When he reached his mother’s house, his anger tore through it. He wrecked everything in his path, smashing furniture and belongings. The chaos reached its peak when he came close to hurting his sister’s child, only halting when his mother knelt before him, pleading for mercy.
I had just finished sending all the data to my colleagues through my communication bracelet when the door suddenly slammed open.
Rocco rushed in, his arms enveloping me tightly. His voice wavered with guilt.
"Valerie, I’m so sorry. I didn’t protect you, and I let them bully you."
"Don’t listen to their nonsense. I don’t care about having kids at all. Please, don’t leave me. Don’t divorce me."
I could feel his body trembling, his grip so tight I could barely breathe. Struggling to break free, I finally managed to loosen his hold, offering him a soft, reassuring smile.
"Don’t worry," I said, my voice calm, almost too calm. "I won’t divorce you."
But in my heart, I already knew I was leaving him forever.
Rocco let out a deep sigh, his shoulders easing as if a heavy weight had been lifted from him. Grateful for the brief respite, he gently took my hand, his voice soft but filled with sincerity.
"Valerie, I know my family has made you suffer over the years because of me," he said, his tone laced with regret.
"Don’t worry. I’ll find a way to shut them up."
"My team detected an abnormal magnetic field near Liora Cliff these past few days. After analyzing it, it seems our theory about parallel worlds might actually hold water."
"This is huge. If we can prove it, I can ask my boss for a large sum of funding. With that, I’ll retire early and stay home to take care of you."
The Space-Time Transportation Bureau always made sure to prepare in advance for a spaceship's departure. I hadn’t expected Rocco’s team to get caught up in this.
His phone rang again. He glanced at me, his eyes briefly meeting mine, before he walked into the kitchen to answer.
"Rocco, when are you coming back? My stomach’s been sore, and I’m not sure if it’s from the fall earlier," the voice on the other end whined.
"I’m scared. Come keep me company, okay? I bought some new lingerie, the wild kind... just for us."
When he returned, his face wore that familiar apologetic look as if it could fix everything.
"Valerie, to gather more data, I need to go on a field trip with my team for a few days."
So much for claiming he didn’t care about children.