Chapter 2

The next day was the anniversary of Justin's death.

Chloe drove us to the cemetery in the suburbs.

It was ironic. Years ago, she said she wanted a nice SUV for daily driving.

Without a second thought, I took out a loan to buy her the exact car she wanted.

But since the day I bought it, she had never let me drive it once. Even when I had urgent business, she would dismiss me with three words: "You don't deserve it."

Mother and daughter sat in the front, chatting and laughing about a million things.

I sat in the back, silent and invisible.

From start to finish, they never noticed my pale face. They didn't even glance at me in the rearview mirror.

But none of that mattered anymore.

I had already decided. Once we got back from the cemetery, I would hand her the divorce papers.

But I didn't expect Chloe to deliver one last, crushing blow before I could even speak.

At the gravesite, I carefully laid out the food and flowers Justin loved when he was alive.

As I finished setting them down, Chloe's cold command cut through the quiet air.

"Julian, kneel."

I turned around, looking at her in disbelief.

Her face was twisted in familiar disgust.

"You promised Justin you would take care of us. But look at you now. Only seven years, and your true colors are showing. “

“Creeping around and knocking on my bedroom door in the middle of the night? How can you look at your brother's grave and not feel ashamed?"

"Kneel down! Repent to Justin right now, or Lily and I will throw ourselves in front of the next car we see."

Listening to her hysterical threat, I looked down at the sharp gravel covering the ground. I stayed silent for a long moment.

I knew she wouldn't actually hurt herself. She loved her life too much. But I knelt down anyway.

I didn't want to make a scene in front of my brother's grave.

This would be the first, and the absolute last time.

The sharp stones dug painfully into my knees, but the physical pain cleared my head.

It only solidified my resolve to end this marriage.

Yet, even as I knelt there, Chloe refused to let it go. She stood over me, listing my "sins" to Justin’s headstone, completely rewriting our history.

Hearing her trash every single thing I had done, I couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Chloe, do you really have to completely erase everything I've done for you these past seven years?" I asked, my voice tight.

"Those sacrifices were real. You can't just pretend they never happened!"

Seven years ago, she agreed to marry me.

But the moment the ring was on her finger, she changed.

During her pregnancy, if I didn't cater to her every whim, she would scream that she wanted to die and go join Justin.

So, even if she wanted pizza at two in the morning, or if she threw the dinners I cooked into the trash because they weren't "perfect," I quietly did it all over again.

And after Lily was born, Chloe became terrified that I would try to take Justin's place in her bed.

Every single night, she locked my bedroom door from the outside.

Even so, at her insistence, I underwent a vasectomy so she would never have to worry about me wanting "my own" children.

For seven years, I never raised my voice at her. I never let her lift a finger for housework. I shielded her from every hardship.

Every penny I earned went into her account.

I did it because of my survivor's guilt. I wanted to make amends. I never complained.

But to her, none of it meant anything.

Hearing me bring this up, Chloe merely scoffed. "That was your duty! You owed us that!"

My throat swelled with dry emotion. I had no words left.

She was right. I had promised Justin. I chose this path.

I lowered my eyes, refusing to argue further.

Suddenly, something sharp struck my forehead. I winced and looked down.

A few small pebbles rolled off my chest.

I looked up and met Lily’s eyes. Instead of backing away, she grinned mischievously.

She scooped up another handful of gravel and threw it directly at my face.

"My real dad wouldn't have died if he hadn't saved you!" she yelled. "You ruined our family!"

"You killed my dad, and now you want to hurt my mom. I hate you more than anyone in the world!"

It wasn't the first time I had heard these words.

But every time they came out of her mouth, they sliced through my chest like a razor blade.

Then, she looked at me with pure venom. "Why couldn't you have died instead of him? It should have been you."

My breath hitched.

For a moment, a wave of profound exhaustion washed over me.

She's right. Why couldn't it have been me?

If I had died, I wouldn't have had to live in this endless purgatory of guilt and torment.

When I finally stood up, my knees were throbbing so hard I could barely straighten them.

As they walked away, calling out for me to hurry up, I turned back to look at the name carved on the cold headstone.

I whispered softly, "I'm sorry, Justin."

"I can't walk this path anymore. I... I have to leave her."