For the entire year after our daughter was born, my husband slept in the guest room. For our baby’s safety, I installed a 24-hour security camera in the master bedroom. One night, while my husband was in the shower, his phone kept buzzing on the nightstand with Snapchat notifications. I had never once snooped through his phone. But in that exact moment, possessed by some strange instinct, I picked it up. In his chat history, he sent a short clip from our bedroom security camera and a message to the same contact almost every single night after midnight. “Look, I didn’t touch her tonight.” “Don’t worry. I feel sick to my stomach just looking at her. Nothing is going to happen between us.” In those videos, there was me, in the middle of the night, hair messy, holding our crying baby and pacing back and forth in the dark bedroom. There was me, weeping with guilt and exhaustion because our baby was sick. There was even footage of me, half-dressed, breastfeeding in the dark. All of my late-night breakdowns, my loneliness, and my struggles were captured in high definition by that camera. The camera I bought solely to keep our daughter safe. In that moment, it became a double-edged sword piercing through my heart. It was a loyalty test my husband handed to another woman.
I had never checked Ethan’s phone before, so he naturally didn’t have the habit of deleting his chat history. I scrolled up, watching the timeline of their romance unfold. It started with: “Great job on today’s pitch. Get some rest.” Then it became: “What are you up to? I can’t really sleep.” Then came the confession: “From now on, you have a boyfriend.” And after that, it was video after video of me looking exhausted in the middle of the night, followed by Ethan’s reassuring promises. “Don’t worry, I’m sleeping in the study room. I didn’t touch her.” My hands shook so violently that I could barely hold the phone. So this was what it felt like to spy on your husband’s love story with another woman. The sound of running water in the bathroom stopped. I marked the messages as “unread” to hide my tracks, and calmly placed the phone back exactly where it had been. Ethan walked over to me, drying his wet hair with a towel. “Why are you still sitting in the living room? Not tired today, Chloe?” I looked up at him. From eighteen to twenty-eight, a whole decade. I had loved this man for ten years. Seeing that I didn’t answer, Ethan set his towel down and sat beside me. “Why do you look so pale?” “Are you feeling sick? Do you want to go to the clinic?” I took a deep breath. “Ethan, sleep in the master bedroom tonight.” Ethan had to work. After our daughter was born, to make sure he got enough rest, I was the one who suggested he move into the guest room. He was reluctant at first, but over time, we both got used to sleeping apart. This was the first time I had asked him to move back. Ethan froze, seemingly caught off guard by my request. “Why… why the sudden change?” His evasiveness made my heart sink a little further. Perhaps worried that I would get upset, Ethan softened his voice. “Chloe, you know the company is launching a major project right now. I’ve been exhausted lately.” “Plus, I have to work late on my laptop at night sometimes. You’re already drained from taking care of the baby, and Lily is still so small.” “I’m just afraid I’ll wake you guys up and ruin your sleep.” The warmth in Ethan’s eyes was so thick it could almost overflow, and every word he said sounded like it was purely for the sake of me and our daughter. It was the exact same caring husband I had known for the past ten years. If I hadn’t just seen his Snapchat logs, I would have believed every single word.
