When His Mistress Finally Married

My husband Anderson's mistress Rachel waited for him for eight years, but he kept putting off divorcing me.

Rachel finally couldn't take it anymore. She hastily found a boyfriend and declared she was getting married.

When Anderson found out, he drank himself into a gastric hemorrhage at a bar. Grabbing my hand, he said:

"I've wronged Rachel."

Rachel deliberately chose my and Anderson's wedding anniversary to get married.

She wanted to show me that she wasn't the loser in this fight.

And I'd been waiting a long time for this day too.

I sent the video of her and Anderson's intimate moments to her future husband.

Then I asked Anderson for a divorce.

This was our eighth wedding anniversary.

He and Rachel had been entangled for eight years too.

I was thirty-five this year. Rachel was thirty now.

Neither of us was young anymore.

I no longer shared daily observations with Anderson, didn't get jealous, didn't check up on him.

I'd become exactly what he wanted to see.

But Anderson fell more and more in love with me, even planning out where we'd be buried together after death.

On our eighth anniversary, I prepared a table full of dishes.

I called Anderson, but he didn't pick up.

I stubbornly called again and again.

I had my eye on a large penthouse in the city center. On such a special day, it would be easiest to persuade Anderson to pay for it.

Usually I didn't care where he was living it up, but today he had to show up.

"Alice, Anderson's in the hospital with a gastric hemorrhage. Get here quick!"

On the phone was Anderson's friend Bob's anxious voice.

I calmly finished the dinner I'd prepared and replied, "Okay."

On the way, I received a message from Rachel.

[See? Even though I'm getting married, he still thinks about me. I deliberately ruined your anniversary]

[If I'm miserable, you should be too]

[You used your dead child to morally blackmail Anderson, forcing him back to the family. You should have expected this day. When you wake up at midnight, do you ever think of that poor child?]

I closed my eyes as my heart clenched painfully.

Soon, I'd be able to avenge my child.

When I arrived, Bob accused me of taking too long.

"But you're here, aren't you?"

"I'm not a doctor. What did you expect me to do?"

Bob said disappointedly, "You're Anderson's wife. How can you be so indifferent? If I'd known..."

He suddenly stopped.

I gave a cold laugh and finished his sentence for him.

"If you'd known, you wouldn't have persuaded Anderson to return to his family. Now he'd still have someone who knows when he's cold or warm."

I'd heard this from Bob too many times.

He was the one who urged Anderson to cut ties with Rachel and return to the family. He was also the one who now thought my care didn't measure up to Rachel's.

From initial relief to repeatedly complaining about me to Anderson.

Fortunately, I no longer cared about Anderson's friends' attitudes like before. They could say whatever they wanted.

Anderson probably thought the same way.

So every time Bob spoke up, he never stopped him, just looked at me with complicated eyes.

Anderson wanted me to know what he'd given up for me.

Everyone knew Rachel was the one he truly loved.

I was the villain who interfered, possessing him but not knowing gratitude.

"Get out. This is between Alice and me."

Anderson slowly woke up.

Bob, disappointed in him, wanted to say more but froze at Anderson's next words.

"Rachel, I regret it. Don't leave me. Don't marry another man."

Anderson drunkenly grabbed my sleeve.

"I can't do it. I can't watch you have children with another man..."

This was the first time Anderson cried like this in front of me. His suppressed sobs were like a broken old violin.

Only intermittent, trembling muffled sounds remained, stuck in his throat, unable to come out.

He'd mistaken me for Rachel.

When Anderson was still with Rachel, people around them often called Rachel "Mrs. Anderson."

After he returned to the family, I never heard it mentioned again. Apparently to avoid touching a sore spot.

Bob looked at me with pity.

"Are you satisfied now?"

"Using your dead child to tie Anderson to your side, now neither of you is happy. Is this the life you wanted?"

I smiled politely. "Yes, this is what I wanted. Seeing them both unhappy makes me satisfied."

"You should have died on that hospital bed with that child!"

Bob left in anger. Only Anderson and I remained in the room.

Anderson gripped me tightly.

Following this position, I sat on the edge of his bed and slapped him hard across the face.

"Are you sober now?"

They all wanted me dead. I was determined to live well, better than all of them.

Anderson's face swelled red. "Alice, how did I end up in the hospital?"

"Rachel's getting married. You were upset, drank with Bob, and ended up here with a gastric hemorrhage."

I pulled out my phone and played his drunken words, including how Bob had provoked me.

"You still can't forget her."

Anderson's face went pale. "Why don't you care about my health anymore?"

"Before when I was sick, even in pouring rain, you insisted on carrying me to the hospital. You rubbed your heels bloody."

I didn't expect that would be his first thought.

That was long ago, back when Rachel hadn't yet interfered in our relationship.

"That's why I was so stupid back then. If I couldn't get a cab, I should have just waited longer like today. Why suffer so much?"

Anderson bowed his head guiltily.

"I really don't like her anymore. Tonight I just remembered the past and felt a bit melancholy."

"I didn't know Bob was talking about you like that behind your back. I won't associate with him anymore."

I interrupted his next words.

"Sign this purchase contract."

"You've already wronged me emotionally. You can't shortchange me financially too."

Anderson took the paper and pen as if it were routine, pausing slightly as he signed, the pen pressing hard through the paper.

"Is this all we talk about now?"

Since he returned to the family, I said nothing but quietly moved my things to the guest bedroom.

