After hanging up with my mother-in-law, I sat alone in the office for a long time.
The old photograph was still in my hand.
The man in the picture smiled so brightly.
The man who held my hand.
The man who promised to grow old with me.
I tried to find him in the current Ha Canh Xuyen.
But I couldn’t.
Maybe the person I loved had disappeared long ago.
I just refused to admit it.
The next morning, Duong Hue Lan really came with me for my prenatal check-up.
She didn’t mention the divorce.
She didn’t ask me to reconsider.
She simply held my arm carefully as we walked into the hospital.
After the examination, the doctor smiled.
“Both mother and baby are doing well.”
I nodded.
For the first time in many years, I realized something.
I didn’t need Ha Canh Xuyen to protect me.
I didn’t need him to choose me.
I only needed to protect myself and my children.
When we walked out of the hospital, my phone rang.
It was him.
I looked at the screen.
A name that once made my heart race.
Now it only made me tired.
I answered.
“Hello.”
His voice came immediately.
“You really went to my mother?”
I was silent.
He continued angrily:
“Do you know what you caused? Everyone in the family knows now.”
I looked at the hospital entrance.
“Ha Canh Xuyen.”
He stopped.
It was the first time I called his full name so calmly.
“I didn’t cause anything.”
“You did.”
“You chose this.”
There was silence.
Then he lowered his voice.
“Can we talk?”
“About what?”
“About us.”
I almost laughed.
“Us?”
“Yes.”
“You still think there is an ‘us’?”
His breathing became heavier.
“You are pregnant with my child.”
I lowered my eyes.
“Yes.”
“The child is yours.”
“But my life is mine.”
He didn’t answer.
Because he knew.
For twelve years, I had always put him first.
And that was why he thought I would never leave.
That evening, Ha Canh Xuyen came home.
For the first time in a long time, he didn’t go directly to his phone.
He stood at the door.
Looking at me.
Looking at my belly.
“Are you really divorcing me?”
I continued arranging the baby clothes.
“Yes.”
His face changed.
“You don’t even want to try again?”
I stopped.
“Try what?”
“Try to fix this.”
I looked at him.
“How many times?”
He froze.
I smiled softly.
“The first time, you cried.”
“The second time, you promised.”
“The third time, you didn’t even apologize.”
His lips moved.
But no words came out.
Because every sentence was true.
“You know what hurts the most?”
I touched the tiny clothes in my hands.
“Not that you loved someone else.”
“It’s that you slowly made me believe I was no longer worth explaining yourself to.”
His eyes became red.
At that moment, the door opened.
Gia Thu came home from school.
“Mom!”
The ten-year-old boy ran inside.
Then he saw his father.
“Dad!”
He immediately rushed toward him.
Ha Canh Xuyen hugged him.
And for a second, I saw the old him.
The father who held his son for the first time.
The man whose eyes turned red when Gia Thu was born.
But then my son asked:
“Dad, are you leaving again?”
The question made his body stiffen.
Children always notice more than adults think.
Ha Canh Xuyen forced a smile.
“No.”
“I won’t.”
I looked away.
Because promises were easy.
Keeping them was the difficult part.
Three days later, I received the divorce agreement.
This time, I didn’t cry.
I read every page carefully.
House.
Assets.
Child custody.
Everything was written clearly.
Then I noticed something.
Ha Canh Xuyen had transferred a large amount of money into my account.
I called him.
“Why?”
He was silent.
“Because you are pregnant.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
A long pause.
Finally he said:
“Because I know I failed you.”
My fingers tightened around the phone.
The old me would have cried hearing that.
The old me would have forgiven him immediately.
But now…
I only felt tired.
“Ha Canh Xuyen.”
“Yes?”
“Regret is not the same as love.”
The other side became silent.
One week later, I moved out.
I took my children.
I took my mother’s old jewelry.
I took the things that belonged to me.
But I left behind every memory that hurt.
Before leaving, I stood in front of our wedding photo.
Twelve years.
A whole chapter of my life.
I whispered:
“Thank you for the good years.”
“And goodbye.”
I thought that was the end.
I thought Ha Canh Xuyen would continue living his life.
With his choices.
With his regrets.
But I didn’t know…
The woman he kept choosing over me had never loved him.
And three months after our divorce was finalized…
Ha Canh Xuan would lose everything.
His company.
His reputation.
And the woman he sacrificed our marriage for.
Because the truth about Ha Canh Xuyen and Ha Canh Xuan’s relationship…
Was about to be exposed.
