The Dead Jasmine

I accidentally killed the white jasmine plant that Seraphina cherished most.

She was so livid that she pressed a knife against my throat.

Calvin Rhodes, don't you ever forget that I only married you because your brother entrusted me to you on his deathbed.

I don't love you at all. You have no right to touch my things!

Beside her, the daughter I had raised with my own two hands watched with cold, indifferent eyes.

"Calvin, you really think you're someone special, don't you? How dare you touch the flowers my father gave to Mom!"

Bitterness filled my heart. It turned out that in all these years, she and her mother had never once seen me as family.

Suddenly, I felt an overwhelming exhaustion. I decided it was time to leave them behind.

1.

The fruit knife in Seraphina's hand was close to breaking my skin. Her face was a mask of pure rage.

"Calvin, don't you ever forget that I only married you because your brother entrusted me to you on his deathbed."

"I don't love you at all. You have no right to touch my things!"

I froze.

I had been married to her for seven years.

I thought that seven years would have been enough for her to fall in love with me.

But now, I realized how wrong I was.

She still hadn't moved on from my brother.

"I'm sorry. I didn't kill the plant on purpose," I said, my voice thick with emotion.

"I'll buy you a new one tomorrow, okay?"

Hearing my words, she became even more erratic. She pressed the knife harder against me.

"Caleb gave this to me! It's one of a kind! How could you possibly replace it?"

This jasmine plant was a token of love Caleb had given Seraphina when he was still alive.

It represented their eternal, unwavering devotion to one another.

Today, I noticed it was starting to wither, so I decided to water it.

I didn't realize the maid had filled the watering can with hot water meant for mopping the floors.

And so, the plant died.

When Seraphina found out, she flew into a frenzy, smashing almost everything in the house.

Then, she grabbed a knife and held it to my neck.

Though she had always been cold to me, she had never shown this level of fury before.

As I stood there, Willow, the daughter I had raised since she was a baby, glared at me with equal resentment.

"Calvin, you really think you're someone special, don't you? How dare you touch the flowers my father gave to Mom!"

I looked at her, feeling a deep sense of disappointment.

Biologically, she was my brother's daughter. But since the day she was born, I was the one who raised her.

Technically, I was her father.

Yet, she had always disliked me. She refused to call me Dad, addressing me only by my first name.

My chest ached with a hollow, stinging pain.

But because one was my wife and the other was the girl I had raised, I could only lower my head.

"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean for this to happen."

"I know it's my fault. I'll accept whatever punishment you want."

Seraphina's eyes turned icy and dark.

She pulled the knife back and grabbed my shirt, dragging me toward the door.

"Fine. Since you're so sorry, go get on your knees and apologize in front of Caleb's grave!"

My brother's headstone was in the back garden.

To be close to him, Seraphina had threatened my parents until they agreed to let him be buried here.

She had surrounded his grave with bushes of jasmine.

I was dragged to the headstone, which was half-buried under a thick layer of snow.

His photo was still there. He looked young, handsome, and full of life. His story had ended when he was only twenty-three.

"Apologize to him!"

Seraphina kicked the back of my knees and forced my head down toward the frozen ground.

I didn't resist. My forehead slammed into the hard earth, and I felt the skin break.

Ice-cold slush seeped into the wound.

My entire body shivered from the sudden, biting pain.

2.

"This pain is nothing compared to what you've done!"

Seraphina's voice was devoid of any warmth.

"You destroyed the last thing Caleb left for me. I wish you were the one dead instead!"

She continued to shove my head into the dirt.

It hurt, but I didn't make a sound.

Back in the day, everyone in Seattle thought they were the perfect couple.

Caleb was a rising rock star, and Seraphina was his lead guitarist.

They were always together, performing at concerts and appearing at every red-carpet event.

They were supposed to get married.

But then, Caleb was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

I'll never forget how he gripped my hand after his final round of chemo.

"Calvin, I'm begging you. Please take care of Seraphina and the baby for me."

"Marry her. I know you've always had a crush on her. I can only rest in peace if she's with you."

I was shocked that he knew my secret feelings.

But even if I loved her, I didn't think I could marry my brother's woman.

Caleb pleaded with me. He said he would refuse all treatment if I didn't agree.

And so, Seraphina and I got married.

After the wedding, I did everything for her. I even got a vasectomy so she wouldn't have to worry about anything.

When Willow was born, I encouraged Seraphina to pursue her music career while I stayed home to be a full-time dad.

For years, we had a rhythm.

She always came home to a hot meal, and I handled every detail of Willow's life.

She would even share stories about her work with me.

Though they were often cold, we functioned like a normal family most of the time.

I genuinely believed she had moved on and finally accepted me.

But I was living a lie.

Caleb was still the only one living in her heart. She had never let him go.

3.

The pristine white snow beneath me was stained red with my blood.

