53: Let's divorce!

It was a happy celebration for the first birthday of Khana's first born child. Kharl was also delighted to see a vibrant background. The young boy enjoyed recognizing varying faces.

The couple had thrown a grand celebration to mark the occasion. 

Santillan's garden was decorated with colorful balloons, streamers, and a vibrant backdrop filled with playful images of animals and bright colors. Kharl, who had just started toddling, was delighted by the lively atmosphere.

Richard and Khana stood in the center as they welcomed their guests. They had prepared a short speech for the occasion, expressing their gratitude for the love and support they had received throughout the year. After their heartfelt words, a few distinguished guests shared their sentiments, offering blessings for the baby and the family. The atmosphere was warm and celebratory, with glasses raised in toasts and the clinking of cutlery as everyone enjoyed the delicious spread of food.

An awkward breath of air only pooped in the air when one of Richard's friends at work jokingly said, "Looks like your blood is not a fighter. Kharl resembles his mother in every aspect, I wonder what features your baby got from you?"

Richard caught off guard, forced a laugh. "I don’t know. Maybe his genitals?" he joked, trying to ease the tension. But his laugh was hollow, and his eyes were unfocused, betraying the discomfort he felt.

Sensing the awkwardness, the event coordinator quickly moved on to the next part of the program, shifting everyone's attention to the games and entertainment. The mood lightened once again as the guests began to participate in the activities, laughing and cheering as they played.

One of the guests gave Khana a gift, wrapped in a gold paper cloth securely adorned with a red curled ribbon.

Richard had not noticed such a gift from one of the guests since he was occupied, drinking wine with his father and father-in-law.

Meanwhile, Khana was busy overseeing the logistics of the party. As the celebration came to a close and the guests began to leave, she instructed the maid to gather all of Kharl's gifts and take them to his room. She wanted to start unwrapping them and organizing everything once the party was over.

There were building blocks, gadgets, and clothes, but what caught her attention the most was the piece of paper given to her by one of the guests. 

It was intriguing as to why there was no name from the sender. It had been handed to her by one of the guests, though in the flurry of the celebration, she hadn’t had time to take a closer look. Curiously, she unwrapped the gift, taking care not to tear the wrapping.

Test result?" Khana muttered to herself, perplexed. 

"Why would someone give a test result as a gift to a baby?" she added.

Khana was surprised upon realizing whose name was written on the paper. "He's healthy, but Bettina told me her cousin was terminally ill. So, they fabricated that result?" she uttered in disbelief.

Her mind raced as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. A feeling of dread settled in her stomach. She felt a presence behind her and quickly folded the paper, shoving it into her pocket just as Richard walked into the room.

"Honey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Khana replied, wearing a sarcastic smile. Since some guests stayed for a drinking session, she went to Kharl's crib and spent a couple of minutes staring blankly at the window.

"I know when you're troubled. Tell me, what's wrong?" Richard asked again.

"I told you. It's nothing," Khana replied, forcing a smile. She didn’t want to discuss it yet, not in the middle of the night, not with Kharl sleeping soundly in his crib nearby. But her smile was strained, and Richard could tell something was off.

"Did they all leave?" Khana asked.

"Yes. I also sent our parents to their home. You sounded different. Did I do something wrong?" Richard asked.

"Care to explain this?" Khana yelled in frustration as she threw the paper to her husband's face.

Richard was stunned in his position. He froze in horror as his eyes understood what Khana meant.

"So, you tricked me despite knowing I loathed liars the most? How shameless and selfish of you to use such a nasty lie to force me into marrying you?"

"N-No, it wasn’t like that!" Richard stammered, his voice shaking. "It was a misunderstanding, honey."

"How many misunderstandings do I have to witness to see your true colors? I thought I knew you, Richard."

"I—" Richard opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. He wanted to come up with an excuse, some way to explain it all away. But deep down, he knew there was no point. No excuse would make this right. There's no point in making excuses; it will only aggregate his wife's wrath.

"How can you say you love me? When all you did was lie and hurt me?" Khana uttered in distress. She felt so betrayed. Just when she wanted to trust him and slowly build their family, all his lies and antics resurfaced.

"I can't live with a man who kept lying to me. Let's divorce," Khana uttered.

"I lied for us! I lied for the sake of spending my lifetime with you," says Richard, holding back his anger.

"You ingrates never appreciate me!" Richard exploded with anger. He was frustrated and mad about Khana making everything complicated when she could just see his effort in a different light. 

In a fit of anger, Richard lashed out, slapping Khana across the face. The room fell into a stunned silence as the slap echoed. Richard’s eyes widened in shock at what he had done, and he immediately regretted it.

"Appreciating you is different from loving you. I appreciate how you treat me like a queen, but is it really my fault for not reciprocating your feelings?" Khana rebuts, holding the cheeks Richard had slapped.

"I didn't mean to slap you... I'm sorry, Honey," Richard pleaded, down on his knees.

"I married you because I pity your condition. When I heard you are terminally ill, I thought staying with you until you perish was the last thing I could do to return all the favors you've done to me," she fought back while chasing Richard out of the room.

Khana didn’t listen. She stepped back, her hand on her cheek, and looked at him with a mixture of betrayal and disbelief. "Now I see you for who you really are."

"I thought it wouldn't hurt to hear you only pitied me, but I guess it still stubs my heart mercilessly," he uttered as Khana shut the door after kicking him out of Kharl's room.