After Losing to My Best Friend

My husband who shared the same bed with me, had been having an affair with my childhood friend for ten years.

My husband and I had been childhood sweethearts, the envy of others.

But our more than ten years of relationship did not prevent him from cheating on me with my childhood friend after we got married.

I asked our daughter, "If we get divorced, who would you choose?"

She looked at me with disgust and said, "You are never satisfied. Where will you find another husband who provides for you without asking for anything? And you still want to divorce."

I was at a loss for words as I looked at her, and in the end, I didn't say anything.

After a sleepless night, I decided to make those who betrayed me pay the price.

In the end, my childhood friend went crazy, and my husband ended up in jail.

With teary eyes, my daughter said to me, "Mom, please take care of me again."

***

I found a used Dior lipstick in my husband Yerik's car.

This lipstick was trending online for a while, and I had kept it in my shopping cart for a long time.

Just when I was ready to bite the bullet and make the payment, he saw it.

He said his company had lowered his salary and we had significant expenses at home, so he asked me to hold off for a while.

I felt disappointed, but I didn't say anything.

I never thought that I would reach a point where I hesitated for a whole month just to buy a lipstick.

And to my surprise, my husband had already bought the lipstick I loved for another woman.

I felt a chilling sensation throughout my body as I slumped in the driver's seat, and my heart pounding.

I sat in the car for an hour, wiping away the tears from my face and sent a message to the group of my close friends.

I: [My husband is cheating on me!]

Yana: [Could it be some misunderstanding?]

Yvonne: [Did he suddenly become fearless? Don't panic.]

Yana: [Calm down and figure it out first! What did he do?]

I: [I found a used lipstick in the car, and it's not mine.]

Yana: [Maybe a colleague dropped it accidentally. Yerik seems like a family-oriented person, not someone like that.]

Yvonne: [Yana, don't you also work in that area? Have you ever noticed him getting too close to female colleagues?]

Yana: [I've seen him a few times, having meals with a girl, but I haven't witnessed any inappropriate behavior.]

Yvonne: [Men who lack self-respect are like rotten cabbage. Don't make excuses for them.]

The next moment, Yvonne's phone call came in. She started by comforting me, then abruptly scolded me. "How are you holding up? I still have some unused vacation days from last year. I'll take a fake sick leave and come back. If you're feeling really upset, go find Yana. Don't keep it all to yourself. And whatever you do, don't impulsively go to that jerk's company to make a scene. It won't be worth the effort, and you won't gain anything. In short, hold on, collect evidence of his affair first."

"I don't know what to do. Why does he do this to me?" I couldn't hold back any longer and burst into tears.

"Why bother with all the whys? He doesn't love you anymore! Men are all despicable. Now the most important thing for you is to gather evidence, try to get him to leave empty-handed, and then secure custody of Xenia."

I wiped my tears and tidied up a bit. Then I went to the fried chicken restaurant and buy hamburgers and fries.

I packed them up and went to pick up Xenia from school. These were treats that I usually prohibited Xenia from having.

Xenia came running out with excitement, but when she saw me, her face suddenly changed. "Why is it you? Where's Dad?"

"Dad is attending a company outing today, so I'm here to pick you up." I patiently explained, but Xenia still didn't seem happy.

She wanted to save the fried chicken to eat together with Yerik. Seeing her like this, my heart ached even more. She was just in fourth grade and already had to face the cruel reality of her parents' divorce.

For the first time ever, I took Xenia out to eat steak. I used to think outside food was unclean and rarely allowed them to eat out.

As soon as we entered the restaurant, Xenia confidently picked up the menu and began ordering, not at all like it was her first time here.

I asked her, "Have you been to this restaurant before?"

Without even lifting her head, Xenia replied, "Of course, Daddy is not as stingy as you."

"I'm just worried about you getting a stomachache from eating outside, and I do take you out for nice meals every month."

Xenia rolled her eyes at me dismissively and said, "Once a month? That's just being a cheapskate!"

Hearing her words, my heart felt heavy, but I thought that she was just throwing a tantrum like a child, so I didn't pay too much attention to it.

When we got home in the evening, I prepared the bathwater for Xenia and helped her get ready as usual.

I also washed and hung up her clothes. As for the living room, I didn't feel like cleaning it.

While assisting Xenia with her homework, I took the opportunity and asked her, "Xenia, if Dad and I were to separate, who would you choose to be with?"

"Of course I would choose Dad!" Xenia almost instantly blurted out without any hesitation.

I felt disappointed. "Why not choose me?"

Xenia snorted. "I just prefer Dad."

Afterward, Xenia realized and looked at me with disbelief. "You want to divorce Dad? You really are never satisfied. Where will you find another husband who provides for you without asking for anything? And you actually want to get a divorce."

I replied, "I was just asking casually to see if you love Dad or me more."

Xenia rolled her eyes. "Of course, I would choose Dad. He doesn't bother me about homework, and he takes me out for delicious food. Anyway, don't be ungrateful."

Xenia jabbed the pencil onto my arm, and it hurt so much that I gasped for air.

I felt a chill in my heart and broke out in cold sweats. Xenia's words and actions were giving me a headache.

I opened my mouth but couldn't utter a word. For the first time, I didn't care about whether she finished her homework, when she went to bed or if she had milk before sleep.

After returning to the room, I locked the door and lay down on the bed, exhausted.

I buried my head in the covers and burst into tears.