Seraphina finally let go of me, her voice cutting like a blade.

"Stay here and apologize."

"Don't you dare move until sunrise!"

Before I could say a word, she turned and walked away.

Snow drifted down the back of my neck, but the chill in my heart was far worse.

I looked at my brother's headstone and choked out a whisper, "Caleb, maybe I should have never promised you anything."

Just then, a bucket of freezing water splashed over me.

"Calvin! Mom told you to apologize. What do you think you're doing?"

It was Willow. She was seven now and understood a lot about the world.

She had always believed I was the one who stole her mother's happiness.

She thought that if Seraphina hadn't married me, she wouldn't be so miserable all the time.

My body was starting to go numb. I struggled to speak. "Willow... do you really hate me as much as your mother does?"

I was the one who drove her to school every day. I made her breakfast and helped her with every homework assignment.

I had given her all my time, yet I hadn't earned a shred of her gratitude.

"I hate you because you make Mom sad!" she barked at me.

"Mom is crying in her room right now, and it's all because you killed her flowers!"

I felt a wave of icy despair.

I tried to crawl up, wanting to go out and find an identical plant for Seraphina.

But Willow rushed over, hitting me and pulling my hair.

"Stay on your knees!"

I was freezing and battered, but I didn't fight back.

4.

The blizzard grew worse. I don't know how much time passed before my vision blurred and I collapsed into the snow.

When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed.

Seraphina wasn't there. Only Willow sat by the bed, looking at me with disgust.

"Calvin, you're such a drama queen. Mom makes you kneel for a little bit and you just pass out?"

"You look fine now. You were totally faking it!"

"Where's your mother?" my voice was hoarse. I felt the thick bandages wrapped around my head.

"Mom is with Uncle Simon!" she said with a smirk.

"They're the ones who actually belong together."

"Honestly, Calvin, you should just divorce her."

I couldn't believe a seven-year-old was saying these things.

"Who... who is Simon?"

My heart felt like it was being shredded.

Did Seraphina really hate me that much?

I had fainted in a blizzard, and she wouldn't even come to see if I was alive.

Willow's eyes lit up with excitement.

"Uncle Simon is Mom's new guitarist. He plays for her now."

"Mom is happiest when she's with him."

She pulled out her phone and showed me a live stream.

On a stage, a man had his arm draped around Seraphina.

The crowd was screaming their names.

"Seraphina! Seraphina!"

"We love you!"

"You and Simon are soulmates!"

Someone in the comments asked, "Are Seraphina and Simon together?"

Our marriage had been a secret.

Seraphina said a public marriage would hurt her career, so the world didn't know she was a wife or a mother.

I stared at the screen, desperate to hear her answer.

She smiled beautifully, looking more radiant than I had seen her in years.

"Of course," she said.

"Simon is the love of my life."

"I'll never let him go."

The fans went wild.

The man named Simon looked at her with pure adoration and leaned in to kiss her.

Seraphina didn't pull away. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss.

My blood turned to ice in my veins.

Willow spoke up beside me, her voice cold. "Now do you see who she really loves?"

"Uncle Simon was my real dad's best friend. He can take care of Mom way better than you can."

"They actually have things to talk about."

"You? You're just a burden who makes her miserable!"

5.

So, Simon was Caleb's old friend.

Thinking back to his face on the screen, he did look a bit like my brother.

No wonder Seraphina was drawn to him.

The pain in my chest was suffocating. I started to tremble.

I could handle them not liking me. I could handle being their punching bag.

But I couldn't accept Seraphina cheating on me.

I had sacrificed everything for her for years. Did she remember none of it?

I reached for my phone to call her.

Willow slapped it out of my hand.

"Mom is performing in Vegas right now. Don't you dare ruin it for her!"

I was rotting in a hospital bed.

And she was kissing another man in the neon lights of the Strip.

In that moment, my heart finally shattered beyond repair.

"Willow, tell me something. What did I ever do to you to deserve this?"

I looked her in the eyes.

Even if I only had a hundred dollars in my pocket, I gave it all to her and Seraphina.

I would have given them my literal heart if they asked.

Her face remained twisted in contempt.

"Mom isn't happy with you."

"You force her to eat the food you cook. You force her to take your stupid gifts. And now you're clinging to her like a parasite."

"Mom and I both hate your guts!"

Seraphina is a singer, so I always worried about her vocal cords. I made sure her meals were perfectly balanced and healthy.

To get the freshest ingredients, I drove to the organic farms at five in the morning.

I did that commute every single day for seven years.

She liked luxury items, so I saved every penny to buy her things she wanted and left them in her room.

I thought these gestures would move her.

I didn't realize that in her mind, I was suffocating her.

"Calvin, if you're smart, you'll divorce Mom now. Maybe I'll take care of you when you're old if you do."

"But if you stay, I'll throw you into the cheapest nursing home I can find!"

