Chapter 1 Chapter 1

"That's wonderful, Tabby. I'm so happy that you're finally coming back after all these years." The voice of a middle-aged man rose excitedly from the other end of the line. My uncle, David Norbury, was thrilled to hear from me. Just as the call ended, Luther Jansen opened the door to the room. Along with him, the scent of an unfamiliar woman's perfume wafted in. The scent was so sickly sweet that it stung my nose. "Who were you talking to?" Luther asked, his tone indifferent. He wasn't really curious. Even as he spoke to me, his eyes stayed glued to his phone screen. He was unwilling to spare even one glance my way. Just as I was about to answer, his phone rang again. A young woman's cloying, saccharine voice came through. "Mr. Jansen, thank you so much for bringing me medicine the other day. Without you, my cold would've gotten so much worse. What would I do without you?" Luther must have realized that his conversation with her wasn't entirely appropriate. He fumbled with his phone to lower the volume in a hurry. Feeling fed up, I decided to stay silent. I thought it was pointless for me to speak since we were already planning to get a divorce anyway. Quietly, I continued packing my things. Then, I made myself a customary glass of warm milk. After Luther finished his call, he sat on the couch and flipped through his financial newspaper as usual. He habitually reached out for the Earl Grey tea I always brewed for him. However, it wasn't there this time. He finally looked at me with an irritated expression as he snapped, "Ugh! Is there a need for you to be so petty? All I did was fail to come to your aid when the elevator broke down. "Sasha has a relative who's a doctor. He said your claustrophobia isn't even a big deal, so stop being so dramatic. Besides, you're the one who brought up divorce, and I agreed. Why the long face all day?" Previously, I had worked late one night and ended up getting trapped in the elevator. The power had gone out completely, and my phone had been dying. At that moment, my claustrophobia had kicked in. With trembling hands, I had called Luther for help. But all he had said was, "Can't you figure it out yourself? I'm busy." Then my phone had died, and I had blacked out. Later, I had found out that he had given his assistant, Sasha Knox, several days off. He had coincidentally been delivering cold medicine to her the evening I had gotten trapped in the elevator. And so, I had decided to file for divorce. "Once the divorce is finalized, you won't have to deal with my long face anymore," I replied calmly, not letting it interrupt what I was doing. I thought Luther would be pleased. To my surprise, he suddenly raised his voice and exclaimed, "Don't come crying to me when you regret it!" When he didn't get any response from me, he grew frustrated and stormed out, slamming the door behind him. I was past the point of caring about his emotions. After finishing up, I drank my milk and took a hot shower. Then, I got ready for bed. Just then, a message from Luther came in. It read, "I'm drunk. Come pick me up, and bring me a bottle of yogurt." I didn't want to go. But then, another message followed. "We haven't gotten the divorce certificate yet. You still have to fulfill your duties as my wife." Exhausted, I reluctantly grabbed my things and headed out. When I arrived at the club, Luther's voice and Sasha's grating laughter reached my ears immediately. This brought my thoughts back to the night when I first brought up divorce. That evening, Luther had also been drunk. One of his friends had asked, "Luther, are you sure you want to divorce Tabitha?" Luther had laughed dismissively and replied, "She's just throwing a tantrum. Both her parents have already passed away. Where could she possibly go? Besides, isn't there a 30-day cooling-off period? If she regrets it, I'll be generous enough to take her back." He thought I was alone and had no ties to anyone. Thus, he started to take me for granted, thinking no one would stand up for me. Funnily, he also assumed that was the reason I couldn't leave him.

