Kelly’s voice was steady as she delivered the news to her husband, Zack, of 30 years. “I’m leaving you,” she said, her words echoing through their home. Zack’s face fell, his eyes wide with shock and hurt. “What? Why?” he asked, tears welling up in his eyes. “I’ve been a good husband, haven’t I?”
Kelly’s expression was a mix of sadness and frustration. “You’ve done nothing wrong, Zack, but that’s exactly the problem. You’ve done nothing at all.” She listed the times she’d needed him, the times she’d asked for help, for love, for attention, and he’d turned away, too engrossed in his TV shows to notice.
Zack’s face contorted in confusion. “You never told me,” he cried, as if that excused his absence. Kelly’s voice was firm. “I told you every time I snuggled up for a kiss and you were more interested in what was on TV. I told you when I begged for your love and attention, for romance.”
As Kelly packed her bags and left, Zack begged her to stay, to give him another chance. But Kelly’s mind was made up. She’d spent too long waiting for him to notice her, to love her. She deserved better.
The next day, Kelly started her new life in a cozy apartment in Venice Beach. She sold her car and started cycling to work, feeling a sense of freedom she’d never known before. She took up dancing, made new friends, and shed the old wardrobe she’d bought to please Zack.
A year later, Kelly met Sam, a kind and considerate man who spoiled her rotten. He lavished care and attention on her, and Kelly finally felt seen and loved. As they set a date for their summer wedding, Kelly couldn’t help but think that she’d been asleep for 30 years, but she was finally awake.
Meanwhile, Zack was left to pick up the pieces of his shattered life. He’d lost the love of his life, and now he was dating a much younger woman who seemed to be enjoying his misery. Kelly smiled wryly, thinking that maybe, just maybe, Zack was getting what he deserved. But as she looked into Sam’s loving eyes, she knew she’d found her true partner, someone who would love and cherish her for who she was.
