02

"Drew, hahaha. Exactly, haha!”

Hadley stopped at the door as Laura’s voice wafted out.

It never occurred to her that she’ll return back from the hospital three days later and see this. As if leaving her to die in the flames wasn’t enough for them.

Laura was laughing and blushing as Andrew murmured something to her ear. Her hand were on Andrew’s tie and Andrew’s hand to her waist. He looked at her dotingly and they looked like a real couple.

Hadley grinned bitterly and gripped the documents more tightly as she watched them from the door. She knew this would be her final visit to this house, yet her return as his wife felt sudden and out of place.

She pushed open the door after taking a quick look at the divorce papers she was holding. The picture frame from her and Andrew’s wedding was thrown on the floor.

Shards of the broken glass were strewn all over the place. It was the glass of the frame.

This was the only picture they had of each other. It would also be the last.

"Hadley?” Andrew called.

He must have heard the sound of the door opening. In a fright, Laura hastily withdrew her hand from his chest after she turned around and saw Hadley.

Hadley gave a smirk.

"Drew got drunk at a party last night. I stayed so I could take care of him. You don't mind, do you?" Laura asked sheepishly, pointing to the half-cup of cold honey water on the table.

"I do mind.” Hadley scoffed.

Pretending to be stunned, Laura said, "Sorry, I'll go now. But don't forget to give him the honey water.”

Have they forgotten what they did to her?

The house was quiet once Laura left. Nobody said anything.

Silently, Hadley picked up their wedding picture from the broken glass while rolling up her sleeves. She was abruptly embraced from behind as she set the frame back on the table.

With his arms encircling her waist in a possessive manner, Andrew rested the majority of his weight on her.

Hadley gripped the picture more tightly. "Why didn’t you answer the calls?" she asked. “The doctor had been trying to get in touch with you for days now. Didn’t you see the calls, Andrew?”

At first, Andrew pretended not to have heard her.

"What?" he finally asked in a hushed voice after a protracted silence.

"The doctor called you over several times. Why didn't you pick up at all? Will you be unbothered if I die?”

There was a hint of frustration in Andrew’s voice when he said, "Didn't hear them."

Did he not hear them or didn’t want to pick it ? Four days had passed since she was left in the flames, was admitted to the hospital. However, her so-called husband have not expressed any worries. He didn't ask whether she was fine, or how she  manage to survive.

 He could only dismissed it with a simple "Didn't hear them."

Wow…just wow.

Hadley lowered her eyelashes and spoke softly, "Mm."

Whatever. Alright then. 

Tiny glass fragments fell once more when she turned the wedding photo to face down on the table.

"Where is she?" He suddenly asked, scanning the house.

Of course, it was Laura he was asking of.

"She's gone." She responded.

"You kicked her out?" He yelled.

"If you want, I can call her back.” Hadley fired back.

Andrew’s breath was near her ear, still smelling strongly of alcohol. "Why do you sound jealous?"

Her…jealous?

"Me jealous? Hahaha!” She laughed.

 He took hold of her chin. "Why are you laughing. What’s funny?”

She no longer wanted to speak with him. He grabbed the back of her hair and pushed her into the couch just as she struggled to free herself from his grip.

He kissed her right away. It was sudden, leaving her mind spinning and her lips numb. He exuded dominance and smelled of beer and tobacco.

Hadley could feel her strength waning. He lifted her cream-colored sweater revealing her pale silky skin that smelled of female body wash.

Their bodies were pressed close to one another, and the air around them felt hotter. With his hand on her waist and a raspy voice, he asked, "Can I?"

"No.” She said, clearly rejecting him as she pushed him away.

Despite being caught cheating and leaving her to die, he still has the audacity attempting to make love to her?

"Because of this," she said. She took out the contract and the signed divorce papers, tossing them in his chest. The stark word "Divorce" caused Andrew’s face to go chilly.

"What do you mean?" He yelled.

She kept quiet. She tried to walk away without answering, but he stopped her with one hand.

"Speak."

"I've secured the contract deal with Sky Group. I want a divorce. We'll get divorce tomorrow morning at the city’s court," she stated coolly, seemingly unconcerned.

After a brief moment of astonishment, Andrew said. "Director Beck, outstanding. Many Group was unable to close this contract, but you were able to. How did you do it, I wonder.”

Was he saying she had employed wrong methods?

"Mr. Shaw, you only care about results," she said with a chilly smile. “Does the procedure really matter?”

Andrew opened the divorce papers and glanced through it. "You want to leave with nothing?"

Hadley answered in a raspy voice, "Yes let's make a clean split if we're divorcing. I won't take anything with me."

She believed it was preferable to sever all ties if it was finished. She never changed her mind once she made a decision.

The tension was abruptly broken by the ringing of Andrew’s phone. It was Laura calling and Andrew picked up the phone immediately.

Laura spoke in a low shy tone. "Drew, I just got home and realized I forgot my work ID.”

Andrew responded, "Alright. I look for it and keep it safe for you.” 

“But I'm worried Hadley might see it and think—“

"So what if she does?" Andrew talked like he was calming a young child. "Quit worrying too much.”

Hadley hadn't heard such compassion and tolerance in his voice in a while now. She remembered how he used to talk like this to her when they first started dating. He would  kiss her cheek whenever they got into a disagreement, talking sweetly until she forgave him. It seems like a very long time ago.

He felt like a stranger to her now.

There was silence after the call ended. Andrew looked around for the ID but he saw nothing.

"Where's her work ID?" He turned to Hadley and spoke in a chilly tone. "Did you throw it away?"

The soft tone he had used for Laura earlier was entirely different from this one. It was cold.

"If you really think that, why ask me then?" Hadley asked, her voice icy too.

"There's no need to use dirty tactics against Lau." He responded.

 

Lau? Wow, he even gave Laura a romantic shorten of her name just the same way he used to call her “Had” 

Dirty tactics against Laura? Hadley never thought her own husband would use such a derogatory term against her just because of her sister.