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

I pushed the door open. When Luther saw me, he seemed a bit surprised and immediately started frowning hard. He questioned, "What are you doing here? Or could it be that you were following me?" I held up my phone and gestured at him. "You were the one who messaged me." Sasha tugged on his arm playfully with a pout. "Mr. Jansen, I played a prank and asked Tabitha to bring you a bottle of yogurt. You won't hold this against me, will you?" Luther's furrowed brows relaxed immediately. Oddly, his indulgence toward Sasha's antics didn't stir any emotions within me. If this had been before, I might have reacted hysterically and lost my temper. This time, I remained calm and simply nodded to indicate that I understood the situation. For once, Luther seemed inclined to explain himself. "Tabitha, Sasha is just here as my assistant for this social gathering—" I cut him off by handing him the yogurt and didn't say anything more. Since he had been drinking, he couldn't drive. So, after making arrangements for Sasha to be sent home, he left with me. A cab was waiting across the street. As I walked ahead, Luther suddenly grabbed my arm and yanked me back just in time to avoid a speeding car that almost grazed me. If it hadn't been for him, I might've been seriously hurt. "You don't watch where you're walking, do you?" he scolded, sounding concerned. He then held my hand tightly in his. For a brief moment, I recalled how he used to hold my hand every time we crossed the street. It had been so long since something like this had happened. The sensation felt so unfamiliar to the point of almost being unsettling. Once we crossed the street, I discreetly withdrew my hand without a word. ... The next morning, I got ready for work. As I gathered my things and was about to head out, Luther offered to drive me. "Let me take you to work." Because of what had happened the previous night with him, I woke up later than usual. I would end up reaching the office late if I took the subway, so I agreed without fussing over it and headed to his car. When I opened the passenger door, the strong scent of a girlish perfume hit me. Inside, the seat covers were pink, and there was even a cute Poppy Purrs pillow on the seat. A small sticker on the dashboard read, "Sasha's Special Seat". Sasha had boldly staked a claim on her territory. The scene was ironic. The Luther I knew, who was supposedly meticulous and serious to a fault, had now allowed these childish decorations in his car. His expression turned a bit awkward. "Sasha is just a kid. Don't mind her." A kid, huh? So, he would take lovey-dovey photos with a "kid"? I didn't voice my thoughts. On the second day after we filed for divorce, he had posted a sweet photo on his social media with the caption, "Capturing every shy moment of yours." Whether it was to spite me or for some other reason, I knew that Luther's heart had long strayed far away, where I couldn't see. Quietly, I opened the door to the back seat. "I'll sit in the back.""You haven't eaten breakfast, have you?" Luther asked, as though trying to ease the awkward atmosphere. He handed me a bottle of milk. I glanced up and noticed a box of snacks in the car that was filled with cookies, dried fruit, and jellies. I remembered how Luther used to have a strict no-eating policy in his car because of his obsessive cleanliness tendencies. Once, I had a hypoglycemic episode in his car. My lips had gone pale, and my vision had become blurry. I had been too weak to even speak. I had asked for a sweet beverage to alleviate my discomfort, but Luther had refused mercilessly. On the contrary, Sasha could easily have her way. The difference between love and indifference was glaringly obvious. I shook my head to decline the milk and turned my gaze to the passing cars outside the window. Thankfully, we reached the office quickly. So, I alighted and got to work immediately. Since we were divorcing, by right I should have submitted my resignation. But the thing was, I still had two projects to finalize. Out of a sense of responsibility, I decided to complete them before leaving for good. The morning and afternoon flew by in a blur due to work. As I was exhausted from the lack of sleep, I wasn't in great shape. I was just about to make myself a cup of coffee when a deliveryman came in carrying a large box of coffee and exquisite snacks. Cheers erupted from my colleagues. "Wow, Mr. Jansen is treating us to afternoon tea! How generous!""You don't get it. It's all because Sasha's on a diet, and Mr. Jansen feels bad for her. This afternoon tea is just an excuse so he can buy her some food. We're just riding on her coattails!"

Chapter 3 Chapter 3

"Huh? But isn't Mr. Jansen married to Tabitha?""Shh! Keep your voice down. Tabitha is still here!""We're just joking, Tabitha. Don't take it to heart." I glanced at the spread of mango parfaits and chocolate cakes. Of course, it was for Sasha. Feeling bad that her dieting might harm her health, Luther had treated the whole office to afternoon tea. I was mildly curious as to how the snacks that were a testament to their love tasted. Unfortunately, I was allergic to mangoes and didn't enjoy chocolate. Back when Luther had courted me, he had been just as over-the-top. He had been worried about me skipping meals due to work and found excuses to make me eat by having me stay back with him to report my work progress. When I had fallen sick but insisted on working, he had secretly hidden medicine in a small cake. Then, he had convinced me to eat it just to see my expression as I grimaced from the bitterness. The once-dull office had become lively and filled with gossip as my colleagues watched our relationship blossom and unfold. But now, the recipient of all that affection and effort was someone else. I didn't have time to dwell on it, as my workload was overwhelming. I had already stayed late for several nights to meet the demands of this project. Unsurprisingly, I stayed back to work overtime again that night. The sky had gone completely dark by the time I realized someone was standing next to me. "Tabitha, are you still working overtime?" I looked up and saw Luther. I couldn't fathom why he had come to find me. "Do you need something, Mr. Jansen?" I asked. He seemed slightly uncomfortable with my formal tone but quickly got to the point. "How about we let Sasha take over this project?" Even though I had braced myself for this possibility, his words still stung. Luther continued, "Sasha has been dealing with too many rumors lately. If this project is credited to her, her abilities won't be questioned anymore." He knew how hard I had worked to secure this project. I had stayed up multiple nights, tirelessly pitching ideas and negotiating until my voice had become hoarse. Yet with one casual suggestion, he decided to hand it over to her. Every word he spoke was in defense of Sasha—to ensure she wouldn't be hurt by the gossip. However, he didn't for one second consider how unfair this was to me. I let out a soft, bitter laugh, finding it all too ironic. I said, "Sure, I'll hand it over to her. Ask her to come to me tomorrow, and I'll pass the project to her." I had already done more than enough for this company. With my resignation in mind, leaving Sasha to take over and handle the follow-ups was actually a relief. Luther seemed surprised by how quickly I agreed. He pulled out a jewelry box from his pocket and handed it to me. "Didn't you say you wanted a necklace from this brand? I'm sorry for my behavior before. I should have known that women liked little things like these. I'll make it up to you from now on." It was a necklace from the brand I liked. I had mentioned wanting one a long time ago, but he hadn't bought it for me when it mattered. Now, it felt meaningless. Besides, I didn't care for gestures that were done for the sake of appeasing or making it up to me after the harm was done. After I agreed to hand over the project, Luther's tone softened noticeably. He draped his jacket over my shoulders and said, "Come on. Don't be mad at me anymore. I apologize for the elevator incident, okay? "Let's withdraw the divorce application. You've always wanted to visit Dernby, right? I'll take you there when things settle down." I didn't respond. He must have assumed my silence was an implicit agreement to go by his suggestion. After that, he went on and kept mumbling about a lot of things that I had no interest in. On my way home, I scrolled through my social media feed. That was when I saw Sasha's latest post that featured the same necklace brand and the same packaging. The only difference was that her necklace was far more beautiful and intricate than mine. It hit me then—what Luther had given me was just a promotional freebie. How ridiculous! Even though he knew what I liked, he couldn't be bothered to put in the effort to select a nice gift for me.

