I Survived a Plane Crash, but My Wife Only Cared About Her Ex's Cold

After surviving a horrific plane crash, my wife promised she would come to the hospital to see me. But I didn't see a trace of her until the day I was discharged. When I got back home, I found a note she had left on the kitchen counter: "Julian has a cold. I'm going over to take care of him. I'll be back late." I called her, but the person who answered was Julian, the ex she could never let go of. "Lily is in the shower. She'll be back in a bit. Hold on." Just like every single time before, whenever I needed my wife, she was always by Julian's side. In her mind, my life and death didn't even compare to his mild cold. This time, I was completely calm. I hung up and called my lawyer. It was time for a divorce. I had just hung up with my lawyer, Mark. The empty house was filled with only the sound of my heavy breathing. I couldn't believe that right after surviving a near-death experience, I had to face this devastating news. I lay weakly on the sofa. I didn't turn on the lights, staring silently at the ceiling in the dark. Suddenly, the sound of keys jingling in the lock echoed through the empty apartment. "Ethan! When did you get back?" My wife, Lily Vance, walked through the door. There was a hint of surprise in her voice. "Why are you back? Are you done with your checkups?" Lily's tone was cold and routine, as if I weren't her husband of five years, but rather her worst enemy. I looked at her face—a face I used to love so deeply—and let out a self-deprecating laugh. "What, this is my home. I'm not allowed back?" Hearing my words, her cold tone instantly flared into anger. "How dare you speak to me like that? Have you lost your mind?" "Ethan Crawford, don't you dare use your little injury from your trip to throw a tantrum!" Just a tiny disagreement, and her temper was immediately ignited. Ever since we started dating, I had never talked back to her. I had yielded to her every whim, never arguing or disputing. This was probably the first time I had ever asked her a question with such a sharp tone. While she scolded me, her eyes were glued to her phone, fingers tapping away. I didn't even need to think to know she was messaging Julian. A surge of anger rose inside me, and I demanded, "My plane landed this morning, and now it's night!" "You've been with Julian for the entire day!" "I barely made it back alive, and you couldn't even spend one day with me?" I stood up and stared at Lily, the woman I had loved for five years. Even after everything I said, she was still frantically looking at her phone, refusing to look up at me. This time, she didn't get angry. She just offered a messy, rushed explanation. "Julian has a cold. He's not feeling well, so I went to look after him." "I was just worried about him." Hearing this, I actually laughed. I was laughed out of sheer anger. So, the reason she didn't pick me up from the airport was because she was busy taking care of Julian's mild cold. My plane had crashed into the ocean. I had fought to survive on a deserted island in a wild jungle for two long months. The only thing that kept me going was the thought of my wife waiting for me. I couldn't die. I had struggled against wild beasts and poisonous insects, desperately fighting just to see her smile again. And what about her? She had promised to pick me up, yet she abandoned me—someone who had just returned to civilization from hell—to tend to her ex's cold. This was the wife I had loved deeply for five years! At that thought, I stared intensely at Lily, my eyes locked onto her. "Let me ask you, Lily. I survived in a jungle for two months, living on the edge of death every single day. Does two months of torture not even compare to Julian's cold?" "Who is actually your husband here?" Lily froze, her panic becoming more obvious. "Ethan, how can you say that? Julian and I are just friends!" "How can you think of me like that? Am I that kind of person?" Her voice carried a fake certainty that anyone could see through. "Just friends? Do 'just friends' take showers at each other's houses?" "Is there any point in lying anymore?" Lily's voice grew sharp, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "How dare you accuse me, Ethan Crawford!" "We've been married for so many years, and you still suspect me? Can't you give me some trust?" "Why are you making a scene out of nothing?!" Due to prolonged starvation and malnutrition, combined with my sudden rage, blood rushed to my head. Dizziness washed over me in waves, and I could barely stand. Just then, a man's voice sounded from the doorway. "Lily, what are you doing standing at the door? Why don't we go in?" I knew exactly who that voice belonged to. It was Julian Mercer. He walked up to the door naturally and put his arm around my wife. "Lily, what's... Ethan, buddy? You're back?" The moment Julian saw me, the smug grin on his face widened. Lily's panic reached its peak, yet she still didn't pull away from Julian's embrace. "I'm sorry, Ethan. I caught a cold and had no one to take care of me, so I had to ask Lily for help." "I hope you don't mind, Ethan!" Lily didn't know what to say. She just buried her face in Julian's chest. Julian had a triumphant smile, as if boasting his victory to me. He deliberately raised the shopping bag in his hand, and I could clearly see a box of condoms sitting right at the top. They hadn't expected me to be home, so their plans for tonight were crystal clear. It seemed that during the two months I was fighting for my life on that deserted island, they had slept together in my home countless times. Looking at Lily, whose face was flushed as she avoided my gaze, my heart shattered completely. On our wedding day, her face had been flushed just like this, too shy to look at me. But back then, it was out of shyness and excitement. Now, it was only guilt and panic. I had given Lily everything. Years ago, the company she poured her soul into creating was on the brink of bankruptcy. To