Married to a Toxic Influencer

My husband forced me to skydive while I was eight months pregnant. I was terrified and refused, but he slapped me.

"You've been a flight attendant for years. Why are you pretending to be scared of heights now? The brand is paying $25.000 for this skydiving video! They specifically want a pregnant woman! You dare say no?"

"Besides, I had a lot of trouble getting that $70 group training voucher! If you don't jump today, just wait until we get home and see what happens!"

——

I was heavily pregnant and expecting a quiet mountain vacation with Ian, my husband. Sadly, he had a different idea and we ended up at a skydiving center.

I was surprised. Ian had been so focused on his short videos lately and glued to the analytics all day that I never thought he'd want to be on camera himself. Why would he suddenly want to bring me here, of all places?

Just as I felt touched by his sudden change of heart, he handed me a set of skydiving gear.

'Stunt Performance Team, Cynthia Lane,' I froze as if struck by lightning, staring in disbelief at the skydiving suit with my name on it.

"Cynthia, the brand specifically requested you. I worked hard to get you into the stunt performance," Ian said, walking over to buckle me into the harness and adjust the safety gear with practiced ease.

I frowned, pointing at my eight-month pregnant belly. "You know I'm afraid of heights and I'm pregnant! How can I skydive?"

Unexpectedly, Ian impatiently choked me. "Don't you fly to work every day? Why are you pretending with me now?" The sarcastic tone in his voice made me uncomfortable.

Ever since I got pregnant, he had been complaining about my low maternity leave pay and constantly pushing me to do live-streaming to make extra money for the baby.

Ian didn't care about my protest and kept pushing me toward the training area while muttering, "Oh, come on, it's just a jump. Close your eyes and take a leap—done! The video will be finished in no time."

I wanted to refuse, but Ian scowled and snapped as if anticipating my resistance, "Enough, Cynthia! Do you know how hard it was for me to get that $70 voucher? If you don't jump, you'll be wasting money!"

With such a big hat on my head, the courage to resist that had just arisen was instantly extinguished. I cradled my belly with my head down and lined up obediently.

The training area was packed and my presence caused quite a stir.

"These influencers are insane. They're even making pregnant women skydive for views? Does she dare to skydive with such a big belly?"

"Stay away from her. If something goes wrong, they'll pin the blame on us. These viral video types love playing the victim."

The mocking whispers and judgmental stares made me feel uneasy. I looked at Ian holding the camera for help, but he was busy scrolling on his phone. He tapped away as if doing calculations, completely ignoring my silent cries.

Seeing the smug grin on his face sent a chill down my spine. How could he not care that his wife was being ridiculed like this?

Before I could even start to complain, the coach's whistle blew. Ian immediately raised the camera, urging me to hurry and join the queue. I hesitated but was shoved by other participants.

"Hurry up! You're blocking the shot. Are you trying to steal the spotlight?" I could only clutch my belly and slowly shuffle forward. Thankfully, Ian followed me with his camera, seemingly focused on taking pictures.

Seeing how dedicated he was, my resentment quickly faded and I even felt a bit guilty.

I thought I had misjudged Ian. Maybe he was trying to create an eye-catching video and didn't seriously expect me to go skydiving. Still, I realized how naive that thought was ten minutes later.