As I was about to walk past him, he grabbed my wrist, which I shook off with disdain. Chase looked momentarily shocked but quickly put on a flattering smile. "Honey, what did I do wrong? Tell me and I'll change immediately. Please don't ignore me."
I looked into his eyes, trying to find a trace of the Chase from the chat records. His acting was too good, all I saw was concern for me. I wanted to confront him, to tell him to stop pretending, but reason pulled me back. "No, I really have urgent matters to attend to." I needed to seek advice from my strategist.
Chase wouldn't let it go. "You're lying. Every time you're angry with me, you sleep in the guest room. Now you're impatient with me, I can feel it." He played the victim, looking hurt. "Have you fallen for someone else?"
I closed my eyes and reopened them, trying to calm him down. "No, I haven't. I'm just mad that you came home so late last night. I had planned to have breakfast with Hanna this morning. I'm really running late."
He suddenly leaned down, pointing to his cheek. "Then give me a good morning kiss like usual."
Whenever he was home, he insisted I kiss him before he left, saying it charged him up to work hard for our future. Now I saw why I had been so thoroughly deceived, his acting was impeccable and detailed. Losing to him wasn't unfair. Chase was like an Oscar-winning actor who even acted while sleeping, habitually holding me and kissing me before falling asleep.
To get away quickly, I reluctantly kissed his cheek and, as soon as I stepped outside, wiped my mouth with a tissue. Kissing such a bastard like him disgusted me.
"Has Chase finally shown his true colors?" My best friend, Hanna, remarked when she heard I wanted a divorce.
I hadn't even shown her the evidence yet. I thought she might try to persuade me otherwise since everyone, including my parents and friends, believed I was incredibly lucky to have found the perfect husband in Chase.
I remember Hanna once told me, "Don't trust Chase too much," and an idea went off in my head. "Did you already know about Chase's true nature?"
Hanna took a sip of her milk tea and waved her finger. "No! I just don't believe there are perfect men in this world. I firmly believe 'a man is only honest when he's on the wall as a picture.'"
I started to speak, but she made a stop gesture. "You're wondering why I didn't tell you?"
I nodded.