When my husband once again chooses to abandon me to celebrate his true love's birthday, I finally let go.

He takes his true love stargazing; I don't cause a fuss.

He buys her an expensive scarf, but all I do is smile. I even tell him to buy another hat—it's pretty cold.

He thinks I've finally learned to be obedient. However, he has no idea I've secretly renounced my citizenship to join Doctors Without Borders.

By the time he comes to his senses, I've vanished without a trace.

I was thrilled and elated when I received the call saying that my application got through.

"Rest assured. I'll definitely show up and report for duty on the third of next month!"

After ending the call, I placed my hand over the necklace I wore around my neck. My eyes felt hot. The necklace was a memento from my late parents.

Both of my parents were doctors that served in a non-governmental organization to provide medical humanitarian assistance. My dream was to be like them and join the same field.

However, when I married Sean Chandler four years ago, I decided to put my dreams and passion aside since Sean felt that the job would be too dangerous. It was finally time for me to realize my dreams since there was nothing holding me back now.

I wiped my tears off. Just as I turned my head, I spotted Sean, who had just come out of the bathroom.

He was drying his wet hair with a towel. He frowned slightly when he noticed how the corners of my eyes were red.

"Were you crying?"

I shook my head. "Some dust fell into my eyes."

"Mm," he responded curtly. Sean did not even bother to point out how flimsy my excuse was. Perhaps it was because he was in a hurry to leave. So, he could not even be bothered.

Sean changed his clothes, and something slipped out of his pocket. I picked it up and saw that it was a receipt from a restaurant.

He froze for a moment. Then, he took the receipt, crumpled it up, and threw it into the dustbin. "I had a meal with the director recently. It was my treat."

I smiled wryly. The meals sold at that restaurant were designed specifically for couples. Customers who were not couples were not even allowed to enter the shop.

The college director Sean was referring to was a middle-aged man in his 50s. He could not even be bothered to come up with a more convincing lie. It seemed like he truly did not care anymore.

Sean was about to elaborate and explain when he did not get any response from me. Yet, his phone rang.

I saw the name "Evelyn" on the screen out of the corners of my eyes.

Sean moved out of my hearing range by going out to the balcony and closing the sliding floor-to-ceiling window.

The icy expression he always had on his face when talking to me was replaced with a soft smile. He ended the call shortly afterward. With a small frown on his forehead, he announced that he needed to drop by school because of an urgent matter.

Without waiting for my reply, he grabbed a jacket and headed out.

I knew that the urgent matter he spoke of was to take Evelyn Summerton out on a date since something like this had happened countless times up to this point.

As expected, just as Sean exited our building, a petite form could be seen hurrying toward Sean and clinging to him right away. Then, his car drove off in the opposite direction, even though he claimed he was stopping by the college.

Three months ago, Sean changed drastically when his secret crush, Evelyn, became a counselor at their college. Someone who was reserved and inexpressive like him would joke and banter with Evelyn.

Sean, who spent most of his time and concentration on his research, had also taken a week off to go stargazing with Evelyn because that was her request. Someone who was usually inattentive like him even got Evelyn an imported scarf with the latest design when he noticed the weather was getting colder.

On my birthday, I told Sean that I wanted to have some cake. Yet, he said that I was not a child anymore and that there was no need for us to celebrate my birthday.

However, Sean bought Evelyn a three-tiered strawberry cake for her birthday and even brought her to the amusement park.

When I questioned him about it, Sean said that it was only right for him to take care of Evelyn, who was younger and came to a new city all by herself.

Yet, Evelyn and her parents were simply living in different cities, whereas I had truly lost my parents a long time ago.

Sean was the only family I had left in this world.

From that day onward, I had not gotten in any arguments with Sean regardless of what he did. It was because I decided that I no longer wanted to be with him.

I hired a lawyer to draft our divorce papers. At the same time, I submitted my application to the non-governmental organization to participate in the work of medical humanitarian assistance.

Now that they had approved my application, I just needed Sean to sign the divorce papers.

I met up with a close friend for a meal the next day. She teased me by saying that the sun would probably rise in the west the next day.

"It's been four years! Ever since you got married, you always said that you needed to prepare meals for your husband whenever I tried to ask you out."

During our four years of marriage, I had made sure to prepare meals for Sean every day. However, that was not going to happen anymore.

While we were eating, I picked up on a familiar voice and looked in the voice's direction.

Evelyn pouted. "Dr. Chandler, you had to stay up for the entire night just because I didn't know how to write a report. You must think that I'm pretty dumb."

Sean brushed the tip of Evelyn's nose with his finger playfully. "You are quite dumb. What would you do without me? You probably won't be able to finish the report even if you have a month to do it."

"I'm so dumb and clumsy. The soup's really hot."

"What do I do with you…"

Sean smiled with a look of resignation. Then, he picked up the bowl of soup before Evelyn and blew on it patiently.

I felt choked. A bitter feeling swelled inside me.

There was once when I had some hot soup and scalded my tongue. However, Sean merely said that I was overreacting. He looked at me with disdain back then.

"No one's trying to take the soup away from you. Why are you acting like it's your first time having it?"

It turned out it was not about the person overreacting to being scalded with hot soup. It was just because that person was me.

I averted my gaze and pretended not to have noticed them. Unfortunately, my friend had spotted the pair. She poked my arm.

"What the heck? Maisie, isn't that your husband? Why is he with another woman?"

"I saw them, too. She's just a colleague."