make matters worse, Julian, her boyfriend at the time, ran off with all her remaining assets. Just as she was about to end up on the streets, I saved her. For her sake, I flew to a remote island to live-stream a dangerous wilderness survival challenge. By risking my life over and over again to attract viewers, I earned a fortune. And I turned around and invested every single penny of that money into her company. I pulled her business back from the edge of bankruptcy. With my financial support, her company grew more and more successful, and we naturally got married. She had told me she hated Julian to the bone, promising she would make him pay if she ever saw him again. But when Julian blew all his money and came crawling back to her, begging for a loan... She threw herself right into his arms.And that day happened to be the day I returned from a survival expedition with my team. I had been severely injured by a wild animal in the jungle. My team had no choice but to end the live stream early and bring me back to the city hospital. With my last shred of consciousness in the hospital, I called Lily. But all I got was her rushed, breathless cover-ups over the phone. "Ethan, I'm... a bit busy right now. I'll... see you later." With that, she hastily hung up. That "later" turned out to be a whole week. Until the day I was discharged, Lily never showed up at the hospital once. During that week, I called her constantly. I needed her. I needed my wife by my side, and I needed her comfort. But she only claimed she was busy with company matters, unable to even explain what she was actually doing. It wasn't until my assistant, Leo, ran back in a panic and told me he had personally seen my wife and Julian checking into a hotel together. Yet, even then, I held onto a pathetic shred of hope. I hoped she would change her mind, hoped she would realize her mistake, and hoped she would love me again. But now, Lily was still snuggled in Julian's arms. She had crossed the line again and again, and now they were openly flaunting their affair in front of me. How absurd. I was actually holding onto hope for someone who had broken her vows. What was even more absurd was that it took me this long to finally realize it. Lily finally looked up at me and said, "Are you seriously going to make us stand here?" Holding Julian's hand, she closed the front door and walked straight toward the sofa. I tried to block them, but Julian shoved me aside. How could a man who had been starving in the wild for two months match Julian's physical strength? I could only watch as the two of them sat comfortably on my sofa, looking exactly like a real couple. It was as if Julian was the actual master of this house, and I was just an intruder. Looking at the lovey-dovey pair, a mixture of grief, anger, and sadness rushed to my chest. A sharp pain shot from my lower back and arms, instantly paralyzing my entire body. Those were the unhealed wounds left by wild beasts during my two months in the jungle. I collapsed straight onto the floor. Hearing the thud, Lily jumped up from the sofa. She stood just a few feet away from me. She only needed to take a few steps to reach me, but she didn't. She just stood there. Her eyes were cold, filled with a trace of disdain. "What are you doing now? Are you trying to play the victim card to get my attention?" I struggled to speak. "My back... a beast mauled me in the jungle. It's not fully healed." Lily sneered. "You already went to the hospital for checkups. What could possibly be wrong?" "Stop trying to fool me with your cheap acting, okay?" My voice grew incredibly weak from the intense pain. "Lily, it really hurts..." Seeing how much agony I was in, she finally seemed to waver and started walking toward me. But just as she stood up, Julian, sitting behind her, flashed a smug, sinister smile. "Cough, cough! Cough!" Just as she was about to reach me, Julian started coughing loudly. Lily immediately turned back and rushed to his side, leaving me abandoned on the floor. "Julian, are you okay? Why are you coughing again?" Julian smiled weakly, waving his hand. "I'm fine, really. You should check on Ethan first." "He does this all the time. I'll just go grab a glass of warm water." Just like every single time before, whenever I needed Lily, Julian would always use some pathetic excuse to pull her away. And I had never once received her care. Even though she was only two steps away, Lily refused to come to my side. She didn't even bother to ask what was wrong with her husband. She wouldn't even call an ambulance for me. Staring at Lily, who was busy pouring water for Julian while completely ignoring me, I finally gave up. With the last bit of my consciousness, I dialed my lawyer's number. "Come to my house right now... Call an ambulance for me." "And bring the divorce papers." With that, I blacked out completely.Lily had no idea I had fainted. She kept cursing me while tending to Julian. It wasn't until my lawyer, Mark, rushed over that I was finally carried into an ambulance. Lily and Julian had simply locked the door after I was taken away, not even bothering to accompany me to the hospital. Mark told me all of this later. Though my body was in severe pain, fortunately, it wasn't life-threatening. The doctor said I needed to stay in the hospital for observation. But of course, physical pain could never compare to the agony of a shattered heart. Mark said, "I wasn't planning on preparing the divorce papers. I wanted to convince you to work things out with Lily. But after seeing what happened today, you absolutely need to get a divorce." I had always treated my team members well, and they respected me. I often took my wife along to team dinners. In their eyes, we had always been a model couple, deeply in love. Only I knew the truth—Lily had probably never loved me. Lily and I were college classmates. I fell for her the moment I saw her. But back in college, Julian and Lily were the golden couple everyone talked about. Back