The Hijacked Marriage

[Claire took Noah and me on the Ferris wheel. Everyone said we looked like a family of three!]

[Claire even bought out the amusement park and had our names put up. You never got that kind of treatment, did you?]

I ignored him.

That night, Claire did not come home.

I did not care. I slept beautifully.

The next day, after signing the contract with the buyer, I took my luggage and headed for the bus station.

On the way, I happened to run into Claire and Ryan, who had just finished handling Noah’s school enrollment and were coming out of the kindergarten.

Ryan was holding Noah in his arms. Claire had her arm looped happily through Ryan’s, looking exactly like a family of three. Even passersby could not help sighing.

“What a happy family.”

“The parents look so loving and well-matched. That little boy is lucky.”

Claire smiled without saying a word, clearly enjoying it.

When she saw me, she froze. Then she immediately let go of Ryan’s arm, a trace of guilt flashing across her face.

“Nathan, what are you doing here? It’s work hours. This counts as skipping work. According to company policy, your pay has to be docked.”

I almost laughed.

I had resigned a full day ago, and Claire still did not know?

“Claire, I’ve already resigned.”

Claire did not believe me. Her brows drew together.

“Resigned? What now? Yesterday, you were making a scene about breaking up, and today, you’re making a scene about resigning?

“Nathan, enough is enough. Keep going, and this will cross the line.”

Ryan’s eyes darted around before he put on his fake sincerity again.

“Claire, don’t be angry. Nathan must know he was wrong. He probably followed us here to ask for forgiveness.”

Claire’s mood visibly improved. The corners of her eyes lifted slightly.

“If you want me to forgive you, fine. But you have to apologize to Ryan. Also, Ryan doesn’t sleep well, so you need to give him and Noah the master bedroom. You can sleep in the study. Besides that, from now on, you’ll be responsible for cooking all three meals a day for Ryan and Noah as your apology. Not one condition can be missing.”

I found it funny.

Did she think I was their live-in servant?

I had originally planned to tell her about selling the house later, but since we had run into each other, I might as well say it now.

“Claire, I can’t agree to any of that, because I’ve already sold the house.”

Claire’s pupils shrank.

“You sold the house? How could you not tell me about something this important?”

I said coldly, “It’s my house. I can sell it whenever I want. I don’t need your permission.”

Ryan immediately fanned the flames.

“Nathan, I didn’t expect you to sell the house just to force Noah and me out. Since you hate us so much, I’ll go with Claire to get divorced right now. We’ll move out soon, so we won’t be an eyesore anymore.”

Claire looked worried.

“But didn’t you just give up your apartment and use the refunded rent to pay Noah’s tuition? If you move out, where will you stay?”

Ryan wiped at tears that did not exist.

“What choice do I have if Nathan can’t stand us? Worst case, Noah and I can sleep under a bridge. It’ll be a little cold, but at least we won’t have to live under someone else’s glare.”

Noah spat at me.

“You big bully! You’re mean to Dad! Mom, teach him a lesson!”

Claire lost her temper, too, her voice turning cold.

“Nathan, there has to be a limit to how unreasonable you can be. If you keep acting like this, you can forget about ever getting married to me in this lifetime!”

Faced with Claire’s one hundred and first threat, I laughed out loud right there.

“Claire, did you forget? We already broke up. We will never get married.”