Chapter 2

I didn't overthink it and just agreed.

But after waiting downstairs at the office for half an hour, his car was still nowhere to be seen.

Just then, my phone rang. It was Samuel.

"Did you come down yet?" he asked.

I glanced around. "I'm at the entrance, but I don't see your car."

Samuel let out a sigh on the other end.

I knew that sigh all too well. Back when he used to get impatient waiting for me, he'd always do that. He would frown, take a deep breath, and try to keep his frustration in check.

He was probably trying to make up for yesterday's mess, so he didn't lose his temper. Instead, he forced himself to sound patient and asked, "Did you guys switch to a different entrance?"

Suddenly, I had a hunch. "Are you at the Richer Building?"

His voice went up a notch, clearly annoyed by my question. "Of course! Do you think I don't even know where you work?"

But he really didn't. Our company moved last year to an office building two blocks away from the Richer Building.

I'd sent him the new address ages ago, but he still showed up in the wrong place.

"I'll just go home myself. It's all one-way streets here. It's a hassle," I said.

Samuel didn't say anything for a few seconds, then just hung up.

When I got home, Samuel was already sitting on the couch.

That was pretty rare. After we got married, I was usually the one home first, cooking dinner and waiting for him.

But more often than not, the food would get cold, and he still wouldn't show up.

When he finally did come home, I'd complain that he didn't let me know he'd be late.

He'd give me that cold look and say, "Do you think I'm supposed to report everything to you? Can't you just eat by yourself?"

"But the food's cold now..." I'd say.

"Just throw it out if it's cold. Are you really going to pick a fight over something this trivial?" he'd snap.

After that, I'd keep quiet. From then on, I'd always put his portion in the warmer ahead of time.

I'd eat by myself first, then sit in the living room and wait for him.

When I walked in, Samuel surprisingly came up to me, which was totally unexpected.

He trailed after me, explaining, "Adaline, I've just been swamped lately. My head's all over the place. I didn't go to the wrong place on purpose."

I shrugged off my coat and said, "Don't worry about it."

He looked at my expression, then added, "It was really late last night, and the rain was pouring. Natalia lives way out. Her lights went out, so I went over to help her fix them."

I just nodded, sounding indifferent. "Okay."

"Are you upset?" Samuel asked.

I looked up at him, puzzled. "No, I'm not," I said.

Seeing my response, his expression shifted from cautious to accusatory.

"You are upset! I already explained everything, but you're still giving me the cold shoulder. You didn't even make breakfast this morning, and now you're acting all distant," Samuel snapped.

It hit me that if it were before, what happened these two days would've been enough to make me totally lose it.

Stuff like this happened all the time these past four years.

And every time, he'd just stand there quietly, watching me like I was making a fool of myself.

Looking back, I must've looked pretty ridiculous. No wonder he started hating coming home.

Not even a trace of anger was left in me. After dragging myself through the day sick, I was just dead tired.

"If there's nothing else, I'm going to take a bath," I said.

He came up to me. "Mind if I join you?"

"Not tonight. I've got a cold. Really not feeling up to it," I said, shaking off his hand and heading straight for the bathroom.

Then I heard the front door slam. I guessed Samuel must've stormed out again.

Samuel was back to giving me the cold shoulder.

Back then, every time Samuel and I were giving each other silent treatment, I'd be restless and anxious. I couldn't concentrate on anything, just desperately searching for a way to patch things up.

Sometimes, I'd even pretend to accidentally send him a message and then delete it right away, hoping he'd see it and maybe text me back or something.

But Samuel rarely replied, and he didn't even care what I tried to take back.

If I called him, he wouldn't pick up, either.

Whenever that happened, I couldn't focus on work. All I could think about was getting home as soon as possible.

But at this moment, I actually felt at peace, both body and mind.

Especially with this cold, all I wanted was a decent night's sleep, but Samuel would always wake me up when he came home late.

Now that he crashed in the guest room every night, I actually got to sleep straight through till morning.

There was no point cooking for him anymore. He never ate it anyway.

My project was hitting crunch time.

So I'd grab breakfast on the go, eat dinner at the office, and even put in some extra hours before heading home.

It saved me a ton of time, and I could pour all my energy into work. I felt more motivated than ever.

Ever since we got married, I had pretty much centered my whole life around Samuel.

I was always blowing up his phone, asking what he was doing, telling him I missed him, that I loved him.

He rarely texted back, but I never got tired of it.

I rarely stayed late at the office. As soon as I clocked out, I'd hurry home to make dinner.

But he was always busy, either buried in his work or out socializing. I could count on one hand the number of times he actually ate dinner at home each month.

Now that I had stopped making Samuel the center of my world, life felt so much easier. I was way more productive at work, and the results were better than ever.

When the project finally came to a perfect close, it was like a huge weight off my shoulders.

I opened up my social media for the first time in ages and remembered I'd already removed Natalia from my close friends list.

But I still couldn't help being a little curious about what she was up to online.

Sure enough, during the time Samuel and I were giving each other the cold shoulder, he was constantly by Natalia's side.

They went camping at the beach, and Natalia even joined Samuel and his friends at their get-togethers.

He looked happier than ever.

If this had happened before, I would've been blowing up Samuel's phone, calling him nonstop to pick a fight.

At first, he'd try to explain, but then he'd get fed up and think I was just being dramatic for no reason.

And it would always end with him slamming the door and storming out.