Chapter 2

I nodded. "If you're ready, we can head to the courthouse right now to file the paperwork."

He practically scrambled into the bedroom to change his clothes, terrified I would change my mind.

"Yes! Yes!" He grabbed my wrist, pulling me toward the front door. "Let's go. Right now."

The guests were completely dumbfounded by how desperate he was.

Someone tried to stop him. "Richard, man, you're hammered. Why don't you sleep it off before making any rash decisions?"

Richard cut him off with a loud laugh.

"Help yourselves to the food and drinks, boys! Make yourselves at home! I've got private business to handle."

"Evelyn finally agreeing to set me free is the best damn birthday present I've gotten all year!"

With that, no one said another word.

The clerk at the family court probably hadn't seen many grey-haired couples rushing in for an uncontested divorce. She tried to offer a few words of mediation, but Richard snapped at her.

"Save the lecture. We're both doing this voluntarily. Just file the papers."

The clerk shook her head. "You need to file the petition first. There's a mandatory thirty-day waiting period before you can finalize the decree."

Richard clicked his tongue in annoyance. "What a pain."

He turned to me, narrowing his eyes. "You're not going to back out on me, are you?"

I rolled my eyes.

"You flatter yourself."

The moment we stepped out of the courthouse, Richard dropped all pretenses. He hailed a cab and took off straight for the hospital without looking back.

I walked back home alone, taking my sweet time.

By the time I unlocked the front door, the guests had already left. The living room was a disaster zone, trash scattered everywhere, and dirty dishes piled high on the tables.

Jason was knocked out on the couch, snoring loudly. Chloe was sitting on the floor with our six-year-old grandson, Leo, watching cartoons. She barely spared me a glance when I walked in.

This family had always treated me like this—a live-in maid, a shadow they could ignore whenever they pleased.

Looking at the greasy plates and half-eaten food, a wave of exhaustion hit me.

I had never felt so suffocated in this house.

I didn't want to spend another second here. I walked into the bedroom, packed a few changes of clothes into a bag, and turned to leave.

Seeing that I wasn't cleaning up the mess like I usually did, Chloe panicked and stood up.

"Mom, where are you going?"

I kept walking toward the door. "Away for a couple of days."

Hearing the commotion, Jason rubbed his eyes, stumbled over, and grabbed my arm. His forehead creased in irritation.

"Mom, what kind of drama are you pulling now?"

"You humiliated our whole family today! Isn't that enough? What else do you want?"

I swallowed the lump in my throat and looked at him blankly. "I'm not pulling anything. As soon as the waiting period is over, your dad and I are officially done."

He blocked the doorway, refusing to let me pass.

"No way. You're not walking out of this house today."

He pointed at the chaotic living room. "If you leave, what happens to all this? Who's gonna clean it up?"

Then, realization dawned on his face, followed by sneering contempt. "Don't tell me you threw that big scene at lunch just to get out of doing chores?"

A loud buzz rang in my ears. Fury flared through my veins, and before I could stop myself, I slapped him across the face.

"Did I eat all that food by myself?"

"I bought the groceries, I cooked every single dish, and I hosted all your dad's friends!”

“The birthday gifts and cash they brought went straight into your and your father's pockets! Why the hell should I be the one cleaning up your mess?"

"You expect me to wipe your ass forever? Are you a giant infant with no hands? If I divorce your dad, are you two going to starve to death in a pile of your own filth?!"

Stunned by the slap and the scolding, Jason's face flushed red with humiliation.

He gave me a hard shove, pushing me out the door. "You crazy old hag! You've lost your damn mind!"

"Get lost then! Go drop dead for all I care!"

The door slammed shut in my face with a deafening bang.

I stood there in silence for a long time. Then, clutching my bag, I walked away from the house I had lived in for decades.

I drove out to my parents' old house in the countryside. Since they passed away ten years ago, the place had sat empty. I only came by once a year to dust it off.

Pushing open the creaking wooden door, the smell of damp earth greeted me.

Only when I stepped across the threshold did the heavy suffocating weight on my chest finally begin to lift.

Because this place belonged solely to me now.

No one was going to wake me up at five in the morning demanding I find clean socks for their kid. No one was going to drag a bunch of drunk buddies home while I was burning up with a fever, expecting me to cook them a feast.

Here, I could eat when I wanted, sleep when I wanted.

I was free.