Chapter 3
"I'm fine, really," I said, forcing myself to sound calm even though my emotions were churning inside. I looked at Cecilia with a composed face. "Still, thank you."
"No need to thank me," Cecilia replied, blinking her big eyes, her voice tinged with emotion. "You're a great boss, always looking out for your team. If you ever need someone for your new job, please consider bringing me along."
"Of course," I replied.
I picked up my coffee cup and finished it in one go before standing up. "Let's stay in touch. We've got each other's contact info anyway."
"Are you sure you don't want to go for a drink?" Cecilia asked.
She stood up, too, her eyes full of concern.
"No need. I have some things to take care of. Once I'm done, we'll go out and drink till we drop," I replied.
"It's a promise." She flashed a bright smile as she held out her pinky for a promise, her eyes shining with a playful, childlike excitement.
She really was adorable.
I managed a small smile and waved at her. "See you! Oh, and don't forget to send me the video you took."
As soon as I sat down in the driver's seat of my car, I received the video Cecilia had sent me.
The video was downright unbearable. I barely made it through a few seconds before I had to look away, my eyes burning with rage and my breath coming in harsh, ragged gasps.
I never thought Madison would betray what we had and hook up with Jeremy Landon, the company's vice president, all for a promotion to become director.
"Calm down. I can't drive with my head all messed up. It's way too dangerous," I muttered to myself.
I finally managed to calm myself down, and just as I was about to pull out of the company parking lot, my phone rang. It was my birth father, Zachary Sanders, calling.
He said, "Whether you want to admit it or not, you can't change the fact that you're my son. The DNA test proved it.
"It was my fault that I lost you back then. All these years, not being able to care for you has made me feel incredibly guilty. I just hope you'll give me a chance to make things right.
"If you're willing to come back, whatever you want, just name it. Please think it over."
"Mr. Sanders, I'm a mess right now. Could you give me some time to think about it? I'll let you know once I've made up my mind, okay?" I replied.
Zachary seemed to sense something was off on the other end of the line. "Is something wrong?"
"No, it's nothing. Just some personal stuff. I'll take care of it myself," I said.
"All right, I'll give you some time to think it over. I'm pretty busy, so I might not be able to answer right away. Once you've made up your mind, just call Jack, the butler who visited you before," Zachary said.
"Got it. Bye," I said.
I hung up and drove off.
*****
I parked my car in the underground parking lot and headed home.
I bought this 1,000-square-meter three-bedroom apartment with my savings from years of hard work and a small loan from my father, which together covered the down payment.
When I bought it, the place came fully furnished by the developer, but I wasn't satisfied at all, so I spent even more to have everything redone just the way I liked it.
As for the renovation and decor, Madison never bothered with any of it. She just left it all to me and couldn't care less.
To her, work was always all that mattered.
The bed in the bedroom, the couch in the living room, the double-door fridge in the kitchen—every single thing here was handpicked by me.
As I looked around at everything, so many memories came rushing back.
The one place that used to be my safe haven now just felt stifling, even a bit disgusting.
"Let this be the end of it all." I let out a sigh and started packing my things.
I just didn't want to live here anymore.
Once I was done packing, I felt a bit tired, so I dozed off on the couch for a while.
I was still groggy when I heard someone punching in the code at the door. I sat up, rubbing my eyes.
The moment the door opened, there was a sharp click as the living room lights came on.
As soon as Madison saw me, she let out a startled cry, and then scolded, "Jeez, are you trying to give me a heart attack? Why are you sitting here in the dark?"
I ignored her and checked my watch. It was already 11 at night.
"Come on. It's just a job. No need to make such a big deal out of it," Madison said.
Seeing that I wasn't responding, she figured I was still upset about losing my job.
So she suddenly changed her tone and started trying to comfort me. It was like she had a split personality or something.
She tried to explain. "That was a decision made by the board. I had no say in it.
"Besides, this is a critical time for my promotion to HR director. I can't give you special treatment just because you're my husband. The whole company is watching me.
"If I show any favoritism, people will definitely talk behind my back and sabotage my chances at this promotion."
She kept trying to sound all righteous, but I'd long since stopped caring about anything she had to say.
I cut her off with a wave of my hand. "Your promotion is your own business. It's got nothing to do with me. Don't talk to me about it. I don't want to hear it."
"Come on, you're a grown man. Can you not be so petty?" Madison complained.
She pouted, and then asked tentatively, "Are you really planning to go through with arbitration and a lawsuit?"
"That's my business, and it has nothing to do with you. I don't want to talk about it," I replied.
Madison was totally caught off guard by how cold I was.
I'd always gone along with whatever she wanted since we got together. I'd never talked to her like this before.
She panicked. "I think you shouldn't do that. It could ruin my future at the company. The higher-ups said this layoff is basically a test for my promotion to director.
"As long as I handle it well, the promotion is basically in the bag. There's no need for you to wreck my chances just for a bit of severance.
"Besides, if you make a big scene, it'll just make it harder for you to find another job."
As I listened to Madison, whatever last shred of hope I had left inside me was completely shattered.
We were together, even briefly. That should still count for something.
Madison and I had been married for three years, but all along, I was the only one who ever cared.
Not once did she ever care about me or how I felt.
Even now, after I was unfairly laid off and lost my bonus and severance, the only thing on her mind was her own promotion.
As she spoke, Madison kicked off her high heels, took off her purse, and plopped down on the couch. "I'm so exhausted today. I haven't even eaten yet. Go make me some pasta, and some scrambled eggs too."
"Want to eat? Make it yourself," I replied coldly.
I shot her a frosty look, with no trace of affection or care left in my eyes, just pure disgust and impatience.
Madison was totally shocked by my attitude.
Usually, I just did whatever she wanted. I'd never stood up to her like this before.
"Are you forgetting who's calling the shots now?" she snapped.
She snatched a glass of water from the coffee table and splashed it right on me, her face twisted with fury as she screamed, "How dare you talk to me like that? You must be out of your mind!"
At work, she always seemed super professional and in control and never once lost it in public.
But that wasn't because she was easygoing.
Most of the time, I was just worried about her getting too worked up, so I let myself be her emotional punching bag.
After a while, she ended up becoming downright unreasonable and overbearing whenever she was with me.
I wiped my face, my whole body drenched.
Just when Madison thought I'd cave and try to make amends, I snatched the kettle off the coffee table, flipped the lid open, and right in front of her stunned eyes, poured the whole thing over her head.
Madison never saw it coming. She was totally stunned, just standing there in shock.
She was drenched from head to toe, and it took her a while to process what had just happened before she started screaming and bawling hysterically. "Nathan, are you fucking crazy? You uncivilized jerk!"
Madison always liked to think of herself as refined and elegant, but now she was swearing up a storm and clawing at me like a wildcat. I just shoved her straight to the floor.
"You call yourself civilized, throwing water at people? You're nothing but a shrew. When I loved you and spoiled you, you were my treasure.
"But when you started taking my love for granted, never showing any gratitude, trampling all over my dignity, you became nothing to me," I said coldly.
Madison struggled to her feet, sobbing so hard that her face was streaked with tears, looking utterly pitiful. Then, in a fit of hysterical rage, she screamed, "I'm divorcing you. Get the hell out of here, you piece of trash!"