then, her family's business wasn't as massive as it is now, but they were still well-off. However, because of Julian's deliberate sabotage and Lily's sheer naivety as a fresh graduate, her family's company was pushed to the brink of ruin. Julian then fled with all of her family's money. In her desperation, she came to me for a loan. I loved her so much back then. Seeing her eyes filled with tears, I would have agreed to anything she asked. I had just graduated myself, and my streaming career was starting to take off. I had planned to grow it slowly, but Lily begged me, and I had to deliver. So, I decided to make a massive gamble. I spent all my savings on professional wilderness survival gear and underwent three months of intense survival training. I launched a solo wilderness survival live stream on a deserted island—a wild, non-stop, extreme broadcast. To generate traffic, I handed all the donation money to my marketing team. I constantly provoked wild animals and did crazy stunts in the jungle to grab attention. I danced on the edge of death. The closest I ever came to dying was when I decided to do a viral TikTok dance challenge right next to a sleeping wild lynx. But I accidentally stepped on its tail. The lynx went wild and attacked me. Its fangs were literally millimeters away from my jugular. My reckless and thrilling streams attracted millions of viewers, and I earned an unimaginable fortune. With that money and my massive fan base, Lily's family company was revived. And after my relentless pursuit, Lily finally agreed to marry me. To make Lily happy, I was willing to give up everything. For a brief period, we were as happy and sweet as any newlyweds. I naively thought we could live like that forever. Until Julian showed up again. From the moment he returned, I never received an ounce of affection from my wife. Or perhaps she had never loved me in the first place. Because of the nature of my streams, I was frequently hospitalized. But every time I returned to the hospital, Julian would conveniently have an emergency—either a cold or a sudden depressive episode with suicidal threats. And without fail, Lily would abandon me to rush to his side. I was always left alone, staring at the sterile hospital ceiling, fantasizing about what it would be like to have my wife by my side. But she didn't care. She only cared about how much money my streams brought in and the business opportunities I secured for her company. My body was battered and scarred, yet she never asked about it once. Meanwhile, Julian only had to sneeze, and she would fuss over him endlessly. I laughed bitterly at my own stupidity. I thought that if I treated her well enough, I could eventually replace Julian in her heart. But it turned out I had never even stepped foot inside her heart. I was completely done. Looking at the divorce papers Mark had placed on my bedside table, I called Lily. "Come to the hospital tomorrow. I have something to tell you."The next morning, Lily pushed open the ward door, her arm tightly wrapped around Julian's. Looking at them, a wave of disgust and fury rushed to my head. This was my third day in the hospital, and her very first visit. Leaning against Julian, Lily looked at me with a frown. "Are you okay? Is your next live stream going to be delayed?" "Have you checked the revenue from this stream yet? How did it do?" I stared at her deeply, looking at the face I had once loved so much. For five years, I had sacrificed everything for her. I had put myself on the line of death just to save her lifestyle. I had cared for her with every fiber of my being. Yet, I couldn't even get a single sincere word of concern about my health—not even a polite, superficial greeting. The love in my eyes was entirely gone, replaced by cold disappointment. I was done showing her any mercy. Leaning back against the pillow, I sneered, "How my stream did has absolutely nothing to do with you!" "That's money I risked my life to earn. It's not for a couple of cheating bastards like you to spend!" Lily's face flushed with anger. She let go of Julian and pointed a finger at me. "What is wrong with you, Ethan Crawford? Did you just call us cheating bastards?" "I'll tell you one more time: Julian and I are just friends! There is nothing dirty going on between us!" "And what do you mean it has nothing to do with me? Aren't we married? That money belongs to both of us!" Watching her preach so righteously, I wanted to laugh. "Do I need to send Leo back to the house to count how many condoms are missing from that box before you admit it?" "Just friends? Don't you find that hilarious?" Lily completely snapped. She lunged forward, looking like she wanted to hit me right in my hospital bed. But Julian grabbed her, playing the peacemaker. "Lily, calm down. Ethan just got back from the jungle and he's injured. He's emotionally unstable." "Don't lower yourself to his level. Don't let him ruin your mood." Then he turned to me with a smug, mocking look. "And Ethan, buddy, she just missed picking you up at the airport. It's such a small thing. Don't be so petty." Lily spat on the floor and sneered, "I think you've spent too much time in the wild. You've gone completely mad! Just take care of yourself." "Why did you even call me here today anyway?" I didn't answer her. Instead, I asked, "Do you have any idea how close I came to dying on that island?" She shrugged carelessly. "Yeah, I know. So what?" "Why do you have to be so petty and hold onto this one stupid thing?" "If only you were even half as understanding as Julian." So, she knew. She knew my plane had crashed, she knew I had barely survived, and she knew the torture I had endured. She knew everything. She just didn't care about me. Her words stabbed into my heart like a dagger. There was no other option left for us besides divorce. I had fought so hard for our marriage all these years, only to end up with this. I threw the divorce papers right in front of Lily. "Lily, I'm tired. Let's get a divorce."