We needed to talk, so I let them in. Evan was
surprisingly quiet, clinging to Ethan’s leg, but
watching me with anxious eyes. I ignored him. Ethan sat across from me, looking guilty. “I’m
sorry, Ally. I didn’t know your mom was that
sick. Why didn’t you tell me? I could have
gotten her the best doctors, spared no
expense…”
I felt nothing. “It was too late. She was terminal.
Telling you wouldn’t have changed anything.
Besides, she was my mom, not yours. I was with
her when she died. She had no regrets. It was…
<
9:42
85
peaceful.”
Ethan flinched, his face even paler. He forced a
smile. “We’re married, Ally. She was my mother
too.”
The words rang hollow. He’d barely
acknowledged her when she was alive. I
laughed, a harsh, humorless sound. Ethan
closed his eyes, then changed the subject. “I’ll
take care of the funeral arrangements. I’ll…”
“No.” I cut him off, not wanting to watch him.
pretend. I pulled a document from my bag and
slid it across the table. Before I could speak,
Ethan jumped up. “Ally!” His eyes were red, his
body trembling. He grabbed my hand, dropping
to one knee. “Please. I don’t agree. I won’t
divorce you…”
I slowly pulled my hand away. Before he could
unravel completely, I gestured to the document.
“Read it first.”
He hesitated, then picked it up. Relief washed
over him when he saw it wasn’t the divorce
agreement. But as he read, his brows furrowed,
his grip tightening, his breathing quickening.
く
When he reached the last page, my signature at the bottom, his eyes turned red. “A contract?
All these years… you were with me, you loved
me… just to repay my grandmother? It was a… transaction?”
He held the contract
–
the original agreement
between me and his grandmother, outlining
everything I’d done for him, not out of love, but
—
obligation — a list of services rendered.
Ethan stared at the words, his face blank. I delivered the final blow. “Ethan,” I asked softly,
“aren’t you going to ask me… if I love you?” Ethan stormed out. Evan stayed, sniffling,
twisting his shirt in his hands. He didn’t
understand the contract, the transaction, but he
understood one thing: Mommy was leaving
Daddy.
