Our Anniversary, I Rejected Him

Chapter 4

We'd gotten there so late that by the time we finished eating and cleaned up, it was almost nine o'clock.

A fine drizzle was drifting through the air when David tossed me a tentative question.

"It's raining, and it's pretty late. Anne wouldn't be safe going back alone. I'll drive her home first. Wait here for me, okay?"

He'd already made up his mind. What was the point of putting on this fake show of asking for my input?

I gave a nonchalant nod, watching as their backs slowly faded into the distance. It's not like I planned to wait for him anyway.

On one end, David's mom was off running her mouth about how immature I was, and on the other, I'd already booked myself a ride.

I wandered through the fine drizzle, and weirdly enough, my heart felt totally steady.

When David got home, he was huffing and puffing, clearly he'd rushed back.

He brushed my shoulder, his face tight with worry. "Olivia, you alright?

"Anne's kid is home alone. I just wanted to make sure she gets back as soon as possible..." He trailed off mid-sentence, shooting me a look that held a faint edge of petty irritation. "Couldn't you have waited just half an hour for me?"

I stared right at him, and suddenly asked, "What about Alexa?"

David stared at me, blank. "Huh?"

You care so much about other people's kids. How come you can't even remember your own?

"Back then, why did you forget Alexa like it was nothing?"

David went silent. His hand slowly slid off my shoulder.

I spoke again, my tone flat and unemotional. "I took a taxi home. I'm sure Anne could have taken one too."

David frowned. He didn't say anything for a long while, then finally spoke. "That's different."

He was right. There was a world of difference between caring about someone and not caring at all.

I called him out straight to his face. "You just wanted to drive her, that's all."

A flicker of annoyance shot through his eyes, but he just blew out a long, heavy breath.

"Olivia, you're overthinking this again. Anne is like a little sister to me, just like Jane. She's divorced, has a kid to raise, and she's going through a hard time. Isn't it only right I help her out a bit?

"You've been a mother too. You can understand that, right?"

Every single question he ever asked was always total nonsense.

I stepped back a few paces, locking eyes with him directly.

"Help her? You're even glued to her side at every work event." My tone dropped colder with every word I spoke.

David gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stay patient as he tried to explain.

"Anne's just trying to learn more skills. She has a kid to support, after all. She needs to learn how to work and make money on her own." With that, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms gently around me.

My arms hung dead at my sides, and I didn't hug him back. I just stood there, listening as he mumbled low in my ear.

"I miss Alexa too. I know how much you're hurting. But can you try to move on, for us? We can have another baby."

'You might be able to pop out another kid someday. But I'll never get that chance again.'

Just then, David's phone buzzed on the counter. He hesitated for a couple seconds, then swiped to answer.

A little kid's voice piped up from the speaker, sounding about the same age as Alexa was when we lost her.

The kid was laying on the sweet, wheedling little kid tone thick. "Uncle David, I miss you so much. Can you come over and read me a story?"

David turned off the speakerphone, his eyes darting away from mine, too guilty to hold my gaze.

He didn't say a word to me, just held his phone and headed for the bedroom. Minutes later, he walked out fully dressed in his coat.

I knew exactly what was coming.

He put on an apologetic face, leaned down, and pressed a quick, light kiss to my forehead.

"Anne's kid has been getting picked on lately for not having a dad around, so he's been clinging to me a lot lately. I need to head over there, or the little guy will throw a fit again."

I nodded, totally unbothered. "Go ahead."

Surprised by how calm I was, David gave my hand a soft, gentle tug.

"Once all this stuff is sorted out, I'll make time for you, I promise. And then we can try for another baby."

For some reason, those words sent a sharp, sour twist of nausea roiling up my throat.

I booted up my laptop and coordinated with my manager to go over work arrangements and pre-departure prep for my upcoming overseas posting.

Ding!

A new WeChat notification popped up. It was a screenshot from a friend of mine.

Turns out she was friends with Anne on WeChat, and Anne had just posted a new Moment.

Father and son's bedtime routine. So warm!

The attached photo showed her kid curled up in David's arms, listening to him tell a story.

I hit play on the voice note my friend had sent, and her shocked voice burst out. "What the f**k? Your husband has a secret love child out there!"

I just brushed her off with a half-assed explanation, then turned my attention back to my work stuff.