On my birthday, my wife Zoe, who had promised to spend the day with me, was nowhere to be found. I waited from morning till night, asking everyone I knew, but no one had heard from her. Just as I was about to call the police, I saw trending photos online of my adopted brother Leo passionately kissing Zoe. Above them were dazzling, grand fireworks. The headline read: “Evans Corp CEO Lavishes Millions on Adopted Brother – Sibling Love or Secret Affair?” Leo even posted birthday celebration photos with Zoe on Instagram. There was a small cut on Zoe’s lip. The caption read: “I’ll always love you, sis.” I commented: “Wishing you a lifetime of happiness together.” Immediately, I was bombarded with calls from Zoe: “What do you mean by wishing us happiness? Leo and I are just siblings, don’t be so jealous!” “Leo’s fictional skin condition* flared up on his birthday and he was suicidal. What’s wrong with me keeping him company for a normal birthday? Do you want his birthday to become his deathday?” “Leo saw your comment and thinks he’s a homewrecker now. He’s really upset. Delete it and apologize right now! Otherwise I’ll divorce you!” I coldly replied: “Fine, let’s get divorced then.” *Note: “Skin hunger syndrome” is a fictional condition invented for this story, not a real medical diagnosis.
There was a long silence on the other end. Just as I was about to hang up to clear my head, Zoe started cursing angrily: “Jack Evans, you’ve got some nerve!” “You think I’ll fall for your divorce threat? You chased after me for seven years like a lovesick puppy. Now you’re trying to play hard to get?” I clung to one last shred of hope: “What if I’m not playing hard to get this time?” Zoe’s voice dripped with disdain: “You think I’d believe that?” Then, amidst the roar of fireworks, I heard increasingly heavy breathing on the other end of the call. Remembering how Zoe said she was just keeping Leo company for a normal birthday without his “skin condition”, I felt like a complete fool. We dated for three years and have been married for four. Zoe always treated intimacy with me as a chore, never initiating or showing enthusiasm, always finding excuses to avoid it. But now, she was doing those things with another man under the fireworks… Perhaps my prolonged silence made Zoe feel guilty. She tried hard to steady her shaking voice as she commanded: “Stop being unreasonable! Go delete that Instagram comment right now! Apologize to Leo!” “I’ll be home soon after I finish keeping Leo company!” Keep him company? How exactly? By getting as physically close as possible? She held me in such low regard that she barely bothered to hide it anymore. I couldn’t keep swallowing my pride and ignoring this blatant cheating. I swallowed the bitterness and took a deep breath: “Zoe Chen, I’m not playing hard to get. Let’s meet at the courthouse tomorrow at 10 AM to file for divorce.” I had given her countless chances. Before, when she and Leo would hug intimately in public, I could believe her explanation that they were just close siblings. When Leo would always kiss her cheek affectionately, I chalked it up to habits from living abroad. I didn’t want to think the worst of the woman I loved and idolized. But Zoe kept pushing it further and further, rubbing my face in it! She knew how long I had planned our birthday trip together in advance, but she still didn’t care at all. Zoe was about to keep yelling at me when her voice suddenly changed pitch. Leo’s fake innocent voice chimed in: “I didn’t mean to, sis! You won’t be mad that I was too rough, right?” The phone was snatched away. The sound of slapping became clearer, and though my wife stayed silent, she couldn’t hold back her soft moans. Even if I was a complete idiot, I knew exactly what was happening on the other end now. In a fit of rage, I threw my phone across the room. It shattered the mirror, but also hit the volume button. The dirty sounds grew louder, drowning out the fading fireworks. “Ah! Leo, stop!” The call was abruptly ended. I picked up my cracked phone from the glass shards and dialed a long-unused number. “Grandfather, I’m willing to come home now. I also agree to the arranged marriage with the Xu family.”
