On our 5th wedding anniversary, my wife’s first love suddenly appeared at the party and started cutting himself with a knife. “Why? Why won’t you divorce him and be with me? Do I have to die for that to happen?” Ryan pleaded with tears in his eyes, begging me to give my wife Chloe to him. He knelt down and started banging his head on the floor frantically. Chloe was distraught. To comfort Ryan, she immediately booked tickets to take him abroad to clear his mind. She even took off her wedding ring and put it on Ryan’s finger. Afterwards, she explained to me matter-of-factly: “If it wasn’t for your sister bullying him back then, how could he have tried to drown himself?” “What I’m doing now is much better than what your sister did.” I watched the video of Ryan putting his arm around my wife’s waist and smirking at me, but said nothing and just nodded. Chloe thought I had become more understanding and obedient. She was very pleased and declared that she would make it up to me after Ryan’s emotions stabilized. But what she didn’t know was that I had already bought a plane ticket to leave the country. She had also unknowingly signed our divorce papers. Our home together was already gone.
The next day, while Chloe was accompanying her dear Ryan abroad, I packed up all my belongings and took a taxi to the airport. “He’s going abroad to chase after the missus again. When will he realize that she doesn’t love him?” I overheard the housekeepers gossiping behind my back as I was leaving. “I know, everyone knows the missus and Mr. Cooper were childhood sweethearts. If it wasn’t for his sister seducing Mr. Cooper and then abandoning him back then, the missus would have married Mr. Cooper long ago. How could it be his turn?” “Shh, don’t say that. He’s pitiful enough as it is. It’s all because of that awful sister of his who passed away.” I was used to hearing this kind of talk. It was only after marrying Chloe that I learned Ryan Cooper, her first love, was the man who had tried to drown himself and became mentally unstable after breaking up with my sister. After that, Chloe’s personality changed drastically. She repeatedly humiliated me for Ryan’s sake. The housekeepers also started targeting me, trying to curry favor with Ryan. Thinking of this, I turned around and smiled coldly at them. “I’m sorry, but I’m not going to find Chloe this time. I’m leaving the country and never coming back.” I ignored their mocking expressions and left without looking back. Just as I reached the front gate, I got a call from Chloe. Her self-righteous voice came through the phone: “I sent you a location. Go there to test the new medication.” I smiled bitterly as I opened the map to the medical facility she had sent. After Ryan fell ill, Chloe spared no expense to find miracle drugs to cure him. But the experimental drugs had major side effects and weren’t guaranteed to work. She couldn’t bear to see Ryan suffer, so she forced me to be the test subject for Ryan’s medications instead. At first I refused desperately, but Chloe had people forcibly take me to the medical facility and tie me down to test the drugs. Several times I felt terribly sick from the side effects. During those times, Chloe would comfort me gently. In my hazy state, I thought I saw glimpses of the Chloe who used to love me before we got married. I thought she would eventually come to her senses. Until Ryan had another episode, and she insisted on having me test an extremely dangerous drug, ignoring the doctor’s warnings. That time, the drug nearly killed me. I was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. But Chloe never came to see me once. She was too busy reading bedtime stories to Ryan at the nursing home. I finally gave up hope. The Chloe who used to love me dearly before we married was truly gone. “I don’t have time,” I replied curtly. “No time?” Chloe said coldly. “You have to make time. Don’t forget, Ryan’s illness is because of whose sister. You must atone for your sister’s sins to Ryan. Otherwise don’t blame me if I divorce you!” “His illness has nothing to do with me or my sister. As for divorce…” I was about to say “then let’s get divorced”, when Ryan’s weak voice came through the phone. “Chloe, it’s okay if Adrian doesn’t want to. I can test the drug myself.” “No way, the doctor said this drug has some side effects. We’ll wait until after it’s been tested before you take it, okay sweetie?” Chloe’s voice was as gentle as flowing water. Compared to how coldly she treated me, it was like two completely different people. I no longer felt the hurt and anger I used to. I only felt numb and cynical now. Seeing my silence, Chloe naturally assumed I had agreed. Her tone softened a bit. “Adrian, I know you always feel awful after testing the drugs. But Ryan’s condition is improving day by day. As the brother of the person mainly responsible, shouldn’t you feel happy about that?” “Ryan already said he doesn’t blame your sister anymore. You should learn from his magnanimity and forgiveness. He’s always been kindhearted, but ended up like this because of your sister.” Ryan chimed in softly: “It’s alright, this isn’t really Adrian’s fault after all.” Though he said that, there was a hint of mockery in his tone. Chloe didn’t notice and replied tenderly: “You dummy, always so naive. If someone sold you, you’d probably help them count the money.” Ryan said coyly: “With you here, who would dare try to take advantage