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Home / Married to Him, Married to Debt / Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 9

Lahat ng Kabanata ng Married to Him, Married to Debt: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 9

9 Kabanata

Chapter 1

My husband froze when he heard what I said."Say that again?" Marcus looked like he couldn't believe his own ears.I met his gaze and repeated myself word for word. "I said we can't keep living like this. Let's get a divorce."His expression shifted from disbelief to anger. "Olivia Brown, are you out of your mind? You want a divorce over one month of my paycheck?"That's my own brother! He's the only brother I've got. If I don't help him, who will? Can you please stop being so unreasonable?"Unreasonable. Ha.I repeated the word silently to myself and let my gaze drift to the wedding photo hanging on the wall.Five years ago, when Marcus proposed to me, he'd promised that once we were married, he'd take good care of our little family and make sure I was happy for the rest of my life.But five years had passed. Our savings account had hit zero for the fifth time.We kept putting off our plans to have a baby because we never had enough money. Nearly all my friends my age already

Chapter 2

"The third year, and then the fourth, I worked hard. After necessary expenses, I managed to save about 700 dollars a month."But you? The second your paycheck hit your account, you'd send spending money to Ryan or buy supplements for your mother."Last October, you knew perfectly well that I'd wanted to take a trip for ages, but you pretended not to notice. Instead, you booked an eight-day, seven-night trip to Sunridge Bay for Ryan and your mother. You even used the itinerary I'd put together myself."The anger on his face finally faded, replaced by the guilty look of someone who'd just been caught. "Babe—"I raised my voice and cut him off. "I'm not finished! This New Year, you promised me you wouldn't be foolish with money anymore."You said you'd start saving properly and that we'd have a baby by the end of the year. I believed you. And then what?"I pulled out my phone, opened the banking app, and set it down in front of Marcus. I enunciated each word. "Tell me. Where did my

Chapter 3

Marcus' hand froze in midair. His lips pressed into a thin, bloodless line, and his eyes burned with fury. "I won't have you talking about my brother like that! You don't have the right!"He used the word "right."I'd been married to him for five years. I did his laundry, cooked his meals, and ran the household.His mother's health wasn't great, so I'd asked everyone I knew to help me find a good herbalist. Three times a week, I personally simmered her herbal concoctions and brought them over.Ryan was away at college in another state and never came home for the holidays. I'd taken care of everything for him, from food, clothes, and housing to enrollment fees, bedsheets, and pillowcases.As a wife, a daughter-in-law, and even a sister-in-law, I had nothing to be ashamed of. Yet Marcus told me I didn't have the right.I lowered the hand covering my face.My fingers trembled, but my voice came out so calm that it startled even me. "Marcus Dean."In five years of marriage, this wa

Chapter 4

My father spun around, marched into the kitchen for a cleaver, and headed straight for the door.My mother threw herself in front of him in a panic. "Old man, don't do anything crazy!"My father refused to listen. He was determined to go out anyway.He'd always been like this. When I was a kid and a classmate bullied me, he'd rather skip work than let anyone stop him from showing up at school to defend me."Woman, don't you dare hold me back. I'm going to ask that bastard just who he thinks he is, hurting my daughter!" my father thundered."Dad!" I called out.My hand drifted to my belly without thought. "I'm pregnant."…I found out this past Wednesday.My period had been late for two months straight, and I felt achy and tired all the time.A more experienced coworker asked if I might be pregnant and suggested I take a test.So this morning, after Marcus left the house, I went out and bought a pregnancy test."Two lines," I muttered.I really was pregnant.I covered my m

