“He’s the one who makes the money, supports this whole family, takes care of your father and me! How can you be so ungrateful?”
My father came out right behind her, red-faced and fuming.
“Even if he bought that woman a house, a coffee—what’s it got to do with you? If you can’t hold on to your man, that’s your failure!”
“You should be grateful he’s still staying with you! You’re lucky to have him!”
Then my seventeen-year-old brother sneered. “Honestly, sis, you’re kind of a frumpy housewife now. If I were Alric, I couldn’t stand you either.”
There I stood, in my apron, the one I wore every day while cooking, cleaning, mothering—and yet my own family, the people I gave everything for, turned on me without hesitation.
They called me a burden. A disappointment. A woman who couldn't keep her man.
My heart went still in my chest.
“Alric called me just now. He's worried about you, asking if you’d come home!” My mother raised her hand again and slapped me one more time.
“You go meet your husband and apologize to him right this instance! Or don’t bother calling me 'mother' ever again!”
My mother pinched the soft flesh at my waist so hard.
“If it weren’t for your husband, we wouldn’t be living like this! You ungrateful little brat! You’ve got no shame!”
Everyone in the family kept pressuring me to apologize to Alric, to beg for his forgiveness. But I stood there.
“I want a divorce. And no one’s going to talk me out of it,” I said with resolve.
My mother’s face turned black with rage. She raised her hand again, ready to hit me.
This time, I was ready. So, I stepped back and got out of her reach.
My younger brother Caelan frowned and crossed his arms. “And where do you think you're going to live after the divorce? This house is mine now—Mom and Dad already promised it as my future wedding home.”
My father chimed in, “You’ve only had a good life because of Alric. Once you leave him, where are you going to go? Planning to sleep on the streets?”
I laughed bitterly, taking two steps back. “Oh, don’t worry! I won’t be your problem.”
They just stood there, stunned, as I walked out of the house.
Behind me, my mom shouted, “Fine! Keep throwing your tantrum! Let’s see how long you last out there! A woman without her family is nothing but a weed in the wind!”
I’d barely made it down the block when my phone rang. It was Alric.