Sunflower Seeds for Our Anniversary

For our anniversary, my husband, Reid, promised me sunflowers. Theyre my favorite.
But when he walked through the door, it wasn't a brilliant yellow bouquet he held. It was a cheap bag of sunflower seeds. Sorry, babe, he said, handing them to me. Money's a little tight right now. These are sunflowers too, right? Just a temporary substitute.
I was furious, but I tried to understand. I forced a smile and started cracking the seeds.
The very next day, I saw a post from his junior secretary on her social media feed. It was a photo of her, beaming, holding a massive bouquet of sunflowers, with my husband standing proudly beside her.
The caption read: "Here's to a future that's always facing the sun."
So, it wasn't that he didn't have the money. He just didn't want to spend it on me.
Without a word, without a fight, I quietly liked the post.
Moments later, my phone rang. It was Reid. "Honey, don't get the wrong idea. She's been doing great work lately, it was just a bonus."
"Can you just help clear this up? I'll come home tonight and we can sort this out."
But I was so tired of his pathetic excuses.
"No need," I said, my voice calm and clear. "Let's just get a divorce."

1
The line went silent for a beat before Reids voice, tight with irritation, came through. "I was just motivating an employee, Clara. Her performance has been outstanding. Besides, half of this company is yours. Everything I do is for our benefit!"
"You have no gratitude, and now you're making jokes about divorce."
"Let me tell you something, marriage isn't a game. This is your only warning."
"I gave you a chance to be reasonable, and you threw it back in my face. Don't blame me for what happens next!"
He slammed the phone down.
I let out a long, slow breath and turned to the woman sitting across from me. "Ms. Collins," I said to my lawyer, "what's the best way to maximize my share of the assets?"
He didn't know it, but I was done. This time, I was serious.
After Ms. Collins left, I scrolled through my phone. The comment section on the secretary Olivia's post was exploding. Most of them were from my own team members, people I'd hired and mentored, and they were furious on my behalf.
"Wow, so being a homewrecker is 'facing the sun' now? You've got some nerve. Teach me your ways."
"+1. I can't believe she's so proud of stealing someone's husband. So all those late nights we pull at the office are just part of their little workplace romance drama?"
The comments were brutal. No wonder Reid had called me in a panic. His precious new flame was getting roasted.
But they were just speaking the truth. I'd known for a while that she was more than just his secretary. She was his mistress. But a small, stupid part of me had held on to the hope that he still had feelings for me, so I never called him on it.
He'd hired her over more qualified candidates. He'd promoted her and given her raises despite repeated, costly mistakes. When the office gossip became too loud to ignore, I'd confronted him. He just looked at me with disappointment. "Clara, I thought you'd understand. I can't believe you're discriminating against her just because she doesn't have a fancy degree."
"Have you forgotten why we started this company?" he'd asked, his voice full of righteous indignation. "To give people a chance, to treat everyone equally."
I actually felt ashamed. I'd even helped him squash the rumors.
My trust was a joke, a fact I learned the day I walked in on them in his office.
As I was lost in thought, a message popped up from my most trusted subordinate, Leo. "Don't worry, Clara. If Reid treats you like this, it's his loss. He's blind."
Other messages from my team started pouring in, each one filled with genuine concern. My heart warmed. I was about to tell them to stop commenting on Olivia's post, worried that Reid would retaliate, when a new notification appeared in the company-wide group chat.
It was a penalty announcement from Reid.
"Effective immediately, any employee found wasting time on their phone during work hours will have their monthly salary cut in half. A second offense will result in immediate termination."
I scanned the list of penalized employees and a cold, humorless laugh escaped my lips.
Every single person who had liked or commented supportively on Olivias post was fine.
The ones being docked pay? Every single person who had defended me.
My phone immediately blew up.
"Reid has gone too far! Clara, this isn't about us, he's targeting you!"
"Clara, have you ever thought about leaving and starting your own thing?"
"Wherever you go, we'll follow!"
Seeing their outrage hurt. We'd been married for seven years, business partners for ten. He knew I was fiercely protective of my team. He knew loyalty and relationships were the most important things to me. So whenever I did something he didn't like, he punished my people.
I had tolerated it time and time again. But I was done tolerating.
I made a phone call.
The man on the other end answered with undisguised delight. "Clara! You finally came to your senses! Are you ready to join us? I told you that company was a dead end for you!"
"I have one condition," I said.
"Name it. One, ten, a hundred conditions, I don't care. Anything for you."
"I'm bringing my team with me."
He was ecstatic. "That's fantastic! Our company is just getting started here, we need good people. I'll draw up the contracts right now. Everyone's salary and commission will be double what you're making now. No, three times!"
Reid seemed to have forgotten a crucial fact: my team and I were the ones who had landed over half of the company's major contracts. We were consistently the top-performing unit, yet we were constantly being undermined because of me. We had become Reid's leverage, his way of keeping me in line.
Not anymore.

