My wife came home late that night, a total mess. Her stockings were torn apart, her skirt hung unevenly around her waist, and her body was covered in dark red marks.
The moment she entered, she ran straight into the bathroom, desperately trying to wash away the signs on her skin, scrubbing so hard she nearly hurt herself.
I wanted to take her straight to the police. But after she finished cleaning herself, there was no evidence of bodily fluids left, and in the end, the police refused to open a case because there was nothing to prove it.
Anger took over, and I went to the company to confront the boss who had attacked her. I beat him up, and the result was seven days of administrative detention.
Not only that, after the incident, my wife developed a serious psychological disorder. For two full months, she wouldn’t allow me to touch her at all.
Eventually, I couldn’t stand it any longer. I filed for divorce right in front of all her relatives.
My wife stared at me in disbelief. “Do you think it’s my fault that I was raped? Are you divorcing me because of that?”
I looked at her coldly, my tone flat and emotionless. “Yes, I’m divorcing you because you were raped.”
——
Tears rolled down Kaia Velasquez’s cheeks, her eyes wide with pain and disbelief. “Apollo Granger, have you been wanting to say that all along?”
“Did you plan to divorce me two months ago? Do you already see me as dirty?”
I stared blankly at Kaia, who was nearly sobbing uncontrollably, yet my heart didn’t move at all.
“Whatever you think, this marriage ends today.”
A flicker of shock flashed across Kaia’s eyes, as though she hadn’t expected me to be so firm.
My mother-in-law’s face darkened immediately. She was about to speak, but my father-in-law caught her wrist.
“Apollo, I understand you can’t move past this, but Kaia is also a victim.”
“She didn’t choose for this to happen; she’s already been through enough. You’re husband and wife, this is when your bond is truly tested.”
My mother-in-law quickly added, “That’s right, Apollo, hasn’t Kaia treated you well all these years? Just look at her, she’s beautiful and does so well in her career. Marrying her was the luck you earned in your last life!”
“Enough already, stop making trouble. You’re a man, ending your marriage over something like this, aren’t you worried people will laugh at you? Go on, apologize to Kaia!”
At that point, Kaia seemed to regain her composure. She gently held my hand and spoke softly.
“Alright, Apollo, none of this was your fault. I know these past two months have been hard on you, too.”
“I don’t need you to apologize. Let’s just move forward, alright?”
The other relatives sitting in the living room began to speak as well.
“Apollo, this is your fault. What happened to Kaia wasn’t her choice. You’re the man here; you should be more understanding.”
“Honestly, part of this is your fault, too. Kaia was working overtime so late. Why didn’t you go pick her up? If you had gone, none of this would’ve happened.”
“Alright, stop talking like that. Getting divorced over this? You’re both still young, there’s so much ahead of you.”
A hint of hope returned to Kaia’s face. “Apollo, I know the last two months have been hard for you, too.”
“I’ll try to get better. Let’s just act like this never happened, okay?”
Her voice started to shake again as she spoke.
To anyone who didn’t know what really happened, it might have looked like she was the one making a huge sacrifice.
Taking a step back, I ignored the voices around us and said coldly, “Kaia.”
“Today, I’m ending this marriage.”
Kaia’s face froze, her whole body going rigid in an instant.
At that moment, my father-in-law also lost his temper. “Apollo! You’re nothing but an scumbag!”
“You’re divorcing your wife over something like this? You call yourself a man?”
I met his eyes and laughed coldly. “If you were a man, and your wife cheated on you, could you still stay with her?”
My mother-in-law’s hand trembled as she pointed at me, her voice rising with anger.
“How can that be the same thing! Do you really think Kaia wanted this to happen?”
I didn’t respond, lowering my eyes to the woman standing in front of me.
Two months earlier, just before dawn, Kaia had stumbled home.
She was completely out of it, her stockings ripped apart, her skirt hanging crookedly around her waist, looking as if it might fall any second.
I’d rushed to ask what had happened.
But it was as if she couldn’t hear me; she went straight into the bathroom, locked the door, and started scrubbing her body over and over.
It wasn’t until the next morning, when she had finally calmed down a bit, that I found out she had been forced by her boss while working overtime. She had struggled with all her strength, but couldn’t escape.
I had been furious beyond words and dragged Kaia to the police station to report it.
But after washing herself over and over, there wasn’t a single trace of physical evidence left on her body.
The assault had happened in her boss’s office, and the company’s cameras had been under maintenance that night, leaving no footage to use as proof.
In the end, the police refused to file a case, saying there wasn’t enough evidence.
