After I Stopped Loving Him, He Lost His Mind - Chapter 4

When I woke up again, it was already past midnight.

My stomach burned with hunger after going so long without food..

Even without looking in the mirror, I knew I must look terrible.

Not that it mattered–there was no one here to see me. I lived alone in this house.

Stumbling downstairs to find something to eat, I noticed the living room lights were still on.

To my surprise, it was Jack. He had come back.

He rarely stayed home at night.

I knew he spent his evenings with Emily–eating the meals she cooked, taking walks in the park to help digest, and even going out of his way to track down the exact breed of kitten she wanted.

Maybe Jack liked cats too.

But I was allergic to cat fur.

From the very start, our habits, our preferences, our lives–they were never aligned.

He was lounging lazily on the couch, a cigarette between his fingers, his eyes fixed sharply on me as I descended the stairs.

I lowered my gaze and tried to walk past him, but he grabbed my wrist. Hard.

His grip was so tight that red marks formed almost instantly around my skin.

He frowned as he looked me over, his voice full of suspicion.

“Why have you gotten so thin?”

I froze for a moment, then yanked at my arm, trying to break free. When I couldn’t, I sneered.

“Jack Sullivan, what kind of game are you playing now?”

“What, did one of your mistresses finally treat you like dirt? Is that why you’re suddenly noticing me?”

Jack’s eyes flicked to my wrist, then back to my face. My tone must’ve stung, because his expression darkened.

When I finally managed to pull my arm free and walked toward the dining table, I noticed something strange–a cup of my once–favorite bubble tea and a slice of the cake I used to beg Jack to bring home for me.

What was this? A peace offering?

A bribe for the lunch I had delivered earlier?

Or maybe it was an apology.

But none of it mattered anymore. I was dying.

I didn’t need Jack. I didn’t need his pity.

Without a second glance at the table, I headed straight for the fridge and grabbed a cream puff.

That’s when Jack snapped.

He slammed me against the floor–to–ceiling window with a force that made the glass shudder, his jaw clenched, his voice full of rage.

“Taylor, what the hell do you want from me?”

“Aren’t these the things you used to love? How dare you ignore them!”

Them. Or maybe… him.

I looked up at him with a bitter smile.

“Jack, I don’t want any of it anymore. Not the tea, not the cake, and certainly not you.”

“You know,” I continued, my voice dripping with venom, “you’re pathetic. When I loved you, you couldn’t care less. But now that I don’t, you cling to me like a stray dog.”

In all the years I’d known Jack, I’d learned exactly where to hit to make it hurt.

His face turned ice–cold, his temper brewing into a storm.

As his hand shot up like he was going to hit me, I met his glare, raising my chin in defiance.

“Go ahead, Jack. Hit me. If you don’t, you’re not a man.”

His hand froze mid–air, my words pushing him to the edge. But instead of striking me, he let out a strangled growl and stalked in circles, his hands on his hips.

When I turned to leave, he lost it completely.

In one swift motion, he threw me over his shoulder and stormed upstairs, ignoring my fists pounding against his back.

Like a wild animal, he threw me onto the bed, his hands yanking at my nightgown with a feral desperation.

I felt nothing but disgust.

Balling my fists, I punched him with all the strength I had left, but it wasn’t enough. Compared to him, my efforts were nothing but a nuisance.

“Get off me, Jack!” I spat. “Don’t you dare touch me with your filthy hands–you make me sick!”

He pinned my legs down with his knee and silenced me with a brutal kiss. His lips crushed mine with such force that the skin split, leaving a metallic taste of blood in my mouth.

I stopped struggling, my strength completely drained.

Leaning down, his breath hot against my ear, he whispered, “Taylor, you say no, but your body seems to want me just fine.”

“If you’d just admit what you did back then, we could go back to how we used to be.”

“I don’t understand why you’re so stubborn about this.”

Hearing those words, I turned my head away, bile rising in my throat. The thought of his mouth–just hours ago, probably on someone else- made me retch.

“Am I really that disgusting to you?”

For the first time, I looked at his face.

His eyes were bloodshot, his expression unhinged, like a child throwing a tantrum because his favorite toy had been taken away.

But what was I supposed to admit?

I’d done nothing wrong. I would rather die than confess to something I hadn’t done.

I used to think I was special to Jack.

Until Chloe came into the picture.

She was his first love. If I hadn’t accidentally stumbled across the truth, he probably would’ve kept it hidden forever.

Jack was always cold to me, but with Chloe, he was different. He smiled warmly, acted playful–he was human. Just not with me.

I thought I’d spend my life like a rat in the shadows, watching them bask in their happiness.

Then one day, Jack stormed into the house, his face twisted with rage.

“Taylor, did you tell my parents about Chloe?”

I froze, completely caught off guard. “What are you talking about?”

His response was a scream, raw and venomous:

“You’re such a miserable bitch. You should’ve died with your parents. If you can’t be happy, why drag me down into your hell?”

That was the moment I asked myself: Why didn’t I die with them?

Even then… you wanted me to stay.

But all you left me with in the end was that hateful glare.

I didn’t do it.

It wasn’t until years later that I learned Jack’s “perfect first love” wasn’t as flawless as he believed.

Back then, Jack was just an ordinary guy when they dated. Maybe she was excited to have such a handsome boyfriend.

But people don’t change their nature. When she found someone wealthier, she abandoned Jack without hesitation, though she played it off as if she had no choice.

“Taylor, are you zoning out?”

Jack’s voice dragged me back to the present, his anger flaring again.

He pinned my wrists above my head with one hand, his other hand sliding under my nightgown. Just as his fingers brushed my thigh, his phone rang in his pocket.

It was Emily calling.

The ringtone grew louder and more urgent, as if pressuring Jack to make a decision. After a long pause, he finally answered.

On the other end, I could hear Emily’s trembling voice:

“Mr. Sullivan, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything bad about Taylor. But it’s only because I love you so much. Please don’t leave me. I’m so scared…I’m here alone, and someone’s been knocking on the door for a while now. Can you come back?”

Her voice, pleading and tearful, filled the silence. But Jack didn’t seem as eager as he usually was.

He just stared at me.

I knew what he wanted–to see me beg.

But I had begged too many times before. This time, I wanted to hold my head high.

“Since you’re so busy, Mr. Sullivan,” I said flatly, “you should hurry up and take care of it.”

“Taylor…” He sighed, his voice dropping. “You know all it would take is one word–just one word from you–and I’d stay.”

Stay? He must have forgotten the times I had begged him before, how I had lowered myself to plead.

What had he said to me back then?

“Taylor, what excuse are you using this time to make me stay? Are you seriously that pathetic? Can’t survive without a man?”

It had been the anniversary of my parents‘ death. All I’d wanted was for him to go to the cemetery with me, to show my parents that I was doing okay, so they wouldn’t worry.

But in the end, it was all just wishful thinking.

“Well,” I said with a cold laugh, “I don’t need your company anymore, Mr. Sullivan.”

With that, I shoved him off me. He froze, stunned, as I grabbed a wet wipe from the nightstand and wiped the places he’d touched, as if trying to scrub away something filthy.

For a moment, Jack just stared at me. Then, with a bitter laugh, he picked up his phone and redialed Emily.

“I’ll be there soon,‘ he said flatly before hanging up.

Without another glance at me, he turned and slammed the door behind him.