She spat the words with such venom.

No parent should ever have to hear that from their child.

"Willow, you don't have to call me Dad."

"But remember this: even a bird knows how to feed its parents. A child should at least know gratitude."

"I don't want to hear your lectures!"

She lunged forward and bit my arm hard.

"You raised me for a few years, big deal! Mom is the one who suffered to give me birth. She's the one who matters!"

She stormed out after that.

I lay there, feeling a hollow ache in my soul.

I managed to grab my phone from the floor. There wasn't a single missed call or text from my wife.

She knew I had collapsed.

She just didn't care.

If you keep a dog for seven years, you develop an attachment. But she felt nothing for me.

Fine. This marriage needed to end.

In the following days, neither Seraphina nor Willow came back.

I discharged myself and went home to an empty house.

I called Willow's school, and the teacher told me Seraphina had picked her up for a trip.

That's when I saw Seraphina's latest Instagram post.

She was in a bikini on a beach, glowing. In the background, Simon was lifting Willow into the air, both of them laughing.

They looked like the perfect family of three.

The caption read: Happiness finally has a face.

A cold draft blew through the empty house, making the windows rattle.

I gripped my phone, shivering. I had never felt so alone.

6.

I received a FaceTime call from Willow's Apple Watch.

The screen showed a sunset beach. Simon was down on one knee, proposing to Seraphina.

A crowd had gathered with tiki torches, cheering for them.

Simon asked, "Seraphina, will you marry me?"

Seraphina was moved to tears, nodding frantically. "Yes! Yes, a thousand times!"

"Calvin, did you see that?"

Willow's face appeared on the screen, smug and triumphant.

"Mom and Uncle Simon are getting married."

"It's time for you to get out of the way."

My body felt stiff. I tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come.

Legally, I was still her husband.

But in this moment, I felt like a homewrecker interfering in her true love.

I had spent seven years trying to earn a place in her heart, and I had failed. It was time to give up.

"Fine. I'm out. Put your mother on the phone."

My voice was gravelly.

I had spent seven years of my life on them.

I had done my duty to her and to my late brother. I was done.

Willow was thrilled. "Finally! I'll go give it to her."

"Hello? What do you want?"

Seraphina's voice was full of annoyance. She didn't even turn the camera toward her face.

I realized she had always spoken to me this way.

I used to mistake her coldness for a quiet, gentle nature.

I took a deep breath. "Seraphina, let's get a divorce."

"When you get back, we'll sign the papers."

There was a long silence on the other end. Then, she asked, "You want to divorce me?"

She sounded genuinely shocked.

7.

She should be happy, shouldn't she? She was finally free from the man who made her so miserable.

"Yes. I want a divorce."

As soon as I said it, I heard Willow cheering in the background.

"Yay! Finally! Calvin is finally leaving!"

"Mom, you can be with Uncle Simon now! You should thank me, I'm the one who convinced him toD"

Suddenly, there was a loud *smack*. Willow's voice cut off instantly.

"Mom...?"

Willow sounded terrified.

I didn't understand why Seraphina had hit her.

"Seraphina! Why did you hit the child?"

Seraphina didn't answer me. Instead, she screamed at Willow, "Willow, have I spoiled you too much? How dare you interfere in adult business?"

Then she screamed into the phone at me, "Calvin! You're actually listening to a child?"

"Are you three years old?"

Before I could respond, she slammed the phone down.

I stood there for a long time, confused.

I didn't know what she wanted from me anymore.

Did she think I was just playing games?

It didn't matter. My mind was made up.

I packed my bags and walked out of that house for the last time.

For the sake of that family, I had quit my job and given up my career to be a stay-at-home dad.

Now that they didn't want me, it was a relief. I could finally live for myself.

I signed up for a volunteer teaching program in a remote mountain village.

I chose this because Seraphina and I had actually met in the mountains.

Back then, I was a fresh college grad doing my student teaching in a rural area.

Seraphina had come to the village to donate supplies for the kids.

It was autumn. She wore a soft white dress, her long hair blowing in the breeze.

It was love at first sight for me.

It wasn't until later that I found out she was my brother's girlfriend.

She was the one woman I was never supposed to have.

I thought that by marrying her, I might eventually win her over.

But her heart was a fortress I couldn't breach.

No matter how hard I tried, she wouldn't love me.

The two-week vacation was supposed to just be starting, but Seraphina booked a flight home after only two days.

Willow, having been slapped the day before, sat quietly in the corner, not daring to ask questions.

Simon grabbed Seraphina's hand, looking irritated. "Seraphina, there's nothing waiting for you back home. Why are we leaving?"

Seraphina froze.

Why?

When she heard Calvin ask for a divorce on the phone, her heart had plummeted.

She didn't know what was wrong with her, but she felt a desperate need to get back.

"Calvin wants a divorce. I need to go handle it."

That was the only excuse she could find.

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