The Last Straw

My legs hurt whenever it rained, so Steven offered to send me to work. I didn't refuse.

He drove over with a new car, and when he saw my puzzlement, he explained, "Jenny was afraid of breaking her new car because she just got her driver's license, so I gave her mine to drive."

I averted my gaze and nodded, not saying anything in reply.

Now, I knew why Jenny had tagged me in that photo she posted—she wanted to boast that Steven had gifted her his favorite car.

In the past, I had accidentally scuffed some coating off of his car when I just got my driver's license too, and he couldn't help but complain about it, "Typical of a female driver, honestly. From now on, don't drive. You don't want people to complain about you for being a terrible driver, right?"

From then on, I didn't so much as get the chance to touch the steering wheel.

Later on, when Jenny started learning how to drive, he was willing to take the time to train her, and even dragged me into it, too.

Once, he didn't have the time to keep her company, so he told me to do it instead because he'd be worried otherwise.

When I refused, he told me that I was petty and jealous for no reason, and that he only treated Jenny like a little sister from the same hometown.

When he wasn't around, Jenny brought a bunch of her friends to show off her driving skills, ignoring my attempts at stopping her, and then promptly got into an accident.

Steven quickly got out of work and rushed Jenny to the hospital, not even realizing that I'd broken my leg in the accident.

Jenny wept and sobbed, breaking Steven's heart. He blamed me for not properly keeping an eye on her while she practiced, and said that I was the reason she got in an accident.

To make her feel better, Steven put aside his work at the company and brought her travelling, but tricked me and said that he was going on a business trip.

I was left at the hospital all alone, without any clue in the world, and it would have remained that way had I not seen the pictures Jenny shared on social media.

Back in the present, Steven stared at my calm expression, waiting for a chance to speak. I knew from past experience that he was waiting for me to flare up in anger so that he could tell me that I was overreacting.

In the past, that would be what would have happened, but now?

Why would I get mad over something like this when I didn't care about him anymore?

I sat in the passenger's seat and found a pink hair clip there. Steven quickly picked it up, his expression unnatural. "You know how Jenny is, always losing her things. She probably left it here by accident, so…"

I fastened my seatbelt, not giving him any reaction. "I don't mind. It's cute. Suits her."

Steven stared at me as if I was an alien. "You don't… Mind…?"

That was when I started to get impatient. "What's there to mind? Just drive, I'm going to be late."

But Steven took the wrong route—he had forgotten that my office had moved.

He hadn't driven me to work in quite a while, come to think of it.

Steven looked sheepish. "I haven't driven you in a while because I was too busy, so I forgot that your company wasn't here anymore."

I was indifferent. "It's alright."

After that, I told him the new address, and we didn't speak another word.

Just as we were about to arrive, Steven's phone rang. It was a call from Jenny, with the custom ringtone he set just for her.

In the corner of my eye, I saw that Steven's phone wallpaper had been changed to a pink one too, and scoffed. Well, I shouldn't be surprised that he changed my photo, too.

All these changes had been happening right in front of me, but I had deliberately ignored them, convincing myself that everything was still salvageable.

Steven suddenly slammed on the brakes, making my seatbelt dig painfully into my body. I turned to look at him, seeing that he was already turning the car in another direction. "Are you hurt? Don't worry, I'll be right there!"

But my company was just one traffic light away.

Steven probably only remembered I was there after he hung up, and he braked his car again, stopping by the road. "Jenny got into an accident, so I need to go and help her! Can you walk to the company yourself?"

I touched my leg, the one that Jenny had broken, and it was still aching because of the rain outside. Then I placed my hand on my stomach.

For a second, I foolishly dared to have the slightest bit of hope for Steven. "It's still raining outside, and my company is just around the corner."

Steven, clearly, didn't have any patience left to spare. "Melanie, why are you still being so petty and jealous now? Didn't I tell you that Jenny got into an accident? This is a matter of life and death, so put aside your useless grievances with her!"

After that, he got out of the car and went to the door of the passenger's seat, opening it and dragging me out. Then, he drove off, lightning-fast.

He didn't even have the time to look back and see that I'd collapsed on the ground, not standing up for a very long time.

Once Steven got home, he saw me watching television on the sofa. I didn't leave any food for him on the table, and he noticed.

"Why didn't you leave me any food, and why haven't you cleaned up the baby's room? Didn't I message you that Jenny's family was coming over to visit?"