On my birthday, my husband of five years accompanied his childhood sweetheart to celebrate her dog's birthday. Avery Simpson published a loving post: [The happiest baby in the world. Mom and Dad will be with you. I hope you're always happy.]

Seeing the words "Mom and Dad", I commented a question mark with confusion. The next moment, I found myself blocked.

Charles Logan called me and lashed out at me. "Why do you always have to mess things up at the worse possible time? You're worse than a dog. How despicable!"

Shortly after, Avery changed her profile picture to one of her and Charles, hands intertwined. When I saw the obvious provocation, I didn't get angry like before. That's because I had already made up my mind to get a divorce.

Charles Logan came through the door, clutching a large bouquet of roses. After he spotted me sitting in the dining room, he walked over and thrust the flowers at me. His gaze lowered as he nitpicked harshly as usual. "You're always eating junk from outside. Look at all this food you've bought. Have you seen yourself in the mirror? You're starting to look like a middle-aged woman. Why is there a cake? Is it your birthday?"

I tried to cover my nose and mouth as I placed the roses in the kitchen. As I wiped the pollen off my skin with a wet wipe, I shook my head and replied, "It was on sale, so I bought it."

He eased up right away with a half-smile. "You sneakily munch on this sugary stuff all the time. No wonder you gained weight."

We had been married for five years. Charles never cared about my birthday, but he remembered every little special thing about Avery Simpson. I would have felt wronged and argued with him in the past, but now I could not be bothered to say a single word.

As I chucked the roses into a corner in the kitchen, Charles rushed over and retrieved them. "Avery helped me pick this gift for you. How could you just toss them away like that? Where are your manners? And what's with the attitude? You scared Avery. Call her right now and apologize."

The pollen wafted through the air. Caught off guard, I inhaled a deep breath of it. My nose swelled instantly, making it hard to breathe. I scowled as I took a step back. "Stay away from me!"

My rejection angered Charles, and he frowned in frustration. "Who said you could be picky? Avery is too good-hearted. You've hurt her, yet she still thought of getting you a gift. Why are you acting all high and mighty?"

With the flowers in hand, he hurried over and forced my raised arm down, pushing my phone into my hand.

I struggled as hard as I could, crashing into the edge of the table as I stumbled. With a loud crash, a plate fell to the ground. Glass shards scattered everywhere, slicing into my leg deeply. The excruciating pain and the suffocating allergy reaction made me scream in agony.

Only then did Charles notice the swelling and redness on my skin. He quickly put down the flowers and held me. His brow furrowed slightly as he dragged me out the door. "Are you out of your mind? Why didn't you say you weren't feeling well? You're so foolish, you brought this on yourself! I'm taking you to the hospital!"

As soon as we stepped outside of our home, Avery showed up with teary eyes. Once she saw Charles, she grabbed him with trembling shoulders. "Charles, right after you left, Buster swallowed the cake candles while I wasn't watching. Now they're stuck in its throat, and I can't get them out. I'm too scared to drive alone. Can you take him to the vet with me? He's dying!"

Hearing Avery's plea, Charles did not hesitate. He immediately let go of me and pushed me aside. He pulled out a handful of hundred-dollar bills from his wallet and tossed them at me. "I'll go with Avery to the vet. Call an ambulance for yourself. It's just some allergies and cuts. You'll be fine after they treat you. Call me when you're done. I'll come get you," Charles said as he walked away without a backward glance.

I lay helplessly on the ground. Dirt and trash clung to my open wounds, and they were painful. I fumbled for my phone, but my throat was so swollen that I could barely give them the full address. Time seemed to stretch on as cold sweat soaked my hair. I blacked out as the telephone operator's voice faded. If no one had come downstairs and discovered me, I might have suffocated right there.

After receiving the allergy shot, I lay weakly on the hospital bed, waiting for the symptoms to subside.

Charles called. The moment I answered the phone, he lashed out at me. "Didn't I tell you to call me? I waited for you at home for half an hour. It's just a small matter. Why are you being so dramatic? How dare you not answer your phone?"

Charles knew I was in the hospital for allergy treatment, but he still lost his temper. He was fuming that I could not answer his calls in time. I could tell from the background noise that he was not at home. However, he insisted on acting all high and mighty, just to put me down.

I had always put Charles first in all the years that we had been married. Even when I was barely conscious from a high fever, I never neglected him. This led him to believe he could boss me around. However, I was not as accommodating this time. "I wasn't feeling well and didn't have time to answer the phone," I explained.

Charles snorted coldly. "You're such a drama queen. Avery's dog needs surgery. We can't leave. Leave the hospital immediately and buy two bowls of soup. I'm starving. You have 20 minutes. Do a good job, and I can make an exception and let you use my family card."

In the past, a casual, overbearing command from him would have made me happy for a long time. I thought it showed how intimate we were. However, this time, I politely refused. "I have savings. You should save that privilege for someone who needs it more, like your driver."

