My Wife Sent Her Young Lover to Our Anniversary Banquet—Now She Regrets Losing Me

I looked at the expensive, hand-tailored suit Adrian was wearing. He looked more like the star of the evening than I did, even though I was the husband. It seemed everything had been planned long ago, so I handed Adrian the cue cards for the speech I had been preparing to give and left the banquet without paying attention to the people around me, who were waiting for a show. After leaving the banquet hall, I walked all the way to the parking lot, but my wife, Claire, never came after me. Apparently, my leaving had gone exactly the way she wanted. If that was what she wanted, I had no objections. I had been busy with the banquet since morning and hadn’t even eaten a proper meal. The moment I left, I headed straight for Harbor City’s most famous restaurant, Rose Pavilion. It used to be my favorite place to eat. Right after we got married, Claire would come there with me every week. But at some point, I disappeared from Claire’s eyes, and all the affection we had built over so many years vanished along with me. Claire hated dealing with troublesome things and thought organizing a banquet was a huge hassle, so I had started preparing two months ago to make sure every detail was flawless. From the smallest things, like the flowers and food, to the major ones, like the guest list, venue, and schedule. When we got married, we had taken a honeymoon trip based entirely on Claire’s preferences. I had always longed for a ceremony witnessed by everyone, so this anniversary banquet was supposed to be the second wedding she was giving me to make up for that. I had poured so much effort into this banquet that I knew without having to think about it that the video had not been replaced by accident. I had spent a long time editing that video myself. It contained every record of our relationship, from when Claire and I first started dating to our fifth wedding anniversary. We had walked together from our young, innocent days to where we were now. It would be a lie to say it didn’t hurt. But after too many disappointments had piled up, I had become numb. That was why I had been able to leave the banquet so calmly today. I swallowed the last bite of my meal, along with the last bit of my grievance, and finally made up my mind. When I got home, I took a shower and was about to get some sleep when Claire called. “Ethan, where are you? I didn’t know what came next in the banquet program. I almost made a fool of myself!” Her voice was full of disgust and impatience, as if I were nothing more than a servant who could be summoned and dismissed at will. I deliberately asked her: “I came home a long time ago. What’s wrong? Do you need me to go back?” There was a brief silence on Claire’s end. “Forget it. The banquet ended perfectly anyway, so you don’t need to come.” With that, she hung up. Of course, I knew she wouldn’t want me to go back. Now that the banquet was over, she probably wanted to enjoy some private time with her young heartthrob. Why would she want me there to interrupt them? I slept soundly at home. I had lost quite a bit of sleep over the past few days while preparing for the banquet. By the time I woke up fully rested, it was already the middle of the night, and Claire had come home. She had changed out of her formal dress and was wearing a light, casual dress. Her cheeks were flushed, and she looked to be in a good mood. But the moment she saw me, her pleasant expression faded slightly. “Why didn’t you answer my calls or messages?” I stretched and answered casually: “I was asleep.” Claire narrowed her eyes and stared at me for a long moment before asking impatiently: “Are you seriously throwing a tantrum over what happened earlier? Be reasonable. I did it for work.” “Everyone at the company knows Adrian and I work perfectly together. We’re the company’s golden couple. If those business partners think we’re a couple, they’ll definitely be more willing to support us.” Right, the two of you were the golden couple. So my wedding anniversary banquet had turned into your engagement party? I laughed coldly to myself, wondering whether she had gotten so carried away by today’s excitement that she had lost her mind. I didn’t want to deal with her, so I shrugged. Claire seemed very dissatisfied with my attitude. Her gaze became more searching, and just as she was about to say something else, the front door opened. Adrian walked skillfully to the bedroom door, as familiar with the house as if it were his own. He was carrying a bag and gave Claire a shy, affected smile. “Claire, you forgot your clothes, so I brought them over.” “Ethan’s here too. I hope I’m not interrupting you.” Claire had even registered Adrian’s fingerprint with the smart lock, so he entered our home as naturally as he would his own. Claire didn’t think there was anything wrong with that. She gently took the paper bag from him. “I’m sorry to trouble you by coming all the way here so late. You could’ve just waited until I came to pick them up.” The two of them exchanged a look so intimate it seemed as though their eyes were physically