But now, I just wanted to scream in his face. Really? Is that really what you think? But it wasn’t the right time yet. I forced a smile. “Whatever you think is best.” The moment those words left my mouth, Ethan visibly relaxed. He stood up. “Alright, Chloe. I still have some emails to reply to. I’ll head to the study.” “Get some rest. It’s getting late.” I nodded and didn’t say another word. Only when the study door closed and he completely disappeared from my sight did my tensed shoulders drop. Huge tears splashed down my face. Ethan. Our daughter is only one year old. How could you bear to destroy this family? The next morning, Ethan left for work as usual. After I finished Lily’s morning feeding, I finally started to wash up and look at myself in the mirror. The woman in the glass still had the same face, but her eyes had lost their spark, worn down by the endless cycle of motherhood. Not only that. As a breastfeeding mom, I had barely stepped out of the house over the past year. I lived in baggy pajamas, spent my days makeup-free, and devoted every second of my life to our daughter. Like a flash of lightning, a phrase from Ethan’s chat history echoed in my mind. “I feel sick to my stomach just looking at her.” My chest tightened. I walked into the walk-in closet and sat down at the vanity. I hadn’t put on makeup in over a year. My hands were a bit clumsy, but the muscle memory was still there. Soon, the tired face in the mirror became radiant and striking. I wasn’t trying to prove anything to anyone. But if a woman sacrifices her life to build a home and raise a child, that sacrifice should never become a man’s cheap gossip. And it should never be the weapon a husband uses to humiliate his wife. After putting on a nice dress and doing my makeup, I dressed Lily up and called our driver. “Leo, can you come pick me up?” “I want to drop by Ethan’s office.” Before heading over, I bought boxes of pastries and a tray of iced lattes from Starbucks. Ethan and I had co-founded this design firm right after college. Many of the senior employees still remembered me. But after the company got on the right track and I got pregnant, I gradually stepped back from operations, leaving Ethan in full control. The moment I stepped inside, the receptionist recognized me instantly. “Chloe! What brings you here today?” “Oh my god, is this your daughter? She is absolutely adorable!” I smiled and asked Leo to bring in the drinks and pastries. “Go ahead and share these with everyone. You guys have been working so hard, take a quick coffee break.” The moment I walked into the open office area, the team gathered around me. “Chloe! We missed you so much!” “You always know how to treat us. I desperately needed a sugar rush today.” Inside his private office, Ethan heard the commotion. The second he opened his door, he saw me standing in the center of the crowd, holding our baby. I didn’t miss the flash of pure amazement in his eyes when he looked at my makeup and outfit. He walked over quickly and wrapped a possessive arm around my waist. “What are you doing here today, babe?” Several senior staff members gave us knowing smiles, turning to explain to the newer hires who didn’t know me. “You guys don’t know? This is our co-founder. She used to run the creative department here.” “Look at them. Don’t Chloe and Ethan look perfect together? And their daughter is so beautiful. Ethan really won at life.”
“Seriously, how does Chloe still look like a college student after having a baby? Her figure is perfect, and her skin is glowing. I’m so jealous.” I smiled and chatted with them, but my eyes were casually scanning the room. Feeling the arm around my waist loosen slightly, I followed Ethan’s gaze and landed on a young girl in the crowd who was forcing a smile. She had fair skin and a delicate, pretty face. An employee handed her a coffee. “Here, Maya, grab one. This is a treat from Chloe.” “By the way, you’ve been here less than a year so you haven’t met Chloe yet. This is our boss’s wife. Isn’t she gorgeous?” A flicker of humiliation crossed Maya’s eyes, but she forced herself to nod. I turned to look at Ethan beside me. He was still smiling, but the anxiety in his eyes was painfully obvious. We had been together for ten years. How could I not read him? I smiled at the team. “Alright guys, I just wanted to drop by and say hi.” “I’m going to take the baby home now so you all can get back to work.” Ethan walked me to the elevator and waved with a warm smile. Only when the elevator doors fully closed did his face disappear from my sight. The elevator went down to the first floor. The doors opened and closed, but I didn’t step out. I took a deep breath, and pressed the button for the 18th floor—where Ethan’s office was. The moment the elevator doors slid open again, I saw Ethan anxiously pulling Maya into the stairwell. Nobody noticed me. I softened my steps and crept toward the stairwell door. Ethan had Maya pressed against the wall. The usually calm, successful CEO was now in a complete panic. “Maya, please don’t get the wrong idea. I swear I had no idea she was coming today.” “Please don’t shut me out, okay? I’m literally losing my mind here.” The girl kept her head down. I couldn’t see her face, but I could see her tears splashing onto the floor. Ethan took a deep breath, looking completely helpless as he pulled her into his arms, whispering sweet nothings to comfort her. Listening to his soothing words, for some bizarre reason, I actually wanted to laugh. But as I smiled, hot tears slipped down my face. I knew Ethan. He was the kind of person who could never let a misunderstanding drag on to the next day. In the past, whenever I was upset, he wouldn’t care if I was yelling at him; he would immediately do whatever it took to make things right. “Chloe, my sweet Chloe, you know me.” “Please don’t ignore me. If you don’t talk to me, I won’t be able to sleep tonight.” I had anticipated this exact scene back in his office, which was why I had come right back up. But even though I was mentally prepared, seeing it with my own eyes made my heart sink into a dark abyss. I wiped the tears from my face, held my daughter tighter, and walked back into the elevator. After getting home and putting Lily to sleep, I sat frozen on the balcony sofa, watching the sky fade into darkness. When Ethan finally got home, I was still sitting in the exact same spot, motionless. Ethan walked over, knelt in front of me, and looked up at my face. “What’s wrong? Why haven’t you changed out of your nice clothes yet?” I blinked, finally focusing my eyes on him. After a long silence, I stood up and walked toward the closet. “It’s been so long since I put on makeup and wore a nice dress. I guess I was just reluctant to let it go.” Reluctant to let go of my daughter’s father, reluctant to let go of this home. Ethan didn’t catch the double meaning in my words. He chuckled, walked up behind me, and wrapped his arms around me. “My Chloe looks beautiful in anything.”
