04
“I went to your office early this morning, and they told me you’d taken the day off.”
Caught by Leon’s words, I felt a surge of annoyance and responded coolly, “Leon, Find something better to do. I hate being spied on.”
His usual words fell from my lips without thought.
Instead of reacting with anger, Leon was more cautious. “Honey, I wasn’t spying. You didn’t come home last night and I was worried. Where are you? I’ll come and pick you up.”
I knew he was only trying to verify if I’d been with Yale.
Dismissing the pettiness, I informed him I was at a friend’s house. He immediately sounded enthusiastic to fetch me.
He rushed to open the passenger door before I could reach the back, “Get in, honey.”
It didn’t matter to me; any seat was the same.
As soon as I sat down, I felt something under me. With a swipe of my hand, I found a sanitary pad, but not the brand I usually use.
Leon was shocked and threw the pad out of the window in a panic, explaining nervously, “Xenia must have left it accidentally yesterday, she was having her period, please don’t …”
I leaned back in my seat, closed my eyes, and said calmly, “Leon, no need to explain. I truly don’t care.”
Leon seemed not to have heard clearly. “What?”
I met his gaze with a calm look in my eyes. “You are an independent individual. You don’t need to justify anything to me. I don’t want to know.”
He looked at me intently, trying to discern if I was pretending.
After a long moment, it dawned on him that I truly didn’t care anymore. This realization filled him with an immense sense of panic.
When we got home, I went straight for a shower. Coming out, I found Leon in the living room, trimming lilies.
Seeing me, he hurriedly pulled me over and pointed at the vase, saying, “Baby, these are the lilies I ordered and arranged myself. Do you think they book nice?”
Without emotion, I pushed the vase away; it shattered on the floor.
Leon hurried to collect the fragments, cutting his finger in the process, blood beginning to flow. He looked up at me, hand raised, eyes pleading, “Honey…”
I stayed composed. “I’m allergic to lilies.”
He stood there, pale, letting the blood drip, suddenly remembering it was Xenia who liked lilies, not me.
The prick on his finger stung, “Honey, I’ve hurt my hand.”
I glanced at the minor cut. “You should go to the hospital before it heals.”
A realization seemed to hit him as he looked at my hand, recalling how much pain I must have been in when my palm was bleeding far more than his little wound.
What was he doing at that time?
He started to panic, feeling like some answers were about to surface.
Just then, Xenia called. He hastily picked up, and as if escaping, he quickly said to me, “Honey, Xenia’s pet is missing; Wait for me. I know of a good restaurant. Once I find the pet, we can go to the restaurant together!”
left.
Leon seemed afraid to look at me, let alone listen to anything I had to say, and hurriedly left.
Watching the door close, I took a deep breath, dragged out the luggage, placed the house keys and the signed divorce agreement on the table, and
The house was bought by Leon before we were married. I had no intention of keeping it and didn’t want to continue living there, affecting my mood.
After leaving, I took a sabbatical. My boss, aware of my situation, generously offered me a month off.
I joined an exploratory scientific team traveling to the vast Northwest.
The landscapes and encounters along the way captivated me, and conversations with experts gave me a new perspective on the world.
Previously, I had poured all my energy into Leon and our home, losing myself in the process.
Now, it felt as though I was reborn, discovering that life could indeed be lived in another way.
