When Love Runs Out, I Walk Away

My wife, Emma, suddenly texted to say she was going home and wanted me to drive her to the airport. I had just gotten ready to leave when she sent another message: Honey, don’t come anymore. I read the time wrong. I’m already on the plane. I replied that I understood and reminded her to text me when she landed. When I returned to the office, my assistant forwarded me a post my wife had uploaded five days earlier. The caption read: My husband always finishes too fast. I’m never satisfied. What should I do? There were hundreds of replies beneath it. Emma had been flirting with a foreign man in the comments, and the two of them had arranged to meet today. Burning with rage, I forwarded the post to Emma and demanded to know whether she had gone to meet him. She mocked me for being immature and said I had no idea how hard it was for a foreigner alone in another country. I quietly ended the call and sent her the divorce papers. When I returned home during the holiday, Emma had already rushed back from her foreign boyfriend’s place. She carried a tray of food out of the kitchen. The moment she saw me, she stopped. “You always wait until the last second to come home. Would the company collapse if you were gone for one minute?” I said nothing. I calmly set my briefcase on the couch, rolled up my sleeves, and prepared to help in the kitchen. When Emma saw that I was ignoring her, she impatiently grabbed my wrist. “I’m talking to you. Can you stop acting like a dead man and at least give me a reaction?” I frowned. She had just come from another man’s home. On New Year’s, the fact that I could still come home and sit down to eat with her calmly was already the limit of my patience. What kind of reaction did she expect from me? “Stop pulling me around.” The moment I said that, Emma’s expression changed. Her face grew solemn. “Ethan, what exactly do you mean? I came back, didn’t I?” “I already told you he’s a foreigner. He’s all alone here. I only wanted to spend some time with him before the new year. Did you really have to get this angry?” I pulled my hand free and turned toward the kitchen. “Ethan, when did you become so petty?” “I explained everything. I was planning to come home. I just stopped by to see him on the way. Do you really have to make such a big deal out of it?” “As soon as you called, I came straight home. I just didn’t want you to misunderstand.” “We’ve been married for five years. Why are you fighting with a complete stranger?” A complete stranger? Five days earlier, Emma had posted on a social media app. The title read: My husband always finishes too fast. I’m never satisfied. What should I do? The post had attracted countless viewers. She was the one who begged me to stop every time, yet now she had placed all the blame on me. She had even complained extensively to the man in the comments. That was where she and the foreigner had met. After chatting for several days, they decided to meet in person. The last thing he had written to her was especially shameless: Your husband clearly can’t satisfy you. Try the kind of experience we have overseas. That was how Emma had lied to me and gone to meet him. After I found out, she had even turned around and blamed me for being immature. I looked at her calmly. There was no emotion in my eyes. “It’s New Year’s. I don’t want to fight with you and make all your dirty business public.” Emma stared at me in disbelief. In the past, whenever I saw her getting too close to some younger guy at the company, I would get jealous and ask her to keep her distance. Emma had always enjoyed flirting with younger men for the thrill of it. So every time she saw me get angry, she would promise that she would never do it again. This time, when I neither argued nor made a scene, she froze instead. Then she suddenly grabbed my hand and guided it lower. “Don’t be angry. That post was just a joke.” “Why don’t we have a proper try tonight?” When Emma said that, her beautiful eyes filled with anticipation, waiting for my reaction. She had always believed that as long as she used this kind of flirtation whenever I was angry, I would forgive her. That was why she kept crossing my boundaries again and again without ever truly regretting anything. Now she was using the same trick over a foreign man she had only met a few times. Judging from her behavior, that supposedly impressive foreigner hadn’t satisfied her either. Emma’s actions instantly ruined my appetite. I picked up my briefcase and prepared to leave. She watched me and stiffened. “Ethan, it’s New Year’s. Where are you going? You’re not planning to leave us behind, are you?” “I just remembered there’s still some work at the office that needs to be handled.” Emma rushed over and grabbed my hand. “Didn’t you just finish dealing with it? Do you really not want to see me that badly?” “Fine. You’re going to the office, right? I’ll go with you. I’ll spend New Year’s there with you.” “No need.” Emma didn’t listen. She snatched the car keys from my hand and walked outside. “I’ll stay with you no matter what you want to do today.” After we got married, Emma quit her job and started living as a housewife. She hadn’t gone to the office even once since then. I still remembered one time when my stomach problems had flared up and I asked her to bring me some medicine at work. She had been