Chapter 4

After two days of recovery, I felt strong enough to swing my arm and slap Adam across the face. His cheek instantly swelled.

Just then, my mom walked in, and without missing a beat, she hurled the cup of honey water in her hand straight at him.

Judy screamed as the cup shattered near her.

"You shameless pair! Get out!"

My dad joined in, and the two of them sent Adam and Judy fleeing in disarray.

Judy never showed up again, though Adam sent me a few text messages, barking like a dog.

I ignored him.

A week later, when I was discharged and returned home, I was stunned the moment I stepped inside. My mom was equally dumbfounded. "Was your house robbed? Where’s the window?"

The typhoon had long passed, but my living room was still soaked. The massive window was completely gone, leaving only the curtains swaying in the breeze.

And the dust on the floor told the story: Adam hadn’t been home all week.

I pulled out my phone to check his location. He was in the same neighborhood but not at our house.

Seeing this, my fists clenched.

I called him, and after several rings, he finally picked up.

"Where are you?"

"I—I’m home.”

"Home? Adam Quinn, you’ve got some nerve."

I hung up immediately, stormed into the bedroom, and started packing my things.

Then I sent him the divorce papers.

Adam panicked and called me back right away. "Mona, what’s the meaning of this? You’re divorcing me over something so trivial?"

"Trivial? Losing my baby is trivial? Then what counts as serious?"

"Oh, I get it," I continued, bitter laughter escaping me. "Judy catching a cold—that’s serious, isn’t it? During the typhoon, when the window was ripped out, when I was alone and vulnerable, you disappeared for a week. Your phone’s GPS shows you’ve been at building 28 this whole time.

"Adam, if you’d just told me you didn’t love me anymore, at least I could respect you for being honest. That would’ve been manly."

Adam stammered, unable to form a coherent response.

From the other end of the line, Judy’s voice chimed in, “Mona, don’t be mad…”

"Shut your mouth! You knew he was married and still threw yourself at him! Shameless! Maybe I should make a banner with your name on it and send it to your parents. Let them see what kind of daughter they raised!"

She froze in stunned silence before letting out a shrill scream. I didn’t care and hung up immediately. Grabbing my things, I went straight back to my parents’ house.

Although we both lived in the same city, my family was on the west side, while Adam’s was on the east.

Once we got home, my parents were beside themselves with worry and fury, cursing Adam relentlessly.

"If I’d known what he was like, I would never have let you marry him!"

"Dad, let’s not talk about this anymore. It’s my fault for misjudging him. We’ll just find someone better next time."

I comforted my dad as he sighed heavily, the anger giving way to heartache.

I knew he felt sorry for me.

But Adam was like a thorn embedded in my flesh, leeching my energy and life. If I didn’t rip it out, it would only continue to fester, draining me until I withered completely.

This time, I was determined to divorce him. But Adam refused to agree.

He tried coming to see me, but I wouldn’t meet him.

Instead, I only dealt with him over the phone.

"Have you reviewed the divorce agreement? Do you have any issues with the property division?"

"I’m not signing it. Mona, don’t be so heartless. We dated for a year, and we’ve been married for two. Now you want to divorce? You’re treating marriage like it’s a game! Is this what it means to you?"

He actually had the nerve to accuse me?

I let out a laugh. "That’s rich coming from you. Maybe you should be asking yourself that question. What does marriage mean to you? You want it all, don’t you? You can’t let go of your childhood sweetheart, but you still came after me. Why bother? If you won’t agree to the divorce, I’ll take it to court."

I hung up without waiting for a reply.

Furious, Adam sent me a flurry of text messages.

“Mona Thomas, do you really think you’re blameless? You’re divorcing me over something so trivial. When you were pregnant, the doctor warned you to cut back on work and rest because of the risk of miscarriage, but you wouldn’t listen!

“And now that you’ve lost the baby, you’re blaming me? As a mother, don’t you think you bear some responsibility too?”

Reading those words felt like a knife to my chest. The pain was suffocating. I couldn’t believe he actually thought of me this way.

I took a deep breath and saved every single message. If that was how he wanted to play it, there was no need for me to hold back anymore.

But now wasn’t the time. Because of my physical condition, my parents insisted I stay home and recover for a full month before leaving the house. So, I wasn’t in any rush to confront him yet.

Meanwhile, Adam and his precious Judy continued their little flirtations.

Judy even made a habit of "sharing" their sweet memories with me, sending me intimate photos of the two of them together without a shred of shame.

I saved every single one of those photos.

I hadn’t returned to the house we once shared, but I’d left the security cameras installed before I moved out. Those were still running.