Watching Kaia break down every day, crying herself to sleep, I eventually couldn’t take it anymore and went to her company to beat the boss.
What I got for it was seven days of administrative detention.
Now, two months had gone by since that night.
What had really happened between Kaia and that boss was something only the two of them knew.
As I thought about it, I smiled bitterly. “Kaia, do you truly not know why I want a divorce?”
“Do you really not understand?”
Kaia froze, a hint of guilt flashing in her eyes. Taking a step back, I widened the distance between us.
“After that incident, I told you to quit your job and stay home to rest.”
“I can provide for you and this family, but you wouldn’t listen, you insisted on going to work every day, facing that boss you claimed to despise.”
Kaia exhaled softly in visible relief before she spoke again through tears, her face showing deep sadness.
“We’ve only been married two years. The mortgage and car payments both need money. How could I let you carry all that on your own?”
“Apollo, do you think I embarrass you? Do you feel ashamed seeing me outside?”
“But I did it for you, for this family.”
A cold laugh escaped me. “You know very well what your real reason was.”
As soon as my words fell, the anger among the relatives around us reached its peak.
“Apollo! You’re heartless! Kaia went through something so awful, and instead of comforting her, you’re blaming her for humiliating you?”
“She did it all for you! She’s in pain every single day yet still forces herself to go to work, facing that monster, don’t you see she’s suffering far more than you?”
“You’re the real monster! Cold and cruel!”
Even my father-in-law couldn’t take it anymore. He grabbed Kaia’s hand and pulled her toward the door.
“Let’s go! Come home with your mother and me! We don’t need to waste another word on this scumbag!”
But Kaia slipped free from her father’s grip, tears shining in her eyes as she tried to keep her composure.
“It’s alright, Dad. Apollo and I are husband and wife. No matter what happens, I’ll face it with him.”
“Apollo just needs time to think it through. You all go ahead. I’ll talk to him properly, don’t worry about me.”
My father-in-law’s face showed a mix of frustration and pain for his daughter.
He looked like he wanted to say more, but when his eyes met Kaia’s tear-streaked face, he couldn’t bring himself to speak another word of blame.
He turned his head to me. “Apollo, I’m telling you, think this over carefully!”
“You’re an orphan with no parents. If you divorce my daughter, I’d like to see how you plan to live after that!”
With that, my father-in-law and mother-in-law left along with the rest of the relatives, not bothering to look back at me once.
Silence settled over the living room again.
I glanced at Kaia one last time, then turned and walked upstairs into the master bedroom.
The moment I entered, I locked the door and called my cousin, who was a lawyer.
“Cousin, how’s the matter I asked you to investigate coming along?”
After listening to her update, I finally felt a weight lift from my chest.
“Good. There might be a court hearing in a few days. I’ll need your help.”
When I returned home late from work the next evening, the sight that met my eyes left me frozen in place.
The dining table was set with neatly arranged dishes, and candles flickered softly on either side.
Kaia was seated at the table, wearing a revealing nightgown.
As soon as she saw me walk in, her face lit up.
“Honey, come sit down. Look what I made for you.”
When I didn’t move, Kaia stood, took my hand, and guided me toward the table.
“I couldn’t sleep at all last night. I’ve been thinking. These past two months, I’m not the only one who’s been in pain; you have too.”
“I’ve been trapped in my own sadness and never considered how you felt. I won’t do that anymore. Let’s start a new life together.”
“Honey, let’s stop fighting, alright?”
While she spoke, she leaned forward slightly.
After two years of marriage, I knew exactly what that gesture meant.
Ever since what happened two months ago, Kaia had refused my touch.
Forget physical closeness; even when I merely approached her, she would scream in fear.
It seemed she thought I wanted a divorce because she wouldn’t let me touch her, so she had staged this entire performance tonight.
Damn, she really underestimated me.
Pulling my hand free, I switched on the living room lights.
“Kaia, stop wasting your effort.”
“I already told you, no matter what happens, this marriage is finished.”
Kaia froze, looking as though she couldn’t believe that after everything, I still refused.
Before she could respond, two figures suddenly stepped out from the guest bedroom.
My father-in-law and mother-in-law stood before me, their faces twisted in fury.
My father-in-law jabbed a finger toward my face, but his words were directed at Kaia instead.
“How did I raise such a useless daughter?”
“How could you fall for a man like this? Look at yourself, you’ve gone through all this, and he still insists on divorcing you. He’s disgracing you!”
My mother-in-law’s expression was a mix of anger and pity as she pulled Kaia behind her protectively.
