Chapter 2I Finally Let Go of My Lost Love

Looking at Chris's trembling lips, my face remained perfectly calm.

"Okay. I am leaving."

Ignoring his parents' urgent shouts, I turned and walked straight toward the foyer.

Just as my hand touched the door handle, a brutal grip clamped around my wrist, jerking me backward.

[Sundra, are you actually mad? I am so scared. Are you throwing me away?]

[If you leave me, I will die!]

[Please don't throw me away!]

The frantic, screaming thoughts swarmed my brain, wrapping tightly around my chest.

Shocked, I looked back at Chris. The rims of his eyes were a glaring, bloodshot red.

For a second, my heart wavered.

Then, his icy voice smashed into me.

"You can leave, but take off the shoes on your feet! I bought those for you!"

My entire body went rigid.

I looked down at the faded, well-worn flats on my feet.

He bought them for me right after we got married. He had simply dropped the box in the living room without saying a single word.

But his thoughts had leaked out from the bedroom.

[Wife, did you see them? Come ask me about them. Ask me if I bought them just for you.]

[I had them custom-made. Come praise me, wife!]

[I want you to be the happiest bride in the whole world.]

For six years, I cherished these shoes. I wore them everywhere. Not just because Chris bought them, but because they represented the fierce, burning love he couldn't say out loud.

But now.

I squatted down, my fingers numb, and slowly slipped the shoes off.

"Fine. They are yours."

Chris's face turned even darker. The red in his eyes looked like suppressed rage.

His mother hurried over, trying to run interference. "Sundra, you have been with Chris for ten years. You know he never means what he says. How could he actually let you walk out of here barefoot? He is just using this as an excuse to make you stay."

The moment the words left her mouth, Chris grabbed the shoes from the floor and tossed them straight into the roaring fireplace.

"You wore them for six years. I find them disgusting now."

His tone was incredibly light, but the words hit my chest like a sledgehammer.

Watching the flames swallow the leather, a suffocating pain seized my lungs. I couldn't breathe.

So the shoes I had carefully protected and cleaned for six long years meant absolutely nothing to him. They were just trash to be burned.

Catching sight of my tear-filled eyes, Chris's inner voice went into a frenzy.

[Wife, are you sad? You still care about me, right?]

[Just admit you were wrong. Just tell me this was all a joke. I will fill your entire closet with new shoes right now!]

[I will buy you so many beautiful shoes!]

I listened to his frantic thoughts with total numbness.

My heart did not flutter. It did not ache anymore.

No matter how beautiful the new shoes were, they would never be the first pair.

My relationship with Chris had finally reached the end of its rope. Just like that fire, it had burned until nothing remained but dirty, gray ash.

I walked out of the house barefoot.

Not a single person chased after me.

The only thing I heard was Lily's gloating voice drifting from the dining room. "Are you really not going to chase your wife? She looked pretty heartbroken."

"Chase her for what?" Chris scoffed. "Let her go. Give it half an hour, and she will come crawling back to apologize."

He didn't know I was actually leaving for good.

My company had offered a highly coveted position at the overseas branch. I took one of the spots.

My flight was booked for tomorrow.