But my mother had forgotten.

She had forgotten that when I got married, she held my hand and told me that if I ever felt wronged, I should tell her, and she would stand up for me.

My mother had no idea how much I was hurting right now…

Being magnanimous and forgiving Seth for his mistakes—it was just too hard.

I wrapped my arms around myself and drifted into a troubled sleep.

When I woke up again, it was dark.

The living room was pitch black, not a single ray of light.

Suddenly, my best friend, Leah Taylor, called.

I blinked a few times, disoriented, before answering.

“Hello, Melody, where are you right now?”

As soon as I picked up, Leah’s bright voice came through the phone.

“I'm at home,” I replied softly.

“Is Seth not there with you?”

“Mm.”

Leah’s voice suddenly rose in pitch, “Do you know who I just saw?”

I didn’t respond, and she continued, “I saw Seth!”

"He was with another woman, a really young one. And get this—he was showering her with gifts, spending money like it was nothing! Do you think he's cheating on you?"

Spending money it was nothing...

It suddenly hit me that Seth hadn’t bought me anything in a long time.

“Mm.” My voice was barely a whisper.

Leah shouted in surprise, “What! That jerk! How long have you two been married, and he’s already cheating on you? Just watch me, I’ll tear that woman apart!”

I heard Leah’s heavy breathing from anger, and I chuckled softly.

At least, in this world, someone still cared about me.

I quickly stopped her. “Don’t, please don’t go looking for him. I’ll find a time to divorce him.”

“Melody, you must be feeling awful right now. Do you want me to come over and keep you company?”

I calmly reassured her, “No, don’t come. It’s already late. You should get some rest.”

How could I not want someone to stay with me?

But Leah had her own family now; her baby was just a month old.

Asking her to leave her child to spend a night with me didn't feel right.

"I just asked my husband. The other woman is Seth's student! He's such a creep, going after his own student."

Leah's husband, Jason Watson, was Seth's close friend, so I had no doubt about his information, but I never expected Seth would cheat with one of his students.

Seth worked as a professor at the university.

With his refined looks, it wasn't uncommon for students to confess their feelings for him, but he had always maintained professional boundaries and never flirted with them.

I never thought he would break his own rules.

"Her name is Lisa Lowe, and she's quite well-known in their class..."

Leah kept sharing the details she had gathered, but I no longer wanted to listen.

Then, one by one, notifications from my bank account started popping up on my phone.

I frowned at the amounts; it was nearly as much as our entire yearly expenses.

I couldn’t hold back any longer and called Seth.

The phone rang for a long time, so long that I thought he wouldn’t pick up, but then he did.

His voice was cold on the other end. "Yeah, what is it?"

I took a deep breath and asked, "Did you use our money to buy things for her?"

There was a brief pause before he replied nonchalantly, "Yeah."

My brows furrowed, and anger seeped into my voice, "How dare you use my money to buy things for another woman? Do you even remember whose husband you are?"

He scoffed. "Your money? You haven't worked in how long? Haven't I been the one supporting you? It's my money. I'll spend it on whoever I want."

My voice shook. "We're married. All our assets are shared as a couple."

Earlier this year, my company was in trouble. The boss kept piling on more work, expecting one person to do the job of three. Even after hours, we were stuck working late with no raise in sight.

I lasted a month there before I finally decided to quit.

I remembered the day I resigned; I was filled with anxiety.

With no income and little savings, I felt incredibly insecure.

Seth noticed my unease and gently wrapped his arms around me, softly stroking my hair.

He said, "If your job makes you unhappy, just leave it. There's no need to stay in a place that brings you down. I'm your husband—what's mine is yours. I'll work hard to support our family, and I'll always be your strongest support."

Back then, I trusted him completely.

I set my worries aside and focused on caring for him, making him a different breakfast every day.

But now, my unemployment had become the very weapon he used against me.

From the other end came his irritated voice. "Then let's get a divorce."

My heart sank.

The phone slipped from my hand and hit the floor with a dull thud.

I had never, not once, considered divorcing Seth...

Since that bitter argument, Seth and I hadn't spoken.

He unlinked my name from our joint bank accounts.

My health continued to deteriorate; my hair fell out in clumps, and though I was always exhausted, I couldn’t sleep at all. I felt like I was getting sick and thought it was just a cold.

I went to the hospital and had some scans done, but the doctor told me I needed a brain CT. I felt a wave of panic, my mind adrift, grasping at nothing solid.

The results came out half an hour later. I collected the scans from the self-service machine, but as I was heading upstairs to find the doctor, I unexpectedly ran into Lisa.

She was wearing loose clothing, her hand resting on her belly, coming out of the gynecologist's office.

Behind her was Seth.

I saw her gently caressing her stomach, and Seth was watching her intently, as if afraid she might stumble—just like a doting husband and wife.

I gripped the scans tightly, trying to turn around and head back downstairs.

But Lisa spotted me and called out, "Melody!"

I stiffly turned to face her as she cheerfully asked, "What brings you to the hospital? Are you feeling unwell?"

As she spoke, her arm was still linked with Seth's.

I didn’t want to engage, so I tried to sidestep them and head upstairs, but I tripped over something.

I fell hard, angrily kicking at whatever had tripped me. My hands hit the floor, scraping against it and drawing blood, and the scans went flying out of my grasp.

Lisa crouched down, clutching her foot in pain.

"Ouch, Melody, why aren’t you watching where you're going? Seth, it really hurts."

Seth immediately knelt down to check her foot and, only after confirming she was okay, stood up.

He looked at me with disdain. "Melody, can't you stop being so reckless all the time?"

Without even considering what had just happened, he scolded me, completely ignoring the fact that I had also fallen.

I shot back, "Can't you see why I fell in the first place?"

It was only then that Seth seemed to notice my hand, scraped and bleeding on the floor.

His eyes shifted with a hint of guilt.

I pushed myself up to sit and pulled a tissue from my pocket, wiping the blood from the floor.

Slowly, I got to my feet, glancing around until I spotted my scans.

I walked over to pick them up, but Lisa glanced down and deliberately stepped on them.

I squatted, trying to pull the scans out from under her foot, but they wouldn’t budge. I tugged harder, but still, they didn’t move an inch.

Anger and frustration surged through me.

Who did she think she was, this mistress brazenly challenging me, the woman he married, right to my face?

So, I raised my hand and slapped her hard across the face.