Chapter 2

"Take a good, hard look at yourself."

The way Lorraine looked at me, one would think I was some unhinged nuisance causing a scene. Voices filled the room—people trying to smooth things over, others taking cheap shots. It all blurred together.

I wiped my tears and looked straight at her. "I already have. And it isn't my problem. It's yours. So, let's end it. We'll get a divorce."

…

Despite three years of marriage, there was barely anything at home that actually belonged to me. Every penny I had saved had gone into getting Lorraine squared away for unit life.

As for myself, I stretched every dollar till it hurt. Now that I was packing up, everything I owned barely filled a single small bag.

The adjutant, Chester Johnson, knocked on the door and walked in, guilt written all over his face. "Oh, Hunter. Where are you headed with all that? You're not seriously divorcing Commander Ford, are you?"

"I am, Lieutenant Johnson."

"That's not the way to handle this!" he said quickly.

"What happened yesterday was on me. I'm sorry. Don't take it out on Commander Ford. She's young, capable, and easy on the eyes. Three years of marriage, and she's never let you suffer a day. Why throw it all away?

"Besides, if you leave, you're just handing everything over to Rowan. That's not worth it!"

A metallic taste spread in my mouth. I forced the words out.

"Lieutenant Johnson, you've seen how hard I pushed last year trying to earn a transfer. Lorraine had one slot, and I only asked about it once. But what did she do?

"She tore into me, said my thinking was crooked and that I was trying to use her position for personal gain."

Chester faltered, stumbling over his reply. "Well… You are husband and wife. Maybe she didn't want people to talk."

I let out a bitter laugh. "It's precisely because I'm her husband that every ounce of effort I put in gets dismissed. But Rowan, who's got no name, no standing, and does nothing, had her bending over backwards to cover him."

"Is that really what you think?"

Clenching my jaw against the storm of frustration and hurt, I dragged my bag toward the door. "Lieutenant Johnson, I know she sent you here. You don't need to say anything else."

Chester tried to assert himself, but moving into the base housing had made him my enemy. Except for Lorraine, no one could make him apologize to me.

I opened the door, and there Lorraine stood outside, expression cold, staring at my reddened eyes. I pretended not to see her, stepping around her.

She grabbed my wrist, her tone extremely impatient. "Are you done throwing a tantrum? You reported me to the higher-ups, claiming I was involved with Rowan and trying to get us divorced.

"I'm not going to argue with you about it, but I'm human too, Hunter. Try to understand my point of view, will you?"

Every time I questioned her relationship with Rowan, she would fall back on the same line.

"Sure, I'm a commander and your wife, but I'm also human. Anyone can doubt me, but you can never question my relationship with Rowan. You must understand my difficulties."

Because of that single plea for understanding, everyone in the base housing felt free to poke fun at me, whispering behind my back while I worked to support both of them.

I used to refute fiercely, "My wife just pitied Rowan and showed him a little extra care, that's all! I trust them!"

In the end, Lorraine took a widower in as her brother, and I had no idea. What a joke I had become.

Without hesitation, I flung her hand away. "How dare you say something like that, Lorraine? Until your superiors approve that divorce, I don't want to see you!"

I grabbed my luggage and went to the school dormitory.

There was still one slot left for a youth transfer in the second semester. The principal said that as long as I earned the title of Excellent Educator this year, the slot could be mine.

For that slot, I got up at dawn and stayed out late, taking on every school activity I could. I took all the tasks that no other teacher wanted. For two months straight, I ran myself ragged until I unfortunately collapsed.

When I woke, I was lying on the clinic bed. Mom and Dad were present, hovering over me.

"Hunter, why can't you be content being a commander's husband? Why push yourself like this?" Dad grumbled.

"Look at you—you're skin and bones. I can't bear to watch you," Mom said.

Why were they here? I pinched myself hard to make sure this wasn't a dream.

My eyes burned, my voice tight in my throat. "Mom, Dad, me divorcing Lorraine isn't me throwing a tantrum. I'm going to fight for this transfer opportunity. Once I get it… I'll take you both with me."

Maybe it was the sickness that made me more vulnerable than usual, but surprisingly, at that moment, I convinced myself to forgive my parents for ever keeping Lorraine's actions from me all those years.