My husband begged for a baby, then refused to help when our son was born. One morning, his mom overheard our argument and said something that changed everything.
My name’s Viki, and I’m thirty-five. I teach English online, mostly to international students, and I’ve been doing it long enough to build a decent client list.
My husband, Kevin, and I have been together for just over four years.
He’s charming when he wants to be, and he sure knows how to sell a dream. The biggest one? That he’d be the most loving, present dad in the world.
We had our son, Liam, in January.
I gave birth during one of the coldest winters in recent memory.
I still remember the hospital window frosting over while I cradled this tiny bundle against my chest, thinking, We finally did it. We’re a family now.
But things started to shift.
Quietly at first.
I had to go back to work just two weeks after giving birth.
Bills don’t wait. Kevin works part-time, and we moved in with his mom, Donna, to save on rent.
Most of my students are from Asia and South America, so I work odd hours.
Usually afternoons, sometimes late at night. Kevin agreed to watch the baby during my lessons, especially the late ones.
He only asked that I never book anything past midnight. I thought that was fair.
Kevin got back on a schedule where he wants to go to bed at 11 p.m.
every night. We try to, but with a baby, sometimes…
it just does not happen. Liam sometimes will stay asleep when I put him to bed, and sometimes he wakes up screaming.
But last night… something changed.
It was 10:45 p.m., and I was sitting on the edge of our bed, nursing our son.
Kevin walked out of the shower, towel slung low on his hips, hair dripping.
He rubbed his eyes and muttered, “What time’s your lesson?”
“Eleven. Same student from Korea.
I’ll try to get him down before then.”
He snorted and reached for his pajama bottoms.
“What’s your plan if Liam wakes up?” he asked, not looking at me.
“My bedtime is eleven. You know that.”
I blinked. “Well, if he does, maybe you can rock him or put him on the mat for a bit?”
Kevin stood still, arms crossed, eyes narrowing.
“My bedtime is 11 p.m., and if the baby wakes up, that’s your problem to solve.”
There was no humor in his voice.
Just cold finality.
I opened my mouth, then closed it. Liam shifted in my arms, letting out a tiny sigh. My throat felt tight.
The story doesn’t end here –
it continues on the next page.
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