Four months after marriage, my husband took in his pregnant and divorced distant cousin. He killed the dog my late mother left to keep me company and used it to nourish her body. He gave her our meticulously decorated newlywed room, which he had prepared for me, and made me sleep on the couch. When I got angry, he scolded me, saying he was just doing what a brother should do. But he didn’t know that I also had a childhood friend who was like a brother to me. When he heard I was wronged, he flew back from abroad specifically for me. Late at night, after returning from the hospital where I had been cleaning up after my mother-in-law, I discovered that my husband had killed the dog I had raised for nine years to nourish his pregnant cousin. I grabbed the bones I found in the trash and rushed into what used to be our wedding room. There, I saw my husband pressing his ear against Zoe’s belly, grinning like an idiot. “Mia, ‘Buddy’ was so smart,” Zoe taunted me. “He was barking non-stop when Jack was killing him, but he quieted down when he heard your voice recording. Haha, I’m sure it’ll be very nutritious for my baby. Jack just said the baby enjoyed it.” I clenched my fists, tears in my eyes, as I looked at Jack. The smile he had worn earlier while watching me call out for “Buddy” in the yard was still lingering on his face. “Alright, Mia. I’ll buy you another dog after Zoe gives birth. Now, go prepare a basin of warm water for Zoe to soak her feet,” Jack said dismissively. I stared at him in disbelief, as if I had never known him before. I had found Buddy seven years ago when I first got into college and brought him home. My mom had taken care of him for seven years. She said when she missed me, she would pet Buddy, and it was as if she was seeing me. Eight months ago, she passed away in a car accident, and Buddy became like my mom’s presence accompanying me. Just four months ago at our wedding, Jack had ignored the mocking voices of others and publicly offered a toast to “Buddy,” tearfully promising to take care of me for life. But now, just four months into our marriage, he easily killed Buddy for Zoe. Enraged, I threw the bones at Zoe’s belly. Jack reacted quickly, pushing me to the ground and shielding Zoe behind him. He scolded me angrily, “Enough, Mia Russell! Are you really treating this dog as your mother? Your mom is long dead, why are you throwing a fit here?” I glared at him coldly. Since the first day of our marriage, my mother-in-law had fallen ill and been hospitalized. I had been running back and forth between the hospital and home, while Jack focused all his attention on Zoe. Every time I returned home late at night, only Buddy was waiting for me at the dark alley entrance. I stood up angrily, glaring at Jack, and ran to the living room where we kept his father’s ashes. I grabbed a handful and sprinkled it over their heads, coldly saying to them, “Zoe, didn’t you want snow? Here, I’ll give you some.” I recalled the social media post Zoe had made earlier that day in the hospital room. Jack’s hand was holding hers, touching her belly, with the caption: “When we were young, you held an umbrella for me in the snow. Now there’s no snow, but you still shield me from the world’s hardships.” I continued sprinkling the ashes in a frenzy. Jack angrily grabbed my hand, shouting if I had gone mad. “Your dad died even earlier. Are you really treating this urn as your father?” I mimicked his tone. His face darkened as he yelled at me to get out. Zoe took the opportunity to cling to Jack, saying she was scared. I looked around the messy room. Just half a month ago, Jack had covered my eyes and proudly showed me the scene he had meticulously prepared for a week. The memory was still vivid. Now, our wedding photo on the wall had been replaced by Zoe’s shoes, and the “double happiness” decorations we had laughingly put up on the windowsill were quietly lying in the trash can. The blanket they were using was hand-sewn by my mother. Perhaps our relationship, like this wedding room, had already been in shambles since Zoe’s arrival. With a dead heart, I uttered the word “divorce” to Jack. He didn’t try to stop me but instead roared “Get out!”
Braving the cold wind, I returned to my mother’s old home. I curled up on her old bed, nestling in her lingering scent. I kept saying “I’m sorry” over and over, and then repeatedly murmuring how much I missed her. In my daze, the phone rang. I answered to hear William’s voice. He was the son of my mother’s friend, a childhood friend who grew up with me like a brother. He had gone abroad in his second year of high school. “Congratulations on your marriage, Mia. I sent some gifts…” he said softly. I held back my tears and forced myself to respond, then hung up, claiming I was tired. He had surgery just last month, and I didn’t want him to worry about me again. The next day when I woke up, my mother-in-law called. She said angrily that she knew everything now. She cursed Jack for being so cruel and begged me to come to the hospital to talk. I initially wanted to refuse harshly, but hearing her weak cough, my heart softened, and I rushed to the hospital. Throughout the long period I had been dating Jack, she had always been kind to me, saying many times that if Jack and I didn’t work out, she would adopt me as her goddaughter. When I arrived at the hospital room, I found Jack and Zoe already there, and my mother-in-law was happily touching Zoe’s belly. Seeing me, she quickly grabbed my hand. Before I could speak, she snatched the jade bracelet from my wrist and gave it to Zoe. “Zoe, this is our family heirloom. Keep it as a gift for the baby,” she said fawningly. Looking at her expression, I was stunned for a moment, bitterly smiling at what this “talk” she mentioned on the phone had turned out to be. “Mom, I’m your daughter-in-law,” I said with a heavy heart. But my mother-in-law angrily shouted at me. “How dare you! Don’t think I’ve accepted you just because you’ve taken care of me for a few days. Even a nurse can clean up shit and piss. A hen that can’t lay eggs has no right to crow!” It felt like a knife stabbing deep into my heart. I looked at Jack with a bitter smile, but he just held Zoe’s hand tightly and turned his head away. I ran out of the hospital room, with Jack following closely behind. He cornered me at the door and said softly, “Mia, to tell you the truth, the child in Zoe’s belly is mine. Mom’s illness is psychological; she’s always wanted a grandchild. I can’t be unfilial, can I? Zoe is already four months pregnant. You’re the only one in my heart. After the child is born and Mom’s psychological issues are resolved, we can raise the child together, okay?” I laughed bitterly and looked at him with contempt, asking if he had forgotten who had deprived me of the right to be a mother. During our years of dating before marriage, I had been pregnant eight or nine times, all of which Jack had forced me to abort with excuses like “I’m busy with my career” or “We’re not ready yet.” My mother-in-law had also told me to focus on taking care of Jack, comforting me that I could have children anytime. Now, it had become very difficult for me to get pregnant again. Jack had once comforted me, saying not to force myself and that we could always adopt. But now that it had come to this point, he was already discarding me. Jack tried to hug me with some guilt, but I dodged him. He reproached me, saying it was just a bracelet and that he could buy me ten more. I rushed to the hospital room door, took off my wedding ring, and threw it at them before turning to leave. “Where do you think you can go? Your dad is in jail, your mom is dead, and all your relatives think you’re bad luck. Who else can you rely on besides me?” Jack said indifferently. I gritted my teeth but had no words to refute. “She has me.” A figure emerged from the corridor nearby, grabbing my hand and looking at me with concern.
