7
As the plane soared into the sky, I leaned against the window, watching the entire city grow smaller and smaller. Only then did I finally feel a sense of freedom.
I had finally escaped from this place that had constrained me for years.
What expression would Mark have when he saw the message?
Surprise, relief?
I think the latter is more likely. He finally got rid of me.
My thoughts couldn’t help but fly to the clouds, fly to the past.
We were once an enviable couple, not only intimate partners but also perfect work teammates.
When I insisted on marrying far from home despite my family’s objections, he hugged me tenderly and said, “For the rest of our lives, I will never let you down. I will be your family forever.”
But later? He proudly announced in the family group chat: “What’s there to worry about? She’s a woman who married far from home, she’ll comfort herself.”
“She’ll change her mind in a couple of days. I’ll give her the cold shoulder for a while, then magnanimously forgive her. Let’s see if she dares to make a fuss again.”
When did his care and pity for me turn into a certainty that I couldn’t leave him?
Or perhaps, from the beginning, he was certain that I would never leave casually.
The more I thought about it, the colder my heart became. I decided not to think anymore and closed my eyes to sleep.
If a relationship doesn’t make me better but worse, it only shows that this relationship is not suitable to maintain.
Cutting it off is the best solution.
It’s laughable that Mark thought I would never be willing to give up.
When I woke up, the plane had already started taxiing.
I followed the crowd out of the arrival gate, and a conspicuous sign was held high in the crowd of people waiting.
“Welcome home, Princess of the Ming family!”
Looking at that crooked sign full of childish writing, I couldn’t help but smile with relief.
My brother pushed through the crowd, excitedly running towards me, giving me a big hug.
“Why have you lost so much weight?”
D
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“Why have you lost so much weight?”
My brother’s concerned words made the grievances I had been suppressing in my heart uncontrollable, and tears started flowing.
“Little sister, you’ve suffered.”
My sister–in–law came over holding my six–year–old nephew, wiping away the tears on my face with compassion in her eyes.
My brother gritted his teeth angrily and clenched his fists: “That bastard Mark, he’d better not show up, or I’ll beat him to a pulp!”
My sister–in–law glared at my brother, then held my hand tightly and hugged me: “Don’t be afraid, little sister. You’re home now. With so many people in the family, we won’t let anyone bully you!”
I nodded with tears, smiling. As I lowered my head, another big tear fell on the back of my hand.
Actually, I had never told my brother about my issues with Mark.
But my haggard and lifeless face couldn’t fool them.
Or perhaps it was the telepathy between siblings. Almost as soon as he saw me, my brother’s eyes had turned red, and now they were completely bloodshot.
“You should have come back earlier. You just got married, how did you become like you’ve lost contact? You never came back even once. When we asked for your address, you wouldn’t even let us visit.”
“Don’t you know how worried your sister–in–law and I were, thinking of you alone over there?”
I lowered my head guiltily.
For all these years, I had been working hard for Mark’s career, not daring to rest even on holidays. Even when I finally had a vacation, I would be called away for various reasons.
I hadn’t come back even once.
And Mark, knowing that I had a brother who was always thinking of me, never once mentioned letting me go home for a visit.
He didn’t care, and he wasn’t concerned.
