His cruelty was subtler: the clipped answers, the indifference, the way his eyes skimmed over me as though I were just another piece of furniture in his parents’ home.
For five years, I was someone’s wife but never truly someone’s partner. My husband’s name sat on my documents, his presence filled the house, but his heart—if it was ever mine—had long ago slipped into silence. He wasn’t cruel in the traditional sense. No yelling, no blows, no smashed dishes. His cruelty was subtler: the … Read more