Chapter 3

Melissa: [Why did you post about me on your Instagram? Did you think it would somehow force me to have a change of heart?]

Melissa: [How low can you go? I'll tell you once and for all: I don't want you. I've never wanted you. Matt's the only one I love!]

Melissa: [Let's see who ends up more humiliated—me or you, Mr. Proud Husband. Maybe wearing a green hat suits you!"

She didn't stop there. Perhaps thinking my silence was defeat, she followed her usual routine and took her grievances public. Her latest post on social media mirrored Matt's antics, right down to the same self-righteous indignation:

[A marriage without love is nothing but a cage. I may have been forced into it, but my body will forever belong to my true love.]

Our mutual friends, apparently unable to stomach her brazenness, began flooding the comments with scathing rebukes.

But Melissa was undeterred. She clapped back at every critic with equal parts pettiness and venom.

I didn't bother engaging. I'd already said my piece when I posted that announcement. It wasn't a cry for sympathy but a severance—clean and final. She could rant and rave to the heavens; my conscience was clear.

She was no longer the little girl who used to follow me around, pouting and seeking my attention. It was time I let go of this lingering attachment.

I did one thing before shutting my phone for the morning: I gave her post a like.

It was a quiet acknowledgment, a signal that I was done looking back. Then I busied myself with the mundane rituals of preparing for work.

*

Melissa and I had grown up side by side as neighbors. In our little cul-de-sac of grand houses and sprawling lawns, the neighborhood kids often banded together, but Melissa was special to me. She had always stood out to me. I became her self-appointed guardian.

I tutored her through tricky math problems, chauffeured her to and from school, braided her hair, and even rationed her candy when she overindulged. Somewhere along the way, those habits hardened into something I couldn't shake.

The adults joked about it often enough. "Raising yourself a little wife, are you?" they'd say. Melissa, never one to miss a beat, would grin and declare, "When I grow up, I'm going to marry Shawn!"

Well, she grew up. She met Matt. And she forgot every word of it.

The memory stung, but not enough to linger. It was long past time to let go. I gathered myself, squared my shoulders, and prepared to face the day.

That's when my phone rang.

The caller was her father, his voice barely steady amidst the chaos in the background. I could hear furniture crashing, her mother's high-pitched sobs, and Melissa's unmistakable screams cutting through the din.

"Shawn," her father pleaded, desperation cracking through his usual calm. "Please, come to our place. We need you."

Before I could ask for details, Melissa's shrill voice surged through the receiver. "If you don't agree to the divorce, I'll die right here in front of you all!"

I sighed. "Alright," I said simply and hung up.

I grabbed the divorce papers and headed out. Whatever melodrama awaited, I was sure this was the answer she wanted.

The Olson residence was a battlefield of broken furniture and frayed tempers.

Melissa stood in the center, her hair disheveled, one hand clutching a fruit knife pressed against her wrist. A thin trickle of blood traced a line down her arm. I could see the manic fury in her eyes.

Her father looked like he'd aged a decade overnight, his graying hair more prominent and his expression etched with defeat. Her mother, meanwhile, was inconsolable, alternating between tearful pleas and frantic attempts to grab the knife from Melissa's hand.

It was clear what had happened. Her father, ever the traditionalist, had dragged her here to make amends and salvage the marriage. Even now, he still believed I could forgive and forget, that Melissa and I could somehow move past this chaos.

Melissa had other ideas. Her tantrum escalated until the knife came into play. Her parents were out of their depth, and I was their last hope.

For a moment, I couldn't help but find the whole scene darkly amusing. If she was this resistant to the marriage, why hadn't she protested before we tied the knot? No one had forced her to walk down the aisle. It was her choice—or so I thought.

I voiced the question aloud. "If you didn't want this, why didn't you speak up before? Marriage is a choice, Mel. You could have said no."

Her response was chilling in its clarity. "Because you wouldn't have let me refuse! Isn't this what you wanted all along? Aren't you thrilled now? I'll tell you why I went through with it: to show Matt just how far I was willing to go for him. Even in this sham of a marriage, I belong only to him. For his sake, I'll do anything."