shopping with her friends and told me not to bother her. She said I should handle it myself. This was the first time since our marriage that she had voluntarily offered to accompany me to the office.After arriving at the office, I turned on my computer and began handling the documents. Emma sat silently on the sofa nearby, occasionally glancing at me. Suddenly, fireworks lit up beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. The booming explosions made both of us look toward them. It had been years since we had sat quietly in the same room and watched fireworks together. “Ethan, do you remember our wedding day?” I turned my eyes back to the computer and said nothing. Emma looked a little disappointed. “You once said you would fill the entire city with fireworks for me. But you forgot.” “It doesn’t matter. I saw fireworks tonight anyway. You’ve been busy all these years. I don’t blame you.” My hand froze on the mouse. I hadn’t forgotten. On our first anniversary, I had arranged a citywide fireworks display for her. But she had left me alone at home to spend the evening with an intern. I watched the entire show by myself, from night until dawn. Emma never came home. “Ethan, I know you’re still angry, but Donis has no family here. I’m the only friend he has. I only wanted to let him experience the New Year here. You have to believe me. There’s nothing between us except friendship.” I raised my head and looked at her. Her eyes were so sincere that she almost seemed to be telling the truth. “You don’t need to explain so much to me.” After all these years of marriage, I was tired of hearing the same excuses. To my surprise, Emma began crying right in front of me. “You don’t believe me, do you?” “Ethan, you’ve changed. You never used to be so narrow-minded.” “You used to understand me!” “Before, no matter what I did, you never treated me like I didn’t exist. How many times do I have to explain that there’s nothing between Donis and me before you’ll believe me?” By the time she finished speaking, she was shouting at me. When she realized she had lost control of her emotions, she immediately apologized. “I’m sorry, Ethan. I got carried away.” “I’ll make you a cup of coffee.” She left the office, went to the break room, and soon returned with a cup of coffee. “Just leave it there. I’ll drink it when I’m done.” I wasn’t used to Emma trying to please me. I wanted her to put it down and leave, but she ignored me and insisted on placing it directly in my hand. In the end, she failed to hold it steady, and the entire cup spilled onto my pants. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t do it on purpose. Ethan, you should go change in the locker room. It must be uncomfortable with coffee all over you.” “Bring the dirty clothes out when you’re done. I’ll take them home and wash them. I’ll wait for you, okay?” I stared at Emma, puzzled by her strange behavior. She seemed like a completely different person. The Emma I knew would never have said something like that to me. I hummed in response and went to change. When I came back, the office had already been cleaned. She took my dirty clothes and turned to leave. She even reminded me not to forget to come home for dinner on New Year’s Day. After Emma left, I checked when the files on my computer had been opened. No wonder she had been willing to come to the office today. No wonder she had been so eager to get rid of me. It had all been for those files. I laughed at myself. While I was changing in the locker room, I had actually wavered for a moment. I had wondered whether Emma truly wanted to change. Now that I thought about it, it was ridiculous. Five years of marriage. The moment she began stealing all my confidential files— it was time to bring everything to an end.By the time I finished dealing with the company’s business, it was already well past midnight. My friends invited me out for drinks. I agreed without thinking. There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone. “Well, this is rare. We’ve invited you out every New Year’s before, but you always said you had to stay home with your wife. What happened this year? You don’t have to keep her company anymore?” The moment I arrived, they began teasing me. I briefly explained what had happened, and they all urged me to think carefully. “We’ve known about the problems between you two for years. If you’re really determined to do this, who knows how ugly Emma will make it? Aren’t you afraid that once she signs the divorce papers, there’ll be no way back?” “As your friend, I want you to be free. But I also don’t want to watch you suffer through a divorce. Other people might not know how important Emma is to you, but the rest of us can see it. Don’t do something you’ll regret.” “If you wanted a divorce, you would’ve done it years ago.” “This time, I want to see it through.” After saying that, I downed a glass of liquor. When I walked out of the bar, I saw Emma dancing in the middle of the hall with a tall, muscular foreign man. She was smiling brightly. It felt like I hadn’t seen her smile at me that way in years. “Isn’t that your wife?” “She won’t be for much longer.” The moment my friend finished speaking, Emma looked over. The smile on her face instantly froze. “You followed me?” “Ethan, don’t you think your suspicious and controlling behavior is terrifying? You’re making me