I sighed. I had no more energy for this. I pulled out my suitcase and began packing. Alice and I had known each other since childhood. We had been together for over twenty years. We only married because her parents pressured her into it.
I had gone to comfort her and on a whim, she turned to me with a bright, almost desperate smile and said, "Why don’t we just settle for each other and forget about it?"
My heart had pounded that day. I had convinced myself that we could find happiness in marriage. I was wrong.
On our wedding night, she had looked at me and said, "Adam, I know you too well. So well that there’s no excitement at all. Let’s sleep in separate rooms, okay?"
I didn’t want to force her into anything, so I agreed. And for two years, we lived as strangers under the same roof. Over time, her patience with me grew thinner, her coldness more biting, as if I had wronged her in some way.
Three months ago, her company hired Mike as an assistant—a young, fresh-faced man who brought light to her once-icy demeanor. For the first time in years, she smiled, laughed. But only for him. Meanwhile, she had nothing but resentment for me.