He leaned down, trying to find my lips. That movement instantly brought back the scene in the stairwell. I turned my head slightly, dodging his kiss. “I’m really tired today.” Ethan froze. I was the one who asked him to sleep in the master bedroom yesterday, and now I was rejecting him. But I had no energy left to deal with his emotions. I grabbed my pajamas and went straight into the bathroom. After showering, I walked out and saw Ethan sitting on the sofa, working on his laptop. I walked over to him. “Tomorrow is Friday. Let’s go to your parents’ place for dinner.” “They must miss the baby.” Ethan was focused on his screen and didn’t even look up. “Yeah, we should definitely visit. Wait for me at home tomorrow, I’ll leave work early to pick you guys up.” “Chloe, you always handle everything so well. I’m so lucky to have you.” I didn’t reply. I turned and walked into the master bedroom. A second before closing the door, I took one last, long look at Ethan. The man I had loved for ten years. Ethan. This is the last day. The next afternoon, before five o’clock, Ethan and I arrived at his parents’ house. Perhaps because Ethan had called them in advance, the delicious aroma of home-cooked food was already wafting from the kitchen. My mother-in-law happily took Lily from my arms. “You guys haven’t visited in two weeks! I missed Lily so much.” “If you hadn’t come this weekend, your father and I were about to drive over to your place.” I smiled and walked into the living room with Ethan. My father-in-law poked his head out from the kitchen. “Chloe, sit down! Dinner is almost ready.” “I made your favorite roasted salmon today. You have to eat a lot!” Seeing how warm they were, I could barely hold back my tears. Ethan and I met at our freshman orientation week. It was love at first sight for him, and he pursued me relentlessly. On the day he confessed his feelings to me under the sunset by the campus soccer field, I revealed my deepest scar to someone for the first time. “I’m an orphan, Ethan. I don’t have parents. I grew up in a foster home, and I’m only in college because of student loans.” “Don’t waste your time on me. A lot of families would mind my background.” Poverty and being an orphan were the heavy burdens of my eighteen-year-old self. I thought he would be scared away. Instead, his eyes filled with pure tenderness, and he stumbled over his words. “I like you. What does your family background have to do with us?” “And don’t worry about my parents. They’ve always wanted a daughter. They are the sweetest people ever, I promise. No pressure.” “Chloe, I just need to know one thing right now. Do you like me?” The eighteen-year-old boy’s face was flushed, filled with anticipation and shyness. As if under a spell, I nodded. And Ethan hadn’t lied to me. His parents were indeed the best people. Over the years, they never once looked down on me for being an orphan. They never took advantage of the fact that I didn’t have a family to back me up. They treated me like their own daughter and spoiled their granddaughter. But now. This family was about to fall apart. My mother-in-law was the first to notice something was off with my expression. While playing with Lily in her lap, she asked as if it were just a casual thought: “Are you two still sleeping in separate rooms?” I didn’t expect her to bring this up, and I froze. Ethan stammered, unable to find an answer.
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