Chapter 5

As I looked at his face, lit with excitement and something close to elation, all I could feel was the bitter irony of it all.My mother's expression hardened. She stepped forward and blocked his path like a hen shielding her chick. "Marcus, what are you doing here? You're not welcome. Get out!"My father grabbed the broom by the door, his eyes blazing. "Get out! Who let you into my house? You wife-beating animal!"Marcus seemed not to hear either of them. His eyes were fixed on me, or rather, on my belly. He stepped around my parents and closed the distance in a few strides. He reached toward me as if he wanted to touch me, but stopped short."Olivia, answer me. Are you really pregnant? We're having a baby?" His voice brimmed with hope, as though this were some incredible piece of good news that could erase everything that had happened before.I lifted my eyes and looked at him calmly. "Yes. I'm pregnant."Joy burst across his face, and he reached out to pull me into a hug.I st

Chapter 6

The attorney's name was Owen Cooper. He was in his 40s and wore gold-rimmed glasses. After hearing me out, he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose."Ms. Brown, I understand your situation. You've been married for five years, and your husband has transferred marital assets multiple times without your consent, totaling more than 28,000 dollars."Most recently, he emptied the joint account entirely and left you without enough money to cover even basic living expenses."On top of that, there's the domestic violence during your pregnancy."He gestured toward the fading mark on my cheek. "We have more than enough grounds to establish fault on his part."I sat up straighter."My requests are simple. Full custody of the child, my fair share of the marital assets, and..." I paused. "From this point forward, his brother has nothing to do with me. Ever again."Owen nodded approvingly. "Smart. Many clients go soft and end up dragged right back into the same mess."He typed quickly

Chapter 7

"I think you've lost your mind!" My father jabbed a finger at Linda. "Your son gave every cent of my daughter's money to his brother, laid a hand on her, and you have the nerve to ask what grounds she has for divorce?!"Linda's eyes shifted, and her whole demeanor changed in an instant. "That... That was all for the good of the family! Ryan is Marcus' own brother. What's wrong with helping him out a little?"Olivia, I don't mean to lecture you, but you're being unreasonable. When a woman marries into a family, she has to treat her husband's family as her own. If you nitpick over every little thing, how are you supposed to live together?"I let out a cold laugh. "Treat your family as my own? Then what does Marcus treat my family as? An ATM?"Linda's eyes darted away as guilt flickered across her face. "Well... that's still no reason to get a divorce. Getting divorced while you're pregnant... What will people think?""What will people think?" I stepped forward and closed the distanc

Chapter 8

Then I left the group chat without a second thought.The world finally went quiet.…From then on, my life was peaceful.I stayed home to rest and focus on my pregnancy, while my parents kept coming up with new things to cook for me.I even picked up a paintbrush again after all this time. Painting had once been something I loved more than anything, before married life slowly drained that passion out of me.Meanwhile, Marcus seemed like a different person. He came by my parents' place almost every other day.One day, he brought a bouquet of flowers. The next, it was a bag full of imported fruit. The day after that, he left a pile of snacks that pregnant women were apparently supposed to love.My parents wouldn't let him through the door, so he'd leave everything outside and text me afterward.Marcus: [Olivia, I was wrong. I really know I was wrong.]Marcus: [Can you forgive me? I swear I'll never give my brother another cent. We'll build a good life together, and I'll take ca

Chapter 9

Then, when Marcus turned around, he found me standing quietly right behind him.His pupils contracted, and all the color drained from his face as if he'd seen a ghost."O-Olivia... L-Let me explain..." He rushed toward me in a panic, stumbling over his words.I laughed. I wasn't surprised. If anything, I found it almost funny.I looked at him calmly and delivered the line I'd already prepared. "Marcus, old habits die hard."Then I pulled the divorce agreement I'd already printed from my bag, along with a pen, and held them out to him. "Sign it."Marcus looked at the papers, then at my unreadable expression, and finally understood.This entire day had been one last test I'd set up for him. And, unsurprisingly, he'd failed.Despair swallowed him whole. His hand trembled as he took the agreement. Then, stroke by stroke, he signed his name.…A month later, Marcus and I officially finalized our divorce.By then, my belly had already started to show.The clerk glanced at my stom

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