2
The international firm had been trying to recruit me for six months to lead their expansion into the domestic market. I'd turned them down before, but they saw my potential and had kept their offer open. I always thought I'd retire from the company Reid and I built together. I never imagined this day would come.
After finalizing the details, I received the drafted divorce agreement from Ms. Collins. She advised me to find concrete proof of Reid's infidelity to secure a more favorable settlement. I emailed the agreement to Reid and printed a hard copy. I was about to call and tell him to review it, warning him that I'd sue for divorce if he refused to sign, but he didn't pick up.
With a sigh, I decided to go to the office and find him. Just as I was about to leave, my phone rang. It was him.
"So now you're in a hurry?" he started, his voice dripping with condescension. "I tried to be nice, but you wouldn't listen. I'm still pissed off, so nothing you say is going to work."
"I have to work late tonight, so I won't be home. You should take this time to think long and hard about what you did wrong."
Then, I heard her voice in the background, sweet and cloying. "Reid, honey, come dry my hair!"
The line went dead.
Working late? His work was drying Olivia's hair. A bitter taste filled my mouth. When we were newlyweds, I'd asked him to dry my hair, and hed told me it was too much trouble and to do it myself. But for Olivia, he made an exception.
Amazing what love can do. The flowers he couldn't buy for me, he could give to her. The hair he wouldn't dry for me, he would dry for her. He just kept twisting the knife.
I pushed the thoughts away and met with my team and our new boss. Jason, the CEO, had just returned after years of living abroad and wasn't familiar with the local market, so he had a lot of questions. The more we talked, the more confident I felt about the move.
After the meeting, my team gathered around me. "Clara, listen to us," Leo said earnestly. "A guy like Reid... he's not worth it. You've got the looks, the brains, the talent. Why are you wasting it all on him? That Jason guy seems pretty great, just saying."
A sad smile touched my lips. I remembered his passionate pursuit of me in college, how he'd promised he would love me forever. People change. The man he was now was a stranger, a liar who hurt me again and again.
And wasn't I the one who let him become this way?
In the beginning, I loved him so much that whenever he made a mistake, all it took was a few sweet words and I'd forgive him. He learned that I had no boundaries, and he started pushing them. The apologies became less sincere, and if I didn't give in, he'd find ways to punish me. Now, his behavior was unforgivable. I had given him countless chances to hurt me, always hoping he would change. I was so naive.
I shook my head, changing the subject. "My treat tonight! Let's go celebrate!"
We partied late into the night. When I finally got home, exhausted, I opened the door to find a surprise. Reid, who had sworn he wasn't coming home, was sitting on the sofa. He had clearly been waiting all night.
He caught a whiff of the alcohol on my breath and recoiled. "I've told you I hate it when people drink. Why did you have so much? Do my words mean nothing to you?"
I laughed. It was because he'd said he didn't like it that I always waited for the smell of alcohol to fade after a work dinner before I came home. He had no idea that half of our company's biggest deals were closed over drinks. And for what? Just a few weeks ago, Olivia had sent me a taunting video. She was tipsy, looking up at Reid with wide, innocent eyes. "I'm sorry, Reid. I know you don't like it when I drink. I won't do it again."
He had cupped her face in his hands. "Silly girl. You can drink whenever you want. It's not the drinking I hate, it's the person who's always drinking." And then he'd kissed her.
Remembering that, I swatted his hand away. "I thought you weren't coming home."
He tossed a blanket at me. "I was worried about you being here alone," he grumbled. "But you're out having fun, not even a single call. And I even brought you takeout from your favorite place."
I used to love him so much I'd lost myself. Every time we fought, I'd be the one to come crawling back within a couple of hours, apologizing. But this time, I hadn't responded to a single one of his messages all day. He must have sensed something was different.
I looked at the food. It was all my favorite dishes. But I didn't touch it. It was his classic move: hit you, then give you a candy. I wasn't falling for it again.
He didn't notice my mood, assuming, as always, that a small gesture was enough to win me over. His expression softened. "Look, fighting is exhausting. Let's just both take a step back."
"I'm willing to overlook the fact that you falsely accused Olivia and caused her all this trouble," he said magnanimously. "But you need to give her that big contract you're working on."
"She's a natural at this. If you hadn't been holding her back, she'd be much further along by now. If you do this, I can even cancel the penalties for your team."
Ah. So that was it. The early return, the takeout. It was all for Olivia. The depth of his love for her was almost impressive. He was even willing to act like he cared during our cold war, all for her.
I laughed coldly. "Fine."
A smirk touched his lips. He wasn't surprised by my surrender; this was how it always went. "Next time, think before you act. If you hadn't been so petty, liking that post and telling your team to bully her, we wouldn't have had this fight."
"Anyway, it's over now. Go transfer the project files to her."
I pulled my company ID out of my pocket and tossed it on the table in front of him. "One contract isn't enough," I said with a smile. "My position, too. Give it to her."

