A Flight to Freedom

Jacob Carter left me again—this time to rush over to Wendy Miller's place. I grabbed the sleeve of his jacket as he headed for the door.

"Can't you stay? It's our fifth wedding anniversary."

"Alicia, come on. Try to be reasonable. Wendy's on her own with Oliver, and he's running a high fever. She needs help." He pulled his arm free, feeling irritated.

I fumed. Oliver Ford always managed to fall sick at just the right moments. "He's not even your son. Why is it always you she calls? Doesn't she have anyone else?

"If you walk out that door tonight, Jacob, we're getting a divorce tomorrow."

In our town, "divorce" wasn't a word we could throw around lightly. People would have gossiped for years. But I wasn't afraid.

Jacob flared up. "Do whatever you want! Just don't try to blackmail me with this crap. A woman with zero empathy—who the hell would want you after a divorce?"

I snapped. I flipped the dinner table over as he reached for the doorknob. The candlelit anniversary dinner I had so carefully prepared crashed to the floor in a mess.

Jacob froze. "Are you crazy? How did I end up marrying a shrew like you?"

I marched right past him and yelled, "Yeah, I am crazy! What kind of married man keeps running off to another woman's house every time she snaps her fingers?"

I stormed across the lawn straight to Wendy's front door and banged on it furiously. "Wendy! If you've got the guts to steal someone's husband, you better have the guts to come out and face me!"

Our neighbors started peeking out to watch the drama unfold.

Jacob's face turned bright red in an instant.

Wendy opened the door slowly and timidly with her head down. "Alicia… please don't misunderstand. Oliver's burning up and I… I can't carry him by myself. Jacob's the only one I could turn to."

I yanked her out onto the stoop by the wrist. "Oh really? What amazing timing your son has. Last month, it happened when Jacob finally had a day off and planned to take me to the movies.

"Last week, it was my birthday. And today, our wedding anniversary! Is your kid allergic to me spending any alone time with Jacob or what?

"Why don't you just have Jacob move in with you? That way, you can have him every day!"

Seething with rage, I stomped back to the house and shoved Jacob, who was standing there in shock. "What are you waiting for? Weren't you in a hurry? Go already!"

I slammed the door in his face, leaving him and Wendy staring at each other in the hallway.

The neighbors whispered among themselves, and they glared at the two of them with obvious disgust.

Jacob banged on the door, begging me to let him in. I ignored him. Only when he heard me slam the bedroom door did he punch the wall in frustration and leave.

Calmly, I turned on the bedside lamp and started flipping through a magazine.

The reason I dared to cause such a scene today… was because I had been reborn.

In my past life, it was when Jacob left to be with Wendy that the house caught fire. Locked inside, I burned to death.

Now that I had a second chance, there was no way I'd let them walk all over me again.

He wanted to be with another woman? Fine, go ahead. But I would have made sure everyone saw what kind of people they really were.

Jacob didn't come home that night, but I didn't care.

The next morning, just as I was stepping out, I ran into Wendy coming back with a bucket of water.

Her face was pale and exhausted. The look in her eyes was pure venom. She looked like she wanted to strangle me.

I didn't spare her a glance. I locked the door and headed to work. When I arrived at Martin Smith's office, I handed him my application to go abroad.

Martin looked surprised. "Mrs. Carter, are you sure about this? You're definitely the most qualified to go, but last time you said you couldn't leave because of family obligations."

"Don't worry, Mr. Smith. I've given this a lot of thought. I'm ready to set my personal matters aside for the sake of our country's future.

"Studying advanced technology abroad is the only way we can truly speed up our development—and that's what really matters right now.

"If you approve this, I'll head home and start packing today."

With a frown, Martin stubbed out his cigarette. He signed the form and said, "Alright. Go home, get your affairs in order, and bid farewell. You leave in a week.

"Thank you, Mr. Smith," I said, giving him a firm handshake. "I won't let you down."

Back home, I pulled an old suitcase out from under the bed. It was the one I'd packed my wedding gifts in five years ago.

Back then, I married Jacob despite my family's objections because I thought he was kind-hearted. I even believed he was thoughtful and dependable.

But I hadn't realized his kindness had limits—and it never extended to me. It was always reserved for Wendy, his first love.