connected. A wave of revulsion ran through me, and I couldn’t help shuddering. Claire seemed to have found another reason to mock me, and she looked at me with even greater confidence. “Honestly, can’t you learn something from Adrian? He’s younger than you, yet he knows how to behave better than you in every way!” “At the banquet today, he handled so many guests all by himself without breaking a sweat. But you? The moment something happens, you hide like a coward.” “The end of the banquet was such a mess. If Adrian hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have known what to do! But you just abandoned everything and went home. Anyone who didn’t know better would think…” She had only gotten halfway through her sentence when I finished it for her. “I was wrong.” The next second, both Claire and Adrian froze.The breakdown Claire and Adrian had expected never came. Instead, I was calm beyond their expectations. I didn’t cry, make a scene, or even argue. I simply stared at Claire, utterly still and emotionless. Everyone knew that I loved Claire more than life itself and had given up everything for her. Before meeting her, I had been a gifted painter who freely poured his talent onto the canvas. My paintings could touch people’s hearts. They were my way of speaking to the world and an outlet for the emotions inside me. But everything quietly changed the moment I met Claire. Back then, Claire had been an ordinary employee at the company, but her smile and the warmth in her eyes gave me a sense of comfort and security I had never known before. For her, I was willing to give up everything, including the art world that had once made me shine. My family’s opposition came like a raging storm. They couldn’t understand why I would give up the artistic legacy passed down through our family for an ordinary woman. But in my heart, Claire was the person worth giving everything for. So I decisively cut ties with my family just so I could stay with her. During those days, we relied on each other to survive. Life was difficult, but we were happy. I devoted myself to taking care of her and staying by her side, trying to use my love to build a solid shelter around her and give her a sense of security she had never experienced before. With my support, Claire also bravely embarked on the path of entrepreneurship. Her company grew from nothing into a thriving business and eventually reached the height of its success. I was proud of her, and I was comforted by the thought that I had been able to accompany her through that difficult journey. But as Claire’s career flourished, our relationship quietly began to change. She became busy, often working late into the night and having no time for me even on weekends. I tried to understand how hard she was working and gave her plenty of space and support. But little by little, I realized there seemed to be someone else in her heart. At first, Claire would casually praise Adrian’s talent and promising future in front of me. “Adrian, the new guy at the company, is really capable. We have so much to talk about. We’re going to work together perfectly.” I didn’t think much of it, assuming she was simply praising an outstanding colleague. But as time passed, she began comparing me with Adrian more and more often. Her words revealed her admiration and infatuation with him. My heart sank, and an ominous feeling rose within me. Finally, I noticed that Claire had begun staying late with Adrian on a regular basis. They even started going out together on weekends. The smile that had once belonged only to me now appeared more often in front of Adrian. I had protested and made a scene, but all I received in return was Claire’s annoyance. “Can’t you be more understanding? I’m just doing my job. I only think of Adrian as a younger brother.” “Stop being unreasonable. I’m exhausted. Ethan, your love is too selfish!” I knew her heart no longer belonged entirely to me. Facing all of this, I felt more pain and confusion than ever before. I even began to question myself. Was I not good enough? Was I really inferior to Adrian? I had tried everything to win Claire back, but the absurdity at today’s banquet suddenly woke me up. I had been a fool. This relationship had stopped being worth saving long ago. Claire clearly hadn’t expected me to react so calmly. She asked again in disbelief: “What did you say?” I adjusted my posture, sat up straight, and spoke seriously yet distantly. “I said I was wrong.” “I was wrong to abandon everything to love you, and wrong to try to win back a heart that no longer loved me.” “Loving you was my mistake. Going against my family to be with you was another mistake. But now, I’ve decided to cut my losses.” Under Claire’s disbelieving stare, I said the words aloud. “Claire, let’s get divorced.” The paper bag fell from Claire’s hand onto the floor.The smugness on Adrian’s face was impossible to hide. He looked almost ready to cheer. I was afraid he might laugh out loud, since he had clearly been waiting for this moment. Claire frowned, but her reaction was completely unexpected. “Ethan, are you drunk? Or did you sleep so hard you lost your