I saw Avery's post about two weeks ago. She had just bought a new wallet from a luxury boutique. A black card peeked out from the opened wallet. It looked familiar, so I contacted the bank and found out that Charles had given Avery an unlimited supplementary card. Meanwhile, I had been requesting money from Charles due to the steep living costs.

Seeing that I remained unfazed by his demands, Charles sighed and forced himself to soften his tone. "Rosie Zachary, can you stop throwing a tantrum? I'm really busy and can't be looking after you all the time. You're an adult capable of taking care of yourself even when you're ill."

"I'm not throwing a tantrum," I replied calmly, although Charles remained unconvinced.

He scoffed and retorted sarcastically, "If you're not throwing a tantrum, why are you being so difficult? Let me warn you. My patience has its limits. Don't be confused about the situation and make a scene. You're not young anymore. There are plenty of women who would love to be Mrs. Logan."

It was not the first time Charles had threatened me. The first time he spoke to me so harshly, I was taken aback and yelled at him out of frustration. Charles just shook his head, smirking at how he had gotten under my skin. "I knew you were crazy," he said.

However, I remained composed and showed no signs of anger this time. I simply hung up the phone calmly. After leaving the hospital, I did not go home. Instead, I checked into a hotel and fell into a deep slumber.

When I woke up, I saw hundreds of missed calls. Whenever we argued in the past, Charles would initiate a cold war, ignoring me completely. However, for the first time, he texted me, asking why I had not returned home yet.

I responded casually: [I was hanging out with friends.]

Charles replied with a simple: [?]

In the past, I dreaded receiving such cold responses from him. The uncertainty of whether he was mad at me used to eat me up inside. However, I left his message on "seen." I looked up information online and contacted a lawyer. "I want to start divorce proceedings," I told them.

The next day, I returned home to gather my belongings. When I opened the door, I was met with the sight of Charles, shirtless and video-chatting happily with Avery, wearing a sweet expression on his face.

Charles quickly ended the call when he saw me. He looked flustered and said, "Rosie, I was just checking on Avery's dog."

I tilted my head slightly and replied, "There's nothing to misunderstand."

"You don't mind?" Charles asked.

"There's nothing to mind," I replied.

After a pause, Charles said, "You're coming with me to a birthday party tonight."

Since I was not feeling well, I wanted to decline. "I'm not sure I can make it."

"I already told Quinton you'd be there. He wants to make up for not inviting you to his wedding last time," Charles responded.

When he said it that way, I had no choice but to agree.

Charles arranged for the driver to pick us up. When I opened the car door, I was surprised to find Avery already seated in the back. She greeted me with a slight smile.

"Rosie, it's rare to see you in the mood to go to a party," Avery remarked.

In the past six months, for every event I heard that Avery was attending, I would always find an excuse to avoid going. She constantly sought opportunities to provoke me because I was Charles' lawful wife. Therefore, she never hesitated to show her true colors whenever she could.

Charles guiltily told me, "Avery's car broke down, so I asked Mr. Chester to pick her up. You can sit in the back when we go home later."

I ignored him and got into the front passenger seat.

Once we arrived at the private room, Quinton Young came over to talk to me, but Avery quickly intercepted him. She said, "Quinton, did Charles ask you to wait for us at the door? I'm so sorry. There was a traffic jam, and we had to take a detour to pick up Rosie. So it took a while..."

I went straight to the back and sat down. Charles and Avery sat in the center, surrounded by everyone. If it were before, I would have been so uncomfortable that I would have confronted Charles. However, with my lower abdomen hurting, I did not pay much attention to it.

After a while, Avery signaled to the restaurant manager to bring out the wine she and Charles had left there earlier. Seeing Charles' uncomfortable expression, I kindly excused myself and went to the restroom.

When I came back, I saw Charles assisting Avery with her drink. The first time Charles and I went to gatherings with his friends after our marriage, they also pressured me to drink.

I said I was allergic, but Charles took a glass of wine without a word, grabbed me by the wrist, and forced me to drink it.

That night, I ended up with a high fever.

However, Charles only indifferently said that drinking more would make me a better drinker, and I was only being overly dramatic.

Clearly intoxicated, Charles asked Avery if there was any wish he could fulfill during the birthday celebration, his words slurred.

Blushing, Avery glanced around the private room before suddenly pointing at me and saying shyly, "I want to see you smear cake on her face."

Without a second thought, Charles snatched the cake and smashed it onto me before I could respond. The cream covered my face, and the metal plate caused me pain. Charles just chuckled with Avery, saying, "How about that? Doesn't she look fantastic?"

Avery threw herself into his arm while the rest of the group laughed and teased.

My vision became hazy as I staggered backward. Suddenly, someone pushed me, causing me to collide with the sharp edge of the table. Pain shot through my body instantly. I cried out in agony, clutching my stomach as I fell to the floor.

I caught Charles' eye. He scowled, appearing annoyed that I had disrupted the festivities. He seemed inclined to approach me and help me up. "Rosie, why are you pretending? I just smeared cake on you…"

In the next moment, a voice exclaimed in horror, "There's blood! Her lower body is covered in blood!"