1. Monster

San Diego, California.

Kathryn gazed at her blank phone screen, frowning. It was already past eleven in the night but her husband, Marcus, had yet to return home from work.

Today is their sixth wedding anniversary, and Kathryn had hoped it wouldn't be like other days.

Despite their bedroom being filled with expensive furniture, there was still a severe lack of warmth. It barely even felt like home, perfectly reflecting her and her husband's relationship.

She had spent the whole day preparing for their anniversary, cooking their favourite dishes, arranging candles and rose petals all over the room, and slipping into her most seductive red lingerie, the same set Marcus once adored.

She had called Marcus's secretary earlier and was informed her husband had left office since 5 pm. Wondering where he could be by this time, she kept rolling on the bed.

Sighing deeply, Kathryn sat up and tried calling his number again. As usual, it went straight to voicemail. For the past four years in their marriage, it seemed like Marcus' phone number would always be switched off or out of coverage whenever she called.

"Where'd you gone, Marcus?" She mumbled to herself, her brow furrowed with worry.

She glanced at her phone again, willing it to ring and hoping it was her husband. It was almost midnight and she was starting to get desperate.

Marcus' mother, Mrs Thompson, was downstairs, but Kathryn couldn't go to her. Knowing her mother-in-law, all that awaited Kathryn if she dared ask where Marcus could be, would be unending insults and ridicule.

The best she could do to enjoy her anniversary was to stay away from her mother-in-law tonight.

Kathryn was still staring at her phone when faint shuffling sounds from outside caught her attention.

"That must be Marcus!" She sounded excited, and immediately sat up a bit, adjusting the lingerie to look sexy for him.

Straining her ears, she heard footsteps of him coming upstairs. But it wasn't just one set, but two!

Alarmed, Kathryn heard Marcus' voice, followed by the sound of high heels tapping against the hardwood floor. Her heart sank as she realized he wasn't alone.

She quickly bolted out of bed to wear something on the lingerie, only to have the door thrown open, nearly hitting her face if she hadn't backed away in time.

Kathryn's eyes widened in shock, her lips parted in disbelief as she saw Marcus enter the bedroom, arm in arm with Julia Robert, a tall, slender woman in a revealing black dress.

Marcus' hand was over Julia's shoulder and hers was placed securely at his waist.

The sight of them together, on their anniversary no less, felt like a dagger to Kathryn's heart, and her heart immediately fell to the floor. She wanted to believe it was just a bad dream, but the reality of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks.

Seeing rose petals all over the room, Marcus locked eyes with Kathryn, glaring at what she wore. "What's going on here?" He demanded, his voice cold and detached.

"Where have you been all day?" Kathryn asked, ignoring Marcus' question and Julia's existence as much as she could. In return, Julia merely smirked haughtily.

"That doesn't answer my question, woman!" Marcus snapped back. "What's all this nonsense stuff doing on my bed?!" He gestured to the rose petals and the red wine.

"Don't tell me you forgot what today is, Marcus?" Kathryn asked under her breath, her heart pounding so fast.

"So?"

"So we should be celebrating it together and not you bringing a slut into our home!" Kathryn yelled.

"Hey, old hag," Julia interjected with a wave of hand. "For clarity, I am not a slut!"

Ignoring her existence, Kathryn returned her attention to her husband. "I've been trying to call you all night but your number kept going straight to voicemail! Do you even know how worried I was?! Or how I tried so hard putting everything in---"

"Who asked you to?" With a dismissive tone, Marcus abruptly cut her off mid-way. "And who the hell do you think you are to ask about my whereabouts?"

"I am your wife, Marcus!" Kathryn uttered through gritted teeth. Her hands trembled while she clenched her fists tightly.

She could feel the back of her eyes starting to turn a bit hot with tears, yet she forcefully held them back.

"I have told you countless times to just sign the goddamn divorce papers and get all these done with," Marcus yelled, pointing at the stack of documents placed on the table beside their bedside. "Just get out of my life! Don't you understand?"

"But, Marcus---" Kathryn wanted to say something but a lump formed in her throat, disrupted by Marcus, who brushed past her while still holding Julia tight to himself.

As if Kathryn wasn't standing there, he pressed his lips passionately against Julia's as they both tumbled on the bed, happily, causing Kathryn's goosebumps to rise.

This wasn't the first time Marcus had spoken so rudely to her. Almost every day within the last four years of their marriage, this was the way they had interacted.

However, the fact that he dared to bring a mistress into their matrimonial home, still caused Kathryn's heart to shatter. Her fingers fisted the fabric of her lingerie, promising herself not to cry out loud in front of them.

"Marcus," Kathryn called out. "Don't you have any little shame left in you anymore? Doing all this rubbish in front of me? On our matrimonial bed? Really?"

But her words only seemed to stoke the flames of Marcus's fury. With a guttural growl, he snatched the bottle of red wine beside him and hurled it across the room. "Get the hell outta here!" He yelled.

Kathryn's breath instantly caught in her throat as the bottle sailed through the air, missing her by inches and shattering against the wall with a deafening crash.

Where she stood, her body had started trembling, and her palms became sweaty. Her heart rate was beating faster than normal. What just happened now? Did Marcus just get violent with her for the first time?

Seeing the kind of monster Marcus had become, memories of happier times flooded Kathryn's mind. Their wedding day, the early two years of their marriage filled with love and laughter.

But those memories were instantly overshadowed by the despair of their present situation, by Marcus's continuous indifference towards her.

With her red eyes and unstable legs, Kathryn quickly and calmly picked her nightgown from the wardrobe and left the room.

Those two adulterers didn't even bother to spare a glance at her, as they continued what they were doing, falling back against each other on the plush king-sized bed, locking lips...