On our sixth wedding anniversary, my husband, Walter Owens, said he would surprise me.

I waited for hours on top of the mountain even in the pouring rain, but he never showed up.

However, his childhood sweetheart, Ruby Lee, posted a location at a half-mountain hotel on her social media.

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

In the photo, they were lying on a bed covered in rose petals, holding hands.

But Walter's ring finger was empty.

There were several red scratches and shallow tooth marks on his bare chest.

I felt nauseous and commented, "If you get bitten by a dog, remember to go to the hospital."

***

When I saw the photo, my first reaction was that Walter had been unfaithful and I didn't want him anymore.

So when Walter, who had never called me before, called to explain, I simply said a word.

"Divorce."

Walter was silent for a moment.

"Don't be so jealous. Ruby and I have grown up together like siblings. The dirty-minded person is the one who sees everything as dirty.

"Besides, we just happened to meet. It's raining outside, and Ruby is not feeling well. I was afraid something might happen to her, so I brought her to the room to take shelter."

The more he explained, the more guilty he looked.

I impatiently interrupted, "I'm still on top of the mountain."

I had waited for him for three hours and got soaked in the rain for an hour.

There was no place to take shelter on the mountain, and I was too afraid to go down alone.

When Walter heard that I was in danger now, he was a bit worried.

"Wait for me, I'll come get you."

Another hour passed.

I didn't see Walter until the rain stopped, and the mountain path was muddy and difficult to walk on.

Just a few steps in, I got covered in mud all over.

I sneezed several times, and suddenly felt that my heart had sunk into the mud.

It was uncomfortable and nauseating.

After getting home, I took a hot shower.

I saw Ruby post a new update, "I don't care about the heavy rain, my white prince will take me home."

I noticed that Walter, who never liked or commented on my Instagram posts, commented below, "I will always protect my princess."

Refreshing again, there was only a horizontal line left, I didn't know if Walter had blocked me.

I had a terrible headache, so I took a few cold medicine pills and fell asleep deeply.

I didn't sleep for long when I was suddenly woken up by Walter taking off my blanket.

"Why don't you wait for me?

"I'm hungry, get up and cook for me.

"Also prepare a glass of warm milk. Ruby got a little wet, I'll take it to her later."

Suddenly awakened, I felt my head hurt even more.

My tone was impatient. "Didn't Ruby feed you enough?"

Walter stood up suddenly, looking at me with anger.

"Coral Linton! Are you never satisfied? I've already explained everything to you, I came back late because of the traffic jam. Do you really want to make a fuss on our wedding anniversary? I went to a lot of trouble to prepare a surprise for you."

Saying that, Walter threw a small box at me.

The box accidentally hit my eye corner, hurting me so much that tears came down immediately.

He was surprised and a bit panicked as he came to check my wound.

As his hand approached, I smelled a strong fragrance.

This scent was the shampoo that Ruby often used.

I could almost imagine his hand passing through Ruby's hair, with a gentle and affectionate expression.

I pushed him away disgustedly, and my eyes fell on the box on the ground.

The necklace inside fell out, it was the one I had always liked and the one Ruby was wearing.

But the cheap glossy look exposed everything.

In this marriage, Ruby got the real necklace and true love.

What I got was one lie after another.

I didn't even bother to ask him who the surprise in the villa halfway up the mountain was prepared for.

"It's one o'clock in the morning now."

I slowly looked up at Walter and said, "Our sixth anniversary has passed, and our marriage is over."

"Come on, don't say mean things. I'll take you to the hospital."

Walter looked at the bloodstain on the corner of my eye with concern.

Ignoring my weak body, he forcefully pulled me out of bed.

Pretending to be a caring husband, he insisted on taking me to the hospital.

I was dazed and didn't have time to put on a coat.

The temperature in the car was too low, so I hugged the teddy bear in my arms.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed that my favorite teddy bear had two exaggerated false eyelashes stuck on it.

It was a blatant provocation.

Walter noticed my oddity.

"The last time I picked up Ruby, she said the doll was cute and stuck them on randomly. She's just a little girl, don't mind her. I'll buy you a new one tomorrow."

The teddy bear was bought for me by my late grandmother.

I gently wiped its face and didn't want to say anything more.

At this moment, Ruby's call came in.

"Is the old woman asleep yet? Don't bother with her. Come and drink with us. Henry and Jason are here too."

Walter looked at me awkwardly and said, "She's beside me."

"Then invite the hick... Coral to come over too," Ruby said.

Looking at the location Ruby sent, Walter quickly turned the car around.

"I don't want to go. I want to go home!"

"Drink" brought back embarrassing memories for me.

That was the first time I met Walter's friends.

I was meticulously dressed up but was ridiculed.

They knew I couldn't handle alcohol, yet they deliberately took turns persuading me to drink.

Then they took pictures of my various strange behaviors when I was drunk and posted them on the internet.

While Walter was driving Ruby home, he left me alone at a bar, drunk.

When I woke up, I was surrounded by a group of men with malicious intent.

