My husband had oligospermia and after more than ten attempts at IVF, I finally got pregnant.

While I was hugging the toilet and vomiting due to morning sickness, he was celebrating a three-year anniversary with his secretary.

The secretary posted a WhatsApp status of my husband carefully slicing her steak: [The boss is so caring ... I'll work for him until I die …]

Suppressing my nausea, I liked the post and soon his call came through, "What's your problem now? You can't do anything except throw up these days. All my daily needs are handled by Louise. You should be grateful she's easing your burden!"

I sneered, "Fine, I'll thank her later!"

"You weren't like this before! How can getting pregnant make you forget who you are?" After scolding me, my husband angrily hung up the phone.

I couldn't help but sigh. Yes, I've been away from home for so long, I've almost forgotten my own surname.

Picking up my phone, I dialed a number I hadn't contacted in years, "Charlie, book me a flight for tomorrow morning. I'm going back to Chicago."

——

Charlie, my assistant on the other end, was ecstatic, "Miss Hoffman, did I hear that right? You've been gone for six years. Are you really coming back? You're not joking, right?"

I placed my hand gently on my slightly rounded belly and gave a bitter smile, "No joke, this time it's real."

After hanging up, I immediately scheduled an appointment with the top obstetrician in Houston for an abortion that afternoon.

The attending doctor was none other than Dr. Grant, who had performed my IVF treatments. He was shocked when he heard I wanted an abortion.

"This child is the result of more than ten IVF attempts. Are you really going to terminate it?" As soon as Dr. Grant finished speaking, the surrounding nurses also looked over.

With a pale-faced, I nodded firmly, "I'm sure."

Troy had oligospermia. We'd been married for six years and always dreamed of having a child of our own. To prepare for pregnancy, we went through over ten IVF cycles and made countless hospital visits.

Even the doctors and nurses at this hospital recognized me. They knew how desperately I wanted this child.

Once, I was anemic and the doctors advised me to focus on recovery and delay IVF, but I insisted on continuing.

The day I found out I was pregnant, the doctors and nurses celebrated with me, saying my sincerity must have touched the heaven. But now, all of that felt like a joke.

Dr. Grant sighed and asked the nurse to prepare for the procedure. While signing the consent form, he instinctively glanced behind me, "Where's your husband? Doesn't he need to sign this too?"

I gave a bitter smile, "He doesn't need to. I'll sign it myself."

Dr. Grant raised his head in astonishment, his eyes filled with sympathy.

When I got off the operating table, my usually quiet phone buzzed with a notification. It was a message from Troy: [Got a work dinner tonight, I won't be back.]

The message was sent two hours ago. I didn't reply. Just as I was about to close my phone, another two notifications popped up.

They were from Louise. She had sent a seductive photo of herself in lace lingerie, which she quickly deleted.

Then, she called me, her voice dripping with fake sweetness and a hint of tears, "Felicia, I accidentally sent the photo meant for my boyfriend to you. You don't mind, right? It's all my fault for working 22 hours straight today. I was so exhausted, I sent it to the wrong person ..."

I sneered, "Working 22 hours? Does that include sleeping with him? You're so professional, even taking your work to the bed. At the company's annual awards, we should definitely give you a certificate for Outstanding Employee." Without waiting for her response, I ended the call and blocked her.

Before leaving the hospital, I took the initiative to ask the doctor for the tiny embryo. It wasn't fully formed, but you could faintly see the shape of a small baby.

Holding the glass bottle close to my chest, I couldn't help but tear up. I'm sorry, baby. I had longed for you for so long, but it seems we're not destined to be together.

Taking a deep breath, I resolved that since I was leaving, I wouldn't bear this pain alone. Before leaving, I had one last gift to give Troy.

Returning to the home I had lived in for six years, it was cold and empty. As expected, Troy was likely spending the night with his devoted secretary.

I had no appetite for dinner and my stomach was faintly aching as I lay down by the bedside. I must've dozed off without realizing it.

In deep sleep, I was startled awake by the sound of loud thunder outside. My phone on the bedside table buzzed several times, but I ignored it, annoyed and rolled over to continue sleeping.

Suddenly, I heard the door being pushed open. Frightened, I thought a thief had broken in.

Just as I was about to get up, I saw the soaked figure of Troy standing before me.

I rubbed my eyes, "Why are you back?"

Seeing me at home, he let out a long sigh of relief. Taking off his drenched coat, he rushed over to hug me, "Felicia, it's thundering outside. I remembered how scared you always are of thunder. So I rushed back from the hotel overnight."

His wet clothes touched my face, the cold dampness making me uncomfortable.

I subtly pushed him away, "You'll catch a cold. Go take a shower first."

For once, he smiled at me gently, "I'll join you later."

The sound of running water came from the bathroom, but I stared at the lightning and thunder outside the window, lost in thought.

Over the past three years, I had undergone countless IVF cycles and Troy had started leaving early and returning late. Sometimes, he didn't come home at all.

At first, I thought his work had simply gotten busier. Until one day, I found lingerie in our closet that didn't belong to me. And the condoms in the house inexplicably decreased.

Soon after, his secretary, Louise Clover, became increasingly brazen. Every so often, she would flaunt their 'love' on social media or subtly provoke me.

Now, I was tired of it all. The irony was that now, Troy remembered I was afraid of thunder.

Yet he didn't know that during countless unbearable nights, I had already learned how to endure the lightning and thunder alone.

I must have fallen asleep again, as I didn't notice when he finished his shower and came out.

