He Said Divorcing Me Would Kill Him. I Didn't Believe Him

Three years into my marriage with Ethan, I suddenly discovered he had a secret girlfriend of eight years.

When I demanded a divorce, he broke down in tears, claiming he was bound by a "System Quest." "Chloe, we can't divorce!

I'll die!" "If I don't stay married to you for at least four years, I will literally die!" What a joke. A System Quest? It was the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard.

I scoffed at him and filed for divorce anyway. Later, I actually saw his obituary on Instagram. Today was our wedding anniversary.

Ethan and I had agreed to meet at this upscale restaurant for dinner. The hostess warmly guided me to the private dining room.

Just as I was about to push the door open, I heard his mocking voice from inside. "You think I would've married her if it weren't for the System Quest?" "She’s a woman who’s been used by another guy.

If I gave her to you, would you even want her?" I didn't know who he was calling.

The phone was on speaker, and a teasing voice came through the other end. "Bro, your wife has a killer body and face. I’ve been drooling over her.

If you don't want her anymore, pass her over to us!" Ethan took a slow drag of his cigarette, and even viler words poured from his mouth. "She’s nothing special.

Any escort on the street is better than her." "Once you try her, you'll realize she's just mediocre." He spoke so casually, as if I were a piece of trash he could discard at any moment.

The hostess had already left to give us privacy. I stood at the door, listening to his tone, which didn't sound like a joke at all. My eyes welled up with tears.

My hand dropped from the doorknob. I didn't even have the courage to walk in and confront him. In the end, I went home, completely shattered. Ethan had chased me for three years.

Back when Liam broke off our engagement to marry the highsociety heiress Olivia, Ethan had ignored his boss's warnings, skipped a major client meeting, and ran through a torrential downpour to hold an umbrella over me. "If he doesn't want you, I do!" "Chloe, look behind you.

I've always been here." I had stared at him in shock. The tears I had been holding back finally burst, merging with the pouring rain.

Over the next few days, he took care of me with his whole heart, helping me heal from the heartbreak.

He would take me on latenight drives to clear my head, and he would show up the second I felt down. To ask me out, he rented the largest digital billboard in the city center.

He declared his love to the entire world. He said, "Chloe is the best thing that ever happened to me.

Ethan cannot live without her!" That day, in front of all his friends, he promised to give me the happiest life possible. And so, we got together.

During our relationship, he kept every single promise. He treated me so well that all my friends were jealous.

In our fourth year together, he and his friends planned a gorgeous, elaborate proposal.

When he got down on one knee and asked if I would spend the rest of my life with him, my eyes filled with tears. I couldn't speak. I just reached out my hand.

He grinned like a fool, and I cried tears of joy. We stood in the center of the crowd, showered with everyone's blessings.

After we got married, his care became even more meticulous. From cooking every meal to staying by my hospital bed when I was sick. No one could find a single flaw in him.

Especially not me. The moment I unlocked the front door and looked at the empty apartment, the sadness suffocated me. I collapsed onto the couch. Just then, my phone lit up.

Ethan: "Baby, are you there yet?" Ethan: "I ordered your favorite lobster." I curled up on the couch, exhausted. His words from the restaurant kept echoing in my head.

A used woman... no better than an escort... Every word pierced my heart like a dagger, leaving it bleeding.

Even though I had heard it with my own ears, I still couldn't believe those words came from him. The man who once said he’d die for me.

I wanted so badly to believe it was just drunk talk. But they say a sober mind releases drunk thoughts, and he had sounded so incredibly sober...

My eyes burned, and tears fell silently, soaking into the fabric of the couch. I took a deep breath, wiped my tears, and forced myself to stop overthinking.

Dragging a painful smile onto my face, I replied: "Baby, I think my period just started.

My stomach hurts so bad, so I just went straight home." "I'm sorry, I should have told you earlier." He replied almost instantly: "Don't apologize, baby.

Your health comes first." "Wait for me at home. I'm leaving now. I'll make you some hot chocolate and bring a heating pad." He was always so understanding.

It only took twenty minutes to drive from the restaurant to our apartment, but it was over an hour before he finally walked through the door.

He rushed in, carrying my favorite soup from the bistro. "Baby, sorry I'm late.

Traffic was a mess." "But look, I got your favorite soup." He proudly opened the container in front of me, then handed me a single yellow tulip.

I looked at the soup and the flower, giving him a weak smile. But my mind was spinning. He patted my head and turned toward the kitchen. "Drink the soup first.

I'll get your hot chocolate ready." The moment he walked into the kitchen, his phone screen lit up on the counter. It was a payment notification.

A charge for a gourmet cake and a bouquet of flowers, delivered to an unfamiliar address. The gift note read: Love you forever. My brain exploded.

