While I was cleaning up my stuff, I noticed the box of razor blades I’d just bought was open.

Without the slightest hesitation, I had my lawyer draft a divorce agreement and sent it straight to my wife, Jane Reynolds-Hastings.

Her call came through almost immediately.

"Again, Austin? What’s the issue this time?" she asked, her voice dripping with annoyance.

I bit back the anger rising in my chest. "One of the razor blades in the drawer is missing."

"Suit yourself, Austin!" Jane snapped, her voice a mix of irritation and impatience. "And just remember, don’t regret it later and come crying back to me!"

Regret? Not a chance.

The only thing I regret is being blind for so many years.

I regret letting the old me, the one who once dominated the business world, suffer through all that humiliation for so long.

——

Austin's POV

As I was packing my bags, Chris Sawyer walked in.

He was Jane’s current assistant, and at one point, her first love.

"Austin, I’m sorry. The other day, when I came by to drop off some papers for Ms. Reynolds, she noticed the stubble on my chin and borrowed one of your razor blades. I didn’t think it would get misunderstood. Please don’t divorce her. If you do, no matter how bad things get, I won’t be able to clear my name."

I listened to his apology with a cold smile. "If I don’t divorce, how else can I make room for you?"

His voice grew more urgent as he replied, "Austin, how can you say that? I’ve never considered interfering in your marriage with Ms. Reynolds. I..."

I cut him off as I said, "Is it that you didn’t want to, or that you couldn’t?"

Years ago, Jane’s family made sure to exclude Chris, the illegitimate son of the Sawyer family, from the list of potential suitors among the eligible men of the upper social circle.

Seven years later, after the Sawyer family went bankrupt, Chris came back to the country, able to get close to Jane only by working as her assistant.

His voice became more frantic as he pleaded pitifully, "If you don’t believe me, I’ll resign, alright!"

"Suit yourself!"

I repeated Jane's words to him, then lowered my head, ignoring him.

In the two years Chris had worked at the company, I had brought up divorce with Jane countless times. Each time, his answer had always been the same: 'I’ll quit.'

Now that Jane and I were actually getting divorced, Chris still pulled the same stunt—backing off to play the victim and hoping for sympathy. Moreover, Jane had been tired of my jealousy for a while, but she still couldn’t resist his manipulative 'nice guy' act.

"Austin, I beg you, don’t do this. Don’t divorce Ms. Reynolds."

Chris's voice was almost breaking now, shaking my arm desperately like he was the tragic hero of some over-dramatic play.

"Austin, hit me if you need to. It’ll make you feel better."

He kept up the pathetic act, pulling my hand toward his face.

I watched his outrageous performance, and my frown grew deeper.

Disgusted by his manipulative tactics, I silently counted in my head to keep my anger in check.

'Nineteen, eighteen...'

Before I could reach 'seven,' Jane rushed in, her face panicked.

"Stop!" she shouted at me, "Austin, you’ve gone too far! Chris was once our classmate. How can you treat him like this?"

As usual, Jane jumped to conclusions, never bothering to get the whole story.

I shook my head, a dry, bitter laugh escaping me.

God, Chris was getting better at playing the 'poor me' card every damn day.

I placed my luggage down with a sharp exhale and then stood up, turning to face Jane first.

“If you’re having trouble seeing, maybe it’s time for an eye exam."

Then I chuckled as I coldly added, "Hit him? Nah, I’m not gonna dirty my hands.”

"You..." Jane couldn’t find words for a moment, temporarily stunned by my response.

I turned to Chris, then. "If I remember correctly, I didn’t hear a knock on the door, and I didn’t get up to open it."

Then, I locked eyes with him. "So tell me, how did you manage to get in?"

Instantly, Chris's face went pale, and he staggered, almost falling, but a gentle arm caught him around the waist.

Austin's POV

Jane carefully helped Chris steady himself before turning to me.

"Chris is my assistant now. I gave him the door code to make it easier for him to work. Are you seriously going to make a fuss over something so trivial?"

She shot me a look filled with disdain, her eyes practically daring me to challenge her.

"God, Austin! Your jealousy is honestly suffocating!" she snapped, the edge in her voice cutting through the room.

I stood there frozen, like I'd just been hit by a freight train.

She really said that I suffocate her?

Isn't it suffocating how, over the past two years, with her silent approval and indulgence, Chris has been present everywhere in our marriage?

He’s been all over it, invading every corner without boundaries.

From the first time he came over to drop off some papers, to the countless nights he shamelessly ate dinner and stayed over at our house. He wore my clothes without asking, used my razor, and countless other 'small things' that piled up.

What started as a two-person marriage turned into a three-person circus.

And I was the one left out.

I let out a deep sigh and looked her squarely in the eye. “Since this marriage has caused so much pain for both of us, why don’t we just sign the divorce papers and be done with it?”

She furrowed her brows, pushing the papers aside.

“Enough. Stop making a scene, Austin! Apologize to Chris, and we can consider this mess over. We can still be friends in the future,” she added, her tone now colder than before.

Hearing the word 'friends' again from Jane sent a surge of anger through me. It brought up all the painful memories I had buried.

I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

"I would rather spend the rest of my life alone than call someone who once bullied me a friend."

I’ll never apologize to him. Not now, not ever.

Back then, in my attempt to fit in with my classmates, I hid my family background. Little did I know that would make me an easy target for Chris.

On the first day of school, he threw my books and backpack into a filthy pond behind the school, then slashed my uniform pants with a knife. Later, under pressure from my family, the school forced Chris to apologize publicly and even expelled him.

