3
When I got home, I went straight to packing. Even though I wouldn’t be leaving for a month,
everything about that house, about Mark and Alex deceiving me, just made me feel sick. I
couldn’t stand being there for another second.
After half an hour, I finally packed my clothes
and ID. But I didn’t leave yet.
I was married to Mark, and I wanted a divorce. I
had to go to court with him to get that done.
One month should be long enough, I guessed.
After I finished packing, I went to the guest
room.
I never touched Mark’s computer before. And
<
now, after I opened it, I found something.
He never logged out of his messaging app and I
didn’t recognize the profile name.
And there was only one contact.
It was a chili pepper emoji and a cute dog
picture for a profile.
I clicked on it, and all the old messages were
gone.
Mark was cautious, even if I found it, I wouldn’t
have anything to hold against him.
I stared at it for a long time, and then, the chili
pepper sent some pictures.
They were all kinds of clothes.
They were all sexy and some of them had
themes.
く
After sending the picture, she sent another
message.
764
[Pick one, I will wear it when you come tonight.
Don’t you want to see them? ]
Right away, Mark replied.
[I’ll find an excuse to come over tonight, remember to take a shower, and wear my favorite black lace nightgown.]
I didn’t read any more. I took photos of that chat and put the computer back. Then I went out of the guest room.
I sat on the sofa. My heart was like it had a
hole in it. It was unbelievable.
But here was the proof.
I looked at the message that Mark had sent me
one hour ago.
<
He was asking me where I was.
When I didn’t reply, he asked if I was ok.
The last one was him saying that he was going
to go pick up Alex from school and was coming
home soon.
He said that if I wasn’t home, he would come
find me at work.
He said he was worried about me.
And he sent the message one minute after he
replied to that woman.
How ironic. Right?
As soon as I read the last message, the door
opened.
Mark was holding Alex’s hand. They came to
- me. Both of them looked worried.
く
11:05
“Sarah, why didn’t you reply to my messages? I
was so worried. I was ready to go to your work
to look for you.”
He looked at Alex.
“We got a gift for your mom, show it to her.”
Alex took off his backpack and got out a small box, placing it in my hand.
Inside, there was a beautiful bracelet.
“Mom, this is from me and dad!” He said.
If I didn’t know everything, I would be touched
and hug them. I would say that having them is
the best thing ever.
But I can’t.
I looked at the bracelet. I didn’t have the
courage to take it.
<
Maybe the air was off.
764
Mark noticed something wrong. He came to me and sat down. When he was about to say something, something fell out of his pocket.
A small box dropped and there was another bracelet, just like the one they got for me.
The air froze.
Mark looked shocked, but he recovered quickly. He looked at Alex.
And then he said, “Alex said the bracelet looks great on you. And they only had two, so we wanted it to be just for you. I was going to put this one away, I didn’t think you would see it.”
When he was done, Alex also nodded.
“That was my idea! I want the beautiful bracelet
just for you, Mom!”
<
He was only six. But he could lie like it was
nothing.
Just like his father.
I felt cold.
I was betrayed by my husband and my son.
My son was helping my husband hide his affair.
He didn’t care about his own mother.
I was not just hurt by Mark’s betrayal. But I was
also heartbroken by what Alex did.
Maybe because he was scared that I would
keep digging.
Mark changed the topic. “We let this kid mess
around for two weeks now. Tonight, I’m moving
back to the master bedroom and sleeping with
you, okay?”
く
He smiled at me and winked.
If I didn’t know anything… I would probably be
embarrassed. I would probably say that Alex
was still there and not to mess around.
But now I just looked at him, feeling like
everything was ridiculous.
“Mark, I have to say something,”
We had been together for so many years. I was
not as calm as I was letting on. I didn’t want to
have a meltdown.
Let’s just break up with respect, I thought.
Maybe my tone was too serious. Mark looked
confused and sat up straight. He asked,
“What’s wrong?”
I looked at him. This man that I have loved so
much. And all the betrayal just made me sad.
My heart tightened.
I took some deep breaths to calm myself down.
Then I said, “Mark, we need to di…”
Before I was done, Mark’s phone started
ringing. It was a ringtone I have never heard
before. And it made him jump up, holding his
phone, he walked towards the balcony.
“Sarah, it’s an important work call, I’ll take it
first,” He said.
He looked at Alex.
Alex nodded, then he ran over to hug my arm.
He was trying to divert my attention by telling
me all about his day.
I looked at my son. This boy that I raised was
now stabbing me.
<
I said, “Alex, do you really love your mom?”
Alex paused. He blinked and then he smiled.
“Of course, I love mom and dad the most.”
He used his hand to make a heart to show that
what he said was true.
At the same time, Mark was done with his call.
He came quickly to me. He looked serious, but
his ears were red and his voice was rushed.
“Sarah, Alex forgot something at school. His
teacher just called and told me to go get it.”
He looked at Alex.
Alex nodded. “I forgot my homework! You
should go get it for me, Dad!”
Before I could say anything, he grabbed the
<
Alex nodded. “I forgot my homework! You
should go get it for me, Dad!”
Before I could say anything, he grabbed the
keys and left.
When the door closed, I laughed.
Do they think I’m stupid?
One second, it’s an important work call. Next,
it’s from Alex’s teacher.
But what was so important that Mark was
acting so strange?
I thought about the chat log on the computer.
I felt nothing but sarcasm.
