The phone rang.
And rang.
Until finally it stopped.
I stared at the dark screen.
For a few seconds, I didn’t feel anger.
I felt something colder.
A realization.
Because I suddenly understood that during those hours…
I was not fighting to get Chu Kai to answer.
I was fighting against the importance he had given me in his life.
And apparently…
I had already lost.
At two in the morning, the monitoring room nurse came out.
“Family member of Mr. Chu?”
I stood up immediately.
“Yes.”
“Your father-in-law is awake.”
I finally breathed.
I entered the room carefully.
My father-in-law opened his eyes when he saw me.
His lips moved.
“Did… did Xiao Kai come back?”
My throat tightened.
I forced myself to smile.
“He’s still handling work.”
The old man looked disappointed.
But he didn’t blame his son.
He never did.
That was the saddest thing.
Even when his son failed him…
He still looked for excuses.
“Don’t blame him.”
He whispered.
“He’s busy.”
I looked at the old man’s pale face.
The man who had treated me like his own daughter for nine years.
The man who never asked me to sacrifice anything…
Yet always received my care.
And then I thought about Chu Kai.
The person who had shared my life.
The person who knew exactly how much his father mattered.
The person who still chose silence.
“Rest, Dad.”
I adjusted his blanket.
“Don’t worry about anything.”
He closed his eyes.
But his hand suddenly grabbed mine.
“Thank you.”
Those two words almost broke me.
Because I realized something.
I had spent nine years taking care of this family.
But tonight…
The person who should have stood beside me was not there.
At eight in the morning, Chu Kai finally called.
The screen lit up.
His name appeared.
I stared at it.
I didn’t answer immediately.
For the first time in nine years…
I let his call ring.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then I answered.
“Hello?”
His voice came immediately.
“Tham Ninh, why did you call me so many times last night?”
I stayed silent.
Not because I didn’t know what to say.
Because I suddenly didn’t know who I was talking to.
“My father had surgery.”
The other side went quiet.
“What?”
“Acute myocardial infarction.”
“He was sent to the hospital.”
“He almost didn’t make it.”
The silence lasted several seconds.
Then his voice became anxious.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
I laughed softly.
A laugh without happiness.
“Earlier?”
I looked at the eighteen missed calls on my phone.
“Chu Kai.”
“I called you eighteen times.”
His breathing stopped.
“Every time Hua Man answered.”
Silence.
“Every time she told me you were busy.”
“That’s impossible.”
His voice changed.
“She didn’t tell me.”
I closed my eyes.
There it was.
The sentence I had expected.
Not:
My father is okay?
Not:
How is he now?
Not:
Are you exhausted?
Only:
She didn’t tell me.
“Do you know what the doctor asked me?”
I whispered.
“He asked me if I was the immediate family member.”
“I said I was your father’s daughter-in-law.”
“He asked me if I could contact his son.”
“I said I was trying.”
Chu Kai didn’t speak.
“Do you know what your father said before surgery?”
My voice trembled.
“He said he wanted to wait for you to sign.”
A long silence.
Then:
“I’ll come back immediately.”
“No need.”
The words came out before I could stop them.
“What?”
“I said no need.”
I looked through the hospital window.
The city was waking up.
People were going to work.
Living normal lives.
Only something inside me had already changed.
“You should finish your business trip.”
“Tham Ninh…”
“No.”
I interrupted.
“Your work is important.”
“Isn’t that what you always said?”
His voice became softer.
“You are angry.”
“Yes.”
I admitted.
“I am angry.”
“But not because you went to Sanya.”
“Not because Hua Man went with you.”
“Not even because you ignored my calls.”
I paused.
“Do you know what hurts the most?”
“Your father was lying in an emergency room.”
“I was the only person beside him.”
“And you never even knew.”
“Tham Ninh…”
His voice was full of panic.
“I’ll explain.”
“No.”
I looked at the divorce documents I had never signed.
The ones I had kept hidden in my drawer for months.
Because I always believed there was still something worth saving.
Now I wasn’t sure anymore.
“When you come back…”
I said calmly.
“We need to talk.”
“About what?”
I looked at my father-in-law sleeping behind the glass.
“About whether this marriage still exists.”
Eight days later, Chu Kai returned from Sanya.
He expected me to complain.
He expected me to cry.
He expected me to forgive him after a few explanations.
But when he opened the door…
He found his suitcase already packed.
And on the table was one document.
The same document he had ignored for years.
The family responsibility agreement.
Below it was a new page.
A divorce agreement.
He stood frozen.
“Tham Ninh…”
I looked at him.
Calm.
Tired.
But finally free.
“You always said I calculated everything.”
“You said I cared too much about details.”
“You said family wasn’t a business.”
I smiled faintly.
“But you forgot one thing.”
“A family is also built by responsibility.”
His face turned pale.
“Are you really leaving?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
“Because I spent nine years waiting for you to notice what I did.”
“And I finally understand…”
“You never noticed.”
At that moment, Chu Kai finally realized something.
The woman he thought would always wait for him…
Had already stopped waiting.
The wife who had carried his family for nine years…
Was finally choosing herself.