Although the manager came to my rescue, the sense of fear still gives me chills when I think about it.

However, Walter had long forgotten about the incident.

"Can't you be less selfish? What's wrong with me hanging out with my old friends? I've never interfered with your social freedom."

"Then put me down and I'll go home myself."

Dazed and confused, all I wanted was to rest.

I simply didn't have the energy to argue with Walter.

"No way! Not giving my friend a face is not giving me a face, and you have to go today!"

His stubbornness flared up again.

Seeing my angry expression, he quickly added, "Come on, go say hello and we'll leave. Don't make me unhappy again."

By the time we arrived at the destination, it was already past 2 am.

Ruby gave Walter a warm hug as soon as she saw him.

Then she looked me up and down and said, "Coral's got such an arrogant attitude. I'm wondering if she's still mad at me.

"Women are so petty. Walter and I have been friends for years. If we wanted to do something, could it have been your turn to marry him?"

Saying this, a group of people warmly invited Walter to sit down.

There were four seats, and I was the only one standing.

"Oh, we've been friends since we were kids, and we're used to it. There's no extra seat..."

Ruby looked around and smiled at me.

"Why don't you go home first? After all, we're talking about things you can't understand."

They were four childhood friends who had grown up together.

Ruby, the youngest, was the apple of their eye.

In the years when I deeply loved Walter, I tried my best to accept his friends and fit into his life.

However, at every gathering, Ruby would always start reminiscing.

She would mock my background and talk about things I couldn't join in, leaving me aside.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Henry stood up to give me his seat.

"Coral, please sit."

Looking at Henry, I suddenly remembered.

He had asked Walter more than once.

"Coral is no match for Ruby, how did you marry her?"

How did Walter answer?

He said, "I was in a fight with Ruby at the time, and I was impulsive.

"I've regretted it ever since, but I also felt bad for her, as she's chased me for so many years."

Thinking about this, I sighed lightly.

"Forget it, let's get a divorce. The position will be enough."

There was no third position in a two-person marriage.

Walter looked at me in shock as he heard this.

I had never embarrassed him in front of his friends before our marriage.

Usually, even if he drank late into the night, I would still pick him up without complaint.

But now, I didn't want to continue humiliating myself for him anymore.

Henry and Jason rushed to smooth things over.

Ruby sneered and grabbed Walter's hand.

"The most useless woman would threaten a man with divorce," she said in a sarcastic tone.

Walter couldn't bear to lose face and frowned at me.

"Coral, have I spoiled you too much by being too nice to you? Have you forgotten the days when you used to cry and beg me not to divorce you?"

I picked up my phone and left without saying a word.

I would no longer cry and beg him.

When Ruby first returned from abroad, I had many arguments with Walter because of their excessively amorous relationship.

Every time, Walter would say, "If you can't stand it, get a divorce!"

At that time, I was still lost in the false love, apologizing and making amends to Walter, begging for his forgiveness.

I even knelt down at the door of my own home.

I cried bitterly in the silent and lonely night.

But Walter treated my tolerance and love as a reason to trample on me.

This time, I would no longer bow my head.

I went back home and packed my belongings, moving into the small apartment I bought before my marriage.

I bought it with my own savings.

At the time, Walter argued with me when he knew I bought the apartment.

"A fool would buy an apartment. It's small and remote, and it's embarrassing. You might as well use the money to buy a car, which would make me look good when I drive it around."

Later, my parents gave me a top-of-the-line luxury car, and Walter was finally satisfied.

I was glad that I did not listen to Walter's persuasion at the time.

This small apartment was my sanctuary.

And that luxury car had become Ruby's exclusive vehicle.

After all this, it was already dawn.

I was wide awake, so I went to print a divorce agreement.

When I got home, I saw Walter standing at the door.

I was a bit surprised, as this was the first time he had come to find me on his own.

"Last night, I may have said something too harsh, but you really shouldn't have treated my friend that way. Go apologize to Ruby, and we'll call it a day."

When I left yesterday, I heard Ruby say, "The daughter of a nouveau riche is just a spoiled brat. It's a curse to marry a woman like that."

Walter described me to outsiders as a paranoid and jealous woman who spent her days fighting over trivial things.

But the truth was that it was always Walter who was throwing a fit in this marriage.

He only showed a polite and gentle side to outsiders.

At home, he was picky and difficult to please.

Adding garlic to a dish would make him furious with me, scolding me for being useless and throwing the plate.

"It's never been my fault to apologize."

I handed Walter the divorce papers and walked back to my room, leaving him behind.

Walter followed me closely, wrapping his arms around me from behind.

"Don't be angry anymore. I'll apologize if you want me to," he said.

His hands roamed over my body. "I know I've neglected you lately, and you're angry. I promise to have a child with you, okay?"

I pushed him away and slapped him hard.

"Don't touch me. It's disgusting!"

Walter's face turned red on one side quickly.

Anger appeared in his eyes.

But before he could get angry, I fainted.