"I can't cook, but I learned to make healthy meals for you. I even raised a good baby because I wanted to have more common topics with you, even though he is afraid of snakes. How far do I have to go before you accept me?"
He stretched out his hands to show everyone the wounds on his hands caused by a knife while cooking, which made me look even more ungrateful.
For a moment, everyone pointed at me, and all kinds of condemning words kept coming into my ears.
"My husband is so considerate, but I don't know how to cherish him. What's the difference between him and a beast?"
"Besides, everyone has a past. Now that woman is dead, and Ethan has promised to live a good life, why is he still holding on to it?"
I sneered, unfazed by the words around me.
Ethan may have a past, but what bothers me is that her past has no past.
In the first month when he started to change, I thought I had gotten what I wanted, but when the truth was laid out before me, it gave me a slap in the face.
Seeing that I remained unmoved, Ethan's eyes flashed with panic, and he held my hand tightly.
"Vivian, I believe you must have your reasons. We are husband and wife. Tell us and we will face it together."
"We have money. I can hire the best doctors in the country. If they don't work in China, I can go abroad. No matter where we go, I want to be with you. Please don't leave me alone."
In this relationship, I have always been the one who is humble and subservient, and this is the first time I have seen him lower himself for me.
If it were before, I would be so happy.
But now, I still repeat that sentence:
"Sign the divorce agreement, I want a divorce!"
The expression on Ethan's face shattered and tears fell uncontrollably.
My parents stood aside, looking disappointed:
"You rebellious girl, if you dare to divorce me, I will treat you as dead and I will no longer have you as my daughter."
"Dad, Mom, I know my own affairs. I will not waver in this divorce."
I raised my head stubbornly, looking as if I would not give in.
When my dad saw this, he got even angrier and picked up the cup on the table and threw it at me, but he didn't expect Ethan to help me block it.
The cup hit Ethan's forehead, leaving a bump. He begged:
"Dad, don't do it. If she gets hurt, I'll be sad."
His deep affection became evidence of my worthlessness in the eyes of everyone.
There was a sound of hurried footsteps outside the door. It was Ethan's parents.
They were well-known for being crazy about doting on their daughters. When I first came to propose marriage to them, they made me kneel in the heavy rain for three days to test me.
After getting married, I worked hard to improve myself in order to prove to them that I was worthy of Ethan. I suffered a lot in the process, but I never regretted it.
It was not until I met their standards that I started my own research career.
Eleanor Sterling rushed to me and wanted to punch me, but Ethan held her tightly and she couldn't move.
"Mom, don't do anything. This is our own business. We will solve it."
Eleanor looked at her with a distressed look on her face: "If no one had told Mom, I wouldn't have known that you had suffered so much."
She looked at me, her eyes wanting to peel off my skin and pull out my tendons: "You beast, you said so nice things when you first came to me, but now you are blindly hurting Ethan. I was wrong about you."
"But let me tell you, our Sterling family is no pushover. You humiliated my son like this, and I will make you pay."
Given the Sterling family's status in Riverside City, I knew she wasn't joking, but I wasn't shaken at all.
Ethan's face turned pale and he looked at me pitifully: "Vivian, hurry up and admit your mistake to Mom and say you were just joking."
"Let's just forget about this. Let's go home and live a good life together from now on. I can do whatever you want."
I glanced around and saw no one was on my side.
But the more this happened, the more determined I became. I took a deep breath and repeated, "I will not go back with you. My only request is a divorce."
There was a burst of sighs from everyone present, and they all cursed me, saying that I was betraying their sincerity and would be hit by a car if I went out.
I didn't take it to heart and turned away resolutely amid all the strange looks and curses.
It was not until I went out that I realized I was like duckweed in the sea, with no one to rely on.
I finally took out a few cards from my pocket, but there were only a few dozen dollars in them.
Over the years, I worked day and night, but gave all the money to Ethan to support him in buying everything he wanted.
I have no complaints about this.
By the way, even when he and Serena went on a road trip, the car they bought was bought with my money.
A bittersweet feeling welled up in my heart. I had worked hard for most of my life, but ended up with such a result. It was really a bit depressing.
But on second thought, compared to the real reason why Ethan and I divorced, this didn't seem to matter.
The next morning, I went to the research institute where I worked.
As soon as I reached the door, I heard all kinds of criticism from my colleagues.
"Serena is divorcing her husband and I don't know if she got kicked in the head by a donkey to do this."
"Her husband is handsome, rich, and considerate. He travels a long way to the institute every day to bring her food."