feel unsafe.” “We’re married, but we’re still two independent people. We need to give each other space.” I looked at her furious expression and felt completely disappointed. I should give her space. “You’re right. After tonight, you’ll be completely free.” The foreign man beside her looked confused. He wrapped an arm around Emma’s waist and spoke to me. “Don’t misunderstand. This is just a dance party. I don’t know the rules in your country. If you don’t like it, I can keep my distance from your wife in the future.” I let out a cold laugh. No country in the world expected a man to tolerate his wife cheating on him. Besides, I had already investigated Donis. He had been in town for quite some time. Saying something like this to me was nothing but a blatant provocation. “Yes, different places have different cultures. I understand. I won’t interfere anymore.” After all, Emma and I would be divorced very soon. My friends were furious and wanted to stand up for me, but I stopped them. If they beat up a foreigner, the consequences would be troublesome. It wasn’t worth getting our hands dirty over someone like him. I pulled my friends away and returned home. That same night, I packed my belongings and moved to another property under my name. From that moment on, I no longer wanted anything to do with Emma. Unexpectedly, Donis called me in the middle of the night and asked me to pick her up. He spoke in English. The gist was that my wife was drunk at the bar where they had met and asked whether I wanted to come get her. When I didn’t answer, he assumed I couldn’t understand him. He cursed, “Idiot. If you don’t come soon, I’ll sleep with her.” Then he let out a cold laugh. “Do whatever you want,” I replied before hanging up. The company had recently taken on a new project, and I planned to handle it personally and inspect the site. I had originally intended to go after the holiday. But now I changed my plans and told my assistant to book me the earliest flight. I don’t know how much time passed before Emma somehow found out where I was staying. She guessed the door code on her first try. That was when I remembered that after we got married, every password I used had been her birthday. Before I could leave, Emma forced her way inside. She cornered me against the wall and rose onto her toes, trying to kiss me. I dodged her. “Ethan, are you even capable of being a man?” Emma used to provoke me like that all the time. I had always treated it as part of the intimacy between husband and wife. But now, when I heard those words and remembered that post, I felt sick.“You’re drunk.” Emma smiled. “You know I’m drunk? Then why didn’t you come pick me up?” “Ethan, you never used to leave me alone. If I wasn’t home by ten, you would call me over and over. Sometimes you’d even come get me yourself. Why don’t you care anymore?” “Now you won’t even let me kiss you. Do you think we still look like a normal married couple?” Do we look like a normal married couple? Her question left me speechless. Maybe we had never been a normal married couple from the beginning. “Ethan, don’t reject me.” I shoved her away and shouted, “Stop it!” Emma stared at me in disbelief. In all the years we had been married, I had never shouted at her like that. She looked awkward and uncertain. “What did you say?” “I’m asking you to fulfill your duties as my wife, and you’re saying I’m the one making trouble? Ethan, have you ever considered my feelings?” “How much longer are you going to keep making a scene?” No matter what Emma did, it always somehow became my fault in the end. “Right now, I feel nothing when I look at you. Please don’t make this harder for me.” Emma angrily raised her hand as if she wanted to slap me, but I caught her wrist in midair. “This is my home. Leave.” She violently pulled her hand free. “Ethan, remember what you said today. Don’t come crawling back to me later.” After Emma left my apartment, she didn’t contact me for several days. Once I had enjoyed a few days of peace, I prepared the divorce papers and packed my luggage for the business trip. Then one of my closest friends suddenly called. “Ethan, get to the Four Seasons Hotel. I saw Emma checking in with a foreign guy.” “Does she not know the hotel belongs to you? How can she be this shameless?” The hotel had been developed only a few years earlier. After quitting her job, Emma had stopped paying attention to anything related to my business, so it wasn’t strange that she didn’t know. “Do you want to come see for yourself?” “No.” I had already imagined what might happen between her and that man. There was no reason to waste my time. “You’re an idiot. This is evidence. If you divorce her, she’ll be the one at fault. Do you understand? I know you don’t care about money and only want a divorce, but you can’t just let this woman walk away with everything, can you?” “If you’re not coming, give me access. I’ll handle it myself.” “My friend, you absolutely cannot let yourself get screwed over like this.” “Do whatever you want.” I hung up. A few minutes later, Emma, whom I hadn’t spoken to in a long time, suddenly called to confront me. “Ethan, what do you mean by this? You’re sending your friends to spy on me now?” “Do we not even have the most basic trust between us anymore?” I remained silent for a long while. Then a man’s voice suddenly came from her end of the call.