mind? Say that again.” Afraid she was too excited to hear me clearly, I repeated myself slowly and distinctly. “I said, Claire, let’s get divorced.” After saying it, I quietly waited for Claire to agree. Instead, Claire simply frowned and stared at me, as if trying to determine whether I was serious or merely acting out of anger. Several minutes passed before she turned her face away unnaturally. Her voice even softened slightly. “I’ll assume you’re just talking nonsense because you’re upset. I won’t hold it against you.” “Divorce isn’t something you can casually say just because you’re unhappy. It hurts people.” “We’ve been together for so many years. We understand each other. We’re not going to get divorced just because you said so.” “I’m going to stay at the company tonight. You should stay home and reflect on yourself. Don’t say things like that again.” Claire left without giving me a chance to argue, and Adrian followed after her with a dazed expression. I really couldn’t understand it. The two of them had been secretly growing closer right under my nose these past few days, practically inseparable. Today, they had even shown intimate photos of themselves at the banquet. I thought she had been desperate to divorce me so she could be with Adrian. But after thinking it over, I decided it worked out well enough. There were still things I needed to handle, and once I drafted the divorce agreement tomorrow and took it to her, she would agree, right? I pulled the covers over myself and went back to sleep, sleeping until late the next morning. My phone remained silent. There were no calls or messages, so I immediately called my lawyer and had him draw up the divorce agreement. After receiving the agreement, I got up, made myself presentable, and contacted some old friends from the art world to meet for lunch. Those friends were people I had met back when I was still creating freely and passionately in the art world. Every one of them had witnessed my obsession with painting and my relentless dedication. They knew how completely I had lost myself in front of a canvas. Back then, my heart had been filled with nothing but the pursuit of art. When I decided to leave the art world to take care of Claire full-time, they called me a lovesick fool. They thought I had thrown away my talent and dreams for a woman and that my decision was impulsive and stupid. At the time, I had felt some hesitation and reluctance too, but the power of love had driven me down that path without looking back. So when I decided to pick up my brush again and return to the art world, those old friends gathered around me once more. “Ethan, we don’t know what made you finally change your mind, but we all support you. As long as you come back, we’ll be right there with you!” “That’s right! I’ve already thought it through. We can hold an exhibition together, open a studio, and make our old dreams come true.” It was a satisfying meal. When I got up to pay at the front desk, I unexpectedly heard a familiar voice. I turned around and saw Claire and Adrian sitting in a couple’s booth, acting affectionate and sweet with each other. They were sharing a small cake. They even wiped frosting from each other’s mouths, and the sweetness between them stabbed at my eyes. I walked over slowly. Claire clearly hadn’t expected to see me there, and she jumped. A flash of panic crossed her eyes. “Ethan? What are you doing here?” Adrian immediately chimed in, pretending that my presence had startled him. “Ethan, you weren’t following us, were you? Don’t you trust Claire at all? You wanted a divorce yesterday, and now you’re following us today.” I had no interest in arguing with him. I knew this was all a coincidence, but I knew even more clearly that perhaps whatever bond had existed between Claire and me had truly come to an end. I took out the divorce agreement I had prepared and quietly placed it in front of her. Feeling somewhat guilty, she tried to explain. “Fine, maybe you were following us, but don’t do that again…” “And I wasn’t feeling well just now, so we were… feeding each other. Don’t get jealous over nothing.” I ignored her explanation and simply watched her in silence. She hurriedly glanced over the agreement. Maybe she felt guilty, or maybe she was eager to escape the awkward situation. Either way, she didn’t read it carefully before quickly signing her name. Only after she finished signing did I tell her that it was a divorce agreement. “Have you really been so confused that you signed it without even reading it?” Her face instantly turned pale, and her eyes filled with disbelief and fury. “This doesn’t count!” Adrian seemed not to have expected her to sign the divorce agreement so smoothly, so he stopped pretending. “Claire, be careful. What if he set you up? Is he trying to trick you out of your property?” Claire hurriedly read through the agreement several times. I laughed coldly. “You don’t need to read it. I won’t take a single thing that belongs to you. I only want what belongs to me.” Our love had become like that shared piece of cake, eaten away by time and betrayal until nothing remained but ruin.