When she returned, Veronica looked exhausted. Her voice was tinged with a hint of pleading.
“William, I’ll handle this. Give me some time. Don’t joke about divorce.”
I nodded. “Alright, I’ll give you time.”
She seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and moved to hug me.
I stood up to avoid her, saying, “I’m tired. I’ll sleep in the guest room.”
She froze, staring at me with a deathly pale face.
That night, I lay awake. At three in the morning, I got up thirsty for water and heard noises in the study.
The door wasn’t fully closed. I saw my wife, flamboyant and unrestrained, like a fiery rose.
Holding the photo that should have been in the trash can, she was overwhelmed with emotion.
At last, she whispered two shaky words, “Yohan.”
In that instant, I felt a part of my soul die completely.
The fortune-teller had indeed been wrong.
Veronica didn’t cheat in our fifth year of marriage, but her heart had left long before her body did.
The next day, I insisted on a divorce, but Veronica refused to sign the papers.
She came home on time every day, neatly folding my clothes and arranging my ties. She thought this could erase everything.
But within two days, Yohan began posting frequently on his social feed.
A photo showing his wrist bandaged in gauze with the caption:
[If my existence troubles you, I’m willing to vanish.]
A photo of him receiving an IV drip at the hospital, captioned: [Veronica, don’t worry about me. It’s my fault.]
A selfie in front of the university teaching building, captioned: [Youth that can’t be returned, people I can’t forget.]
I forwarded the screenshots directly to Veronica.
She dialed Yohan’s number and roared into the phone, “Yohan, I’m warning you to stay away from William or don’t blame me for not showing any mercy.”
A tearful voice came from the other end of the line, “But Veronica, I’ve loved you for eight years. I can’t live without you.”
Veronica hung up, her face darkening.
The next day, Yohan’s public warning was posted on the institute’s bulletin board. His eligibility for professional title evaluation was revoked and he was transferred away from the core project.
I knew this was Veronica’s doing. She wanted to use this method to demonstrate her resolve toward me.
But that very afternoon, Yohan burst into my office, weeping.
“William! Are you satisfied? Not only did you use marriage to blackmail my senior, now you’re ruining my career!”