Chapter 4

That night, Snow and I ended things on bad terms. She went to the guest room and slept there.

When I woke up the next morning, she was already gone.

The house was a mess. Her clothes, shoes, and leftover food were scattered everywhere.

If I did not clean up, it would stay like that forever.

It felt absurd. We had dated for three years and had been married for five. I had treated Snow like a princess. She said she could not cook and that laundry detergent would hurt her hands, so I handled every chore myself.

Yet the woman who never touched a dish at home somehow had the energy to wash clothes in another man’s place.

She had even shown up at Yulan’s place in a lace camisole. The two of them looked more like a married couple than Snow and I ever did in our eight years together.

Seeing Snow’s clothes scattered across the floor, I decided I was done cleaning up after her.

Soon, all of her things would be packed up and taken out of this house anyway. There was no reason for me to lift a finger.

When I left work that evening, I did not expect to find Snow waiting at the school gate.

She leaned against her car and lifted her head a little. She looked in my direction like she had been waiting for a while for me.

As soon as she spotted me, she walked over quickly.

I could not hide my surprise. “Why are you here?”

Snow lowered her head and said softly, “Jared, I thought about everything today. I was the one who messed up. I made you misunderstand things.”

First a scolding, then a sweet gesture. Snow had always known how to play that game.

“I don’t have much going on at work today, so I came to find you. Do you want to go get some crab or shrimp from that seafood place we like?”

Snow loved the seafood from the place near the school. Whenever her appetite was low, I would always bring some back for her.

But it was her favorite, not mine.

I closed my eyes and said in a low voice, “Snow, I’m allergic to seafood. I can’t go with you.”

The moment I said it, Snow’s face stiffened.

She suddenly realized how serious it was that she had forgotten about her husband’s seafood allergy.

She said guiltily, “I’m sorry. I—”

“Enough. You don’t need to say anything else.” I glanced at my watch. “You should go home. I have things to take care of.”

I was not lying to avoid being alone with Snow. I really did have things to do.

Every year, the school offered teachers the chance to go abroad for further studies. My name was on the list every year.

But I had always given up those opportunities to stay with Snow. I was willing to remain a teaching assistant with no real future.

There was nothing left at home worth holding onto. I decided it was time to focus on my own life. I set up a meeting with a colleague from the research department to ask about studying abroad.

I was about to leave for the meeting.

Right then, Snow’s phone rang.

She hesitated, glanced at the caller, and then answered.

We were close by, and I could hear Yulan’s voice on the other end.

Snow listened, and her brows furrowed.

“What? Don’t hang up! I’ll be there right away!”

I had no idea what Yulan had said, but Snow suddenly looked anxious. Without looking back, she hurried to her car. She only remembered I was there when she was about to close the door.

“Jared, something urgent came up at the company. I… I have to take care of it.”

I was used to Snow dropping everything at a moment’s notice for Yulan. It hardly affected me anymore.

This time, I did not want to play along like I usually did.

“What if I said I don’t want you to go?”

Snow froze. She probably did not expect me, who always did whatever she wanted, to say no.

She looked uneasy. “Jared, don’t make this difficult. I really have something important to do!”

“Oh? What’s so urgent?”

Snow stammered but could not explain coherently. She bit her lip and finally got into the car. She said, “I’ll come pick you up tomorrow.”

At that moment, the doubts that I had been grappling with for two days cleared completely. I made my decision.

I met Snow’s anxious gaze and shook my head with a faint smile. “No need. You don’t have to come here anymore.”