BELATED REGRET - PART 1

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Part 1: Storm

In a luxurious yet utterly quiet house, the afternoon sunlight crept through the window frame. The apartment was always spotless without a speck of dust, the golden rays falling on the gleaming floor only further revealed the devotion of the one who cleaned. And that person was not a servant but the husband of this family, Tanner Law.

He stood in the kitchen, holding a wooden spoon and gently stirring the pot of soup boiling furiously on the gas stove. The fragrance of herbal stewed chicken spread throughout the space, a dish he knew Tiana Lee loved most on weary days.

Tiana Lee was his beautiful wife, now the director of a mid-tier entertainment company in H City. Thanks to that, they were able to live in a relatively luxurious house in this land-scarce, gold-valued city. Today was their third wedding anniversary, but Tanner was not sure whether Tiana remembered or not. He had prepared since morning, cleaning the house until it was spotless, buying a bouquet of deep red roses to place on the dining table, and even making a cake with his own hands, the words “Happy Anniversary” written in sparkling white cream.

This year Tanner turned twenty-nine, still at the age when a man’s body could develop some muscle, yet his figure remained slender, standing at less than one meter sixty-five, with smooth fair skin. No matter how much he trained, his appearance was no different from more than ten years ago. Tanner wore his black hair long to the shoulders, often tying it neatly behind his nape; mainly because he seldom went outside, he did not care much about his hair. His face was delicate, with large round eyes and long lashes, and to call it feminine would not be an exaggeration.

Tanner liked his own meticulousness, liked taking care of everything around him with thoroughness and completeness. His freelance work as a translator allowed him to work from home, and he used that time to turn the cold house into a true home. But after three years, he still felt his efforts had not been duly rewarded, for the house still bore the same chill as before.

Thinking back, Tanner let out a sigh. The root of everything had to be traced back to the past. Since their university years, Tanner had always devoted his love to the girl his age, Tiana. She was strong, confident, always radiating a dignified aura that made those around her unconsciously admire her. But… this was in truth a one-sided love, for Tiana had already had someone in her heart.

Almost everyone in the university knew about this. For nearly the entire four years, Tiana and Duke Hunt were always a couple. They had even promised to marry right after graduation. But in the end, Duke Hunt chose to go abroad to study, leaving Tiana behind in a state of regret.

Through the years that followed, Tiana always felt lonely and in need of a stable support. At that time, she was still only starting her career, her finances unsteady. Tanner had resolved to pursue her, devoting all his savings to support her in building her career. He tried his utmost to win her heart, from romantic dates to proposing under a starry sky. At last, Tiana agreed, and they married without holding too grand a wedding.

That moment could be seen as the happiest in Tanner’s life, yet he quickly realized things were not as good as he had imagined. From the very first months, Tanner had sensed Tiana’s coldness. She grew irritated and dismissed nearly everything he did, even when it was the fruit of his tireless effort. Remember, Tanner had been an excellent student, and his ability would not have stopped at being a small-time freelancer at twenty-nine. He had devoted so much time to caring for his wife, only to receive perfunctory kisses, contemptuous glances, and each time he tried to draw near, Tiana would turn away with the excuse of being “too tired from hard work, unlike Tanner who stayed comfortably at home,” though her look of disgust revealed that “work” was nothing more than an excuse for rejection.

Of course, if Tanner were to say he was not disappointed, that would be a lie. Yet he still patiently accepted it. He thought perhaps it was the pressure of life, that she was not yet accustomed to the role of a wife. He tried to make up for it by doing everything in her stead—cooking, washing, even massaging her feet after long days at the office.

“Darling, what would you like to eat today? Shall I make shredded chicken salad?” he would often ask such questions, and Tiana would only nod, click her tongue, and tell him to do whatever he liked. At times like that, Tanner would remind himself that love needed time to bloom. He just did not want to admit what he already knew well, that something was wrong. Tiana had never spoken of loving him sincerely, not even on their wedding day, and the wedding photographs hanging on the wall seemed more like proof of an arrangement than of true affection.