It was Jane who persuaded me.

"Austin, it's better to resolve conflict than let it fester. He knows he was wrong. Just let it go."

Because I was so in love with Jane, I swallowed my pride, shook hands with Chris, and even let the school keep his enrollment.

Looking back now, I see it for what it was—her favoritism toward him started right then. But I was too blinded by love to see it.

Chris’s expression darkened, and tears began to well up in his eyes.

“I was wrong. I overstepped. I shouldn’t have tried to act like a friend based on our past as classmates. I forgot that now I’m just a lowly employee in your company. I deserve nothing. I’ll leave now.”

Jane’s eyes instantly filled with tears. She stepped in front of him, her protective instinct kicking in.

Then Jane snapped at me, "I made you the husband of Reynolds Group's CEO, not so you could go around acting like this!"

She turned and gently patted Chris’s trembling shoulder, her voice softening. “Chris, don’t put yourself down. I’ve never seen you as just another employee.”

Her gaze softened as she looked at him, glowing with a tenderness I had never seen directed at me before.

"You’ve always been the most special person to me."

I stood there, stunned, watching my legally wedded wife pour her heart out to another man. It didn’t make me fly off the handle like it would have before. Instead, it sent a cold chill through me.

Given that Chris had graduated from a low-tier foreign university, he was utterly unqualified to be the president's assistant. But it was Jane who fought through every objection and insisted on keeping him.

She not only gave him an obscene salary but also showered him with special treatment. The level of special treatment was so extreme that even I, her legitimate husband, had been pushed aside.

Chris calls her 'Ms. Reynolds' because of her position as the president of Reynolds Group, but when it comes to me, he uses my first name, claiming it's because we’re close.

But, the truth?

I see right through it. Chris doesn’t think I deserve the title of Jane’s husband.

Austin's POV

It was one thing for Chris to think the worst of me, but I never expected Jane to feel the same way.

It was truly laughable. When did I, the proud eldest son of the Hastings family, ever need to rely on the title of 'husband of the CEO of Reynolds Group' to hold power over others?

I regretted losing the confident, self-assured version of myself for love. And just like that, the last shred of attachment to this marriage was entirely shattered.

"Jane, hurry up and sign the divorce agreement," I said coldly. "Or don’t make me take legal action."

I grabbed my suitcase without a second thought and walked out, leaving the house behind without even looking back.

When I walked inside, I saw my parents excitedly talking about the aurora borealis on the travel channel. As soon as they noticed me, they quickly turned off the TV.

Traveling the world had always been their dream, but their only son?

He'd become a love-struck fool, focusing all his energy on a woman instead of stepping up and taking the reins of the family business.

I walked over, grabbed the remote from the drawer, and turned the TV back on. Then, I took out my phone and booked two tickets to Finland.

I expected them to be excited, but instead, they exchanged worried glances.

I knew I couldn’t hide it any longer.

"Jane...and I... we’re getting a divorce," I said flatly.

The living room went silent, the tension thick in the air.

After what felt like an eternity, both of them stood up and walked over, taking my hands gently.

"Whatever decision you make, we’ll support you," my dad said, his voice steady but laced with concern. "As long as you’re happy. Your mother and I will always be your rock."

My throat clenched, and I couldn’t hold back anymore. The grievances I had bottled up for so long erupted alongside my tears.

When I married Jane, my parents had actually been against it. They couldn’t stand how persistent I was, but in the end, they gave in.

I squeezed my dad’s hand tightly, then grabbed my mom’s, and the three of us held on to each other.

Smiling through the tears, I said, "Don’t worry, I’m okay."

But even then, they didn’t seem reassured. They insisted I change my flight to a week later so we could spend more time together.

At their insistence, I scheduled a family portrait session, something we had always looked forward to each year.

After I married Jane, I’d invited her multiple times to join us for the photo, but each time, she’d made up some excuse about her busy work schedule.

...

The next morning, my parents and I arrived early at the photography studio, only to see an unexpected figure: Jane.

She was with Chris.

He held her hand, eyes practically sparkling with satisfaction. "Jane, thank you for canceling such an important meeting just to take pictures with me."

Jane smiled and playfully scratched his nose. "Silly, you’re the closest person to me. If I don’t pamper you, who will, Chris?"

A bitter taste rose in my throat. The truth was that Jane's lack of time wasn't the issue; I just didn't deserve it anymore.

Right then, my mom asked, "Austin, who are you looking at?"

"Oh, no one. I just mistook someone for someone else," I lied, quickly turning my body to block my mom’s view.

I pulled her back toward the seating area, pretending nothing had happened.

Inside the studio, I stood between my parents, holding my dad’s hand with one and linking my mom’s arm with the other.

For a moment, I just stood there with them, smiling like I didn’t have a care in the world. The camera clicked, capturing the scene as if it were a rare snapshot of something I’d been missing for a long time.

Right at that moment, it felt as though I had been reborn. I had reconnected with the people who were the most important in my life.

But just as my dad went to the bathroom, my mom suddenly winced in pain, clutching her stomach.

"Mom? What’s wrong? Is it your stomach?" I rushed over to her, panic creeping into my voice.

I guided her to the nearby resting room while simultaneously calling the family doctor and emergency services.

As I anxiously waited, Chris showed up in the waiting room.

"So, this is why you're okay with divorcing Jane, huh?" he sneered. "Looks like you’ve latched onto some rich old lady."

Chris examined my mom from head to toe, a malevolent gleam in his eyes.

"Your new woman might have aged well and has some taste, but let’s be honest, Austin. She can’t compare to Jane."