When people asked why Mr. Hemsworth still wore a bracelet worth only a million, he would reply with pride and affection, "My wife bought for this for me. I'll wear it for life."
Seeing that bracelet again, I felt a pang of disorientation. To outsiders and to me, he had always seemed like the perfect husband.
Everyone said Mr. Nick Hemsworth was a shining example of a loving spouse whose success was rooted in his devotion to his wife.
Back then, I believed it too. I believed he loved me as deeply as ever. Until a few days ago, when I uncovered his hidden chat history.
The other party's avatar was set as "File Transfer Assistant," pinned at the top but muted. The last message read, "Today's work report - Yvonne.xlsx." Perhaps guided by a woman's intuition, I opened it.
Within the seemingly proper spreadsheet were countless seductive photos of the woman, utterly indecent.
Scrolling further up, I saw they had been in constant contact, with so many messages that it was hard to pinpoint when it all began.
During his recent overseas business trip, he had said to me, "Helen, I'm too busy these days. I might not be able to reply to your messages promptly." True to his word, he didn't reply to even one.
But on those same dates, he was receiving this woman's daily 'work reports' and having hour-long video calls with her.
The sound of running water from the bathroom stopped. I put down his phone and used the blanket to wipe away the dampness from the corners of my eyes.
A warm body, carrying the scent of cedarwood, approached. His deep, gentle voice sounded by my ear, "Helen, you're still awake? Were you waiting for me to tell you a bedtime story?"
I was an orphan. When we met in our youth, I once envied other children who had parents to tell them bedtime stories. I didn't have that.
At that time, he held me gently with a heartbroken expression and promised, "From now on, I'll tell you a story every day."
He kept his promise. As long as he wasn't on a business trip, I would fall asleep each night to his stories. Listening to his tender voice now, a subtle ache spread through my heart.
If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed that the perfect husband before me was secretly keeping a mistress. Perhaps because of the turmoil in my heart, I didn't sleep well that night.