of me?” The two of them went back and forth flirtatiously. I stayed silent, not bothering to argue anymore. Back then, Ryan had obsessively pursued my sister even after she broke up with him. He cheated on her multiple times when they were together. My sister couldn’t take it anymore and asked to break up, but he framed her by attempting suicide and making her look like the bad guy. Afterwards, he packaged himself as an innocent victim whose feelings were toyed with. Meanwhile, my sister faced relentless cyberbullying and took an overdose one night. I had tried to explain the truth to Chloe countless times, but she never believed me. “Hurry up and go test the drug. Don’t delay Ryan’s treatment. He’s not feeling well right now.” Chloe hung up before I could respond. Not long after, I saw Ryan’s latest social media update. The two of them were strolling hand in hand on a beach, looking like the perfect couple. As the light glinted off Ryan’s hand, I saw he was wearing the wedding ring Chloe had taken off at my birthday party to comfort him. I scrolled down further. At 7 AM that morning, Ryan had carried Chloe on his back to climb a mountain and watch the sunrise. His face looked rosy and healthy, without a trace of illness. The two of them were like newlyweds on their honeymoon. I smiled sardonically, not bothering to confront Chloe anymore. In the past, I always thought that once I proved my sister’s innocence, Chloe would regret her actions. Now I realized Chloe didn’t care about the truth at all. All she cared about from beginning to end was Ryan. I was about to get in the car when I got a panicked call from a friend. “Adrian, quick, check the trending topics online. Those photos must be fake, right?”
I clicked on the trending topic and was immediately assaulted by intimate photos of myself from various angles. My vision went black for a moment. The comments below were full of vicious rumors and mockery. [Who knew Adrian Shaw looked so prim and proper on the outside, but was such a slut in private.] [I’ve seen Adrian Shaw before he married Chloe. He was already like this, working as an escort at clubs.] [Chloe is so generous to share her toy with us. When do we get a turn to play?] Countless filthy words flooded my eyes. My whole body broke out in a cold sweat. I had no idea when Chloe had taken these photos of me. My heart and temples were pounding uncontrollably. I quickly tried calling Chloe. She didn’t pick up after over a dozen calls. My mother called to berate me for bringing shame to the family. It was a while before Chloe finally called back. Faced with my questions, she was nonchalant: “Ryan was playing with my phone and accidentally posted them. Why are you making such a big deal out of it? I’ve already had people delete the photos.” I bit my lip until it bled: “Don’t you know many people have already saved them?!” “So what if they saved them? Just don’t look at them and it’ll be fine. Ryan didn’t do it on purpose. Don’t tell me you want him to apologize to you?” “He did something wrong. Shouldn’t he come apologize?” “Dream on. Keep this up and I’ll divorce you!” “Fine, let’s get divorced then.” There was a pause on the other end of the line. In the past, no matter how fiercely we argued, I had never mentioned divorce. We got married in winter and went to Iceland for our honeymoon. She insisted on bringing Ryan along, saying he wasn’t feeling well. While skiing, she told me to give my coat to Ryan. When I refused, she forcibly took it off me and left me on the ski slope. By the time I made it back to the hotel, frozen stiff, she ordered me a bowl of pear soup and apologized. “Ryan’s body has never fully recovered since he tried to drown himself that year. I was worried he’d catch a cold, that’s why I acted so hastily.” She pleaded for my forgiveness with tears in her eyes. I softened, thinking of how good she had been to me before. I told her it was okay. I thought my forbearance would be rewarded with Chloe’s care and remorse. I thought eventually the truth would come out and she would have a change of heart. But I never imagined my yielding would only make her more and more excessive. Chloe seemed to think I was just saying it in anger. After a moment of silence, she said dismissively: “Come on, it’s just a few photos. Why are you acting like it’s the end of the world?” “Ryan even told me to pass on his apologies. I didn’t expect you to be so petty, threatening divorce over such a small thing.” “Fine, to make it up to you for this incident, I promise we’ll have a proper celebration for your birthday when I get back. Happy now?” “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear you mention divorce. Go online and post an apology statement for me. Then we can put this behind us.” “You have 10 minutes. Otherwise I really will divorce you.” Afraid I would keep pestering her, Chloe quickly hung up. In the past, whenever she threatened divorce, I would obediently do as she said. But what I cared about was never the divorce itself, but losing the chance to be with her. Now I finally understood that a relationship that started wrong was doomed to go wrong and end wrong. I insisted on not giving in. I sent her a message: [This was Ryan’s fault to begin with. I don’t know what state of mind he was in to “accidentally” post so many photos. As the victim, why should I take responsibility for him? Either he apologizes, or I’m pressing charges.]