“I’m late, Mia. You’ve been wronged. Let’s go,” William said, holding me in his arms and taking me away. I looked at him in surprise, shocked to see him here. Suddenly, tears started flowing, and I sobbed in his embrace. Jack angrily asked who he was. He was about to step forward when his mother cried out that Zoe’s stomach was hurting, calling him back urgently. He left with a parting shot: “Mia Russell, go home now, or we’re getting divorced.” William and I sat in a coffee shop. I asked him why he suddenly came back to the country. He said with a heavy heart, “How could I not hear that you were crying?” I laughed awkwardly, bitterly recounting the heartaches of the past four months since my marriage. I tried to make it sound like a joke, but William’s furrowed brow showed only concern and pain for me. “This isn’t funny at all,” he said. He asked if I would be willing to go abroad with him. I politely declined, saying I hoped to reopen my mother’s beauty salon. He didn’t insist but said he wanted to help me. I murmured a thank you. After spending a night in my mother’s old home, I woke up to find my phone bombarded with messages from Jack. “Zoe’s pregnancy was affected by your scare the other day. Come back and take care of her!” “Mom still needs someone to look after her. Mia Russell, you’re really something, spending the night with that strange man. Now we’re even, okay?” “Where are my suit and tie? Don’t you know I have an important meeting today?” … All I could see were reproaches. Annoyed, I broke my SIM card and flushed it down the toilet. William arrived early at my mother’s beauty salon. As I looked at the familiar scenes, memories flooded back. This was my mother’s lifelong effort. But after my father went to jail, her health deteriorated, and she closed the shop soon after. William and I carefully wiped every corner. Looking at a faded lipstick mark in the corner, I fell into deep thought. It was during a college break when Jack had traveled 1000 kilometers to secretly find me at the shop and was discovered by my mom. He pretended to be a customer, and I was doing his makeup. He tilted his head back, smiling at me, saying I was beautiful. He suddenly tried to kiss me, but I dodged, causing him to stumble and hit the wall, leaving that mark. At the time, we stared at the lip print and laughed for a long time. He smiled and said that when we were 80 years old, we would bring our grandchildren to see this trace of our love. I sniffled and wiped it clean with a cloth, severing ties with my past completely. Halfway through cleaning, Jack inopportunely walked in. He looked at me with displeasure and shouted, “Mia Russell, are you serious? Leaving all the housework undone to come and fix up this rundown shop? Come home with me now.” He reached out to grab my hand, but William stepped in front of me protectively. “Who are you? This is our family matter,” Jack said angrily. William smirked and made a phone call, then looked at Jack with disdain, saying he would know who he was soon enough. Confused, Jack’s phone rang. After answering, he looked at William with surprise, then hurriedly left, but not before throwing one last comment: “Mia Russell, you’ve gone too far. We’re getting divorced tomorrow.” William explained to me that he had just notified his company to cut off business with Jack’s company. I was surprised that he had business dealings with Jack’s company. “It’s because of you. And every time I sent gifts to Jack’s company under the guise of ‘Mrs. Gordon,’ they were actually specially chosen for you,” he said, looking at me without hesitation. I turned my head away, feeling unworthy. Even a blind person could see how good William had been to me since childhood, but I had always only seen him as a brother. Now that I had gone through a failed marriage, I naturally felt even more undeserving of him. Suddenly, he clutched his chest, his face pale. He had had heart surgery a few days ago. Frightened, I immediately took a taxi to take him to the hospital. After registering, while waiting in the corridor, I saw a pregnant woman being rushed to the emergency room on a stretcher. Looking closer, I saw Jack following behind with an anxious face. The doctor said William needed to rest in the coming days. After he thanked the doctor and prepared to leave, I curiously pulled him to the emergency room door. As we arrived, we saw Jack yelling at the doctor. “You tell me she miscarried, but why is the baby Asian? Why is my child Asian?!”
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