Mike stared at me as if I had just told him the world was ending. His eyes grew wide with shock, then quickly turned to pure rage.
"What do you mean, you were fired?!" he shouted. His voice was so loud it seemed to shake the whole room. "What the hell did you do? Tell me right now!"
I stood there frozen, my legs trembling so badly I thought I might fall.
My mouth opened, but no words came out at first. I hadn't done anything wrong.
I had gone to work that morning like every other day, and then Ms. Susan, the manager, had called me into her office and told me I was no longer needed. Just like that.
But the way Mike was looking at me made me feel like the biggest failure in the world.
"I… I didn't do anything," I whispered, my voice small and shaky. "Ms. Susan just saw me this morning and…"
"You're lying!" Mike cut me off sharply. He slammed his fist hard on the dining table. The plates jumped and rattled loudly. "You must have done something stupid! Stop lying to my face, you useless woman! That's why they fired you!"
His mother, who had been sitting quietly in the corner, jumped into the conversation. Her voice was cold and sharp, like a knife. "Yes, she must have done something shameful. No decent boss fires a good worker for nothing."
Tears started burning in my eyes.
I tried to explain, but my voice kept shaking. "Please, just listen to me. It wasn't like that. There was a misunderstanding…"
"Misunderstanding?" Mike laughed bitterly. He stepped closer to me until I could almost feel the heat of his anger on my skin. "You expect us to believe your lies? After everything we've suffered, you come home and drop this bomb on us? How are we supposed to survive if you can't even keep one simple job?!"
His voice grew louder and louder with every word. "If you don't go out right now and look for a job, I will divorce you! Do you hear me? I will divorce you today!"
The words hit me like a hard slap.
My chest felt tight, as if someone had stabbed me with a knife. I tried to beg him. My voice cracked with desperation.
"Please, Mike… just give me one day," I pleaded. Tears were falling freely down my cheeks now. "I'm not feeling well. I was in the hospital last night. Let me rest today and I'll start looking for a job first thing tomorrow morning. Please… I'm begging you…"
But Mike wasn't listening. He shouted even louder, pointing angrily at the door. "No! I don't want to hear your excuses! You are not staying here doing nothing! Get out right now and start looking for a job! I don't want to see your face in this house until you get a job."
His mother nodded quickly, her face twisted with disapproval. "Yes. You have to go and find something immediately. We can't keep you if you're useless."
The tears poured harder down my face.
I felt completely broken. I tried one more time, my voice now completely broken too.
"Please…" I begged. "I'll leave early tomorrow morning. I just need a little time to find a place to stay. Please, don't do this to me…"
Mike turned to his mother. "Pack her things. She has to leave right now."
Something inside me finally snapped. All the pain I had carried for years, all the fear, all the days I had worked so hard while they sat at home, everything exploded at once.
"Fine!" I screamed at the top of my voice. "You know what? We should get the divorce! I'm tired! I'm so tired of carrying both of you on my back! You are so ungrateful! After everything I've done, paying all the bills, buying food, taking care of your mother while you sit at home doing nothing, this is how you treat me? I'm done with both of you!"
Mike looked shocked. He clearly wasn't expecting me to fight back. His mouth hung open and his eyes widened with disbelief.
Then his face hardened again. "Okay," he said in a cold, flat voice. "My lawyer will contact you. But you will not be staying in this house anymore. Get out."
My knees felt weak. I thought I was going to collapse. I tried to beg one last time, my voice full of desperation.
"Please, Mike… at least let me stay until I find a place for myself," I cried. "Just a few days. I won't be any trouble. Please…"
But his mother cut me off. She grabbed my bags and threw them at me violently. Clothes spilled out onto the dirty floor.
"Leave now!" she screamed. "Take your dirty things and get out of our house!"
They both pushed me toward the door.
I quickly picked up my bags with shaking hands and stumbled outside.
The door slammed shut behind me with a loud, final bang that echoed in my ears.
I started walking slowly down the street, tears streaming down my face. The sky had turned completely dark. Suddenly, the rain began to pour.
Heavy drops fell on my head and shoulders, mixing with my hot tears.
I kept walking, not knowing where I was going. My clothes were getting soaked, and my bags felt heavier with every step.
The rain thought it was the perfect time to come down even harder, as if the sky itself wanted to punish me too.
I had no money, no job, and now no home.
The man I had sacrificed everything for had thrown me out like trash. His mother, who I had cared for like my own, had helped him do it.
The pain in my chest was so deep I could barely breathe.
As I walked through the pouring rain, memories flashed through my mind…all the nights I had worked late, all the times I had skipped meals so they could eat, all the insults I had swallowed just to keep the peace. And this was how it ended.
I stopped under a broken streetlight and looked up at the dark sky. The rain washed over my face, but it could not wash away the hurt.
"What am I going to do now?" I whispered to myself.
The street was almost empty. Only the sound of rain hitting the ground and my own quiet sobs filled the night. I had nowhere to go, no one to call. My whole life had fallen apart in just one day.
I tightened my grip on the wet bags and kept walking. One step after another. Even though I didn't know where I was headed, I knew I couldn't stop. I had to keep moving. I had to survive.
Because if I didn't fight for myself now, no one else would.