After marrying Jack Thompson, I gave up my career as a florist for him. He was so considerate that he didn’t want me to have children, so we adopted a baby instead. Until one evening when I came home. I saw his first love in my greenhouse, carelessly trampling the flowers I had carefully nurtured. Jack stood silently beside her. Lily, our daughter, helped her smash the flowers, laughing, “Aunt Emma, if you don’t like them, let’s break them all. I’ve always hated how dirty these things are.” I stared in disbelief at the scene before me. Rows of flower racks had toppled over. The succulent Jack had given me was now completely shattered. The culprit looked up at me, feigning innocence. “I was just making a phone call here and had an allergic reaction to the pollen. Jack and Lily were worried about me, that’s why the flowers ended up like this,” Emma said. “Rose, you won’t be mad at me, will you?” I looked at her neck, which showed no signs of redness. She smirked, her foot still grinding the flower petals beneath her. Jack stood beside her, looking at me coldly, without saying a word. Lily met my gaze and shouted, “Are you really going to make a fuss over these flowers? They’re already broken! Aunt Emma rarely visits, and if she leaves because you’re angry, I won’t let you take me to school tomorrow!” Just half an hour ago, I had gone to pick up Lily from school as usual. The teacher told me she had already been picked up by Jack and a woman. On my way home, I kept wondering who this woman could be. I never imagined it would be Emma Wilson – Jack’s childhood friend and his first love. Years ago, after breaking up with Jack, she had gone abroad. Jack had been depressed for a long time because of her, and then married me – the girl who had loved him for years. My six-year-long unrequited love finally came to an end. Now Emma was back, and Jack was on her side. Even our daughter, whom I had raised, was angry at me because of her. The intimate way she behaved with Jack hurt me deeply. Lily proudly showed off the dress she was wearing. “Aunt Emma, the dress you designed is so pretty! Not like the ugly ones she buys me!” Only then did I notice she had changed out of the dress I had carefully chosen for her. In the past, whenever I picked out clothes for her and Jack, he would coldly refuse them time and time again. And Lily, upon seeing them, would throw them on the ground in disgust, saying they were too old-fashioned. In my ears, Emma was telling Lily about the styles of clothes kids abroad liked. The three of them looked like a perfect family, warm and beautiful. My heart grew colder by the second. I walked past them and crouched down to carefully wrap up the broken succulent Jack had given me. The year Jack and I got together, he learned that I loved plants. He spent time carefully packaging it as a gift for me – it was the first present he ever gave me. I was overjoyed that night and tenderly cared for it ever since. It had witnessed all the years Jack and I had been together. But now it was broken, shattered by Jack’s own hands. My eyes stung with tears. Jack bent down and grabbed my arm, trying to pull me up. “Come on, let’s go eat. What’s broken is broken. I’ll buy you another one later. Emma rarely comes back, don’t make a fuss over this. Be more understanding.” Seeing that I wouldn’t get up, his tone grew harsher: “Rose, why do you have to be so stubborn?” Because of his pulling, my hand was cut by a shard from the flower pot, leaving a bloody mark. After a moment of silence, he stopped trying to help me.
