At the class reunion, everyone was playing truth or dare.

My wife's first love lost, and he walked up to her.

"Can I kiss you?"

My wife didn't refuse, putting her hand on his shoulder and closing her eyes.

He held her head, and they shared a "century-long kiss"!

The room was dead silent. Everyone looked at me.

But I just sipped my coffee and took off my wedding ring, putting it in my wife's hand.

"The vibe is perfect. Don't you reckon it's time for you to propose to her?

"Let's figure out when it's convenient, and we three can go get your wedding done."

——

Everyone looked at me like I was crazy.

My wife, Amelia Davis, was still in her first love, Shawn Jones's arms, with a blush on her face and a dazed look in her eyes, confused and suspicious.

Someone stepped in to break the awkward silence. "We're just messing around, so don't take it too seriously, Elijah."

But I didn't appreciate the interruption. I walked over to Amelia and Shawn, serious.

"How come you two lovebirds aren't a couple yet? Let's figure out when it works best to get your wedding paperwork sorted.

"Once we split up, you two can get married. It'll be a quick and easy process!"

I pointed at Shawn. "And this time, you can't back out at the last minute!"

Amelia's blush was gradually replaced by anger, and she furrowed her brow and looked annoyed.

"Elijah, are you crazy? It's just a game, you don't have to take it so seriously!"

I was well-known for being a henpecked husband. Although I had a successful career, I always obeyed Amelia at home and didn't want her to suffer even a little bit.

If it were in the past, I would feel very sorry for her just by seeing her frown, but now I felt disgusted.

The two of them kissed each other in front of me brazenly, and wanted me to pretend not to see it?

Did my blind obedience make her lose perspective?

Amelia felt that I didn't cooperate with her, which made her lose face and feel embarrassed.

After the class reunion was over, it was a little late, and she walked straight into Shawn's car in front of everyone's eyes.

Did love drive people crazy, to the extent that they didn't care about saving face?

With everyone present either teasing or showing sympathy, I calmly started my car and went home.

However, just as I got home, I received Amelia's urgent call for help.

It turned out that Shawn had driven drunk and hit someone.

I didn't want to get involved.

But after thinking about it, she was still the mother of my child, and now we were a family. She was crying hard. Maybe she was really hurt.

When I got to the scene of the accident, I saw Amelia carefully blowing on Shawn's forehead.

There was a small bump.

I looked Amelia up and down and confirmed again that she was unharmed, breathing a sigh of relief.

But before I could catch my breath, Amelia saw me and came up to grab my hand tightly.

Her palms were sweaty, maybe she was really scared.

But soon her words refreshed my understanding of her.

"Elijah, you've come at the right time! Now go to the car and sit there. If the traffic police ask, just say you were driving."

"What?"

I stood still in a daze, realizing that she was asking me to take the blame.

"Elijah, Shawn has lost his job and is looking for work. He can't have any violations on his record. Just do me a favor and help him, okay?"

My wife, asking me to do her ex-boyfriend a favor by taking the blame for him!

What an unreasonable person!

Before I could even object, the traffic police arrived at the scene.

Amelia pushed me out. "Officer, he was driving the car and ran into the person!"

Only then did I notice that there was an old man lying in front of the car.

The old man squinted his eyes. As soon as he saw the traffic police, he started groaning louder and louder. "Ouch, ouch!"

Ah, life was like a drama.

When the traffic police asked who the culprit was.

"Him!"

"Him!"

Good, it was a 2-2 draw.

The old and I were pointing at Shawn.

Amelia and Shawn were pointing at me.

The old man looked at me sympathetically and pointed at Shawn angrily.

"Don't think I have poor eyesight. It was this brat who ran into me. They were hugging and kissing each other at the time! If you don't believe me, you can check the surveillance video!"

The traffic cop who had just figured out the nature of our relationship was momentarily stunned.

In the end, Shawn was given 12 points and fined $400, and he had to pay $1,000 to the old man.

The old man happily put the money into his pocket and patted my shoulder as he passed by me.

"Young man, oh..."

"Elijah, it's so late. Let's take Shawn home first!"

Was I a clown?

I floored the gas pedal and left them behind.

By the time I was about to fall asleep, Amelia came back, and she moved to the guest bedroom in a huff.

In the past, whenever she was angry, she would threaten to sleep in a separate room, and I would always apologize and buy her gifts to make her happy again.

But this time, I just turned over and fell asleep.

I didn't have to worry about her kicking off the covers and catching a cold, or being squished against the edge of the bed by her terrible sleeping position. I slept soundly in my 80-inch-wide bed all by myself.

The next morning, when Amelia got up, I had just finished my last bite of breakfast.

She yawned and sat across from me, bossing me around.

"I don't want milk today, I want coffee."

"Okay, whatever!"

Seeing that I was sitting there motionless, she opened her sleepy eyes.

"Go get it for me right away!"

I picked up my cup and stood up, indifferently.

"Want to drink? Make it yourself. I'm done."

Since we got married, all the household chores have been my responsibility.

I knew everything she liked, including her clothing combinations.

I used to spoil her and never talked to her in this tone.

Amelia was a bit surprised and uncomfortable, blocking my way.

"Are you still angry about last night's game?

"I broke up with him a long time ago, it's no big deal. How can a man like you be so petty?"

I laughed at her.

"Petty? If I find another woman, hold her, and kiss her for ten minutes in front of you, don't you think it's no big deal?"

"You dare!"

Without realizing it, she finally understood.

"Dear, dear, don't treat me like this. It's my fault."

She twisted and leaned towards me, pouting and patting my arm.

