I was almost raped while my husband Jeff Walker was celebrating his secretary's birthday.

Because there were problems with the company's products, I was busy until 10:30 in the evening before leaving the suburban factory.

There were no taxis nearby.

It was 1.2 miles to the bus station.

I called Jeff to pick me up, but he said he was discussing business with a client.

Helplessly, I could only go to the bus stop. There were few people on the road and there were not even street lights.

I didn't know when I was being followed. The gangster suddenly appeared and tried to drag me into a deserted field, but luckily a passerby came by and saved me.

After leaving the police station, I turned on my phone and saw a text on his secretary's Moments: [Thank you, my boss, for spending my birthday with me.]

If it were in the past, I would have made a big fuss, but now I was serene.

I commented under the post: [Happy birthday to you. I give you my husband as a birthday present.]

***

It was already past 1 a.m. when I got home.

I rushed into the bathroom, turned on the hot water and rinsed my body. Thinking of the scene of the gangster dragging me, I couldn't help retching.

Jeff's female secretary was called Vita Miller.

I couldn't remember how many quarrels and silent treatments we had because of Vita.

Two months before, we agreed to travel to the grassland together. The plane tickets and travel guide were all ready. However, before leaving, Jeff said that he had to go abroad to inspect an important project.

I really believed it at the time, until Vita posted a lot of photos of her abroad on her Moments, including a photo with Jeff. Afterwards, Jeff explained that it was normal to take a few photos during the inspection.

A month before, it was his and my 3rd wedding anniversary.

He booked the restaurant where he had proposed to me.

I waited until the restaurant closed, but he didn't show up, so I habitually checked Vita's Moments.

[I was almost dead because of dysmenorrhea today. Fortunately, my boss sent me to the hospital and stayed with me the whole time. What a great boss! I want to work for him forever.]

When he came home, I asked him who was more important, Vita or me.

"Sandy Brown, you are simply unreasonable and heartless." He scolded me.

"Vita was almost dying of pain, so of course the patient comes first.

"She works for me and I am responsible for her.

"We can celebrate our wedding anniversary next year and the year after next."

After taking a shower, I checked my phone and saw that Vita had replied to my comment.

[Sandy, you are kidding. I don't dare to get your husband.]

And she posted a photo on her Moments.

The photo was of a car's center console.

It was along with the text: [Thank you for taking me home.]

At just one glance, I knew it was Jeff's car.

Above the center console hung an amulet that I had obtained from a mosque. An old man said that if I wanted the amulet to be effective, I needed to pray once for each step I climbed starting from the foot of the mountain, all the way up to the mosque at the top of the mountain. I started at three in the morning and followed what the old man said. It was not until after six in the morning that I finally reached the mosque at the top of the mountain and obtained the amulet.

But Jeff thought it was old-fashioned, and only after I begged him again and again did he reluctantly hang it in the car.

I was just about to go into the bedroom when he opened the door.

"I was having dinner with a client at a restaurant today. After the client left, Vita said that today was her birthday. As her boss, I should always be considerate of my subordinates, so I celebrated her birthday at the restaurant. Do you mind?"

Before, I would have looked for his loopholes and tricks from every angle and questioned him, then a quarrel would have broken out, but now I was physically and mentally exhausted, so I was no longer interested in the mess between him and Vita.

"It's your duty to be considerate of your subordinates. I'm going to sleep first."

He took a shower, got into bed, and asked, "Didn't you say that it was hard to get a taxi in the area where you were at night? How did you get home in the end?"

"It doesn't matter how I got home. What matters is that I'm back. It's late. Just sleep."

The next morning, when the alarm went off, I was groggy and couldn't wake up from my sleep even though I heard the ringing.

I was not awakened until Jeff called me unhappily.

After getting up, I almost fell down, and my headache was as if my head was being strangled.

It must be because I was frightened by the gangster the night before that I had a traumatic headache now.

After I arrived at the company, I started to sweat. My face turned red, and my head hurt more and more as if it was about to split. A kind colleague bought me some ibuprofen and cold medicine.

After the morning meeting, Jeff sent me a message: [Are you still angry because I didn't pick you up yesterday?]

I replied: [I'm not that stingy.]

[Then why didn't you make breakfast for me?]

Since I got married, I always made breakfast, even when we had a fight or gave each other the silent treatment. But that morning I had such a bad headache that I didn't make breakfast.

I hadn't had breakfast yet.

It was ridiculous that he was focusing on breakfast instead of me. If he had eyes, he should have seen that I was sick.

When it was almost time to get off work, he sent another message.

[I'll pick you up from get off work.]

I was not being pretentious. Since he wanted to pick me up, I didn't refuse.

After getting off work, I waited downstairs of the company for half an hour, but I didn't see him.

I habitually checked Vita's Moments, but there was nothing new.

At that time, Jeff called.

"Why don't you come down?"

"I was right at the company entrance, but I didn't see you."

He made a "fuck" sound. I was very familiar with it. Whenever he was impatient, anxious or unhappy, he would say the word.

Perhaps he felt sorry for what happened the night before, so that time after he said that word, he didn't lose his temper, but asked me softly, "I'm at entrance B. Are you at entrance D?"

He went to the wrong place.

A month before, my company moved to the current Peace Building. There was no entrance D in the building. Previously, my company was in Merge Building, which had entrance D.

"Are you in Merge Building?" I asked.

"Of course, how could I not know your company?"

I sighed. On the day the company moved, I sent him the new address, but he didn't even look at it and kept deleting our chat history.

After explaining the situation, he wanted to rush over.

I refused. "I'll go back by myself. This road is a one-way street. Plus, it's rush hour, so it will be very congested if you come here."

When I got home, he was already there, sitting on the sofa.

