because he said he didn't like taking pictures. Just like me—Arthur Sterling never liked me. But I loved him. I had loved him for fifteen years. Back then, he and Chloe had a massive misunderstanding and broke up. In a fit of anger and rebellion against his family's arrangements, he agreed to marry me. I was ecstatic. But on our wedding night, he simply looked at me coldly and said: "I don't love you, and I never will." I didn't believe him. I stubbornly continued to love him. The day our son was born, he stood at the door of my hospital room, looked at me, and said, "You've worked hard." That was the very first gentle thing he had ever said to me. I felt like everything I had endured was finally worth it. I thought our future would only get better. But then Chloe came back. She threw herself into Arthur's arms, crying hysterically. "Arthur, you have to help me." "My mom has terminal cancer. Her dying wish is to see me marry you." "Could you please... just pretend for her sake?" He was silent for a long time, but finally, he nodded and said yes. Every year after that, he tricked me into coming here using the excuse of a "wrong turn." But anyone with eyes could see that Mrs. Davis was perfectly healthy. It was Arthur who was a willing participant in this charade. Looking at that framed photo, my eyes suddenly felt incredibly dry. Seven years. I didn't want to play along in his play anymore. 2 The sound of sizzling food drifted from the kitchen. Arthur and Chloe had both gone in to help, and Leo stood on his tiptoes, peering over the counter as Mrs. Davis laughingly fed him a piece of spare rib. The room was filled with laughter and joy. Leaving me standing alone in the living room, completely isolated. It felt like a boulder was pressing down on my chest, making my eyes burn. When I looked up, I saw Arthur walking out of the kitchen with a stack of bowls. I stepped forward and blocked his path. "I want to go home now." He stopped in his tracks, his brow furrowing. "We haven't even eaten yet. Where are you going?" "You can't leave. If you leave now, her mom will think she was a bad host." With that, he turned sideways, trying to walk past me. I grabbed his arm, insisting, "I don't want to stay here." He looked down at my hand gripping his sleeve, the crease between his brows deepening. "Why are you acting so dramatic? Haven't you gotten used to this after all these years?" "Just sit down and behave. I'll take you home after we eat." I didn't let go. "I want to leave." Seeing my unusual persistence, Arthur's face darkened completely. The air grew silent for a moment before he let out a short, cold laugh. "Fine. Leave." I froze for a second, genuinely surprised he agreed so easily. But I didn't hesitate. I turned around and pushed the front door open. The freezing winter wind hit my face, and I took a deep, sharp breath. Keeping my head down, I opened my phone to order an Uber. The loading icon spun twice. [Sorry, insufficient funds. Payment failed.] My entire body went rigid. I turned around. Arthur was standing in the hallway, just a few feet away, watching me quietly. He did it on purpose. He told me to leave because he knew I physically couldn't. He had frozen my cards. I didn't have a single cent to my name. "Are you done throwing a tantrum?" He walked toward me, his voice flat. "If you are, come inside. Dinner is ready." Arthur's perfect calmness made me feel like I was just humiliating myself. "Daddy!" Leo pushed the door open and ran out, glancing at me briefly. "Grandma says it's time to eat." Chloe followed right behind him. Her gaze darted back and forth between me and Arthur. "What's wrong?" "Claire, did I do something to upset you?" "I'm so sorry... It's all my fault... Please don't be mad..." Seeing Chloe lowering her voice to beg me, Leo immediately rushed forward and stood protectively in front of her. He looked up at me and yelled: "You mean lady! Don't you dare bully my mommy!" My fingernails dug so deeply into my palms they almost broke the skin. A bitter wave of sorrow washed over me. This was the child I carried for nine months. Initially, Arthur didn't want a child with me. But his family pressured him relentlessly, and because I had been actively preparing my body for pregnancy, it eventually happened. My pregnancy was brutal. I suffered from hyperemesis gravidarum to the point of severe dehydration. I had to go to the emergency room alone and lie in a hospital bed at 3:00 AM. Arthur never came to see me. But I didn't care about the suffering. I just prayed and prayed for this baby to be born. To ensure a healthy pregnancy, I even quit my job, leaving myself without a single penny of my own income. I never imagined that he would end up hating me this much. I never imagined he would stand in front of Chloe and call me a "mean lady." "Let's go. Get inside." Arthur gave me a final glance, his tone leaving no room for argument. For once in my life, I wanted to