Chapter 3

Sienna

Nobody really walks to work in the middle of a busy morning commute.

As I stepped onto the crosswalk, an electric scooter delivery rider blew straight through the green light and slammed into me.

I hit the asphalt hard, scraping up my hands, knees, and forehead.

An hour later at the urgent care, a nurse wrapped my forehead and handed me a prescription. "Keep the bandage dry for three days," she instructed. "No showers, and apply this cream twice daily."

I took an Uber straight to the office.

The driver had two phones mounted on his dash—one for GPS, the other streaming Chloe's TikTok Live.

The chat was flooding with worried comments, and Chloe was pouting at the camera.

"Aww, thanks for caring, guys~ This little kitty is completely fine! Ethan rushed over right on time~ No hospital needed!"

"No way~ I haven't confessed to him yet~ Stop spreading rumors! Ethan's right here watching, and yes, he's absolutely amazing."

I checked my phone to find two furious texts from Ethan:

"My manager says you missed the Q3 strategy meeting. Where the hell are you? Get to your desk NOW."

"It was a three-block walk. Stop being such a drama queen."

The sheer hypocrisy made me laugh out loud.

That evening, I was curled up on the couch icing my injuries when the front door keypad chimed. Ethan marched in, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"And here I thought you were finally growing up, being so quiet lately. Turns out you were just saving up for a stunt like this."

Finding the TV too loud, he walked over and yanked the power cord out.

"Sienna, do you have any idea how much money we lose when a strategy meeting gets pushed back? That deck took two weeks to prepare!"

I slowly looked up at him. When his eyes landed on the bandage on my head and the bloody scrapes covering my arms, his face completely froze.

"What happened to you?"

"Nothing," I said casually, looking away. "Just got run over by a scooter on my way to work."

Ethan hesitated, his expression flickering with a rare trace of guilt. He stepped forward, reaching out to check my forehead. "Why didn't you call me?"

I pulled back, letting out a bitter laugh. "It's just a scratch. I know your star streamer comes first."

Call him? For what? So he could accuse me of faking it before I even finished a sentence?

Ethan tensed, stepping back with a cold scoff. "Sienna, is the dramatic attitude really necessary? Fine, dropping you off on the street was a bad call, but are you five? Who gets hit crossing the street?"

I stared at him in complete silence.

See? Even getting hit by a vehicle got twisted into me being childish.

I stood up to head to the bedroom, unable to hide my limp. Ethan's expression softened slightly, and he sighed as he came over to steady me.

"I'll sleep in our room tonight so I can keep an eye on you."

Ethan hadn't slept in our bedroom before midnight in months.

Whenever Chloe complained about hate comments on her streams, she'd demand his company. So every night, Ethan would sit in his home office, working while watching her streams and flirting with her in the live chat.

I used to cry and fight him over it, but he always hid behind the excuse of "just supporting company talent"—eventually threatening divorce until I shut up.

Tonight, I didn't push him away when he guided me into the room. But when he reached out to pull me into his chest, I spoke up quietly.

"Ethan, I want a divorce."