My wife, who had never touched a drop of alcohol before, raised a glass of strong white wine and drank with my assistant at our son's Baby's One-Month Celebration while I, her husband, sat coldly ignored. The excuse? I had a weak stomach and couldn't drink, so naturally, my assistant took my place.
Just as they were toasting their ninety-ninth glass with the guests, I stood up and asked for a divorce. Publicly.
The entire room fell silent. Then she slapped me really hard.
"I went through three years of IVF just to give you this child," she shouted, voice trembling. "And now you want a divorce because I had a drink with your assistant? Are you insane?"
I nodded. "Yes. Just because of a drink."
——
"Andrew, have you completely lost your mind? Do you even realize what day it is?"
She glared at me, then lifted her shirt without warning, revealing the dense rows of needle marks on her abdomen.
"Today is our son's Baby's One-Month Celebration. I carried him for nine months, after three years of injections and hospital visits for you."
Her voice cracked, but her eyes never left mine.
Gasps spread through the room. Faces turned pale with sympathy as they took in the sight of her scarred belly.
"So many needle marks… She must've suffered so much," someone whispered.
"How could Andrew bring up divorce on such a day?"
"Exactly! Wasn't he the one with the problem back then? She never left him. She went through everything just to give him a child and now that the baby's born, he wants to walk away? Cruel bastard!"
Assistant Lincoln rushed toward me, eyes red and grabbed my collar. "Sherryl went through hell for you. And you pick today to throw her away? What kind of man are you?"
I stared at his furious face and laughed.
"You're good at taking my place for toasts, aren't you?" I said, voice icy. "Then from now on, you can take over my role in this marriage. You can handle Sherryl and the child."
I yanked his hand off me and turned to face her, cold and sharp.
"Let's divorce. The child is yours. I don't want him."
The room exploded.
Anger surged like a tidal wave. I could feel it crash around me.
Beside me, my mother sighed, clearly at a loss.
"Andrew … is there something you're not telling us?" Her voice softened. "We saw how much you loved Sherryl. You gave up your chance to study abroad for her. You helped her build her company from scratch. You even drank yourself into gastric bleeding just to secure contracts for her. That's how your stomach got ruined."
She took my hand, gently. "Andrew, with your health, you never should've had this child. It was Sherryl who suffered three years of IVF to give you a son. We can't turn our backs on her now."
Hearing that, Sherryl collapsed into tears and buried her face in my mother's arms.
"Mom, I know Andrew's just jealous of Lincoln. That's why he's acting out, trying to get my attention. I understand where he's coming from…"
Now that my mother had spoken, the guests began trying to talk us down.
"A marriage isn't easy. You should cherish a wife like Sherryl, she's one in a million."
"She doesn't even mind that you're a rooster that can't lay eggs. What right do you have to leave her? Just swallow your pride."
Then Lincoln took his chance. He pulled me back toward her.
"If it's because I'm too close to her, I'll stay away. I don't want anything. Just treat Sherryl well."