His study was full of gifts from Rachel too. I never asked about it.

We were like strangers living under the same roof, staying out of each other's way.

I only showed him a pleasant face when I needed him to spend money.

"Why won't you forgive me after everything I've done? What do I have to do for you to be like before?"

I nodded. "If you can hear that on our anniversary, I drank myself into the hospital because my mistress got married, and you can stay as calm as I am, then I'll forgive you."

"...I'm sorry."

I looked with satisfaction at the signature on the contract, unable to say "it's okay."

Anderson pushed his luck, placing his hand on mine, his eyes pleading.

"Let's have a child too. Bob's wife already had their second."

I gave a mocking laugh. Why bring it up now of all times?

It was only because Rachel was going to have children with another man that he wanted a child.

I brushed off his hand. "Forget it."

"I can't be as heartless as you. You may not remember, but I'll never forget that child. No matter how many children we have, none will be him."

"And I could never give you children. If you want children..."

"No more children. Just the two of us is fine. We'll always be together."

Anderson panicked and held me, as if afraid I'd leave.

Anderson was unusually restless tonight.

Instead of staying in the hospital properly, he insisted on following me home.

I knew tomorrow was Rachel's wedding day. He was afraid I'd cause a scene, so he stayed by my side to monitor me.

Even though he didn't want Rachel marrying another man, he wanted her to find happiness.

He was always so good to Rachel.

When we got home and saw the clean dining table, Anderson froze.

"Alice, today's our anniversary. Where's the food you made?"

I looked annoyed. "Who told you to drink yourself into the hospital? You weren't going to eat it anyway, so I fed it to stray dogs."

Anderson stared at the table in long silence.

Exhausted from the day, I went to shower, too lazy to guess what he meant.

Anderson used to travel for work, eating irregularly, which caused his stomach problems.

After that, I started cooking, bringing every meal to his office to watch him eat.

Later, for Rachel's sake, he stood me up again and again.

I reheated the food countless times until it was unrecognizable.

When Anderson came home and saw the cold food on the table, he only had one word: sorry, he'd already eaten out.

I dumped the food in the trash. After that, I never saved meals for Anderson again.

But Anderson only noticed now.

When I came out of the shower, Anderson was waiting by the door with a glass of warm water.

"We're husband and wife. We can't keep sleeping in separate rooms."

"No thanks, I don't want it."

"You used to drink warm water every time you finished showering. I measured it to your preferred temperature."

"This cup is the matching couple's set you bought with Rachel."

I looked directly at Anderson.

"When I accidentally broke your cup, Rachel was furious. You didn't come home for a month. I lost twenty pounds. When you came back, you demanded to know if I understood my mistake."

"This is the second one she bought. You specifically told me never to touch it, never to damage Rachel's thoughtful gift."

Anderson froze slightly, hastily putting it down. "I forgot."

He looked at me hesitantly.

"What do you want to say?"

"Are you going to see the house tomorrow?"

Seeing me nod, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm free tomorrow. I'll go with you."

I snorted inwardly.

To ensure I didn't make a scene at Rachel's wedding, Anderson was really putting in effort.

"Fine."

Anderson seemed very excited.

I don't know if it was Bob's words from earlier, but I kept dreaming about the miscarried child that night.

I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Just as I was about to get up for some air, a pair of warm hands wrapped around my waist from behind.

I smelled alcohol and broke out in goosebumps, instantly jumping up.

"Anderson, how shameless are you? Rachel's getting married and you don't want to stay faithful to her, so you come touch me?"

The anger I'd suppressed erupted, disgust showing on my face despite myself.

Anderson flinched at my expression.

"I just thought we should move to the next stage."

"Time to turn the page."

I smiled. "Fine."

Before Anderson could feel happy, I opened my phone, scrolled a few times, and pointed the lit screen at him.

"How many children do you want? We can go adopt tomorrow."

The photos showed blind, deaf, and deformed orphans.

"Infidelity, emotional abuse, shirking responsibility."

"I'm afraid children in our home would pick up bad habits. Only children who can't see or hear would stay in our house."

Anderson fell silent.

"Get lost. Don't disgust me."

I pushed him out the door and locked it.

The next day, he wore the suit I'd bought him years ago, looking at me hopefully.

"Does it look good?"

Actually, it didn't.

After all these years, no matter how carefully preserved, the clothes had faded and wrinkled, looking cheap and lower quality than the suits he wore now.

But I still insincerely praised it as "nice."

Anderson, delighted, transferred another ten million to me.

"Those days were so hard, but we got through them. From now on, we'll have better and better lives, right honey?"

After getting the money, I shook my head.

Anderson pretended not to notice.

I was very satisfied with the house. One apartment per floor, in a core location, with two subway lines below and a huge shopping mall within a kilometer.

The saleswoman followed behind me, smiling from ear to ear the whole time.

Anderson was distracted, frequently checking his phone.

I didn't care where his mind was, as long as he paid.

But in the time it took me to use the restroom, Anderson disappeared.

There was only one message on my phone.

[She insists on waiting for me before going on stage. I'm afraid she'll pester me after marriage. This is the last time, I'll be back in half an hour. Wait for me]

The saleswoman looked at me awkwardly. "Ma'am, who's paying?"

I wouldn't wait anymore. No one had to wait for anyone.

"Charge the card."

What Anderson didn't know was that I'd also prepared a big gift for Rachel.

If he hurried, he should make it in time.