Chapter 5

The car was quiet, and the only sound was the soft hum of the air conditioning.

Elaine kept her eyes on the road, driving in silence. She understood that what I needed most right now was quiet, not words of comfort.

It wasn't until we merged onto the main road and joined the flow of traffic that she finally spoke, her voice still calm.

"Is your face still hurting?" she asked.

"No, not at all," I replied honestly. When my heart went numb, I barely felt any pain in my body anymore.

"There's an ice pack in the center console," she said.

I opened the center console, and sure enough, there was an ice pack wrapped in a towel. I took it out and held it against my face. The chill soothed the sting, making the burning sensation fade a little.

"Thanks, Aunt Elaine," I said.

"Don't act tough with me," Elaine said, shooting me a glance. "If you feel like crying, just go ahead. It's just us in the car."

I shook my head, my eyes still dry.

"I just can't," I said.

Elaine sighed and didn't push me any further. She pulled up in front of a 24-hour pharmacy and parked the car.

"I'll go get you some burn cream and something for the swelling," she said, unbuckling her seatbelt. "Stay in the car, okay?"

Watching her walk away, I felt warmth spread through my chest. In this world, there really were people who cared about me for real.

Elaine came back quickly, carrying a pharmacy bag. She handed me a tube of burn cream.

"Mail this to Alex when you get the chance," she said.

I was stunned. "To Alex?" I asked.

"Yeah," Elaine said as she started the car again. "You're not splitting up out of hate. You're just putting an end to a mistake. Legally, throwing hot soup at Alex counts as going too far in defending yourself.

"Even though he hit you first, you still hurt him. If we send him the medicine ourselves, the judge will see it as us trying to fix things and showing that you didn't mean to keep hurting him. You get what I mean?"

It all clicked for me in an instant.

Elaine was always thinking one step ahead. She wasn't feeling sorry for Alex. She was setting things up for me for the divorce case.

"I get it," I said, tucking the burn cream into my bag.

"And one more thing," she added. "From now on, don't have any direct contact with him. Don't answer his calls and don't reply to his messages. I'll handle everything from here."

"Okay," I replied.

"Did you clear out all the money from that joint account?" she asked.

"Yes, not a single cent left," I replied.

"What about the house deed, the household register, and the original prenup?" she asked.

"They're all in my bag," I replied.

"Good." Elaine nodded with a look of approval on her face. "Wanda, you're calmer than I expected."

I gave a wry smile. "Maybe getting hit numbed me."

"No, that's not numbness," Elaine said, keeping her eyes on the road, her tone serious. "That's clarity.

"So many people in marriages get gaslighted, get abused, and keep telling themselves to endure it—for the kids, for their reputation—only to end up trapped even deeper.

"You woke up after just one slap and took action right away. That already puts you ahead of ninety percent of people."

Eventually, the car rolled into the underground garage of a high-end apartment complex.

This was an apartment Elaine owned, and it had always been empty.

"You'll stay here for the next few days. It's completely safe. Only I know the password to the door," Elaine said, helping me with my suitcase.

She added, "Just relax, take a shower, and get some sleep. Whatever happens, we'll talk about it after you've rested."

"Thanks, Aunt Elaine," I said.

"Silly buns," Elaine said, gently ruffling my hair. "Remember, you did nothing wrong. The one at fault is the man who hit you and thinks it's totally fine. You're just getting out before things get even worse."

When we reached the door, Elaine handed me a set of spare keys and an access card and then told me the password.

"I'm heading back to the office to draft your divorce agreement and the lawyer's letter. I'll drop by tonight to see how you're doing," she said.

"Okay," I replied.

Once Elaine was gone, I walked in and shut the door behind me.

This place was totally new to me, but for some reason, it felt like the safest place in the world.

I kicked off my shoes, tossed my suitcase in the entryway, and collapsed onto the soft couch in the living room.

Finally, all the tension in me just eased up.

Exhaustion washed over me like a wave.

I didn't bother to shower or unpack. I just lay there on the couch, staring at the ceiling.

Everything that happened today kept replaying in my mind.

Margaret's sharp tongue, Brian acting like he deserved everything, and Alex's loud slap.

I pulled out my phone and unlocked it.

On the screen was our wedding photo, Alex and me, smiling so blissfully.

I stared at that photo for a long time.

Then, I long-pressed it and hit "Delete".

After that, I opened up WhatsApp and found the wedding group chat with both our friends and families.

Everyone was still chatting away about yesterday's wedding, flooding the chat with congratulations.

I found the wedding photos I'd posted yesterday and deleted all of them.

Then I left the chat group.

Finally, I changed my social media background from that giant wedding photo to a solid black image.

Once I was done, I tossed my phone aside.

I closed my eyes, and the chill on my face slowly crept into my heart.

It was crazy how three years could end in just one day.

No, to be more accurate, it ended with one slap.