“She really didn’t tell me anything. So, stop asking me about it.” When Joan repeated her denial for the third time, she was already sick of doing so.
Before Larry replied, he saw the traffic light in front and stepped on the brakes gently.
Joan couldn’t help but sigh. Gripping her seat belt, she remarked, “She only told me about the many differences they have in their daily lives…”
“Differences? Just a few days ago, I told Caspian that a couple must always learn how to compromise. Didn’t you tell Nancy the same?” Larry asked.
“Of course I did. But did you know what she said?” Joan turned to face Larry. “She said that love is about compatibility without having to change one’s interest or personality to accommodate the other.”
Larry was stumped. The words seemed to make sense but he still felt there was something wrong with it. However, he couldn’t put his finger on what it was.
“Are you feeling the same way as I did? You have the urge to rebut but can’t find the basis to do it?” Joan asked.
Larry tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “If it really was about compatibility, then why did she choose to get married in the first place? Now that they are, how can she say something like that?”
Joan plainly replied, “Perhaps, love at first sight caused both of them to lose their rationality. But living together might have brought them back to reality.”
“Hmm… It sounds like Nancy doesn’t intend to reconcile with Caspian.” As Larry stepped on the accelerator, their car continued on its journey.
At that point, Joan was overwhelmed by guilt. Although it had nothing to do with her, hiding something from Larry filled her with self-reproach. After a long hesitation, she stuttered, “S-She… she said… she wants a divorce.”
Given that traffic was noisy and Joan spoke very softly, Larry didn’t catch her words. “Huh? What?”
“D-Divorce.” Joan raised her volume.
She could obviously feel Larry trembling as he gradually applied the brakes and stopped by the roadside. After He finally regained his senses after a long while and asked, “Divorce? Did you hear her wrong?”
Joan shook her head. “I thought I made a mistake too. But that was what Nancy told me.”
“Have Caspian agreed to it?” Larry asked.
Joan shook her head. “No, Nancy hasn’t told him about it yet.”
Unexpectedly, Larry burst out in laughter. However, it was a wry and helpless one. “Caspian would never agree to it. How could he?”
“Larry, everyone has the freedom to make their own choices. There’s no rule saying that one person must be with another forever. As outsiders, all we can do is respect their decision,” Joan remarked. The best she could do now was not mention Jory in front of Larry.
However, she still felt conflicted. Although she managed to keep Nancy’s secret, it felt like a betrayal to Caspian. Is this how I repay him after everything he has done for us?
“Previously, I told Caspian to never bring up about divorce no matter what happened with Nancy.” Larry’s eyes were filled with an indescribable sadness. “He agreed and even said that the idea never crossed his mind. However, I didn’t expect Nancy to be the one who would bring it up.”
As Joan gazed into his eyes, she put her hand on Larry’s. “Perhaps, there is a period in everyone’s life when their fate is no longer in their hands.”
Joan wondered if Nancy had thought this through, especially of the consequences. As for the latter’s decision to divorce, it was one where Nancy just couldn’t help herself.