After sending the message, I turned off my phone and continued heading to the airport. After marrying Chloe, even though she didn’t treat me well, she would always try to make it up to me afterwards. Sometimes with cash, sometimes with jewelry and gifts. I sold all the jewelry and gifts, saving up a sizeable amount. This money would be enough for me to live comfortably from now on, without having to rely on anyone else. On the way to the airport, I stopped by to hand over the signed divorce papers to the staff. When getting Chloe to sign the papers earlier, I had hoped she would notice. But Ryan had another episode then, so she rushed out the door and signed the last page without even looking. “Are you sure you don’t want to take another look?” I had asked, clinging to one last shred of hope. “No need. If it’s the liability waiver for the drug trials, it must be fine,” she had replied. I smiled bitterly. As long as it involved Ryan, she would agree without hesitation, not caring about my life or death. I handed over the documents. The staff told me they needed to confirm the breakdown of the relationship with the person directly before they could process the divorce. I showed them sweet photos Chloe had taken with Ryan, as well as our smashed wedding photo that she had broken in a rage over Ryan. The staff still said it wasn’t enough. “We need verbal confirmation from the person themselves.” I reluctantly turned my phone back on. As soon as it powered on, countless messages and missed calls from Chloe popped up. Because I hadn’t gone online to apologize within her set time limit, causing damage to the company’s and her reputation. She hurled all kinds of insults at me, finally declaring she would divorce me. I showed all the messages to the staff one by one. There was pity in their eyes, but they still shook their heads. I had no choice but to call Chloe. After a long time, she finally picked up. “Chloe, our relationship…” “What relationship? Nothing you say now matters. Ryan fainted because you threatened to sue him. Get over here and kneel down to apologize to him right now, or I’m divorcing you!” Thinking I would beg for forgiveness like before, Chloe hung up immediately. The staff finally believed me. With sympathetic looks, they started processing the paperwork, saying the divorce certificate would be issued in a month. As I walked out of the civil affairs bureau, a black van suddenly pulled up. Several bodyguards rushed out and forcibly dragged me into the van. The bodyguards took me on a private jet to the resort island where Chloe and Ryan were staying. Because I struggled too much, the bodyguards tied me up. Looking around the villa, I realized it was the one Chloe had bought to make up to me years ago. Familiar laughter drifted in from outside. I called out Chloe’s name as the door opened. Ryan sauntered in wearing my slippers and the couple’s pajamas Chloe and I used to share. His hair was disheveled as he walked in with the air of the man of the house. “I casually mentioned it to Chloe, I didn’t expect her to actually have you brought here.” As he spoke, he stomped on my fingers. His pupils reflected my pained expression with glee. “Your face looks so much like your sister’s. So much that I want to destroy you like I destroyed her. What right did she have to act proud in front of me? She even dared to try to dump me.” “I’ll tell you the truth – your sister didn’t commit suicide. I killed her.” My features twisted in agony as tears rolled down my reddened eyes. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Chloe walked in from outside and instinctively bent down to check my injured fingers: “How did you get hurt?” As soon as the ropes were loosened, I forcefully pushed her away and shouted: “Ryan killed my sister!!” Chloe’s eyes flickered: “What nonsense are you spouting? Your sister overdosed because she couldn’t handle the criticism. It had nothing to do with Ryan.” I laughed bitterly. Ryan hid behind Chloe, smiling mockingly: “Chloe, is Adrian still mad at me?” “What right does he have to be angry? It was just a few photos. Adrian, apologize to Ryan right now and I’ll forgive your tantrum.” I lunged at Ryan. “I’ll make you pay for my sister’s death!!” Chloe forcefully pushed me away. I crashed into the table behind me. Sharp pain immediately shot through my lower back as I gripped the table for support. After carefully checking if Ryan was frightened, Chloe yelled at me furiously. “What’s wrong with you?! If anything happens to Ryan because of you, I’ll never forgive you. Go downstairs now, the doctor for the drug trial is here too.” “I won’t go.” “What did you say?” Chloe furrowed her brows. “Adrian Shaw, this is your duty. If you keep being unreasonable, I swear I’ll divorce you!” “I have no duty towards a murderer.” I bit my lip and threw the divorce papers at Chloe, ignoring the pain. “Also, we’re already divorced!”
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