By the time I reached the dining table, they were already eating happily. I froze. Emma was sitting next to Jack, and they were talking quietly. Emma was smiling, while he listened attentively. My mother-in-law saw me and frowned, “You’re a grown woman! Do we need to call you to eat?” I silently sat down next to Lily and picked up my chopsticks, only to find that the entire table was filled with spicy dishes. Emma spoke softly, “Rose, I made these myself. Won’t you try some?” I hesitated, knowing that spicy food often upset my stomach. My mother-in-law rolled her eyes, “So picky.” Once, when Jack and I went out to eat, I had hot pot to please him and ended up in pain all night. After that, he never ordered spicy food again. He would even dilute the spicy dishes for me when his mother complained about my pickiness. I looked up at Jack, my heart filling with hurt. Then Jack put some Kung Pao chicken in my bowl and said coldly, “Eat it. Don’t disappoint Emma.” Meeting his cold eyes, my nails dug into my palms. The cut on my hand from earlier stung even more. I took one bite, and the spiciness churned in my stomach. I put down my chopsticks. Lily, sitting next to me, saw that I had stopped eating. She immediately pouted, “You’re so picky. Aunt Emma’s cooking is delicious. If you won’t eat, then just go hungry.” Emma’s voice trembled, “Mom, Jack, I know Rose doesn’t like me. Maybe I should leave.” Hearing this, my mother-in-law immediately pulled her back to her chair and glared at me. Jack looked up at Emma and said calmly, “Sit down.” Then he turned to me, his voice icy, “If you’re not going to eat, go back to your room.” Lily angrily pushed my bowl and chopsticks away. My heart clenched tight as I turned and left the table. As I closed the door, I heard my mother-in-law complain, “Really, we have to cater to her? Emma, if only you hadn’t gone abroad back then. You would’ve married Jack already, and we wouldn’t have to deal with her.” My hand froze on the doorknob for a second. I didn’t dare listen anymore and quickly shut the door. I lay on the bed, crying. I opened my phone to see a message from my best friend: “Can you believe how shameless she is? She was the one who chose to go abroad, and now she’s back to ruin your marriage!” She attached a screenshot of a social media post. Emma had posted: “It’s so wonderful to see the person I like as soon as I return home. I wonder if he feels the same way about me.” She added a pouty emoji. Below, Jack’s friend had commented: “Don’t worry, Emma. Jack definitely likes you. You have no idea how depressed he was after you left. He even had to marry someone he didn’t love. I feel so bad for him.” “It’s a good thing he doesn’t have kids yet. He once said he was waiting for you to come back so you could have one together.”
I read those words over and over, feeling as if I had been struck by lightning. In our first year of marriage, I had begged Jack repeatedly, saying I wanted to have a baby. When he heard this, he looked terrified and stroked my hair. “No, I’m afraid it would hurt you to give birth. I can’t bear to see you suffer, darling.” At the time, I thought he truly cared for me. Now I realize he simply didn’t want to have a child with me. All these years, he said he didn’t want children. Because of this, his mother would scold me, calling me a “hen that can’t lay eggs” and hurling insults at me to this day. But I loved children, so Jack adopted Lily from an orphanage. At first, Lily was very attached to me. She would cling to me and call me “Mommy” in a sweet voice. Later, when she realized her grandmother didn’t like me, she started disliking me too. Her way of addressing me changed from “Mommy” to a cold “you” and “her”. Jack had tried to mediate at first, but after he got busy starting a company with his friends, he never bothered again. My heart ached, and tears fell in large drops. Jack came in, carrying a plate of food. He crouched down and looked at me, “Stop crying. I was a bit harsh earlier. You haven’t eaten, have something to fill your stomach.” My voice was hoarse as I asked, “You don’t want me to have a baby because of Emma, right?” His eyes froze, and he was speechless. I already knew the answer. Seeing his reaction now, I calmly accepted this reality. I didn’t take the chopsticks he offered. “No need to answer. I’m not hungry.” He looked troubled, “If it’s about the greenhouse, I’ll have someone fix it up tomorrow. There’s no need to throw such a tantrum.” Looking at Jack in front of me, I suddenly remembered how I used to watch him silently. Back then, he only had eyes for Emma and never looked at other girls. After we got married, he seemed cold but would show moments of tenderness towards me. He would kiss my forehead when I was asleep and prepare surprises