"A colleague? Who would sit side by side next to a colleague like that and even help cool down her soup by blowing it? That woman is practically glued to Sean already! I can't take it anymore. She's picked the wrong day and the wrong man to lay her hands on!"

My friend stormed toward the pair. She started yelling at them before I could even stop her. "Sean Chandler, do you not have any sense of boundaries? That woman is practically stuck to you like glue! Those who didn't know better probably thought that you were a couple!

"Also, you vile woman! He's a married man. Are you that eager to become his mistress?"

The other patrons began looking in our direction after hearing the commotion. Meanwhile, Evelyn clutched onto the hem of her shirt, as if she were a child who had done something she should not. Her eyes were red.

"Enough!" Sean shoved my friend away forcefully. He cast me a stony gaze.

"Maisie Williams, how could you be so mean? Evelyn hasn't eaten since last night. I just brought her here to eat. Yet, you had your friend say all these things to humiliate her.

"What on earth are you trying to achieve? Are you happy now that you've put Evelyn in an awkward position? I never thought you were such a spiteful person. I guess I've always been wrong about you."

Sean had a look of disappointment in his eyes. He placed his arm around Evelyn's shoulders and comforted her.

For a moment, all eyes were on me.

It turned out that was how Sean viewed me.

I looked him right in the eye and replied calmly, "I never told anyone to humiliate her in any way. However, people have eyes. We're not blind."

Without paying any mind to the bewildered expression on Sean's face, I grabbed my friend, who was positively fuming, and left the place.

My friend was still cursing and grumbling even after we stepped out of the restaurant.

"That heartless, ungrateful bastard! You gave up your dreams for him back then and chose to work at a hospital instead. Yet, this is what he says to you now? I'm so pissed! If only I could squash that pest…"

I forced a smile. Back then, it was also at this very restaurant where Sean had held out a ring and promised that he would be good to me.

I could still recall how I teased him playfully at the time. "I hope you're not lying about that. Otherwise, I'll disappear from your life for good and make sure you won't ever be able to find me."

What was meant to be a harmless joke between lovers ended up coming true.

After I got home, I checked my phone and found that there were only seven days left until it was the third of next month.

I decided to start packing, but I quickly noticed that I did not have much to pack. A suitcase was enough to keep everything that I needed to take with me.

When Sean arrived home, I was staring at the divorce papers on the table absent-mindedly. I wanted to bring up the issue tonight since it would soon be time for me to leave.

He changed into his slippers and went into the study. I took the divorce papers and was about to knock on the door when I heard Evelyn's voice coming from inside the room.

"Dr. Chandler, are you really going to divorce Maisie?"

I tightened my grip over the divorce papers. It turned out Sean was considering divorce, too. That would work in my favor. It seemed like we would be able to have a smooth, amicable discussion.

Suddenly, the study door flung open. I was about to initiate the conversation, but Sean said that he had to work overtime and left the house in a hurry.

After he left, I took a shower and went to bed.

I had a dream. In it, I was still a child. I circled my arms around my father's neck. With an affectionate look in his eyes, my father asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up.

I told him that I wanted to be like him and my mother, who were doctors that participated in the medical humanitarian assistance to help the sick and injured.

My mother smiled and said that I should eat well and grow bigger since I needed to be physically strong to be in their line of work.

It was still a little dark outside when I woke up from the dream. I walked over to the suitcase and found the white coat my father was wearing when he and my mother died.

In the pocket lay the letter that had the last words my father had written to me.

"Maisie, Mom and Dad may not be able to be with you anymore. However, we hope you won't wallow in grief and despair forever. You need to stay strong. You might fail sometimes, but you mustn't be defeated.

"Be brave as you come face to face with life's pain and sufferings. We believe that the best way one can make the most out of their life is by having no regrets when they die. If there's anything you want to do, go ahead and do it. Mom and Dad will be watching over you from above."

My eyes felt hot, and tears welled in my eyes.

I put on my father's white coat and stood before the mirror. I said in a choked voice, "Dad… Mom… I won't let you down."

The door was pushed open just then.

Sean entered the room. He frowned slightly. "Why are you wearing the coat? Are you thinking of joining the medical humanitarian assistance work again?"

I pursed my lips and held back my tears. "No. I was just putting it on for fun."

"Hm," Sean responded. Then, he offered me some words of comfort.

However, my gaze was fixed on the lipstick stain on the collar of his shirt. It was a bright shade of red. The stain was most likely made not too long ago.

Sean noticed I was staring and looked down as well. He spotted the red stain.

I was dazed for a moment. Then, I muttered, "Sean, let's get a divorce."

Sean paused momentarily. His face darkened the next instant. "What nonsense are you saying? How can you say that so nonchalantly?"

He vented his frustrations by storming off and slamming the door behind him.

A while later, he came back into the room. "Why is our wedding photo gone?"

I paused briefly before making up an excuse. "The frame has gotten a bit worn-out, so I've sent the photo to the shop to have them change it to a new frame."

If Sean had truly cared about me, he would have noticed that there was not a single trace of my existence left in the house.

…

In the middle of the night, while I was drifting in and out of sleep, I felt someone hugging me from the back.

A voice that sounded slightly gentler than it usually was asked, "Did you get jealous during the day? Evelyn and I are mere acquaintances. She accidentally smudged that lipstick stain on my shirt since I caught her when she was about to fall.

"There's nothing going on between me and her. She's just a colleague."

I squirmed free from his grip and said calmly, "Mm-hmm. I trust you."