I was startled and immediately pushed him away.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" I rubbed my neck and complained, "Why are you suddenly acting crazy?!"
Elliot stumbled a step and steadied himself, picking up the agreement.
"Crazy?!"
"Do you have any idea how much property we'd have to divide in a divorce? That villa alone is worth 120 million!"
"To get a divorce, you're willing to give up the money? Is that boy really that important to you?!"
I pondered for a moment and nodded. "Yes."
It's not that I'm love-struck; it's just that half of this would be enough to ensure my comfort for several lifetimes.
No matter how wealthy I am, I still only need one bed to sleep in. Why should I stay in this relationship for money I can't even spend?
I've thought it through.
Even if it's not for Neil, I don't want to continue torturing each other with Elliot.
Elliot gripped the divorce agreement tightly, crumpling the thick paper in his hand.
He's always been someone who doesn't show his emotions. In the past, no matter how wildly I argued, he would just look at me coldly without revealing any feelings.
But now, he looked as if he was extremely angry, his face darkening, and I could even see the redness in his eyes.
Just when I thought he might strike me, Elliot took a deep breath.
He adjusted his glasses, gritted his teeth, and regained his usual composure.
His gaze was heavy, but his emotions were unreadable.
"Nicole," he tore the agreement into shreds with a few quick motions and tossed them aside, "If you want a divorce, you're dreaming."
……
Elliot slammed the door and left, probably going to find Lauryn.
I lay on the sofa by myself, covering my eyes with my arm.
Neil's message came in.
"Have you mentioned divorce to him? Did he give you a hard time?"
I didn't reply.
I didn't know how to respond.
I suddenly felt a bit exhausted.
How did we end up here?
At the beginning, Elliot and I were deeply in love as young people.
Back then, he was broke, and after work, we were so hungry that we finally decided to buy a sandwich.
He swallowed his saliva and handed it to me:
"You eat."
I refused, and we pushed it back and forth between us. Finally, the two of us each took a bite from opposite ends and slowly worked our way to the middle.
He stuffed the remaining filling into my mouth.
When we got married, he was just as excited as Neil.
Back then, he wasn't as rich as Neil. The diamond ring was so tiny that you needed a magnifying glass to see it.
He hugged me, and his young body was warm, making me sweat.
He said:
"Nikki, I'll treat you well for the rest of my life."
Of course, I believed him. At that time, we loved each other so much that growing old together seemed like the most natural thing in the world.
But later, I realized that the human heart is the most changeable thing.
In that moment, Elliot probably truly wanted to treat me well for the rest of his life.
Later, he genuinely wanted to be good to others.
In the third year of our marriage, when he came home, he still carried the lingering scent of other woman.
My tears fell immediately, and I questioned him about what was going on.
He held me and swore that he had only taken clients to a karaoke bar, and he hadn't done anything to betray me.
I believed him.
Then there was a second time.
And a third time.
He gradually lost patience and stopped trying to placate me.
"Just irritably pushing me away:
"There's nothing a man can do when he goes out to entertain clients. Can't you stop being so unreasonable?!"
Later, he started seeing Lauryn.
She was a girl who looked somewhat like me but much younger.
Fresh out of school, she exuded youth and vitality. He had made an exception to hire her.
Elliot started staying away night after night.
I knew he was tired of me.
With such a young and vibrant body around, why would he come back to sleep next to me?
My heart slowly burned to ashes in those nights of burning.
So when he told me:
"Nicole, I think we should try an open relationship.
"You can go out and find someone else. I won't interfere with you.
"Don't interfere with me either. Of course, I won't let anyone outside affect your position. How about that?"
I looked at Elliot.
The man in front of me no longer bore any resemblance to the shadow of the person he once was.
That boy who would squat at the subway station entrance to share a sandwich with me was perhaps just a fantasy from the start.
Time didn't kill him.
It simply revealed his true self.
A self I had never truly seen.
After a long while, I closed my eyes.
"Well."