hold my ground to the bitter end. "I'm not going in. Arthur, I want to go home." The air went dead silent. Arthur stared at me for a long time, his gaze growing colder by the second. "Then walk home yourself." With that, he and Chloe took Leo's hands and walked back inside. The door was left slightly ajar. I could hear Chloe's voice drifting through the crack: "Arthur, is she going to be okay out there alone?" "She's fine. Let her cool off by herself." "Yeah, Mommy! Don't worry about that mean lady!" Right on cue, it started to snow. I stood frozen in place, the bone-chilling cold piercing through my coat. From here to our house was thirty miles. And he told me to walk. I lowered my head, my vision blurring completely. The scalding hot tears I had been fighting back finally fell, leaving trails of ice on my cheeks. Just then, my phone rang. 3 "Claire? Didn't you say you were coming over today? Why aren't you here yet?" My mom's voice came through the speaker, full of concern. "Your dad and I have been waiting. Is everything okay?" I bit down hard on my lower lip, desperately trying to swallow the sob rising in my throat. "Everything is fine." "It's just... Arthur took a wrong turn by mistake, so we won't be able to make it today..." The line went dead silent. Then, a forced, lighthearted chuckle came through. "Oh, that's fine, that's fine..." "After the holidays, your dad and I can find some time to come see you." "Don't worry about us over here. Just make sure... make sure you aren't suffering too much." I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood. But the tears kept falling, drop after drop, splashing onto the back of my hand. The snow was falling heavier now. Arthur and Chloe's laughter faintly echoed through the crack in the door. I hung up the phone and crouched down in the snow, freezing from head to toe. The Davis family lived in the suburbs. It was the day after Christmas. The surrounding shops were all dark, and the streets were completely deserted. I couldn't even find a place to take shelter from the snow. I don't know how much time passed. Footsteps stopped right beside me. Arthur frowned, bent down, and scooped me up into his arms. For once, his voice was surprisingly gentle: "Why do you have to be so stubborn?" "Are you freezing?" I kept my jaw clamped shut, letting the tears stream silently down my face. I didn't want to say a single word to him. He sighed and placed me in the passenger seat, blasting the heater to the maximum. As the warmth slowly filled the car, my frozen fingers began to throb with pain. He turned his head to look at me. "Leo wants to stay the night with Chloe. I'll pick him up tomorrow." "He grew up with you, but he doesn't like being around you. Sometimes... you really need to reflect on why that is." A dry, humorless laugh escaped my lips. The reason my son didn't like me was incredibly simple. It was because I disciplined him every day, while Chloe let him get away with murder. And who knows? She probably whispered plenty of poison about me in his ear. I had absolutely nothing to reflect on. Seeing that I remained silent, Arthur's tone softened. "I only came to spend the holidays with Chloe because I feel sorry for her sick mother. There's no other reason." "Stop being mad, okay?" As he spoke, he suddenly pulled a velvet jewelry box from his pocket and set it in front of me. "I bought you that necklace you were looking at the other day." "Consider this an apology. Stop throwing a tantrum." I looked down. Inside the box lay a diamond necklace, an exclusive limited edition. It was the exact one I had happened to see in a magazine a few days ago. I had only mentioned it in passing, yet he remembered. I looked up, staring at his profile, realizing I could never truly understand this man. He forgot almost everything about me, yet he remembered a random page I flipped to in a magazine. He didn't love me. But he knew exactly how to make my heart soften. "Are we good now?" Arthur let out a soft chuckle and reached over to ruffle my hair. "You're so easy to please." "Since we have some free time today, how about I take you shopping? We can buy whatever you like. How does that sound?" My fingernails dug into my palms. Before I could even open my mouth, his phone rang. Arthur answered it. Chloe's tearful, pathetic voice came through the speaker: "Arthur, I just... I just accidentally twisted my ankle. It hurts so much..." "Could you come back and take me to the hospital, please?" Arthur's expression changed instantly. Without a second of hesitation, he whipped the steering wheel around. When the car pulled to a stop in front of Chloe's house again, he seemed to finally remember I was sitting there. He said in a low voice: "Be good. She's delicate, she needs me with her." "I unfroze your cards. Go shopping by yourself, buy whatever you want." With that, he hurriedly got out of the car and scooped Chloe, who was waiting by the door, into