Chapter 3

I stirred awake, still groggy and heavy with sleep. My pillow was soaked. I must've been crying in my sleep.

At some point, Matthew had slipped back in without me noticing. The second he saw me packing my suitcase by the door, his face tightened with frustration.

"Aurelia, how much longer are you going to drag this out?"

I turned away, splashed some cold water on my face, and scrubbed away the dried tears. Then I put the divorce agreement in front of him again.

"I'm moving out for a few days. When are you going to sign this?"

"Seriously? You want to divorce me?" Matthew's face dropped, his stare cold as ice. "Just because of some made-up news story? I know it's fake, and I wouldn't even judge you, so what's with the whole divorce thing?"

I just stared at him in silence.

What a joke. As if his opinion meant anything to me.

After a while, he asked, "Did my mom call you and say something? Just hold on a little longer, alright? Mel's up for a performance bonus at work.

"Once she gets it, I'll have her take you out for dinner and we'll talk through how to handle this properly."

"Forget it. Who cares about some dinner with her?" I retorted.

I picked up my suitcase, ready to walk out.

I knew exactly how Matthew would go about this. When the time came, he'd just shrug and say, "Well, if that's what everyone thinks, then so be it. It's not like you're actually losing anything."

"Wait," he called out from behind, tossing a tote bag into my arms. "Mel picked this out for you. She's got way more sense than you will ever have."

I looked inside to find a crumpled dress, stuffed in like trash. I let out a sharp laugh and tossed the bag right back at his feet.

Matthew blew up, calling me ungrateful. The whole thing was just even more of a joke to me.

"This dress looks familiar, doesn't it?" I remarked.

If I remembered right, it was the same one Melanie wore on that little vacation with Matthew. She'd even posted about it on Twitter. It was a photo of Matthew on one knee, holding a bouquet of roses.

The caption read, "I told him I wanted to see the ocean, and he dropped everything to book the trip. How lucky am I to be loved like this?"

Matthew looked away, guilt flickering across his face.

I didn't bother saying more. As I turned to leave, I just said, "Sign the papers already. No point dragging this out."

After I moved out, Matthew didn't bother reaching out. However, he started throwing shade on Twitter.

He posted stuff that read, "What does a decent guy have to do to be appreciated?" and "Some women throw fits when things don't go their way, acting like their husbands aren't out here busting their ass for the family."

He never said my name, but it was obvious the posts were directed at me.

I locked my phone and didn't give it another thought.