And me? I was like an outsider.
Mom could spend my money without a hint of guilt. No matter how much I gave or sacrificed, in her eyes, it was always something I ought to do.
When she saw that I had no intention of apologizing, she clutched her chest and pretended to faint, collapsing dramatically onto the floor.
It was her usual trick, one she’d used countless times to make me back down. But not this time.
Buck barked at me in a panic. “Look at what you’ve done! You’ve made Mom faint! Hurry and take her to the hospital!”
I threw him a cold glance. “This time, it’s your turn to take care of her.”
With that, I turned and walked away.
Behind me, Ethel shouted, “I’ve never seen anyone as heartless as you! Ignoring your own mother?! Do you even have a conscience?”
A sudden gust of wind swept through the yard. Though the sun still blazed high above, I felt a chill crawling up my spine.
No matter how harshly the sunlight beat down on me, the cold in my chest wouldn’t fade. The sadness was so deep that not even the summer heat could warm it.
That night, Mom mentioned me in the family group chat, launching into a lecture about morality and virtue, accusing me of being unfilial between the lines.
The so-called peacemakers in the group chimed in one after another, preaching about how I should apologize to my mother and my sister-in-law, as if they were teaching me how to be a decent human being.
I quit the group chat without hesitation.
For a moment, the world went completely silent.
But I didn’t expect that the next day, Mom would call my ex-husband to complain about how “immature and disobedient” I was.
That’s how she found out I was divorced.
I had gotten the divorce certificate just the day before Thanksgiving… after catching my husband in bed with another woman.
When I confronted them, he hit me. He actually did for his damn mistress.
I had wanted to tell Mom about the divorce right away, but she was hospitalized at the time.
Worried about her health, I decided to wait until she recovered.
But while I was at work one afternoon, she suddenly burst into my office, half crying and half furious, grabbing me by the collar.
“You useless child!” she shouted, her voice trembling. “Who told you to get divorced? Where are you even living now? Who’s going to take care of you?”
Then came the command—sharp and humiliating.