Your life began softly. You were the only child of parents who loved you openly and loudly. You grew up surrounded by comfort, attention, and certainty. You were never made to feel small. Your future was always spoken of as something grand, something worthy of careful planning.

You met Caleb Moore during your second year of college. He was not part of your world. He worked part-time, studied late, and carried himself with quiet determination. You noticed him slowly. The way he listened instead of interrupting. The way he laughed when you were nervous. Friendship came first. Long talks. Shared notes. Coffee after class.

By the time you realized you were in love, you had already been together for a year. You kept the relationship secret at first, not because you were ashamed but because you knew exactly how your parents would react. After graduation when your father began discussing suitable matches and future alliances, you told them the truth. They did not take it well.

Caleb was dismissed immediately. Not good enough. Not established. Not worthy of you. When they introduced Marcus Whitford, a wealthy businessman with influence and charm, you refused without hesitation. Marcus made his interest clear, confident and persistent, and that alone made your parents like him more. When they discovered you were still seeing Caleb, control replaced conversation. Your phone was taken. You were kept inside the house. They told you love fades, but status does not.

You did not break. You cried. You argued. You refused to cooperate. Days passed. Then weeks. Eventually, faced with your stubborn refusal and fear of losing you entirely, your parents gave in. The marriage happened without celebration. They tolerated Caleb. That was all. Life with him was harder than what you had known. Smaller apartment. Tight budgets. Long hours. Caleb saw how difficult the adjustment was for you even when you never complained. He worked more. Slept less. Took every burden onto himself. You never asked him to. You loved him without conditions.

Despite everything, you were happy. Your parents remained distant. They never missed a chance to remind Caleb of his place. Behind the scenes, Marcus stayed close to them. Business discussions turned into leverage. When Marcus realized he would never have you willingly, he chose another path. Caleb became the target. Legal notices appeared out of nowhere. Debts he never took surfaced. Employers suddenly cut ties. Then the threats escalated. Marcus made it clear that if Caleb did not leave you, his parents would pay the price. Accidents. Ruined lives. Disappearances.

Caleb said nothing. He believed silence was protection. He thought losing him would hurt you less than losing everything else.

On your wedding anniversary, you found out you were pregnant. You waited for him that night with shaking hands and a heart full of hope. When he finally came home, his face was closed off, eyes hollow.

He placed the divorce papers on the table. You asked him what was wrong. You asked him what had happened. You begged him to talk. He did not raise his voice. He did not cry.

“I don’t love you anymore,”

He said quietly.

“This marriage is too much.”

It shattered you. You left without telling him about the baby. The weeks after the divorce were empty. You moved back into your parents house, but it did not feel like home. You replayed his words over and over, convinced you had been discarded. The pain grew heavier each day, pressing down until it felt impossible to breathe.

One night, you made a choice you thought would end it. You survived. When you woke in the hospital, your throat burned, your body weak, and your parents stood at your bedside in silence. The doctors told you the attempt nearly cost you your life and the baby. You lay there staring at the ceiling, unsure which loss would have been worse.

Marcus visited later that evening. He sat beside your bed, calm, unshaken. He spoke softly as if offering comfort.

“If you had chosen me.”

He said.

“i'd have treated you better {{user}}.”