My voice was hoarse as I called out, trying to sound casual. "Ethan, did you buy a cake and flowers for someone else?" He answered instantly, "No, why?" The screen went black, and my heart sank.

So, it wasn't a misunderstanding. "Oh, actually, I did!" he called out from the kitchen. "I bought them for you, but then I remembered you're on your period and shouldn't eat cold sweets. “ “So I redirected the order to a colleague.

If it were here, you wouldn't be able to resist eating it, right?" He walked out carrying a mug of hot chocolate, a warm, gentle smile on his face.

I stared at his face, trying to find a crack in his armor. But there was nothing. He masked it perfectly.

I forced a sweet smile. "For a second, I thought you had another woman out there." His expression seemed to freeze for a fraction of a second.

Before I could look closer, he recovered his gentle smile and lightly tapped my forehead. "What are you talking about? How could I have another woman?

You're the only one for me, Chloe. Forever." With that, he kissed my forehead repeatedly. If this were yesterday, I would have believed him without a second thought.

But today, I had heard him trash me with my own ears.

I quietly pushed him away with a playful laugh, just like I usually did. "Go take a shower, you smell like smoke!" Once he went into the bathroom, I grabbed his phone and opened his Snapchat.

It was my first time checking his phone. It was incredibly clean. There was absolutely nothing. But it was too clean.

Finally, in his Apple Pay history, I found an unusual recurring transaction. Every month for the past five years, he had been transferring money to the same account.

Seeing the username, I remembered a profile I had stumbled upon earlier on Instagram. I clicked on her page and quickly memorized the phone number listed in her bio.

When he came out of the shower, his phone was back in its exact spot on the table.

He glanced at me, a brief flash of panic in his eyes before he smoothed it over. "Did anyone text me, baby?" he asked, casually drying his hair with a towel.

I pretended not to notice. "No." The next day, I called in sick to work.

After Ethan left for his office, I dialed the number from the Instagram bio. "Hello?" A rough, deep voice answered. It was a man.

I let out a breath, my racing heart calming down slightly. Thank God, it wasn't a woman.

But his next words plunged me right back into an ice bath. "Are you calling about the apartment lease?" I struggled to keep my voice steady. "Yes." "Oh, you're in luck.

One of our tenants is moving out soon. You can come by and take a look." "Don't worry, our building is super safe.

The tenant who’s leaving actually lived here for five years!" He kept pitching the place, but all I heard was the word five years. Everything suddenly made sense.

Why Ethan always worked late. Why he always smirked while looking at his phone. Why it took him over an hour to drive a twentyminute route last night.

I was the only fool kept in the dark. While he was playing the perfect husband to me, he had another woman on the side. For five whole years.

I squeezed my eyes shut, holding back the breakdown. "Can I come take a look later today?" He agreed, and I hung up.

The tears I had been holding back finally spilled over, and I sobbed uncontrollably in the empty living room.

An hour later, I dragged myself together and called my best friend, Harper, to come with me to the address. Harper saw how wrecked I was and asked what happened.

I told her everything about Ethan.

She was furious. "So what are you going to do now?" I let out a bitter laugh. "I need proof." When we arrived at the building, the landlord led us up to the apartment that was about to be listed.

Standing at the door, watching the landlord reach out to knock, I felt like time had stopped. I squeezed Harper's hand, my palm slick with sweat.

Deep down, I was still desperately hoping that this woman didn't exist. The door swung open, and I stared blankly at the person who answered.

It was a guy. "Are you here to view the place?" he asked. I frowned and looked at Harper. She looked just as confused. Had I really misunderstood Ethan?

After touring the apartment, I pretended to be unsatisfied.

Harper caught my drift and asked the landlord, "Do you have any other units available?" The landlord looked hesitant. "Well, there is one. But the tenant is out this morning.

Let me call her and see if she minds if I show you the place." We nodded and said we could wait.

He stepped aside to make the call. "Harper, what if I really accused him of something he didn't do?

How am I going to face him?" I whispered, clutching her arm, my heart in my throat. She squeezed my hand. "Just relax.

If it's a misunderstanding, that's a good thing." The tenant gave permission, and the landlord unlocked the door to the other apartment. We walked in, looking around casually.

I was already thinking that once this was over, I would go home and cook Ethan a nice dinner.

He had cooked for me for years; I could count on one hand the number of times I had cooked for him. The landlord was babbling about the layout and natural light.

To convince us, he added, "A young girl lives here. She's been here for five years, never missed a payment." Five years. The number triggered me instantly.

The easy atmosphere between Harper and me vanished, replaced by heavy silence. Harper casually asked, "She sounds nice. Does she have a boyfriend?" The landlord chuckled. "Oh, yeah.

