Chapter 10 Apology
“Rosalie, there’s someone downstairs blocking the front door.
“It’s your husband.”
My coworker looked at me like she’d just seen a ghost.
I’d told everyone here I was single–easier that way, cleaner for work.
Now, suddenly, I have a husband showing up out of nowhere.
I didn’t have to think twice. It had to be Hugo.
I rushed downstairs, and he was right outside the office entrance.
”
He was holding a snow–white cat, just like my old cat Snowy. Except this one was much chubbier–clearly pampered and well–fed.
The moment he saw me, he ran over eyes darting, avoiding mine.
“Rosalie, it’s been a while.”
It had been a year and a month since I left New York.
I’d heard about him going to my old company, bringing coffee and snacks for the whole office day after day.
He even knelt in front of my coworkers to beg for my current work address.
Based on the timeline, he must’ve come here without taking a single break.
His face was cleaned up, and his hair gelled and styled, but none of it hid the fact that he looked wrecked. He was skinny, hollow, and
defeated.
“If you’re here to hand over the signed divorce papers, I’ll give you three minutes.
“If not, get lost. I don’t have a cheating husband.”
Hugo said nothing and kept his head down. He couldn’t even meet my
eyes.
He just reached out and held the cat up to me.
The cat was calm and friendly, just like Snowy. It even tried to nuzzle into me.
“It’s for you. You always held onto this, didn’t you?”
“So that’s what this was? He thought bringing me a cat could make up for everything he did?” I thought.
I let out a cold, bitter laugh and took two steps back. I didn’t even touch the cat.
That wound is buried deep inside me. No one gets to touch it.
“I don’t want your regrets, Hugo. And I sure as hell don’t want your pity gifts.”
He suddenly looked up, his eyes bloodshot.
And when he realized I truly felt nothing for him anymore, he dropped
to his knees with a thud.
His tears splashed onto the pavement as more and more people
gathered to watch.
But he didn’t seem to care. His voice came out hoarse and low.
“Rosalie, can’t you just give me one more chance?
“We loved each other so much before. If we try again, we can
He was clinging to the past. Dreaming about a future that was never going to happen.
“I’ll be better this time. I’ll give you everything. Just you. I’ll take care of our cat. Everything.”
“Please, just forgive me. Just this once.”
Hugo used to be full of pride.
But now, to win me back, he’d knelt before every person connected to
- me.
And today, he was kneeling in front of me.
It was pathetic.
I waved at the security guard from the building. “He doesn’t work here. Don’t let him in again.”
At that, Hugo stared at me, stunned.
He tried breaking free from the guards as they grabbed him, calling out my name as his life depended on it.
“Rosalie, please! Don’t send me away, please!
“We loved each other so much before. If we try again, we can…”
His words trailed off into the distance as the guards dragged him all the way to the gate. He looked like he was going to collapse.
He hadn’t taken his meds in hours, and now his head was spinning.
He couldn’t believe it. He’d blown it again.
Pale and shaking, Hugo pulled the signed divorce papers from his bag.
He handed them to one of the guards and whispered hopelessly, “Give
these to her.
“Tell her I’m returning to America, so she doesn’t have to worry anymore.”
When I received the documents he’d finally signed, a breeze passed through, lifting one of the pages and flipping it over.
A single, dried hydrangea petal slipped out, yellowed with age.
It fluttered down and settled gently, like the last trace of whatever love once existed between us.
After returning to America, Hugo donated all his assets to a stray animal rescue foundation.
That August, I got a call from the hospital.
Sylvie was dying. She wanted to see me one last time.
I said no. And then, I heard the faintest whisper so soft it was barely audible. “I’m sorry.”
But I didn’t need apologies anymore. I just needed to keep walking forward.