his arms. She buried her face in his chest. My son stood next to them, mimicking his father as he patted Chloe's arm consolingly. His mouth moved as he spoke. Through the glass, I couldn't hear what they were saying. But I knew. They were both comforting her. One was the husband I had loved for fifteen years; the other was the son I had carried for nine months. Both of them were comforting her. I suddenly felt an overwhelming, crushing wave of exhaustion. My finger hovered over the screen of my phone for a long time. Then, I typed out a message, word by word: [Have a divorce agreement drawn up for me.] 4 It was past midnight when Arthur finally returned home. The moment I saw him, I was about to bring up the divorce. But the next second, Chloe walked in, holding Leo's hand. "Chloe twisted her ankle, she's not feeling well." "She'll be staying with us for a few days so I can take care of her." Leo cheered excitedly, "Mommy! Can you stay here forever?!" He turned his head and glared at me. "I don't like her!" "I like you as my mommy!" Arthur let out a soft, indulgent chuckle. It took him a moment to notice the look on my face. He lowered his voice: "She's just staying for a few days. Don't be so petty." "Besides, this is my house. Whoever I want to stay here, stays here." My heart had gone numb from the pain a long time ago. Hearing these words now, I felt surprisingly calm. "Okay. If she wants to stay, she can stay." "Do you want all three of you to sleep in the master bedroom? I can take the guest room for the next few days." As soon as the words left my mouth, Arthur's face darkened drastically. "What did you just say?" Chloe's tears fell on cue, her voice trembling: "Claire, please don't say that..." "If you... if you really don't welcome me... I can just leave..." Leo immediately wrapped his arms around her waist, screaming at the top of his lungs. "Mommy is staying here! You mean lady! Don't you dare bully my mommy!" Looking at the three of them, I felt a wave of sheer exhaustion. From the very beginning, I hadn't said the word "no" a single time. I took a deep breath, trying to make my tone as sincere as possible. "I said, she can stay if she wants to. And you're right, this is your house. You can do whatever you want." Without waiting for their reaction, I quickly grabbed my blankets and headed to the guest room. "I'll sleep in here tonight." Arthur stared at me, completely frozen in place. I closed the door, completely shutting out the noise. I could hear Leo happily cheering as he hugged Chloe. But Arthur, his brow tightly furrowed, knocked on my door. "Claire, what's wrong with you?" I opened the door, looked at him, and gave a faint smile. "Nothing is wrong." "Are you mad?" "Chloe is just crashing here for a few days, please don't make a big deal out of it." I smiled at him and just gave a small nod. "I know. I'm not making a big deal out of it." Arthur's frown deepened, his eyes locking intensely onto mine. After a long pause, he sighed. "I know. You must still be angry." "How about this... didn't you want me to go to your parents' house with you? I'll go with you tomorrow, okay?" I was stunned. I genuinely didn't know how to react. Seven years of marriage. Every year on the day after Christmas, he took me to his first love's house. Every year when my mom called to ask, he was suddenly "busy." Seven years, and he hadn't visited them once. And now, he was actually willing to go. "No need," I smiled faintly. "You should stay home and take good care of Chloe." Seeing my reaction, Arthur became even more insistent: "I said I'm going with you." I met his eyes but didn't say anything. In the silence, I finally spoke: "I have a gift for you tomorrow." Arthur was slightly taken aback. "What is it?" "You'll see tomorrow. Anyway... you should like it." Arthur stared at me for a long time. Suddenly, he pulled me into his arms. "Alright, stop throwing your little tantrums." "I promise I'll go with you tomorrow. Just be a good girl and get some sleep." The next morning, when I woke up, the house was completely empty. Arthur was gone. My phone buzzed. A text message from him popped up. [Chloe was feeling sick, so I took her to the hospital.] [Wait for me at home. I'll go with you as soon as I get back.] [Be good, get ready. I should be back in about an hour.] I locked my phone, feeling absolutely nothing. I had waited for him for so many years. I didn't want to wait anymore. I packed my things and placed the divorce agreement on the dining table. This was a gift he had probably been wanting for years. This time, I was finally willing to let him go. I took a deep breath and looked back one last time. And then, I completely walked away from the "home" I had mistakenly walked into for seven years. I walked away from Arthur Sterling, the man I had loved for fifteen years. For the rest of my life, I never want to see him again.
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