for our anniversaries. I thought I had finally earned his affection. Now that Emma was back, I realized what I had wasn’t much at all. I didn’t respond to him anymore. I lay down on my side, turning my back to him. He made no attempt to comfort me, just put the bowl and chopsticks on the nightstand and left. After struggling for a long time, I finally messaged my best friend: “Can you help me find a lawyer to draft divorce papers?” I couldn’t sleep that night. Jack slept in the study. In the morning, Lily ran into my room, demanding that I make her breakfast. “If you don’t make me breakfast, I’ll be late! If I’m late and the teacher scolds me, it’ll be all your fault!” I looked at my daughter calmly. Even though she wasn’t my biological child, I had always cared for her wholeheartedly over the years. She often complained about my cooking, saying my fried eggs were too hard one day, or my wraps were tasteless the next. She would pout and say, “I’ve had breakfast made by my classmates’ moms. Why can’t you learn to cook properly?” Unfortunately, my sincere love couldn’t win her genuine affection. I said, “Ask grandma to make something for you. If not, your dad can…” At this, she burst into tears. “Dad! She’s bullying me, she won’t make me breakfast!” Jack immediately came in and picked her up, soothing her gently. Then he turned to me and scolded, “Rose, I thought you had gotten over your anger from yesterday. Are you still targeting Lily? She’s just a child.” I had seen this scene countless times before. Whenever Lily was unhappy, it was always my fault. Jack would always argue with me to appease her. Now I felt powerless. I didn’t answer, just looked at him coldly. He didn’t look at me again, just prepared some milk and bread for Lily, then turned and left with her, closing the door behind them.
I watched them leave, sighed deeply, and turned to pack my suitcase. As I was packing, I found a knitted toy that had fallen into the trash can. It was a knitted doll, a parent-child project assigned by Lily’s school. The fabric was now dirty. After Lily told me about this assignment, I had spent three nights working on it, my hands full of needle pricks. But all I got in return was Lily’s look of disgust. “This doll is so ugly. Your taste is really old-fashioned. I’m too embarrassed to show it to my classmates.” My heart sank a little more. When I came back to my senses, it was already noon. My best friend had sent over the divorce papers. As I held those thin sheets of paper, I heard Lily’s laughter from the doorway: “Dad, Aunt Emma designed a project for me today, and I won first prize! All my classmates were so envious.” Jack praised her, “You like her so much, how about making her your godmother?” Lily hugged the exquisite doll tightly, excited, “Yes! I love Aunt Emma the most. If she were my mom, my classmates wouldn’t make fun of me for having an old-fashioned mom anymore.” Earlier, I had been worried that she might cry without a project to submit. Now I realized my concern was unnecessary. I laughed quietly, watching their happy faces as my heart sank to the bottom. I threw the dirty doll back into the trash can. This action caught their attention. Jack came over and saw the doll in the trash. He looked troubled. Those nights, he had seen me staying up late to sew it by hand. He spoke, “Rose, stop being difficult. If it weren’t for Emma today, she wouldn’t have won the prize.” Ever since Emma returned, all I heard was her name. I suddenly felt irritated. Under Jack’s weary gaze, I took out the divorce papers. I said softly, “I’ve already signed. It just needs your signature.” From the corner of my eye, I saw Lily’s face light up. It stung a little. Jack didn’t understand, “You want a divorce just because of yesterday? Didn’t I apologize to you last night?” “It’s not just that. I’m tired now.” All these years, because of Lily and Jack’s mother, I had bottled up all the hurt inside. Now, because of his first love Emma, all the pain and exhaustion exploded. Lily excitedly ran to his side, tugging at his sleeve. “Dad, I heard from my classmates that divorce means you won’t be together anymore. Does that mean Aunt Emma can come over more often?” Jack gently scolded her, and she fell silent. I picked up my suitcase, intending to leave, but he grabbed me. His dark eyes fixed on me, “If you’re going to be this impulsive, I’ll sign today, and you’ll have nothing to do with Lily anymore.” I nodded firmly and shook off his hand. As I opened the door, I felt an unprecedented sense of relief. I heard Lily’s confused voice, “Dad, haven’t you always liked Aunt Emma? I saw your old photos together the other day.” As the door locked behind me, I pulled my suitcase away, never looking back.
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