The Wasted Ten Years Chapter 08
(Jude’s POV)
The next time I saw Shannon was a month later.
By then, I had already heard about what happened with Micah.
Apparently, Shannon had lost her temper and had ensured that he faced even more serious charges.
However, none of that concerned me anymore.
At the beginning of the month-long waiting period, I found it incredibly hard to move on.
The doctor had forbidden me from drinking, yet I still tried to drown my sorrows in alcohol.
I threw up blood several more times, was rushed to the emergency room repeatedly, and came dangerously close to dying on the operating table.
When I finally made it through and realized I was still alive, the things I had been unable to let go of slowly faded away.
Shannon had been part of my life for twenty years, taking up one-third of my entire existence.
For the years I had left, I could finally live for myself.
By the time I arrived at the courthouse, Shannon was already waiting for me.
“Let’s get the divorce finalized.”
Although we had only been apart for a month, I realized I no longer had anything to say to her.
At first, I had hated and resented her. I kept asking myself why she had treated me that way, why she had fallen in love with someone else, and why she had forgotten the promises she had once made.
However, after hearing her accuse me of bringing it all on myself and dismiss everything I had done as nothing more than my own delusion, I realized there was no point in clinging to someone who no longer wanted me.
Shannon looked like she wanted to say something, but when she heard my resolute words, her hands tightened into fists at her
sides.
“You really want to divorce me?”
I did not understand what she meant, so I assumed she was mocking me.
“Shannon, I know you dislike people who won’t let go. Don’t worry. This time, I really do want a divorce.”
I walked briskly into the courthouse, never noticing the tears welling in Shannon’s eyes behind me.
“We don’t have to go through with the divorce.”
Her words stopped me cold.
My gaze fell on her tear-filled eyes, and silence settled between us.
“Shannon, there’s no need to test me. The courthouse is right in front of us. Once the divorce is finalized, you’ll finally be able to put your mind at ease.”
“Jude, I’ve thought it through over the past few weeks. I don’t think we should get divorced after all.
“Micah has already been taken into custody. No one can come between us again.
“I’ll change…. I’ll settle down. We still have so much time ahead of us…”
For a moment, I was stunned. Then, I let out a bitter laugh.
“You wanted this divorce, and now you’re saying you don’t. Shannon, I don’t make a habit of staying with someone who has cheated on me.”
I handed my documents to the court clerk.
“We’re here to finalize our divorce.”
Shannon hesitated, but with the clerk urging her to proceed, she reluctantly handed over hers as well.
Twenty years of love had ended with a divorce certificate.
The love I had once felt for her had turned into an equal measure of hatred, and someday, it would all mean nothing to me.
At that moment, the bond we had shared as childhood sweethearts for more than twenty years came to an end. There was no future waiting for us anymore.
As we left the courthouse, Shannon grabbed the hem of my sleeve.
Her tearful voice drifted through the air.
“If you ever regret this, tell me. I’ll come to you.”
I pried her fingers loose from my sleeve and placed the wedding ring back into her hand.
“Forget it. I probably won’t have many chances left to regret this anyway. You were right, actually. I was the one who imagined there was something more between us.”
I watched the color slowly drain from Shannon’s face before I walked away.
That was the last time I ever looked back.
From then on, I would leave the past behind and learn to live for myself.
After all, who had not experienced a love that ended in heartbreak?