3
Reid froze. "What are you talking about?"
"She's so brilliant," I said sweetly. "She deserves a senior position."
"I am trying to have a reasonable conversation with you, and you're throwing another tantrum?" His face darkened with displeasure.
When I refused to give up the project, he accused me of targeting Olivia. Now that I was giving up everything, he was accusing me of being unreasonable. See? In the eyes of someone who doesn't love you, you can't do anything right.
I stopped talking.
Seeing my silence, his brow furrowed. "Is this all because of a stupid bouquet of flowers? Fine, I'll go buy you some right now. Is that what you want?" he snapped. "God, you're so childish, holding a grudge over something so small."
He still thought this was about the flowers.
"No, thank you. You should save your money for your beloved Olivia."
His face flushed with anger. He grabbed a pillow and threw it at me. "I told you, Olivia and I have a purely professional relationship! Why are you so damn cynical, just like everyone else?"
"You know the truth."
"Fine!" he yelled, his face turning a blotchy red. "If you're going to be like this, then just tell me! What will it take for you to give the contract to Olivia?"
I pulled out the divorce agreement I had prepared, flipped to the last page, and pointed. "Sign this, and the project is hers."
He snatched it from my hand and grabbed a pen. He probably thought it was just another document, maybe a stock transfer agreement. It was all our money anyway, what did it matter? Without a second thought, he scrawled his name on the signature line. "You'd better do what you said!" he warned, and stormed out of the apartment.
The old me would have cried all night, staring at the door he'd slammed behind him. But now? I felt a profound sense of calm. I went to bed and slept soundly.
When I woke up, my phone had exploded again.
This time, it wasn't my team being demoted and fined. It was me.
An official company memo read: "Since a certain individual feels she is unworthy of the General Manager title, her wish is granted. Effective immediately, she is demoted."
The people who had defended me had all been punished. Now, no one dared to speak up for me. I didn't care. I took my entire team to HR and we all submitted our resignations.
The HR manager frantically called Reid. "Mr. North, we have a situation... several people are resigning..."
Before he could finish, I heard Olivia's voice on the other end. "Reid, if you have something important to deal with, you should go. I can watch the movie by myself."
"No," Reid's voice was firm. "You've been through enough. I promised I'd make it up to you, and I will." Then, his voice dropped to an angry hiss. "Resignations are a minor issue. Why are you bothering me with this? Can't you handle anything yourself?"
"But..."
"But what? The company seal is in my desk drawer. Stamp the papers yourself and stop bothering me."
He hung up, then turned his phone off. The HR manager was at her wit's end. With no other choice, she processed our resignations.
The story that circulated, however, was that we'd all been fired. Olivia's sycophants were gleefully reporting the news to her. "What good is talent if you can't hold on to your man?" one of them crowed. "In love, the one who isn't loved is the real loser!"
They were badmouthing me, loudly and openly, just a few feet away. My team was ready to fight them, but I held them back. I smiled cheerfully at the gossiping group. "You're so right," I said. "I wish all of you the good fortune of having your partners find their own 'true loves.'"
Then I turned my back on their stunned, ugly faces and led my team away.
"I'm in a great mood today," I announced. "Lunch is on me. You guys pick the place." My team started chattering excitedly, arguing between seafood and steak. While I waited for them to decide, I scrolled through my phone.
A call came in from Jason. He'd heard we'd resigned and wanted to take us out for a celebratory meal. I ran it by the team, and soon our group was on its way to the restaurant Jason had chosen.
Suddenly, Leo tugged on my sleeve. "Clara, look over there."
I followed his gaze and saw Reid and Olivia, holding hands, strolling through the shopping center.
I said nothing, just quietly took out my phone and snapped a picture.
One of their companions was teasing them. "Olivia, you finally decided to introduce us to the handsome mystery man you've been dating for three years! He's so hot, no wonder you kept him hidden."
Reid smiled graciously. "I've been busy with work. My apologies." Then he addressed the group. "Olivia tells me you've all taken good care of her. Whatever you want today, it's on me."
Three years. Olivia wasn't even out of college three years ago. So that's how long it had been going on. No wonder he'd fought so hard to bring her into the company.
Beside me, one of my team members kicked a chair in frustration. The noise startled Reid's group. He turned, saw me, and his face went white. He dropped Olivia's hand like it was on fire. "What are you doing here?"
I laughed coldly. "So this is your 'purely professional' relationship?"
He looked guilty for a split second, then remembered we were fighting. His voice boomed. "It was just an act for her friends! Are you too stupid to see that? And what gives you the right to yell at me?"
"And you! It's the middle of the workday and you're slacking off! Do you have any respect for me as your boss? You and your entire team, you're all docked a month's pay!"
Olivia, the one who took days off to go shopping, never faced any consequences. But for us, he was a tyrant.
I smiled. "Forgot to tell you. My entire team and I quit."
"Have fun. We won't be joining you."

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