"I really don't know how to appreciate my blessings. If it were me, I would have offered it to you long ago."
When I pushed the door open, they all shut their mouths, but they looked at me as if I were some kind of garbage.
Yes, during this period of time, Ethan has been delivering meals to me every day, and these colleagues have also gained a lot of benefits, so naturally they are on his side.
I didn't want to argue with them, so I put on my clothes and prepared to observe the new snake.
But then Ethan came trotting in from the door.
He was sweating profusely and was holding an insulated box and a bag in his hands.
"Vivian, I'm here to bring you food. You have a bad stomach, so you must eat on time. I made you your favorite lotus root and bone soup."
"And this is the protective suit I personally made for you. The materials are all carefully selected by me. This way, you will be safer when dealing with those snakes, and I can rest assured."
He handed me what he had in his hand, revealing countless Band-Aids on it.
My colleagues all looked at me enviously and flattered me, saying, "Mr. Sterling is very clever and can cook and sew, unlike my wife who can't do anything."
"I dream of marrying a man like Mr. Sterling."
I looked at the man who was speaking and said bluntly, "It just so happens that we are getting divorced. Once we divorce, you can marry him."
The surroundings fell silent instantly.
Ethan didn't expect me to say that, and his eyes suddenly turned red:
"Vivian, do you really have to push me away like this?"
I didn't respond, but took the things from his hand and threw them all into the trash can when he thought I was wavering.
"Garbage stays where garbage is!"
Looking at the surprised expression on his face, I felt a sense of pleasure in my heart.
I let Ethan continue to cry behind me:
"Vivian, what exactly do you want me to do so that I won't divorce you? What did I do wrong?"
I turned and left without looking back.
I stayed in the institute for the next few days.
After Ethan was humiliated by me that day, he never sent me anything again.
My world became much quieter until the fifth day, when I just finished my research and received a call from my mom:
"You rebellious girl, you never answered the phone. Did you know that your dad was in a car accident? Ethan fainted to donate blood for your dad and hasn't woken up yet."
I rushed to the hospital. Ethan had already woken up and was helped to sit up by my mother. When he saw me, his eyes lit up and he grabbed my hand.
"Vivian, I know you mind the fact that I donated bone marrow to Serena. You think I would do anything for her."
"But actually, for you and your family, I can do the same. I really want to live a good life with you. Can we not get divorced?"
My expression remained unchanged. I pulled my hand out with all my strength and said coldly:
"I didn't force you to donate blood. Don't be so sentimental. I'm going to divorce you."
Before Ethan could say anything, my mom rushed over and slapped me:
"You bastard, do you know what you're saying? Ethan saved your dad. If it weren't for Ethan, your dad might be dead."
"Ethan couldn't hold on any longer after just 400ml of fluid was drawn out, but for your dad, he insisted on letting the doctor draw it out. How could I have given birth to such a bastard like you!"
My mother sat on the ground, crying and slapping her thighs.
I felt uncomfortable watching this, but I didn't know how to comfort her. After all, if anything unexpected happened, I would rather she pretend that she didn't have me as her son.
Ethan's eyes were completely dimmed, and he looked at me disappointedly.
"Vivian, you want a divorce, then I will grant you that."
"Go to Sterling Family Manor tomorrow and sign in front of everyone. Let everyone see that it's not me who has let you down, it's you who has let me down."
"You only have this one chance. If you don't come, forget about getting a divorce."
He spoke with certainty, I just nodded faintly and turned to leave.
I leaned back in my chair tiredly, but those eyes kept flashing through my mind.
The snake at home stood not far from me in a hunting posture at night, staring at me with its eyes, as if it was going to bite my throat in the next second.
These days, I often dream about that snake. Every time I wake up from it, I get covered in cold sweat.
Suddenly, my phone lit up and a message popped up on the screen:
"I have solved your problem for you. You don't need to panic anymore."
The huge stone in my heart finally fell to the ground, and I thanked the master very much, as if I had been reborn.
Tomorrow, everything will be settled.
The next morning, I went to Sterling Family Manor calmly. My father, who was supposed to rest in bed, was also supported by my mother.
They wanted to stop this farce, but I didn't listen at all.
As I expected, the snake followed and wrapped itself around Ethan's arm.
It's also funny that a person who used to faint when seeing a snake now dares to have close contact with snakes. It's really a great miracle.
"Vivian, you're finally here. I thought you regretted it."
The excitement in Ethan's eyes couldn't be hidden, and the same could be said for the snake in his hand. His eyes were fixed on me, as if he was sure of winning.