Chapter 4 Chapter 4

The next day marked the last day of the divorce cooling-off period. After that, Luther and I would have nothing to do with each other. I was watering my plants on the balcony when the ring on my finger slipped off and fell over the edge. Instinctively, I leaned forward to try to retrieve it. "What are you doing?" Luther grabbed my arm and pulled me back forcefully. His eyes were filled with concern and urgency. "Do you realize how dangerous that was?" It almost seemed like he still cared about me. "The ring fell," I replied. That ring was something he had made for me by hand back then. I loved its design, so I had been wearing it all this time. That was why I reacted so impulsively when it fell. He let out a breath he had been holding. "It's just a ring. I can buy you another one. There's no need to do this." Just a ring, huh? I glanced at his hand and noticed how bare his ring finger was. He had already removed his own ring long ago. "Tomorrow is our wedding anniversary. I'll pick you up, and we'll spend it together," Luther offered. It had been so long since we had celebrated a wedding anniversary properly. I hesitated for a moment. Perhaps it was a way to put a dignified end to this marriage. ... The next day, I arrived early and sat in the private room at the restaurant we had reserved in advance. I had been waiting for a long time. My stomach had started growling with hunger, but Luther still hadn't shown up. I picked up my phone to call him. If he didn't intend to celebrate our wedding anniversary, he could have told me outright instead of wasting my time and leaving me to wait here. After my calls went unanswered, I glanced at my phone screen and saw that something was posted in the work group chat. An anonymous account wrote, "Sasha seduced her married boss. She used her youth and looks to sleep her way up the ladder—how shameful!" Attached to the message was "evidence" of me transferring the project to Sasha. Although the message condemned Sasha, the words implicated me. Not long after I saw it, Luther barged in furiously after kicking the door open. He shouted, "I thought you willingly handed over the project. I can't believe you can be so vile! You agreed on the surface while scheming behind my back to slander Sasha! Tabitha, how can you be so despicable?" Sasha stood behind him, sobbing pitifully as if she had been deeply wronged. She wailed, "I don't need the project. I don't care what they say about me. But, Tabitha, I've always seen you as a good friend. Why would you do this to me?""It wasn't me," I stated calmly. "Since I already agreed to let her take over from me, I wouldn't stoop to something like this." Luther retorted vexedly, "Who else has a reason to target Sasha but you? You're such a hypocrite! Sasha went out of her way to pick this restaurant for us, but you don't deserve such kind treatment!" He got so angry on Sasha's behalf. So much so that he even smashed a plate right in front of me. The shattered pieces scattered across the floor. After more than ten years together, he still didn't trust my character. I reached into my bag and pulled out the divorce agreement. "Since that's how you feel, we should finalize this now. The 30-day cooling-off period is over anyway." I placed my resignation letter underneath the agreement. Luther let out a cold laugh and grabbed the pen to sign his name without thinking. "As you wish!" With that, he took Sasha's hand and left with her. I sat at the table, watching his retreating figure. Well, there was no point in spending one last wedding anniversary together anymore. I turned to the cold dishes on the table and quietly ate my plate of pasta. When I was done eating, I grabbed the suitcase in the corner that I had already packed beforehand. Then, I took a cab and went to the airport. On the way there, I sent Luther a message. "The keys are on the coffee table. It's over between us. Don't ever contact me again." After sending it, I turned off my phone and boarded a flight to Naderton.