Dear Ex-Wife, Back My Son!

Chapter 9

Joshua checked the time and it was ten sharp.

Joshua was about to call Anika to ask if she had arrived when he saw her standing under a big tree not far away, dressed in dark clothes.

In the drizzling rain, Anika looked especially thin as if she would be blown away with a gust of wind.

Joshua remembered that when Anika first married him, she was youthful, outgoing, and full of vitality, unlike now, so lifeless and skinny.

Holding an umbrella, Joshua walked straight up to Anika.

Anika didn't notice him until he was quite close.

Over the past three years, Joshua hadn't changed much. He was still handsome, energetic, and a little more mature and capable than before.

Anika was in a trance. These three years seemed to have passed in the blink of an eye, but it also felt like it was her whole lifetime.

Joshua stood before Anika and gazed at her coldly, waiting for her to apologize.

Her tantrum had lasted so long, and it was enough!

To his surprise, Anika said, "Sorry for taking up your work time. Let's go inside."

Joshua's face darkened instantly.

"Don't regret it."

With that, Joshua turned and walked inside.

Anika looked at him from behind, feeling a bit sad.

Would she regret it?

Anika didn't know. She just knew that she was tired.

If a person had made up their mind to leave someone, it was probably because they were so disappointed that they could no longer see hope.

Joshua and Anika proceeded with the divorce.

They were both asked if they were sure that they wanted a divorce.

Anika firmly said, "Yes."

Her determined gaze gave Joshua a slight twinge in his heart.

For some technical reason, their divorce couldn't become official right away. They had to come back a month later.

If they didn't come back after a month, the divorce wouldn't happen.

Then, Joshua and Anika walked out.

Anika looked at Joshua calmly and said, "See you in a month. Take care."

Then, Anika walked into the rain and took a cab to leave.

Joshua stood rooted to the spot and watched the car drive away, unable to tell how he felt.

Perhaps, it was a relief.

Joshua no longer had to deal with Anika or suffer mockery for having a wife with a special condition anymore.

Just then, Valentin called, "Joshua, is it done?"

"Hmm."

Valentin found out that the divorce couldn't be official until a month later, so he said, "Don't be soft-hearted with her. She must have some tricks up her sleeve."

Valentin had a point.

Anika had pursued Joshua for more than ten years, but now, she decided to let go out of the blue. Who would believe it?

***

Anika was in the taxi, leaning against the window.

Anika watched the raindrops sliding down the window, lost in thought.

The driver saw Anika's ear bleeding in the rearview mirror and was startled.

"Miss, miss!!"

He called out several times, but Anika didn't respond.

The driver quickly pulled the car over.

Anika was confused. They hadn't reached her destination yet, so why did the car stop?

Anika looked at the driver and saw his mouth moving, but she couldn't hear him.

"What did you say? I can't hear you."

The driver typed on his phone to tell Anika about her condition.

Anika slowly reached out and felt the warm blood.

It seemed that Anika had gotten used to it.

"I'm fine. It happens to me often. It's not a big deal."

Anika had a hearing condition, but it didn't use to bleed like this.

It started two years ago. At a party, Joshua's best friend, Valentin, pushed her into a swimming pool.

Anika couldn't swim. Her eardrum was damaged, and she almost died.

The problem was thus developed.

Anika had thought it was cured, but recently, it happened frequently again.

The driver was worried and took Anika to the nearest hospital.

Anika thanked him and went in for a check-up alone.

The doctor Anika saw was the doctor she had been seeing all along.

"Dr. Jebb, I have had a bad memory lately. I keep forgetting what I'm doing," Anika said.

This morning, when Anika woke up in the hotel, it took her a while to remember she was meeting Joshua today.

So, she went to the meeting location early to wait for him.

Anika was afraid that she would forget it again, so she read the message from him from time to time.

After reading Anika's recent diagnosis report, Alex Jebb looked worried.

"Ms. Carey, I suggest you do some other tests, such as psychological ones."

Psychological tests...

Anika followed Alex's advice and went to see a psychiatrist.

Anika was diagnosed with depression.

Patients with severe depression would experience a memory decline.

When Anika returned to the hotel, she bought a notebook and a pen to record recent events. She left the notebook by the bed, so she could read it as soon as she woke up.

Then, Anika lay down in bed.

Anika did some research with her phone to see if there were any ways to cure depression.

Anika found a sentence, "I hope you will do your best to heal yourself, instead of fantasizing that someone in this world will help you."

After silently reading it, Anika put her phone away and shut her eyes.

The news of the divorce between Anika and Joshua caused a great uproar.

On that night, Mireya called Anika many times, but Anika couldn't hear them.

Anika woke up the next day.

Anika saw the messages from Mireya.

"Where are you now?

"Who do you think you are? Even if you and Joshua are to get a divorce, he should be the one to initiate it!

"You're a troublemaker! When you got married, your father had an accident. Now you're getting a divorce. Do you want our family to go bankrupt?"

Anika was already used to harsh words like that.

She texted back.

"Mom, we need to rely on ourselves from now on, not others."

Soon, another message came from Mireya.

"You're an ungrateful bitch! I shouldn't have given birth to you!"

Anika put her phone aside without replying.

After a month, Anika would finish the divorce with Joshua. She planned to leave Oasisville to start a new life.

***

In the following days, Anika's condition worsened day by day.

She often experienced moments of deafness, and sometimes it took a long time to recover.

Her memory also continued to decline.

Yesterday, when Anika went out to eat, she couldn't remember the way back to the hotel.

Fortunately, Anika had her phone with navigation.

Her ears couldn't be cured, but her depression could.

Anika tried to make herself happy and kept herself busy.

Anika signed up as a volunteer online to take care of lonely elderly and orphans.

While helping those people, Anika seemed to have found the meaning of life.

Several days had passed.

Anika woke up in the morning and checked the notebook as usual. Then, she prepared to go to the orphanage.

However, when Anika picked up her phone, she found many new messages.

Some messages were from Mireya.

Some were from her younger brother, Eli.

There were even some from Violet.

Anika read the messages one by one.

Mireya: "As you wish, we've lost everything."

Eli: "You can keep avoiding us. I've never seen any sister as heartless and cowardly as you."

Violet: "Anika, don't be too sad. The Carey Group will thrive better under Joshua's control."

Violet: "The Carey family sponsored me before, so if you need anything, just let me know, and I'll do my best to help you."

Anika didn't know what had happened.

When Anika checked out the message page, she received a news update.