Today, once again, Tanner hoped everything would be different. He turned off the stove, ladled the soup into a bowl, and arranged the table neatly. The clock struck nine in the evening, Tiana coming home later than usual. The door opened, the sound of high heels striking the floor. Tiana stepped in, her face weary yet her eyes glimmering with a strange light. Of course, he was the only one to greet her. Smiling, he said, “You’re home! Today is a special day, I’ve prepared dinner.”

It seemed Tiana was no longer as irritable as before. Something had changed. Tanner quietly rejoiced, secretly wondering if perhaps today, their third wedding anniversary, was the reason she felt glad. Yet, the moment she saw his radiant, smiling face, Tiana’s expression darkened. She pushed him aside, removed her shoes, and hung her handbag on the rack.

She snapped, “What are you smiling about all the time? Do you know how tired I am, you leech living off your wife?!” Hearing this, the smile vanished from Tanner’s face. He tried to hide his disappointment and said, “Don’t you remember what day it is today?”

“I don’t care!” Tiana said, then walked past him, leaving him standing there in stunned silence. Even when she sat at the table with him, she only held her phone to text, not exchanging a single word with him. From time to time, Tanner would hide his face behind his bowl of rice to steal glances at her. He always paid close attention to her every gesture, so he immediately noticed the change. She smiled as she texted on her phone, something he had very often witnessed in recent days.

Dinner ended in silence. So the third wedding anniversary turned out to be just that ordinary! She had even come home later than on other days. Tanner cleared the table alone. While washing the dishes, he looked out the window and saw the night spreading over the neighborhood. His heart grew heavy. Could today be the last anniversary? He shook his head, driving away the dark thought. “I must try harder on our anniversary next year,” he told himself.

The following mornings, Tanner still woke early to prepare breakfast for Tiana. Though she constantly criticized the meals he cooked, she seldom ate out, except when obliged to at company gatherings or with friends. Though Tiana paid no heed to Tanner, he always saw her to the door, watching as her car disappeared into the distance.

He went back into the house and sat before his computer to work. Yet his mind could not stay focused. Lately, Tiana had been coming home very late, and her phone kept vibrating with messages from “DH.” Tanner did not bother to check, for he trusted her. But her joy each time she received a message was in direct proportion to the coldness she showed him.

That afternoon, while he was working, he received news in their mutual friends’ group that made him uneasy—Duke Hunt had returned to the country a few days ago. So it turned out, the initials “DH” flashing on her phone screen were Duke Hunt. His heart tightened.

Tiana’s late nights kept increasing, both in frequency and in length. That is, she came home late every night, and later still, sometimes not until after three in the morning. She believed her useless husband was fast asleep, but in truth he always knew. Her body was always suffused with a heavy perfume, a scent she had once claimed to detest.

In the days that followed, Tiana’s changes became ever more evident. She often laughed to herself even without holding her phone, lost in idle imaginings, yet when he happened to see, she would move away. And the calls from “DH” kept increasing. Tanner grew suspicious, but he still chose to trust.

One evening, he gave Tiana a white dress he had personally chosen for her, a simple dress of soft fabric, suited to her figure. He said, “Try it on, it must look wonderful on you.” To his shock, Tiana angrily crumpled the dress and hurled it to the floor, “Get this worthless thing out of my sight!”

Tanner was disappointed, yet his lips still forced a strained smile, “I’m sorry for not paying attention to your taste, but I’ll keep it, in case you change your mind one day.” Tiana gave a cold laugh, “Forget it! You should know that what I hate is whatever you give me, no matter what it is.”

Oh… what was this? It seemed Tanner felt his eyes growing damp. Quietly, he took the dress back to the wardrobe and hung it up. Tiana did not care.

As for Tiana, indeed she and Duke Hunt had been meeting constantly since the day he returned. At first it was coffee, then it became intimate dinners, and finally, hotels. Tiana felt as if she were “reborn,” day after day lost in love. Yet suddenly, a passing thought of Tanner made her uneasy. She shook her head at once. “Who would care about that useless man, I am only living with the love of my life.” Perhaps this unease sprang from the guilty weight of carrying the word “adultery” on her shoulders.

Tanner stayed home alone, feeling a profound loneliness. He did not know that the storm had already struck. Whenever a storm passes, villages and fields are left in ruins. If so, what would remain of their relationship after the storm?

PART 2 >>