He sat up and glared at me.

“You’re so difficult. I can’t walk hunched over. I can’t shake my leg when I’m sitting. I can’t lie on the bed without changing my clothes.”

He seemed to have found a way to vent his frustrations as he snuffed out his cigarette.

“Chloe, go outside and see how many men stay home and take care of their wives like I do every day.

“You’d be lucky to even find one! You have no idea just how lucky you are!”

I could not help but let out a cold laugh.

Take care of their wives like he does? How could he say such a thing?

I had known him for many years. When we were young, I loved his carefree and laid-back attitude. He played the acoustic guitar with such youthful fervor.

He always said he dreamed of becoming a musician, but it remained just a dream.

Many years ago, he was depressed after losing in the preliminary round of a music competition.

He said the music industry did not appreciate his talent.

Since then, he stayed home, played his guitar, and slept a lot, which was why he had gotten so chubby.

If my parents had not set aside their pride in asking their student to help him find a job, he would still be lazing around the house.

He gave me a sideways glance and said, “Chloe, you should learn a little from Grace. She really understands people.”

He sounded aggrieved. “I deserve to live like a normal person, don’t I?”

At that moment, I felt nothing but disgust toward Ethan.

He fell silent when he saw my face darken.

After a while, he got up and muttered to himself while changing into his shoes.

“What’s the point of marrying you if I can’t even have a warm meal when I get home?”

He opened the door and was about to head out but hesitated as he glanced back at me.

“I’m off to work. Chloe, think this over. Stop making things so difficult for me.”

I was so furious that I let out a sarcastic laugh and gazed at him coldly.

I watched him huff and puff as he walked out. His bag barely hung onto his protruding belly.

He was barely thirty, yet he already looked like a middle-aged man who had let himself go.

The boy who used to stay up all night playing guitar and singing love songs outside my home was gone.

When my parents were against our relationship, he held my hand firmly and swore that he would look after me.

“I’ll make sure Chloe never suffers. I’ll take on all the difficult work.”

He even stood up for me in front of his widowed mother, Margaret Harper.

“I want to spend the rest of my life with her. Mom, if you love me, you’ve got to love her too.”

The man who once shed tears in worry when I was unwell had truly changed.

I sat there for a long time. My phone kept buzzing next to me.

A few people texted me. There were messages from Ethan, Margaret, and an unknown number.

When I opened my phone, I saw a few taunting texts from Grace.

Grace: Chloe, Ethan said he’s jealous of my dead husband because he was lucky enough to marry me.

I read it a couple more times. The sadness in my heart gradually faded away.

This was the first time I had seen a woman so eager to throw herself at someone like this.

Grace moved into this neighborhood more than half a year ago. She opened a breakfast shop not so far from my house.

Her husband passed away over a year ago. I heard that she was driven out by her in-laws.

She has a graceful figure, a sharp chin, and captivating eyes.

Since she moved in, Ethan, who struggled to get up in the mornings, frequently went to have breakfast there.

He often talked about Grace. It was something I realized I had overlooked.

He praised Grace’s breakfast and said it was like no other that he had had before.

“Grace knows what I like. She knows I don’t like my food bland.”

I finally understood what this “special breakfast” really was.

It was no wonder he had not brought up our plans to have kids in a while.

After calming myself down, I made a few calls to inquire about divorce proceedings.

Ethan returned earlier than I expected. He burst through the door in a fit of anger.

“Chloe, are you crazy? What right do you have to quit my job on my behalf?”

But his anger quickly deflated when he noticed what I was doing.

His eyes widened as he asked, “What... are you doing?”

I pretended not to see him as I packed the last piece of my clothing into a box and called the moving company downstairs.

“You can come up to move the things now.”

Ethan rushed over and grabbed my arm. “Move what? What are you trying to do?”

I coldly shook him off.

“Had a bit too much for breakfast this morning, didn’t you? I saw everything.”

Ethan sweated profusely. Despite that, he tried to act tough and said stubbornly, “I don’t know what you mean.”

I smiled and stared at his nearly two-hundred-pound frame.

“You should lose some weight. Grace is skinny. You wouldn’t want to crush her, would you?”

His face immediately turned bright red.

I was too tired to waste more words on him, so I said bluntly, “Aren’t you jealous of her dead husband? I’m just helping you out.

“The divorce papers are on the table. Sign them quickly!”

I looked around and said, “We still have two months left on the lease.”

Ethan and I did not have any assets that we needed to split between us.

Over the three years of our marriage, I watched him transform from a fresh-faced young man into a sleazy, overweight guy.

I should not be the one regretting this divorce.

Ethan stood still. He trembled as he glared at me defiantly. “You really think I care about you that much?! I’m so sick of your nagging! If you want to leave, just go!”

He strode over and picked up a pen, but he could not bring himself to sign the papers. It looked as though he was trying to muster up the courage to do so.

He gritted his teeth and said, “Grace is a hundred times better than you!”

“Good luck to you, Chloe. I know you’ll regret this divorce!” Ethan said before swiftly signing the papers.

A wave of relief washed over me as I watched him sign them.

...

Rumors about my parents’ house getting demolished had been circulating.

The news had been circulating for ages, and Margaret had been worried.

This time, the rumors were confirmed. The residents were offered some compensation.

My parents were overjoyed when they learned about my divorce.

But when they heard that Ethan had been having an affair with a young widow, my mother was furious.

“Isn’t he ashamed of himself? People try to hide it, but he doesn’t even bother!”

I suppressed the bitterness in my heart. I thought Ethan had intended to hide it in the beginning.

However, even that was too challenging for him.

We chose to rent a cheap, rundown apartment to save money.

The surrounding residents are mostly elderly people who had plenty of time to gossip.

If I had chatted with those old ladies more often, I might have known about the scandal much earlier.

Margaret called right away when she heard the news.

She had worked hard to raise Ethan on her own and had spoiled him to no end.

When I picked up the call, she scolded me. “How dare you talk about divorce when you haven’t even been able to give him a baby in these few years?!

“He wouldn’t have run over to that woman’s shop every day if you had gotten up earlier to make him breakfast!”

She had been that way ever since Ethan and I first got married.

Ethan used to defend me fiercely before when he was head over heels for me.

He used to say, “Chloe has to work! Naturally, she can’t get up so early. I can just get breakfast downstairs!”

Margaret would look at me and say sarcastically, “That’s normal? It’ll become a habit if she continues that!”

I felt relief washing over me as I recalled those words.

She was always worried I would starve her precious son. Since he was with Grace, she did not have to worry about him going hungry anymore.

Sure enough, as soon as I moved out, Grace moved in.

Ethan did not say anything to me. Grace sent me a video as though she was showing off.

The house was still the same one after I moved my things out. All that was left was a big bed.

I did not get to change the bedsheet. It still had a big sweat stain from when Ethan slept there.