The Anonymous Notes That Destroyed My Wedding Chapter 05
By the time Ethan left the hospital and drove Chloe
back to the postpartum recovery center, night had
fallen.
He drove in silence the whole way. Chloe sat in the
passenger seat, stealing glances at him every so
often.
She was still in the same loose postpartum set, bruises darkening her wrist from earlier.
“Ethan, don’t blame Sienna. She didn’t mean to
push me.”
Chloe’s voice was soft and gentle.
“She was upset, that’s all. Once she’s had time to
cool off, I’ll talk to her again.”
Ethan’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. His
throat worked as he swallowed.
“She wasn’t like this before.”
There was a tiredness in his voice he didn’t seem
to understand himself.
“She used to think about everyone else first. She almost never lost her temper with anyone.”
“How did she turn into this…”
Chloe lowered her head and said nothing.
Streetlights swept past the windows, throwing Ethan’s face in and out of shadow.
“Just focus on recovering. Don’t worry about
Sienna.”
“I’ll handle it.”
He walked Chloe back inside and reminded the
nurse to change the dressing on her injuries that
night before leaving.
He stood outside and smoked a cigarette, the night wind cold enough to cut through him.
When he got home, the living room was dark.
He switched on the hallway light, kicked off his shoes, and headed for the bedroom.
The moment he opened the door, his eyes went
automatically to the bed.
Empty.
The comforter was folded neatly, the pillow
centered perfectly, without a wrinkle anywhere.
He paused.
He pulled out his phone to call me, but his thumb
stopped over my contact.
Then he remembered how it always went.
Whenever we fought, I was the one who stormed
out, and I always came back within three days.
Sometimes he’d freeze me out and refuse to
speak.
Sometimes he’d leave me home alone while he
traveled for work, and I’d get angry enough to pack
a bag and go back to my hometown.
But in the end, I was always the first to text, the
first to give in, the first to say, “Ethan, make sure
you eat[直译润色]”
He had never once been the one to come looking
for me first.
This time wouldn’t be any different.
Convinced of that, Ethan tossed his phone onto the nightstand, took off his jacket, and lay down.
My perfume still lingered on the sheets. He rolled over and buried his face in my pillow.
“She’ll come back when she’s done being angry.”
He told himself that, then closed his eyes.