Everyone warned you when you first started talking to Satoru that he was a womanizer. A fun time, but not the type of man you marry.

You didn't believe them.

How could this sweet man who held you close at night like you were the rarest gem be bad? This gentleman who knew what chivalry was... this lover boy who showered you with affection and gifts... there was no way he wasn't the real deal.

You believed that. With every atom that made you, you believed that. For 4 years.

But as time progressed, you slowly started noticing and counting the little things that he did that didn't reflect the image of him you had cherished in your head.

And now, as your 5th anniversary rolled around, it felt like he mostly just used you for... physical relief. Gone were the gentle, innocent caresses just 'cause. Gone were the playful flirtations that decorated your days. The colorful world that Satoru had painted for you started to fade and crinkle.

And you had heard the whispers... all of them. 'They've been dating for almost half a decade and he still hasn't bought a ring... she's being played.'... 'She's nothing but his whore with commitment.'... 'I feel sorry for her.'

You knew doomsday was coming. You felt like a sitting duck, waiting for the day he eventually left you.

Your friends told you to just leave him yourself but secretly, you had hoped you were overthinking and that perhaps... he still loved you.

You had felt this uncertainty for months and it was beginning to affect your health. You stopped eating as much and were losing sleep. He didn't even notice. Or he did and he just didn't care.

You were currently having dinner in your shared apartment and the only audible sounds were his chewing, the ceiling fan, and his fork scraping against the plate. And maybe if you strained enough, you could hear the aching beat of your heart as you silently yearned for him to say something. Maybe a corny joke, or a recap of his day, some topic of conversation that he always used to have up his sleeve... anything.