Her boyfriend actually pays the rent. I still have his contact info on my phone." He pulled out his phone and showed us his WhatsApp chat with the tenant's boyfriend.

The screen was filled with monthly rent transfers from Ethan. I froze, my mind going completely blank.

Harper reacted first. "Are you sure that's her boyfriend?" The landlord scoffed. "Of course!

He always comes by during the day, rarely stays the night." He lowered his voice. "Honestly, she's probably his side chick.

What real boyfriend only shows up during the day, right?" My eyes burned. I felt like a walking corpse, relying entirely on Harper to keep me upright.

I looked down, silently wiping away a tear before forcing another smile. "Can we take some pictures? We need to think about it." "Sure, go ahead," the landlord said easily.

Harper looked at me with deep worry. I squeezed her arm and whispered, "The evidence is right here, isn't it?" At least now I knew the truth.

I took photos of the apartment layout, and secretly snapped a photo of the girl's portrait on the nightstand.

By the time I got home, Ethan had already cooked dinner and was waiting for me. "Hey, dinner's ready! Come eat." My phone lit up. It was the landlord.

Landlord: "Hey, that second apartment will be empty the day after tomorrow.

You need to put down a deposit soon if you want it." I replied: "How is she moving out so fast?" Landlord: "Oh, she and her boyfriend just bought a house together.

They closed on it, and she's moving in by Thursday." Chloe: "Got it. Thanks." I stared at Ethan, who was busy setting the table.

He was playing the doting husband at home, but during the day, he was out buying a house with his mistress. Incredible. Ethan noticed my pale face.

He pulled me toward the dining table and kissed the corner of my mouth. "What's wrong, baby? Bad day?" I stared at him for a long moment. "I went to your office today.

You weren't there." His smile stiffened visibly. I pressed further. "Did you take the day off?

Where were you?" His smile vanished for a split second before returning, brighter than before. "Oh, I had to meet a client offsite.

Why did you come to my office, baby?" I smiled back, wrapping my arms around his waist and leaning into his chest. "No reason.

I just missed you." I pulled out my phone and pulled up the photos of the apartment from earlier. "Harper and I went apartment hunting today.

What do you think of this place?" I slid the phone in front of him.

His smile became incredibly strained, though his voice remained gentle. "Why are you looking at apartments?" I watched his facial expressions closely. "Harper wants to renovate her condo, so she needs a temporary place to lease." He nodded quickly, sliding the phone back to me. "Looks nice." I smiled and swiped to the photo of the girl. "I saw a picture of the current tenant.

She's really pretty, so I took a photo. Look." He glanced at it, his eyes darting away instantly. His hand trembled slightly as he picked up his fork. "Yeah, she's okay.

But you're way prettier, baby." I smiled and put my phone away. "Let's eat." That dinner was the quietest meal we had ever shared.

That night, he tried to get intimate with me, but I coldly pushed him away. "I told you, I'm on my period." He backed off awkwardly, pulling me into a tight embrace instead.

The day after tomorrow was my birthday. Normally, I would celebrate with Harper first, then come home to celebrate with Ethan.

But this year, Harper and I drove straight to that apartment complex. We sat in the car, watching Ethan laugh and kiss that woman right at the entrance.

They couldn't keep their hands off each other. Harper was about to storm out of the car to confront him, but I held her back. They were moving into their new place today.

We followed them. To my absolute shock, Ethan was bold enough to buy a condo in the exact same building where Harper and I lived. How deeply in love they must be.

I purposely waited until 10 PM—the time I usually got home after celebrating with Harper—to walk through the door. I didn't turn on the lights.

I sat in the pitchblack living room, waiting for him. Ethan got home at 10:30 PM. When he flipped the light switch and saw me sitting on the couch, he jumped.

But he recovered instantly. Just like always, he was holding a cake box and a bouquet of yellow tulips. "Baby, I'm home!

Happy birthday!" I watched his performance in silence. "Thanks," I said with a light laugh. I took the cake and flowers.

He sang the birthday song, turned off the lights, and told me to make a wish. I closed my eyes for a long time.

As the candles began to gutter out, Ethan urged me, "Make it quick, baby, or it won't come true!" I blew out the candles.

In the darkness, I asked, "Ethan, do you treat other women as well as you treat me?" The moment he flicked the lights back on, panic flashed across his face. "Baby, what are you talking about?" He reached out to pinch my cheek. "Are you feeling okay?

Is it just your hormones?" I lost my temper and slapped his hand away. "Ethan, are you not tired of acting?

How much longer do we have to play this game?" He froze, staring at me with wide, panicked eyes. "Are you going to confess, or should I do it for you?" When he remained silent, I let out a mocking laugh, stood up, and threw a document from my purse right at his face. "I found this ultrasound report in your glove compartment yesterday."