After ending the call, I pondered for a long while. Zoe and I never should have met. I shouldn’t have thought she was a good person just because she looked like my first love. Zoe is Zoe, Olivia is Olivia. A fake is just a fake. Thinking back to when I first met Zoe, I could only laugh at myself. I had just graduated then, before being recognized by the Evans family. My father was gravely ill and I was drowning in debt. The Xu family used a $1 million check to buy me off, so Olivia could study abroad. $1 million is barely enough for a watch to me now. But back then, that $1 million not only covered my father’s medical bills, but also cleared all my debts. I used the remaining $100,000 as startup capital to become a clothing reseller. Luckily, I quickly earned back $1 million. After that, I invested in some unpopular internet and AI companies. Unexpectedly, in just a year, those companies turned a profit and were raking in money. Zoe was the daughter of a distributor, working part-time in accounting at her family’s company. When I paid the final installment early, she was surprised: “Didn’t you say last month you needed to delay payment for your father’s surgery? How can you pay so quickly now? Does that mean you don’t need to keep paying?” She carefully probed: “My condolences…” Good news puts people in high spirits. Seeing her face so similar to Olivia’s, I smiled and explained: “My father’s surgery was very successful. The stocks I invested in also multiplied several times over, so paying the final installment is no problem. Thank you for your concern.” She put away her prying curiosity and surprise, returning a sweet and innocent smile. Seeing that smile on a face 90% identical to my first love’s, I couldn’t help falling for her. Even knowing she wasn’t truly innocent, but calculating and probing, I still fell deeper and deeper in love with her. When I love someone, I want to give them my best. So I catered to her every whim. She said she was close with her adopted brother and hoped I would help mentor Leo. So I introduced Leo to my business connections as my future brother-in-law and even helped him land some big deals. But she would often go stay overnight at Leo’s apartment to keep him company. Whenever I expressed the slightest doubt, she would immediately explode: “You know Leo has that skin condition*! We can’t let anyone find out about it. Only I can help him as his sister. Stop meddling in my family’s private matters.” A notification popped up – it was the divorce agreement from my new lawyer. I was about to open it when I saw 999+ notifications on Instagram. I clicked in and found someone had logged into my account. After logging back in, I saw Zoe had posted an apology to Leo using my account: “As a brother-in-law, I shouldn’t have left inappropriate comments on my wife’s brother’s post, insulting their sibling relationship. I was being dirty-minded and narrow-hearted.” She even attached an animated gif of my face photoshopped onto a pig, repeatedly bowing and saying “I’m not human.” This was my main account with many followers and clients. My inbox was flooded with people asking what was going on. Some even asked if I had some kind of threesome fetish. I was furious, wishing I could strangle Zoe. Right after the apology post came a call from Leo. He arrogantly said: “My sister married a boring guy like you because she thought you were reliable and family-oriented. But now you want a divorce just because you’re jealous of me? Don’t you understand? Marriage isn’t something you can just end on a whim.” “My sister is already exhausted from keeping me company. Now she has to deal with the mess you made in the comments. You really know how to make trouble for people!” *Note: “Skin hunger syndrome” is a fictional condition invented for this story, not a real medical diagnosis.
I laughed bitterly. Zoe and Leo really were raised together – even their twisted logic was identical. They fool around under the guise of a sister keeping her brother company on his birthday. They stand me up on my own birthday, and then have the nerve to blame me! I coldly hung up on Leo, deleted the Instagram post, and made a new post clarifying my account had been hacked. Then I sent the finalized divorce agreement to Zoe and blocked her and Leo’s contact info. However, an unknown number started blowing up my phone. Thinking it was one of Zoe’s tricks, I angrily answered: “Mr. Evans, due to the withdrawal of medical support, your father has passed away. Please come to the hospital to claim the body as soon as possible.” My blood ran cold. I felt like I’d fallen into an icy pit. I struggled to steady my shaking body, my voice trembling: “W-what? Could you please repeat that?” The person patiently repeated the message. My head was spinning. I couldn’t accept this reality. My father had a heart attack and became paralyzed 8 years ago. Although his heart surgery was successful, he needed long-term care and rehabilitation, requiring large monthly medical payments to keep him alive. I had set up automatic payments for his medical fees long ago. How could the medical support possibly have been withdrawn? I was silent for a long time. The staff member, likely used to people unable to accept a loved one’s passing, suggested I log into the system to confirm myself. I took a deep breath, held it, and logged in with my eyes squinted to tiny slits, afraid to look. But I still gradually confirmed the fact of my father’s death. As grief overwhelmed me, a text came from the unknown number: “Jack Evans, you’ve really done it now! Not only do you dare to bring up divorce, you even dare to block and delete me!” “Did you forget that I control all your bank cards and assets? Now, unblock me immediately, add me back, and get on your knees to apologize! Otherwise your dad can just wait to die!” So Zoe was the one who withdrew my father’s medical support! I stared at those vicious words with an icy gaze, wishing Zoe would die in my father’s place. Back then when Zoe said she felt insecure and feared I would cheat once I got rich, I put all my assets in her name. I originally thought Zoe was just promiscuous and unfaithful. I never imagined she would be so vicious as to use my father’s life to threaten me! I gritted my teeth in hatred, my eyes blood-red, nearly crushing the phone in my grip. Out of what little remained of our marital affection, I had planned to let her off easy. But she shouldn’t have been so vicious. She shouldn’t have killed my father who was all I had left! I will make her pay double for this! The housekeeper brought over the Xu family’s engagement token. I opened it to find the phoenix jade pendant my first love had given me. It came with a note that said: “Returning the jade intact.” This pendant was the token of love my first love had given me. Hers had a lovebird engraving. The lovebird and phoenix, a perfect match made in heaven. She said the pendants were family heirlooms, only given to their most beloved. Later when we were forced to break up, the Xu family took back the pendant. I never expected it would return to my hands again! I suppressed my excitement and solemnly wrote on the paper: “Together until our hair turns white.”
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