The scene was very rare. Every time I got home first, then prepared dinner and waited for him to come back. Most of the time he didn't get home on time for dinner.

I was angry and blamed him for not telling me in advance.

"Don't I have anything else to do? I must tell you in advance whenever I come home late? Are you a baby that you can't eat by yourself?"

"But the food has gone cold."

"If it gets cold, just heat it up again. Or just pour it out. We can afford to do that."

After we quarreled a few times, I stopped waiting for him to eat together. When he came back, I heated up the food for him.

When he saw me come in, he came over for the first time and brought me slippers.

That shocked me.

Wasn't it me who did things like welcoming him and bringing him slippers?

"Sandy, I've been so busy with work lately that I forgot about your company's relocation. I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

I said as I walked towards the kitchen, opened the fridge, and prepared to make dinner.

He sat casually in the dining room and talked to me.

"You had a nightmare last night, screaming and yelling."

I froze, knowing it was a nightmare caused by the gangster. "I don't remember."

Then, we stopped talking.

But I could feel that he was trying to say something.

After I washed the vegetables, he suddenly said, "After celebrating Vita's birthday last night, it was too late. It's dangerous for a girl to go home alone at night, so I sent her home, then I came back late. Don't think too much."

"I didn't think much about it. Since you celebrated her birthday, it's only right for you to send her home. After all, you are her boss. You said it's your duty to be considerate of your subordinates." I said with a calm smile.

It was dangerous for Vita to go home alone, but wasn't it dangerous for me?

"You must still be angry." He scowled.

I was confused and said calmly, "I'm not angry."

"Sandy, the more you pretend to be calm, the more it shows that you are angry. I have explained it so clearly, but you still doubt me and even don't make breakfast for me." He accused me.

I suddenly reacted.

If it were in the past, what happened the night before and the next day would be enough to turn me into a mad lioness, yelling at him, and maybe even throwing plates hysterically.

But now I was so calm that he naturally thought I was protesting by being calm.

But I was really not angry now, and I didn't even have any extra emotions.

I worked all day while being sick and was really exhausted.

After the meal was ready, we ate in silence.

After eating, I went to take a shower as usual, and he brought me underwear and pajamas.

The situation only occurred in the first six months of our marriage.

"Thanks."

"Don't be so polite. I am your husband. I'll take a shower with you."

"No, I feel really uncomfortable today." After saying that, I went into the bathroom and locked the door.

Then the sound of the door closing heavily was heard.

He went out.

If he had slammed the door and left after an argument in the past, I would have worried that he would seek comfort outside.

But now, I really didn't care.

He could have affairs with as many women as he liked.

He started to give me the silent treatment again.

In the past, I would be restless and anxious, wondering how we could reconcile.

In a word, in the past, I would try to make peace by making compromises, and sometimes I would even get rejected. He always acted superior, and would not reconcile until I surrendered or asked for peace many times.

That kind of life was so tiring.

He came home very late every day after socializing, and I had trouble sleeping, so every time I finally fell asleep, I was woken up by him.

Sometimes he was drunk and touched me, but I couldn't stand the strong smell of alcohol and naturally didn't want to have sex with him. Then he got very angry, and we had endless quarrels.

Now it was better. I slept in the guest room and he slept in the bedroom. Neither of us was disturbed.

I didn't have time to cook either. The product I was following up on was undergoing technological innovation, so I ate breakfast outside and dinner at the company.

After devoting myself to work, I forgot about the silent treatment and him.

Before, if I didn't message him for a day, I would feel like something was missing in my life and would be very uncomfortable, like a fish out of water.

But now, when I came to my senses, I realized that I hadn't messaged him for a week.

It turned out to be true that no one was inseparable from anyone, and only someone didn't cherish another one. I turned around and lived another life, without vanity or compromise.

During the silent treatment, I still checked Vita's Moments when I had free time.

I was changed from the initial hatred to the current gossiping attitude of watching the fun.

As expected, during the period, Jeff hung out with her.

They went camping in the mountains, watched the stars and went to Disneyland. Jeff also took her to a class reunion.

I gave her Moments likes.

To be honest, when I made up my mind to divorce, I still had a little bit of nostalgia, but now it was gone.

From the time we fell in love to the time we got married, I had never done anything to let him down.

When I met him, he was just a salesperson. At least I accompanied him as he started from nothing.

I told him more than once in a coquettish way that I wanted to go to the mountains to see the stars and to go to Disneyland for a visit, but he always frowned and said I was childish.

After getting off work, I stopped by the Cabernet Mall to check out the sales of our products.

After leaving the mall, I actually saw Jeff in the parking space at the entrance of the mall. He was standing next to the car smoking.

When our eyes met, he still felt a little guilty.

I was planning to go home by myself, but he invited me to go home together.

I opened the passenger door and saw Vita.

"Sandy, long time no see."

"Well, long time no see."

I tactfully sat in the back seat.

He explained with a guilty conscience, "Vita is carsick. It's better for her to sit in the front."

"It's okay. It's just one seat." I said slowly.

Once upon a time, the passenger seat was my exclusive seat, and he said that only his wife could sit on it.

The past was still vivid in my mind, but things had changed.

Maybe it was his heart that had changed.

"Sandy, Mr. Walker brought me to the Cabernet Mall to buy clothes today. Look, are they nice?" Vita showed off the clothes.

It was a Valentino suit.

"It looks good, so it must be expensive," I said.

"Right, it cost more than 6,000 dollars. Mr. Walker is so nice to me." She smiled provocatively.

"Sandy, don't get me wrong. I took Vita to discuss business with a client. The client said that she was poorly dressed. She is my secretary. Buying her better clothes is also to avoid embarrassing me in front of clients in the future." Jeff explained.

"I understand."

"Ooh, I almost forgot. Mr. Walker, you left the Zippo lighter at my house that night."