He lay beside me in his bathrobe, trying to hug me from behind, his breath on my shoulder and neck growing warmer as he said, "Felicia … can we?"

I sat up and pushed him away. After composing myself, my gaze fell on the ambiguous marks under his collar and asked, "Did Louise not satisfy you?"

He froze, embarrassment flashing into anger on his face, "Felicia, can you stop being unreasonable? We haven't seen each other in days. Do you have to be so confrontational every time? I've told you, Louise is just my secretary. Taking care of my daily needs is her job! What's the point of you making a fuss every day?"

Calmly watching him finish his rant, I shifted a bit and lay back down, "Go to sleep," I said.

Frustrated, Troy couldn't fall asleep. He got up coldly, grabbed a pillow and said, "I came back to be with you because you're scared of thunder and you treat my kindness like dirt!"

He stormed off to the study, slamming the door shut behind him. His words only made me feel amused.

The last time I was scared of thunder, I huddled in the corner, teary-eyed, texting him to ask when he'd be back. But he didn't reply until the next day.

[You're a grown woman. Even kids aren't scared of thunder. Why are you pretending to be so weak?]

[Louise's water pipes broke. She's just a woman, she couldn't fix them herself. I was busy helping her!]

Tears slipped down as I let out a bitter laugh. I could never understand why a CEO would stoop to fixing his secretary's pipes in the middle of the night.

The memories quickly faded. I closed my eyes and thought about what to pack for tomorrow. With an early flight, I couldn't afford to be late.

The next day, I woke up two hours early.

Looking around the bedroom, I realized that almost everything here had been chosen by Troy.

Apart from a few pieces of clothing I owned, unchanged in three years, there was nothing worth taking with me.

I casually packed a few changes of clothes into a suitcase when I received a call from the airline, "Hello, is this Ms. Felicia Hoffman? Due to the heaviest thunderstorm of the year, your flight has been delayed and rescheduled for three days later. Do you agree to the change?"

I glanced out at the pouring rain and sighed. What bad luck, seems even the weather doesn't want me to leave.

I called my assistant, Charlie, back and said, "Make it three days later. Be on time to pick me up at the airport." As soon as I hung up, I noticed a figure behind me.

Troy frowned while asked, "Where are you going? Felicia, who were you talking to? Who's picking you up at the airport?"

He had only been passing by but became curious enough to approach me and demand answers.

He knew I had no family in this city. Not even a single friend.

In the six years of our marriage, I had sacrificed all my personal life for his company. After helping it grow, I willingly stepped back to focus on having a child through IVF.

To live like this for love … Thinking about it now, I was utterly pathetic.

I smiled faintly, "It's nothing. I signed up for a tour group, but the weather caused a delay, so it's canceled."

He stared at me intently, trying to discern if I was lying. But seeing nothing suspicious in my expression, he relaxed and approached me slowly.

"Felicia, once we have the baby, how about a month-long family trip to Bali?" His tone softened and he even reached out as if to gently touch my stomach.

I discreetly stepped away and went to the kitchen to pour myself a glass of water and said, "We'll talk about it later."

I glanced at the time. Normally, he would've left for work by now, but today, he lingered unusually long.

Hearing the indifference in my voice, his brows furrowed, "Didn't you always want to go to Bali?"

I had wanted to, wanted to go with the person I loved to witness its romance. But now, there was no need.

Besides, I could go wherever I wanted by myself. Before I could respond, the sound of a key turning the lock interrupted us.

Startled, I looked toward the door to see Louise, his secretary, standing there in a short, tight skirt, smiling sweetly at us, "Felicia, sorry to intrude. I saw that Mr. Angelo was running late, so I came to pick him up. You don't mind, right?"

My eyes fell on the key in her hand. It was the only spare key to our home.

I asked him, "Troy, you gave her the key?"

A hint of unease flashed across his face as he casually explained, "Louise is my secretary. Last time I left some documents at home and it was inconvenient for her to retrieve them, so I gave her a key. It's not a big deal, Felicia. We'll talk when I get back."

He shot Louise a look and the two of them left one after the other.

I chuckled bitterly to myself. I used to think his interest in her was just a fleeting attraction to her youth and beauty. But now, it seemed he was serious about her.

Later that afternoon, while sipping coffee, I received a call from a lawyer friend.

He told me the divorce agreement was ready and had been sent to my email for review. "Everything looks good. Thanks." I scanned it quickly, "Once I'm back in Chicago, dinner's on me."

His laugh came through the phone, "Thanks in advance, Miss Hoffman. Felicia, congratulations on your upcoming freedom. Come back soon."

A warm feeling stirred in my chest. Sebastian Curtis had been my closest friend since childhood. Six years ago, when I stayed in Houston for love, he had been the first to object.

He had said, "Troy might be good-looking, but you two are worlds apart. Don't be foolish enough to marry him!"

And, "That guy's face screams he won't stay loyal. Don't be stupid!"

But a woman in love is far from rational. I thought all men might cheat, but my Troy wouldn't.

He might've been poor, but he was hardworking and ambitious. With a little help, he could run his business well.

Most of all, I couldn't forget the look of deep affection in his eyes when he confessed to me under the cherry blossom tree. But now, that expression was fading from memory.

When I thought of Troy, my first impression was his impatience. Always justifying his secretary's behavior and scolding me relentlessly.

Sensing something was off, I moved to the floor-to-ceiling window. In the pouring rain, his car was still parked downstairs.

Even though visibility was poor, I could clearly make out the two figures inside, embracing and kissing passionately. Troy, I truly misjudged you.