I had always been soft-hearted and not hard-nosed. In the past, when she made some minor mistakes that were not too outrageous, I would forgive her.

But now, for some reason, the places she touched made me feel particularly repulsive and nauseous.

I pushed her away and slapped the place she had touched.

"Amelia, I've drafted the divorce agreement. Sign your name, and you'll be free," I said.

She took the divorce agreement from my hand and immediately widened her eyes in innocence and anger.

"Elijah, are you serious?"

"Yes!"

Amelia thought I was still angry about yesterday's incident, but it was not the case.

Before the class reunion, I discovered her secret, a secret she had kept for many years.

A few days ago, while tidying up the room, I accidentally knocked over Amelia's makeup case, and inside was a delicate USB stick.

The style of the USB stick suggested that it had been around for a long time.

For some reason, I plugged it into my computer and saw her hidden diary.

"Without him, everyone is a compromise."

"If it's not you by my side, it doesn't make a difference who it is to me."

"I still can't forget him, and I will secretly go to see him on my birthday every year."

"I have a secret, about him, and also about me. If we ever meet again, I will tell him in person."

"Nowadays, my marriage is like a cup of plain water, dull and uninteresting."

"He's back, and I'm actually a little excited. What should I do?"

The entire diary is filled with Amelia's love and longing for Shawn.

I used to think that our seven-year relationship was a loving and harmonious one, but it was actually a painful compromise for her.

I was a university student supported by Amelia's grandfather, secretly admiring her beauty and charm.

But she and Shawn were lovers, they loved each other passionately on campus.

After graduation, they naturally got engaged and married, but Shawn went missing on their wedding day.

The proud and stubborn Miss Amelia couldn't bear the blow, so in a fit of anger, she dragged me onto the stage.

"Elijah, do you want to marry me?"

This was an unexpected surprise to me, something I never dreamed of.

Of course, I was willing, but I was worried that she was just being impulsive, so I advised her to think carefully.

But she stubbornly looked at me, with red eyes and a stubbornly raised head.

"If you don't agree, I'll find someone else. I have to get married today."

I shamefully compromised.

I thought that as long as I was sincere to her, I could eventually soften her heart, make her forget about Shawn, and live with me wholeheartedly.

However, seven years had passed, and we even had a four-year-old child, but her heart was still a hard stone.

After reading this diary, I felt a mixture of nervousness, fear, and unease in my heart.

I, who had never smoked, sat up all night, with cigarette butts all over the floor.

The next day, she went shopping with great enthusiasm, trying on one outfit after another.

It was at a class reunion that I learned that Shawn had returned, and she had dressed up in her best to please him.

So at the party, she ignored the gaze of others and hugged him tightly.

After all, it was a reunion after seven years.

But I, a lowly thief.

Now that Shawn is back, as someone who knows the situation, I should naturally give up my position.

"Anyway, the person you love is not me. I am selfish for trapping you in marriage.

"Now that he's back, isn't it good that you two lovers can finally be together?"

Amelia shook her head repeatedly without hesitation.

"Elijah, it's not what you think."

"Then what is truth?"

She couldn't bring herself to say it, lowering her head and picking at the delicate nails.

"Elijah, if you're still angry about the game, I apologize to you."

"How about your diary?"

She widened her eyes in surprise and anger at being caught out in a secret.

"Did you go through my diary? Don't you know how to respect someone's privacy?"

I didn't argue with her, just looked at her quietly until she sheepishly turned away.

"That was just something I wrote out of boredom, it doesn't count."

"Over the years, you know how I treated you. If I really couldn't forget him, I wouldn't have married you and had children with you."

I suddenly felt tired and found it hard to speak.

"Dear, I won't divorce."

She lowered her head and approached me, tugging at my sleeve.

"I was wrong that day, I just had a few drinks and wasn't very clear-headed.

"I know how good you've been to me. You run the Davis Group and take care of me and the kids.

"Elijah, you promised Grandpa that you would take care of me for the rest of my life. Are you going to leave me alone too?

"You know, you are the only one I have in this world."

Her eyes were red, and gradually she seemed to blend with the sorrowful figure she had been a few years ago, becoming indistinguishable from it in my eyes.

Amelia's parents had passed away, and it was Grandpa Charles who had raised her.

Before his death, Charles said that the person he was most worried about was Amelia, and asked me to look after her in his stead.

Charles had been very kind to me, helping me out when I was in the most difficult of times.

After his funeral, Amelia hugged me and cried her heart out.

"From now on, I only have you in this world, only you..."

At that time, I felt sorry for her and made a solemn promise to her.

"Don't worry, I will be by your side for the rest of my life, never leaving or abandoning you."

At that moment, I really meant it. I wanted to protect this woman from any suffering for the rest of her life.

But the once sincere promise turned out to be a prison for myself.

As we sat in silence, Cathy made a video call.

Cathy was my daughter, who was four years old now and had recently been on vacation with my mom, her grandmother.

"Daddy, do you miss me? I miss you so much."

Cathy said with her pouty lips, making funny faces in front of the camera, dispelling the gloom in my heart.

Amelia had suffered from postpartum depression after giving birth to Cathy.

In order for her to recover better, Cathy had been taken care of by me and my mother since she was born.

"Where is mom? Can I talk to her?"

I handed my phone to Amelia.

Watching her interact closely with her Amelia, I, who had already made up my mind, suddenly wavered.

Children who grew up in single-parent families were somewhat sensitive in character.

What about Cathy if we divorced? Would she be affected by us?

After hanging up the phone, Amelia held my hand with a guilty face.

"Darling, Cathy is so cute, and how can you bear to make her sad?"

This time, I didn't pull away her hand.

Maybe we could try again.