“I’ve lived long enough to see through this kind of thing. He must be cheating!”
“Who divorces over something like that these days? And if he really wanted a divorce, why didn’t he do it two months ago? Why now?”
“Apollo, I’m asking you, are you seeing another woman?”
Kaia’s face froze in disbelief; her tears stopped.
“Apollo, is what my mom said true?”
Before I could respond, she kept talking quietly. “Yes, it must be.”
“These past two months, you’ve been coming home late every night, and whenever I asked where you were, you wouldn’t answer.”
“So you really do have someone else, Apollo! How could you do this to me?”
I almost laughed at how shameless Kaia’s accusation sounded.
“Who actually cheated? Who’s the one with someone else?”
“Kaia, your parents are right here. Do you dare to tell them…”
Before I could finish, my furious mother-in-law suddenly rushed at me, teeth clenched and hands swinging.
“I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you, you monster! You’re not even human!”
“My daughter went through something like that, and you still have another woman? You’re nothing but an animal!”
I hadn’t expected her to attack so suddenly, and before I could dodge, her nails had left several bloody marks on my face.
But since she was an elder, no matter what had happened between Kaia and me, I couldn’t fight back.
I quickly moved back, putting some space between us.
Kaia, startled as well, rushed forward to hold her mother back.
I turned to my father-in-law, who still seemed to have some sense left.
“Take her home.”
“I’ll repeat myself, if you don’t want things to get ugly, just finish the divorce quickly.”
My father-in-law glared at me as though he wanted to tear me apart.
After holding back his rage for a moment, he looked at his wife and Kaia.
“What are you waiting for? Let’s go!”
Three days later, Kaia showed up at home again.
The second she saw me, her eyes turned red.
“I called you, but you never answered. I sent you messages, and you ignored them.”
“Apollo, what are you trying to do? Why are you treating me like this?”
I didn’t bother to look up and kept packing her things around the house.
“We’re getting divorced. There’s no reason to stay in contact anymore.”
Kaia’s face shifted.
She wiped away her tears roughly, then, after a few deep breaths, she clenched her teeth and spoke each word clearly.
“Apollo, I’ll ask you one last time, are you really set on divorcing me?”
I said nothing and didn’t even lift my head.
When I kept quiet, my father-in-law, furious, threw a stack of papers at my feet.
“Then get divorced!”
“But Kaia did nothing wrong. Since you’re so set on this, you’ll leave with nothing!”
I put down what I was holding, picked the divorce papers up from the floor, and let out a cold laugh.
“Whether she did anything wrong in this marriage, you should ask your dear daughter.”
“You want me to walk away with nothing? You people make me sick.”
Right after those words, my mother-in-law rushed out from behind my father-in-law, swinging her bag straight at my head.
“I should’ve never let my daughter marry you! I could tell from the start you were a selfish man! You useless thing, don’t tell me you’re trying to blame my daughter now?”
“I’m warning you, either you leave with nothing, or we’ll see you in court. I’ll make sure you don’t get a single cent from our family!”
I caught her bag, and her words actually made me feel a bit calmer.
Going to court was exactly what I wanted.
My mother-in-law mistook my silence for fear, pulled her bag back, and kept shouting.
“You ungrateful brat! You’re an orphan with no parents. If our family hadn’t ignored your background, do you really think you could’ve married my daughter?”
“Now that you’ve got someone else outside, you come up with a random excuse to divorce my daughter, and you even try to blame her for everything?”
“I’m telling you, there’s no such easy way out in this world!”
I didn’t want to argue with them any longer.
“Since we can’t settle this, we’ll meet in court.”
“Talking more won’t change anything. Let’s let the judge decide.”
A week later, Kaia and I finally had our divorce hearing at the courthouse.
A crowd of her relatives came; they nearly filled every seat in the gallery.
They were all there to side with her, staring at me with anger and disgust.
Before the hearing started, Kaia stood before me, her eyes red as she spoke.
“Apollo, do we really have to go this far?”
“If you just say no, we can go home. We’ll live our life together again and never bring up the past, alright?”
I didn’t bother replying and walked straight into the courtroom without looking back.
When the hearing began, the judge went through the documents submitted by Kaia’s side and then looked up at me.
“Miss Velasquez’s situation was an accident. You can apply for divorce, but the extra conditions you proposed are unreasonable.”
“In this case, Mr. Granger, you have no right to demand that Miss Velasquez leave with nothing.”
I rose from my seat and met the judge’s eyes. “I have other evidence.”
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